The big picture: A debate surrounding Northeastern's computer science curriculum highlights the ongoing challenges in higher education about how to best prepare students for rapidly evolving technical fields. While Python is currently popular in the industry, the choice of programming language for teaching should be based on pedagogical merit rather than current trends, writes one student. In a recent op-ed for The Huntington News, Derek Kaplan, a fourth-year Computer Science student at Northeastern University, presented a compelling argument about the future of computer science education at his institution. The piece comes in response to Northeastern's announcement of a complete overhaul of its computer science curriculum.Kaplan makes the case that the rapidly evolving nature of the tech industry requires a focus on timeless principles rather than current trends and that an effective curriculum should emphasize fundamental principles that are widely applicable, enabling students to easily adapt to new technologies in their future careers. "A curriculum focused on current industry trends risks becoming obsolete before students even graduate," he noted.Northeastern's current curriculum, particularly the "Fundies" courses, focuses on systematic program design and problem-solving skills. These courses teach a design recipe that provides a consistent formula for tackling unfamiliar problems, training students to reason about code "rather than to mindlessly write it," he said.The "point of Fundies is to teach program design skills that can be applied using any programming language A student who does well in Fundies will have no difficulty applying the same skills to Python or any other language."However, the proposed changes to the curriculum have raised concerns. The plan is to phase out core courses like Fundies 1, Fundies 2, and Object-Oriented Design in favor of new courses primarily teaching Python, which Kaplan sees as potentially misguided.Racket, the language currently used in introductory courses, was chosen for its teaching-oriented features, which Python lacks. Kaplan also views as problematic the decision to allow students to place out of new courses with AP Computer Science credit, as AP courses do not teach the same systematic design skills as Northeastern's current introductory courses.These changes suggest a shift away from systematic program design as a central aspect of the curriculum, which could leave students ill-prepared for advanced coursework and future careers. The Object-Oriented Design course, while challenging for many students, teaches essential skills such as working with code written by others and managing large software projects. // Related StoriesKaplan also questions the motivations behind the curriculum change, suggesting that it may be driven by a desire to make the core curriculum easier and reduce the number of students withdrawing from certain courses."I know one professor who has been telling students that the college wants to reduce the number of students who withdraw from Fundies 2 and Object-Oriented Design. While this is an understandable sentiment, it would be a mistake to remove the most important parts of the curriculum to do so."Finally, he notes that experienced teaching assistants could provide valuable input into the curriculum revision process. Their unique perspective, having both taken the courses and helped other students succeed, could help ensure that core principles are not compromised while allowing for beneficial changes."As a former teaching assistant, or TA, for Object-Oriented Design, I have seen many students struggle through the class. But I have also seen those same students become better programmers because of what they learn in that class."

Highly anticipated: What has felt like the longest-ever wait in tech history is almost over. In around 12 hours, Nvidia will finally unveil the GeForce RTX 5000 series desktop graphics cards during its CES keynote. Leaks for consumer-grade Blackwell GPUs have been coming thick and fast over the last few days, but we'll soon have the official details, including the all-important prices. You can watch the entire event right here, starting at 6:30 pm PT / 9:30 pm EST / 3:30 am CET. A most recent leak claimed to show a screenshot from a European retailer listing the RTX 5080. It was priced at 1,699 Euros, around $1,749, though that included 20% VAT, so the actual price would be a still very high $1,399. The listing also appeared to confirm the use of GDDR7 memory and the introduction of Nvidia's next-generation of upscaling tech, DLSS 4.Keeping with tradition, Nvidia still hasn't officially confirmed that the RTX 5000 series is on the way, but there have been plenty of hints. The fact the gaming festival it's currently running is called GeForce LAN 50 and the company is talking about looking "to the future" on social media pretty much confirms what's coming. Moreover, Jensen Huang is delivering the keynote, marking the first time that the CEO has appeared at the event since 2019, suggesting something big is in store.It's expected that the RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 will be unveiled at CES, while the RTX 5070, RTX 5070 Ti, and China-only RTX 5090D will likely be on show. In the last few hours, a marketing image of the Inno3D RTX 5090 iChill X3 appeared online. It features a massive 32GB of GDDR7 and a 3.5-slot cooler.The RTX 5090 is expected to feature 21,760 CUDA cores, nearly 1.8TB/s of memory bandwidth, and a TDP of 575 watts, 125W more than the RTX 4090. It's also the only card in the RTX 5000 line to use the GB202 GPU. // Related StoriesThe RTX 5080 is believed to be the first card in the RTX 5000 series to launch, on January 21. It's expected to come with 16GB of GDDR7, half that of the RTX 5090, and a 256-bit memory bus.Remember to come back here at 6:30 pm PT / 9.30 pm EST / 2:30 am BST to watch the whole event.

