CW+ Premium Content/Computer Weekly Thank you for joining! Access your Pro+ Content below. 8 April 2025 Innovating for the arts at Royal Ballet and Opera In this week’s Computer Weekly, we find out how virtual reality and other tech innovations are helping Royal Ballet and Opera to stage world-class performances. After a spate of banking IT outages, we examine why further bank crashes are inevitable. And our new buyer’s guide looks at how to get started with small language models for AI. Read the issue now. Access this CW+ Content for Free! Already a member? Login here Features in this issue Interview: The role of IT innovation at Royal Ballet and Opera by  Cliff Saran We speak to the Royal Ballet and Opera’s head of IT delivery, Keith Nolan, about how IT lowers costs and helps power stage innovations for world-class performances ‘Bankenstein’ and a cold calculation means banking crashes will continue by  Karl Flinders Following a three-day crash at Barclays, UK banks were forced to explain to MPs when, how and why digital services became unavailable over past two years View Computer Weekly Archives Next Issue  More CW+ Content View All E-Handbook A Computer Weekly buyer’s guide to fintech E-Zine The future of networking

Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETThe Windows 11 Start menu has annoyed many people with its clumsy layout and lack of customization. Instead of enhancing and improving the previous menu designs from Windows 7 and 10, Microsoft opted for a backward redesign that left many of us wondering, "What were they thinking?"Hit by user complaints, Microsoft has taken baby steps to try to improve the menu. One option added in late 2022 lets you create folders in which to store your Start menu shortcuts. A more dramatic overhaul that could address many of the menu's flaws and limitations may roll out later in 2025. For now, though, the Start menu remains an awkward and frustrating feature, largely the same as it was when Windows 11 rolled out in October 2021.Also: Your Windows 11 Start menu is getting a design makeover - here's how to try it firstWell, if you hate the Start menu in Windows 11 as much as I do and want something more usable and customizable, your best bet is to switch to a Start menu alternative.Several third-party apps can replace the Windows 11 Start menu, giving it a more familiar look and layout and allowing users to customize it in various ways. The program I use on my Windows 11 machines is Start11. But there are other utilities worth checking out, including StartAllBack and Open Shell Menu. Here's how to get the Windows 11 Start menu you deserve.Start11Stardock's Start11, priced at $9.99 for a single license, lets you choose from seven different Start menu layouts. The Windows 7 and Modern styles offer the traditional two-column display with all apps or favorite apps on the left and shortcuts to various Windows features and locations on the right. A Windows 10 style uses the familiar menu and tiled screen combination. There are even four different Windows 11 styles, but they provide more features and flexibility than the built-in menu. I've always liked the two-column display, so I use the Modern style menu. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETWhatever menu you choose, you can tweak its look, layout, and design. You can opt for a regular menu that uses the full width or a more compact design that shrinks certain items. Further, you can configure the All Apps list, add and remove shortcuts, adjust the color and appearance, and determine when and how the Start11 menu is triggered. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETStart11 also provides much-needed assistance to the Windows 11 Taskbar, which has been criticized for its limitations and lack of flexibility. You can tweak the taskbar's color and transparency, adjust its size, choose where it should appear on both a primary and secondary monitor, and decide if and when Taskbar buttons should be combined. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETAnother bonus is that you can rename, move, and delete folders and shortcuts directly from the Start menu, just as Windows long ago allowed you to do. To revert to the regular Start menu, you can change the actions that occur when you click the Start button or press the Windows key. Uninstalling Start11 will also bring back the default menu.Whether you use Start11 as is or dive into its many customizations, I think you'll find this a friendly and effective alternative to the regular Windows 11 Start menu, just as I do. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETStartAllBackAt a cost of $4.99 for one license, StartAllBack is a more basic but still capable Start menu replacement. Right off the bat, the program asks what theme you wish to use for the menu, offering three choices: Proper 11, Kinda 10, and Remastered 7. Despite their names, all three kick in the traditional two-column layout with program shortcuts on the left and Windows features on the right. The differences between them are more aesthetic and depend on whether you prefer rounded or square corners, for example. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETAfter you've chosen your preferred theme, head to the Start Menu section in the program to tweak the menu's style, appearance, and functionality. You can control the size of the menu's icons, opt to display modern apps in their own folder, choose to highlight newly installed programs, and set up the shortcuts on the right side as menus or links. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETLike Start11, StartAllBack possesses the power to spruce up the Taskbar. You can pick a custom image for the Start button, select a visual style for the Taskbar, and determine how to combine Taskbar buttons. Best of all, you can position the Taskbar at the top, bottom, left, or right, a capability that Microsoft offers in Windows 10 but killed in Windows 11. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETStartAllBack even taps into File Explorer, letting you choose between the Ribbon interface or command bar, turn on the classic search box, and restore the classic context menus from Windows 10. If you ever want to revert to the regular Windows 11 Start menu, just uninstall StartAllBack.If you want a simple but capable Start menu replacement, StartAllBack is a good choice. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETOpen Shell MenuOpen Shell Menu is a free Start menu replacement that works well in Windows 11. After downloading and installing the program's exe file from its GitHub page, click the regular Windows 11 Start button to access Open Shell Menu and select your preferred style. You can choose a classic one-column layout, a classic two-column layout, or a Windows 7 layout. To change the Start button, check the box for "Replace Start button" and pick one of the built-in images. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETAt the settings screen, you can customize other options: You can determine how to trigger the Open Shell Start menu, show recent or frequently used programs, choose the behavior of the Shut Down button, and opt to display the Search box.Next, you can tweak the skin options to set the size of fonts and icons. A section for the Taskbar lets you adjust the size, color, and opacity of the Taskbar. Then you can pick which features you want to see in the Start menu and whether they appear as links or as menus. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETTo delve deeper into the program, check the "Show all settings" box and review the additional options. Otherwise, click the Start button to see the results. As with the other two programs, uninstalling Open Shell Menu brings back the regular Windows 11 Start menu.Though it's not as polished as Start11 or StartAllBack, the Open Shell menu is certainly worth considering, especially if you're looking for a free Start menu replacement. Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNETGet the morning's top stories in your inbox each day with our Tech Today newsletter.Windows 11

