How did I expose the tangent values in the curve editor? I cant remember and theres no info anywhere in the docs about it. I want to expose it in a different project too. Thank you 1 post - 1 participant Read full topic

Hey Big Duck out on Long Island: Move over, the chickens have come home to roost. In the Philippines, a new 114-foot hotel shaped like a rooster recently opened its doors, dwarfing the iconic avian structure built by duck farmer Martin Maurer in Flanders, New York, that Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown loved to write about. The gargantuan rooster-hotel is sited in Talisay City at Campuestohan Highland Resort, perched above the central mountainous province of Negros Occidental. It was ideated by the resorts owner, Ricardo Tan. Today, locals colloquially refer to the hotel as Handsome Canos Chicken, Gabrielle Andres reported in The Straight Times.As to be expected, the rooster has already made the rounds on TikTok.The rooster is 114 feet tall. (Courtesy Guinness World Records)In section, Tans hotel echoes Charles-Franois Ribarts unbuilt Elephant Monument to Louis XV from 1758. It also calls to mind a chicken-shaped church, Gereja Ayam, on the Indonesian island of Java, built by Daniel Alamsjah.After the rooster hotels completion in September, Guinness World Records recognized it as the largest building in the shape of a chicken. Upon receiving his new accolade, Tan told Guinness World Records officials, I had a vision to make something with a wow factor.Elephant Monument to Louis XV by Charles-Franois Ribart (Charles-Franois Ribart/Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain)Tan added that the rooster pays homage to Negros Occidentals robust agricultural sector. I feel proud and humbled at the same time, Tan shared. Im proud to have put my province and my home country on Guinness World Records. Humbled as I am from a poor upbringing where I had to work as a shoeshine boy to earn a living and go to school. I have made my family, my province and my country proud. In total, Tans creation has 15 rooms that can accommodate solo travelers or families. It also has a wave pool, a restaurant, a cafe, three swimming pools, bonita huts, and hundreds of dinosaurs and cartoon figures. So as to maintain the roosters aesthetic integrity, the rooms dont have windows.Typical hotel room (Courtesy Guiness World Records)Negros Occidental has a gamefowl industry that employs millions of people in the Philippines. If you look at a rooster, it looks calm and commanding, imposing and strong which reflects the attitude of our people, the hotel owner and visionary continued. The rooster can stand against strong winds and can withstand pressure from other roosters, an attitude of Negrense people with resilience to recover quickly from any form of difficulties and hardships in life, one trait that their people have in times of crisis and challenges.The region regularly experiences storms and typhoons, natural occurrences Tan took into account in the design process.Construction on the building started in June 2023.Rooms at the rooster-hotel go for about $100 a night.

The University of Chicago (UC) John W. Boyer Center in Paris is now open, marking Studio Gangs first built project in France, where it operates a satellite studio. The 25,460-square-foot building provides UC students and faculty classrooms, study spaces, and more in the citys illustrious 13th arrondissement. The new building occupies a prominent corner lot. From the street, its defined by Brise-soleil made up of 900 cylindrical stone batons. These batons were coated in Lutetian limestone, a common building material in Paris dating back to antiquity.The Center in Paris is designed as a vertical campus. Its multilevel atrium provides all the spaces with light and offers visual connections across programs, Jeanne Gang said. We wanted the building to amplify social interactions, scholarly collaborations, and cultural exchange between the University and the City of Paris.The facade is defined by Brise-soleil made up of 900 cylindrical stone batons. (Fabrice Fouillet)Aside from its Brise-soleil, the buildings general massing was engineered to fully harness the suns energy. It was designed according to the suns path to maximize daylight. The structure is made of mass timber which overall, alongside its stone masonry facade, makes for a sustainably harvested composition. The masonry was sourced from a quarry just 25 miles from the building site, further reducing embodied carbon. Photovoltaic panels were interspersed on the roof, generating clean energy and reducing the Boyer Centers reliance on the grid.Writing for AN last May, William Richards said the stone masonry facade is meant to evoke UCs campus, 4,100 miles west in Chicagos South Side.The structure is made of locally sourced mass timber, as seen in this progress photograph taken before the facade