Samwise Gamgee said, "It's the job that's never started as takes longest to finish." But then, he hadn't been exposed to the world of video game development. Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game, a cozy take on the most idyllic pocket of Middle Earth, has been delayed. The new launch date is July 29. According to a post from the devs at Wt Workshop Game Studio, this delay is about ensuring that all the project's supported platforms "can enjoy the same cozy experience." It is currently slated to launch on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Steam and Xbox Series X. Tales of the Shire needs a bit more simmering... Now coming July 29th, 2025. Thank you for your support and patience.#TalesOfTheShire #LOTR #cozygaming pic.twitter.com/8afaLnGfFL Tales of the Shire (@talesoftheshire) February 20, 2025 This project has taken a couple tough hits over the past several months. The release date had already been pushed back in September, and it was axed from Netflix's planned game lineup earlier this month. Will there be more hurdles before we can finally enjoy our happy hobbit alternate lives? As a wise wizard once said: "Who knows? Have patience."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/cozy-lord-of-the-rings-game-tales-of-the-shire-is-delayed-to-july-213500109.html?src=rss

Elon Musk has a problem with Community Notes, the crowdsourced fact-checking feature that started as Birdwatch, and launched at scale after he purchased Twitter."Unfortunately @CommunityNotes is increasingly being gamed by governments & legacy media," Musk posted. "Working to fix this..." Based on the rant his tweet descends in to afterwards, his issue appears to be with how X's Community Notes contributors have been treating misinformation about President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the war in Ukraine. Musk quotes a post from an X account that claims polls showing Zelenskyy has a 57 percent approval rating in Ukraine are "not credible." Information like that being challenged on X doesn't jive with President Trump's description of Zelenskyy as a "dictator" or Musk's desire to use the platform as an unofficial arm of the current administration.Unfortunately, @CommunityNotes is increasingly being gamed by governments & legacy media. Working to fix this It should be utterly obvious that a Zelensky-controlled poll about his OWN approval is not credible!!If Zelensky was actually loved by the people of Ukraine, he https://t.co/gy0NjtPwiq Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 20, 2025 What "fixing" Community Notes will look like remains to be seen, but Musk uncritically quoting a post that cites no sources beyond an image with small text that says "Accuracy Confidence: Normal" is hopefully evidence enough that Community Notes are the bare minimum needed. Ragging on the feature of course fits the larger pattern of Musk's tenure at X, which has been characterized by him manipulating the platform's algorithm and eliminating features that helped determine credibility, like verification. If he thinks you can't even trust crowdsourced fact-checks, there's really no source of truth left on the platform.The concept of Community Notes is no longer unique to X Meta recently opened up the waitlist to use the feature on its platforms but how long Community Notes exists its current form is apparently now an open question.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/elon-musk-wants-to-fix-community-notes-on-x-212310412.html?src=rss

Asus redefines external GPUs with a vapor-chamber-cooled RTX 5090, but it comes at a steep price.

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Block, formerly known as Square, got off to a sluggish start on Wall Street this year after underperforming the Nasdaq in 2024.

