Been Around The BendIf you're worried about The Witcher 4 feeling too different from its predecessor, don't worry, because a lot more staff from the third game are still at CD Projekt Red than you might have fearedThat includes a dev who's been there since the first game.Image credit: CD Projekt. News by Oisin Kuhnke Contributor Published on Jan. 12, 2025 Video game developers change staff pretty often, but one of CD Projekt Red's CEOs has shared that a lot of The Witcher 3's development staff are still there.It'll be The Witcher 3's 10th anniversary this coming May, and aside from being a reminder of the crushing reality of the passage of time, it's also a reminder that, man, it's been a decade since CD Projekt Red last made a Witcher game. The developer has obviously been busy in the intervening years, with DLC as well as some game called Cyberpunk 2077 that had a launch that no one talked about in the slightest, but when it's been so long, there's always the question: does it even know how to make one anymore? A similar question could have been asked about Dragon Age: The Veilguard as it did have a 10 year gap between it and Inquisition, and that turned out alright, so maybe The Witcher 4 will be too!To see this content please enable targeting cookies. CD Projekt Red went through three rounds of layoffs in the span of three months in 2023, too, so it'd be understandable if you were a bit concerned that there's not enough devs from The Witcher 3's team remaining. It sounds like there are quite a few left though, as earlier this week co-CEO Michal Nowakowski shared a tweet noting the game's upcoming 10th anniversary, writing, "The Witcher 3 turns 10 this May. Around 100 of its developers are working with us to this day on our new projects, including The Witcher 4. Some are actually veterans from The Witcher 2 and The Witcher 1, including my esteemed co-CEO, Adam Badowski, who has been with the series since its inception back in 2002." To see this content please enable targeting cookies.So, even if you're a bit grumpy about Ciri being the main character now (which, come on, was always going to be the case, no?), there will be some carryover from previous titles at the very least. Let's just ignore how long you'll be waiting for it considering production only started in November.

Please sir, can I have some Mordor?The year is 2025 and Lord of the Rings feels very much like it's "a thing" again. We're not sure that it ever really went away, to be honest, but we've got The Rings of Power on TV (and it's actually rather good now), the War of the Rohirrim hit cinemas, a 'Hunt for Gollum' movie is planned, and, perhaps most importantly for us, more Middle Earth games are on the horizon.Gollum launched on multiple consoles in 2023 though the Switch version is still in limbo (something we're sure you were all devastated about) after Daedalic shut down its internal development team. But Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game surely a shoo-in for 2025's Clunkiest Title Award is right around the corner, bringing a slice of Hobbit life to Switch in March. And, with Embracer Group now legally behind the IP's wheel, we'd be surprised if things are stopping there.Read the full article on nintendolife.com

In BriefPosted:8:21 AM PST January 12, 2025Image Credits:Brian Heater/TechCrunchApple may add an iPhone Air to its lineupApples next major iPhone upgrade will include a new model called the iPhone 17 Air, according to Bloombergs Mark Gurman.This seems like an obvious way to expand the lineup, given Apples success with the Air moniker for thinner MacBooks and iPads (Im currently typing these words on my MacBook Air), and perhaps more attractive than the iPhone Plus or mini.Gurman writes that the iPhone 17 Air would include Apples first in-house modem, which will reportedly debut in the new iPhone SE in the spring. The phone is also supposed to be Apples thinnest smartphone yet two millimeters thinner than the current iPhones. So it would represent a step toward the foldable iPhone and iPad that the company is reportedly developing for 2026 or later.Gurman also runs down other Apple products he expects to launch in 2025, including a smart home hub. Not on the list: A new version of the companys mixed reality headset, the Vision Pro.Topics

With iOS 18, Apple rolled out Apple Intelligence, which includes an AI-powered feature for summarizing notifications. When you get a bunch of notifications from one app, the feature summarizes the content of all notifications in one card that appears on the lock screen. You can dismiss the stack after you have read the summary, or tap on it to check out individual notifications.However, the feature is not always accurate. Occasionally, it results in hilarious outcomes, and other times it fails to properly sum up the content of the notifications and includes visible inaccuracies. If you think notification summaries are causing confusion rather than being useful, you can turn them off or customize them.On iPhone/iPadHead to Settings > Notifications and tap on the Summarize Notifications tab. There are two options: You can turn off AI-powered notification summaries for all apps by toggling the Summarize Notifications option at the top, or you can turn off notifications on a per-app basis.On MacClick on the Apple menu in the top left cornerThere is no way to turn off notification summaries for a specific app category, such as news, productivity, utility, shopping, travel, and finance.Apple said in January that it would issue a software update to better indicate that notification summaries are generated by AI and might have some errors.

