Сформирован выпуск основной ветки nginx 1.31.3, в рамках которой продолжается развитие новых возможностей, а также выпуск параллельно поддерживаемой стабильной ветки nginx 1.30.4, в которую вносятся только изменения, связанные с устранением серьёзных ошибок и уязвимостей. В обновлениях устранено 3 уязвимости.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65910

The FCC plans to vote on repealing local TV ownership limits, including the 39% national audience cap that currently restricts how much of the U.S. market a single broadcast group can reach. Engadget reports: On August 6, commissioners will hold a ballot to repeal Section 303 of the Communications Act, and with it the 39 percent rule. In essence, the rule limits the reach of a local TV network to no more than 39 percent of the U.S.' total audience market. In its place, the FCC would move to a system whereby it would personally approve or reject TV ownership deals on a case-by-case basis.

It's not clear if the FCC even has the authority to reject Section 303 without the explicit consent of the legislature. As Lawrence J. Spiwak wrote in the Yale Journal on Regulation back in January, Section 10 of the Communications Act expressly forbids the FCC from bending the rules around Section 303. "Americans no longer trust the legacy national media to report the news fairly or accurately," wrote FCC Chairman Brendan Carr in an op-ed published on Breitbart. "In fact, only eight percent of Americans have a great deal of trust in mass media. That figure is even lower among Republicans -- sitting at a mere three percent."

"... Many local broadcast TV stations are getting hollowed out as a result and turning into little more than mouthpieces for programming produced in New York and Hollywood," he alleged. "That is not what Congress or the FCC intended."

[ Read more of this story ]( https://entertainment.slashdot.org/story/26/07/15/1953229/fcc-plans-to-repeal-39-tv-ownership-cap?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Big changes are coming to Android apps, but they're not the changes Google wanted. The settlement between Google and Epic that aimed to put to rest the companies' long-running antitrust battle is being withdrawn, and that means third-party app stores are coming to the Play Store. Google has confirmed that it will begin distributing rival app stores next week, setting the stage for competing platforms to take a bite out of Google's Android revenue stream. [...] Google and Epic were set to return to court on July 16 to argue in favor of the settlement. However, the writing may have been on the wall. In a recent expert analysis provided to the court, MIT economics professor Nancy Rose noted that the settlement was "unlikely to enable Google Play's potential competitors to overcome their long-standing network-effect disadvantage in a timely manner."

With settlement approval looking increasingly unlikely, Epic and Google agreed this week to call the whole thing off. Here's how Google Trust and Reputation Communications Lead Dan Jackson explains the company's decision: "We've agreed with Epic to withdraw our motion to modify the US Court's injunction rather than prolonging this process which creates uncertainty for the ecosystem. This allows us to focus on executing our recently announced global business model evolution to deliver greater app store choice, lower prices, and more opportunities for developers and users. We remain committed to maintaining Android's industry-leading security and fostering a competitive ecosystem where every app store and developer has the freedom to compete. In parallel, we continue to comply with the US Court's injunction."

In a brief filing (PDF), Google's legal team informs the court that Google is prepared to begin distributing third-party app stores in Google Play on July 22. Under the terms of Judge Donato's original injunction, these stores will have access to the full catalog of Google Play apps by default. Developers will have the option to opt out of distribution in these stores, and Google has a support page explaining how to do so. Google also has documentation on how app stores can get access to the Google Play catalog. It won't be mirroring those apps in any shady storefront that asks. The court has allowed Google to charge reasonable fees to cover its security and compliance review of third-party stores, which will be $5,000 per year.

Google will also require approved stores to block malware, respect intellectual property, and include mechanisms to update and uninstall apps. App stores can be removed from the program if more than 1 percent of attempted app installs appear to be malware or unwanted software. It's unclear if there will be separate, possibly more stringent requirements for storefront distribution in the Play Store. However, Google is prohibited from unreasonably blocking third-party store clients uploaded to Google Play. The changes Google has announced under the Epic agreement will proceed for now. That means Registered App Stores will happen globally, but they will probably only appear in the Play Store for US users. Google hasn't specified if there will be any differences in the features available to the stores downloaded from Play versus registered stores.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/07/15/1738217/google-and-epic-cancel-settlement-third-party-app-stores-coming-to-google-play?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

FreeBSD 16 has removed the last GPL-licensed code from its base system, retiring the old GNU 'dialog' implementation after the installer moved to 'bsddialog' and the final dependency was disabled. Phoronix reports: This ticket to retire dialog was opened back in February while is now merged to the FreeBSD source tree for what will become FreeBSD 16.0. With dialog removed, the latest FreeBSD code now retires the GNU sub-tree of the FreeBSD base system now that no more GNU code remains. FreeBSD 16.0 is working its way toward release that is expected to happen in December 2027.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://bsd.slashdot.org/story/26/07/15/1727252/freebsd-16-retires-the-last-of-its-gpl-code?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

