Computer tricks and tips by Mukteshwar Tak

United States District Court Judge Richard J. Leon has ruled in favor of AT&T in the government’s antitrust suit to block AT&T’s proposed merger with Time Warner . That decision matches word on the street over the past few weeks, and delivers a stern rebuke to the Trump administration, which had opposed the deal from its earliest days. The decision was made following the close of markets in New York, and after-hours trading was muted to the decision. In light of today’s decision, Comcast, which has been eyeing its own content creator takeover of 21st Century Fox, will likely move forward with a bid as early as tomorrow. In October 2016, AT&T announced its plan to acquire Time Warner for $85.4 billion, and a total of $108 billion with debt. The DOJ moved to block the merger in March, arguing that the merger would reduce competition and hurt consumer choice. The nuances of this case are important , as the implications of this decision reach far beyond the individual busi

LOLA , a subscription service delivering tampons and pads, and now other products, including condoms, lubricant, and feminine cleansing wipes, has closed on $24 million in Series B funding. While the startup touts its products’ “100% organic” nature, it’s also well-received because of the customization offered and its direct-to-consumer nature. The new round of financing was led by private equity firm Alliance Consumer Growth (ACG), with support from existing investors Spark Capital, Lerer Hippeau and Brand Foundry Ventures. To date, LOLA has raised $11.2 million, from investors including also BBG Ventures, 14W, the founders of Warby Parker and Harry’s, Sweetgreen, Bonobos, and Insomnia Cookies. Celebs like Serena Williams, Karlie Kloss, Lena Dunham, and Allison Williams have also invested. Launched in 2015, LOLA’s founders Alex Friedman and Jordana Kier had the idea to challenge industry giants, like Tampax and Playtex, with a 100% organic product. “We founded LOLA with a simpl

In 2014, it seemed like pretty much anyone with a pulse and pitch deck was capable of raising huge amounts of capital from prestigious venture capital firms at sky-high valuations. Here we are  four years later and times have changed. VCs inked a little more than 3,100 deals in the last quarter of 2017, according to Crunchbase  — about 500 fewer than the previous quarter. For aspiring startup founders, it’s a “confusing time in the so-called Unicorn story,” as Erin Griffith put it in a column last May — an asset bubble that never really popped, but which at the very least is deflating. In the confirmation hearing for new SEC Chairman Jay Clayton, lawmakers lamented the dearth of initial public offerings as companies that thrived in private markets — from Snap to Blue Apron — have struggled to deliver meaningful returns to investors. This all creates a number of dilemmas for founders looking to raise capital and scale businesses in 2018. VCs remain an integral part of the innovati

Tesla has laid off about nine percent of its employees, Electrek first reported . This is part of the reorganization Musk talked about in May on the company’s quarterly earnings call. The layoffs reportedly started on Monday and will be made official at some point today. Tesla, which also operates SolarCity, is only laying off salaried employees. Tesla isn’t letting go any production associates, as the company is trying to ramp up Model 3 production. “We made these decisions by evaluating the criticality of each position, whether certain jobs could be done more efficiently and productively, and by assessing the specific skills and abilities of each individual in the company,” Tesla CEO Elon Musk wrote to employees in an email obtained by TechCrunch. “As you know, we are also continuing to flatten our management structure to help us communicate better, eliminate bureaucracy and move faster.” When Tesla acquired SolarCity in 2016, its headcount increased to more than 30,000 employee

As rumored, Fornite is coming to the Nintendo Switch . In fact, it’s arriving even earlier than we imagined, available today as a free download from the Nintendo eShop. The addition widens the play field for the title’s wildly popular gameplay. The Epic game is currently available on PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and iOS, in addition to the new Nintendo console. And while cross-platform play has been the key to the battle royale mode, Sony’s long been a bit of a stick in the mud on this one. The Xbox One version, for instance, can be played with PC and iOS. Ditto for the PS4 version. But Xbox One and PS4 cross-play is a non-starter. The Verge noted that the same appears to be the case with the Nintendo Switch version, a fact that TechCrunch has since verified with an Epic spokesperson. “ Cross-play and cross progression on Switch work with Xbox One, PC, Mac, and mobile,” the company confirmed. We’ve also reached out to both Nintendo and Sony on the matter, to see what the hang up i

Nintendo came out with the big guns for its pre-recorded E3 conference this morning, delivering updates on a couple of veteran franchises while also bringing some new titles to its Switch console. We didn’t get a ton of big surprises, but what Nintendo showed off was certainly exciting to a lot of fans. The bulk of the presentation was (as expected) devoted to the intimate minutiae of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, which is arriving at the end of the year and will bring the biggest cast to the game ever, with some new characters arriving alongside the entire cast of the series’ previous iterations. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Super Mario Party and Fortnite were probably the biggest highlights, but let’s take a look at everything they talked about. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate One of the crazier parts of this announcement included the fact that Nintendo has made a redesigned GameCube controller, which will be compatible with the game and will be supporting your old GameCube controller

Nintendo sure thinks so. Take that, The Avengers . The game is certainly a massive undertaking and a comprehensive Nintendo history lesson, including every playable character from past Super Smash Bros . versions. A handful of additions were announced this morning during Nintendo’s E3 kickoff event, including also-ran Super Mario princess, Daisy; new Pokemon; Splatoon ’s Inkling and perennial Metroid baddie, Ridley. The company didn’t give specifics with regard to the number of playable characters in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate , but it’s definitely well into the dozens, with more being announced as we push toward the December 7 release date. It seems there’s still a lot to unpack, even beyond the 25 minutes of footage the company debuted this morning.  “At E3, we’re showing how Nintendo Switch continues to redefine play, with the broadest range of games people can enjoy together anytime, anywhere,” said NOA President Reggie Fils-Aime said in a statement tied to the news. “Fans w