AMD K5 CPUs The Latest To Be Retired With Linux’s Aging & Stagnate Hardware Support
Following Linux 7.1 beginning to phase out i486 CPU support and in turn drivers like those for the old AMD Elan SoCs now being removed, for Linux 7.2 the processor support removal is going further to now include some i586 and i686 class processors… ⌘ Read more

Google Unveils Screenless Fitbit Air, Google Health App To Replace Fitbit
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Wearables have really come full circle. The early Fitbits didn’t have screens, but the move to smartwatches put a screen on everyone’s wrist. Now, devices like Whoop and Hume are designed as data trackers first and foremost without so much as a clock. Google’s newest wearable … ⌘ Read more

Flattened Image Tree 1.0 Specification For Embedded Linux Systems
The Flattened Image Tree “FIT” 1.0 specification was recently finalized for this container format used by U-Boot on embedded systems for providing various boot components like DTBs, the Linux kernel image, and more into a single file… ⌘ Read more

@bender@twtxt.net I misread that sentence and thought that your first crush was called Gisela, and was like “wait, he’s not that old”.

Turns out, Gisela is a much younger name than I thought:

https://namecensus.com/first-names/gisela-meaning-and-history/

A peak in the late 1970is and late 1990ies? What?

But then it turned out that, in Germany, the popularity dropped rapidly in the late 1950ies, which actually matches my expectations:

https://www.beliebte-vornamen.de/5203-gisela.htm

In other words, some other countries picked up the name Gisela after it had already faded away in Germany.

What a fun rabbit hole. 😅

Valve Releases Steam Controller CAD Files Under Creative Commons License
Valve has released CAD files for the new Steam Controller and its Puck under a Creative Commons license. “The idea is to let enterprising modders create their own Steam Controller add-ons, like skins, charging stands, grip extenders or smartphone mounts,” reports Digital Foundry. From the report: The Valve release includes file … ⌘ Read more

Mesa 26.1 Released With Many Improvements For Open-Source Vulkan Drivers
Eric Engestrom just announced another timely feature release of the Mesa drivers. Mesa 26.1 is out today for this collection of predominantly OpenGL and Vulkan drivers for a variety of hardware as well as the likes of Rusticl for OpenCL, Zink for OpenGL-on-Vulkan, various Windows acceleration components, and more… ⌘ Read more

@bender@twtxt.net It’s been a while (6.5 years) since I’ve done this. I’d do it like this:

• Boot some Linux from a USB stick on the new machine. Preferably Arch Linux, since that is what I’m running and that’ll make the upcoming chroot easier.
  
• Partition the new disk, create LUKS devices, filesystems, …
  
• Mount the new filesystems and copy all data (user data and the system itself – everything). Do this either over the network or by hooking up the old disk directly.
  
• chroot into the new system (Arch has an arch-chroot tool for that which is used during normal installation, if I’m not mistaken). Inside the chroot, install the bootloader.
  
• Do some fixups, like adjusting /etc/fstab or /etc/crypttab.
  

And I think that should be it. 🤔

How Microplastics Are Likely Helping To Heat Up the Planet
A new Nature Climate Change study suggests airborne microplastics – especially darker and colored particles – are likely contributing to atmospheric warming by absorbing more heat than they reflect. Researchers estimate the effect could be roughly one-sixth that of black carbon, though outside experts say the uncertainties remain large and more study is ne … ⌘ Read more

@prologic@twtxt.net nice! Looks like a great place to be. I wouldn’t mind, just about now! How is the camper behaving? Got all your money worth already? Based on your light participation around here I am tempted to say yes. :-D

The Audio Industry Is Grappling With the Rise of ‘Podslop’
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Bloomberg’s Ashley Carman: Welcome to the modern era of podcasting in which thousands of new shows are released into the world every day with a sizable portion likely being AI-generated. Figuring out exactly which ones fall into that growing category is becoming more difficult just as the industry is starting to take this is … ⌘ Read more

Scientists Discover 27 Potential New Planets That Orbit Two Stars
Astronomers have identified 27 potential new circumbinary planets – worlds that orbit two stars, like Star Wars’ Tatooine. “To date, only about 18 circumbinary planets … had been identified in the universe,” reports the Guardian. “More than 6,000 planets have been discovered that orbit single stars, like Earth does around the sun.” The Gua … ⌘ Read more

@lyse@lyse.isobeef.org These days (and it’s been like that for a while), almost everything is loaded on-demand depending on which hardware the OS finds, so you can simply copy all your files with cp -a, install a bootloader, adjust some minor things /etc/fstab, done. Well, maybe not “done”, but it’s easy to sort out the remaining stuff afterwards.