NetflixTable of ContentsTable of ContentsThe first wishA grain of truthA time of contemptHBOs Game of Thrones was a game-changing phenomenonthat dominated the 2010s and single-handedly revived the fantasy genre on the small screen; whatLord of the Rings did for fantasy movies,Game of Thrones did for fantasy TV. It took HBOs competition a while, but by the second half of the 2010s, most streamers had a major fantasy show in the works, ready to claimThrones place as it neared its infamous ending in 2019. However, out of all these shows, perhaps none was more successful or infamous as NetflixsThe Witcher.Starring the reigning king of the nerds and Mr. Franchise himself, Henry Cavill, The Witcher was supposed to be Netflixs main fantasy vehicle, and for a while, it was. Season 1 premiered to huge numbers and generated a ton of conversation; reviews were mixed, but the show seemed like it was everything Netflix wanted to be until it wasnt. Five years and three seasons later, its clear The Witcher not only failed to live up to its lofty expectations but mightve actually hurt Netflixs reputation ever so slightly. On its fifth anniversary, we look back atThe Witchers complicated history and discuss how Netflix mightve put far too much pressure on an IP that was never going to explode in the way it wanted it to.Recommended VideosNetflixIn 2017, Netflix announced it would develop a series based on Andrzej Sapkowskis long-running dark fantasy seriesThe Witcher. Nearly every major trade that reported it made the connection with HBOs pride and glory, not-so-subtly asking, Has Netflix found its Game of Thrones? From the start,The Witcher was meant to act as Netflixs big fantasy IP; on paper, it made perfect sense. The series included multiple books and short stories. More importantly, it had a built-in fanbase from two distinct sources: the books, of course, and the highly successful and acclaimed video game adaptations courtesy of CD Projekt Red, whose 2015 effort The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt soldover 50 million copies as of 2023 and won Game of the Year at the 2015 Game Awards.CD Projekt RedIn September 2018, Henry Cavill was announced to star in the series. At that point, Cavill was at a great place career-wise following the critical and commercial success of Mission: Impossible Fallout, arguably his best performance to date. Moreover, he was ostensibly still Superman, and his name carried a lot of weight in the geek community. Shortly after, newcomers Anya Chalotra and Freya Allan were cast in the key roles of Yennefer of Vengerberg and Cirilla of Cintra, and the show started filming for a later 2019 premiere.Geralt's Butcher of Blaviken Fight in 4K | The Witcher Season 1The Witcher centers on three distinct storylines. Geralt of Rivia (Cavill) is the titular character, a monster hunter with enhanced abilities and magic who traverses The Continent, killing dangerous beasts and charging the reward. Yennefer of Vengerberg (Chalotra) is a powerful sorceress and the unofficial adviser of the Kingdom of Aedirn who sacrificed her fertility to become beautiful. Lastly, Cirilla (Allan) is the young princess of Cintra who escapes into the wilderness following an attack on her homeland and discovers incredible power within. The first season keeps their stories mostly separate, building until their eventual meeting to form the found family thats so popular in both the books and the show.NetflixBefore season 1 had even premiered, Netflix renewed The Witcher for a second season. Cavill, who actively campaigned for the role of Geralt, stated hed happily commit to the shows seven-season arc as long as (they) can keep telling great stories that honor Sapkowskis work. In hindsight, it very much seems that, withThe Witcher, it was always about what was coming rather than what actually was at the moment. The showrunner, Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, often spoke about the long-term plan, while Cavill kept stressing Geralts future journey. Yet, the present never seemed to be discussed in fact, for this show, the present always seemed to already be the past.RelatedNetflixReception for season 1 of The Witcher was mixed. The performances, particularly Cavills and Chalotras, were praised, as were the fight sequences, visual effects, and overall production values. However, the narrative and its needlessly complicated structure attracted considerable criticism, and for good reason. Season 1 of The WitcherHowever, the novelty, plus Cavills presence and an annoyingly catchy earworm that took over the internet in late 2019, turned The Witcher into an outright sensation. It accumulated 76 million views in its first month on the streamer and pleased most hardcore fans while still attracting a new crowd with its premise, star power, and the promise of another fantasy epic about politics, magic, and sex.Netflix -The Witcher Epic Scene - Jaskier Song -Toss a coin to your witcher -The only issue was thatThe Witcher didnt have much of those three. Yes, there was gratuitous nudity in season 1 and the occasional talk about The Continents larger political situation, but for the most part, The Witcher followed a monster-of-the-week formula while keeping its secrets incredibly vague and unclear. Still, there seemed to be enough here to support a successful show, and it was full steam ahead with season 2, which arrived two years later in December 2021. For starters, thats too much time for a show that was probably binged in 24 hours; that issue, of course, isnt exclusive to The Witcher, but it played a big role in its slow decline.Season 2 was the point of no return forThe Witcher. The series introduced new plots that were met with mixed-to-negative reception from the core audience, who lamented how much deviation from the source material was happening. Crucial choices, like Eskels death and the creation of a new villain, Voleth Meir, were particularly divisive and pretty much split the hardcore audience into two; whereas casual viewers couldnt care less, the built-in fanbase that Netflix depended on did, and they didnot like it.What followed was a prolonged and quite ugly situation where both sides fired shots at each other. To make matters worse, in late 2022, after a year of constant attacks following season 2s premiere, Beau DeMayo, a former writer for the show, claimed that no one on the writing team liked the source material and, in fact, openly mocked it.Season 2 First Look Clip: Geralt & Ciri | The WitcherSuch claims, coupled with Henry Cavills exit from the show in October 2022, pretty much destroyed any goodwill The Witcher had left. Those who already hated it were further empowered, while those on the fence turned their backs on the show. And its a shame because season 3 might just be the best of The Witcher, featuring the most assured and put-together narrative and building toward an actual cohesive story with a clear goal. Alas, no one really cared; by the time season 3 came along, interest in The Witcher had diminished to the point of disappearing, not because of the controversies and not even because of Cavills exit, but rather because it was clear it was not Game of Thrones.Yes, the hard truth is that, as a show,The Witcher is not as great as everyone wanted it to be. Dont get me wrong, its a fine series with good to great performances (Chalotra is really a gift and a revelation, and Cavill delivers some of his finest work, especially in season 3), strong visual effects, and an interesting enough storyline. However, it