The Senate on Thursday narrowly voted to confirmKash Patelas director of the FBI, moving to place him atop the nations premier federal law enforcement agency despite doubts from Democrats about his qualifications and concerns he will do Donald Trumps bidding and go after the Republican presidents adversaries.I cannot imagine a worse choice, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told colleagues before the 51-49 vote by the GOP-controlled Senate. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska were the lone Republican holdouts.A Trump loyalist who has fiercely criticized the agency, Patel will inherit an FBI gripped by turmoil as the Justice Department over the past month has forced out a group of senior bureau officials and made ahighly unusual demand for the names of thousands of agentswho participated in investigations related to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.Patel has spoken of his desire toimplement major changesat the FBI, including a reduced footprint at headquarters in Washington and a renewed emphasis on the bureaus traditional crime-fighting duties rather than the intelligence-gathering and national security work that has come to define its mandate over the past two decades. But he also echoedTrumps desire for retribution. Patel raised alarm among Democrats for saying before he was nominated that he would come after anti-Trump conspirators in the federal government and the media.Republicans angry over what they see as law enforcement bias against conservatives during the Democratic Biden administration, as well as criminal investigations into Trump, have rallied behind Patel as the right person for the job.Mr. Patel wants to make the FBI accountable once again - get back the reputation that the FBI has had historically for law enforcement, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said before Patel was confirmed. He wants to hold the FBI accountable to Congress, to the president and, most importantly, to the people they serve the American taxpayer.Democrats complained about Patels lack of management experience compared with previous FBI directors and they highlighted incendiary past statements that they said called his judgment into question.I am absolutely sure of this one thing: this vote will haunt anyone who votes for him. They will rue the day they did it, said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat.He added: To my Republican colleagues, think about what you will tell your constituents and family about why you became voted for this person who will so completely and utterly disgrace this office and do such grave damage to our nations justice system.About a half-dozen Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee gathered outside FBI headquarters earlier Thursday in a last-ditch plea to derail his confirmation.This is someone we cannot trust, said Sen. Adam Schiff of California. This is someone who lacks the character to do this job, someone who lacks the integrity to do this job. We know that, our Republican colleagues know that.Patels eyebrow-raising remarkson hundreds of podcasts and in other interviews over the past four years include referring to law enforcement officials who investigated Trump as criminal gangsters, saying some Jan. 6 rioters were political prisoners and proposing to shut down the FBI headquarters and turning it into a museum for the so-called deep state.At his Senate hearing in January, Patel said Democrats were taking some of his comments out of context or misunderstanding the broader point that he was trying to make. Patel has also denied the idea that a list in book he authored of government officials who he said were part of a deep state amounted to an enemies list, calling that a total mischaracterization.FBI directors are given 10-year terms as a way to insulate them from political influence and keep them from becoming beholden to a particular president or administration. Patel was selected in November to replaceChristopher Wray, who was picked by Trump in 2017 and served for more than seven years but who repeatedly angered the president and was seen by him as insufficiently loyal. Heresignedbefore Trump took office.Since Wrays resignation, the FBI has been led by interim leaders, who have clashed with the Justice Department over its demands for details about the agents who investigated the Capitol riot a move seen as a possible prelude to broader firings. Patel denied having any knowledge of discussions about potential firings, but a letter from Durbin last week that cited information that he said had come from insiders suggested that Patel may have been covertly involved in that process.Trump has said that he expects some of those agents will be fired.Patel is a former federal defender and Justice Department counterterrorism prosecutor. He attracted Trumps attention during the presidents first term when, as a staffer on the Republican-led House Intelligence Committee,Patel helped write a memo with pointed criticism of the FBIs investigationinto ties between Russia and Trumps 2016 campaign.Patel later joined Trumps administration, both as a counterterrorism official at the National Security Council and as chief of staff to the defense secretary.Eric Tucker, Associated Press

Private equity firms Apollo Global Management and Sycamore Partners are among the bidders who are competing to acquire Family Dollar, a discount retail chain operated by Dollar Tree, according to people familiar with the matter.Investment firm Brigade Capital Management has also expressed interest in buying Family Dollar, the sources said, requesting anonymity as the discussions are confidential.A deal for Family Dollar, which could value the retailer at several billion dollars, is not imminent, the sources said, cautioning that Dollar Tree could choose not to sell the business. It is also possible that a different suitor for Family Dollar could emerge, the sources added.Shares of Dollar Tree, which has a market value of about $16.5 billion, jumped more than 5% on the news on Thursday, before paring some gains.Dollar Tree did not respond to a request for comment. Apollo, Brigade and Sycamore declined to comment.Chesapeake, Virginia-based Dollar Tree has been working with investment bankers at JPMorgan Chase to explore options, including a potential sale or spinoff, for Family Dollar since June last year. The move marked a reversal for Dollar Tree, which acquired Family Dollar in 2015 for about $9 billion after outbidding its biggest rival Dollar General.Since the takeover, Family Dollar has struggled with its performance and its growth has stalled as the discount retailer has been unable to attract new customers. Its performance has lagged larger retailers such as Walmart and Target, as consumers cut back on discretionary spending due to high inflation.As of November 2, Dollar Tree operated 16,590 stores across 48 states and five provinces in Canada under the brands of Dollar Tree, Family Dollar and Dollar Tree Canada. Family Dollar generated roughly $13.7 billion of net revenue in the last 12 months, according to Reuters calculations.Sycamore, which has raised about $10 billion in aggregate committed capital, is an experienced retail investor that owns retailers like Staples, Loft, Ann Taylor, Talbots and Belk. In recent months, Sycamore has also been attempting to pull off a takeover of pharmacy chain Walgreens Boots Alliance.Apollo Global Management, which had about $70 billion of assets under management under its private equity strategy as of December 31, has acquired and invested in retailers including Michaels and PetSmart.Brigade Capital manages around $27 billion of assets and is primarily known as a credit investor. Last year, Brigade partnered with investment firm Arkhouse Management in its failed attempt to acquire department store Macys.Abigail Summerville, Reuters