was installed. (Corentin Lespagno)As noted, Studio Gang described the John W. Boyer Center as a vertical campus anchored by a central atrium that ties the structure together, physically and visually. Inside, there are nine classrooms, a laboratory teaching space, a research institute for visiting academics, and an amphitheater for lectures, conferences, and large classes. Outside, the Boyer Center has a shared courtyard, terraces, and a loggia; providing visitors a verdant escape from the metropolis. An RER train station sits directly below grade, which pedestrians can access through a portal. The train station is emphasized with a new artwork by Chicago-based artist Tony Lewis.A double-height event space is sited on the Boyer Centers top floor. There, an adjoining biodiverse rooftop garden is also located, offering a vibrant milieu with stunning views of Paris for guests during conferences, cultural events, and social gatherings.The building has myriad spaces for social gatherings. (Corentin Lespagnol)Timber details and construction are always a part of the classroom design at the Boyer Center (Fabrice Fouilleet)A rounded wood reception desk makes a statement when students and faculty enter the building. (Fabrice Fouillet)Studio Gangs project was part of a new development by PARC Architectes that brings a new mixed-use residential building to Pariss Left Bank, a neighborhood known for its high volume of students and higher education spaces.The Boyer Center isnt Studio Gangs first collaboration with UC. In 2016, the Chicago office completed a 400,000-square-foot residential building atop UCs South Side campus.Looking ahead, Studio Gang is working on a new mixed-use tower in Pariss La Dfense.

Wild Things (2024), glass and ceramic mosaics. Commissioned by MTA Arts & Design for 14 St-7 Av station. Photo by Photo: Trent Reeves. All images Fred Tomaselli and NYC Transit 14 St Station Complex, shared with permissionCosmic Birds Soar Through New York City Subway Stations in Fred Tomasellis New MosaicsNovember 13, 2024ArtKate MothesKnown for his large-scale, collaged resin paintings and ongoing series of reimagined front pages of The New York Times, Fred Tomaselli is captivated by what he describes as the friction between beauty and ugliness or internal and external forces. He often observes interactions between humanity and nature through rhythmic patterns and vibrant colors.In New York Citys 14 St-6 Av and 14 St-7 Av subway stations, a series of new murals titled Wild Things have been unveiled in the historical spirit of the MTA mosaics. An avid birder, the Brooklyn-based artist highlights species that live year-round in New York City.Detail of mosaic in 14 St-7 Av stationScenes brightening up passageways and stairwells include orioles mobbing a falcon, a bright sky full of electric blue clouds, a spiral-eyed, cosmic cardinal, and more.Wild Things marks Tomasellis first permanent public artwork in Manhattan and reflects his mixed-media approach to collage in ceramics and glass. Commissioned by MTA Art & Design, the mosaics join more than 350 permanent installations accessible to public 24/7.Learn more about the artists work on Instagram. You might also enjoy Contemporary Art Underground, a celebration of New York City Subway art, Nick Caves 360-food Soundsuit installation, or Nancy Blums sprawling tile blossoms.Passageway from 7 Av to 6 AvDetail of work in passageway from 7 Av to 6 AvMosaic located in 14 St-6 AvMosaic located in 14 St-6 AvDetail of mosaic located in 14 St-6 AvMosaic located in 14 St-6 AvPrevious articleNext article

Published November 13, 2024 10:00am EST close Beware of new sneaky parking QR code scam The new scam is giving parkers everywhere a major headache. Its hard to ignore the rise of phishing scams these days. They seem to pop up in our inboxes with alarming frequency. As we become more aware of these deceptive tactics, scammers are also upping their game, using increasingly sophisticated methods to lure in unsuspecting victims.One particularly sneaky tactic involves impersonating a help desk or support team. You might receive an email claiming that your Microsoft 365 account is set to expire today.The goal? To create a sense of panic and urgency, prompting you to act quickly without thinking. So, how do you recognize these scams and protect yourself from falling victim to them? Let's go down that road to keep you safe. A woman opening email on laptop (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)How can you tell if it is a scam email?Its easy to see why people fall prey to these sorts of tactics, because scammers do a relatively good job of making these scam emails appear professional and legitimate. They go as far as to change the contact information of the email sender to something legitimate like an actual helpdesk or IT department or business.Upon further examination of the email senders contact