During the last month or so, I've noticed a couple of impressive custom node editors here in the forums.It's hard to resist not getting in on that. In this blog post, the focus will be on the link connectors.

Even though its vampire season, Diablo 4 has the next best thing: witches. In the next season, everyone will tap into the eldritch energy deep within themselves and wield unique powers, like summoning a giant frog and a swarm of burning bats.Starting on Jan. 21, Diablo 4 will look a lot different than an action RPG with plain old sorcerers and barbarians running around. Theres a whole grimoire of new unique powers that will disappear when the season ends. And itll be the first time since season 3 that Blizzard is intentionally bending the classic hack-and-slash style of the game instead of solely introducing a new permanent feature although there are a few of those, too.Diablo 4s campaign introduces you to a big, morally ominous tree known as the Tree of Whispers. It whispers unspeakable knowledge to people in exchange for their head when they inevitably die. There are all sorts of reasons the trees been haunted since day one, but in the Season of Witchcraft its losing heads and it needs your help to get them back.Your seasonal character will join the coven of witches that protect it and hunt down the new Headrotten monsters to please the tree. A new seasonal quest will walk you through the details, but youll be traveling to infested regions of the open world to slay Headrotten and learn witch powers. Some of them offer passive bonuses like movement speed or extra damage, while others are more powerful, like the ability to summon a frog that licks monsters with a poisonous tongue and then explodes into more poison. There are also rare Lost Powers that you have to find in dungeons and one of them lets you spin up a tornado made of piranhas called a Piranhado.Blizzard has a list of other quality-of-life improvements coming with the season, including the ability to save and swap between different character build loadouts. Class balance changes are coming, too, and will be discussed on a stream this Thursday. The recent Vessel of Hatred expansion brought the Spiritborn to the game and it didnt take them long to hit record-breaking damage numbers that made the rest of the classes look like fools. Theyre first on the chopping block, but I wouldnt be surprised if the new witch powers send them right back to the top again.

No matter who you are, you're probably continuously plagued by the vague pressure to "save more." But making personal finance progress requires not just hopeful ambition, but identifying concrete steps to take. Consider the actionable difference between a undefined intent to save more! and, say, telling yourself I am going to max out my Roth IRA this year, and you'll see why it's important to define your goals. And if you're looking for concrete steps, I've got you covered: Here are 10 steps you can take to actually increase your retirement savings this year.Max out your employer-sponsored retirement plansFor 2025 the IRS has increased the contribution limits for 401(k) plans to $23,500, up from $23,000 in 2024. Chances are good your employer offers some kind of 401(k) percentage match that can help you grow your savings. Even if you can't boost your savings all the way to $23,000 (ambitious!), if you're not already contributing enough to get your employer's full match, make this your first priorityit's essentially free money and can significantly boost your retirement savings over the long term.Leverage catch-up contributionsIf you're 50 or older, you're eligible for catch-up contributions in both your 401(k) and IRA accounts. These additional allowances can help you accelerate your savings during your peak earning years. In 2025, employees aged 60 to 63 will be able to make larger catch-up contributions to their 401(k) plans, with new limits set at either $10,000 annually or 150% of the standard catch-up contribution limitwhichever is greater.Optimize your investment strategyContributing is great, but you need to make sure your money is being invested in line with your goals, so consider reviewing and rebalancing your investment portfolio. While maintaining a diversified approach, look into different investment vehicles that align with your risk tolerance and time horizon. This might include a mix of:Low-cost index funds for broad market exposureTarget-date funds that automatically adjust risk as you approach retirementIndividual stocks or bonds if you have the expertise to manage themAutomate your savingsThe most important part of saving is consistency, so set up automatic contributions to your retirement accounts. This "pay yourself first" approach ensures consistent saving and helps avoid the temptation to spend money that should be set aside. I recommend spacing out your auto-contributions so your bank account doesnt take one big hit on the first of the month, every month.Setting up auto-pay is simple to do online, and is usually just a matter of signing in to all of your accounts and finding the right menu. Once you do, its time to get specific: Decide how much to contribute and when those payments should go out. Consider automatically increasing your contribution percentage each year, even by just 1%, to gradually build your savings without making too an significant impact on your monthly budget. Max out your Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)If you have a high-deductible health plan, maximize contributions to your HSA. These accounts offer triple tax advantages: tax-deductible contributions, tax-free growth, and tax-free withdrawals for qualified medical expenses. After age 65, you can use HSA funds for non-medical expenses without penalty, making it an excellent additional retirement savings vehicle.Take advantage of tax strategiesWork with a tax professional to ensure you're taking advantage of all available tax benefits related to retirement savings. This might include:Traditional IRA deductionsStrategic Roth conversionsSaver's credit, if you qualifyTax-loss harvesting in taxable accountsI recommend getting ahead of the game right now by using a spreadsheet to track tax-related information throughout the year.Reduce your high-interest debt ASAPHigh-interest debt can severely impact your ability to save for retirement. Develop a strategy to pay down credit card balances and other high-interest loans. Once you've eliminated these financial drains, redirect those payment amounts to your retirement savings.Create a clear retirement budgetPlanning for retirement is about a lot more than just beefing up a retirement account. Develop a detailed retirement budget to understand exactly how much you need to save. This exercise can help you:Identify potential areas for increased savingsSet more precise savings goalsMake informed decisions about lifestyle adjustmentsPlan for healthcare and long-term care costsAnother thought is to consider additional income streams, with the sole goal of putting those earnings towards retirement. Here some of the most popular ways to earn a little extra cash on the side.Beef up your emergency fundAs always, you should maintain a robust emergency fund separate from your retirement savings. This helps prevent the need to tap into retirement accounts for unexpected expenses, which can trigger taxes and penalties while derailing your long-term savings goals.The typical rule of thumb is to aim for six months worth of living expenses in your emergency fund. When youre figuring out that number, factor in expenses like housing, food, utilities, insurance, transportation, and debt payments. Non-essential expenses like vacations, entertainment, or dining out dont belong in your emergency calculations.Schedule regular self check-insSchedule quarterly reviews of your retirement savings strategy. Monitor your progress, adjust contributions as needed, and stay informed about changes in retirement planning regulations and opportunities. This consistent attention helps ensure you're on track to meet your retirement goals and can make necessary adjustments promptly.Remember that successful retirement saving is a marathon, not a sprint. By chipping away at these strategies consistently and making adjustments as needed, you can take away some of the fear and uncertainty, and significantly improve your retirement readiness in 2025 and beyond.