Amazon's new "Buy For Me" feature represents a stunning departure from the company's decades-long strategy of keeping customers within its walled garden.

The big picture: Star Citizen and its single-player component, Squadron 42, have faced repeated delays since Cloud Imperium Games first announced the ambitious space sandbox project nearly 13 years ago. Despite ongoing skepticism and accusations that the company's crowdfunding campaign is a scam, recent years have marked its most financially successful period. While many continue to question whether the games will ever reach version 1.0, others have started to place bets on whether Cloud Imperium will surpass $1 billion in funding first. Crowdfunding for Star Citizen currently stands at just over $801 million. Although the space MMO has been in development for more than a decade with no official release date, Cloud Imperium Games raised over $100 million in the last year alone. Wing Commander series creator Chris Roberts launched the crowdfunding campaign in 2012 with the goal of creating a spiritual successor to the iconic sci-fi franchise. Star Citizen aims to blend spaceflight simulation with first-person shooter gameplay, enabling hundreds of players to interact seamlessly across different planets and while flying through space. Although still in its alpha phase after so many years, the game is playable and receives frequent updates. Backers can download the alpha client, and the game occasionally hosts free-to-play events. While many features are still in active development and bugs remain common, a dedicated community continues to explore and test each new release. The alpha reached version 4.0 in December, introducing a new solar system with multiple explorable planets and debuting Star Citizen's much-anticipated server meshing feature. This system allows multiple servers to work together, letting players travel between different areas – stations, cities, and planets – without loading screens. Up to 500 players can currently interact within a single server group. In recent months, Cloud Imperium has also added new ships, weapons, environments, AI behaviors, and numerous gameplay tweaks. For the eventual full release, the company promises a main storyline, base building, crafting systems, a player-driven economy, and various social features. The space simulation will also expand to include more planets, a deeper persistent universe, life support mechanics, radiation hazards, ship engineering, taxes, insurance systems, and even an in-game sports league. // Related Stories The single-player story mode, Squadron 42, has likewise seen its share of delays. Last year, the company released an hour-long gameplay showcase of the cinematic space adventure, featuring performances by Gillian Anderson, Henry Cavill, Gary Oldman, and Mark Strong. Promising 30 to 40 hours of narrative-driven gameplay, Roberts has stated that Squadron 42 is now expected to be ready by 2026. Despite the project's lengthy development cycle and unprecedented budget, funding has accelerated significantly since 2020. Cloud Imperium raised more than $100 million in each of the past three years, with its most successful months – such as May 2023 and November 2024 – bringing in over $20 million each.

In Brief Posted: 3:12 PM PDT · April 7, 2025 Image Credits:Jose Sarmento Matos/Bloomberg / Getty Images Google is allegedly paying some AI staff to do nothing for a year rather than join rivals Retaining top AI talent is tough amid cutthroat competition between Google, OpenAI, and other heavyweights. Google’s AI division, DeepMind, has resorted to using “aggressive” noncompete agreements for some AI staff in the U.K. that bar them from working for competitors for up to a year, Business Insider reports. Some are paid during this time, in what amounts to a lengthy stretch of PTO. But the practice can make researchers feel left out of the quick pace of AI progress, reported BI. In the U.S., the FTC banned most noncompetes last year, but that doesn’t apply to DeepMind’s London headquarters. Last month, the VP of AI at Microsoft posted on X about how DeepMind staff are reaching out to him “in despair” over the challenge of escaping their noncompete clauses: Google didn’t respond to a request for comment from TechCrunch but told BI it uses noncompetes “selectively.” Topics AI, Google, In Brief

