• It's absolutely mind-blowing how far we've sunk as a society when a star like Harry Styles decides to launch a line of sextoys! Are we really this desperate for entertainment? Instead of creating meaningful art, we’re now normalizing the commodification of intimacy in the most grotesque way possible. This isn't just a bizarre marketing ploy; it's a reflection of our shallow values. It's time to wake up, people! We should be demanding substance, not this absurdity disguised as creativity. When did we start celebrating this degradation? Harry, you can do better!

    #HarryStyles #Sextoys #CulturalCritique #Society #Consumerism
    It's absolutely mind-blowing how far we've sunk as a society when a star like Harry Styles decides to launch a line of sextoys! Are we really this desperate for entertainment? Instead of creating meaningful art, we’re now normalizing the commodification of intimacy in the most grotesque way possible. This isn't just a bizarre marketing ploy; it's a reflection of our shallow values. It's time to wake up, people! We should be demanding substance, not this absurdity disguised as creativity. When did we start celebrating this degradation? Harry, you can do better! #HarryStyles #Sextoys #CulturalCritique #Society #Consumerism
    La star Harry Styles lance une gamme de sextoys (oui, des sextoys)
    Harry Styles ne cesse de surprendre ses fans. Il a déjà conquis le monde de […] Cet article La star Harry Styles lance une gamme de sextoys (oui, des sextoys) a été publié sur REALITE-VIRTUELLE.COM.
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  • So, apparently, if you haven't been pinning your hopes on Pinterest for ecommerce marketing, you're missing out on the next big trend for 2025. Who knew that a platform once reserved for DIY enthusiasts and people looking for the perfect shade of beige for their living room could become the holy grail for shopping? Forget about ads interrupting your scrolling—Pinterest is here to seamlessly integrate products into your life, as if we needed more ways to spend our money on things we didn't know we needed. So go ahead, dive into the world of Pinterest and discover a treasure trove of impulse buys disguised as “inspiration.”

    #PinterestMarketing #Ecommerce2025 #ShopTheLook #DigitalMarketing #PinningForProfit
    So, apparently, if you haven't been pinning your hopes on Pinterest for ecommerce marketing, you're missing out on the next big trend for 2025. Who knew that a platform once reserved for DIY enthusiasts and people looking for the perfect shade of beige for their living room could become the holy grail for shopping? Forget about ads interrupting your scrolling—Pinterest is here to seamlessly integrate products into your life, as if we needed more ways to spend our money on things we didn't know we needed. So go ahead, dive into the world of Pinterest and discover a treasure trove of impulse buys disguised as “inspiration.” #PinterestMarketing #Ecommerce2025 #ShopTheLook #DigitalMarketing #PinningForProfit
    Why Pinterest for Ecommerce Marketing is a Must-Have for 2025
    If you’ve been sleeping on Pinterest for ecommerce marketing, now is the time to wake up.  Traditionally seen as a place for DIY projects, home decor ideas, or aesthetic inspiration, Pinterest has recently transformed into a powerful shoppi
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  • It's infuriating to see the so-called "Best Games Of 2025 So Far" list completely miss the mark! Seriously, who is curating this garbage? We’re halfway through the year, and instead of celebrating true innovation, we’re stuck with rehashed ideas and uninspired sequels. The gaming community deserves better than shallow marketing gimmicks disguised as quality content. Where are the groundbreaking experiences that should define a new console launch? It’s a disgrace how the industry prioritizes profits over creativity. Wake up, gamers! Demand more than just the same tired formula!

    #GamingCritique
    #BestGames2025
    #GameIndustryFail
    #InnovationNeeded
    #ConsoleLaunchDisappointment
    It's infuriating to see the so-called "Best Games Of 2025 So Far" list completely miss the mark! Seriously, who is curating this garbage? We’re halfway through the year, and instead of celebrating true innovation, we’re stuck with rehashed ideas and uninspired sequels. The gaming community deserves better than shallow marketing gimmicks disguised as quality content. Where are the groundbreaking experiences that should define a new console launch? It’s a disgrace how the industry prioritizes profits over creativity. Wake up, gamers! Demand more than just the same tired formula! #GamingCritique #BestGames2025 #GameIndustryFail #InnovationNeeded #ConsoleLaunchDisappointment
    KOTAKU.COM
    The Best Games Of 2025 So Far
    We’re more than halfway through 2025, and as we head into the summer lull, what better time than the present to look back at some of the incredible games we’ve played this year? A whole new console launch happened since we last updated this list, and
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  • Ubisoft, what were you thinking? After a decade of Rainbow Six Siege, we deserved a sequel, not some half-baked update disguised as an overhaul! “Rainbow Six Siege X” is nothing more than a slap in the face to loyal players. Instead of innovating, you're recycling old content and throwing in a bunch of technical glitches that ruin the experience. This isn’t progress; it’s a desperate attempt to keep the lights on without putting in the real effort. Don’t insult our intelligence with this flimsy excuse for an update. We want real change, not more of the same old broken mechanics! Get it together, Ubisoft!

    #RainbowSixSiege #Ubisoft #GamingCommunity #SiegeX #TechFails
    Ubisoft, what were you thinking? After a decade of Rainbow Six Siege, we deserved a sequel, not some half-baked update disguised as an overhaul! “Rainbow Six Siege X” is nothing more than a slap in the face to loyal players. Instead of innovating, you're recycling old content and throwing in a bunch of technical glitches that ruin the experience. This isn’t progress; it’s a desperate attempt to keep the lights on without putting in the real effort. Don’t insult our intelligence with this flimsy excuse for an update. We want real change, not more of the same old broken mechanics! Get it together, Ubisoft! #RainbowSixSiege #Ubisoft #GamingCommunity #SiegeX #TechFails
    KOTAKU.COM
    Returning To R6? Here’s What To Expect In Rainbow Six Siege X
    After a decade of back-and-forth attack and defense missions in Rainbow Six Siege, it was most certainly time for an update. Most of us were probably expecting a sequel. But Ubisoft decided an update masquerading as an overhaul would suffice. Rainbow
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  • Meta officially ‘acqui-hires’ Scale AI — will it draw regulator scrutiny?

    Meta is looking to up its weakening AI game with a key talent grab.

    Following days of speculation, the social media giant has confirmed that Scale AI’s founder and CEO, Alexandr Wang, is joining Meta to work on its AI efforts.

    Meta will invest billion in Scale AI as part of the deal, and will have a 49% stake in the AI startup, which specializes in data labeling and model evaluation services. Other key Scale employees will also move over to Meta, while CSO Jason Droege will step in as Scale’s interim CEO.

    This move comes as the Mark Zuckerberg-led company goes all-in on building a new research lab focused on “superintelligence,” the next step beyond artificial general intelligence.

    The arrangement also reflects a growing trend in big tech, where industry giants are buying companies without really buying them — what’s increasingly being referred to as “acqui-hiring.” It involves recruiting key personnel from a company, licensing its technology, and selling its products, but leaving it as a private entity.

    “This is fundamentally a massive ‘acqui-hire’ play disguised as a strategic investment,” said Wyatt Mayham, lead AI consultant at Northwest AI Consulting. “While Meta gets Scale’s data infrastructure, the real prize is Wang joining Meta to lead their superintelligence lab. At the billion price tag, this might be the most expensive individual talent acquisition in tech history.”

    Closing gaps with competitors

    Meta has struggled to keep up with OpenAI, Anthropic, and other key competitors in the AI race, recently even delaying the launch of its new flagship model, Behemoth, purportedly due to internal concerns about its performance. It has also seen the departure of several of its top researchers.

     “It’s not really a secret at this point that Meta’s Llama 4 models have had significant performance issues,” Mayham said. “Zuck is essentially betting that Wang’s track record building AI infrastructure can solve Meta’s alignment and model quality problems faster than internal development.” And, he added, Scale’s enterprise-grade human feedback loops are exactly what Meta’s Llama models need to compete with ChatGPT and Claude on reliability and task-following.

    Data quality, a key focus for Wang, is a big factor in solving those performance problems. He wrote in a note to Scale employees on Thursday, later posted on X, that when he founded Scale AI in 2016 amidst some of the early AI breakthroughs, “it was clear even then that data was the lifeblood of AI systems, and that was the inspiration behind starting Scale.”

    But despite Meta’s huge investment, Scale AI is underscoring its commitment to sovereignty: “Scale remains an independent leader in AI, committed to providing industry-leading AI solutions and safeguarding customer data,” the company wrote in a blog post. “Scale will continue to partner with leading AI labs, multinational enterprises, and governments to deliver expert data and technology solutions through every phase of AI’s evolution.”

    Allowing big tech to side-step notification

    But while it’s only just been inked, the high-profile deal is already raising some eyebrows. According to experts, arrangements like these allow tech companies to acquire top talent and key technologies in a side-stepping manner, thus avoiding regulatory notification requirements.

    The US Federal Trade Commissionrequires mergers and acquisitions totaling more than million be reported in advance. Licensing deals or the mass hiring-away of a company’s employees don’t have this requirement. This allows companies to move more quickly, as they don’t have to undergo the lengthy federal review process.

    Microsoft’s deal with Inflection AI is probably one of the highest-profile examples of the “acqui-hiring” trend. In March 2024, the tech giant paid the startup million in licensing fees and hired much of its team, including co-founders Mustafa Suleymanand Karén Simonyan.

    Similarly, last year Amazon hired more than 50% of Adept AI’s key personnel, including its CEO, to focus on AGI. Google also inked a licensing agreement with Character AI and hired a majority of its founders and researchers.

    However, regulators have caught on, with the FTC launching inquiries into both the Microsoft-Inflection and Amazon-Adept deals, and the US Justice Departmentanalyzing Google-Character AI.

    Reflecting ‘desperation’ in the AI industry

    Meta’s decision to go forward with this arrangement anyway, despite that dicey backdrop, seems to indicate how anxious the company is to keep up in the AI race.

    “The most interesting piece of this all is the timing,” said Mayham. “It reflects broader industry desperation. Tech giants are increasingly buying parts of promising AI startups to secure key talent without acquiring full companies, following similar patterns with Microsoft-Inflection and Google-Character AI.”

    However, the regulatory risks are “real but nuanced,” he noted. Meta’s acquisition could face scrutiny from antitrust regulators, particularly as the company is involved in an ongoing FTC lawsuit over its Instagram and WhatsApp acquisitions. While the 49% ownership position appears designed to avoid triggering automatic thresholds, US regulatory bodies like the FTC and DOJ can review minority stake acquisitions under the Clayton Antitrust Act if they seem to threaten competition.

    Perhaps more importantly, Meta is not considered a leader in AGI development and is trailing OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google, meaning regulators may not consider the deal all that concerning.

    All told, the arrangement certainly signals Meta’s recognition that the AI race has shifted from a compute and model size competition to a data quality and alignment battle, Mayham noted.