never strives for greatness; theres very little ambition in its storytelling, which is more Star Trek than Game of Thrones. There are no layers to its world-building, and its narrative structure oscillates between decent and outright clumsy. Game of Thrones succeeded because it embraced fantasy but grounded it in gritty themes that made it addictive politics, betrayal, shocking violence, sex, and everything in between.Geralt - The WitcherThe Witcher has none of that, largely because it doesnt seem interested in doing it. WhereasThrones was expansive,The Witcher seems limited and short-sighted. Whether its a good or bad adaptation of Sapkowskis work is up for debate, but the absolute truth is that, as a show,The Witcheris just fine. And for a project with such high hopes behind it, fine just wont do.NetflixThe Witcher ended its third season with little fanfare. Its unclear at what point in production Cavill negotiated his exit, but his goodbye from the show was only OK bittersweet, for sure, but far from memorable. In his place, Liam Hemsworth will take over, which pretty much says everything about the shows current state that it couldnt secure anyone better than the third and least interesting lead from The Hunger Games. Season 4 will arrive at some point next year, with a fifth and final season already announced. Thus,The Witcher will limp its way to an ending in 2027 not as Netflixs crowning fantasy jewel but as another of the streamers high-profile shows that ultimately amounted to nothing.What is the shows legacy? Well, Cavill will be fine. His reputation did take a bit of a hit, but thats not just because of the show; a string of high-profile flops certainly didnt help. Still, Cavill is largely in a good place, with the Warhammer 40K movie in the works, plus the Voltron and Highlander movies set to film next year and another Guy Ritchie action vehicle. More than any other actor, Cavill seems content with being a franchise player, so hes where he wants to be.NetflixFreya Allan has also made moves outside the series, with 2024 being something of a breakout year for her, thanks to Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, which might very well get a sequel soon. As for Chalotra, she recently made her debut as Circe in the DCUsCreature Commandos. Since there will apparently be synergy between animated and live-action projects in the DCU, Chalotras Circe might make her live-action debut in a future movie.Netflix, of course, will be fine, too. It will keep trying to launch a big fantasy IP, no matter how many missteps it has whether it actually succeeds is a different matter. But what aboutThe Witcher itself? Well, the IP will probably not return to live action for years following the end of the Netflix show, if ever. In the gaming world, its already preparing for a fourth game,The Witcher IV, which will follow Ciri as the protagonist. Whether the shows divisive reception will impact its gaming counterpart remains to be seen. The truth is, the IP is now caught in the middle of the ongoing culture wars, and only time will tell if it makes it out intact.Top 10 Best Fight Scenes In The Witcher TV SeriesFive years after its release, NetflixsThe Witcher stands as an example of a show that existed in the shadow of another and was unwittingly set up for disappointment. And while it isnt an outright failure under any metric, it cannot be called a success, either.The WitcherThe Witcher is available to stream on Netflix.Editors Recommendations

Home DepotHubspace, Home Depots smart home platform, has seen impressive growth over the past few years, and that growth continued at CES 2025. Three new gadgets were revealed at the event, including a wireless power switch to control Hubspace products, a portable air conditioner, and a window-mounted air conditioner. All three are unique additions to the catalog and since theres not much like them on the market, they should quickly become popular options in their respective niches.The Hubspace Remote Switch is arguably the most useful of the three gadgets. Designed to look like a light switch, but with a removable remote controller, it works with select Hubspace light bulbs, fixtures, plugs, power sockets, surge protectors, and more. Youll get standard on and off functions, plus access to brightness controls. Its sleek looks and versatility should make it a great choice for shoppers seeking an entry-level smart switch.Home DepotThough its cold across most of the country, Home Depot also revealed two upcoming air conditioners. Vissani manufactures both, though one is a portable unit, while the other is window-mounted. Both can cool, dehumidify, and circulate air throughout your home. Best of all, you can program schedules and operating modes to ensure its working automatically without much manual input. The Portable AC is offered in 6K, 8K, and 19K sizes, while the Window AC is offered in 8K, 10K, 12K, and 14K sizes. Both include a two-year warranty.Recommended VideosLaunch dates and pricing for all of the above products have yet to be announced, but expect them to carry affordable price tags.Please enable Javascript to view this contentHubspace has built a name for itself by offering reasonable prices and solid entry-level smart home functionality, and its nice to see this continue at CES 2025. It would have been great to see additional products in more popular categories but since Hubspace now features over 130 supported devices (including lights, fans, smart plugs, motion sensors, blinds, and thermostats), branching out to niche categories is a smart alternative.RelatedWe checked out a handful of Hubspace products in early 2024, and found the platform to be a great way to start building your smart home. The big selling point is support for Alexa and Google Assistant so when youre ready to start syncing with other products, you can step away from Hubspace and access your gadgets on other platforms.Editors Recommendations

html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd" With the big Copilot+ push last year and Intels radically new Lunar Lake range, itd be easy to assume Intel forgot about gaming laptops. CES 2025 proves the company didnt.Several months after the original Lunar Lake CPUs launched, which Intel calls Core Ultra 200V CPUs, the company is launching 200U, 200H, and 200HX processors. The latter two ranges are angled toward gaming laptops, with HX-series processors specifically targeting gaming laptops with a discrete graphics card. The flagship Core Ultra 9 285HX packs a total of 24 cores, and it can boost as high as 5.5GHz.IntelYou can see the full range of HX processors above. As is the case with other Lunar Lake mobile chips and Intels Arrow Lake desktop CPUs, these new chips dont support Hyper-Threading. Instead, the efficient (E) cores drive the majority of performance, with the performance (P) cores stepping in for heavy workloads that require high boost clock speeds. Intel says that these chips will show up in laptops with a discrete GPU starting in the first quarter of 2025, many of which well likely see in Las Vegas at CES.Recommended VideosA step down the range, Intel has its H-series processors, which scale up to 16 cores and a maximum 5.4GHz boost clock speed on the Core Ultra 9 285H. These processors draw a bit more power than their V-series counterparts, and they arent a system-on-a-chip (SoC), allowing laptop makers to customize memory capacity. However, the H-series chips still come with Intels Battlemage graphics architecture under the hood.IntelThese processors are also rolling out in laptops in the first quarter of the year, but theyre angled toward thin and light machines without a discrete graphics card. Intels H-series CPUs usually straddle the line between a high-end thin and light laptop and portable gaming machines.Get your weekly teardown of the tech behind PC gaming At the bottom of the stack are Intels new U-series CPUs, which it didnt share specs for. U-series processors are focused on inexpensive, highly efficient laptops that trade performance for portability, either due to form factor or price. Intel didnt share when it expects U-series processors to start showing up, but theyll likely start rolling out after the HX-series and H-series options.Editors Recommendations

