Microsoft copied a third party's software.
And the code review department is nowhere to be found.

The Great Corporate Stapler Heist

Microsoft, that big software company, apparently tried to borrow the communal office supplies and forgot to ask anyone. The technical blog post from Philip Laine details the moment when a popular open-source project he maintains was essentially absorbed by a Microsoft product in a way that feels less like partnership and more like a quiet takeover without a courtesy email. This situation is being framed by Laine as a "fork" of his entire project; a term which, in corporate-speak, means they opened the project's desk drawer, took the good pens, and then claimed the pens were always part of their enterprise stationery initiative.

The comments on the original discussion thread suggest a weary acceptance that this is simply the nature of engaging with a major corporation; the moment a side project gets popular enough to solve a real user problem, it becomes a feature request for the nearest tech giant. One cynical software architect wrote that this is just the "Open Source lifecycle" which moves from "Inception" to "Growth" and finally "Acquired by Microsoft without paperwork." They even managed to confuse the original project's users by bundling an outdated version. Microsoft has not yet issued a memo to explain this administrative oopsie, which is probably for the best.

Accounting Mistake Puts Uber in Time-Out

The Federal Trade Commission took action against Uber for what can only be described as a recurring decimal point error in their billing system. Specifically, the ride-sharing platform allegedly charged customers for cancelled rides they never actually took and sometimes charged people for subscriptions they did not ask for. This is simply the result of a database that is trying too hard to please its financial controller.

The corporate response to this kind of regulatory action is always the same; an announcement that the "team is diligently working to patch the legacy billing module" and that "customer satisfaction is paramount." Uber is paying a settlement, which is essentially just a fine for failing to file the correct paperwork with the federal government. The customers, of course, are still waiting for the automated refund process to kick in, which has been scheduled for sometime after the next major platform redesign.

Legacy Hardware is the New Cloud

A sysadmin has proven that the latest, most energy-efficient server racks are entirely unnecessary by choosing to host a personal blog on a decade-old Nintendo Wii console. The dedicated engineer managed to get a full web server running on the little white box that was originally designed to track arm movements. This is the kind of resource management that makes a tired Systems Administrator weep with pride.

The accomplishment is not the hosting itself, but the sheer spite required to bypass thousands of dollars in annual AWS fees by repurposing a device that has been collecting dust in an entertainment center. It is a powerful reminder that "The Cloud" is not some ethereal entity; it is just a very expensive Linux machine sitting in a building far away. The author also notes that the power consumption is low, meaning this whole endeavor is more environmentally friendly than most blockchain applications.

Briefs

• Nostalgia Computing: The Evertop project introduces an IBM XT clone that uses an E-ink screen to provide 100+ hours of battery life. It looks like a beige lunchbox; perfect for the person who wants to debug assembly code on the commute.
• Meta's Obvious Discovery: A new study suggests that deactivating Facebook and Instagram has a positive effect on a user's emotional state, a finding that will shock absolutely no one who has ever closed their laptop for five minutes. The social media giant will interpret this as a bug and issue a patch immediately.
• Hardware-as-a-Service Expansion: DJI, the drone manufacturer, has begun selling customers a new camera only to immediately charge them for a license to actually use all of its advanced features, confirming that buying a physical product is now just a down payment on an indefinite subscription.