    “I think theof this is that Zuck’s biggest bet is that talent and data infrastructure matter more than raw compute power in the AI race,” he said. “The regulatory risk is manageable given Meta’s trailing position, but the acqui-hire premium shows how expensive top AI talent has become.”
    #meta #officially #acquihires #scale #will
    Meta officially ‘acqui-hires’ Scale AI — will it draw regulator scrutiny?
    Meta is looking to up its weakening AI game with a key talent grab. Following days of speculation, the social media giant has confirmed that Scale AI’s founder and CEO, Alexandr Wang, is joining Meta to work on its AI efforts. Meta will invest billion in Scale AI as part of the deal, and will have a 49% stake in the AI startup, which specializes in data labeling and model evaluation services. Other key Scale employees will also move over to Meta, while CSO Jason Droege will step in as Scale’s interim CEO. This move comes as the Mark Zuckerberg-led company goes all-in on building a new research lab focused on “superintelligence,” the next step beyond artificial general intelligence. The arrangement also reflects a growing trend in big tech, where industry giants are buying companies without really buying them — what’s increasingly being referred to as “acqui-hiring.” It involves recruiting key personnel from a company, licensing its technology, and selling its products, but leaving it as a private entity. “This is fundamentally a massive ‘acqui-hire’ play disguised as a strategic investment,” said Wyatt Mayham, lead AI consultant at Northwest AI Consulting. “While Meta gets Scale’s data infrastructure, the real prize is Wang joining Meta to lead their superintelligence lab. At the billion price tag, this might be the most expensive individual talent acquisition in tech history.” Closing gaps with competitors Meta has struggled to keep up with OpenAI, Anthropic, and other key competitors in the AI race, recently even delaying the launch of its new flagship model, Behemoth, purportedly due to internal concerns about its performance. It has also seen the departure of several of its top researchers.  “It’s not really a secret at this point that Meta’s Llama 4 models have had significant performance issues,” Mayham said. “Zuck is essentially betting that Wang’s track record building AI infrastructure can solve Meta’s alignment and model quality problems faster than internal development.” And, he added, Scale’s enterprise-grade human feedback loops are exactly what Meta’s Llama models need to compete with ChatGPT and Claude on reliability and task-following. Data quality, a key focus for Wang, is a big factor in solving those performance problems. He wrote in a note to Scale employees on Thursday, later posted on X, that when he founded Scale AI in 2016 amidst some of the early AI breakthroughs, “it was clear even then that data was the lifeblood of AI systems, and that was the inspiration behind starting Scale.” But despite Meta’s huge investment, Scale AI is underscoring its commitment to sovereignty: “Scale remains an independent leader in AI, committed to providing industry-leading AI solutions and safeguarding customer data,” the company wrote in a blog post. “Scale will continue to partner with leading AI labs, multinational enterprises, and governments to deliver expert data and technology solutions through every phase of AI’s evolution.” Allowing big tech to side-step notification But while it’s only just been inked, the high-profile deal is already raising some eyebrows. According to experts, arrangements like these allow tech companies to acquire top talent and key technologies in a side-stepping manner, thus avoiding regulatory notification requirements. The US Federal Trade Commissionrequires mergers and acquisitions totaling more than million be reported in advance. Licensing deals or the mass hiring-away of a company’s employees don’t have this requirement. This allows companies to move more quickly, as they don’t have to undergo the lengthy federal review process. Microsoft’s deal with Inflection AI is probably one of the highest-profile examples of the “acqui-hiring” trend. In March 2024, the tech giant paid the startup million in licensing fees and hired much of its team, including co-founders Mustafa Suleymanand Karén Simonyan. Similarly, last year Amazon hired more than 50% of Adept AI’s key personnel, including its CEO, to focus on AGI. Google also inked a licensing agreement with Character AI and hired a majority of its founders and researchers. However, regulators have caught on, with the FTC launching inquiries into both the Microsoft-Inflection and Amazon-Adept deals, and the US Justice Departmentanalyzing Google-Character AI. Reflecting ‘desperation’ in the AI industry Meta’s decision to go forward with this arrangement anyway, despite that dicey backdrop, seems to indicate how anxious the company is to keep up in the AI race. “The most interesting piece of this all is the timing,” said Mayham. “It reflects broader industry desperation. Tech giants are increasingly buying parts of promising AI startups to secure key talent without acquiring full companies, following similar patterns with Microsoft-Inflection and Google-Character AI.” However, the regulatory risks are “real but nuanced,” he noted. Meta’s acquisition could face scrutiny from antitrust regulators, particularly as the company is involved in an ongoing FTC lawsuit over its Instagram and WhatsApp acquisitions. While the 49% ownership position appears designed to avoid triggering automatic thresholds, US regulatory bodies like the FTC and DOJ can review minority stake acquisitions under the Clayton Antitrust Act if they seem to threaten competition. Perhaps more importantly, Meta is not considered a leader in AGI development and is trailing OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google, meaning regulators may not consider the deal all that concerning. All told, the arrangement certainly signals Meta’s recognition that the AI race has shifted from a compute and model size competition to a data quality and alignment battle, Mayham noted. “I think theof this is that Zuck’s biggest bet is that talent and data infrastructure matter more than raw compute power in the AI race,” he said. “The regulatory risk is manageable given Meta’s trailing position, but the acqui-hire premium shows how expensive top AI talent has become.” #meta #officially #acquihires #scale #will
    WWW.COMPUTERWORLD.COM
    Meta officially ‘acqui-hires’ Scale AI — will it draw regulator scrutiny?
    Meta is looking to up its weakening AI game with a key talent grab. Following days of speculation, the social media giant has confirmed that Scale AI’s founder and CEO, Alexandr Wang, is joining Meta to work on its AI efforts. Meta will invest $14.3 billion in Scale AI as part of the deal, and will have a 49% stake in the AI startup, which specializes in data labeling and model evaluation services. Other key Scale employees will also move over to Meta, while CSO Jason Droege will step in as Scale’s interim CEO. This move comes as the Mark Zuckerberg-led company goes all-in on building a new research lab focused on “superintelligence,” the next step beyond artificial general intelligence (AGI). The arrangement also reflects a growing trend in big tech, where industry giants are buying companies without really buying them — what’s increasingly being referred to as “acqui-hiring.” It involves recruiting key personnel from a company, licensing its technology, and selling its products, but leaving it as a private entity. “This is fundamentally a massive ‘acqui-hire’ play disguised as a strategic investment,” said Wyatt Mayham, lead AI consultant at Northwest AI Consulting. “While Meta gets Scale’s data infrastructure, the real prize is Wang joining Meta to lead their superintelligence lab. At the $14.3 billion price tag, this might be the most expensive individual talent acquisition in tech history.” Closing gaps with competitors Meta has struggled to keep up with OpenAI, Anthropic, and other key competitors in the AI race, recently even delaying the launch of its new flagship model, Behemoth, purportedly due to internal concerns about its performance. It has also seen the departure of several of its top researchers.  “It’s not really a secret at this point that Meta’s Llama 4 models have had significant performance issues,” Mayham said. “Zuck is essentially betting that Wang’s track record building AI infrastructure can solve Meta’s alignment and model quality problems faster than internal development.” And, he added, Scale’s enterprise-grade human feedback loops are exactly what Meta’s Llama models need to compete with ChatGPT and Claude on reliability and task-following. Data quality, a key focus for Wang, is a big factor in solving those performance problems. He wrote in a note to Scale employees on Thursday, later posted on X (formerly Twitter), that when he founded Scale AI in 2016 amidst some of the early AI breakthroughs, “it was clear even then that data was the lifeblood of AI systems, and that was the inspiration behind starting Scale.” But despite Meta’s huge investment, Scale AI is underscoring its commitment to sovereignty: “Scale remains an independent leader in AI, committed to providing industry-leading AI solutions and safeguarding customer data,” the company wrote in a blog post. “Scale will continue to partner with leading AI labs, multinational enterprises, and governments to deliver expert data and technology solutions through every phase of AI’s evolution.” Allowing big tech to side-step notification But while it’s only just been inked, the high-profile deal is already raising some eyebrows. According to experts, arrangements like these allow tech companies to acquire top talent and key technologies in a side-stepping manner, thus avoiding regulatory notification requirements. The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requires mergers and acquisitions totaling more than $126 million be reported in advance. Licensing deals or the mass hiring-away of a company’s employees don’t have this requirement. This allows companies to move more quickly, as they don’t have to undergo the lengthy federal review process. Microsoft’s deal with Inflection AI is probably one of the highest-profile examples of the “acqui-hiring” trend. In March 2024, the tech giant paid the startup $650 million in licensing fees and hired much of its team, including co-founders Mustafa Suleyman (now CEO of Microsoft AI) and Karén Simonyan (chief scientist of Microsoft AI). Similarly, last year Amazon hired more than 50% of Adept AI’s key personnel, including its CEO, to focus on AGI. Google also inked a licensing agreement with Character AI and hired a majority of its founders and researchers. However, regulators have caught on, with the FTC launching inquiries into both the Microsoft-Inflection and Amazon-Adept deals, and the US Justice Department (DOJ) analyzing Google-Character AI. Reflecting ‘desperation’ in the AI industry Meta’s decision to go forward with this arrangement anyway, despite that dicey backdrop, seems to indicate how anxious the company is to keep up in the AI race. “The most interesting piece of this all is the timing,” said Mayham. “It reflects broader industry desperation. Tech giants are increasingly buying parts of promising AI startups to secure key talent without acquiring full companies, following similar patterns with Microsoft-Inflection and Google-Character AI.” However, the regulatory risks are “real but nuanced,” he noted. Meta’s acquisition could face scrutiny from antitrust regulators, particularly as the company is involved in an ongoing FTC lawsuit over its Instagram and WhatsApp acquisitions. While the 49% ownership position appears designed to avoid triggering automatic thresholds, US regulatory bodies like the FTC and DOJ can review minority stake acquisitions under the Clayton Antitrust Act if they seem to threaten competition. Perhaps more importantly, Meta is not considered a leader in AGI development and is trailing OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google, meaning regulators may not consider the deal all that concerning (yet). All told, the arrangement certainly signals Meta’s recognition that the AI race has shifted from a compute and model size competition to a data quality and alignment battle, Mayham noted. “I think the [gist] of this is that Zuck’s biggest bet is that talent and data infrastructure matter more than raw compute power in the AI race,” he said. “The regulatory risk is manageable given Meta’s trailing position, but the acqui-hire premium shows how expensive top AI talent has become.”
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  • Where Should Your Living Room TV Go? Designers Weigh In on the Best Spots

