Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the moving-forward department: Anthropic launched Claude Opus 4 and Claude Sonnet 4 today, positioning Opus 4 as the world's leading coding model with 72.5% performance on SWE-bench and 43.2% on Terminal-bench. Both models feature hybrid architecture supporting near-instant responses and extended thinking modes for complex reasoning tasks.

The models introduce parallel tool execution and memory capabilities that allow Claude to extract and save key facts when given local file access. Claude Code, previously in research preview, is now generally available with new VS Code and JetBrains integrations that display edits directly in developers' files. GitHub integration enables Claude to respond to pull request feedback and fix CI errors through a new beta SDK.

Pricing remains consistent with previous generations at $15/$75 per million tokens for Opus 4 and $3/$15 for Sonnet 4. Both models are available through Claude's web interface, the Anthropic API, Amazon Bedrock, and Google Cloud's Vertex AI. Extended thinking capabilities are included in Pro, Max, Team, and Enterprise plans, with Sonnet 4 also available to free users.

The startup, which counts Amazon and Google among its investors, said Claude Opus 4 could autonomously work for nearly a full corporate workday -- seven hours. CNBC adds: "I do a lot of writing with Claude, and I think prior to Opus 4 and Sonnet 4, I was mostly using the models as a thinking partner, but still doing most of the writing myself," Mike Krieger, Anthropic's chief product officer, said in an interview. "And they've crossed this threshold where now most of my writing is actually ... Opus mostly, and it now is unrecognizable from my writing."

< This article continues on their website >
Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the end-of-an-era department: An anonymous reader writes: The US Treasury is phasing out production of the penny and will stop putting new one-cent coins into circulation. The US Treasury has made its final order of penny blanks this month, and the mint will continue to manufacture pennies as long as its supply of penny blanks exist.

President Donald Trump stated that production of pennies are wasteful, as the coins cost more to produce than their one-cent value.
Posted by Kenneth Shepard from Kotaku
You might not know it based on my scathing recaps of The Last of Us’ second season, but I love this series. I love the moral conundrums it presents, the violent grief it depicts, and the games’ excellent writing that poignantly brings all of those complicated emotions to the surface. What I don’t like is listening to…

< This article continues on their website >
Posted by Zack Zwiezen from Kotaku
Marvel Rivals’ next big seasonal update is nearly here, and with it, some major balance changes are coming as well as a new map. And for fans of evil robots, the upcoming 2.5 season will add Ultron to the free-to-play shooter’s ever-growing roster.

< This article continues on their website >
Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the when-in-Moscow department: The Russian government has introduced a new law that makes installing a tracking app mandatory for all foreign nationals in the Moscow region. From a report: The new proposal was announced by the chairman of the State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin, who presented it as a measure to tackle migrant crimes. "The adopted mechanism will allow, using modern technologies, to strengthen control in the field of migration and will also contribute to reducing the number of violations and crimes in this area," stated Volodin.

Using a mobile application that all foreigners will have to install on their smartphones, the Russian state will receive the following information: Residence location, fingerprint, face photograph, real-time geo-location monitoring.
Posted by Ethan Gach from Kotaku
RPG fans love their Collector’s Editions, but few guessed just how big or good Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 would turn out to be, including its own developers. The result was that a very limited set of physical releases, including Collector’s Editions exclusive to certain retailers, immediately vanished from store…

< This article continues on their website >
Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the how-about-that department: Verizon is officially asking for a waiver of the FCC's phone unlocking requirements. From a report: "Given the substantial and growing harms to consumers, competition and Verizon from this obligation -- and the lack of offsetting benefits -- the commission should waive this rule," the operator wrote.

Verizon faces phone unlocking requirements stemming from its acquisition of 700MHz spectrum in 2008, and also from conditions the FCC placed on the operator's acquisition of prepaid provider TracFone in 2021. The requirements mean that when a customer buys a phone from Verizon it's locked to Verizon's network for 60 days, so that they can only use it with a Verizon SIM card. After 60 days, Verizon automatically unlocks the phone, allowing that customer to use their phone on another carrier's network.
Posted by Black Convoy from TFW2005


Overlord, specialized in premium and rugged retro brand caps, have teamed with Transformers to offer some new G1 Transformers Caps.  These are four trucker caps featuring Evergreen art of Optimus Prime, Bunblebee, Megatron and Starscream. They are already available to order for $32.00 each via Overlord website. See the images after the break and then share your thoughts on the 2005 Boards!

The post Overlord x Transformers Collaboration: G1 Transformers Caps appeared first on Transformer World 2005 - TFW2005.COM.
Posted by Kenneth Shepard from Kotaku
Way back in 2019, Blizzard confirmed that Soldier: 76, Overwatch’s grumpy grandpa, is a member of the queer community. The titular organization’s ex-commander, whose real name is Jack Morrison, is gay and was involved with a man named Vincent many years before the events of the game. This was revealed in a short story…

< This article continues on their website >
Posted by Samuel Moreno from Kotaku
The general gameplay loop of Monster Hunter Wilds is using cool weapons to fight strong monsters—and then using their parts to make even cooler weapons to fight even stronger monsters. That cycle likely doesn’t have many hitches until you have to wrestle with Zoh Shia. While their debut hunt can be a strong wall, the…

< This article continues on their website >
Posted by George Yang from Kotaku
In Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, you’ll come across quests where you can help out the expedition’s enemies, Nevrons. While most Nevrons are hostile, there are a few that’ll ask for help. One early Nevron quest takes place in the Flying Waters dungeon with a fellow named Demineur.

