Kristen Radtke / The Verge Bluesky feels like the big winner right now.I’ve been covering Bluesky ever since I got my invite in April 2023. I’ve felt the platform has always had promise, especially with features like feeds with custom algorithms and the ability to let users pick their own moderation filters. But for a long while, it didn’t have the critical mass of users that I could follow to make it the first social network I load up every day.Over the course of this month, that’s changed. It added 700,000 new users in a week. Then, it crossed the 15 million-user mark. This week, CEO Jay Graber said it crossed more than 20 million users and had been adding more than a million users per day.Part of the interest in Bluesky is that it looks and feels like a... Continue reading…

A cozy workspace full of character and characters — and a cat. Continue reading…

A number of Windows users reported snappy performance after updating their PCs to Windows 11, version 24H2. However, for lots of other people, the latest major Windows 11 feature update is causing all sorts of issues. So much so that Microsoft temporarily blocked the Windows 11 24H2 update on certain PCs last month. Unfortunately for Windows users, Microsoft has imposed the update block yet again, but this time, it's for different reasons.

Considering that the RISC-V project began in 2010, its one of the newest CPU architectures to grace the computing space. While theres still a noticeable shortage of consumer-grade processors in the RISC-V space, manufacturers like Milk-V have released a handful of RISC-V-powered devices.

Illustration by Lille Allen / The Verge Elon Musk is, in addition to many other things, now the co-lead of the currently nonexistent Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) advisory group. Now, before it even gets rolling, he has begun singling out individual government employees he says are emblematic of the government’s bloat and posting about them to his hundreds of millions of followers on X.Earlier this week, as first reported by The Wall Street Journal, the X user “datahazard” shared a screenshot on X highlighting the role of Ashley Thomas, the Director of Climate Diversification at the US International Development Finance Corporation, saying, “I don’t think the US Taxpayer should pay for the employment” of that role. Musk reposted it, adding the comment “so many... Continue reading…

Hey, remember the Nova SBC that went up as a crowdfunding campaign? It was a cute board that combined an RP 2040 with a small LED grid you can use for minute projects. If you needed a reason to pick one up for yourself, here's one: someone coded Snake on their board, and you can do the same with their tutorial.

I recently got my first-ever Mac, the M4 Mac Mini, after being a lifelong Windows user. I've always enjoyed and loved Windows, and what drew me to the Mac Mini was mostly the hardware, because macOS in itself was never very appealing.

Microsoft’s new Game Assist browser overlay can automatically surface tips and tricks for you. | Image: Microsoft Microsoft has announced that Microsoft Edge Game Assist, a new Edge-powered in-game browser overlay, is available for beta testing in Windows 11. The “game-aware” overlay lives in the Microsoft Game Bar and is designed to automatically find and show you links to tips and guides for the game you’re playing, using the Edge browser.Game Assist uses the profile you’re logged into in Edge, so it’ll give you access to your data, like cookies, autofill, and favorites, so “you don’t need to log into sites again.” Like other Game Bar widgets, you can pin it above your game as you play. Game Assist is currently available in English, and you’ll need to opt into the preview and set Microsoft Edge Beta 132 as your default browser to use it.Here’s a... Continue reading…

Yes, the dongle dangles from your TV’s HDMI port. No, it’s not that big of a deal. | Image: The Verge It’s clear the world is ready to go all in on streaming for premier live events. That’s evidenced most recently by massive deals brokered by the likes of Netflix, which will exclusively broadcast two NFL games on Christmas Day and weekly episodes of WWE’s Monday Night Raw.If you aren’t already set up with a capable streamer to enjoy it all, the Chromecast with Google TV (4K) is on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and the Google Store for $39.99 ($10 off), which is less than $2 shy of its all-time low. There’s a bit of urgency here, too, because we may be in the final proverbial hours of the Chromecast’s existence. Google recently confirmed it’s discontinuing the line in favor of the Google TV Streamer 4K, so if you want one — even if it’s... Continue reading…

Network-attached storage (NAS) is fantastic for storing files on the network, making services available for an entire household or office, and connecting to various systems while away. Compared to simple storage devices, there's much more that can be done with a NAS and they're quickly becoming more like traditional servers. Most enclosures you can purchase have a few USB ports and you'll have a few when turning an old PC into a NAS, but what should you use them for? Here are a few things that can be connected to your NAS through USB.

Designers, creators, writers, artists, and other creative types often make it difficult to know what to gift them. There are so many specialist tools or fun creative gadgets, how can you even know what to buy for someone? Heres an ideal gift list for creatives, ranging from small gift items to larger more extravagant items that would really make your creative friends year.

Still beautiful. Still good. Still the wrong form factor for basically everybody. Continue reading…