I’ve moved the Arch installation at work from a stationary Dell workstation to an Acer laptop to a Lenovo Carbon laptop to a Tuxedo laptop to a Lenovo Thinkpad. 😅

Yeah, the keyboard of the netbook isn’t all that great, but I have to say that I absolutely love netbooks. And I hate that they got replaced by tablets and smartphones. A netbook is a normal PC, just very small and super easy to carry around – that’s brilliant!

NetHack 5.0 Released
“So yesterday the Devteam (it is always the Devteam) released version 5.0 of legendary and venerable rogueike compuer game NetHack,” writes the Rogue-like games column @Play. “It is 39 years old…”

MilenCent (Slashdot reader #219,397) writes: In addition to play changes it’s left for players to discover, this version updates the code to compile with C99, makes it much easier to cross compile the code for other systems than the one … ⌘ Read more

I like the new GitHub:

Ransomware Is Getting Uglier As Cybercriminals Fake Leaks and Skip Encryption Entirely
“Ransomware activity jumped again in Q1 2026,” writes Slashdot reader BrianFagioli, “with 2,638 victim posts on leak sites, up 22% year over year,” according to a report from cybersecurity company ReliaQuest.

But the bigger shift is how messy the ecosystem has become. Established groups like Akira and Qil … ⌘ Read more

@prologic@twtxt.net Oh yeah, very beautiful! I can hear the roaring of the waterfall and like to be there, too. The first shot makes it look like you’re in the middle of a cave. :-)

Marvel, DC, Game Publishers Launch Rival Events Saturday for Free Giveaways
The once-a-year free comic book giveaway “is splitting in two,” according to a local news report.

Launched in 2002 by Diamond Comic Distributor, comic book giants like Marvel and DC have historically participated together. But things changed after Diamond Comic Distributors went bankrupt in 2025, “leaving other companies to s … ⌘ Read more

Spotify Adds ‘Verified’ Badges To Distinguish Human Artists From AI
Spotify is adding “Verified by Spotify” badges to distinguish human artists from AI-generated personas, using signals like linked social accounts, consistent listener activity, merchandise, and concert dates. The BBC reports: The world’s most-used music streaming service said the ‘Verified by Spotify’ text and green checkmark icon wo … ⌘ Read more

@kat@yarn.girlonthemoon.xyz where are thou?! Haven’t seeing you like, in light years!

The Invisible Force Making Food Less Nutritious
fjo3 shares a report from the Washington Post: Surging concentrations of carbon in the atmosphere, caused largely by burning fossil fuels, have produced potent changes in the way plants grow – from increasing their sugar content to depleting essential nutrients like zinc. Experts fear the degradation of Earth’s food supply will cause an epidemic of hidden hunger, in which even p … ⌘ Read more

@yarn_police@twtxt.net Looks like the rendering in yarnd is off. The second subject (prisoner error!) was robbed, its link text got stolen.

New Linux ‘Copy Fail’ Vulnerability Enables Root Access On Major Distros
A newly disclosed Linux kernel flaw dubbed “Copy Fail” can let a local, unprivileged attacker gain root access on major Linux distributions, with researchers claiming the bug affects kernels shipped since 2017. “The POC exploit works out of the box today, but a future version that can escape from containers like Docker is promised soon … ⌘ Read more

AMD Introducing New Linux Driver For Their Halo Box: For Its RGB LED Light Bar
AMD CEO Lisa Su back at CES 2026 showed off the Ryzen AI Halo box as a mini PC built around their excellent Strix Halo SoC. The Ryzen AI halo box is to serve as an AI development platform to compete with the likes of NVIDIA’s DGX Spark and Dell GB10. This week is the first time I am seeing new Linux driver activity specifically referencing this exciting AMD “Halo Box” system… ⌘ Read more

@bender@twtxt.net Glad you like it. At least it’s in landscape format. :-D

The Silent Frequency That Makes Old Buildings Feel Haunted
Researchers say infrasound – low-frequency vibrations from things like pipes, HVAC systems, and traffic that humans can’t consciously hear – may help explain why some old buildings feel unsettling or “haunted.” Rodney Schmaltz, senior author and professor at MacEwan, says: “Consider visiting a supposedly haunted building. Your mood shifts, you feel agit … ⌘ Read more