< This article continues on their website >
Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the flywheel-effect department: Google's expansion of Gemini's data access through "personal context" represents a fundamental shift in how AI assistants operate. Unlike competitors that start from scratch with each new user, Gemini can immediately tap into years of accumulated user data across Google's ecosystem. The Verge adds: Google first started letting users opt in to its "Gemini with personalization" feature earlier this year, which lets the AI model tap into your search history "to provide responses that are uniquely insightful and directly address your needs." But now, Google is taking things a step further by unlocking access to even more of your information -- all in the name of providing you with more personalized, AI-generated responses.

During Google I/O on Tuesday, Google introduced something called "personal context," which will allow Gemini models to pull relevant information from across Google's apps, as long as it has your permission. One way Google is doing this is through Gmail's personalized smart replies -- the AI-generated messages that you can use to quickly reply to emails.

To make these AI responses sound "authentically like you," Gemini will pore over your previous emails and even your Google Drive files to craft a reply tailored to your conversation. The response will even incorporate your tone, the greeting you use the most, and even "favorite word choices," according to Google.
Posted by Ethan Gach from Kotaku
GeoGuessr will not be one of the games participating in Saudi Arabia’s Esports World Cup this year, after criticisms of sportswashing and the country’s poor human rights record. The competitive guessing game that’s popular on Twitch had previously agreed to be part of the event alongside Riot, Blizzard, and other game…

< This article continues on their website >
Posted by Brian Barnett from Kotaku
Bucky, AKA: The Winter Soldier, is one of the most powerful characters in Marvel Rivals, and he gets more powerful the better you play. If you believe in yourself and want to see how far skill can take you, Bucky is an incredible choice. He fits in virtually every team composition and has an incredibly well-rounded…

< This article continues on their website >
Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the fighting-back department: BrianFagioli writes: Signal has officially had enough, folks. You see, the privacy-first messaging app is going on the offensive, declaring war on Microsoft's invasive Recall feature by enabling a new "Screen security" setting by default on Windows 11. This move is designed to block Microsoft's AI-powered screenshot tool from capturing your private chats.

If you aren't aware, Recall was first unveiled a year ago as part of Microsoft's Copilot+ PC push. The feature quietly took screenshots of everything happening on your computer, every few seconds, storing them in a searchable timeline. Microsoft claimed it would help users "remember" what they've done. Critics called it creepy. Security experts called it dangerous. The backlash was so fierce that Microsoft pulled the feature before launch.

But now, in a move nobody asked for, Recall is sadly back. And thankfully, Signal isn't waiting around this time. The team has activated a Windows 11-specific DRM flag that completely blacks out Signal's chat window when a screenshot is attempted. If you've ever tried to screen grab a streaming movie, you'll know the result: nothing but black.
Posted by msmash from Slashdot
From the how-about-that department: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told employees Wednesday the company plans to ship 100 million AI "companion" devices as part of what he called "the chance to do the biggest thing we've ever done as a company here," according to WSJ.

Speaking at an internal meeting, Altman said the $6.5 billion acquisition of former Apple designer Jony Ive's startup has the potential to add $1 trillion in value to OpenAI. The pocket-sized, screen-free devices will be contextually aware of users' surroundings and designed to help wean people from traditional screens.

Altman said the device will not be a phone or glasses, but rather a third core device that would sit on a desk alongside a MacBook Pro and iPhone. The company aims to ship the devices "faster than any company has ever shipped 100 million of something new before," with a target release of late next year.
Posted by George Yang from Kotaku
Developer Mercury Steam is perhaps best known for 2010’s Castlevania: Lords of Shadow and, more recently, Metroid Dread. The studio’s newest game, Blades of Fire, is a tough action-adventure RPG with Soulslike elements and a surprisingly in-depth weapon-forging mini-game.

< This article continues on their website >
Posted by BeauHD from Slashdot
From the terminal-decline department: An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: "Do not use semicolons," wrote Kurt Vonnegut, who averaged fewer than 30 a novel (about one every 10 pages). "All they do is show you've been to college." A study suggests UK authors are taking Vonnegut's advice to heart; the semicolon seems to be in terminal decline, with its usage in English books plummeting by almost half in two decades -- from one appearing in every 205 words in 2000 to one use in every 390 words today. Further research by Lisa McLendon, author of The Perfect English Grammar Workbook, found 67% of British students never or rarely use the semicolon. Just 11% of respondents described themselves as frequent users.

Linguistic experts at the language learning software Babbel, which commissioned the original research, were so struck by their findings that they asked McLendon to give the 500,000-strong London Student Network a 10-question multiple-choice quiz on the semicolon. She found more than half of respondents did not know or understand how to use it. As defined by the Oxford Dictionary of English, the semicolon is "a punctuation mark indicating a pause, typically between two main clauses, that is more pronounced than that indicated by a comma." It is commonly used to link together two independent but related clauses, and is particularly useful for juxtaposition or replacing confusing extra commas in lists where commas already exist -- or where a comma would create a splice. The Guardian has a semicolon quiz at the end of the article where you can test your semicolon knowledge.
Posted by Joe Moore from The Toyark


Two new figures from the Dragon Ball Legends mobile game have gone up for pre-order from Tamashii Nations. Includes are S.H. Figuarts Giblet and Shallot. The figures are available via Premium Bandai US, and are scheduled for release in January ...

The post Dragon Ball Legends – S.H. Figuarts Giblet and Shallot appeared first on The Toyark - News.
Posted by Keith Nelson Jr from Kotaku
We all know there is no Mission: Impossible without Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) ultimately saving the world from a nuclear disaster, a bombing, or anything some nutcase came up with that day. He is the central figure with which an entire universe revolves around. But, it would be a shame if you watched years of Mission:…

< This article continues on their website >
© Z-R0E