OpenAI's first hardware device is a limited-edition desktop keypad called the Codex Micro that lets users monitor and control AI coding agents. Axios reports: Codex Micro is a collaboration with Work Louder, a boutique hardware company known for customizable mechanical keyboards and shortcut controllers for developers and designers. The small, square macro pad -- with backlit keys, a rotary knob and a tiny joystick -- sits beside your regular keyboard as a physical shortcut box for common Codex actions and shows the status of your agents. The keys are customizable and include a push-to-talk option as well as a dial to adjust your reasoning setting. Codex Micro is a niche device for Codex power users and will only be available until it sells out. It's priced at $230.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/26/07/15/1659217/openai-launches-a-keypad-for-ai-agents?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Stripe and private equity firm Advent International have reportedly made a joint $60.50-per-share offer to buy PayPal, valuing the payments company at more than $53 billion. The bid is said to represent a 28% premium to PayPal's latest closing price and is backed by roughly $50 billion in committed bank financing.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://news.slashdot.org/story/26/07/15/047200/stripe-advent-offer-to-buy-paypal-for-more-than-53-billion?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

14 и 15 июля, после почти месяца разработки, состоялись выпуски 0.13.0 и 0.13.1 SIMD-оптимизированной библиотеки и кроссплатформенной консольной утилиты [ ZXC (github.com) ]( https://github.com/hellobertrand/zxc ) , реализующих высокопроизводительное многопоточное [ асимметричное сжатие ]( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_compression_symmetry ) без потерь и оптимизированное для игровых ресурсов, прошивок и пакетов приложений. Формат разработан по принципу «один раз записать, многократно читать» (WORM).

В отличие от таких кодеков, как LZ4, ZXC жертвует скоростью сжатия ради максимальной пропускной способности при распаковке.

Декларируется скорость распаковки на 9-48% выше, чем у LZ4 с уровнем компрессии по умолчанию, с равным или более высоким коэффициентом сжатия.

Главное изменение этих версий — новый уровень сжатия 7 (ультра) с использованием сравнительно недавно опубликованным SIMD-оптимизированным алгоритмом [ PivCo-Huffman ]( https://marcinzukowski.github.io/pivco-huffman/paper-1.0/ph.html ) («pivot-coded Huffman») ( [ репозиторий ]( https://github.com/MarcinZukowski/pivco-huffman ) ), который позволяет превысить коэффициент сжатия zstd (-1), при этом скорость декодирования остаётся примерно в 2 раза выше, чем у zstd. Энтропийное декодирование было переработано, что позволило увеличить её скорость на уровне 6 на 5–13% на всех эталонных процессорах.

Формат контейнера обновлён до версии 7 и это последнее запланированное изменение формата. Версия 0.13 является последним этапом перед выпуском версии 1.0, в которой формат контейнера ZXC будет зафиксирован, что обеспечит его стабильность и обратную совместимость.

Проект написан на языке C и распространяется по лицензии BSD 3.

( [ читать дальше... ]( https://www.linux.org.ru/news/opensource/18339089#cut ) )

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Krebs on Security: Microsoft today released software updates to plug at least 570 security holes in its Windows operating systems and other software, almost triple the number of vulnerabilities the software giant fixed in its record-smashing Patch Tuesday release last month. Microsoft attributed the burgeoning patch counts to vulnerability discoveries aided by artificial intelligence. Nearly 60 of the bugs quashed in July's Patch Tuesday earned a "critical" severity rating, meaning miscreants or malware could use them to seize remote control over a Windows device with little or no help from the user. Microsoft also addressed three zero-day flaws, including two that are already being exploited in the wild.

Two of the zero-day weaknesses allow an attacker to elevate their user rights on a Windows system, as do approximately 250 other elevation of privilege flaws fixed this month; they include CVE-2026-56155 - an Active Directory Federation Services bug -- and CVE-2026-56164, a Microsoft Sharepoint vulnerability. CVE-2026-50661 is a security feature bypass in Windows BitLocker that could allow attackers to gain access to encrypted data if they have physical access to the device. Microsoft said this bug has been detailed publicly, but that it is not aware of any active exploitation.

In a blog post on July 9, Microsoft Executive Vice President Pavan Davuluri wrote that Windows users will notice "a higher volume of security updates included in each security release" as a result of AI aiding in the discovery of vulnerabilities. "The pace of vulnerability discovery is changing with advances in AI making it possible to find more issues, faster, across more code, with new mechanisms that can accelerate both discovery and analysis," Davuluri wrote.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/07/15/042220/microsoft-patches-a-record-570-security-flaws?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Опубликован выпуск высокопроизводительного HTTP-сервера и многопротокольного прокси-сервера Angie 1.12.0, ответвлённого от Nginx группой бывших разработчиков проекта, уволившихся из компании F5 Network. Исходные тексты Angie доступны под лицензией BSD. Проект получил сертификаты совместимости с российскими операционными системами Ред ОС, Astra Linux Special Edition, Роса Хром Сервер, Альт и ФСТЭК-версии Альт. На базе Angie развивается проприетарный коммерческий продукт Angie PRO, включённый в реестр российского ПО.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65908

Компания System76, разрабатывающая Linux-дистрибутив Pop!_OS, опубликовала выпуск среды рабочего стола COSMIC 1.3.0. Пакеты с COSMIC 1.3.0 доступны в дистрибутиве Pop!_OS 24.04 и в ближайшее время ожидаются в Fedora, NixOS, Arch Linux, openSUSE, Aeyrin OS, Redox и CachyOS. Код написан на языке Rust и распространяется под лицензиями GPLv3 (приложения) и MPL-2.0 (библиотеки).

