Diablo 4s Season of Witchcraft is underway, and besides all the new dark powers you can wield, theres a completely reworked wardrobe for making your character as hot as possible which, as we all know, is the real endgame.While most of it works the same way as it did in previous seasons, the redesigned menus put a larger focus on actually watching your character change as you swap your gear and dye it various colors. Diablo 4 has always had an impressive amount of options for customizing your look, more than even Path of Exile 2, which locks its gender and body types to each of its classes and has no transmog feature at all. Blizzard has learned from years of making massively social RPGs that games about loot are just dress-up games with numbers.Its no Infinity Nikki: Sanctuary edition, but the new wardrobe is part of a larger shift Diablo 4 has been making since launch to become a little more silly, a little more sexy, and a lot less bleak. There was a time when the developers would deny requests for Diablo 3s pets to come back in Diablo 4 and now, two years later, everyone is running around with a tiger cub in Diablo 4. Last seasons battle pass rewarded a pirate outfit; you can ride a lion as a mount. Diablo 4 has finally loosened up on its faithful recreation of the gothic horror aesthetic of Diablo 2 to embrace a wider, more modern approach.Thats wonderful for players like me, who spend a lot of time in the wardrobe looking for the armor that best represents what kind of character Im playing each season. During the vampire-themed season, I drenched my necromancer in blood using one of the games surprisingly excellent tattoos. And on my sorceress, whose build build surrounded her with pulsing orbs of lightning, I made it so she looked like all that energy had consumed her. And now, in the witch season, Im trying to embody the occult in any way I can.Its a habit for me to end every session tweaking my outfit, which is even easier now that the wardrobe can be accessed straight from your inventory screen anywhere in the world. The new interface has a cleaner, muted look and puts a literal spotlight on your character. Now, when you click into a specific body part, the camera zooms in automatically, and you can see what dye you have applied to each one at all times.Instead of filling the side of the screen with a long grid of menu options, each section is broken out into its own tab. Technically, it takes more clicks to get around, but I find that I tend to swap between each section like a different mode. When Im cycling through different gloves, I want to see everything available, but when Im using dyes, I only want to focus on the overall look of my character. It also helps that everything has flipped to the opposite side, which just feels right to me. Other cosmetics, like mounts and town portals, are now within the same menu and give you a better preview of what theyll actually look like in action. Everything is more accessible and does a better job at encouraging you to experiment.But for all the improvements, theres still a disappointing lack of new transmog options that dont require buying skins in the real-money shop, and even those often feel ridiculously over-designed. I dont need my character to be on fire and I dont need to look like 20 different variations of Sauron. Players have yelled about this since day one, and even if I dont think the problem is as severe as some say, it would be nice to have more options, especially now that its even more convenient than ever to dress your character up in the finest gear.

Makers Draga Obradovic and Aurel K. Basedow are known for their artistic approach to materials and composition, with a range of influences from fashion to traditional craftsmanship. Upcycling pioneers, the duo began their design journey by reinventing furniture and objects in their signature style.During an early open studio they asked people to bring in old furnishings, anything from a grandmothers armchair to a favorite cabinet, with the promise of a new life for each beloved piece. What started as a small family event with servings of tea and biscuits soon became a true happening, complete with a long queue outside. Thats when Obradovic and Basedow realized that they could turn this venture into a business.Aurel K. Basedow and Draga Obradovic of Draga & Aurel \\\ Photo: Valerie van der WerffThe partners in work and life established Draga & Aurel, a multidisciplinary studio and workshop for art, collectible design, and furnishings, in 2007. Their debut at Milan Design Week two years later marked the start of key partnerships with brands like Baxter, one the duo still works with today. Its a collaboration that has shaped their own approach. Baxter is not a simple client, Basedow says. It is a company that believed in us and taught us how to be professional designers.Their landmark Transparency Matters collection, launched in 2019, was a departure from the pairs emphasis on vintage items and textiles. They selected resin as the primary material, prized for its interplay with light. They continue to update the line because it brings them back to their roots art combined with all of their experience and experimentation.As Obradovic refines these pieces and others, she continually draws inspiration from the images that surround her every day. I am very visual and I need to see things to fix them in my mind, she notes. When I see something I like, I take a picture and then I kind of create mood boards that can further spark my imagination.Today, Draga & Aurel join us for Friday Five!Dan Flavin, Untitled (to Don Judd, colorist) 1-5, 1987 \\\ Copyright Stephen Flavin / 2024, ProLitteris, Zurich. Panza Collection, Mendrisio \\\ Photo: Florian Holzherr, courtesy of Kunstmuseum Basel1. Dan FlavinThis is an artist which attitude really inspired our work. The interaction between light and color, at the basis of Dan Flavins work, is a theme to which we are very sensitive. Minimalism and deep sophistication, but with a maximalist effect. The starting point is a common object, the neon tube, studied and elevated to art. The Kunstmuseum Basel one of our favorite museums recently hosted the exhibition Dedications in Lights highlighting over 50 light works of Dan Flavin; a permanent installation is also located in the museums yard.Photo: Francio Ferrari, courtesy of Superduper2. SuperduperThis Made in Italy brand, founded in Florence in 2011, celebrates the care and quality of handmade hats. We really like the fresh, creative, sometimes a little worn/used and informal style. More generally, the hat is an accessory that can never be missed, so much so that we both have a collection of them.Joseph Beuys, THE HEARTH (19681974) and Feuersttte II (19681974) 2024, ProLitteris, Zurich \\\ Photo: Jonas Hnggi, courtesy of Kunstmuseum Basel3. Joseph BeuysGerman artist and sculptor, Beuys was one of the most important exponents of conceptual art of the last century. He is famous for his quote Jeder mensch ein Knstler (everyone is an artist). This way of conceiving art was particularly encouraging and inspirational for us, it really changed our approach to painting. Everyone expresses his or her creativity by creating a personal form of art. It is also a point of reference for us as one of the first and greatest artists to have expanded the meaning of art.Photo: Julius Hirtzberger, courtesy of The Venice Venice4. The Venice Venice HotelVenice has been the destination of some of our recent trips, and each time we are surprised and rediscover its beauty and uniqueness. In particular, one of our favorite places is The Venice Venice hotel, opened a few years ago following a renovation of the Ca da Mosto Palace, a concentration of art and design overlooking the Rialto. Architecture, fashion, art, and design come together to tell the story of the most influential avant-garde movements in the international art scene of the last century. It is an evocative place, owned by the founder of Golden Goose.Photo: Anne Timmer5. Lake ComoComo is the city where we live and work. This historic town full of charm, located on the shores of the lake, has always been a source of inspiration for us. The lake, especially, provides a sense of peace, relaxation, and freedom. We love to spend time sailing on our boat, discovering hidden coves or small villages. Living here is like being a tourist in your town, the beauty is everywhere, and we feel blessed of being part of it.Works by Draga & AurelPhoto: Courtesy of Todd Merrill StudioFlare Collection, an exclusive project for Todd Merrill StudioFlare is a capsule collection by Draga & Aurel that explores the power of color and light refraction through the craftsmanship of an original acrylic resin, Lucite. Flare is the result of an impassioned study of materials and their ability to come alive through color and light. Inspired by South Korean artist Jiyong Lees study of the three-dimensionality of color and by the complex compositional technique used by Vasa Mihich for his acrylic sculptures, Draga & Aurel have focused on the concept of refraction, which arises from the composition and breakdown of matter. The collection, which is an exclusive for Todd Merrill Studio, premiered in the 2023 edition of Design Miami.Photo: Riccardo GasperoniPer Speculum in Aenigmate, an exhibition in collaboration with Contemporary Cluster at Palazzo Brancaccio, Rome (2022)With their first personal exhibition in Rome, Draga & Aurel wanted to highlight the strong dialogue between Aurel K. Basedows pictorial works and some of the duos iconic design pieces. The title of the exhibition took its cue from a biblical passage, a pivotal text in which the assumption of the impossibility of any human knowledge with respect to the divine is expressed. The duo interpreted those verses in their most evocative exception, focusing on the concepts of mirror and enigma that has always distinguished their practice. Design or art? Their works are, in fact, always a powerful encounter and the result of an original mixture of material experimentation, artistic creativity, function and aesthetics.Photo: Riccardo GasperoniHeritage collectionHeritage, a collection of one-of-a-kind pieces, was born from a common passion for vintage and the desire of re-working second-hand furniture, when upcycling wasnt a trend yet. Understanding potential and imagining how each piece could become, Draga & Aurel collect original vintage items from local thrift shops and markets and reinvent them with their own style.Their combined range of skills and past experiences in fashion, textiles, art, and graphic design allows them to broaden the techniques and tools they use to screen printing, embroidery, and resin covering, among others. Each item is original and completely restored in the Como atelier.Photo: Riccardo GasperoniThe power of lighthearted design Exhibition Tinted Hues at Nilufar, 2024A collaboration with the Milanese gallery Nilufar resulted in a capsule of objects with a playful, carefree mood. Resin is the absolute protagonist, together with rounded, soft shapes and pastel shades that mix and match to create almost hypnotic effects.Part of these lighthearted collections are the Bon Bon lamps, the Dewdrops coffee tables and the Glaze table.