information, you can see that the domain address of the actual email address is different and random. For example, the name in the "From" field of the email may read from helpdesk, but if you click on the contact information to view the email address, it will have a domain from @magicpin.in, @gmail.com or @hotmail.com, etc. If its an email supposedly from Microsoft, you'd expect the domain to be microsoft.com. Microsoft scam email (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)How are victims exploited by these types of scams?Getting a "fake" email may seem relatively benign, but it can be a slippery slope to identity theft and fraud. Below are ways in which scammers take advantage of their victims with these phishing email scams:1. Email validation: By opening the email or engaging with the email (clicking a link or responding to it), you can validate that the email account they messaged is active. Oftentimes, scammers randomly email people whose email address they've gotten from data breaches, the dark web or data harvesting.2. Information gathering: If you reply to the email or use any other contact information they provide to "reinstate" your account, it will validate that the email address they reached out to is active, and they will likely hard-sell you for financial and personal information. If you call any phone number they provide you, they will also connect your phone number with your email address so they can continue to update their information on you.3. Malware distribution: They will often have buttons, links or attachments included in the email. If you click the attachment, it can download malware or a virus to your device. If you click on a link that's provided in the email, it might take you to a website that will collect your personal and financial information or download malware or viruses to your device.CLICK HERE FOR MORE US NEWS Illustration of scammer at work What should you do if you receive these types of phishing emails?There are a few easy steps you can take if you receive an email you suspect is a phishing scam.1. Do not click on any links or buttons and do not download or open any attachments: This helps prevent malware installation and protects your personal information. The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious links that install malware, potentially accessing your private information, is to have antivirus software installed on all your devices. This protection can also alert you to phishing emails and ransomware scams, keeping your personal information and digital assets safe.Get my picks for the best 2024 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices.GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE2. Do not reply or reach out to these scammers by email or phone: Engaging with them can confirm your email address is active, leading to more scams.3. If your email client allows it, you can block the sender and report it as a phishing email: This action helps protect yourself and others by alerting your email provider to malicious activity.4. Verify the email's legitimacy by checking the official website of the organization: Directly accessing your account ensures you receive accurate information without falling for fake notifications.5. If two-factor authentication is offered for your account, enable it:2FA adds an extra layer of security, making it harder for scammers to gain access even if they have your password.6. Invest in personal data removal services: Reducing your digital footprint minimizes the risk of identity theft and scams based on harvested data. While no service promises to remove all your data from the internet, having a removal service is great if you want to constantly monitor and automate the process of removing your information from hundreds of sites continuously over a longer period of time.Check out my top picks for data removal services here.Kurts key takeawaysPhishing scams are becoming increasingly sophisticated, but staying informed and vigilant can significantly reduce your risk. By adopting good digital habits and following the tips we've shared, you can navigate the online world with confidence. Remember, awareness is your best defense, so keep sharing this knowledge with friends and family to help protect everyone from these deceptive tactics.What's the most unusual or clever phishing attempt you've encountered, and how did you recognize it as a scam? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact.For more of my tech tips and security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading to Cyberguy.com/Newsletter.Follow Kurt on his social channels:Answers to the most asked CyberGuy questions:New from Kurt:Copyright 2024 CyberGuy.com.All rights reserved. Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on "FOX & Friends." Got a tech question? Get Kurts free CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.

