Hacking Emperor

Spotify lets you customize some aspects of your experience, whether on the desktop, web, Android, or iOS app. And one of the simplest yet coolest customizations you can perform is changing your playlist cover images. However, it doesn't work on all playlists. Usually, if there are more than four albums in a custom playlist, you'll get a two-by-two grid of album artwork from the first albums within. That may help you remember the types of music inside if you can't tell by your playlist's title, but it's not as smooth and shareable as a one-image custom picture. Don't Miss: 5 Wild Things You... more http://dlvr.it/SnBfbT

One aspect of Android's interface that remains clunky is its gesture- or button-based navigation bar, mainly because app developers aren't fully utilizing the tools available to them. But a new feature Google is working on may finally make your nav bar more uniform across your apps. Since its introduction in Android 10, the gesture navigation system has become the default method for switching between apps, jumping to the home screen, and tapping back through apps. But the three-button navigation bar is still there if you want to use it. Either way, Android app developers have tools to make... more http://dlvr.it/Sn7LRt

Android has a new security feature that every Android smartphone user needs to start using — even you. It won't change how you use your phone, but it will make life harder for nearby thieves. One of the oldest tricks in the book of smartphone thieves is watching someone within eyeshot enter their passcode or PIN to unlock their phone. There's no high-tech hackery involved. It's just eyes and memory. And the phone becomes a target in the thief's crosshairs as soon as the code is known. If they successfully snatch it, they can wreak all kinds of havoc. A report by The Wall Street Journal... more http://dlvr.it/Sn1KGs

Compared to Apple's iOS, the Android operating system has earned a reputation for giving smartphone users more customization options up front — but there are even more Android features to customize hidden from plain view behind secret menus like the developer options. Despite its name, Android's developer options can benefit everyone, but you have to unlock them first. The hidden developer options menu on Android can be helpful in a wide variety of uses, from forcing all apps to work with split-screen mode to trying upcoming features before everyone else. You could even unlock tablet-only... more http://dlvr.it/SmmgYY

Because our smartphones are ever present, frequently used apps become the topic of conversation in social situations. This often leads to sharing app links via messages, either by copying/pasting an app's URL or sending it through the sharing menu. However, there's another way to share an app, and it's most valuable when you need to share multiple apps and app updates without an internet connection. For instance, I rediscovered Pokemon Go and several companion apps that aide in Pokemon capture. When I'm out and about, I'll pop open the game to see what's available to catch or if there are any... more http://dlvr.it/SmSMv9

Now that Bard — Google's response to the revolutionary ChatGPT generative AI chatbot — is out in the wild, it's beginning to let its freak flag fly. Sure, Google wants us to know that its generative artificial intelligence chatbot can write blog posts about summer mocktail recipes or compile a camping gear checklist. Still, there are more eyebrow-raising options as well. Check out some examples below, then see what wild responses you can get from Bard. Don't Miss: How to Use Google's New AI Chatbot Bard to Generate Text-Based Content on Anything 1. Renaissance Bard I'm in a couple of bands... more http://dlvr.it/SmL9Jg

There's more than one way to get free credits and discounts in the Google Play Store for apps, games, books, movies, in-app items, and other Play Store content. You may know a few of them — but some of these may surprise you. When it comes to spending on apps, games, and in-app purchases, Apple's app store has consistently outperformed Google's, earning nearly double the sales annually. While you'd be hard-pressed to find free credits and deals for the Apple App Store, the opposite is true for the Google Play Store. Let's double down on the earned stereotype of the frugal Android user by... more http://dlvr.it/Sm0mRl

Generative artificial intelligence has taken the tech world by storm, and Google's AI chatbot will give you a taste of what it offers. By learning patterns from existing data, generative AI can create new text, images, music, and other types of content from simple commands. While it doesn't always provide perfect results, it can generate highly realistic content that can be used in various applications, such as creating new art, designing products, building recipes, or developing realistic simulations. It may seem like cheating, but generative AI can help humans be more creative and... more http://dlvr.it/SlxSFr