techietricks.com Up to the minute tech news from around the web.

Apple has announced a big expansion of its US operations, at the heart of which is a new $1 billion campus in Austin, its third in the city. Apple’s approach comes in marked contrast to Amazon’s recent search for the location of its second headquarters, which over the course of …

A year after Amazon announced it would resume selling Google Chromecasts, the streaming pucks are finally available to buy from its store, reports Android Police. Originally, Amazon had said that selling a streaming device that didn’t support its own Prime Video streaming service would cause “customer confusion,” and it also …

Google ‘s (GOOG, GOOGL) Maps can now show you a new two-wheeled transportation option: Lime’s battery-powered scooters. Beginning Dec. 13, both Android and iOS versions of Maps will point users to Lime scooters available for rent in 13 cities: Austin, Baltimore, Dallas, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, San Diego, Oakland, San Antonio, …

Google (GOOG, GOOGL) is still fighting Russian agitators seeking to penetrate its services in an effort to spread disinformation and sow discord among Americans. That’s according to CEO Sundar Pichai, who sat before the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday to discuss how the search giant collects user data. The hearing, …

A lot of people have become bored with SMS messaging, and the tech industry is very aware of it. While services such as Apple’s iMessage, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp allow you to add photos, GIFs and videos to your messages, they are not universal solutions — for example, you can’t …

ZeniMax Media and Facebook today settled a long-running legal dispute over the creation of the Oculus Rift VR headset, which ZeniMax claimed was the result of stolen trade secrets (including code and research) shared by ex-ZeniMax employees who had been hired by Oculus. Among those hires was John Carmack, the …

One day after Google CEO Sundar Pichai was questioned on data privacy during a House hearing, a group of 15 Democratic senators has proposed a new bill for protecting personal information online. The Data Care Act, proposed by Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI) and more than a dozen co-sponsors, including Amy …

CES may not be for another few weeks, but Samsung is already getting the ball rolling on new products, starting with an updated version of the Notebook 9 Pen laptop — which now comes in a new, 15-inch size, in addition to the old 13-inch form factor. Previously, only the …

The New York Civil Liberties Union has filed a lawsuit against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement over changes to the agency’s Risk Classification Assessment (RCA) software, which is used when ICE detains someone for deportation proceedings. The tool provides an algorithm-based recommendation on whether an immigrant should be detained in …

The Free Music Archive — a free-to-use collection of music that’s shared and curated by artists — was supposed to close last month, following a funding shortage. Instead, the Archive will live on: it’s been bought by the camera and gear rental marketplace KitSplit. “Many of us at KitSplit have …