Tech Oops, heres how to edit and unsend a message on iPhone before its too late Edit and unsend iMessages with ease Published November 13, 2024 6:00am EST close Oops, heres how to edit and unsend your messages on iPhone before its too late With the latest iOS updates, you can unsend your iMessages. We've all experienced that moment of panic after sending a text message, whether its a typo, an accidental send to the wrong person or something you wish you could take back.Thankfully, if you're an iPhone user, there's good news.With the latest iOS updates, you can edit or unsend your iMessages. Lets dive into how you can save yourself from potential embarrassment. Messages app on iPhone (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)How to edit a sent iMessageOpen theMessages app and find theiMessage you want to changeLong-press on the messageA pop-up menu will appear; tap on Edit.Adjust the text as neededTap theblue check mark to confirm your changesCLICK HERE FOR MORE US NEWS Steps to edit a sent iMessage (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)Important notes about editing a sent iMessageYou have 15 minutes after sending a message to edit it.You can edit the same message up to five times.The recipient will see an "Edited" label on any modified messages, allowing them to view the original text if they choose.How to unsend an iMessageJust like editing, start by opening theMessages app and finding the message.Long-press on the messageIn the pop-up menu, chooseUndo SendThe message willvanish from both your device and the recipient's screen.GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE Steps to unsend an iMessage (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)Key considerations about unsending an iMessageYou only have two minutes after sending a message to unsend it.The recipient may still see a notification that you unsent a message.This feature only works for iMessages (blue bubbles), not SMS texts (green bubbles).Limitations you should knowWhile these features are incredibly useful, they come with some limitations.Both you and the recipient must be using iOS 16 or later for full functionality.If the recipient is on an older version or using a non-Apple device, your edits or unsends may not work as intended.Kurt's key takeawaysWith these simple steps, you can easily correct mistakes or retract messages that you may regret sending. The ability to edit and unsend messages is a welcome addition for anyone who has ever felt that pang of regret after hitting "send."What other messaging features would you like to see added to iMessage or other messaging apps in the future? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact.For more of my tech tips and security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading to Cyberguy.com/Newsletter.Follow Kurt on his social channels:Answers to the most asked CyberGuy questions:New from Kurt:Copyright 2024 CyberGuy.com.All rights reserved. Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on "FOX & Friends." Got a tech question? Get Kurts free CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.

zapp2photo - stock.adobe.comNewsClosing in on quantum computing with error mitigationCurrent quantum computers are prone to error. IBMs latest Heron machine uses software and hardware to get better resultsByCliff Saran,Managing EditorPublished: 13 Nov 2024 14:58 The latest machine onIBMs quantum computing roadmap, Heron, has been given a hardware and software boost as the company pushes towards its goal of error correction.Error correction is seen as the holy grail for quantum computing, which would open the gates to commercial adoption. This may be many years away, but IBM Heron offers error mitigation, which the company describes as techniques that allow users to mitigate circuit errors by modelling the device noise at the time of execution.In other words, it is something software developers need to do when programming IBM quantum computers to get around the noisiness in terms of errors that is inherent in todays quantum computing technology.Advances acrossIBM Quantum hardware and Qiskitare enabling our users to build new algorithms in which advanced quantum and classical supercomputing resources can be knit together to combine their respective strengths, said Jay Gambetta, vice-president of IBM Quantum.As we advance on our roadmap towards error-corrected quantum systems as a pillar of the future of computing, the algorithms discovered today across industries will be key to realising the full potential of unexplored computational spaces created by the convergence of QPUs [quantum processing units], CPUs [central processing units], and GPUs [graphics processing units].To tie in with the Heron announcement, IBM has introduced several new tools in its Qiskit software developers kit. These include tools such as the Qiskit Transpiler Service to power the optimisation of quantum circuits for quantum hardware with artificial intelligence (AI) and Qiskit Code Assistant to help developers easily generate quantum code withIBM Granite-based generative AImodels.It is also adding Qiskit Serverless, which enables software developers to run initial quantum-centric supercomputing approaches across quantum and classical systems and the IBM Qiskit Functions Catalog to make services available from IBM, Algorithmiq, Qedma, QunaSys, Q-CTRL and Multiverse Computing.Error correction is the