mixed bag Same CPU, slower GPU and NPU: Meet the rest of Intels Core Ultra 200 laptop chips Core Ultra 200U, 200H, and 200HX will all fall short of Copilot+ compatibility. Andrew Cunningham Jan 6, 2025 9:00 am | 4 The new additions to the Core Ultra 200-series lineup today are in the U- and H-series, which Intel slots in below and above existing Lunar Lake-based Core Ultra 200V CPUs. HX-series CPUs also bring Intel's desktop silicon to high-powered laptops. Credit: Intel The new additions to the Core Ultra 200-series lineup today are in the U- and H-series, which Intel slots in below and above existing Lunar Lake-based Core Ultra 200V CPUs. HX-series CPUs also bring Intel's desktop silicon to high-powered laptops. Credit: Intel Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreIntel's Core Ultra 200 series is currently bifurcated between two architectures: Lunar Lake, which powers the Core Ultra 200V series of laptop chips; and Arrow Lake, which is included in the Core Ultra 200S desktop processors. Both share the same CPU architectures across their P-cores and E-cores, but the similarities end there. Arrow Lake processors can include many more CPU cores, but only Lunar Lake uses Intel's latest GPU architecture and a neural processing unit (NPU) fast enough for Microsoft's Copilot+ functionality.Intel is rounding out the rest of the Core Ultra 200 family today at CES, and the most important thing to know is that it's Arrow Lake, and not Lunar Lake, that is powering all of these new processors. This means that none of them are fast enough to earn the Copilot+ label or use upcoming features like Windows Recall, and none of them will have integrated graphics that are as good as the Core Ultra 200V. But it will make them a better fit for gaming laptops and other kinds of systems that prioritize CPU performance or include an external graphics card, as well as less-expensive ultraportable laptops.Intel may be going with Arrow Lake because Lunar Lake processors are more expensive to make; Intel's (now former) CEO, Pat Gelsinger, declared the Lunar Lake design a "one-off" because of the extra cost associated with integrating the RAM into the CPU package. Intel said at the time that this saved motherboard space and reduced energy use, but these benefits aren't being extended to the rest of the lineup.Regardless of the reasoning, here's what's going on with the rest of Intel's laptop chips this year.Mixing and matching chipletsAll of Intel's Core Ultra CPUs have used chiplet-based designs, which means that every processor die is actually a collection of smaller silicon tiles fused together with a "base tile" that facilitates communication between the chiplets. That's relevant because it allows Intel to do some mixing and matching of different parts.For example, the "Arrow Lake" of the Core Ultra U and H processors is slightly different from the Arrow Lake used in the HX processors and desktop chips. They appear to include an "SoC tile" similar or identical to the one used in last-generation Meteor Lake-based Core Ultra 100 chips, giving them each a pair of extra low-power E-cores (or LP-E-cores) to handle low-lift or background tasks while consuming less energy than the standard E-cores. This was an approach Intel abandoned for Lunar Lake and also didn't see fit to include in the desktop-class Arrow Lake CPUs.Reusing or adapting Meteor Lake's SoC tile would also explain why Core Ultra 200H and 200U processors have I/O capabilities identical to Meteor Lake'sthe same number of PCIe lanes, the same number of USB and SATA ports, and the same built-in support for Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7. They also share the same 11 TOPS NPU as Meteor Lake and the same 96GB maximum memory capacity. We're checking with Intel to see whether this is the same SoC tile used in Meteor Lake or if it's been updated at all for Arrow Lake (with the new Skymont E-core architecture, for example).U- and H-series: For thin-and-light laptopsStarting with the least powerful of the new CPUs: the Core Ultra 200U chips are made for thin-and-light systems, and on paper they've got competent but modest specifications. All four of the models Intel is announcing have two P-cores, eight E-cores, and the two LP-E cores. There's also a GPU based on the last-generation Alchemist architecture, with a maximum of four cores (Intel's specs don't list whether each chip has a fully enabled GPU). This GPU isn't fast enough to qualify for the "Arc" label and is simply referred to as "Intel Graphics." Intel's four new U-series Core Ultra 200 processors, based on the Arrow Lake architecture. Credit: Intel The four U-series CPUsthe Core Ultra 7 265U and 255U, and Ultra 5 235U and 225Uare differentiated mainly by clock speeds, though there's not a huge difference between the slowest chip (4.8 GHz max Turbo frequency and 1.5 GHz base frequency) and the fastest (5.3 GHz and 2.1 GHz, respectively). All four chips have a base power usage of 15 W, but manufacturers can scale this as high as 57 W to squeeze a bit more performance out of them.Intel says that the U-series chips are for "balanced" thin-and-light PCs. The H-series is for "performance" thin-and-light PCs and scales up the CPU and GPU core counts accordingly for MacBook Pro-alikes that are trying to balance speed and portability. Intel says that single- and multi-core CPU performance and GPU performance should all increase by roughly 15 percent compared to last-generation Core Ultra 100H processors.The five H-series CPUs have either six or four P-cores, eight E-cores, and two LP-E cores, for a total of either 16 or 14 cores. Most also have an Intel Arc-branded GPU with eight of Intel's Xe cores, or seven if you get the lower-end Core Ultra 5 225H. Intel's five new H-series Core Ultra 200 processors, based on the Arrow Lake architecture. Credit: Intel Most of the H-series chips have a base power of 28 W and a maximum Turbo power of up to 60 W, but the high-end Core Ultra 9 285H lists a 45 W base power and 115 W maximum Turbo power level. Per usual, individual PCs with these CPUs will differ slightly based on how the manufacturer configures them.Both the U- and H-series Core Ultra 200 processors support DDR5-6400 and LPDDR5X-8400 memory, up to four integrated Thunderbolt ports, up to 10 USB 2.0 ports, and up to two USB 3.0 ports. Intel says that H-series CPUs will begin shipping in laptops in "early Q1" and didn't give a specific launch window for the U-series.HX-series: Desktop CPUs for big, beefy laptopsThe last chips Intel is announcing today are all in the HX series, and like previous HX-series CPUs, they take Intel's Arrow Lake desktop silicon and repackage it to fit into hefty gaming laptops and workstations. Intel's six new HX-series Core Ultra 200 