When it comes to temperature monitoring, the voltage regulator module (VRM) doesn't often get the spotlight that CPUs and GPUs get.

Most of us don't have the luxury of building a PC with an unlimited budget. It's almost always a question of optimizing the budget for raw performance rather than building a balanced PC. In this struggle, the case is often sacrificed at the altar of performance, next-gen connectivity, and a future-proof power supply. While a PC case is technically one of the components you can cheap out on, it should only be done on extremely tight budgets. Every PC builder ought to realize the importance of the case, not just for their current build, but also for all future builds to come. It's not just a box for your core components — it's the visual centerpiece of your build and dictates every aspect of it.

Microsoft Loop is one of those tools I almost immediately loved after trying it. It nails that balance between structure and freedom that many project management tools miss. Everything about it feels clean and thoughtfully designed. Unlike many other tools that require so much organization and management on my part, Loop is the kind of workspace I actually look forward to spending time in.

Bash is undeniably the go-to shell for many developers, especially those who primarily work on Linux. It's powerful, flexible, and has been rigorously tested for years now. However, on Windows, PowerShell has become increasingly popular due to its modern features, ease of use, and tight integration with the OS.

The crossover between video games and Hollywood is something that has always been around since gaming became bigger in the 1980s. Many well-known celebrities that grew up playing video games have been involved with promoting or collaborating with game publishers in a variety of ways, often tied to their branding. But while most have just made appearances at events or talked about games while promoting a movie or TV show, there have been instances when popular celebrities have gone beyond a basic association with them. And the results have been a wide range of reactions over the years.

A firewall is one of the first lines of defense against existential threats to your device, and most operating systems include one in some form, so you have protection even if you don't pay for robust antivirus tools. The built-in Windows Defender Firewall is surprisingly robust. Beneath its clunky interface lies a powerful packet filtering engine that does a respectable job of keeping unwanted elements out. However, one trip to the Advanced Security settings page reveals a travesty of tedious wizards to configure simple rules. For technophiles and home lab enthusiasts who want granular, explicit control over every packet leaving their machine to ensure a chatty smart device doesn't contact a random server.

Here are just a few of the services impacted by the outage. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is currently experiencing a major outage that has taken down online services, including Amazon, Alexa, Snapchat, Fortnite, ChatGPT, Epic Games Store, Epic Online Services, and more. The AWS status checker is reporting that multiple services in the US-EAST-1 Region are “impacted” by operational issues, though outages also affected services in other regions globally. As of 6:35AM ET, Amazon says that “most AWS Service operations are succeeding normally now” and that it is working towards a full resolution. The AWS dashboard first reported issues affecting the US-EAST-1 Region at 3:11AM ET. “We are actively engaged and working to both mitigate the issue and understand root cause. We will provide an update in 45 minutes, or sooner if we have additional information to share,” Amazon said in an update published at 3:51AM ET.Users on Reddit reported that the Alexa smart assistant was down and unable to respond to queries or complete requests, and in my own experience, I found that routines like pre-set alarms are not functioning. The AWS issue also appeared to be impacting platforms running on its cloud network, including Perplexity, Airtable, Canva, and the McDonalds app. The cause of the outage hasn’t been confirmed, and it’s unclear when regular service will be full restored.“Perplexity is down right now,” Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas said on X. “The root cause is an AWS issue. We’re working on resolving it.”⚠️ An outage affecting several services on the internet is also impacting Fortnite log-ins. We're investigating this now, and will update you when we have more details.— Fortnite Status (@FortniteStatus) October 20, 2025In a 5:27AM ET update, Amazon says “We are seeing significant signs of recovery. Most requests should now be succeeding. We continue to work through a backlog of queued requests.”AWS outages in the US-East-1 region have created widespread disruptions in 2023, 2021, and 2020, forcing multiple websites and platforms offline for several hours before regular service was restored.Update, October 20th: added status updates from Amazon.

When Google first announced NotebookLM, it didn’t launch with any of the innovative learning tools it has today, like Audio/Video Overviews, Flashcards, and Quizzes. NotebookLM started off with the same goal it has today: to help users manage the rapid growth of information. Instead of simply scouring the web for relevant content like most AI chatbots, NotebookLM focuses on helping users organize and leverage their own knowledge by pairing powerful AI models with the material they provide.

Starlink satellites awaiting deployment. | Image: SpaceX On Sunday, SpaceX launched 56 additional Starlink satellites on separate Falcon 9 rockets, surpassing 10,000 total satellites launched into low Earth orbit to date. The milestone was reached on board the 132nd Falcon 9 launch of 2025, tying the previous annual launch record with more than two full months to go in the year.Of those 10k satellites, only about 8,608 are currently operational, according to Jonathan McDowell’s satellite tracker calculations. Starlink satellites have a lifespan of roughly five years before they’re intentionally de-orbited to burn up in the atmosphere. The first Starlink prototypes launched in February 2018 ahead of its 2021 commercial service offering.SpaceX has approval to launch 12,000 satellites — with over 30,000 planned — to bring fast, low-latency internet to the world. Others like Amazon’s Project Kuiper and efforts in Europe and China, have their own mega constellation plans, raising concerns about the threat caused by overcrowding.

Amazon Web Services (AWS), a cloud computing platform, is currently down. And while the previous sentence might make it sound like it’s just Amazon services experiencing issues, the outage is taking down a huge chunk of the internet. AWS is the backbone for many apps and websites. While it doesn't control the internet, it hosts and powers countless apps people use daily. This includes Asana, Snapchat, Roblox, Perplexity, Canva, Duolingo, Coinbase, Fortnite, McDonalds, Venmo, Apple TV, and many more.

The colder days are creeping in, and what better way to take advantage of the plummeting temperatures than a bit of snowboarding? Unfortunately, there isn't a single snowy mountain even remotely close to where I live, so the best I can do that doesn't cost an arm and a leg is to play a video game instead. Which isn't ideal, but saves on the aches and pains the day after.

When I was in school, having the right software was a real headache. Back then, powerful writing or graphics programs were expensive and totally out of reach for most students. There just weren't many good, free options. I either had to spend a lot on pricey licenses or settle for clumsy, basic tools that waste your time.