Open source makes the technology world go round, forming as much as 90% of the modern software stack via frameworks; libraries; databases; operating systems; and countless standalone applications.The benefits of open source software are well understood, promising greater control and transparency. However, theres a perennial struggle between the open source and proprietary realms, leading many companies to retreat from open source to protect their commercial interests. At the heart of all this is the thorny issue of licensing.There are two broad kinds of licenses that meet the formal open source definition as laid out by the Open Source Initiative (OSI). Permissive licenses carry few restrictions in terms of how users can modify and distribute the software, making them popular with companies that wish to use it commercially. And then there are copyleft licenses, which offer similar freedoms but with one notable caveat: Any modified version of the software must also be distributed under the same original copyleft license. This isnt so appealing to businesses wishing to protect their proprietary work.But there is more to it than that, with various licenses existing within each bucket. Moreover, there are countless licenses that, while not strictly open source, are also worth knowing about.PermissiveMITOriginating at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the 1980s, the aptly-named MIT license is the most popular open source license by most metrics, sitting in the top spot among the GitHub development community for many years.Used by projects including React (front-end JavaScript library) and Ruby (general purpose programming language), the MIT license allows developers to use software however they like. As with most such licenses, its provided without warranties, meaning authors are absolved from any liability resulting from damages caused by their software (e.g. data loss). All developers need to worry about is including the original copyright notice and MIT license in any derivative work.But the MIT license has one shortcoming: It doesnt explicitly grant patent rights. This means that if a given piece of software relies on patented technology, this might create legal uncertainty for developers who deploy the software without securing separate permissions for said patented technology.However, this underscores one of the key selling points of the MIT license: with just 200 words, the language is simple and concise. Muddying things with ambiguous, word-soup patent spiel would add needless complexity for projects unlikely to be concerned with patents, such as high-level programming languages or web frameworks.But plenty of open source projects do intersect with patented technologies, such as hardware-centric software like Android. Apache License 2.0The Apache Software Foundation published the Apache License 2.0 in 2004, an update to an earlier license with an explicent patent grant to protect users from litigation. So if a developer were, for example, to contribute a unique image processing algorithm to a project licensed under Apache 2.0, any patents that developer holds on that algorithm are automatically licensed to all users of the software.Most people will be familiar with Googles brand of Android, replete with app store and suite of home-grown tools and services. But the underlying Android Open Source Project (AOSP) is substantively available under the Apache 2.0 license, a deliberate move by Google in 2008 to combat Apple and encourage phone manufacturers to use Android versus the other proprietary incumbents (e.g. Symbian) of the time. And it worked. Samsung, HTC, LG, and all the rest jumped on Android.A byproduct of this, though, is that the Apache License 2.0 has around five times the number of words of MIT, owing to the patent grant text, among other additions and clarifications. But thats the trade-off, and it illustrates the key distinctions between the two most common permissive open source licenses.Other permissive licensesThe BSD 2-Clause License is similar to MIT, but with key differences in terms of the language used. For instance, it specifies that a copy of the license should be included with both the source code and the compiled binary form. And then there is the BSD 3-Clause License, which has an additional no endorsement clause that restricts the use of the names of the copyright holders and contributors for promotional purposes in any derivative project.Theres also the MIT No Attribution License (MIT-0), which is simpler than the MIT, in that there is no requirement for attribution in derivative software. Using this is close to putting software in the public domain, except the author does retain the copyright and ability to change things in the future.CopyleftGNU General Public License (GPL) v. 2.0 and 3.0The Free Software Foundation (FSF) published the GNU General Public License (GPL) in 1989, and was one of the first copyleft licenses for general use.Copyleft licenses are often better suited for projects requiring input from the community, versus projects supported by a single corporate entity. By requiring