breakthroughTobias Lindstrom, head of science for NPLs department of quantum technology, believes a step change in quantum computing will happen once error correction is fixed.Today, were limited by scaling because we dont have error correction, he said. Once you can build a logical error-correct qubit, as far as I understand, theres nothing stopping you from building more of them. It is an engineering challenge.Once there is error correction, you may spend more money but there is no limit to the scaling, he added, in response to the question of whether a working quantum computer would follow the same rules as Moores Law, which shows that the number of transistors on a processor doubles every two years for the same price.While there has been a lot of progress in schemes focused on error correction, Lindstrom expects quantum computing adoption will accelerate when the techniques are eventually mastered.Even if such a computer with perhaps 10,000 qubits has a ticket price of $1bn, Lindstrom believes the price is not likely to be a barrier for some organisations and governments: I dont think thats going to stop people when you are talking about something as useful as a quantum computer.What this means is that quantum computers will likely only be initially purchased by governments or very large companies.There is a certain class of problem which Lindstrom and many in the industry feel quantum computing will be able to optimise. Not surprising, he said, quantum-type problems such as quantum chemistry are among the big opportunities, where quantum computing can be applied in material science leading to opportunities such as the development of greener technologies.While not fully fledged computers, Lindstrom described the UK Research and Innovations quantum test bed programme as an important step. These demonstrators of quantum technology provide a way for quantum computing firms to develop machines that organisations can have direct access to in the UK.Solving problems and improving skillsLike IBMs Gambetta, Lindstrom sees quantum devices as part of the mix that will be used to accelerate certain workloads: A good analogy is probably something like using GPUs or FPGAs [file programmable gate arrays] in the context of high-performance computing. Youre still logging onto a regular computer, but for certain problems, youre using a GPU or an FPGA.The era of quantum computing will, like with GPUs, involve the quantum processor effectively acting as an accelerator or co-processor for the CPU. Lindstrom believes that, in an ideal world, a programmer would use their preferred programming language and their source code compiler tool would then look through this code and decide which steps in the program requires an optimisation step and then assess whether this is best serviced by offloading the task to a quantum processor.Thats the ideal scenario, in terms of user friendliness, but it may not be the best way to use existing resources, he said.For Lindstrom, there needs to be a group of specialist programmers who understand the computer architecture in depth: I think a good analogue would be classical computers in the 1980s, where people were programming in assembly language to squeeze the most performance out of the hardware.Looking at current industry efforts, Lindstrom said that there is work to make quantum computing more accessible to people who do not necessarily have an in-depth background in the technology, but this is not possible today.For the foreseeable future, you will need a second category of people as well who really understand quantum computing and who can formulate the problem before they even start writing the code, he said.What this means from a skills perspective, as CIOs plan for a future where quantum computing is part of the technology mix is, according to Lindstrom, a similar story to the upskilling needed for GPUs.People are GPU-aware because, again, it has been part of the computing ecosystem for so long, but they dont necessarily need to know how to build a GPU they just need to understand the APIs [application programming interfaces] and what problems GPUs can be used for.Read more quantum computer storiesDoes quantum matter: Ilyas Khan, CEO of Quantinuum, discusses the quantum computing revolution.IBM plots route beyond Condor: New quantum system and classical computing hybrid forms the basis of next-gen supercomputing at IBM.In The Current Issue:Interview: Niall Robinson, head of product innovation, Met OfficeIAM: Enterprises face a long, hard road to improveDownload Current IssueHow enterprises can improve ROI on AI investments Data MattersHow To "Vawlt" Superclouds Networks GenerationView All Blogs

