When it comes to building a network, requirements are likely to increase as it grows larger and more complex. Also, there is the need for more sophisticated management of the network. Managed switches provide the means to create complex networks, control access, and monitor performance. These switches are a staple of large environments, but you will find these in home use too.

Wow, where did November go? It feels like we've only just cleared away the Halloween stuff and we're already looking at December starting next week. In the tech news sphere, it's that time of year when businesses pull down the shutters and go into a holiday-induced hibernation before it all pops off again in 2025 with January's CES. However, that didn't mean we saw a shortage of cool stuff to report on, so here are the top five news pieces from the past week.

Getting the most performance out of your PC is essential for everyone, especially gamers. There are plenty of tips and tricks to optimize Windows 11 for gaming; but for those not on Windows, or for Windows users who may be looking for a bit more, there are also programs out there that have been specifically designed to help. Optimizing your PC performance for gaming has never been easier and, in a lot of cases, can be done with just a few clicks of the mouse.

Storing data backups is an exercise in common sense. Having multiple copies of mission-critical data is imperative, whether it's a family photo album or essential work documents. There are several backup types to choose from, but they usually fall into two different flavors: hot and cold storage. Hot storage backup is for data you need to access regularly, and cold storage is for data you seldom need to access.

Creating high-quality, engaging content consistently can feel like a daunting task. As a content creator, you need to brainstorm, write, edit, design visuals, schedule posts, analyze performance, and get through a busy day. Here is where dedicated tools come into play to streamline your content process, boost your productivity, and unlock your creative potential.

The Steam Deck has made a huge impact on PC gaming. Taking cues from the Nintendo Switch, it brought portable gaming to PC fans, which in turn started a huge wave of Steam Deck alternatives, each with its benefits and drawbacks compared to Valve's offering. Valve has been pretty quiet on the topic of a Steam Deck 2, but certain developments hint that Valve may be in the process of prototyping something.

Internal and external SSDs have been tumbling in price over the last few years, with great deals on 2TB SSDs available year round (and especially on Black Friday). Due to this, it has become more and more viable to keep an external drive around effectively in place of a USB stick. They may be a little smaller, but USB sticks are far more expensive per GB. The widespread adoption of USB-3/C and Thunderbolt has also given us more performance to play with, making a small external SATA SSD a sensible buy in 2024.

There are several platforms game developers can use to create those fantastic time-wasters, I mean hand-eye coordination boosters, that we all know and love. The most well-known are Unreal Engine, Unity, and Godot. But sometimes, a developer decides to go off the beaten path and build their game in something totally unexpected like Microsoft PowerPoint.

Single-Board Computers have been around for decades, but it was the release of the first Raspberry Pi in 2012 that brought these miniature devices to the forefront of the computing industry. Since then, weve seen major advancements in the software and hardware aspects of SBCs, with certain newer boards bearing enough firepower to not only run most desktop tasks but even run modern games at decent frame rates.

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Microsoft has stopped offering updates to Windows 11 version 24H2 on PCs that have certain Ubisoft games installed, Bleeping Computer reports. The company made the move after complaints that Star Wars Outlaws and games in the Assassin’s Creed series were crashing after installing the new Windows update.Microsoft confirmed the “compatibility hold” in a status update yesterday evening, and says it’s working with Ubisoft to find a fix. In the meantime, the company recommends against installing the Windows 11 24H2 update manually. Here is Microsoft’s description of the issue and games affected:After installing Windows 11, version 24H2, you might encounter issues with some Ubisoft games. These games might become unresponsive while... Continue reading…

Black Friday is one of the best times of year to buy some technology, like a TV, a new phone, or a pair of headphones, but is it the right time to buy a CPU? You can buy processors just about anywhere these days, whether it's Amazon, Best Buy, Newegg, or Micro Center, so the chance of finding some deals is definitely high on Black Friday. But are you getting the best possible price?

Transferring files within the same ecosystem has always been a breeze. There's AirDrop on the Apple side of things, while Quick Share handles file transfer between two Android devices or between Android and Windows too now. But, have you ever tried transferring files across operating systems that don't play well with each other? I'm talking Windows to Mac, iPhone to Windows, etc. If you've ever given it a shot, you know how many hoops you have to jump through just to send a simple photo or video. Well, not anymore.