processors, based on the Arrow Lake architecture. Credit: Intel This means the Core Ultra 9 HX chips can have up to 24 CPU cores, same as the Core Ultra 9 285K on the desktopeight P-cores and 16 E-cores, with no LP-E cores. Core Ultra 7 processors step down to 8 P-cores and 12 E-cores, while Core Ultra 5 CPUs get six P-cores and eight E-cores. All processors have either three or four GPU cores, but these are meant primarily for driving displays while the system's dedicated graphics card handles the heavy lifting. A 13 TOPS NPU is also included, same as in the Core Ultra 200 desktop processors, though this falls well short of Microsoft's 40 TOPS performance requirement for Copilot+ features.The extra computing resources do significantly increase these chips' power usage, though their power levels are still reined in quite a bit compared to the desktop versions of the chips. Base power for all six of the HX-series CPUs is listed at 55 W, while maximum Turbo power is listed at 160 W. Intel says that HX-series systems will launch in "late Q1" of 2025. Listing image: Intel Andrew CunninghamSenior Technology ReporterAndrew CunninghamSenior Technology Reporter Andrew is a Senior Technology Reporter at Ars Technica, with a focus on consumer tech including computer hardware and in-depth reviews of operating systems like Windows and macOS. Andrew lives in Philadelphia and co-hosts a weekly book podcast called Overdue. 4 Comments

whether you like it or not Microsoft would really like you to replace your old Windows 10 PCs this year The carrot of "new features" and the stick of "no more updates for your old PC." Andrew Cunningham Jan 6, 2025 9:00 am | 27 A PC running Windows 11. Credit: Microsoft A PC running Windows 11. Credit: Microsoft Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreLast January at CES, Microsoft Chief Marketing Officer Yusuf Mehdi declared 2024 the "year of the AI PC." And whether you believe that prediction came true or notmany new PCs come with AI-accelerating neural processing units (NPUs) onboard, but far from all of themyou can't deny that Microsoft did try very hard to make it happen.This year, Mehdi is back with another prediction: 2025 will be "the year of the Windows 11 PC refresh." This year is also, not coincidentally, the year that most Windows 10 PCs will stop receiving new security updates.Mehdi's post includes few if any new announcements, but it does set the tone for how Microsoft is handling the sunsetting of Windows 10, attempting to strike a balance between carrot and stick. The carrots include Windows 11's new features (both AI and otherwise), and the performance, security, and battery life benefits inherent to brand-new PC hardware. The stick is that Windows 10 support ends in October of 2025, and Microsoft is not interested in extending that date for the general public or in expanding official Windows 11 support to older PCs."Whether the current PC needs a refresh, or it has security vulnerabilities that require the latest hardware-backed protection, now is the time to move forward with a new Windows 11 PC," Mehdi writes.Microsoft and its partners obviously benefit more from users buying new PCs than they do when Microsoft provides free OS updates for existing machines. It's also true that many formally unsupported PCs can run Windows 11 just fine, especially with carefully considered hardware upgrades.But it's also the case that many users of older, incompatible PCs could benefit a lot from an upgrade at this point. When Microsoft announced and released the first version of Windows 11 in 2021, it restricted support to PCs and processors that were, at the time, no more than three or four years old. By the time October rolls around, those machines will be seven or eight years old. PCs that can't run Windows 11 will be nearly a decade old, or older. In that time, CPUs and GPUs have gotten faster; laptop screens have gotten larger and better; and old hardware has had plenty of time to deplete its battery and suffer from physical wear and tear.A limited-time escape hatchMehdi declined to mention that Windows 10 users who want tostay Windows 10 users do have an escape hatch. The company's Extended Security Update (ESU) program for Windows 10 will allow users and businesses to keep getting updates for at least one year after October 2025; end users can only get one year of extra updates for their home PCs, but organizations can get as many as three extra years. The caveat is that you'll need to pay for the privilege: $30 for one year of updates if you're an individual, and between $1 and $61 per user for schools and businesses, with costs that escalate significantly for years two and three.Windows 10 still accounts for between one-half and two-thirds of all Windows usage worldwide and in the US, according to admittedly noisy data from sources like Statcounter and the Steam Hardware Survey. Leaving that many Windows PCs potentially unprotected from security threats has the potential to cause big problems, which probably at least partially explains why Microsoft would really like to see lots of upgrades this year. But even if 2025 does become "the year of the Windows 11 PC refresh," it's hard to see how it could possibly happen fast enough to get most of those Windows 10 PCs out of circulation.Andrew CunninghamSenior Technology ReporterAndrew CunninghamSenior Technology Reporter Andrew is a Senior Technology Reporter at Ars Technica, with a focus on consumer tech including computer hardware and in-depth reviews of operating systems like Windows and macOS. Andrew lives in Philadelphia and co-hosts a weekly book podcast called Overdue. 27 Comments

John Edwards, Technology Journalist & AuthorJanuary 6, 20256 Min ReadSergei Kovalkov via Alamy StockAlthough most of the software development lifecycle is now automated, infrastructure continues to be a largely manual process requiring specialized teams. Yet with infrastructure demands rapidly growing, more organizations now look toward automation for help.GitOps uses Git project repositories as the single source of truth for managing application configuration and deployment information, says Elliot Peele, senior manager of software development at analytics software provider SAS. "By using declarative specifications stored in a Git repository, it ensures that the desired state of the system is always maintained and continuously reconciled," he explains in an email interview.Mike Rose, data and analytics director at technology research and advisory firm ISG, notes that a GitOps framework ensures that the entire system -- including infrastructure, applications, and configurations -- is described in a consistent manner within Git, allowing for consistent, repeatable, and auditable changes across environments. "It enhances transparency and traceability and significantly reduces the risk of configuration drift between the desired state and the actual state of the infrastructure." he states via email.Peele adds that the approach not only enables continuous integration and deployment, but also provides version management and rollback capabilities, which are crucial for maintaining consistency and reliability in infrastructure management.Related:GitOps in ActionGitOps implementations have a significant impact on infrastructure automation by providing a standardized, repeatable process for managing infrastructure as code, Rose says. The approach allows faster, more reliable deployments and simplifies the maintenance of infrastructure consistency across diverse environments, from