DLSS (or Deep Learning Super Sampling) has revolutionized PC gaming, bringing features that previously were performance-killing, such as ray tracing, to more consumers without the need to upgrade to expensive new hardware. It has allowed regular gamers to enjoy smoother framerates with AI-upscaled frames, without having to significantly compromise visual fidelity. It has been a big hit among many gamers. With each new iteration, the feature set and technology have continued to improve, and DLSS has been slowly but surely cementing its place not only as an exciting new technology for gamers, but as one of the few consumer-focused, day to day uses of AI that real people can take advantage of right now.

Canva is an easy-to-use, browser and app-based digital marketing and content creation tool. There are some great hidden features in Canva, and it's one of the most commonly used design tools for non-professional designers. However, there are some awesome alternatives if Canva just isnt your style.

Opening up your local area network (LAN) to the outside world is easy, but doing it securely is a different beast. When running a custom router with OPNsense, multiple routes are available, including reverse proxies and a virtual private network (VPN). You could forward some ports and call it a day, but I'll show you some ways to configure OPNsense with a domain, VPN, and reverse proxies with some firewall rules thrown in for good measure. Once configured, you'll be accessing your LAN from anywhere in the world with a secure connection.

Virtual machines (VMs) are important elements of modern IT infrastructure, offering flexibility and efficiency. Since many organizations depend on VMs for proper workflow, backing them up properly is essential. A single misstep during the backup process can lead to data loss, service downtime, or corrupted virtual machines. You then have to set up another VM from scratch.

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.

A still from the latest A Minecraft Movie trailer. | Screenshot: YouTube This week, I went to a theater to watch a showing of the black-and-white version of Johnny Mnemonic, starring Keanu Reeves. Old-heads like me may recall it as a bad mid-90s cyberpunk film (written by William Gibson!) about a data courier whose brain is the storage medium, but who had to have his childhood memories erased to make space for the work. I hadn’t seen it since I was a kid, and you know what? It’s still not a good movie. But if you ignore the plot holes, mostly awful acting, and terrible pacing, it’s at least very cool to look at. Also, I had totally forgotten about Ice T’s turn as J-Bone, leader of the Lo-Tek underground. It was fun enough, but it was weird to hear the theater audience erupt with applause at the end, though,... Continue reading…

Tim Cook and then-President Donald Trump, speaking to the Press in Austin, Texas in 2019. | Photo: Mandel Ngan / AFP via Getty Images Apple CEO Tim Cook managed to forge a personal relationship with Donald Trump during his first Presidential term that other tech firms struggled to replicate. Now, others are trying to follow his template, says a Wall Street Journal report today.Cook used direct appeals to influence Trump’s 2017 tax policy and to get him to dial back his 2019 tariffs in ways that benefitted Apple. In exchange, Trump got to look good; as the Journal points out, Cook didn’t correct Trump when claimed responsibility for Apple opening an Austin manufacturing plant that had already been around for years and wasn’t even owned by Apple.Part of Cook’s strategy was keeping things simple, according to the Journal:Instead of sending government relations... Continue reading…

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.

PowerShell has been out for years now, and in that time it has almost entirely eclipsed the old cmd.exe shell and become increasingly powerful. It's tightly integrated with many core functions of the Windows OS, and can help you script almost any function in Windows. PowerShell hasn't always been the most popular language (though many Windows admins swear by it), but in recent years it has been on a rampaging comeback, aided by a general push to improve developer tooling on Windows with the likes of the new Windows Terminal and WSL.

It's been just over 2 years since AMD released the 7000 series CPUs and the AM5 platform and, somehow, AM4 is still going strong. The AM4 socket is now over 8 years old and normally this would mean it's past its prime. However, AMD released a few new and upgraded SKUs of CPUs in 2024 and says they believe the longevity of AM4 is one of the biggest factors in Ryzen's overall success.

The new console will build on the Playstation Portal (pictured) which was reportedly originally intended to work as a standalone device. | Photo by Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge Sony is currently making a new handheld gaming console that allows users to play PlayStation 5 games anywhere. According to Bloomberg, the console is being developed to compete against Nintendo and Microsoft in the portable gaming market, and is likely “years away from launch” — if Sony decides to release it at all.Nintendo is a leading figure in the handheld gaming industry, with a next-generation successor to its popular Switch console expected to arrive next year. Microsoft is also developing its own handheld Xbox prototype, though Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has recently cautioned that the device is “a few years out.” The handheld gaming category has also benefitted from a PC-platform expansion in recent years thanks to new... Continue reading…

Over the last couple of years, audiobooks and podcasts have exploded in popularity. Whether you want to hear some words of wisdom on your commute or just prefer the convenience of narrated literature, there are thousands of unique creations from every genre imaginable that can cater to your needs.