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Dark Sky was a rarity in the app world. Universally beloved, the weather app had an uncanny ability to tell you when to expect rain, down to the minute. So when Apple announced plans to buy it six years ago, there was a collective sigh of frustration. The Android version, of course, disappeared almost immediately, while the iOS version was folded into Apples native Weather app. (The stand-alone iPhone app was discontinued.) The integration was never quite the same, though, and it seemed as if the magic of Dark Sky was lost. Now, however, the team behind the app is hoping lightning strikes twice. The developers of Dark Sky have announced a new iPhone app called Acme Weather, a tool meant to address the uncertainty inherent in meteorological forecasts. (An Android version is forthcoming.) “It is a simple fact that no weather forecast will ever be 100% reliable: the weather is moody, fickle, and chaotic. Forecasts are often wrong,” the team writes in its announcement blog post. “Rather than pretending we will always be right, Acme Weather embraces the idea that our forecast will sometimes be wrong.” In practical terms, that means Acme Weather, which comes with a two-week free trial and then costs $25 per year, offers its best estimate for a range of weather data points, including temperature throughout the day (as well as the feels-like temperature), dew point, humidity, and more. Those predictions appear as a dark line. Alternate possibilities appear as lighter shaded lines layered on top. The closer those lines are to each other, the more confident the forecast. A wider gap signals more uncertainty, suggesting you may want to monitor conditions more closely and check the app more frequently to see how things are trending. The homegrown forecasts, the team says, will be even more accurate than those in Dark Sky, thanks to a wide range of data sources, including numerical weather prediction models, satellite data, ground station observations, and radar. The app will also incorporate community reports, letting people share conditions in their area. That could be especially helpful during severe weather, as radar is not 100% reliable. It has trouble, for instance, recognizing the difference between freezing rain and snow sometimes. Reporting the weather is simple: Choose the icon that reflects current conditions. And, if youd like, you can add commentary by selecting an emoji to reflect how the weather feels. (Yes, the poop emoji is an option for particularly rough days.) Just note that by using the community reporting feature, you will disclose your location to other users. While the app doesnt reveal an exact address or identifying information, it does display your location on the map at the time of reporting with a fairly high degree of accuracy. (Community reporting is completely optional, but cannot be withdrawn once submitted.) The company, in its announcement, pledged not to collect unnecessary data, use third-party trackers, or sell user information to advertisers. The app also features the maps you would expect, including radar and lightning. It will offer rain and snow totals, hurricane tracks, and cloud cover. And, like Dark Sky, it will alert you when weather is approaching. This time, though, you can customize alerts based on what you care about, from rain to nearby lightning to the possibility of a rainbow or especially striking sunset. “Weve been making weather apps for 15 years, from Dark Sky to Apple, and this is the culmination (the acme?) of everything weve learned along the way,” the blog post reads. “Its the weather app weve always wanted, and always wanted to build.”
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E-Commerce
I want a space odyssey. I wanted Star Wars. I got close to that once. Thats production designer Hannah Beachler, talking about the grand filmic world she wants to build next. For our February episode of By Design, we spoke to Beachler (Creed, Black Panther) about her latest work with director Ryan Coogler on Sinnersthe most Oscar-nominated film of all time. We caught up with her last time before she bagged an Oscar on Black Panther and then designed the sequel. https://statics.teams.cdn.office.net/evergreen-assets/safelinks/2/atp-safelinks.html Shes up for her second Academy Award for production design on Sinners next month, and she shared the painstaking process she takes to build historically authentic and thematically rich sets, even when that means investing in details that the audience will never see. Oh, and for the first time, we put that entire interview up on YouTube, if you prefer to watch the interview rather than just listen. We also got into a lot of hot topics: saying farewell to the best and worst designs of the Olympics, breaking down what it means now that ads are on ChatGPT, and exploring the ins and outs of LoveFroms new collaboration on Ferraris Luce EV. And to cap things off? We pick a long-overdue fight with Microsoft Teams in a segment called Fix Your Shit. Have you ever met a single other human who liked that software? Neither have we. Listen to our latest episode on Apple Music or Spotify, and catch the video interview on YouTube.
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E-Commerce
Meatball fans beware: A nationwide recall is underway for a popular brand of frozen meatballs sold at Aldi. The recall is due to the possibility that the product may contain metal fragments, which could cause serious injury if consumed. Heres what you need to know. Whats happened? On Sunday, the U.S. Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) posted a safety alert about a Class 1 recallthe highest possible designation the agency assigns to recalled products. A Class 1 recall means that there is a health hazard situation where there is a reasonable probability that use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death, according to the agency. The Class 1 recall covers a Bremer-branded ready-to-eat frozen meatball product sold at Aldi stores. The recalled meatballs were produced by Rosina Food Products, Inc., a West Seneca, N.Y., company, which initiated the recall. Approximately 9,462 pounds of the frozen meatball product are being recalled. The issue at hand is that the recalled meatballs may contain metal fragments, which could harm individuals who consume them. What meatball product is being recalled? The recall covers only one meatball product sold under the Bremer brand. That product is: 32-oz. printed poly film bag packages of fully cooked frozen Bremer FAMILY SIZE ITALIAN STYLE MEATBALLS containing about 64 meatballs per package with BEST BY date of 10/30/26 with timestamps between 17:08 through 18:20 printed on the back of the label. According to the recall notice, the recalled product has an establishment number of EST. 4286B inside the USDA mark of inspection. The products were produced on July 30, 2025. Images of the recalled products packaging can be found here. Where were the recalled meatballs sold? According to the FSIS notice, the recalled product was shipped to Aldi supermarket locations nationwide. Has anyone been harmed from eating the recalled meatballs? As of the recall notices posting date, no one is known to have been injured due to the consumption of the recalled product. However, the issue was discovered after a consumer reported to the FSIS that they found metal fragments in the meatballs. What should I do if I have the recalled meatballs? Given that the recalled product has a 15-month shelf life, the FSIS is concerned that consumers may have purchased the meatballs a while ago, yet might still have them in their freezers or refrigerators. If you think you may have purchased the recalled meatballs, you should check your freezers and refrigerators for them. If you have the recalled products, the FSIS says you should not consume them. Instead, you should throw the product away or return it to its place of purchase. Full details about the meatball recall can be found on the FSISs website here.
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E-Commerce
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