    It's time we settle an age-old debate: Where should your living room television *actually* go? There's no hard-and-fast rule, but designers have opinions on the best way to keep your family entertaining space functional and stylish. And sometimes, those opinions isn't always based on aesthetics! "I don't always want to fight the 'TV over the fireplace' battle," admits designer Annie Downing. So, where should it go? Below, I dive into designers' best stylish solutions. Related StoriesGo Over the MantelSometimes, the path of least resistance is ultimately the correct one, and all of the designers I spoke to had no real issue with putting a television over the fireplace or mantel. "As long as the design is intentional and well-executed regarding the placement, I think we live in a time where we have to embrace the technology," says designer Amanda Lantz. Just be sure that the technology you're embracing is primed for a little designer upgrade. "The TV doesn't have to be a giant black box," says Annie, who recommends homeowners opt for sleeker options, such as Samsung's Frame TV, which can be easily integrated. "It’s not about hiding it completely," she says, "it’s about treating it like a design element instead of an afterthought." To give the TV a more intentional feel, Annie recommends pairing a frame television with custom or pre-fabricated trim packages. A simple tile surround also works if you want a more integrated look. Hide It—But Do It CleverlyIf mounting a television over your fireplace is an absolute no-go for you, either because you hate the way it looks or because the angle or height of the television makes viewing uncomfortable, there are still plenty of places to put or hide it. Tuck Into An Adjacent Book CaseEarlier this year, I visited a home where the fireplace was flanked on either side by built-in shelving that spanned the length of the wall. Instead of placing the television over themantel, the owners tucked it neatly into the right side of the bookcase, surrounding it with books and other collected objet. This approach, which works well in living rooms with vaulted ceilings, easily fosters a cozy, gather-round atmosphere. Pair It With Greenery Stacy Zarin GoldbergThis cabin makes expert use of freshly foraged greens. Try camouflaging your television—literally. Fresh, seasonal greens go a long way in adding visual intrigue and casual, lived-in charm. Choose fluffy, loose flowers or greenery to balance the structured, technical feel of the television. Cover It With ArtIn designer Christina Salway's Brooklyn home, the television is hidden by a large painting hung on cleats. "When we watch TV, we take the painting down, and when we’re finished, we put it back up," she says. "This is probably unimaginable to most people, but I hated the prospect of having a television so visibly positioned in our living room." It's best to avoid art with high sentimental value or that is irreplaceable if you go this route. Instead, opt for inexpensive vintage art or a print that you don't mind handling regularly. Related StoryHide It With MillworkMy personal favorite way to hide a television in a living room involves a clever bit of carpentry. I first came across this idea while admiring@MyMulberryHouse on Instagram. In her post, homeowner Leah Lane walks her followers through the process of building a concertina TV screen fabricated with piano hinges—which are key to its seamless, lie-flat appearance. The screen is cleverly disguised as a set of antique botanical prints. If you're willing to put a little extra elbow grease and manpower behind hiding your television, this is a stunning, design-editor-approved method.Related StoriesAnna LoganSenior Homes & Style EditorAnna Logan is the Senior Homes & Style Editor at Country Living, where she has been covering all things home design, including sharing exclusive looks at beautifully designed country kitchens, producing home features, writing everything from timely trend reports on the latest viral aesthetic to expert-driven explainers on must-read topics, and rounding up pretty much everything you’ve ever wanted to know about paint, since 2021. Anna has spent the last seven years covering every aspect of the design industry, previously having written for Traditional Home, One Kings Lane, House Beautiful, and Frederic. She holds a degree in journalism from the University of Georgia. When she’s not working, Anna can either be found digging around her flower garden or through the dusty shelves of an antique shop. Follow her adventures, or, more importantly, those of her three-year-old Maltese and official Country Living Pet Lab tester, Teddy, on Instagram.
     
    #where #should #your #living #room
    Where Should Your Living Room TV Go? Designers Weigh In on the Best Spots
    It's time we settle an age-old debate: Where should your living room television *actually* go? There's no hard-and-fast rule, but designers have opinions on the best way to keep your family entertaining space functional and stylish. And sometimes, those opinions isn't always based on aesthetics! "I don't always want to fight the 'TV over the fireplace' battle," admits designer Annie Downing. So, where should it go? Below, I dive into designers' best stylish solutions. Related StoriesGo Over the MantelSometimes, the path of least resistance is ultimately the correct one, and all of the designers I spoke to had no real issue with putting a television over the fireplace or mantel. "As long as the design is intentional and well-executed regarding the placement, I think we live in a time where we have to embrace the technology," says designer Amanda Lantz. Just be sure that the technology you're embracing is primed for a little designer upgrade. "The TV doesn't have to be a giant black box," says Annie, who recommends homeowners opt for sleeker options, such as Samsung's Frame TV, which can be easily integrated. "It’s not about hiding it completely," she says, "it’s about treating it like a design element instead of an afterthought." To give the TV a more intentional feel, Annie recommends pairing a frame television with custom or pre-fabricated trim packages. A simple tile surround also works if you want a more integrated look. Hide It—But Do It CleverlyIf mounting a television over your fireplace is an absolute no-go for you, either because you hate the way it looks or because the angle or height of the television makes viewing uncomfortable, there are still plenty of places to put or hide it. Tuck Into An Adjacent Book CaseEarlier this year, I visited a home where the fireplace was flanked on either side by built-in shelving that spanned the length of the wall. Instead of placing the television over themantel, the owners tucked it neatly into the right side of the bookcase, surrounding it with books and other collected objet. This approach, which works well in living rooms with vaulted ceilings, easily fosters a cozy, gather-round atmosphere. Pair It With Greenery Stacy Zarin GoldbergThis cabin makes expert use of freshly foraged greens. Try camouflaging your television—literally. Fresh, seasonal greens go a long way in adding visual intrigue and casual, lived-in charm. Choose fluffy, loose flowers or greenery to balance the structured, technical feel of the television. Cover It With ArtIn designer Christina Salway's Brooklyn home, the television is hidden by a large painting hung on cleats. "When we watch TV, we take the painting down, and when we’re finished, we put it back up," she says. "This is probably unimaginable to most people, but I hated the prospect of having a television so visibly positioned in our living room." It's best to avoid art with high sentimental value or that is irreplaceable if you go this route. Instead, opt for inexpensive vintage art or a print that you don't mind handling regularly. Related StoryHide It With MillworkMy personal favorite way to hide a television in a living room involves a clever bit of carpentry. I first came across this idea while admiring@MyMulberryHouse on Instagram. In her post, homeowner Leah Lane walks her followers through the process of building a concertina TV screen fabricated with piano hinges—which are key to its seamless, lie-flat appearance. The screen is cleverly disguised as a set of antique botanical prints. If you're willing to put a little extra elbow grease and manpower behind hiding your television, this is a stunning, design-editor-approved method.Related StoriesAnna LoganSenior Homes & Style EditorAnna Logan is the Senior Homes & Style Editor at Country Living, where she has been covering all things home design, including sharing exclusive looks at beautifully designed country kitchens, producing home features, writing everything from timely trend reports on the latest viral aesthetic to expert-driven explainers on must-read topics, and rounding up pretty much everything you’ve ever wanted to know about paint, since 2021. Anna has spent the last seven years covering every aspect of the design industry, previously having written for Traditional Home, One Kings Lane, House Beautiful, and Frederic. She holds a degree in journalism from the University of Georgia. When she’s not working, Anna can either be found digging around her flower garden or through the dusty shelves of an antique shop. Follow her adventures, or, more importantly, those of her three-year-old Maltese and official Country Living Pet Lab tester, Teddy, on Instagram.   #where #should #your #living #room
    WWW.COUNTRYLIVING.COM
    Where Should Your Living Room TV Go? Designers Weigh In on the Best Spots
    It's time we settle an age-old debate: Where should your living room television *actually* go? There's no hard-and-fast rule, but designers have opinions on the best way to keep your family entertaining space functional and stylish. And sometimes, those opinions isn't always based on aesthetics! "I don't always want to fight the 'TV over the fireplace' battle," admits designer Annie Downing. So, where should it go? Below, I dive into designers' best stylish solutions. Related StoriesGo Over the MantelSometimes, the path of least resistance is ultimately the correct one, and all of the designers I spoke to had no real issue with putting a television over the fireplace or mantel. "As long as the design is intentional and well-executed regarding the placement, I think we live in a time where we have to embrace the technology," says designer Amanda Lantz. Just be sure that the technology you're embracing is primed for a little designer upgrade. "The TV doesn't have to be a giant black box," says Annie, who recommends homeowners opt for sleeker options, such as Samsung's Frame TV, which can be easily integrated. "It’s not about hiding it completely," she says, "it’s about treating it like a design element instead of an afterthought." To give the TV a more intentional feel, Annie recommends pairing a frame television with custom or pre-fabricated trim packages. A simple tile surround also works if you want a more integrated look. Hide It—But Do It CleverlyIf mounting a television over your fireplace is an absolute no-go for you, either because you hate the way it looks or because the angle or height of the television makes viewing uncomfortable, there are still plenty of places to put or hide it. Tuck Into An Adjacent Book CaseEarlier this year, I visited a home where the fireplace was flanked on either side by built-in shelving that spanned the length of the wall. Instead of placing the television over the (admittedly too-high) mantel, the owners tucked it neatly into the right side of the bookcase, surrounding it with books and other collected objet. This approach, which works well in living rooms with vaulted ceilings, easily fosters a cozy, gather-round atmosphere. Pair It With Greenery Stacy Zarin GoldbergThis cabin makes expert use of freshly foraged greens. Try camouflaging your television—literally. Fresh, seasonal greens go a long way in adding visual intrigue and casual, lived-in charm. Choose fluffy, loose flowers or greenery to balance the structured, technical feel of the television. Cover It With ArtIn designer Christina Salway's Brooklyn home, the television is hidden by a large painting hung on cleats. "When we watch TV, we take the painting down, and when we’re finished, we put it back up," she says. "This is probably unimaginable to most people, but I hated the prospect of having a television so visibly positioned in our living room." It's best to avoid art with high sentimental value or that is irreplaceable if you go this route. Instead, opt for inexpensive vintage art or a print that you don't mind handling regularly. Related StoryHide It With MillworkMy personal favorite way to hide a television in a living room involves a clever bit of carpentry. I first came across this idea while admiring (read: drooling over) @MyMulberryHouse on Instagram. In her post, homeowner Leah Lane walks her followers through the process of building a concertina TV screen fabricated with piano hinges—which are key to its seamless, lie-flat appearance. The screen is cleverly disguised as a set of antique botanical prints. If you're willing to put a little extra elbow grease and manpower behind hiding your television, this is a stunning, design-editor-approved method.Related StoriesAnna LoganSenior Homes & Style EditorAnna Logan is the Senior Homes & Style Editor at Country Living, where she has been covering all things home design, including sharing exclusive looks at beautifully designed country kitchens, producing home features, writing everything from timely trend reports on the latest viral aesthetic to expert-driven explainers on must-read topics, and rounding up pretty much everything you’ve ever wanted to know about paint, since 2021. Anna has spent the last seven years covering every aspect of the design industry, previously having written for Traditional Home, One Kings Lane, House Beautiful, and Frederic. She holds a degree in journalism from the University of Georgia. When she’s not working, Anna can either be found digging around her flower garden or through the dusty shelves of an antique shop. Follow her adventures, or, more importantly, those of her three-year-old Maltese and official Country Living Pet Lab tester, Teddy, on Instagram.  
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  • Drone Footage Shows What Appears to Be a Cheap Tesla Prototype Zooming Around a Test Track

