Tooling

Serious Eats tested nine salt cellars and recommends the ZEROJAPAN salt cellar for its capacity, ease of use, and stylish design. via Serious Eats

Plex, known for media server software, is pivoting to become a central dashboard for all media, starting with the acquisition of news aggregator WatchUp. via FastCompany

Mark Zuckerberg published a letter outlining Facebook's goal of building a more inclusive global community and fighting misleading stories. via Techmeme

Spotify is moving its US headquarters to the World Trade Center and plans to add 1,000 jobs by the end of 2018. via Techmeme

Flowing Data shares a blog post that argues R is ultimately easier to use than Excel for complex data problems, despite a steeper learning curve. via FlowingData.

New mail-order STD testing services let users share results digitally, with both new conveniences and concerns. via WIRED

Snap sets initial valuation at $19.5B-$22.2B as it gets ready to go public.

via Techmeme

Wired takes a look at the New York Times's digital transformation strategies, including new apps, a Facebook chatbot, live video, and VR. via Techmeme

Tech news today includes two new Android smartwatches from Google and LG, as well as Pinterest's debut of Lens, a visual search tool. via Techmeme

The Arecibo telescope in Puerto Rico faces funding cuts that could hinder its ability to track asteroids. via WIRED

Marc Pritchard's call for greater transparency in digital media and the implications for advertisers are discussed in this article. via The Drum.

This article argues that brands need to abandon interruptive advertising and instead create content that aligns with consumers' interests. via The Drum.