Microsoft may be on its way to developing AI models independent of its partnership with OpenAI. Over time, the generative AI company, OpenAI, has expanded its influence in the industry, meaning Microsoft has lost its exclusive standing with the brand. Several reports indicate Microsoft is looking to create its own “frontier AI models” so it doesn’t have to depend as much on third-party sources to power its services. Microsoft and OpenAI have been in a notable partnership since 2021. However, January reports indicated the parties have had collaborative concerns over OpenAI’s GPT-4, with Microsoft having said the model was too pricey and didn’t perform to consumer expectations. Meanwhile, OpenAI has been busy with several business ventures, having announced its $500 billion Stargate project, a collaborative effort with the U.S. government to construct AI data centers nationwide. The company also recently secured its latest investment round, led by SoftBank, raising $40 billion, and putting its current valuation at $300 billion, Windows Central noted. Recommended Videos The two companies are seemingly working on different goals at the moment. Microsoft is especially interested in building and developing its products and services. Currently, the brand has not shared specifics about plans to build AI models in-house. However, Microsoft AI CEO, Mustafa Suleyman, spoke with CNBC’s Steve Kovach, explaining that pacing AI model development several months behind industry leaders would allow Microsoft to lower production costs and target its use cases. Related “It’s cheaper to give a specific answer once you’ve waited for the first three or six months for the frontier to go first. We call that off-frontier. That’s actually our strategy, is to really play a very tight second, given the capital-intensiveness of these models,” Suleyman told CNBC. Microsoft also recently hosted its 50th Anniversary and Copilot event, where it showcased several new features for Copilot, including Copilot Vision, Deep Research, Pages, Copilot Avatar, and Memory. Windows Central noted the new AI features would benefit from Microsoft having more control over its AI models. Suleyman told CNBC that its partnership with OpenAI will span until at least 2030. He added that the brand is working on its own AI internally, but the company has no goals to create “the most cutting-edge models.” However, that does suggest the company is moving forward with plans to enable its own AI models. Notably, Microsoft quickly made the DeepSeek R1 reasoning model available on its Azure cloud computing platform and GitHub tool for developers amid its introduction to the industry in January. The move was seen as Microsoft’s effort to lessen reliance on OpenAI for its artificial intelligence needs. It was also supposedly working on its proprietary models and introducing more third-party models to help power its Microsoft 365 Copilot AI product, Reuters noted at the time. Editors’ Recommendations

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Illumiwaiting Again With Malevelon Creek saved again, Helldivers 2 players aren't really mourning another planet having gone pop in the process because they reckon a big update could be imminent Sorry, Ivis. Hopefully at least a couple of people poured one out for you on Friday night. Image credit: Arrowhead News by Mark Warren Senior Staff Writer Published on April 7, 2025 Good news. And also very bad news. Helldivers 2 players have successfully defended the infamous Malevelon Creek from yet another threat, but they've also lost another planet to the insatiable maw of the Meridian Singularity in the process. They don't seem too bothered though, as they're all more interested in seeing if Arrowhead follows the community's latest big update theory. If you're out of the loop, saving the Creek again was a big deal, because last week was the first time it'd popped up in the Galactic War since earning its own in-game memorial day via a fierce battle last year. Oh, and this latest planet to get eaten is the third that the Illuminate's black hole has now exploded to bits, which isn't ideal. To see this content please enable targeting cookies. As of writing, players are waiting for a fresh major order to drop, after taking in the debriefs that closed out the last one. The first informed them that "their resounding victory has upheld the memory of those honored on Malevelon Creek Memorial Day", while the other one was a bit less upbeat, telling folks that "efforts to slow the Singularity have worked, but too late to save Ivis. The Illuminate will face Justice for their crimes." So, you'd expect there to have been lots of mourning over Ivis' fate, as there was with Moradesh and Angel's Venture, right? Well, there was a bit, but also a lot of players who didn't seem all that bothered. "As devastating as it was to lose the first two planets, I feel like this plot has been sidelined for so long that now it just feels like an inconvenience to lose a planet, rather than an actual loss," one user with the handle FisherandFries wrote on the game's subreddit. Basically, some folks seem to just be getting a bit tired of the Meridian Singularity plotline as it exists right now, and are craving some fresh content from Arrowhead to spice stuff up. Something is going on by u/TDKswipe in Helldivers To see this content please enable targeting cookies. So, naturally, a fair few of them are putting their faith in a community theory that Arrwhead might put out a major update tomorrow, April 8. There doesn't look to be much concrete to this theory, more just hopes based on the day looking like it'll already feature a bunch of Helldivers 2 stuff. As well as Tuesday being the game's traditional patch/hotfix deployment day, this time it's the date of this year's BAFTA Games awards (Helldivers 2 has landed some noms) and the day that the crowdfunding campaign for the official HD2 board game kicks off. Does that mean Arrowhead'll actually drop any new stuff? We'll just have to see. In the meantime, are you getting a bit sick of battling the Illuminate death ball? ;et us know below!

Congress should invest at least $15 billion to support biotech research over the next five years and take other steps to bolster manufacturing in the U.S., the report said.

Recent productions in Germany and the Netherlands—of classics, curiosities and contemporary works by composers ranging from Strauss to Saariaho—powerfully exemplified the scene’s risk-taking artistic ethos.