    Are we on the cusp of truly affordable Teslas? A YouTuber flew a drone over Tesla's Fremont test track and saw what may be its new cheap model racing around it.As spotted by Teslarati, new flyover footage from an account that calls itself "Met God in Wildnerness" — which along with frequent Fremont flyovers also publishes what appear to be Christian missives in Chinese — there's a good chance that the disguised vehicle could be a prototype for Tesla's purported affordable model."A disguised Tesla car testing on test track," the video's caption reads. "We could be seeing the new low cost model."Though the blog describes the vehicle as resembling a "compact Model Y," the black-and-white machine looks to our eyes like an elongated Volkswagen Beetle. In the video, it's seen stopping and going on the track, which is located off to the side of Tesla's manufacturing plant in Fremont, California, followed by a disguised Cybertruck.In its writeup, Teslarati notes that although there's a possibility the car is the new performance version of the Model Y, its compact size suggests it could be a prototype for the long-teased affordable model.As InsideEVs pinpointed back in April, Tesla admitted in its abysmal first-quarter earnings report for 2025 that switching over production lines to make room for the new Performance Model Y, which resulted in "several weeks of lost production" on the upgrade, was also paramount as it seeks to produce cheaper versions of its cars."During the switchover, we also prepared our factories for the launch of new models later this year," the report's fine print read. "Given economic uncertainty resulting from changing trade policy, more affordable options are as critical as ever."When discussing that earnings report in an investor call, CFO Vaibhav Taneja said that production of the cheaper model — which may utilize design aspects of Model 3 and Model Y — is "planned for June."As with most of the company's timelines, we're taking that one with several grains of salt — especially because CEO Elon Musk was mocking the idea of a Tesla, which he'd been promised for years, less than a year ago.Right now, we don't know any specifics about what will constitute an "affordable" Tesla or when it will hit production lines or dealerships — but that flyover video could be our first glimpse of what's to come.More on Tesla: Tesla Can't Find Legal Places to Store All Its Unsold CybertrucksShare This Article
    #drone #footage #shows #what #appears
    Drone Footage Shows What Appears to Be a Cheap Tesla Prototype Zooming Around a Test Track
    Are we on the cusp of truly affordable Teslas? A YouTuber flew a drone over Tesla's Fremont test track and saw what may be its new cheap model racing around it.As spotted by Teslarati, new flyover footage from an account that calls itself "Met God in Wildnerness" — which along with frequent Fremont flyovers also publishes what appear to be Christian missives in Chinese — there's a good chance that the disguised vehicle could be a prototype for Tesla's purported affordable model."A disguised Tesla car testing on test track," the video's caption reads. "We could be seeing the new low cost model."Though the blog describes the vehicle as resembling a "compact Model Y," the black-and-white machine looks to our eyes like an elongated Volkswagen Beetle. In the video, it's seen stopping and going on the track, which is located off to the side of Tesla's manufacturing plant in Fremont, California, followed by a disguised Cybertruck.In its writeup, Teslarati notes that although there's a possibility the car is the new performance version of the Model Y, its compact size suggests it could be a prototype for the long-teased affordable model.As InsideEVs pinpointed back in April, Tesla admitted in its abysmal first-quarter earnings report for 2025 that switching over production lines to make room for the new Performance Model Y, which resulted in "several weeks of lost production" on the upgrade, was also paramount as it seeks to produce cheaper versions of its cars."During the switchover, we also prepared our factories for the launch of new models later this year," the report's fine print read. "Given economic uncertainty resulting from changing trade policy, more affordable options are as critical as ever."When discussing that earnings report in an investor call, CFO Vaibhav Taneja said that production of the cheaper model — which may utilize design aspects of Model 3 and Model Y — is "planned for June."As with most of the company's timelines, we're taking that one with several grains of salt — especially because CEO Elon Musk was mocking the idea of a Tesla, which he'd been promised for years, less than a year ago.Right now, we don't know any specifics about what will constitute an "affordable" Tesla or when it will hit production lines or dealerships — but that flyover video could be our first glimpse of what's to come.More on Tesla: Tesla Can't Find Legal Places to Store All Its Unsold CybertrucksShare This Article #drone #footage #shows #what #appears
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    Drone Footage Shows What Appears to Be a Cheap Tesla Prototype Zooming Around a Test Track
    Are we on the cusp of truly affordable Teslas? A YouTuber flew a drone over Tesla's Fremont test track and saw what may be its new cheap model racing around it.As spotted by Teslarati, new flyover footage from an account that calls itself "Met God in Wildnerness" — which along with frequent Fremont flyovers also publishes what appear to be Christian missives in Chinese — there's a good chance that the disguised vehicle could be a prototype for Tesla's purported affordable model."A disguised Tesla car testing on test track," the video's caption reads. "We could be seeing the new low cost model."Though the blog describes the vehicle as resembling a "compact Model Y," the black-and-white machine looks to our eyes like an elongated Volkswagen Beetle. In the video, it's seen stopping and going on the track, which is located off to the side of Tesla's manufacturing plant in Fremont, California, followed by a disguised Cybertruck.In its writeup, Teslarati notes that although there's a possibility the car is the new performance version of the Model Y, its compact size suggests it could be a prototype for the long-teased affordable model.As InsideEVs pinpointed back in April, Tesla admitted in its abysmal first-quarter earnings report for 2025 that switching over production lines to make room for the new Performance Model Y, which resulted in "several weeks of lost production" on the upgrade, was also paramount as it seeks to produce cheaper versions of its cars."During the switchover, we also prepared our factories for the launch of new models later this year," the report's fine print read. "Given economic uncertainty resulting from changing trade policy, more affordable options are as critical as ever."When discussing that earnings report in an investor call, CFO Vaibhav Taneja said that production of the cheaper model — which may utilize design aspects of Model 3 and Model Y — is "planned for June."As with most of the company's timelines, we're taking that one with several grains of salt — especially because CEO Elon Musk was mocking the idea of a $25,000 Tesla, which he'd been promised for years, less than a year ago.Right now, we don't know any specifics about what will constitute an "affordable" Tesla or when it will hit production lines or dealerships — but that flyover video could be our first glimpse of what's to come.More on Tesla: Tesla Can't Find Legal Places to Store All Its Unsold CybertrucksShare This Article
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  • A fake Facebook event disguised as a math problem has been one of its top posts for 6 months

    A nearly year-old Facebook event for a "simple maths competition" has been one of the most viral posts on the platform for six months. The "event" racked up about 51 million views on Facebook during the first quarter of 2025, according to the company's latest report on "widely viewed content" on the platform.
    That would be an impressive stat for any single post, but it's the second quarter in a row in which the "maths competition" has nabbed the number two spot on Meta's list of widely viewed content. It also appeared on last quarter's report, during which time it received about 64.3 million views, according to an archived version of the report.
    So why is a random Facebook event that's not really an event getting more than 100 million views? It would seem to be a repackaging of an old engagement bait tactic. The header image for the event is an image of a piece of paper with the words "only for genius" followed by a seemingly simple equation. When shared as a Facebook post, the image is prominently displayed in a way that may look like a normal image post. The image also has some striking similarities to other seemingly simple math equations that have been going viral on Facebook for nearly 15 years.
    A look at the event page itself shows that hundreds of thousands of people have engaged with the event. More than 800,000 people responded to the supposed July 8, 2024 event. Even now, nearly a year later, the event is seeing regular comments from Facebook users — most of whom are intent on earnestly explaining how the equation should be solved. As Slate noted back in 2013, there's something irresistible about arguing basic arithmetic with strangers on the internet.
    What is a bit of a mystery is why this post has gone so viral months after it was originally posted. I reached out to the account behind the post, a Nigerian-based creator named Ebuka Peter Ibeh and didn't immediately hear back. The post seems to be far more successful than any other recent posts from Ibeh, who has about 25,000 Facebook followers.
    In any case, the post offers an interesting window into the kinds of bizarre content and questionable tactics that still regularly goes mega-viral on Facebook. Meta recently said it would crack down on creators sharing spammy posts on Facebook, though it's unclear if this type of engagement bait would fall under the category of content it's explicitly trying to discourage.This article originally appeared on Engadget at
    #fake #facebook #event #disguised #math
    A fake Facebook event disguised as a math problem has been one of its top posts for 6 months
    A nearly year-old Facebook event for a "simple maths competition" has been one of the most viral posts on the platform for six months. The "event" racked up about 51 million views on Facebook during the first quarter of 2025, according to the company's latest report on "widely viewed content" on the platform. That would be an impressive stat for any single post, but it's the second quarter in a row in which the "maths competition" has nabbed the number two spot on Meta's list of widely viewed content. It also appeared on last quarter's report, during which time it received about 64.3 million views, according to an archived version of the report. So why is a random Facebook event that's not really an event getting more than 100 million views? It would seem to be a repackaging of an old engagement bait tactic. The header image for the event is an image of a piece of paper with the words "only for genius" followed by a seemingly simple equation. When shared as a Facebook post, the image is prominently displayed in a way that may look like a normal image post. The image also has some striking similarities to other seemingly simple math equations that have been going viral on Facebook for nearly 15 years. A look at the event page itself shows that hundreds of thousands of people have engaged with the event. More than 800,000 people responded to the supposed July 8, 2024 event. Even now, nearly a year later, the event is seeing regular comments from Facebook users — most of whom are intent on earnestly explaining how the equation should be solved. As Slate noted back in 2013, there's something irresistible about arguing basic arithmetic with strangers on the internet. What is a bit of a mystery is why this post has gone so viral months after it was originally posted. I reached out to the account behind the post, a Nigerian-based creator named Ebuka Peter Ibeh and didn't immediately hear back. The post seems to be far more successful than any other recent posts from Ibeh, who has about 25,000 Facebook followers. In any case, the post offers an interesting window into the kinds of bizarre content and questionable tactics that still regularly goes mega-viral on Facebook. Meta recently said it would crack down on creators sharing spammy posts on Facebook, though it's unclear if this type of engagement bait would fall under the category of content it's explicitly trying to discourage.This article originally appeared on Engadget at #fake #facebook #event #disguised #math
    WWW.ENGADGET.COM
    A fake Facebook event disguised as a math problem has been one of its top posts for 6 months
    A nearly year-old Facebook event for a "simple maths competition" has been one of the most viral posts on the platform for six months. The "event" racked up about 51 million views on Facebook during the first quarter of 2025, according to the company's latest report on "widely viewed content" on the platform. That would be an impressive stat for any single post, but it's the second quarter in a row in which the "maths competition" has nabbed the number two spot on Meta's list of widely viewed content. It also appeared on last quarter's report, during which time it received about 64.3 million views, according to an archived version of the report. So why is a random Facebook event that's not really an event getting more than 100 million views? It would seem to be a repackaging of an old engagement bait tactic. The header image for the event is an image of a piece of paper with the words "only for genius" followed by a seemingly simple equation. When shared as a Facebook post, the image is prominently displayed in a way that may look like a normal image post. The image also has some striking similarities to other seemingly simple math equations that have been going viral on Facebook for nearly 15 years. A look at the event page itself shows that hundreds of thousands of people have engaged with the event. More than 800,000 people responded to the supposed July 8, 2024 event. Even now, nearly a year later, the event is seeing regular comments from Facebook users — most of whom are intent on earnestly explaining how the equation should be solved (or arguing with others' interpretation). As Slate noted back in 2013, there's something irresistible about arguing basic arithmetic with strangers on the internet. What is a bit of a mystery is why this post has gone so viral months after it was originally posted. I reached out to the account behind the post, a Nigerian-based creator named Ebuka Peter Ibeh and didn't immediately hear back. The post seems to be far more successful than any other recent posts from Ibeh, who has about 25,000 Facebook followers. In any case, the post offers an interesting window into the kinds of bizarre content and questionable tactics that still regularly goes mega-viral on Facebook. Meta recently said it would crack down on creators sharing spammy posts on Facebook, though it's unclear if this type of engagement bait would fall under the category of content it's explicitly trying to discourage.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/a-fake-facebook-event-disguised-as-a-math-problem-has-been-one-of-its-top-posts-for-6-months-231852601.html?src=rss
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  • How white-tailed deer came back from the brink of extinction

    Given their abundance in American backyards, gardens and highway corridors these days, it may be surprising to learn that white-tailed deer were nearly extinct about a century ago. While they currently number somewhere in the range of 30 million to 35 million, at the turn of the 20th century, there were as few as 300,000 whitetails across the entire continent: just 1% of the current population.