Sony is ending production of recordable Blu-ray, MiniDisc and MD Data disc media, along with MiniDV cassettes, the company announced. Last year, Sony said that it would gradually end production of recordable optical media and production at its Tagajo City plant due to poor sales. Now, production will definitively halt next month and "there will be no successor models," according to the Japanese web page.In the announcement, Sony referred to "Blu-ray Disc media," by which it means recordable media only, not Blu-ray discs used to distribute movies (Engadget asked Sony to confirm that it's only halting recordable optical disc production). Sony currently offers 11 products in the recordable category, ranging from 25GB to 128GB, in both R (write once) and RE (write multiple times).While Sony is ceasing production of recordable Blu-ray discs, they're still available from Verbatim and possibly others. However, MiniDiscs may be hard to come by as Sony was one of the few remaining manufacturers so you may want to stock up while they're still for sale.MiniDisc, mostly used for audio recording, has seen a bit of a resurgence among audiophiles due in part to the tactile experience compared to streaming. It was widely used by professionals as it supports live recording and still has a presence in studios because a lot of content has been archived to that format. (Fun fact: the character Neo in The Matrix stores his ill-begotten wares, whatever they are, on MiniDiscs.)Once popular for movie collection and file archiving, recordable Blu-ray and other optical media were effectively killed by streaming services, cheap memory, and cloud storage. All of the formats Sony killed have been around for decades, with BD-RE arriving 2002, MiniDisc in 1992, MD Data in 1993 and MiniDV cassettes, primarily used for video production, first appearing in 1995.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/home-theater/sony-is-halting-production-of-recordable-blu-ray-minidiscs-and-minidv-cassettes-140030225.html?src=rss

This year, Samsung unified the design language of its S-series flagships, making the S25, S25+ and the S25 Ultra look and feel the same (barring the camera). The curving sides of the S24 Ultra are finally gone, replaced with the solid, squared-off lines seen on the cheaper Galaxy S handsets. Flatter sides make the device easier to grip, slide into your pocket, or prop up when youre trying to photograph them for a tech website.Ill be honest, they look like iPhones. And older Galaxy S phones. And, well, even older iPhones. Smartphones have hopped from flat to curves for as long as smartphones have existed.SamsungWith Samsung, weve gripped onto rounded sides from the debut of Galaxy S (2010) through to 2015. Then, the Galaxy S6 (2015) had more flattened sides before the series returned to curves for the S8 (2017). It stayed that way until the more recent S24, with recent years gradually hammering out those curves. The S25 series, now, has flat sides for every model.Are flatter sides actually easier to grip? I dont know. Im a hypocrite. Ive found multiple reviews and impressions pieces where I love flat sides. Ive found the same number of stories where I loved curved devices. Why should you ever believe me again? Im sure there are tech journalists who have stuck with one form factor being better, but I couldnt find them.EngadgetEach time it happens and the company explains its change, the designers say this lack of curves/ introduction of curves is better than whatever it was last year. In an interview with Vanity Fair in 2024, Jony Ive said that Apple chose rounded edges for the iPhone 6 series because they made larger phones feel less clunky. That was when the iPhone 6 Plus had a heady 5.5-inch screen, which seems quaint in 2025.My theory is that our hands get used to whatever phone form factor weve used for the last couple of years. That means when the design gets shaken up (or you swap to a different manufacturer), one has to pay more attention to holding it. But that effect fades.If the two most significant, most influential phone makers have settled on flat sides, then there are reasons for it. Until theres an even bigger reason to return, once again, to curves.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/curvy-sides-flat-edges-the-galaxy-s25-and-the-arbitrary-shape-of-smartphones-130047461.html?src=rss

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California will spend $2.5 billion to help the Los Angeles area recover from recent deadly wildfires under a relief package signed Thursday by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.Newsom signed the laws after the state Legislature approved them with bipartisan support earlier in the day. The measures include $2.5 billion for the states disaster response efforts such as evacuations, sheltering survivors, and removing household hazardous waste. Lawmakers also approved $4 million for local governments to streamline approvals for rebuilding homes, and $1 million to support school districts and help them rebuild facilities.This is about distilling a sense of hopefulness, Newsom said at a news conference in Pasadena, a city recovering from one of the destructive fires that ignited earlier this month.The aid won approval a day before President Donald Trump is set to visit California for a look at damage from the blazes. Hes suggested any federal wildfire relief should come with conditions, though congressional Republicans who represent the state have pushed back on that idea. Former President Joe Biden already approved some disaster aid for the region earlier this month.Newsom called lawmakers into a special session in November to prepare for legal battles against Trump s administration. But after major fires broke out around Los Angeles, the governor shifted gears to prioritize fire relief funding. He expanded the focus of the special session to pass the recovery funding under pressure from Republican state lawmakers who said the focus on Trump was misplaced while the state dealt with the disaster.The governor said he hasnt spoken with Trump about his visit to the state, but that he hopes to work with the president despite their political differences.Republican state