that all modifications remain available under the same open source license, this assures contributors that their hard work wont be used in proprietary software without also benefiting the wider community in theory, at least, as it can be difficult to discover every contravention and then enforce the terms of the license.Launched in 2007, GPL 3.0 is the third most popular license, according to GitHub data. The license ushered in notable updates on GPL 2.0, including patent grant provisions and improved compatibility with other open source licenses. It also prohibits what has come to be known as Tivoization, where hardware makers that benefit from GPL-licensed software prevent users from installing modified versions of that software, using digital rights management (DRM) mechanisms.Notable GPL adopters include WordPress, which is available under a GPL 2.0 or later license, leaving it to the developer to decide which license they distribute any modification under.Linux, for its part, is among the most successful open source projects of all time, used in servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, and even Android. However, the underpinning Linux kernel is only available under a GPL 2.0 license, given that Linux creator Linus Torvalds is against some of the provisions added in version 3.0 of the license including the Tivoization clause.GNU Affero General Public License (AGPL) 3.0The Affero General Public License (AGPL) is similar to GPL 3.0, insofar its a strong copyleft license that promotes software freedoms and ensures modified versions remain open source. However, a key distinction with AGPL is that its focused on web-based services and applications, where the software is run from servers rather than distributed as executable files.Under a GPL 3.0 license, developers arent required to release the source code for modified software if its run across a network, as SaaS applications are. The AGPL license closes this loophole, requiring third-parties to make the source code available even if the modified software is only running from a server.Published in 2007 by the Free Software Foundation, the AGPL 3.0 license has grown in popularity due in large part to the rise of cloud computing and SaaS, and today its the fifth most popular open source license.GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL)Also a product of the Free Software Foundation, the GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL) is a weak copyleft license, insofar as its more business friendly with less stringent stipulations on what is shared. LGPL is normally used for software libraries where project authors want to encourage contributions from the community, but it allows proprietary software to link to the libraries without having to open source their entire proprietary code. If someone modifies the open source library itself, then they need only release those modifications under the LGPL license.Mozilla Public License 2.0Published by the Mozilla Foundation in 2012, the Mozilla Public License (MPL) 2.0 is the tenth most popular open source license today as per GitHubs licenses metric. MPL is also a weak copyleft license designed to protect proprietary code while enabling developers to benefit from open source software.However, while LGPL is focused at the library level, and GPL at the project level, MPL operates at an individual file level requiring the user to share a narrower set of code.Public domain and creative commonsWhile an open source license grants specific rights, theres always stipulations attached. Those who want to place their software entirely in the public domain without any caveats, however, can do so through other means.Its not enough to simply publish software without a license; copyright law applies by default to most creative works, including software. This is where a public domain dedication can help.Designed specifically for software, the Unlicense is the ninth most popular license on GitHub (though whether it can actually be called a license is debatable). Even though the OSI approved it as a license in 2020, it noted that the document is poorly drafted and questioned its legal efficacy in jurisdictions (e.g. Germany) where its not possible to donate work to the public domain.Like the Unlicense, Creative Commons CC0-1.0 is also a public domain dedication tool, though its focused more broadly on creative works. It uses clearer, more professional legal language that might be more in tune with international law. Its worth noting that Creative Commons applied to have CC0-1.0 approved as an open source compliant license in 2012, but withdrew the application after the OSI raised concerns that it explicitly excluded patent grants.There are other public dedication tools, such as Zero-Clause BSD, which might appeal as it has even simpler language. However, theres no consensus on the best mechanism for giving away all rights to a given piece of software.Faux-pen sourceThere are countless other licensing paradigms across the software spectrum.In some cases, businesses will release software under a dual-license model, with the user able