    This near-disappearance of deer was much discussed at the time. In 1854, Henry David Thoreau had written that no deer had been hunted near Concord, Massachusetts, for a generation. In his famous “Walden,” he reported:

    “One man still preserves the horns of the last deer that was killed in this vicinity, and another has told me the particulars of the hunt in which his uncle was engaged. The hunters were formerly a numerous and merry crew here.”

    But what happened to white-tailed deer? What drove them nearly to extinction, and then what brought them back from the brink?

    As a historical ecologist and environmental archaeologist, I have made it my job to answer these questions. Over the past decade, I’ve studied white-tailed deer bones from archaeological sites across the eastern United States, as well as historical records and ecological data, to help piece together the story of this species.

    Precolonial rise of deer populations

    White-tailed deer have been hunted from the earliest migrations of people into North America, more than 15,000 years ago. The species was far from the most important food resource at that time, though.

    Archaeological evidence suggests that white-tailed deer abundance only began to increase after the extinction of megafauna species like mammoths and mastodons opened up ecological niches for deer to fill. Deer bones become very common in archaeological sites from about 6,000 years ago onward, reflecting the economic and cultural importance of the species for Indigenous peoples.

    Despite being so frequently hunted, deer populations do not seem to have appreciably declined due to Indigenous hunting prior to AD 1600. Unlike elk or sturgeon, whose numbers were reduced by Indigenous hunters and fishers, white-tailed deer seem to have been resilient to human predation. While archaeologists have found some evidence for human-caused declines in certain parts of North America, other cases are more ambiguous, and deer certainly remained abundant throughout the past several millennia.

    Human use of fire could partly explain why white-tailed deer may have been resilient to hunting. Indigenous peoples across North America have long used controlled burning to promote ecosystem health, disturbing old vegetation to promote new growth. Deer love this sort of successional vegetation for food and cover, and thus thrive in previously burned habitats. Indigenous people may have therefore facilitated deer population growth, counteracting any harmful hunting pressure.

    More research is needed, but even though some hunting pressure is evident, the general picture from the precolonial era is that deer seem to have been doing just fine for thousands of years. Ecologists estimate that there were roughly 30 million white-tailed deer in North America on the eve of European colonization—about the same number as today.

    A 16th-century engraving depicts Indigenous Floridians hunting deer while disguised in deerskins.Colonial-era fall of deer numbers

    To better understand how deer populations changed in the colonial era, I recently analyzed deer bones from two archaeological sites in what is now Connecticut. My analysis suggests that hunting pressure on white-tailed deer increased almost as soon as European colonists arrived.

    At one site dated to the 11th to 14th centuriesI found that only about 7% to 10% of the deer killed were juveniles.

    Hunters generally don’t take juvenile deer if they’re frequently encountering adults, since adult deer tend to be larger, offering more meat and bigger hides. Additionally, hunting increases mortality on a deer herd but doesn’t directly affect fertility, so deer populations experiencing hunting pressure end up with juvenile-skewed age structures. For these reasons, this low percentage of juvenile deer prior to European colonization indicates minimal hunting pressure on local herds.

    However, at a nearby site occupied during the 17th century—just after European colonization—between 22% and 31% of the deer hunted were juveniles, suggesting a substantial increase in hunting pressure.

    This elevated hunting pressure likely resulted from the transformation of deer into a commodity for the first time. Venison, antlers and deerskins may have long been exchanged within Indigenous trade networks, but things changed drastically in the 17th century. European colonists integrated North America into a trans-Atlantic mercantile capitalist economic system with no precedent in Indigenous society. This applied new pressures to the continent’s natural resources.

    Deer—particularly their skins—were commodified and sold in markets in the colonies initially and, by the 18th century, in Europe as well. Deer were now being exploited by traders, merchants and manufacturers desiring profit, not simply hunters desiring meat or leather. It was the resulting hunting pressure that drove the species toward its extinction.

    20th-century rebound of white-tailed deer

    Thanks to the rise of the conservation movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, white-tailed deer survived their brush with extinction.

    Concerned citizens and outdoorsmen feared for the fate of deer and other wildlife, and pushed for new legislative protections.

    The Lacey Act of 1900, for example, banned interstate transport of poached game and—in combination with state-level protections—helped end commercial deer hunting by effectively de-commodifying the species. Aided by conservation-oriented hunting practices and reintroductions of deer from surviving populations to areas where they had been extirpated, white-tailed deer rebounded.

    The story of white-tailed deer underscores an important fact: Humans are not inherently damaging to the environment. Hunting from the 17th through 19th centuries threatened the existence of white-tailed deer, but precolonial Indigenous hunting and environmental management appear to have been relatively sustainable, and modern regulatory governance in the 20th century forestalled and reversed their looming extinction.

    Elic Weitzel, Peter Buck Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Smithsonian Institution

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
    #how #whitetaileddeer #came #back #brink
    How white-tailed deer came back from the brink of extinction
    Given their abundance in American backyards, gardens and highway corridors these days, it may be surprising to learn that white-tailed deer were nearly extinct about a century ago. While they currently number somewhere in the range of 30 million to 35 million, at the turn of the 20th century, there were as few as 300,000 whitetails across the entire continent: just 1% of the current population. This near-disappearance of deer was much discussed at the time. In 1854, Henry David Thoreau had written that no deer had been hunted near Concord, Massachusetts, for a generation. In his famous “Walden,” he reported: “One man still preserves the horns of the last deer that was killed in this vicinity, and another has told me the particulars of the hunt in which his uncle was engaged. The hunters were formerly a numerous and merry crew here.” But what happened to white-tailed deer? What drove them nearly to extinction, and then what brought them back from the brink? As a historical ecologist and environmental archaeologist, I have made it my job to answer these questions. Over the past decade, I’ve studied white-tailed deer bones from archaeological sites across the eastern United States, as well as historical records and ecological data, to help piece together the story of this species. Precolonial rise of deer populations White-tailed deer have been hunted from the earliest migrations of people into North America, more than 15,000 years ago. The species was far from the most important food resource at that time, though. Archaeological evidence suggests that white-tailed deer abundance only began to increase after the extinction of megafauna species like mammoths and mastodons opened up ecological niches for deer to fill. Deer bones become very common in archaeological sites from about 6,000 years ago onward, reflecting the economic and cultural importance of the species for Indigenous peoples. Despite being so frequently hunted, deer populations do not seem to have appreciably declined due to Indigenous hunting prior to AD 1600. Unlike elk or sturgeon, whose numbers were reduced by Indigenous hunters and fishers, white-tailed deer seem to have been resilient to human predation. While archaeologists have found some evidence for human-caused declines in certain parts of North America, other cases are more ambiguous, and deer certainly remained abundant throughout the past several millennia. Human use of fire could partly explain why white-tailed deer may have been resilient to hunting. Indigenous peoples across North America have long used controlled burning to promote ecosystem health, disturbing old vegetation to promote new growth. Deer love this sort of successional vegetation for food and cover, and thus thrive in previously burned habitats. Indigenous people may have therefore facilitated deer population growth, counteracting any harmful hunting pressure. More research is needed, but even though some hunting pressure is evident, the general picture from the precolonial era is that deer seem to have been doing just fine for thousands of years. Ecologists estimate that there were roughly 30 million white-tailed deer in North America on the eve of European colonization—about the same number as today. A 16th-century engraving depicts Indigenous Floridians hunting deer while disguised in deerskins.Colonial-era fall of deer numbers To better understand how deer populations changed in the colonial era, I recently analyzed deer bones from two archaeological sites in what is now Connecticut. My analysis suggests that hunting pressure on white-tailed deer increased almost as soon as European colonists arrived. At one site dated to the 11th to 14th centuriesI found that only about 7% to 10% of the deer killed were juveniles. Hunters generally don’t take juvenile deer if they’re frequently encountering adults, since adult deer tend to be larger, offering more meat and bigger hides. Additionally, hunting increases mortality on a deer herd but doesn’t directly affect fertility, so deer populations experiencing hunting pressure end up with juvenile-skewed age structures. For these reasons, this low percentage of juvenile deer prior to European colonization indicates minimal hunting pressure on local herds. However, at a nearby site occupied during the 17th century—just after European colonization—between 22% and 31% of the deer hunted were juveniles, suggesting a substantial increase in hunting pressure. This elevated hunting pressure likely resulted from the transformation of deer into a commodity for the first time. Venison, antlers and deerskins may have long been exchanged within Indigenous trade networks, but things changed drastically in the 17th century. European colonists integrated North America into a trans-Atlantic mercantile capitalist economic system with no precedent in Indigenous society. This applied new pressures to the continent’s natural resources. Deer—particularly their skins—were commodified and sold in markets in the colonies initially and, by the 18th century, in Europe as well. Deer were now being exploited by traders, merchants and manufacturers desiring profit, not simply hunters desiring meat or leather. It was the resulting hunting pressure that drove the species toward its extinction. 20th-century rebound of white-tailed deer Thanks to the rise of the conservation movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, white-tailed deer survived their brush with extinction. Concerned citizens and outdoorsmen feared for the fate of deer and other wildlife, and pushed for new legislative protections. The Lacey Act of 1900, for example, banned interstate transport of poached game and—in combination with state-level protections—helped end commercial deer hunting by effectively de-commodifying the species. Aided by conservation-oriented hunting practices and reintroductions of deer from surviving populations to areas where they had been extirpated, white-tailed deer rebounded. The story of white-tailed deer underscores an important fact: Humans are not inherently damaging to the environment. Hunting from the 17th through 19th centuries threatened the existence of white-tailed deer, but precolonial Indigenous hunting and environmental management appear to have been relatively sustainable, and modern regulatory governance in the 20th century forestalled and reversed their looming extinction. Elic Weitzel, Peter Buck Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Smithsonian Institution This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. #how #whitetaileddeer #came #back #brink
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    How white-tailed deer came back from the brink of extinction
    Given their abundance in American backyards, gardens and highway corridors these days, it may be surprising to learn that white-tailed deer were nearly extinct about a century ago. While they currently number somewhere in the range of 30 million to 35 million, at the turn of the 20th century, there were as few as 300,000 whitetails across the entire continent: just 1% of the current population. This near-disappearance of deer was much discussed at the time. In 1854, Henry David Thoreau had written that no deer had been hunted near Concord, Massachusetts, for a generation. In his famous “Walden,” he reported: “One man still preserves the horns of the last deer that was killed in this vicinity, and another has told me the particulars of the hunt in which his uncle was engaged. The hunters were formerly a numerous and merry crew here.” But what happened to white-tailed deer? What drove them nearly to extinction, and then what brought them back from the brink? As a historical ecologist and environmental archaeologist, I have made it my job to answer these questions. Over the past decade, I’ve studied white-tailed deer bones from archaeological sites across the eastern United States, as well as historical records and ecological data, to help piece together the story of this species. Precolonial rise of deer populations White-tailed deer have been hunted from the earliest migrations of people into North America, more than 15,000 years ago. The species was far from the most important food resource at that time, though. Archaeological evidence suggests that white-tailed deer abundance only began to increase after the extinction of megafauna species like mammoths and mastodons opened up ecological niches for deer to fill. Deer bones become very common in archaeological sites from about 6,000 years ago onward, reflecting the economic and cultural importance of the species for Indigenous peoples. Despite being so frequently hunted, deer populations do not seem to have appreciably declined due to Indigenous hunting prior to AD 1600. Unlike elk or sturgeon, whose numbers were reduced by Indigenous hunters and fishers, white-tailed deer seem to have been resilient to human predation. While archaeologists have found some evidence for human-caused declines in certain parts of North America, other cases are more ambiguous, and deer certainly remained abundant throughout the past several millennia. Human use of fire could partly explain why white-tailed deer may have been resilient to hunting. Indigenous peoples across North America have long used controlled burning to promote ecosystem health, disturbing old vegetation to promote new growth. Deer love this sort of successional vegetation for food and cover, and thus thrive in previously burned habitats. Indigenous people may have therefore facilitated deer population growth, counteracting any harmful hunting pressure. More research is needed, but even though some hunting pressure is evident, the general picture from the precolonial era is that deer seem to have been doing just fine for thousands of years. Ecologists estimate that there were roughly 30 million white-tailed deer in North America on the eve of European colonization—about the same number as today. A 16th-century engraving depicts Indigenous Floridians hunting deer while disguised in deerskins. [Photo: Theodor de Bry/DEA Picture Library/De Agostini/Getty Images] Colonial-era fall of deer numbers To better understand how deer populations changed in the colonial era, I recently analyzed deer bones from two archaeological sites in what is now Connecticut. My analysis suggests that hunting pressure on white-tailed deer increased almost as soon as European colonists arrived. At one site dated to the 11th to 14th centuries (before European colonization) I found that only about 7% to 10% of the deer killed were juveniles. Hunters generally don’t take juvenile deer if they’re frequently encountering adults, since adult deer tend to be larger, offering more meat and bigger hides. Additionally, hunting increases mortality on a deer herd but doesn’t directly affect fertility, so deer populations experiencing hunting pressure end up with juvenile-skewed age structures. For these reasons, this low percentage of juvenile deer prior to European colonization indicates minimal hunting pressure on local herds. However, at a nearby site occupied during the 17th century—just after European colonization—between 22% and 31% of the deer hunted were juveniles, suggesting a substantial increase in hunting pressure. This elevated hunting pressure likely resulted from the transformation of deer into a commodity for the first time. Venison, antlers and deerskins may have long been exchanged within Indigenous trade networks, but things changed drastically in the 17th century. European colonists integrated North America into a trans-Atlantic mercantile capitalist economic system with no precedent in Indigenous society. This applied new pressures to the continent’s natural resources. Deer—particularly their skins—were commodified and sold in markets in the colonies initially and, by the 18th century, in Europe as well. Deer were now being exploited by traders, merchants and manufacturers desiring profit, not simply hunters desiring meat or leather. It was the resulting hunting pressure that drove the species toward its extinction. 20th-century rebound of white-tailed deer Thanks to the rise of the conservation movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, white-tailed deer survived their brush with extinction. Concerned citizens and outdoorsmen feared for the fate of deer and other wildlife, and pushed for new legislative protections. The Lacey Act of 1900, for example, banned interstate transport of poached game and—in combination with state-level protections—helped end commercial deer hunting by effectively de-commodifying the species. Aided by conservation-oriented hunting practices and reintroductions of deer from surviving populations to areas where they had been extirpated, white-tailed deer rebounded. The story of white-tailed deer underscores an important fact: Humans are not inherently damaging to the environment. Hunting from the 17th through 19th centuries threatened the existence of white-tailed deer, but precolonial Indigenous hunting and environmental management appear to have been relatively sustainable, and modern regulatory governance in the 20th century forestalled and reversed their looming extinction. Elic Weitzel, Peter Buck Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Smithsonian Institution This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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  • AMD’s RX 9060 XT 8GB Gamble: Why Gamers Are Furious, and They’re Not Wrong