The Department of Justice and the FBI shared today that they have completed a project to remove malware used by Chinese hackers from computers in the US. The effort was essentially a court-approved counter-hack that remotely deleted malware known as PlugX from more than 4,200 computers. The agencies will notify the US owners of those impacted machines about the operation through their internet service providers.According to the DOJ press release, hacker groups known as Mustang Panda and Twill Typhoon received backing from the Chinese government to use PlugX to infect, control and gather information from computers outside China. The action to delete the PlugX malware from US computers began in August 2024. It was conducted in cooperation with French law enforcement and with Sekoia.io, a France-based private cybersecurity company. Sekoia.io has found PlugX malware in more than 170 countries.The Mustang Panda group has been conducting infiltration efforts around the world since at least 2014. For instance, cybersecurity firm ESET found that Mustang Panda gained access to cargo shipping companies' computers in Norway, Greece and the Netherlands in March. And the group was one of several China-linked hacking organizations identified as compromising telecommunications systems across the Asia-Pacific region in reports last summer.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/doj-remotely-cleaned-thousands-of-computers-infected-with-chinese-malware-191837967.html?src=rss

While the EU AI Acts impact on banks may be limited for now, the industry faces a fast-evolving regulatory landscape that will increasingly shape its future.

A law that could see TikTok shut down in the U.S. threatens to ensnare other Chinese social media apps gaining traction in the country, legal experts say.

Scanline VFX brings The Six Triple Eight to life with incredible story-telling of 855 women from the only all-Black Womens Army Corps battalion deployed during World War II. The film brings photorealistic CGI and seamless integration to vividly recreate war-torn European landscapes, immersing viewers in the devastation and challenges of the era.Some of the highlights of VFX work are dynamic plane sequences, which show intricate modeling and fluid simulations in aerial combat and military operations. The team is also good at crafting atmospheric effects, from a snow-covered battlefield to a hauntingly ruined city, which makes the narrative stick to historical authenticity.Scanlines ability to balance large-scale destruction with emotional subtlety ensures the visuals enhance and do not overwhelm the story. In The Six Triple Eight, they pay a tribute to these trailblazing womens bravery and resilience and deliver visuals rich in historical depth and cinematic power.The post The Six Triple Eight: VFX Breakdown by Scanline VFX appeared first on Vfxexpress.