to choose between a recognized open source license and a commercial license, depending on their intentions. Then there is open core, which offers the software under an open source license, but with key features paywalled. In other instances, a company might add a Commons Clause addendum to an otherwise permissive open source licence, putting commercial restrictions in place.There are also plenty of licenses that look and smell like open source, but are ultimately incompatible with the open source definition.In 2018, database giantMongoDB transitioned from a copyleft AGPL license to the server side public license (SSPL), a license of MongoDBs own creation. While the SSPL is still fairly open, its what is known as source available, in that the code is accessible but has significant commercial restrictions, which is a big no-no as far as the OSI is concerned.The folks at MariaDB forged a similar path with the business source license (BUSL), which imposes commercial restrictions before transitioning to a true open source license after a set number of years. There is another similar movement under way thats looking to make fair source licensing a thing. This includes the Functional Source License, which is touted as a simpler alternative to BUSL.You may also come across so-called ethical source licenses from time to time, such as the Hippocratic License, which prohibits the use of software in violation of internationally recognized human rights. Similarly, the open standard JSON file format has an extremely permissive license, barring one hilarious clause at the end: The Software shall be used for Good, not Evil.

Tech PowerSchool data breach exposes millions of student and teacher records PowerSchool serves 60M-plus students and teachers globally Published January 12, 2025 10:00am EST close When a Facebook friend request turns into a hackers trap These scams can catch Facebook veterans and novices off guard. Cybercriminals spare no industry, targeting sectors like health care, insurance, automotive and education. Health care has been a frequent target, with attacks like the Ascension breach last year and the CVR incident in late 2024.Now, education technology giant PowerSchool has become the latest target, with records of millions of students and teachers stolen.While the exact number of affected individuals remains unknown, the scale of the breach is alarming.PowerSchool serves 18,000 customers worldwide, including schools in the U.S. and Canada, managing grading, attendance and personal information for over 60 million K-12 students and teachers. Kids working on their laptops (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)How did hackers target PowerSchoolPowerSchool revealed a cybersecurity breach to its customers Jan. 7, as reported byBleepingComputer. The company said it discovered the breach Dec. 28, after customer data from its PowerSchool SIS platform was stolen through the PowerSource support portal.PowerSchool SIS is a student information system used for managing grades, attendance, enrollment and other student records. Hackers accessed the PowerSource portal using stolen credentials and used an "export data manager" tool to steal information.The company said this wasnt a ransomware attack or a result of software flaws, but rather a straightforward network break-in. The company has hired a third-party cybersecurity firm to investigate the breach, figure out what happened and determine who was affected. Illustration of a hacker at work (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)What data got stolenThe PowerSource portal includes a feature that allows PowerSchool engineers to access customer systems for support and troubleshooting. The attacker exploited this feature to export the PowerSchool SIS "students" and "teachers" database tables to a CSV file, which was then stolen.PowerSchool confirmed the stolen data primarily includes contact details like names and addresses. However, for some districts, the data may also include sensitive information such as Social Security numbers, personally identifiable information, medical records and grades.WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)?The company said customer support tickets, credentials and forum data were not accessed or stolen during the breach. PowerSchool also emphasized that not all SIS customers were affected and expects only a subset of customers will need to notify those affected."We do not anticipate the data being shared or made public, and we believe it has been deleted without any further replication or dissemination," the developer told customers in a notice."We have also deactivated the compromised credential and restricted all access to the affected portal. Lastly, we have conducted a full password reset and further tightened password and access control for all PowerSource customer support portal accounts."PowerSchool said affected adults will be offered free credit monitoring, while minors will receive subscriptions to an unspecified identity protection service. Illustration of a hacker at work (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)5 