Boeing’s Starliner carried a ‘Kerbal Space Program’ character to the ISS

After two-and-a-half years of delays, Boeing’s Starliner capsule successfully docked with the International Space Station. It was an important milestone for a company that has, at least in the popular imagination, struggled to catch up with SpaceX. So it’s fitting how Boeing decided it would celebrate a successful mission.

When the crew of the ISS opened the hatch to Starliner, they found a surprise inside the spacecraft. Floating next to Orbital Flight Test-2’s seated test dummy was a plush toy representing Jebediah Kerman, one of four original “Kerbonauts” featured in Kerbal Space Program. Jeb, as he’s better known by the KSP community, served as the flight’s zero-g indicator. Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin took a small doll with him on the first-ever human spaceflight, and ever since it has become a tradition for most space crews to carry plush toys with them to make it easy to see when they’ve entered a microgravity environment.

If you’ve ever played Kerbal Space Program, you have a sense of why it was so fitting Boeing decided to send Jeb to space. In KSP, designing spacecraft that will carry your Kerbonauts to orbit and beyond is no easy task. Often your initial designs will fall and crash as they struggle to fly free of Kerbin’s gravity. But you go back to the drawing board and tweak your designs until you find one that works. In a way, that’s exactly what Boeing’s engineers had to do after Starliner’s first test flight in 2019 failed due to a software issue, and its second one was delayed following an unexpected valve problem.

Boeing kept Jeb’s presence on OFT-2 secret until the spacecraft docked with the ISS. A spokesperson for the company told collectSPACE that Starliner’s engineering team chose the mascot in part because of the science, technology, engineering and math lessons KSP has to teach players. Jeb will spend the next few days with the crew of the ISS before they place him back in the spacecraft for its return trip to Earth.

iFixit will sell replacement parts for almost every Steam Deck component

We knew going into the launch of Valve’s Steam DeckDIY repairs would be easier than most modern electronics. And now it looks like finding replacement parts won’t be difficult either. On Friday evening, iFixit prematurely published a list of components it will offer for Valve’s handheld. The list revealed the company plans to sell spare parts for nearly every component found in Steam Deck, including replacement motherboards complete with the handheld’s custom Aerith chipset from AMD.

As The Verge points out, the company will even sell parts that could be considered upgrades. For instance, if you own the 64GB or 256GB model, you can buy the 512GB variant’s display to get the anti-glare screen that comes on that version of the handheld. For any panel replacements, you can also spend an extra $5 to obtain a “Fix Kit” that comes with all the tools you need to complete a screen swap.

One part iFixit won’t sell immediately is replacement batteries. It will offer those at a later date. “We don’t have a solution for battery repairs on day one, but we are committed to working with Valve to maintain these devices as they age,” iFixit CEO Kyle Wiens told The Verge. “Battery replacements are going to be essential to making the Steam Deck stand the test of time.”

Other spare parts that won’t be available on day one include replacements for the Steam Deck’s touchpads and face buttons. Most of the components are reasonably priced. For example, you’ll need to spend $20 to repair a broken thumbstick. The most expensive part on the list is a new motherboard, which will set you back $350. With a complete handheld from Valve starting at $400, it won’t be economical to build your own Steam Deck with parts from iFixit, but for most repairs, the company will have you covered.  

Google and Match Group reach temporary agreement on in-app payments

Match Group, the parent company of Tinder and Hinge, claims it has won “concessions” from Google in its antitrust battle against the search giant. On Friday, Match withdrew a restraining order after the two sides came to a temporary agreement on in-app payments.

Match filed the order against Google one day after it sued the company, alleging it had broken federal and state antitrust laws. At the center of the dispute is a policy change Google plans to implement next month. In the fall of 2020, the company “clarified” its stance on in-app payments, announcing it was moving toward requiring all Android developers to process payments involving “digital goods and services” through the Google Play Billing system. Following multiple extensions, developers have until June 1st to comply with the policy.

Match, however, claims Google had “previously assured” the company that it could use its own payments system. The company also claims Google threatened to remove its apps from the Play Store if Match did not comply with the policy change by the upcoming deadline.

Under their temporary agreement, Google will allow Match apps to remain on the Play Store and won’t remove them for including alternate payment systems. Additionally, the search giant has agreed to make a “good faith” effort to address Match’s concerns with Google Play Billing. Match, in turn, will make an effort to offer Google’s billing system as an option to consumers.

Lastly, instead of paying Google a commission on in-app purchases that occur outside of the company’s payment system, Match is establishing a $40 million escrow fund. Starting July 1st, Match will keep track of fees it would have normally owed Google. The fund will stay in place until the two sides go to court next April.