Recently, I was invited to speak on stage at Insight Partners ScaleUp:AI conference for a panel aptly titled Build versus Buy. It shouldnt be a surprise that this was a topic of discussion; After all, build versus buy is the great AI debate raging in boardrooms right nowa proverbial fork in the road that may separate the winners and losers of the business world over the next five years.The buy path involves purchasing and implementing off-the-shelf GenAI tools, and if you work in enterprise IT, there are many reasons to love this approach. Its how youre already set up to operate. You buy software, integrate it with your workflows and systems, and roll it out to the team. Youve been down this road before. You know the potholes like the back of your hand.The build path looks a lot more treacherous. It requires building custom GenAI tools for your organization to give you a critical competitive edge. And if you work in IT at most mid-market and enterprise companies, this is not what your team is built to do. Your job isnt to build new internal products; its to ensure that all of the software youve bought works well together.Building and launching new products often requires an entirely different skill set and mindset amongst your workforce. And youre building with new, unpredictable technology that may hallucinate. That makes this path dauntingfilled with unknown dangers that may leap from the bushes.But in the long run, avoiding the build path may be the most dangerous choice.Why buying isnt the answerLets play this out. Lets say you choose the buy path and arm your team with the latest off-the-shelf GenAI toolsChatGPT Enterprise, GitHub Copilot, Copilot, Adobe Firefly, etc. And lets say that you actually train your employees to use these tools. Two things are likely to happen.First, you likely wont find that these tools are up to snuff for your use cases. Bain research found that most companies are already building custom applications versus using off-the-shelf tools for every notable AI use case. The reason: Theyve realized that to get the desired value out of GenAI, pure off-the-shelf tools dont cut it.This research floored me. Even amongst use cases we think of as solved by off-the-shelf toolslike marketing (ChatGPT, Claude) and coding (GitHub Copilot)most forward-thinking companies are still building custom, internal GenAI tools to give their teams the efficiency and performance gains they need.The second thing that will happen is that even if these off-the-shelf tools deliver a productivity boost, youll discover two years down the line that youre stranded without any competitive advantage. Its the equivalent of having computers connected to the internet in your office in the 90san advantage for a short period, and then tablestakes.Without a doubt, off-the-shelf AI tools have value, but if you stop there, youre not tapping into the wonder of generative AI. Youre not building custom tools tailormade to solve the biggest challenges your customers and employees have, and turn your treasure trove of data into a lasting competitive advantage.Scale the build barrierThe biggest barrier to GenAI adoption is clear: 62% of corporate leaders say its a lack of talent.After working with dozens of companies to accelerate their GenAI initiatives over the last two years, Ive noticed a familiar pattern: Many CEOs and CTOs have a misconception about what kind of team you need.In building high-performing GenAI teams, what weve learned is that its not about paying a million dollars for a rockstar AI expert who you pry away from the golden handcuffs of Silicon Valley. Its about bringing on talent and building a team that has a product delivery mindset. People who dissect business priorities and challenges, and then pragmatically solve those challenges with new products and technology.And while AI deep tech can seem daunting, you also dont need to build every GenAI component from scratchmany of those building blocks are already available. Weve seen a 60% boom in open-source GenAI contributions on GitHub in the past year alone. One of the most incredible things Ive witnessed this past year is how our expert AI community within the A.Team network is able to curate and integrate those building blocks into new AI builds, accelerating the time it takes to get real business value from new AI products.Inside many orgs that arent accustomed to building new products, this is foreign territory, but thats the beauty of the world we live in today. The workforce has quickly shifted, and many of the most talented AI product builders I know have gone independent and are available to infuse your team with the build-mode mindset you need. After all, the unknown path is a lot less scary when youre surrounded by the right team.Raphael Ouzan is the cofounder and CEO of A.Team.

Car brand Honda has unveiled a redesigned H mark for its future electric vehicles, which is the first significant update of its logo since the 1980s.The redesigned H logo will be used on the brand's future electric cars including a sedan and SUV slated for 2026 production from the new Honda 0 Series."In launching the next-generation EVs, Honda designed a new H mark, to express the company's determination to undergo a historic transformation as well as the ability to constantly pursue new challenges and advancements," said the brand.Honda has unveiled a new logo for its upcoming EV linesHonda has simplified its logo removing the distinct H from the thin square that previously encircled it.The letter mark retains its curved corners, but its upper prongs have been stretched wider and the whole logo is thicker and more squat. The updated design is similar to the brand's original 1960s logo."This design expression, like two outstretched hands, represents Honda's commitment to augment the possibilities of mobility and sincerely serve the needs of the users of Honda EVs," said the brand.A sans serif Honda word mark was also displayed on EV prototypes at tech fair CES 2025The updated logo was debuted on two Honda vehicle concepts unveiled at CES 2024 as part of the brand's introduction of the Honda 0 Series.According to the brand, this generation of EVs is rooted in its Thin, Light, and Wise development strategy, which focuses on five core values. They include proselytizations such as "outstanding electricity efficiency", "artistic design" and "oneness with the vehicle".The branding also appeared on two 0 Series prototypes showcased at CES 2025. The prototypes, a sleek four-door sedan and SUVwith upturned rear fenders, feature the new H on the front hood.Read: Honda debuts two electric car prototypes at CES for future "eyes-off" drivingA sans-serif Honda wordmark also appeared on the back of the prototypes, encircled by rectangular tail lights.Honda is the latest car company to rebrand to mark the shift from petroleum-based cars to fully electrified vehicles.Jaguar unveiled a "unique and fearless" revamp, while Lamborghini createda flattened version of its logo for the brand's upcoming first fully electrified model.The images are courtesy of Honda.The post Honda unveils revamped logo for "historic transformation" appeared first on Dezeen.