ways you can stay safe from PowerSchool data breachThe PowerSchool data breach has highlighted the importance of staying vigilant about your personal information. Here are five steps you can take to protect yourself:1. Monitor your accounts regularly:Keep a close eye on your bank accounts, credit cards and any online services linked to your personal information. Watch for unauthorized transactions or changes to your accounts that could signal misuse of your data.2. Freeze your credit: If your Social Security number or other sensitive details were compromised, consider placing a credit freeze with major credit bureaus like Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. This prevents potential identity thieves from opening new accounts in your name.3. Use identity theft protection services:Take advantage of any identity protection services offered by PowerSchool as part of its breach response. These services can alert you to suspicious activity and provide support if your identity is stolen.GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HEREOne of the best parts of some identity protection services is that they have identity theft insurance ofup to $1 million to cover losses and legal fees and a white glove fraud resolution team where aU.S.-based case manager helps you recover any losses.See my tips and best picks on how to protect yourself from identity theft.4. Enable two-factor authentication (2FA): Wherever possible, enable2FA for your online accounts. This adds an extra layer of security by requiring a second form of verification, such as a text code or app-generated token, to access your accounts.5. Be aware of phishing links and use strong antivirus software: Cybercriminals often use phishing scams to exploit data breaches. Avoid clicking on suspicious links in emails or text messages, especially those claiming to be from PowerSchool or your school district.The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious links 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 2025 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices.Kurts key takeawayYou can blame hackers for this breach, but PowerSchool shares the responsibility for failing to adequately protect sensitive data. The company may also be in violation of data privacy agreements it signed with school districts, as well as federal and state laws designed to safeguard student privacy. Whats more concerning is that PowerSchool took nearly two weeks to notify its customers about the breach. Schools are now left scrambling to assess the full extent of the intrusion. This delay is not just irresponsible; it puts students, parents and teachers at heightened risk of cyberattacks and identity theft.CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPDo you think companies like PowerSchool should face stricter regulations for handling sensitive data? Let us know by writing us atFor more of my tech tips and security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading toCyberguy.com/NewsletterAsk Kurt a question or let us know what stories you'd like us to coverFollow Kurt on his social channelsAnswers to the most asked CyberGuy questions:New from Kurt:Copyright 2025 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. Related Topics

Better make career mistakes than have career regretsgettyWhat if your biggest career regret isnt quittingbut staying?Everyone knows that personthe one who hates their job but deals with it by planning the next big trip. They distract themselves with holidays and leisure activities, easing the emotional burden of career regret. It might be the role they didnt leave, the raise they didnt ask for, or the passion they set aside. If this sounds like you, youre not alone.Regret is something many of us face. A recent survey by Resume Now found that 66% of workers report career regrets, including not asking for raises, neglecting work-life balance, and staying in a job too long. While this might suggest that regret grows with time, research from VU Amsterdam reveals an unexpected twist: 18 to 25-year-olds report the highest levels of career regret. This finding highlights the importance of addressing regret earlywhether due to inexperience or missed opportunitiesbefore it snowballs into something harder to overcome.But regret itself isnt the issue; the real question is whether youre going to do something about it. Research published in 2022 on career choice and occupational regret shows that people respond to career regret in different ways. Some confront their regret directly by changing occupations or pursuing training to enable a transition. Others, however, attempt to ease the emotional burden through distractions like holidays or leisure activities. While distractions might provide temporary relief, they fail to resolve the root cause and can trap you in a cycle of regret.As we step into a new yeara season of possibilityits the perfect time to confront these regrets, learn from them, and turn them into action. Because its better to make mistakestaking action that might not yield the intended outcomethan to live with