development to production. "By treating infrastructure configurations as versioned artifacts in Git, GitOps brings the same level of control and automation to infrastructure that developers have enjoyed with application code."Rose states that GitOps reduces manual errors, allows increased deployment frequency, and generally improves overall system reliability. "Probably one of the most valuable but intangible benefits of GitOps is its ability to foster closer collaboration between development and operations teams as both groups work from the same set of Git repositories to manage application code and infrastructure configurations," he says. "This alignment will accelerate the feedback loop between development and operations."Related:GitOps will have a significant impact on infrastructure automation, Peele predicts. "By providing consistency, version control, continuous deployment, reduced configuration drift, and enhanced security and compliance, GitOps is a game changer in software development and deployment practices," he says. "It enables peer review for configuration changes and allows developers without prior operations experience to control their application's deployment."Multiple BenefitsGitOps' primary benefit is its ability to enable peer review for configuration changes, Peele says. "It fosters collaboration and improves the quality of application deployment." He adds that it also empowers developers -- even those without prior operations experience -- to control application deployment, making the process more efficient and streamlined.Another benefit is GitOps' ability to allow teams to push minimum viable changes more easily, thanks to faster and more frequent deployments, says Siri Varma Vegiraju, a Microsoft software engineer. "Using this strategy allows teams to deploy multiple times a day and quickly revert changes if issues arise," he explains via email. "This high deployment velocity accelerates releases, allowing teams to deliver business impact quicker."Related:Since infrastructure state is defined in code and stored in Git, static analysis can be performed to detect security misconfigurations, Vegiraju says. "This approach helps enhance the overall security posture by identifying and addressing potential vulnerabilities early."Rose reports that ISG research shows that an environment using GitOps -- along with complementary AI Ops improvements -- can see a productivity efficiency of at least 30% over a two-year time horizon.Top AdoptersGitOps is most likely to be adopted by enterprises that focus on automation and consistency, Peele says. "The peer review nature of GitOps lends itself to companies that are focused on compliance, requiring multiple reviews of any application configuration or deployment changes."Enterprises with cloud-native environments, and those heavily invested in DevOps practices, are also likely to adopt GitOps, Rose says. "This includes any organization prioritizing rapid, reliable software delivery and infrastructure management," he notes. Such enterprises often have a high rate of change in their infrastructure and applications, making the version control and automation aspects of GitOps particularly valuable.Enterprises undergoing digital transformation or moving toward microservices architectures are also prime candidates for GitOps adoption, Rose says. He notes that Gits "single source of truth" aligns well with container orchestration platforms, such as Kubernetes, making it especially attractive for organizations using such technologies.Possible PitfallsWhile GitOps offers numerous benefits, many new adopters face obstacles. "The significant challenge is the steep learning curve for teams unfamiliar with Git or DevOps concepts," Rose says. "This can lead to initial productivity slowdowns and may require a substantial investment in training and upskilling."GitOps requires a deep understanding of the organization's current IT infrastructure and applications, as well as advanced knowledge of Git, Peele warns. "This can be daunting for teams that are new to these concepts."Small organizations with simpler infrastructures may find GitOps adds unnecessary overhead, since the complexity of managing a GitOps pipeline may outweigh the benefits, Vegiraju says.Looking ForwardAn important emerging trend is the increasing intersection of GitOps and AIOps. "This convergence is leveraging AI and machine learning to enhance automation, predict issues, and optimize infrastructure management within the GitOps framework," Rose says. He notes that AI algorithms can analyze Git commit patterns to predict potential conflicts or issues before they occur or to optimize deployment strategies based on historical performance data.About the AuthorJohn EdwardsTechnology Journalist & AuthorJohn Edwards is a veteran business technology journalist. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and numerous business and technology publications, including Computerworld, CFO Magazine, IBM Data Management Magazine, RFID Journal, and Electronic Design. He has also written columns for The Economist's Business Intelligence Unit and PricewaterhouseCoopers' Communications Direct. John has authored several books on business technology topics. His work began appearing online as early as 1983. Throughout the 1980s and 90s, he wrote daily news and feature articles for both the CompuServe and Prodigy online services. His "Behind the Screens" commentaries made him the world's first known professional blogger.See more from John EdwardsNever Miss a Beat: Get a snapshot of the issues affecting the IT industry straight to your inbox.SIGN-UPYou May Also LikeWebinarsMore WebinarsReportsMore Reports

Carrie Pallardy, Contributing ReporterJanuary 6, 20257 Min ReadNicoElNino via Alamy Stock PhotoCybersecurity leaders always have a lot on their minds. What are the latest threats to their enterprises? What emerging technologies can bolster their defenses? How can they secure the necessary talent and the budget? Whats on the regulatory horizon?As 2025 begins, InformationWeek spoke to four leaders in the cybersecurity space about some of the biggest issues on their minds.AI-Fueled Threats and DefenseAI was on everyones lips in 2024, and there is every reason to expect that this technology boom will continue to be top of mind in 2025.AI makes threat actors more prolific and sophisticated. They can use it to automate large-scale attacks. They can make phishing lures more convincing. Deepfake audio and video continue to improve, making them harder to spot. In 2024, scammers effectively manipulated a finance worker into paying them $25 million, thanks to a deepfake video conference.The same powerful capabilities of AI are, of course, being applied on the defensive side. AI-driven automation, for example, speeds threat detection and frees up analysts time for more complex work.But AI has myriad use cases. In addition to cybersecurity threats and defensive tools, this technology is being applied up and down the technology stack. Cybersecurity leaders must think about the security implications of AI throughout their enterprises.Related:We are seeing a lot of projects moving [forward] and it sort of feels like security is being asked to follow behind the business and reduce the risk after the fact, says Patrick Sullivan, CTO, security strategy at Akamai Technologies, a cloud computing and security company.Insider ThreatsIn 2024, KnowBe4 hired a North Korean hacker to fill an open IT position. The cybersecurity company recognized