Red Hat’s Stratis Storage 3.9 Released With Online Encryption/Decryption/Reencryption
It’s crazy to realize it has been ten years already since Red Hat abandoned their Btrfs plans for Red Hat Enterprise Linux and dropped it, which was a technology preview feature since RHEL6. In its place Red Hat engineers began developing Stratis for next-gen Linux storage with ZFS/Btrfs-like features but instead building atop XFS, LUKS, Device Mapper, and Clevis. After a while since the last major release, Stratis Storage 3 … ⌘ Read more

@bender@twtxt.net Oh, this trekking bike is nothing special at all. It’s a Bulls Wildtail with only front suspension, 21 gears and standard V-brakes. The first immediate upgrade I did was mounting a pannier rack, it’s one of the most useful things.

I just quickly dug out this photo from one and a half years ago where it’s parked at our scout yard in November 2024. You just have to use your imagination on how the front looks like. :-D

@bender@twtxt.net Well I’m open to ideas of course 😅 My goal here was to build something like a Civ-1 inspired game that’s playable online and multiplayer. Do you remember this old bad boy that was played on PC(s) on MS-DOS ?! 😅

@prologic@twtxt.net I am going to give it a more serious spin (meaning I am going to go read the help page). I’ve got to tell you though, most successful games do not need a help. But I am fully aware that there is a subset of gamers that would not mind—if not appreciate—a game with help, manual, and the likes.

Linux Drops ISDN Subsystem and Other Old Network Drivers
“Old code like amateur radio and NFC have long been a burden to core networking developers,” reads the pull request.

And so Thursday Linus Torvald merged the pull request “to rid the Linux kernel of the old Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) subsystem,” reports Phoronix, “and various other old network drivers largely for PCMCIA era network adapters.”
… ⌘ Read more

White House Pushed Out New AI Official After Just Four Days on the Job
It’s the U.S. government’s main link to the AI industry, reports The Washington Post, working to assess national security risks of new models like Anthropic’s “Mythos”.

To run it they’d hired Collin Burns, who’d worked at OpenAI and then Anthropic. But Burns started work Monday at the Center for AI Standards and Innovation — and then … ⌘ Read more

Samsung Could Lose Money On Smartphones For the First Time
A report says Samsung’s mobile division could post its first-ever annual loss in 2026, as rising memory costs, tougher competition, and pressure across products like foldables and smartwatches weigh on the business. SammyGuru reports: Samsung boss TM Roh reportedly told company leaders that the mobile (MX) business could lose money this year. That warning … ⌘ Read more

Farewell ISDN, Ham Radio & Old Network Drivers: Linus Torvalds Merges 138k L.O.C. Removal
Linus Torvalds did it! He merged the pull request to rid the Linux kernel of the old Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) subsystem and various other old network drivers largely for PCMCIA era network adapters. This was the code suggested for removal given the recent influx of AI/LLM-generated bug reports against this dated code that likely has no active upstream users remaining… ⌘ Read more

@lyse@lyse.isobeef.org maybe they go after the impact. A single? Meh. An album? “Woah! These guy(s)/gal(s) are busy!” Also more possibilities for people liking at least one song. Anyway, that’s my theory, and I am sticking to it! :-P

Claude Is Connecting Directly To Your Personal Apps
Anthropic is expanding Claude’s app integrations beyond work tools, adding personal-service connectors like Spotify, Uber, AllTrails, TripAdvisor, Instacart, and TurboTax. The Verge reports: Some of these apps, such as Spotify, already have similar connectors in OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Once an app is connected, Claude will suggest relevant connected apps directly in your convers … ⌘ Read more

OpenAI Says Its New GPT-5.5 Model Is More Efficient and Better At Coding
OpenAI released its new GPT-5.5 model today, which the company calls its “smartest and most intuitive to use model yet, and the next step toward a new way of getting work done on a computer.” The Verge reports: OpenAI just released GPT-5.4 last month, but says that the new GPT-5.5 “excels” at tasks like writing and debugging code, doing … ⌘ Read more

Linux 7.1 Removes Some Obsolete PCMCIA Drivers That Likely Haven’t Been Used In Years
In addition to some network drivers on the chopping block due to AI bug reports for obsolete hardware/drivers and Linux 7.1 dropping various drivers for Russia’s Baikal CPUs, the Linux 7.1 kernel as of today also dropped some obsolete PCMCIA host controller drivers… ⌘ Read more