regret, which is the sense of loss over what could have been. Though painful in the short term, mistakes often lead to better decision-making and more proactive career planning, as they provide clear learning opportunities. For instance, staying too long in a stagnant role is a common regret, but attempting a career pivot that doesnt work out would be considered a mistake. And interestingly enough, Resume Nows survey showed more people regret staying at a job than quitting a job.MORE FOR YOUActionable Framework: From Regret to ResilienceRegret isnt inherently negative. Its an invitation to reflect, prioritize, and act. To transform regret into growth, you can focus on three actionable strategies:1. Address the Root CauseStart by identifying the root cause of the regret. Are you dissatisfied because you stayed too long in one role? Or because you chose a career path that didnt align with your values? A finance professional who felt stuck in her role realized her regret stemmed from neglecting her passion for sustainability. Her reflection helped clarify what needed to change, turning regret into a guide for action and setting the foundation for what would later become a transformative career pivot.2. Redefine SuccessSuccess isnt staticit evolves alongside your career and personal priorities. The transforming world of work now offers more freedom to define success in ways that go beyond the traditional corporate ladder of the past. Today, success can include prioritizing what matters most to youflexibility, fulfillment, learning opportunities, or the ability to integrate personal passions into your professional life. For someone who regrets neglecting work-life balance, success may now mean embracing roles with flexible schedules or remote work options. For someone who stayed in a job too long, it may mean exploring opportunities for growth and development in emerging fields. For the finance professional, redefining success meant acknowledging that incorporating her passion into her life was essential, even if it started as a volunteer effort.3. Take Small, Intentional StepsOnce youve identified the root cause and redefined success, the next step is to act. But action doesnt mean you have to take bold steps like quitting your job. Small, intentional actions can break the cycle of regret and build momentum for meaningful change. Start by exploring new ways of working, such as portfolio careers, independent roles, or flexible schedules. Whether its enrolling in a course, expanding your network, or volunteering in a new field, incremental progress can lead to significant transformation. For the finance professional, small but intentional stepslike volunteering for a nonprofit in her spare timeeventually led to a transition into a finance job at an organization aligned with the nonprofits mission. This allowed her to merge her financial expertise with meaningful work that fulfilled her values and aspirations.The Best Time to Start Is NowThe start of a new year is the perfect opportunity for a career self-assessment. The changing world of work offers more tools than ever to address past regrets and make bold new choices. Flexible work opportunities, such as independent work or portfolio careers, provide ways to diversify income and pursue passions. Flexible schedules accommodate diverse needs, while platforms for continuous learning enable skill development without relying on a single employer. By acting on reflection, you can move past regret and build a career aligned with your values.Regret may be inevitable, but dwelling on it serves no purpose. Use regret as the spark to rewrite your story. Dream big, take bold steps, and create a future that aligns with your aspirations. This new year is the perfect time to start.

NotebookLM can create a personalized podcast to help you prepare for interviewsgettyIn todays hyper-competitive job market, preparing for interviews requires more than just rehearsing responses to common questions. Standing out means demonstrating both your skills and a deep understanding of the role, company, and industry you aim to join. Hiring managers also expect candidates to present themselves within a nuanced organizational context. This level of preparation can feel overwhelming, but the emergence of tools like Googles NotebookLM offers a game-changing solution.By uploading key documents related to your job search, NotebookLM can provide personalized career coaching in the form of bespoke podcasts highlighting exactly what you need to succeed. For maximum productivity, you can listen and prepare while commuting, exercising, or walking your dog.This article will explain how to create your personal podcast, but first, lets explore the technology behind this powerful capability.NotebookLM SuperpowersNotebookLM is a generative AI tool developed by Google and launched in July 2023. Although it is used by far fewer people than OpenAIs ChatGPT, which currently boasts some 200+ million users per week, NotebookLM has two superpowers that make it a better sparring partner when generating tailored insights for job searches.First, NotebookLM