    Key Takeaways

    AMD’s RX 9060 XT is set to launch on June 5th, 2025 in both 8GB and 16GB versions under the same name, creating confusion and backlash.
    Reviewers and gamers say 8GB of VRAM isn’t enough for modern gaming, especially at 1440p.
    AMD’s decision to showcase only the 16GB model in benchmarks raised concerns about transparency.
    This move mirrors Nvidia’s controversial RTX 4060 Ti rollout, suggesting an industry trend of misleading GPU marketing.

    It all started with a new GPU announcement. The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT is set to launch, and on paper, it looks like a solid move.
    A graphics card with 16GB of VRAM? Not bad. That’s more memory than some RTX 4070 cards. Sounds like AMD might finally be delivering some value again, right? 
    Well, yes and no. 
    Because right alongside that 16GB version, AMD is also releasing an 8GB version for  Same name, same chip, half the memory. And that’s where the internet lost it. 
    Déjà Vu: We’ve Seen This Trick Before
    If this sounds familiar, it’s because Nvidia pulled the same move with the RTX 4060 Ti. 
    They sold both 8GB and 16GB versions with the same branding, but a price difference. The RTX 4060 Ti 8GB launched in May 2023, and the 16GB variant followed in July. 

    Source: Nvidia
    Gamers hated the confusion. Reviewers criticized the 8GB version’s lack of performance, especially in memory-heavy games, and the way Nvidia tried to sweep the difference under the rug. 
    Performance dipped significantly at 1440p, and stuttering was a problem even in some 1080p titles.
    The backlash was swift. Tech media slammed Nvidia for deceptive marketing, and buyers were left second-guessing which version they were getting. 
    We’ve seen this pattern before in Nvidia’s review restrictions around the RTX 5060, where early coverage was shaped by what reviewers were allowed to test – and what they weren’t. 
    It led to a mess of misinformation, bad value perceptions, and a very clear message: don’t confuse your customers. So naturally, AMD did it too. 
    It’s like watching two billion-dollar companies playing a game of ‘Who Can Confuse the Customer More.’ It’s not just about the money. It’s about trust, and AMD just dumped a bunch of it off a cliff. 
    Frank Azor Lights the Fuse on X
    The backlash started when AMD’s Director of Gaming Marketing, Frank Azor, took to X to defend the 8GB card. 

    He said that most gamers don’t need more than 8GB of VRAM and that the cheaper card still serves the mainstream crowd just fine. 
    It’s the same reasoning Nvidia used last year with the RTX 4060 Ti. That didn’t work then, and it isn’t working now. 
    Because when Steve from Hardware Unboxed sees a bad take like that, you know a flamethrower video is coming. And oh boy, did it come. 
    Hardware Unboxed Fires Back
    The backlash against AMD’s 8GB RX 9060 XT took off after a post from Hardware Unboxed on X called out the company’s defense of limited VRAM. 
    In response to AMD’s claim that most gamers don’t need more than 8GB of memory, Hardware Unboxed accused them of misleading buyers and building weaker products just to hit certain price points.

    The criticism gained traction fast. Tech YouTuber Vex picked up the story and added fuel to the fire by showing side-by-side gameplay comparisons. 
    In multiple games, the 8GB RX 9060 XT showed serious performance issues – stuttering, frame drops, and VRAM bottlenecks – while the 16GB version handled the same titles smoothly. 
    And yet, during the GPU’s official reveal, AMD only showed performance data for the 16GB card. There were no benchmarks for the 8GB version – not a single chart. That omission wasn’t lost on anyone.
    If AMD truly believed the 8GB model held up under modern gaming loads, they would have shown it. The silence speaks volumes. 
    Why This Actually Matters
    You might be thinking: ‘So what? Some games still run fine on 8GB. I only play Valorant.’ Sure. But the problem is bigger than that.

    Source: AMD
    Games are getting heavier. Even titles like Cyberpunk 2077, released in 2020, can eat up more than 8GB of VRAM. And with GTA 6on the horizon, do you really think game developers are going to keep optimizing for 8GB cards in 2025?
    That’s not how game development works. Developers target the most common setups, yes. But hardware also shapes software. 
    If everyone’s stuck with 8GB, games will be designed around that limit. That holds back progress for everyone. 
    It’s like trying to make a movie with a flip phone because some people still own one.
    Same Name, Different Game
    Another big issue is how these cards are named and sold. 
    The RX 9060 XT 16GB and RX 9060 XT 8GB are not clearly labeled as different products. They’re just two versions of the same GPU. 
    But that extra memory makes a huge difference. 
    In some games, the 8GB card performs dramatically worse. And yet, unless you know what to look for, you might walk into a store and buy the 8GB version thinking you’re getting the same performance. 
    You’re not. You’re getting a watered-down version with the same name and a silent asterisk.
    This isn’t just AMD’s Problem
    Nvidia started this mess with the 4060 Ti naming confusion. AMD just saw the outrage and decided to walk straight into the same buzzsaw. 
    It’s hard not to feel like both companies are treating consumers like they’re too dumb to notice.
    Spoiler: they noticed.
    And this whole ‘VRAM doesn’t matter’ argument? It’s already been debunked by dozens of reviewers. 
    If you’re spending over on a graphics card in 2025, it needs to last more than a year or two. 8GB cards are already struggling. Buying one now is like buying a smartphone in 2025 with 64GB of storage. Sure, it works. Until it doesn’t.
    Steam Data Doesn’t Help AMD’s Case
    AMD and Nvidia both love to point at the Steam Hardware Survey. They say, ‘See? Most people still play at 1080p.’ And that’s true – for now.

    Source: Nvidia
    But what they leave out is that 1440p gaming is growing fast. More gamers are upgrading their setups because 1440p monitors are getting a lot more affordable. 
    Take the Pixio PXC277 Advanced, for instance – a 27-inch curved 1440p monitor with a 165Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time, all for  A few years ago, a screen like that would’ve cost you double. Now it’s entry-level.
    Gamers are ready to step up their experience. The only thing holding them back is GPU hardware that’s still stuck in 2020. 
    Planned Obsolescence in Disguise
    Here’s the worst part. Companies know full well that 8GB won’t cut it in 2026. 
    But they still sell it, knowing many gamers will only find out when it’s too late – when the stutters kick in, the textures disappear, or the next big title becomes unplayable.
    It’s planned obsolescence disguised as ‘choice.’ And while it’s great to have options at different price points, it should be clear which option is built to last – and which one is built to frustrate. 
    So, Is AMD Actually Screwed? 
    Not right now. In fact, they’re playing the game better than they used to. 
    They’ve learned from past pricing disasters and figured out how to get better launch-day headlines – even if it means faking the MSRP and letting street prices run wild. 
    But this kind of marketing comes at a cost. If AMD keeps making decisions that prioritize short-term wins over long-term trust, they’ll lose the very crowd that once rooted for them. 
    We don’t need two Nvidias. We need AMD to be different – to be better. 
    One Name, Two Very Different Cards
    The RX 9060 XT 16GB might be a good deal. But it’s being overshadowed by the 8GB version’s drama. And the longer AMD keeps playing games with memory and naming, the more it chips away at its hard-earned goodwill. 
    This whole mess could’ve been avoided with one simple move: name the 8GB card something else. Call it the RX 9055. Call it Lite or whatever. Just don’t make it look like the same card when it isn’t. 
    Until then, buyers beware. There’s more going on behind the box art than meets the eye. 