Job Cuts Driven By AI Are Rising On Wall Street
Firms like Bank of America, Citi, Wells Fargo, and others are reporting strong profits while reducing head count and automating more work. “All of them credited A.I. to some degree … in areas ranging from the so-called back office, where tens of thousands of employees fill out paperwork to comply with various laws and regulations, to the front office, where seven-figure salaried … ⌘ Read more

Framework Previews The OCuLink Dev Kit
In addition to announcing the Framework Laptop 13 Pro today, Framework Computer at their next-gen hardware event also previewed the OCuLink Dev Kit for attaching high throughput peripherals like external GPUs (eGPUs) to Framework Laptops… ⌘ Read more

Google’s Internal Politics Leave It Playing Catch-Up On AI Coding
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Bloomberg: At Google, leaders are anxious about falling behind in the race to offer AI coding tools, especially as rivals like Anthropic PBC offer more effective and popular tools to businesses, according to people familiar with the matter. The search giant is now working to unite some of its coding … ⌘ Read more

PlayStation To Require Age Verification For Messages and Voice Chat
A new email from Sony says that PlayStation will require players to verify their age later this year to keep using communication features like messages and voice chat. Insider-Gaming reports: The initiative comes from the goal of providing “safe, age-appropriate experiences for players and families while respecting their privacy” and provi … ⌘ Read more

Palantir Posts Bond Villain Manifesto On X
DeanonymizedCoward writes: Engadget reports that Palantir has posted to X a summary of CEO Alex Karp and Nicholas W. Zamiska’s 2025 book, The Technological Republic, which reads like a utopian idealist doodled on a Bond villain’s whiteboard. While the post makes some decent points, it also highlights the Big-AI attitude that the AI surveillance state is in fact a good thing, and strongly i … ⌘ Read more

LXQt 2.4 Released With More Wayland Fixes/Improvements
The LXQt 2.4 desktop released today for joining the modern open-source desktop party alongside the likes of the recently debuted GNOME 50, KDE Plasma 6.6, and others… ⌘ Read more

Brave Browser Introduces ‘Origin’, a Pay-Once ‘Minimalist’ Browser
The Brave browser “has introduced Brave Origin, a stripped-down version of its browser that removes built-in monetization features like Rewards and other extras tied to its business model,” writes Slashdot reader BrianFagioli”

The stripped-down browser is available either as a separate browser download or as an upgrade to the existing Brave install, u … ⌘ Read more

Is the Iran War Driving a Surge of Interest in Electric Cars?
In October and through November, America’s EV sales reached their lowest point since 2022 after government subsidies expired, remembers Time. “But first-quarter data for 2026 shows that used EV sales were 12% higher than the same time last year and 17% higher than the previous quarter.

“One factor likely helping push buyers toward these cars is hig … ⌘ Read more

GNOME Fixes Screencasting Issue With H.264 Recordings Being ~18x Larger Than VP8
A fix today for GNOME Shell’s screen casting/recording service was merged after it was reported that H.264 recordings using the Video Acceleration API (VA-API) are around 18x larger than they should be like when using the VP8 software fallback… ⌘ Read more

@kiwu@twtxt.net Thanks, mate! I’m glad you like them. :-)

As an enjoyer of delightfully bad graphic design, found on most Czech village center cork boards, I’m sad to see the stolen clipart and badly cropped watermarked stock images, gradually replaced with AI slop.

This is far from a serious rant, but generating images of my kind being telepathically hit with sharp rocks, surely gives me a right to complain.

So far these seem the most prominent slop categories, seem to be…

Architecture slop:

1. find a sketch of what an old building looked like
   
   
2. generate an AI version, without correcting any of the perspective errors - this one is diagonally levitating
   
   
3. generate a recreation of the buildings demise - after going through the AI, for the second time, it is now a completely different building
   
   

Moralizing slop:

History slop:

Fructose Isn’t Just Sugar. It Acts More Like a Hormone
Slashdot reader smazsyr writes: A new review says we’ve had fructose wrong for decades. The nine authors, led by Richard Johnson at the University of Colorado Anschutz, argue that fructose “is not just another calorie.” It is a signal. It tells the liver to make fat and brace for a famine that never comes. That made sense for a bear fattening up on autumn berries. … ⌘ Read more

Critical Atlantic Current Significantly More Likely To Collapse Than Thought
An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Guardian: The critical Atlantic current system appears significantly more likely to collapse than previously thought after new research found that climate models predicting the biggest slowdown are the most realistic. Scientists called the new finding “very concerning” as a c … ⌘ Read more