works exclusively with the materials you provide, ensuring privacy, pinpoint relevance, and truth. It also provides citations from your source material when answering questions, so you can see exactly where it got the information its using. Conversely, ChatGPT would rather hallucinate with inaccurate answers than tell you it doesnt know something.MORE FOR YOUSecond, NotebookLM can create a realistic conversation about your sources, with a feature called Audio Overview released in September 2024:With one click, two AI hosts start up a lively deep dive discussion based on your sources. They summarize your material, make connections between topics, and banter back and forth. You can even download the conversation and take it on the go.This approach transforms the way we can synthesize and learn from large volumes of information quickly and conveniently.And it can help you ace that interview.Getting Started With NotebookLM For Your Job SearchLets imagine job seekerlets call her Averyis applying to be a marketing manager at (fictitious) consumer product company Acme, Inc., and has an interview coming up for which she is starting to prepare.The first step when using NotebookLM is to add source materials, which could be uploaded documents, webpage URLs, copy/pasted text, links to public YouTube videos, audio files, and more. When creating a personalized interview coaching podcast, there are several recommended sources for maximum impact.Step 1: Upload Personal ProfileAvery uploades her resume, LinkedIn profile, and the cover letter she used when applying to the marketing role. These foundational documents seeds NotebookLM with the basics of Averys professional narrative, skills, and achievements.Step 3: Add Job ProfileAvery then adds the job description, an email with some additional information provided by a recruiter, and call notes from a friend who works at Acme. This provides our future, virtual podcast hosts with details of the role in question.Step 3: Build A Company ProfileTo ensure she is prepared with good questions about Acme more broadly, and about potential marketing nuances related to its corporate strategy, Avery uploads a number of documents and links, e.g.:Latest annual report (assume Acme is a public company)Latest ESG reportA recent media interview with the CEOStep 4: Include Industry DynamicsFinally, to provide broader context about the consumer products industry and Acmes competitive landscape, Avery uploads a market analysis report mentioned in the CEOs interview, and a newspaper article about consumer spending.Hiring Your NotebookLM Podcast HostsOnce the source materials are uploaded, generating an Audio Overview is as simple as clicking a clearly-marked Generate button; the resulting audio can be played directly on the site or downloaded to a favorite music or podcast app.But job seekers would be wise to click the Customize button located in the same section, which allows for a 500 character prompt.Think of it as a directors notes to your virtual hosts, which will include one male voice and one female voice.Customizing your NotebookLM Audio Overview with prompts related to your job search is like having a ... [+] director coaching your virtual hosts to be a better career coachgettyIn Averys case, she could state explicitly that she is a candidate for a marketing manager role at Acme, Inc, that she is preparing for an interview, and that she wants inspiration for questions to ask and how to portray herself. She could also add questions to the hosts like:What marketing challenges may be ahead for Acme based on highlights from their ESG report?How do my skills in digital campaigns align with the goals described in Acmes annual report?What are the most pressing consumer behavior trends impacting Acme?NotebookLMs Audio Overview feature will takes these prompts, and all the source material, and create a dynamic podcast-style discussion within a few minutes. The AI hosts will connect the dots between Averys profile, Acmes corporate strategy, and broader industry trends, creating an engaging, digestible summary.The short video below from Google explains the basics of how this all works.Transforming Interview Prep With NotebookLMWith an ongoing pullback in job postings, and a steady increase in the number of job applications fueled by spray and pray practices, landing even a first interview can be painfully difficult for many job seekers. As a result, personalization and preparation are required to increase chances of success.NotebookLM offers invaluable guidance as a personalized career coach, distilling vast amounts of job-specific and personal information into actionable insights conveyed by friendly, virtual podcast hosts. With the right sources and direction, they will align your strengths against company goals, warn you of potential pitfalls, and provide smart questions for your interview.Start using NotebookLM today and create a competitive interview advantage through better preparation. Listen to your personal career coaching podcast while on a walk before your interview to get your body and mind into top shape. Good luck!