your123 - stock.adobe.comNewsRed Hat acquires tech to lower the cost of machine learningThe acquisition of Neural Magic by Red Hat is being positioned as a way to democratise machine learning and reduce the need for GPUsByCliff Saran,Managing EditorPublished: 13 Nov 2024 14:55 Red Hat has announced its intention to acquire Neural Magic, the lead developer behind the open source vLLM project.The acquisition is being positioned as a way for Red Hat and its parent IBM to lower the barrier to entry for organisations that want to run machine learning workloads without the need to deploy servers equipped with graphics processing units (GPUs). This reliance creates a barrier to entry, hindering the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) across various industries and limiting its potential to revolutionise how we live and work.The GitHub entry for vLLM describes the software as: A high-throughput and memory-efficient inference and serving engine for LLMs [large language models].In a blog discussing the deal, Red Hat president and CEO Matt Hicks said Neural Magic had developed a way to run machine learning (ML) algorithms without the need for expensive and often difficult to source GPU server hardware.He said the founders of Neural Magic wanted to empower anyone, regardless of their resources, to harness the power of AI. Their groundbreaking approach involved leveraging techniques like pruning and quantisation to optimise machine learning models, starting by allowing ML models to run efficiently on readily available CPUs without sacrificing performance, he wrote.Hicks spoke about the shift towards smaller, more specialised AI models, which can deliver exceptional performance with greater efficiency. These models are not only more efficient to train and deploy, but they also offer significant advantages in terms of customisation and adaptability, he wrote.Red Hat is pushing the idea of sparsification, which, according to Hicks, strategically removes unnecessary connections within a model. This approach, he said, reduces the size and computational requirements of the model without sacrificing accuracy or performance. Quantisation is then used to reduce model size further, enabling the AI model to run on platforms with reduced memory requirements.All of this translates to lower costs, faster inference and the ability to run AI workloads on a wider range of hardware, he added.Red Hats intention to acquire Neural Magic fits into parent company IBMs strategy to help enterprise customers use AI models.In a recent interview with Computer Weekly, Kareem Yusuf, product management lead for IBMs software portfolio, said the supplier has identified a business opportunity to support customers that want to easily mash their data into the large language model. This, he said, allows them to take advantage of large language models in a way that enables protection and control of enterprise data.IBM has developed a project called InstructLab that provides the tools to create and merge changes to LLMs without having to retrain the model from scratch. It is available in the open source community, along with IBM Granite, a foundation AI model for enterprise datasets. Listen to the full interview with Kareem Yusuf Dario Gil, IBMs senior vice-president and director of research, said: As our clients look to scale AI across their hybrid environments, virtualised, cloud-native LLMs built on open foundations will become the industry standard. Red Hats leadership in open source, combined with the choice of efficient, open source models like IBM Granite and Neural Magics offerings for scaling AI across platforms, empower businesses with the control and flexibility they need to deploy AI across the enterprise.Read more about IBMs AI strategyIBMs latest Z mainframe offers lessons in building AI systems: Studying the engineering behind IBMs mainframe architecture could help enterprises build higher reliability into the GPU clusters used to run AI applications.IBM throws its Red Hat into open source AI ring with RHEL AI: IBM and Red Hat open source their first LLMs, but IT experts say RHEL AI is more likely to stand out in the ways it links AI to hybrid cloud infrastructure.In The Current Issue:Interview: Niall Robinson, head of product innovation, Met OfficeIAM: Enterprises face a long, hard road to improveDownload Current IssueHow enterprises can improve ROI on AI investments Data MattersHow To "Vawlt" Superclouds Networks GenerationView All Blogs

If your primary OS is Linux, but you want to use Android apps on your desktop, here's what you need to do.

Hakan Nural/Anadolu via Getty ImagesEvery time I think social media is done evolving, something shakes things up. Twitter was the go-to for years, with algorithms steering what we saw. But Bluesky has arrived, offering something different -- an open-source, decentralized network that puts control back into users' hands.Now that it's open to all, I've spent time exploring how it works, and it's a breath of fresh air for those of us looking to own our digital identities.What exactly is Bluesky?Bluesky runs on the AT Protocol, and while that sounds technical, it boils down to this: Bluesky lets you carry your social graph -- essentially, your connections -- with you across apps that adopt the protocol. Unlike Mastodon, though, Bluesky's AT Protocol doesn't currently connect with ActivityPub, the standard behind the Fediverse and the Mastodon distributed social network. That means Bluesky remains a unique, self-contained ecosystem.Also: How to use Bluesky Social: Everything to know about the popular X alternativeWhile Mastodon and Threads can talk to each other via ActivityPub, Bluesky is in its own lane for now. However, you can use Openvibe, a new mobile client, to participate on Bluesky, Mastodon, and Threads simultaneously, with a single feed.Here's what else to know about it.1. It's growing fastBluesky's growth has been rapid, with more than a million new users joining since the recent US election. The platform now has over 15 million users, a sign that people are increasingly drawn to alternatives to Elon Musk's X.Bluesky's popularity has even