    Anya Zhukova is an in-house tech and crypto writer at Techreport with 10 years of hands-on experience covering cybersecurity, consumer tech, digital privacy, and blockchain. She’s known for turning complex topics into clear, useful advice that regular people can actually understand and use. 
    Her work has been featured in top-tier digital publications including MakeUseOf, Online Tech Tips, Help Desk Geek, Switching to Mac, and Make Tech Easier. Whether she’s writing about the latest privacy tools or reviewing a new laptop, her goal is always the same: help readers feel confident and in control of the tech they use every day.  Anya holds a BA in English Philology and Translation from Tula State Pedagogical University and also studied Mass Media and Journalism at Minnesota State University, Mankato. That mix of language, media, and tech has given her a unique lens to look at how technology shapes our daily lives. 
    Over the years, she’s also taken courses and done research in data privacy, digital security, and ethical writing – skills she uses when tackling sensitive topics like PC hardware, system vulnerabilities, and crypto security.  Anya worked directly with brands like Framework, Insta360, Redmagic, Inmotion, Secretlab, Kodak, and Anker, reviewing their products in real-life scenarios. Her testing process involves real-world use cases – whether it's stress-testing laptops for creative workloads, reviewing the battery performance of mobile gaming phones, or evaluating the long-term ergonomics of furniture designed for hybrid workspaces. 
    In the world of crypto, Anya covers everything from beginner guides to deep dives into hardware wallets, DeFi protocols, and Web3 tools. She helps readers understand how to use multisig wallets, keep their assets safe, and choose the right platforms for their needs.  Her writing often touches on financial freedom and privacy – two things she strongly believes should be in everyone’s hands.
    Outside of writing, Anya contributes to editorial style guides focused on privacy and inclusivity, and she mentors newer tech writers on how to build subject matter expertise and write responsibly.  She sticks to high editorial standards, only recommends products she’s personally tested, and always aims to give readers the full picture.  You can find her on LinkedIn, where she shares more about her work and projects. 
    Key Areas of Expertise: Consumer TechCybersecurity and Digital Privacy PC/PC Hardware Blockchain, Crypto Wallets, and DeFi In-Depth Product Reviews and Buying Guides Whether she’s reviewing a new wallet or benchmarking a PC build, Anya brings curiosity, care, and a strong sense of responsibility to everything she writes. Her mission? To make the digital world a little easier – and safer – for everyone. 

