IP addresses are what computers use to actually talk to servers, so you can get the latest from the grapevine on Facebook. The IP address allows your computer to address the packets to Facebook, and it allows the computers in between to know which way to send those packets.

What your computer doesn’t know, and doesn’t really care about, is the physical location of that IP. It can be literally anywhere on the world, as long as it’s reachable via the internet, the IP address allows routing packets to it.

Humans, on the other hand, sometimes do care where an IP address might be located. You could track stolen computers by seeing which IPs they were used from, and police tracks criminal activity based on IP addresses as well. But turning an IP address into a physical address isn’t as straightforward as you might think.

Until you google, and discover websites that promise to do exactly that. Enter an IP, and it’ll give you a precise address for it.

There’s just one problem: Those results might range from very accurate to extremely inaccurate. The websites just don’t tell you that, unless you read the fine print.

Some IPs are easily mapped. IPs belonging to a company are probably located at their office or datacenter. Or cars outfitted with scanners are sent through cities, to see which WiFi networks map to which IP address. They can also buy location data from various tracking companies that infest your smartphone apps. But some addresses can’t be easily mapped, and at best, you can tell what state they’re in. In this case, the address often defaults to the “middle” — as in, whatever street is closest to the geographical middle of a state. And if you happen to live there, then you’ll get a lot of visitors wanting their stolen laptops or smartphones back, and even police officers believing you’re harboring wanted criminals. The same happened to a couple in Atlanta, and a random farm in Kansas.

It’s a stark reminder that just because some website present seemingly accurate results, that they actually are.

It’s Like Game of Thrones, In Space, And You’re Living It

Most massive multiplayer online games have fairly static worlds, only changing when the game’s designers want them to. EVE Online, on the other hand, has few rules, and leaves everything else up to the players. This results in a game world that features more drama, backstabbing, and brutal battles to make George R. R. Martin blush. EVE’s battles and wars can be so large, ferocious, and costly, to make real-world headlines. The most recent epic: The Year-Long, Undercover Plot To Blow Up EVE Online’s Most Notorious Space Station. And if you’d like to know more, I can highly recommend Andrew Groen’s Empires of EVE books.

The Promised Future is Finally, Partly, Here

As Marty McFly hath promised, Nike has released¹ the Adapt BB self-lacing sneakers that let you tie your shoes from an app. Although considering this 2019, they probably also track your location for advertising purposes. McFly didn’t warn us about that.

Old News

You’ve heard about the fake news that’s plaguing Facebook. But where does it come from, and who is posting it? As it turns out, few people shared fake news in 2016 election, but seniors shared the most — even when controlled for party affiliation.

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