Personal Tech: The Biggest Tech Failures and Successes of 2017

A year in review on tech's highs and lows. View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Friday, December 15, 2017 [NYTimes.com/PersonalTech »]( Each week, the Personal Tech newsletter rounds up the best stories about technology and how we use it in our everyday lives. That includes tips about troubleshooting devices, advice on being a smarter shopper and news stories about the tech companies that make your gadgets and apps. [A screen showing Richard F. Smith, the former chief executive of Equifax, testifying to Congress about the credit agency’s major data breach.]( A screen showing Richard F. Smith, the former chief executive of Equifax, testifying to Congress about the credit agency’s major data breach. Pete Marovich for The New York Times [Tech Fix]( [The Biggest Tech Failures and Successes of 2017]( By BRIAN X. CHEN Epic failures this year exposed your personal data to hackers, wasted your money on unnecessary or ethically dubious products and fed you misinformation. ADVERTISEMENT State of the Art [How 2017 Became a Turning Point for Tech Giants]( By FARHAD MANJOO For the first time, big tech companies began to accept responsibility in 2017 for how their platforms affect the world. The scope of that change remains unclear. The Shift [I Was Wrong About Bitcoin. Here’s Why.]( By KEVIN ROOSE Our columnist predicted in 2013 that Bitcoin, then a new digital currency, would soon die. He points to five assumptions he got wrong. [Can Texting Save Lives?]( By SAMANTHA STARK, SARAH KRAMER, JAWAD METNI AND VANESSA CARR Crisis Text Line is upending the suicide hotline, modernizing it for today’s teenagers, one text at a time. Itineraries [Airports Are Losing Money as Ride-Hailing Services Grow]( By AMY ZIPKIN Fewer people are parking their cars at airports, using taxis or renting cars. And fees from Uber and Lyft do not make up for the lost revenue from those services. [F.C.C. Repeals Net Neutrality Rules]( By CECILIA KANG In a 3-to-2 vote along party lines, the agency scrapped Obama-era rules meant to protect an open internet. [Net Neutrality Repeal: What Could Happen and How It Could Affect You]( By STEVE LOHR For you and me, the Federal Communications Commission’s plan to repeal net neutrality rules can be boiled down to two questions: What might happen? And who do you trust? [Will Robots Take Our Children’s Jobs?]( By ALEX WILLIAMS Artificial intelligence may make half of today’s jobs obsolete in 20 years. What careers will be left when our children grow up? [DNA Tattoos Are the Final Frontier of Love]( By MIKE ISAAC A nifty new patented technology allows you to take your loved ones with you wherever and forever. Yes, even cats. Talk about “Winona Forever”! Tech We’re Using [Busting the Myths About A.I. Invading Our Lives]( By CADE METZ Cade Metz, a technology reporter for The Times, assesses the pitfalls of A.I. and the possibilities that Skynet will rule us. ADVERTISEMENT INTERESTED IN ALL THINGS TECH? The daily Bits newsletter will keep you updated on the latest from Silicon Valley and the technology industry, plus exclusive analysis from our reporters and editors. You can sign up [here](. Tech Tips From J.D. Biersdorfer [2017’s Best Technology Tips and Tricks: You Asked, We Answered]( By J. D. BIERSDORFER Readers of The Times’s personal technology section had lots of questions. Here we highlight the most compelling — in terms of their connection to current events or in reader response. [Drawing on the Desktop]( By J. D. BIERSDORFER If you don’t have a tablet or touch-screen device for your artwork, you can use an add-on pen and tablet to sketch on your computer. [Moving Notes in Google Keep to Other Programs]( By J. D. BIERSDORFER The handy note-taking application includes an option to easily save your jottings as a word-processing document. [Protecting Your Data When Using Browser Extensions]( By J. D. BIERSDORFER Those useful little programs that expand your web browser’s powers sometimes require a lot of access to your personal information. [Moving Your Number and Going Mobile]( By J. D. BIERSDORFER If you are staying within the same geographic area, transferring your old wired phone number to a mobile device could be easier than you think. HOW ARE WE DOING? We’d love your feedback on this newsletter. Please email thoughts and suggestions to [personaltech_newsletter@nytimes.com](mailto:personaltech_newsletter@nytimes.com?subject=Personal Tech Newsletter%20Feedback). LIKE THIS EMAIL? Forward it to your friends, and let them know they can sign up [here](. FOLLOW NYTimes [Facebook] [FACEBOOK]( [Twitter] [@NYTimes]( [Pinterest] [Pinterest]( ABOUT THIS EMAIL You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Personal Tech newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Change Your Email]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact]( | [Advertise]( Copyright 2017 The New York Times Company 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018