    View all articles by Anya Zhukova

    Our editorial process

    The Tech Report editorial policy is centered on providing helpful, accurate content that offers real value to our readers. We only work with experienced writers who have specific knowledge in the topics they cover, including latest developments in technology, online privacy, cryptocurrencies, software, and more. Our editorial policy ensures that each topic is researched and curated by our in-house editors. We maintain rigorous journalistic standards, and every article is 100% written by real authors.
    #amds #8gb #gamble #why #gamers
    AMD’s RX 9060 XT 8GB Gamble: Why Gamers Are Furious, and They’re Not Wrong
    Key Takeaways AMD’s RX 9060 XT is set to launch on June 5th, 2025 in both 8GB and 16GB versions under the same name, creating confusion and backlash. Reviewers and gamers say 8GB of VRAM isn’t enough for modern gaming, especially at 1440p. AMD’s decision to showcase only the 16GB model in benchmarks raised concerns about transparency. This move mirrors Nvidia’s controversial RTX 4060 Ti rollout, suggesting an industry trend of misleading GPU marketing. It all started with a new GPU announcement. The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT is set to launch, and on paper, it looks like a solid move. A graphics card with 16GB of VRAM? Not bad. That’s more memory than some RTX 4070 cards. Sounds like AMD might finally be delivering some value again, right?  Well, yes and no.  Because right alongside that 16GB version, AMD is also releasing an 8GB version for  Same name, same chip, half the memory. And that’s where the internet lost it.  Déjà Vu: We’ve Seen This Trick Before If this sounds familiar, it’s because Nvidia pulled the same move with the RTX 4060 Ti.  They sold both 8GB and 16GB versions with the same branding, but a price difference. The RTX 4060 Ti 8GB launched in May 2023, and the 16GB variant followed in July.  Source: Nvidia Gamers hated the confusion. Reviewers criticized the 8GB version’s lack of performance, especially in memory-heavy games, and the way Nvidia tried to sweep the difference under the rug.  Performance dipped significantly at 1440p, and stuttering was a problem even in some 1080p titles. The backlash was swift. Tech media slammed Nvidia for deceptive marketing, and buyers were left second-guessing which version they were getting.  We’ve seen this pattern before in Nvidia’s review restrictions around the RTX 5060, where early coverage was shaped by what reviewers were allowed to test – and what they weren’t.  It led to a mess of misinformation, bad value perceptions, and a very clear message: don’t confuse your customers. So naturally, AMD did it too.  It’s like watching two billion-dollar companies playing a game of ‘Who Can Confuse the Customer More.’ It’s not just about the money. It’s about trust, and AMD just dumped a bunch of it off a cliff.  Frank Azor Lights the Fuse on X The backlash started when AMD’s Director of Gaming Marketing, Frank Azor, took to X to defend the 8GB card.  He said that most gamers don’t need more than 8GB of VRAM and that the cheaper card still serves the mainstream crowd just fine.  It’s the same reasoning Nvidia used last year with the RTX 4060 Ti. That didn’t work then, and it isn’t working now.  Because when Steve from Hardware Unboxed sees a bad take like that, you know a flamethrower video is coming. And oh boy, did it come.  Hardware Unboxed Fires Back The backlash against AMD’s 8GB RX 9060 XT took off after a post from Hardware Unboxed on X called out the company’s defense of limited VRAM.  In response to AMD’s claim that most gamers don’t need more than 8GB of memory, Hardware Unboxed accused them of misleading buyers and building weaker products just to hit certain price points. The criticism gained traction fast. Tech YouTuber Vex picked up the story and added fuel to the fire by showing side-by-side gameplay comparisons.  In multiple games, the 8GB RX 9060 XT showed serious performance issues – stuttering, frame drops, and VRAM bottlenecks – while the 16GB version handled the same titles smoothly.  And yet, during the GPU’s official reveal, AMD only showed performance data for the 16GB card. There were no benchmarks for the 8GB version – not a single chart. That omission wasn’t lost on anyone. If AMD truly believed the 8GB model held up under modern gaming loads, they would have shown it. The silence speaks volumes.  Why This Actually Matters You might be thinking: ‘So what? Some games still run fine on 8GB. I only play Valorant.’ Sure. But the problem is bigger than that. Source: AMD Games are getting heavier. Even titles like Cyberpunk 2077, released in 2020, can eat up more than 8GB of VRAM. And with GTA 6on the horizon, do you really think game developers are going to keep optimizing for 8GB cards in 2025? That’s not how game development works. Developers target the most common setups, yes. But hardware also shapes software.  If everyone’s stuck with 8GB, games will be designed around that limit. That holds back progress for everyone.  It’s like trying to make a movie with a flip phone because some people still own one. Same Name, Different Game Another big issue is how these cards are named and sold.  The RX 9060 XT 16GB and RX 9060 XT 8GB are not clearly labeled as different products. They’re just two versions of the same GPU.  But that extra memory makes a huge difference.  In some games, the 8GB card performs dramatically worse. And yet, unless you know what to look for, you might walk into a store and buy the 8GB version thinking you’re getting the same performance.  You’re not. You’re getting a watered-down version with the same name and a silent asterisk. This isn’t just AMD’s Problem Nvidia started this mess with the 4060 Ti naming confusion. AMD just saw the outrage and decided to walk straight into the same buzzsaw.  It’s hard not to feel like both companies are treating consumers like they’re too dumb to notice. Spoiler: they noticed. And this whole ‘VRAM doesn’t matter’ argument? It’s already been debunked by dozens of reviewers.  If you’re spending over on a graphics card in 2025, it needs to last more than a year or two. 8GB cards are already struggling. Buying one now is like buying a smartphone in 2025 with 64GB of storage. Sure, it works. Until it doesn’t. Steam Data Doesn’t Help AMD’s Case AMD and Nvidia both love to point at the Steam Hardware Survey. They say, ‘See? Most people still play at 1080p.’ And that’s true – for now. Source: Nvidia But what they leave out is that 1440p gaming is growing fast. More gamers are upgrading their setups because 1440p monitors are getting a lot more affordable.  Take the Pixio PXC277 Advanced, for instance – a 27-inch curved 1440p monitor with a 165Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time, all for  A few years ago, a screen like that would’ve cost you double. Now it’s entry-level. Gamers are ready to step up their experience. The only thing holding them back is GPU hardware that’s still stuck in 2020.  Planned Obsolescence in Disguise Here’s the worst part. Companies know full well that 8GB won’t cut it in 2026.  But they still sell it, knowing many gamers will only find out when it’s too late – when the stutters kick in, the textures disappear, or the next big title becomes unplayable. It’s planned obsolescence disguised as ‘choice.’ And while it’s great to have options at different price points, it should be clear which option is built to last – and which one is built to frustrate.  So, Is AMD Actually Screwed?  Not right now. In fact, they’re playing the game better than they used to.  They’ve learned from past pricing disasters and figured out how to get better launch-day headlines – even if it means faking the MSRP and letting street prices run wild.  But this kind of marketing comes at a cost. If AMD keeps making decisions that prioritize short-term wins over long-term trust, they’ll lose the very crowd that once rooted for them.  We don’t need two Nvidias. We need AMD to be different – to be better.  One Name, Two Very Different Cards The RX 9060 XT 16GB might be a good deal. But it’s being overshadowed by the 8GB version’s drama. And the longer AMD keeps playing games with memory and naming, the more it chips away at its hard-earned goodwill.  This whole mess could’ve been avoided with one simple move: name the 8GB card something else. Call it the RX 9055. Call it Lite or whatever. Just don’t make it look like the same card when it isn’t.  Until then, buyers beware. There’s more going on behind the box art than meets the eye.  Anya Zhukova is an in-house tech and crypto writer at Techreport with 10 years of hands-on experience covering cybersecurity, consumer tech, digital privacy, and blockchain. She’s known for turning complex topics into clear, useful advice that regular people can actually understand and use.  Her work has been featured in top-tier digital publications including MakeUseOf, Online Tech Tips, Help Desk Geek, Switching to Mac, and Make Tech Easier. Whether she’s writing about the latest privacy tools or reviewing a new laptop, her goal is always the same: help readers feel confident and in control of the tech they use every day.  Anya holds a BA in English Philology and Translation from Tula State Pedagogical University and also studied Mass Media and Journalism at Minnesota State University, Mankato. That mix of language, media, and tech has given her a unique lens to look at how technology shapes our daily lives.  Over the years, she’s also taken courses and done research in data privacy, digital security, and ethical writing – skills she uses when tackling sensitive topics like PC hardware, system vulnerabilities, and crypto security.  Anya worked directly with brands like Framework, Insta360, Redmagic, Inmotion, Secretlab, Kodak, and Anker, reviewing their products in real-life scenarios. Her testing process involves real-world use cases – whether it's stress-testing laptops for creative workloads, reviewing the battery performance of mobile gaming phones, or evaluating the long-term ergonomics of furniture designed for hybrid workspaces.  In the world of crypto, Anya covers everything from beginner guides to deep dives into hardware wallets, DeFi protocols, and Web3 tools. She helps readers understand how to use multisig wallets, keep their assets safe, and choose the right platforms for their needs.  Her writing often touches on financial freedom and privacy – two things she strongly believes should be in everyone’s hands. Outside of writing, Anya contributes to editorial style guides focused on privacy and inclusivity, and she mentors newer tech writers on how to build subject matter expertise and write responsibly.  She sticks to high editorial standards, only recommends products she’s personally tested, and always aims to give readers the full picture.  You can find her on LinkedIn, where she shares more about her work and projects.  Key Areas of Expertise: Consumer TechCybersecurity and Digital Privacy PC/PC Hardware Blockchain, Crypto Wallets, and DeFi In-Depth Product Reviews and Buying Guides Whether she’s reviewing a new wallet or benchmarking a PC build, Anya brings curiosity, care, and a strong sense of responsibility to everything she writes. Her mission? To make the digital world a little easier – and safer – for everyone.  View all articles by Anya Zhukova Our editorial process The Tech Report editorial policy is centered on providing helpful, accurate content that offers real value to our readers. We only work with experienced writers who have specific knowledge in the topics they cover, including latest developments in technology, online privacy, cryptocurrencies, software, and more. Our editorial policy ensures that each topic is researched and curated by our in-house editors. We maintain rigorous journalistic standards, and every article is 100% written by real authors. #amds #8gb #gamble #why #gamers
    TECHREPORT.COM
    AMD’s RX 9060 XT 8GB Gamble: Why Gamers Are Furious, and They’re Not Wrong
    Key Takeaways AMD’s RX 9060 XT is set to launch on June 5th, 2025 in both 8GB and 16GB versions under the same name, creating confusion and backlash. Reviewers and gamers say 8GB of VRAM isn’t enough for modern gaming, especially at 1440p. AMD’s decision to showcase only the 16GB model in benchmarks raised concerns about transparency. This move mirrors Nvidia’s controversial RTX 4060 Ti rollout, suggesting an industry trend of misleading GPU marketing. It all started with a new GPU announcement. The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT is set to launch, and on paper, it looks like a solid move. A $349 graphics card with 16GB of VRAM? Not bad. That’s more memory than some RTX 4070 cards. Sounds like AMD might finally be delivering some value again, right?  Well, yes and no.  Because right alongside that 16GB version, AMD is also releasing an 8GB version for $299. Same name, same chip, half the memory. And that’s where the internet lost it.  Déjà Vu: We’ve Seen This Trick Before If this sounds familiar, it’s because Nvidia pulled the same move with the RTX 4060 Ti.  They sold both 8GB and 16GB versions with the same branding, but a $100 price difference. The RTX 4060 Ti 8GB launched in May 2023, and the 16GB variant followed in July.  Source: Nvidia Gamers hated the confusion. Reviewers criticized the 8GB version’s lack of performance, especially in memory-heavy games, and the way Nvidia tried to sweep the difference under the rug.  Performance dipped significantly at 1440p, and stuttering was a problem even in some 1080p titles. The backlash was swift. Tech media slammed Nvidia for deceptive marketing, and buyers were left second-guessing which version they were getting.  We’ve seen this pattern before in Nvidia’s review restrictions around the RTX 5060, where early coverage was shaped by what reviewers were allowed to test – and what they weren’t.  It led to a mess of misinformation, bad value perceptions, and a very clear message: don’t confuse your customers. So naturally, AMD did it too.  It’s like watching two billion-dollar companies playing a game of ‘Who Can Confuse the Customer More.’ It’s not just about the money. It’s about trust, and AMD just dumped a bunch of it off a cliff.  Frank Azor Lights the Fuse on X The backlash started when AMD’s Director of Gaming Marketing, Frank Azor, took to X to defend the 8GB card.  He said that most gamers don’t need more than 8GB of VRAM and that the cheaper card still serves the mainstream crowd just fine.  It’s the same reasoning Nvidia used last year with the RTX 4060 Ti. That didn’t work then, and it isn’t working now.  Because when Steve from Hardware Unboxed sees a bad take like that, you know a flamethrower video is coming. And oh boy, did it come.  Hardware Unboxed Fires Back The backlash against AMD’s 8GB RX 9060 XT took off after a post from Hardware Unboxed on X called out the company’s defense of limited VRAM.  In response to AMD’s claim that most gamers don’t need more than 8GB of memory, Hardware Unboxed accused them of misleading buyers and building weaker products just to hit certain price points. The criticism gained traction fast. Tech YouTuber Vex picked up the story and added fuel to the fire by showing side-by-side gameplay comparisons.  In multiple games, the 8GB RX 9060 XT showed serious performance issues – stuttering, frame drops, and VRAM bottlenecks – while the 16GB version handled the same titles smoothly.  And yet, during the GPU’s official reveal, AMD only showed performance data for the 16GB card. There were no benchmarks for the 8GB version – not a single chart. That omission wasn’t lost on anyone. If AMD truly believed the 8GB model held up under modern gaming loads, they would have shown it. The silence speaks volumes.  Why This Actually Matters You might be thinking: ‘So what? Some games still run fine on 8GB. I only play Valorant.’ Sure. But the problem is bigger than that. Source: AMD Games are getting heavier. Even titles like Cyberpunk 2077, released in 2020, can eat up more than 8GB of VRAM. And with GTA 6 (still) on the horizon, do you really think game developers are going to keep optimizing for 8GB cards in 2025? That’s not how game development works. Developers target the most common setups, yes. But hardware also shapes software.  If everyone’s stuck with 8GB, games will be designed around that limit. That holds back progress for everyone.  It’s like trying to make a movie with a flip phone because some people still own one. Same Name, Different Game Another big issue is how these cards are named and sold.  The RX 9060 XT 16GB and RX 9060 XT 8GB are not clearly labeled as different products. They’re just two versions of the same GPU.  But that extra memory makes a huge difference.  In some games, the 8GB card performs dramatically worse. And yet, unless you know what to look for, you might walk into a store and buy the 8GB version thinking you’re getting the same performance.  You’re not. You’re getting a watered-down version with the same name and a silent asterisk. This isn’t just AMD’s Problem Nvidia started this mess with the 4060 Ti naming confusion. AMD just saw the outrage and decided to walk straight into the same buzzsaw.  It’s hard not to feel like both companies are treating consumers like they’re too dumb to notice. Spoiler: they noticed. And this whole ‘VRAM doesn’t matter’ argument? It’s already been debunked by dozens of reviewers.  If you’re spending over $300 on a graphics card in 2025, it needs to last more than a year or two. 8GB cards are already struggling. Buying one now is like buying a smartphone in 2025 with 64GB of storage. Sure, it works. Until it doesn’t. Steam Data Doesn’t Help AMD’s Case AMD and Nvidia both love to point at the Steam Hardware Survey. They say, ‘See? Most people still play at 1080p.’ And that’s true – for now. Source: Nvidia But what they leave out is that 1440p gaming is growing fast. More gamers are upgrading their setups because 1440p monitors are getting a lot more affordable.  Take the Pixio PXC277 Advanced, for instance – a 27-inch curved 1440p monitor with a 165Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time, all for $219.99. A few years ago, a screen like that would’ve cost you double. Now it’s entry-level. Gamers are ready to step up their experience. The only thing holding them back is GPU hardware that’s still stuck in 2020.  Planned Obsolescence in Disguise Here’s the worst part. Companies know full well that 8GB won’t cut it in 2026.  But they still sell it, knowing many gamers will only find out when it’s too late – when the stutters kick in, the textures disappear, or the next big title becomes unplayable. It’s planned obsolescence disguised as ‘choice.’ And while it’s great to have options at different price points, it should be clear which option is built to last – and which one is built to frustrate.  So, Is AMD Actually Screwed?  Not right now. In fact, they’re playing the game better than they used to.  They’ve learned from past pricing disasters and figured out how to get better launch-day headlines – even if it means faking the MSRP and letting street prices run wild.  But this kind of marketing comes at a cost. If AMD keeps making decisions that prioritize short-term wins over long-term trust, they’ll lose the very crowd that once rooted for them.  We don’t need two Nvidias. We need AMD to be different – to be better.  One Name, Two Very Different Cards The RX 9060 XT 16GB might be a good deal. But it’s being overshadowed by the 8GB version’s drama. And the longer AMD keeps playing games with memory and naming, the more it chips away at its hard-earned goodwill.  This whole mess could’ve been avoided with one simple move: name the 8GB card something else. Call it the RX 9055. Call it Lite or whatever. Just don’t make it look like the same card when it isn’t.  Until then, buyers beware. There’s more going on behind the box art than meets the eye.  Anya Zhukova is an in-house tech and crypto writer at Techreport with 10 years of hands-on experience covering cybersecurity, consumer tech, digital privacy, and blockchain. She’s known for turning complex topics into clear, useful advice that regular people can actually understand and use.  Her work has been featured in top-tier digital publications including MakeUseOf, Online Tech Tips, Help Desk Geek, Switching to Mac, and Make Tech Easier. Whether she’s writing about the latest privacy tools or reviewing a new laptop, her goal is always the same: help readers feel confident and in control of the tech they use every day.  Anya holds a BA in English Philology and Translation from Tula State Pedagogical University and also studied Mass Media and Journalism at Minnesota State University, Mankato. That mix of language, media, and tech has given her a unique lens to look at how technology shapes our daily lives.  Over the years, she’s also taken courses and done research in data privacy, digital security, and ethical writing – skills she uses when tackling sensitive topics like PC hardware, system vulnerabilities, and crypto security.  Anya worked directly with brands like Framework, Insta360, Redmagic, Inmotion, Secretlab, Kodak, and Anker, reviewing their products in real-life scenarios. Her testing process involves real-world use cases – whether it's stress-testing laptops for creative workloads, reviewing the battery performance of mobile gaming phones, or evaluating the long-term ergonomics of furniture designed for hybrid workspaces.  In the world of crypto, Anya covers everything from beginner guides to deep dives into hardware wallets, DeFi protocols, and Web3 tools. She helps readers understand how to use multisig wallets, keep their assets safe, and choose the right platforms for their needs.  Her writing often touches on financial freedom and privacy – two things she strongly believes should be in everyone’s hands. Outside of writing, Anya contributes to editorial style guides focused on privacy and inclusivity, and she mentors newer tech writers on how to build subject matter expertise and write responsibly.  She sticks to high editorial standards, only recommends products she’s personally tested, and always aims to give readers the full picture.  You can find her on LinkedIn, where she shares more about her work and projects.  Key Areas of Expertise: Consumer Tech (laptops, phones, wearables, etc.) Cybersecurity and Digital Privacy PC/PC Hardware Blockchain, Crypto Wallets, and DeFi In-Depth Product Reviews and Buying Guides Whether she’s reviewing a new wallet or benchmarking a PC build, Anya brings curiosity, care, and a strong sense of responsibility to everything she writes. Her mission? To make the digital world a little easier – and safer – for everyone.  View all articles by Anya Zhukova Our editorial process The Tech Report editorial policy is centered on providing helpful, accurate content that offers real value to our readers. We only work with experienced writers who have specific knowledge in the topics they cover, including latest developments in technology, online privacy, cryptocurrencies, software, and more. Our editorial policy ensures that each topic is researched and curated by our in-house editors. We maintain rigorous journalistic standards, and every article is 100% written by real authors.
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