Cybertruck is no ordinary vehicle. Therefore, anything that has to complement it to the T has to be out of the ordinary as well. A few iterations of Cybertruck tow campers have made it to the drawing boards, but nothing so far has been customized to sit in the back of the Tesla truck bed like a sword in its sheath.To change that notion, and to give the Tesla pick-up-owning adventurers an option of a truck bed-camper, the CyberPhoenix slide-in camper is born. Billed as the first custom-built Cybertruck truck camper ever; it is the brainchild of Phoenix, a Colorado-based custom campers manufacturer. Phoenix has designed slide-ins for many electric pickups in the past, and this is its first iteration thats as extreme as the CyberTruck, made for the CyberTruck.Designer: PhoenixTo make it to the top of the Cybertruck, Phoenix has precision-engineered the CyberPhoenix slide-in pop-up camper to fit the geometrically unconventional design of the Tesla Cybertruck truck bed nicely. It may not be allegedly ballistic and tougher than a tank like the Cybertruck, but is made to redefine the way you explore the outdoors with its strong yet lightweight aluminum construction and finish. Being lightweight, and fitting snuggly on the truck bed, the CyberPhoenix vouches to not contribute to range loss, so you can go the extra mile, or electrically power your camp with the truck battery so you can redefine the boundaries of camping. Check out the range test of the slide-in camper in action.Fit in the back of the Cybertruck, go wherever it can, and camp anywhere you like. This is the mantra of the CyberPhoenix that will not shy from the national park, a concert, or an electrifying tailgate or camp by the beach. Despite this, the camper sits comfortably low in the back so it does not rise above the roofline, which means you can (along with the truck) fit in a 7-foot garage conveniently.Things really get exciting inside the camper, which features a bed and a convertible dinette to ensure there is ample space to sleep four people. The little kitchen setup has a propane tank, two stove burners, and a sink with storage underneath. On the opposite side is a water heater and a freshwater tank. For convenience, the slide-in camper has been provided with a portable toilet and a shower (an outside shower is also included). Even though the CyberPhoenix is meant to draw power from the Cybertruck, it does come with its own 800W solar panel and 400Ah battery to take care of the energy needs when you stretch the camping beyond a weekend. The company is taking preorders for its camper starting at $59,900 now.The post CyberPhoenix slide-in camper is designed to sit on the unconventional bed of Cybertruck first appeared on Yanko Design.

Designed to work as a Faraday cage, SLNTs Faraday Phone Sleeve creates a barrier that traps your phones ability to communicate with the outside world. Its akin to switching your phone off, but without the hassle. Pop it in and your device goes off the grid no network, no signal, no WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, nothing. Why would you want such a pouch? Well, for privacy, of course.Obviously the Faraday Phone Sleeve isnt for everyone, but its the kind of pouch Id definitely consider having. Your phone is quite literally an all-hearing device that indiscriminately shares information with your phone maker, service provider, the government, and all the apps that track you through your mic, your location, and your phone use. By placing your phone or device inside, you can instantly disconnect from the grid, making yourself undetectable, untraceable, and unhackable, says SLNT.Designer: SLNTCrafted with military-grade shielding technology, the sleeve blocks all incoming and outgoing signals cellular, WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPS. The engineering behind it draws from the same principles that protect government facilities, but SLNT has managed to compress this technology into something that slides effortlessly into a back pocket. The secret lies in SLNTs patented Silent Pocket faraday technology that works remarkably well. Put your phone in the pouch and close the magnetic flap and its practically off the grid. If you want connectivity, take the phone out. Its that simple.The pouch is a nifty EDC accessory that stores your phone along with perhaps a charging cable. It comes in 3 sizes, working with practically any smartphone. The Silent Pocket tech relies on SLNTs Multishield fabric, which blocks any signal from passing through. Its military-grade (it follows the MIL-STD certification) and comes in 4 classic color combinations.To use the phone sleeve, simply slide your phone into the pouch, ensuring it sits below the metal ribs. Once thats done, shut the magnetic flap and youre done. The phone is officially untraceable, unhackable, and totally offline for all intents and purposes.Why cant I just use Airplane Mode instead, youre probably asking. Well, Airplane Mode only shuts off the WiFi and Cellular modems. Your phone is much more connected beyond those two. It still uses GPS, Bluetooth, RFID, NFC, satellite connectivity, and most phones even have an FM chip for emergency broadcasts. Slipping your phone into the Faraday sleeve blocks those out too. It also shields your phone against EMPs, solar flares, static shocks, etc.To be honest, the Faraday Phone Sleeve is an incredibly niche product but its great for anyone whos privacy-conscious. If youre someone who doesnt want your phone being tracked or hacked while its idle, just slide it into the pouch and youre good to go. I just have two recommendations for the love of god, dont do anything illegal, and dont lose your Faraday phone sleeve with the phone inside it theres no way youre ever finding that device again!The post This Signal-Blocking EDC Pouch Uses Military-Grade Tech To Make Your Phone Untraceable first appeared on Yanko Design.

Approximately 500 NIST staffers, including at least three lab directors, are expected to lose their jobs at the standards agency as part of the ongoing DOGE purge, sources tell WIRED.