Sen. Kelly Seyarto criticized Newsom for not issuing the fire relief funding on his own, but ultimately Seyarto supported the bills.He said in the future, Democrats should do a better job of working with Republicans on crafting legislation for fire response and prevention funding.We need a plan from all of us to make sure this doesnt happen again, he said.The state Senate also approved $25 million Thursday to defend the state against legal challenges by the federal government, along with another $25 million in part for legal groups to defend immigrants facing possible deportation and other threats. The vote fell largely along party lines. The state Assembly would still have to pass the bills before they can reach Newsoms desk.The largest of the recent Southern California blazes ignited on January 7, ripping through the Pacific Palisades neighborhood in Los Angeles and killing 11 people. The Eaton Fire, which broke out the same day near Altadena, has killed 17 people.The region is also now battling the Hughes Fire, which ignited Wednesday north of Los Angeles, spread more than 15 square miles (39 square kilometers), and led to evacuation orders or warnings for more than 50,000 people.State Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire, a Democrat representing the North Coast, said the fires have been nothing short of devastating.But we promise we have your back, and were going to get through this, he said before Newsom signed the aid into law.Newsoms administration said the state expects to be reimbursed by the federal government for the disaster relief funding.The governor also announced a commitment Thursday by 270 state-chartered banks, credit unions, and lenders to provide mortgage relief to homeowners impacted by fires in Los Angeles and Ventura counties.Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, a Democrat from Encino and chair of the chambers special session budget committee, said his family was ordered to evacuate for six days while firefighters battled the Palisades Fire.The funding the Legislature passed Thursday is the first of many steps lawmakers will take to support wildfire survivors and to protect communities from the threat of future blazes, he said.No community is immune from these wildfires, Gabriel said. Thats part of what the tragedy in Los Angeles proved to us.__Associated Press writer Jaimie Ding in Pasadena, California, contributed to this report.-Austin is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Austin on X: @ sophieadannaSophie Austin, Associated Press/Report for America

Shares in Venture Global, Inc. are expected to make their debut on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) after the company raised $1.75 billion in its initial public offering. Venture globals IPO is the largest public offering ever for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) producer and comes at what may be one of the most opportune times for the companyimmediately after Donald Trump has returned to the presidency with the intention of unleashing Americas energy-producing potential.Heres what you need to know about Venture Global and its IPO.What is Venture Global, Inc?Venture Global is a producer of liquified natural gas (LNG). It was founded in 2013 and currently has five liquified natural gas projects in various stages of production, reports Reuters. Those projects are all located in the Gulf of Mexico, near Louisiana.Besides LNG production, Venture Global is also in the business of natural gas transportation and regasification. The companys first facility, called Calcasieu Pass, started producing LNG in January 2022. A second facility, called Plaquemines LNG, began LNG production last month, in December 2024.Venture Global is the second-largest LNG exporter in the United States.Venture Global is one of the companies expected to benefit after President Trump signed an executive order earlier this week that ended a moratorium on new export permits for liquified natural gas. The executive order was a move to boost Trumps desire to increase Americas energy production.A reduced public offeringVenture Globals public offering makes it the largest liquified natural gas IPO ever on a global scale, notes Reuters. It is also the third-largest energy and utility sector public listing in the United States since 1995.However, the company was forced to almost halve its sought valuation after investors doubted its long-term profit estimates for its export business. Originally, the company sought to sell 50 million shares for between $40 and $46 each, which would have given Venture Global a valuation of as much as $110 billion.Instead, the company settled on selling 70 million shares for a revised range of $23 to $27 per share. On Thursday, the company announced that shares were priced at $25 apiece.When is Venture Globals IPO?Venture Global priced shares on Thursday. It expects to begin trading today: Friday, January 24, 2025.What is Venture Globals stock ticker?Venture Globals stock will trade under the ticker VG.Which exchange will Venture Global shares trade on?Venture Global shares will trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).What is the IPO share price of VG?Venture Globals IPO share price is $25, which is in the middle of its revised $23 to $27 price range.How many IBTA shares are available in its IPO?Seventy million shares of its Class A common stock were made available in its IPO.How much will Venture Global raise in its IPO?At $25 per share, Venture Global raised $1.75 billion in its initial public offering. That was down from the $2.3 billion it sought to raise before its IPO price revision.What is Venture Globals valuation?As of its IPO, Venture Global had a total valuation of $60.5 billiondown from the $110 billion valuation it would have had if it had not revised its original IPO plans.What else is there to know? Some experts expect the U.S. IPO market to ramp up this year following Trumps return to the White House. Lynn Martin, president of NYSE, expressed optimism around Trumps pro-growth agenda this week at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, according to Bloomberg. However, uncertainties such as inflation and the impact of tariffs remain.