the insider threat early on, before the person was even onboarded. But this is not an isolated kind of threat.Aggressor nation states will continue to use this kind of approach to infiltrate US companies and critical infrastructure providers, whether to steal intellectual property and data or to cause disruption to essential services.We're really seeing a need now for advanced controls in that talent acquisition process and in our ongoing insider threat monitoring programs to be able to mitigate against these new kinds of attacks that are out there, Sharon Chand, principal of cyber risk services at consulting firm Deloitte, asserts.Escalating Geopolitical TensionsThe escalating geopolitical tensions across the world play out, in part, in the cybersecurity space. Nation state-backed threat actors and hacktivists targetorganizations in the US and across the world in the service of political goals.Related:The UK rangalarm bells regarding Russias ability to conduct cyber-warfare on British businesses, BBC reports. US Cyber Command warns of Chinas ability to disrupt US critical infrastructure in the event that conflict erupts between the two countries, according to Reuters.Disruptive CyberattacksThis year is set to be a record for ransomware payments, and blockchain data platform Chainalysis points out that big game hunting is a big driver.Sam Rubin, senior vice president of Unit 42 consulting and threat intelligence at cybersecurity company Palo Alto Networks, tells InformationWeek that attacks that cause crippling business disruption are on the rise.These disruptive attacks especially for large organizations that have a big role in the economy or in their market are becoming the target and a way for the threat actors to get very large multimillion-dollar pay days, he explains.Zero Day VulnerabilitiesIn November, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the National Security Agency (NSA), and a number of their partners released a list of the top routinely exploited vulnerabilities in 2023. Of the 15 top common vulnerabilities and exposures (CVEs), 11 were zero days.Related:Some of that is nation state actors. Some of that is ransomware operators. So, all adversary classes seem to be pivoting more toward zero days, says Sullivan.Third-Party RisksIn the summer of this past year, business at thousands of car dealerships was upended following two cyberattacks on a single software provider: CDK Global. The health care industry experienced a major disruption when Change Healthcare, a payment and claims provider, was hit with ransomware. The potential of another cyberattack with a massive ripple effect looms large in 2025.There's just so much so much dependency on third parties among lots and lots of companies and different industries. And, I think there will be a large-scale attack on a company that impacts not only that company but those [that] depend on it, says Ann Irvine, chief data and analytics officer at Resilience, a cybersecurity risk management company.As enterprises incorporate more third parties into their supply chains, more web apps and APIs are exposed, Sullivan points out. [Businesses need] to understand where those vulnerabilities emerge, prioritize them, and then have an efficient patching process to remediate, he urges.The Need for Integrated Security PlatformsThe market for security platforms and tools is massive. If you can think of a security challenge, there are probably a host of vendors clamoring to serve up a solution. But there is a movement to consolidate those solutions.We're seeing continued creativity of the bad actors coming into multiple different types of attack vectors, and historically, some of our defenses have been quite siloed in their ability to prevent [and] mitigate those kinds of attacks, says Chand. We're seeing the need for enterprise clients to really think about integrated security platforms.Networking company Extreme Networks surveyed 200 CIOs and IT decision markers, and 88% reported a desire for a single integrated platform that includes AI, networking, and security.Upskilling the Cyber WorkforceThe cybersecurity challenge shortage is an ongoing concern. Consulting firm Gartner predicts that more than half of cyber incidents will stem from a lack of talent and human failure by 2025.In addition to filling roles, enterprises are also tasked with the prospect of upskilling their current cybersecurity talent. As threats evolve, in no small part due to AI, cybersecurity workers need to be able to keep up.And AI isnt the only area where cybersecurity teams will need to sharpen their skills. I do expect to see more and more attacks in that OT environment. So, we're going to need more and more humans that are focused on understanding and mitigating those attacks in the enterprise, says Chand.A Maturing Cyber Insurance IndustryInsurance is a big consideration for enterprise leaders wrangling with the management of cybersecurity risk. S&P Global anticipates that cyber insurance rates will continue to increase and the terms and conditions for policies will tighten. The market research company predicts premiums will increase 15% to 20%, hitting $23 billion by the end of 2026.Irvine points out that the cyber insurance space is still growing. As it matures, it has the opportunity to influence cybersecurity practices. The insurance industry is just going to continue to mature and demand good practices, which are good for their bottom line but also ultimately good for their customers, she says.The Spotlight on Security LeadersCISOs are increasingly being looked to as strategic enterprise leaders. The transition of the role is out of the IT tower into the boardroom to speak the language of risk, to speak the language of business and to help be a driver for that enterprise, says Rubin.In Deloittes The Global Future of Cyber Survey, about one-third of respondents reported that CISO involvement in strategic conversations increased over the past year.Boards and C-suites may be becoming more aware of the importance of cybersecurity, but there are personal liability concerns among CISOs. The 2024 Voice of the CISO report from cybersecurity company Proofpoint found that 66% of global CISOs are worried about their personal, financial, and legal liability.In recent years, there have been examples that fuel those concerns. Joseph Sullivan, the former chief security officer of Uber, received probation and a fine for his role in a 2016 data breach. The Security and Exchange Commission (SEC)filed a lawsuit against SolarWinds and its CISO Timothy Brown over 2019 cyberattacks that impacted the US government. A judge dismissed most of the charges, but it does not completely erase the possibility of personal liability for CISOs.A New AdministrationAs enterprise leaders consider the outlook for 2025, the incoming Trump administration is definitely a factor. A change in federal leadership means potential changes to regulation. Trump is also likely to make changes to CISA, and he has been vocal about his intentions to repeal the Biden administrations AI executive order.I am paying attention to is this change in US federal government says Irvine. It really does matter, and things could change quite dramatically.About the AuthorCarrie PallardyContributing ReporterCarrie Pallardy is a freelance writer and editor living in Chicago. She writes and edits in a variety of industries including cybersecurity, healthcare, and personal finance.See more from Carrie PallardyNever Miss a Beat: Get a snapshot of the issues affecting the IT industry straight to your inbox.SIGN-UPYou May Also LikeWebinarsMore WebinarsReportsMore Reports