Something to look forward to: As the gaming industry continues to evolve and integrate more complex financial systems, a federal rule has been proposed to better protect players. The response of game developers and publishers to these potential new regulations and how these rules might reshape in-game economies remains to be seen. The federal consumer watchdog agency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), has proposed a new rule that could fundamentally change how virtual video game currencies are regulated. On Friday, the CFPB announced its intent to extend protections similar to those applied to real-world bank accounts to in-game currencies, acknowledging the growing importance of these digital assets in the gaming ecosystem.This proposed rule aims to clarify the rights of video game consumers under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act. If implemented, it would require gaming companies to address financial issues reported by customers in a manner similar to how banks handle claims of fraudulent activity. This means players could potentially receive refunds or compensation for unauthorized transactions involving in-game currencies.The CFPB's decision comes in response to a surge of complaints filed with both the bureau and the Federal Trade Commission. These grievances highlight various issues, including unauthorized transactions, scams, hacking attempts, and account theft within video games and virtual worlds. Many consumers have reported receiving minimal assistance from gaming companies when facing such problems.To gather more information and insights, the CFPB has opened a public comment period lasting from Friday through March 31. The agency is particularly interested in hearing from gamers about their experiences with in-game transactions, any issues they've encountered with virtual currencies, and how gaming companies have responded to their concerns.If enacted, the proposed rule could have significant implications for popular gaming platforms like Roblox, which uses its own virtual currency, Robux. Currently, Roblox advises users to contact customer support before disputing charges with their banks. However, the CFPB's April report revealed that many players who sought help from their financial institutions regarding unauthorized charges on Roblox subsequently had their accounts locked or terminated by the company. // Related StoriesThis new regulatory approach reflects the CFPB's recognition of gaming platforms as early adopters of technologies that often expand into broader, mainstream use. The bureau is particularly concerned about the impact on young users, who are being exposed to spending money within virtual environments from an early age.It is worth noting that not all games with virtual currencies may fall under this proposed rule. For example, games like Fortnite, where the virtual currency cannot be converted or transferred between players, might not be affected.

Highly anticipated: It's been nearly 25 years since Jeff Bezos founded Blue Origin with grand ambitions of making space travel cheaper and more accessible. Yet, the Amazon mogul's rocket company has remained largely focused on suborbital missions. That could change in a big way very soon with the New Glenn rocket. Blue Origin is readying its massive new New Glenn rocket for its first-ever orbital launch attempt, scheduled as early as 1 a.m. ET on Monday from Florida's Cape Canaveral.Standing at approximately 320 feet tall, New Glenn boasts more than twice the power of SpaceX's frequently flown Falcon 9 rocket at liftoff. It has been specifically designed and engineered as a heavy-lift launch vehicle capable of hauling larger satellites and other gear into space.As this is a debut mission, New Glenn will not be carrying any customer payloads. Instead, it will transport a Blue Origin-built piece of demo tech called the Blue Ring Pathfinder into orbit as a test run.If New Glenn performs as planned, Blue Origin would vault itself as a direct competitor to SpaceX and its fleet of Falcon rockets, which currently dominate the market. The new rocket would provide Blue Origin with the capability to undercut SpaceX on pricing for satellite deployments and other orbital missions.However, there are still a lot of 'ifs' involved. New Glenn must execute nearly every step of a highly complex process that will unfold over the course of several hours after liftoff. One of the critical challenges is firing all seven of its powerful BE-4 engines long enough to overcome Earth's gravitational pull. It must then shed its massive booster section, which is supposed to pull off an upright landing on a waiting ocean platform for future reuse. // Related StoriesMeanwhile, the rocket's upper stage will ignite a vacuum-optimized engine to propel itself and its payload into the intended orbit. Achieving orbit requires reaching a speed of approximately 17,500 miles per hour nearly 23 times the speed of sound.Total mission success is not guaranteed on this first test flight. Blue Origin will be wearing their "embrace the risk" mentality, being ready to blow up the rocket if it starts veering off in an unsafe direction. Just getting the second stage into its target orbit would be considered a win.If you're tuning in live, Blue Origin will be streaming the potential historic launch (or fireball) around an hour before liftoff on their YouTube channel and website.