Check out today's stories…….lots of good reading that's thought provoking. And not ONE about the Trump-Fox feud. You can read that everywhere else.  Lots of really well written pieces on a variety of subjects that are relevant to many of you in different ways. Start Up? Got a few. Growing a business.. Yup there's some. Tools? Sure got 'em. What's coming up from the big players? They're there…and much, much more…so have a read, over coffee–yes, that's included.

Have a view on the news today? Please let me know what you think….Andy Abramson

F.C.C. Proposes Changes in Set-Top Box Market

WASHINGTON – The cable set-top box, long a scourge of consumers and a moneymaker for cable companies, appears set for a makeover. The Federal Communications Commission on Wednesday announced a proposal that would make it much easier for subscribers of cable and satellite television to pick the boxes they use to watch programming.

Aussie startup signs US deal worth up to $100 million

Chief executive and co-founder of Unlockd Matt Berriman in New York. Photo: Adam Lerner A Melbourne startup which offers a "freemium​" ad supported phone plan has signed a deal with Boost Mobile in the United States which it expects to be worth over $100 million in revenue.

(Un)folding a virtual journey with Google Cardboard

A year and a half ago we introduced Google Cardboard, a simple cardboard viewer that anyone can use to experience mobile virtual reality (VR). With just Cardboard and the smartphone in your pocket, you can travel to faraway places and visit imagined worlds.

Google reveals Cardboard virtual reality numbers, and VR films are the surprise winner

Just one day after we highlighted Google's apparent interest in creating virtual reality hardware, the company came out on Wednesday to refocus attention on Google Cardboard by revealing some numbers around its adoption rate.

Mexico is having the grown-up conversation about marijuana that every country should have

Mexican lawmakers this week launched a national debate on a topic that officials around the world have been struggling to address: marijuana legalization. Over the next three weeks, the Mexican Congress is holding a series of public hearings (link in Spanish) on whether and how to regulate marijuana.

Apple likely to debut iPad Air 3 at March event; new Apple Watch models revealed

Apple is planning to introduce new iPad hardware at an event in mid-March, according to sources, with the most likely device being a new iPad Air. This new iPad with a 9.7-inch screen, presumably to be called the "iPad Air 3," will be launched alongside the a new 4-inch iPhone known as the " iPhone 5se" and a series of new Apple Watch models.

Siri, Alexa and Other Virtual Assistants Put to the Test

WHEN I asked Alexa earlier this week who was playing in the Super Bowl, she responded, somewhat monotonously, " Super Bowl 49's winner is New England Patriots." "Come on, that's last year's Super Bowl," I said. "Even I can do better than that." At the time, I was actually alone in my living room.

New cloud storage options for Office mobile and Office Online – Office Blogs

Today, we're making Office even easier for customers to use with cloud storage providers by adding real-time co-authoring with Office Online for documents stored in partner cloud services, extending our Office for iOS integration to all partners in the CSPP, and enabling integration between Outlook.com and cloud storage providers Dropbox and Box.

Box, Dropbox users can now edit Office documents together in real time

Business users who rely on cloud storage providers like Dropbox and Box now have some improved tools in their collaboration arsenal, thanks to a set of integrations that Microsoft announced Wednesday. Starting Wednesday, Office Online users can work in real time on documents, spreadsheets and presentations shared inside Box, Dropbox, Citrix ShareFile and Egnyte.

Why are the elderly ignored by the tech industry?

The tech industry needs to stop being so dunderheaded about technology for the elderly. For the past decade, the industry has been laser-focused on transforming life and work for one rocketing market segment: 25-year-olds with money. It has routinely avoided, underestimated or remained ignorant about the world's other rocketing market segment: old people and the family members who take care of them.

The end of app stores as we know them – Inside Intercom

Uber isn't just killing the taxi industry. Its relentless approach to distribution and scale is also putting a nail in the coffin of app stores. Smart companies like Uber are rewriting the app distribution rulebook. Instead of being a bland icon lost amongst millions of others,… Read more

The Other Kind of Traction You Need to Get Funded

One of the earliest lessons a new VC learns is about building consensus within a firm. No matter what the voting structure is in your partnership, I think every VC can think of a deal that they got completely excited about, only to have the deal crash and burn when they showed it to the rest of their team.

Coffee may not be as bad for your heart as you might think

Drinking coffee regularly does not cause the heart to beat more, a new study has found. The findings go against previous studies which suggested that drinking coffee raises the heart rate, and have prompted the research team to call for clinical recommendations against caffeine to be reconsidered.

Food Testing Start-Up Looks to Stand Out With a New Wrinkle

Nothing unnerves consumers more and drives them away from a restaurant, food or beverage faster than a flurry of headlines about people being sickened by dreaded bacteria like E. coli or listeria. Just ask Chipotle Mexican Grill, which has been scrambling to recover from a multistate E.

Every Imaginable Damn Startup Podcast Reviewed

As a long-distance commuter, I listen to a LOT of podcasts. And given the explosion in podcasts on tech startups, it's hard to keep track of them all. There really isn't a good discovery source, although Product Hunt and The Podcast Wire come closest. So here's the survey we've been missing.