Andy Tay, Global Lead, Accenture Cloud First January 6, 20255 Min Readadempercem via Alamy StockWe seem to have entered a brave new world. A world being redefined by technological innovations at the speed of light, changing our reality and exerting a centrifugal force on companies. Generative AI is the new engine powering these innovations -- much like electricity once sparked the industrial age. Its reinventing processes, businesses, and entire industries at an unprecedented pace. Recent research from Accenture found that nearly all organizations (98%) now see technology as their top tool for reinvention, with 82% identifying generative AI as the driving force behind this shift.But to succeed, generative AI needs a robust digital core, built on a continuum of cloud capabilities across the enterprise, that integrates a secure digital foundation and digital platforms and creates seamless data and AI connections. All of this comes together through innovative engineering principles, and powers reinvention like an engine propels a car.The benefits are immediate and significant. Our research found that organizations with an advanced digital core, investments in strategic innovation, and a balanced approach to their technical debt achieved 60% higher revenue growth rate and 40% higher profits.Technical debt -- the accumulated cost of outdated technology -- is an important element to track and manage. As companies rush to adopt AI-driven innovations, technical debt grows alongside. But when used appropriately, generative AI can be a vehicle for remediating tech debt as well as minimizing tech debt creation. Related:The Cost of Technical DebtImagine a software engineer racing against an impossible deadline. To get the code into production by months end, the engineer skips error handling and documentation, cutting every corner to deliver something functional. This might seem like a quick win, but with each shortcut taken, the future cost mounts: Code becomes harder to maintain as errors pile up, and flexibility erodes. As new updates or fixes are needed, that initial debt goes into overdrive, slowing down progress and dragging innovation to a crawl.The cost of maintaining rushed decisions and outmoded systems is enormous. In the US alone, the price of technical debt has climbed to a staggering $2.41 trillion annually. This goes beyond a financial drain; it clogs IT systems, limits agility, and hinders innovation. Generative AI, while transformative, adds complexity to tech debt as companies integrate it with legacy systems that may lack the compatibility and security necessary to manage both human and AI interactions.Related:But technical debt doesnt have to be inherently negative. Even when it is an inadvertent means to an end, it can be balanced. We found that investing about 15% of the IT budget in debt remediation is the most effective way to sustain a modern digital core, while continuing to focus on innovation.3 Ways To Drive Down Tech DebtLooking beyond, the pace and proliferation of tech innovations, and therefore technical debt, calls for new and strategic approaches to strike a balance and enable reinvention.Heres how leaders can act today:1. Focus on the principalEffective management of technical debt begins with focusing on the principal -- the outdated technology that directly impacts current operations. Tracking and tackling principal debt first helps prevent interest costs, which accrue as organizations use workarounds and quick fixes to maintain outdated systems.For instance, Correios de Portugal (CTT), Portugals national postal service, addressed its technical debt by migrating to a hybrid, cloud-first infrastructure. CTT worked with Avanade, a joint venture between Accenture and Microsoft, to enhance and modernize its digital core. Just migrating to the cloud reduced costs by 15% and provided the flexibility to scale capacity up or down as needed. By focusing on the principal debt through a targeted cloud strategy, CTT was able to reduce technical debt while simultaneously enhancing operational agility.Related:As an essential part of a digital core, a cloud-first strategy will consolidate and optimize workloads, add flexibility and innovation capabilities, and cut costs in the process. Cloud-native practices such as pervasive automation, microservices, and continuous delivery can build systems that remove silos and remain consistent across a hybrid, multi-cloud estate.2. Create an inventory and trace debt to sourceBuilding a clear inventory of tech debt allows organizations to trace its origins and impact across code, architecture, data, and processes. This comprehensive inventory makes it easier to prioritize updates based on potential business value and technical risk. For instance, a major benefit of migrating to cloud as it relates to technical debt is that you can transfer some responsibility for handling technical debt -- such as patching -- to the cloud provider who can do it more consistently and more efficiently.Mondelz International demonstrates the value of this approach. Mondelz faced a complex IT environment with over 1,000 applications, creating inefficiencies and driving up operational expenses. Accenture worked with Mondelz to conduct a full assessment of each application, identifying those that were outdated or redundant, and charting a roadmap for remediation. This initiative has significantly lowered Mondelzs total cost of ownership, allowing the company to refocus resources on innovation.3. Use the right metricsYou cant manage what you cant measure, especially key if there are compliance requirements from sovereign clouds or intelligence from edge networks. Effective technical debt management relies on measurable insights, with metrics like technical debt density -- such as cost per line of code --providing a clear view of code health. Tech debt is not always a bad thing. If your tech debt remediation budget is increasing and your innovation and the business value you are delivering is outpacing that debt, thats a positive sign of the success of your strategic efforts.Being Reinvention ReadyAs generative AIs adoption continues to scale, companies need to actively manage their technical debt to prevent it from ballooning, especially relevant in modernization across public, private, hybrid, and multi-cloud options. Organizations that build their digital core, boost innovation, and focus on these three actions to balance tech debt can achieve remarkable results in streamlined operations, new opportunities, and revenue growth.The writing is on the wall: In todays fast-paced environment, a future-ready mindset is crucial. Its essential to scale GenAI securely, responsibly, cost-effectively, and in a manner that delivers real business value. Its time for C-suite leaders to think bigger, modernize across the enterprise, and employ a controlled, intentional reinvention strategy that leverages new technology capabilities to achieve not just faster outcomes, but better ones.About the AuthorAndy TayGlobal Lead, Accenture Cloud First Andy Tay leads Accenture Cloud First, comprising of a global team of 130,000+ skilled cloud experts focused on helping enterprises harness the full power of cloud to accelerate business value.See more from Andy TayNever Miss a Beat: Get a snapshot of the issues affecting the IT industry straight to your inbox.SIGN-UPYou May Also LikeWebinarsMore WebinarsReportsMore Reports