pushed it to the top of Apple's free app charts, ranking ahead of apps like Threads, ChatGPT, and TikTok. With new features rolling out regularly, Bluesky has something fresh to offer in a landscape full of algorithm-heavy platforms.2. No algorithm tinkering hereIf you're tired of algorithms deciding what you see, Bluesky might be the relief you're looking for. Like Mastodon, Bluesky has no central algorithm feeding you posts based on some popularity contest. Instead, what you see comes from genuine engagement: posts gain visibility based on how many users like and "re-skeet" them (Bluesky's version of a retweet).For me, having a feed that isn't manipulated to prioritize certain posts over others is refreshing.3. Feeds, Lists, and Starter Packs explainedFeeds: Lists: Lists serve as versatile tools for grouping accounts, which can be used in various ways. You can create lists of people to follow around specific themes, such as industry experts or news sources, or organize content on your profile by interest. Lists can also function as moderation lists (mod lists), allowing you to track or block specific users. Furthermore, Bluesky lets you publicize these lists directly in your profile, helping others see recommended accounts to follow or understand who you've blocked for safety and moderation purposes.Starter Packs: Introduced in June 2024, Starter Packs are curated collections of up to 150 recommended users and up to three custom feeds. They are designed to help new users quickly find and follow accounts and feeds that match their interests. Existing users can create and share these packs, providing newcomers with a personalized onboarding experience. For instance, a Starter Pack might focus on tech enthusiasts, LGBTQ+ communities, or political discussions, allowing users to immerse themselves in relevant conversations from the outset.4. The 'Nuclear Block' gives you total controlBluesky's blocking feature is quite strict. Users refer to it as a "Nuclear Block" because it effectively erases any connection between you and the blocked user in the digital space. Once blocked, they won't see your posts, not even if they quote you. Additionally, Bluesky allows you to remove any mentions of yourself from conversations, as well as your quotes from other users' posts.This creates a clean solution for managing conflicts, encouraging users to resolve issues without dragging them out in comment threads. If you're curious about who is blocking you or if you're on a moderation list, you can check this information using clearsky.app, an independently operated service.5. You get customizable handles for verificationBluesky's approach to verification is a bit different, too. By default, you get a handle on bsky.social, but you can take it a step further by registering your own domain as a handle. It's like having a verified badge without the badge -- an easy way to establish credibility and create a unique identity on the platform. Setting it up is simple and gives your profile that extra touch of authenticity.6. Enjoy ad-free monetization and federationBluesky is committed to keeping its platform ad-free, instead exploring other monetization methods that maintain user privacy. A subscription model will offer features like higher-quality video uploads and profile customization, but unlike X's approach, it won't influence post visibility or grant a "verified" badge. Bluesky also offers custom domains for handles, allowing users to personalize and authenticate their profiles. For creators, Bluesky will enable monetization through developer-created content, such as custom feeds, with Bluesky taking a small cut.Also: I tried replacing Twitter with Bluesky, Threads, and Mastodon: What I foundBluesky has also entered its federation phase, allowing users to set up their own Personal Data Servers (PDS). By hosting your own server, you gain even more control and can contribute directly to the decentralized Bluesky network. Setting up a PDS is straightforward: most organizations can choose a VPS provider to turn-key a PDS configuration.If you want to attempt it on your own, you can download the necessary Bluesky PDS files and launch your server. Docker can simplify the process, making it easier to manage and secure. For those interested, detailed setup steps and support are available through Bluesky'sGitHub page and the PDS Administrators Discord.With these monetization and federation options, Bluesky offers a unique, user-centric platform that combines control, privacy, and customization.7. There are great Bluesky appsIf you're on mobile, you'll find Bluesky's official app on iPhone and Android, though there's no iPad version yet. I've found a few good third-party clients (such as Openvibe as mentioned earlier and Skeets) for those looking to use Bluesky on iPad, which are helpful until the platform expands.And if you're a TweetDeck fan, you'll like Deck.blue, a third-party web app that recreates TweetDeck's multi-column layout, making it easy to keep up with multiple conversations. With these options, you can tailor the Bluesky experience to suit your needs.Should you join Bluesky?Bluesky might be worth your time if you're ready to leave algorithm-driven feeds behind and try a network that prioritizes user control. It's not a direct replacement for Twitter (X), but Bluesky has a lot to offer those who want a fresh start in a decentralized, privacy-minded network.Featured