Following Match’s announcement, Google accused the company of publishing a “misleading” press release that “mischaracterizes” the terms of their agreement. “Match Group’s claim that it can’t integrate Play’s billing system because it lacks key features contradicts the fact that Match Group has been proactively and successfully using Play’s billing in more than 10 of its apps,” Google said. The company added it would file a countersuit against Match for violating its Developer Distribution Agreement ahead of their 2023 trial.

EA is reportedly seeking a sale or a merger

Electronic Arts is actively (and persistently) looking for a buyer or another company willing to merge with it, according to Puck. The video game company reportedly held talks with a number of potential buyers or partners, including Disney, Apple and Amazon. It’s unclear which were interested in fully purchasing EA and which were looking to merge, but in case of a merger, Puck said EA is seeking a deal that would allow Andrew Wilson to remain chief executive of the combined company.

EA approached Disney in March in an attempt to forge “a more meaningful relationship” that would go beyond licensing deals, according to the source. However, Disney decided not to push forward, perhaps because it’s currently focused on its nascent streaming service. The publication said the idea of a merger between EA and ESPN, which Disney partly owns, is being floated around in the industry.

Among all the potential partners, however, it was perhaps Comcast who got the closest to a deal. Comcast CEO Brian Roberts reportedly approached Wilson with an offer to merge NBCUniversal with EA. Under the deal, Roberts would take majority control of the merged company, but Wilson would remain chief executive. The people involved didn’t agree over the price of the sale and the structure of the combined entity, though, and the agreement fell through within the last month. 

EA remains a company of its own for now, but Puck said it has become more emboldened in its quest to find a sale or a merger since Microsoft announced that it’s snapping up Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion, so that might not be be the case for long. It’s worth noting that Sony also revealed that it’s buying Destiny studio Bungie for $3.6 billion shortly after Microsoft announced the acquisition.

EA spokesperson John Reseburg told Puck that the company would not comment “on rumors and speculation relating to [mergers and acquisitions].” Reseburg added: “We are proud to be operating from a position of strength and growth, with a portfolio of amazing games, built around powerful IP, made by incredibly talented teams, and a network of more than half a billion players. We see a very bright future ahead.”

Recommended Reading: Inside Apple’s mixed-reality headset project

The inside story of why Apple bet big on a mixed-reality headset

Wayne Ma, The Information

The Information chronicles the development of Apple’s upcoming mixed-reality headset in the first of two articles. This first installment covers the initial struggles to get the project going and the constant delays created by a host of challenges. 

Behind CBS’ approach to elevating Serie A in the US

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CBS pried the rights to Italy’s Serie A soccer league away from ESPN for Paramount+. The Athletic explains how a mix of “football and fun” helped the network package a league it thinks will become more popular in the US. 

Inside the smell-o-verse: Meet the companies trying to bring scent to the metaverse

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Netflix’s Love, Death and Robots finds the ‘nerd joy’ of adult animation

What happens when animation geeks get the greenlight to produce whatever they want? You get Netflix’s Love, Death and Robots, an anthology series that’s meant to remind viewers that cartoons aren’t just for kids. You’d think that would be a foregone co…

Boeing’s Starliner successfully docks with the ISS despite issues

Boeing’s Starliner has successfully reached and docked with the International Space Station, completing an important step for a crucial test flight that would determine whether it’s ready for crewed missions. The unmanned spacecraft launched on top of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral and traveled for over 25 hours to reach the orbiting lab. 

Starliner made its first attempt to reach the ISS in December 2019 but failed to achieve its goal due to a software issue that prevented the spacecraft’s thrusters from firing. In August last year, Boeing had to scrap its launch plans due to a problem with the spacecraft’s valves, preventing the company from planning another launch for almost a year. 

While successful, Orbital Flight Test-2 wasn’t without its own issues. As The Washington Post reports, two of its 12 main thrusters failed shortly after launch, and its temperature control system malfunctioned. The docking process was also delayed by over an hour as the ground team ensured that the lighting was ideal and communications were working as intended. There was a problem with the spacecraft’s docking mechanism, as well, and it had to retract the system before extending it a second time. 

Boeing said Starliner’s main thrusters failed due to a drop in pressure in the thruster chamber, but it’s not clear what had caused it. Company vice president Mark Nappi explained that since the thrusters are on the service module that’s discarded during the return flight, Boeing might never find out the exact reason for it. Still, NASA and the company plan to examine the other issues that occurred to understand them and prevent them from happening in the future. 

Starliner will remain docked with the ISS for the next five days before making its return journey, which will see it land in the New Mexico desert. If the spacecraft successfully comes back to Earth, then Boeing could be sending astronauts to orbit as early as this fall.