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65907

Astronauts on SpaceX's Fram2 mission successfully captured diagnostic X-ray images in orbit for the first time. The milestone gives space medicine a second imaging option beyond ultrasound and could help future crews diagnose injuries, inspect equipment, and support longer missions to the moon or beyond. Popular Science reports: Commercial off-the-shelf X-ray machines like the ice cooler-sized MinXray TR90BH now allow users to perform scans on subjects far away from traditional facilities. In 2022, [Mayo Clinic researcher Sheyna Gifford] assisted in preparing a crew to successfully generate digital X-rays while experiencing microgravity during a parabolic flight. Gifford's team then spent years collaborating with SpaceX to plan another feasibility study. This time, they didn't want to operate an X-ray machine aboard an aircraft simulating the conditions in space -- they intended to use the equipment during an orbital mission.

The process was detailed in a recently published study in the journal Radiology, and focuses on last year's Fram2 mission. Instead of days of medical training, astronauts spent only four hours learning how to use their portable radiography device. They then took preflight X-rays of a hand, forearm, chest, abdomen, and pelvis ahead of their SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch on March 31, 2025. Once in orbit, the team calibrated the system before testing their MinXray on the same body parts as well as a smartwatch.

Once the crew returned, a trio of independent radiologists reviewed the orbital X-ray images based on their positioning, spatial and contrast resolutions, and general scan quality. Although positioning scores were slightly decreased for the central body images, every other scan held up to similar examples created on Earth. Meanwhile, the astronauts reported that using the machine was easy despite minimal prior coaching. Looking ahead, researchers hope to conduct further X-ray tests during orbital missions, while continuing to reduce the overall size of equipment.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://science.slashdot.org/story/26/07/15/0354223/astronauts-take-first-x-rays-in-space?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

АО «НИИЭТ» (входит в Группу компаний «Элемент», MOEX: ELMT) начал серийные поставки 32-разрядных микроконтроллеров К1921ВГ015 на базе открытой архитектуры RISC-V российским производителям электроники. Микросхемы могут применяться в измерительных приборах, счетчиках газа и электроэнергии, системах промышленной автоматизации, медицинской технике и других энергоэффективных встраиваемых устройствах.
Поставки стали следующим этапом развития продукта после освоения серийного выпуска и запуска технологического участка по корпусированию микросхем. В феврале 2025 года на площадке НИИЭТ была выпущена первая серийная партия микросхем в пластиковых корпусах. Корпусирование изделий выполняется на собственном технологическом участке института. За год работы суммарный объем выпуска технологического участка составил около 1.5 млн. изделий. Проектная мощность линии достигает 10 млн. изделий в год.

К1921ВГ015 — флагманский 32-разрядный ультранизкопотребляющий микроконтроллер НИИЭТ на базе открытой архитектуры RISC-V. Он предназначен для энергоэффективных встраиваемых устройств и может использоваться в системах учёта ресурсов, средствах измерения, промышленной автоматизации, медицинской технике и других прикладных решениях. Микросхема включена в единый реестр российской радиоэлектронной продукции в соответствии с постановлениями Правительства РФ №719 и №878.

( [ читать дальше... ]( https://www.linux.org.ru/news/hardware/18338861#cut ) )

В кодовую базу FreeBSD-CURRENT, на основе которой формируется ветка FreeBSD 16, принято изменение, удаляющее из базовой системы последние остававшиеся компоненты, распространяемые под лицензией GPL - утилиты diff3 и dialog. Программа diff3 заменена на аналог от проекта OpenBSD, распространяемый под лицензией BSD, а для замены dialog специально для FreeBSD была разработана утилита bsddialog. Инсталлятор был переведён на bsddialog четыре года назад и последней программой, завязанной на GNU dialog, оставалась утилита dpv, которая была объявлена устаревшей более двух лет назад, а теперь удалена вместе с GNU dialog. Релиз FreeBSD 16, намеченный на декабрь 2027 года, будет полностью избавлен от кода под лицензией GPL.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65906

The House voted 308-117 to pass the Sunshine Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time permanent nationwide and end the twice-yearly clock change. The bill faces an uncertain future in the Senate, "where one G.O.P. leader said it was unclear whether it could move ahead and at least one Republican appears inclined to try to block it," reports The New York Times. Some sleep experts oppose permanent daylight saving time, arguing that year-round standard time better aligns with circadian rhythms and winter morning safety. The New York Times reports: President Trump has championed the effort to save an extra hour of daylight before nightfall and make the time zone permanent, describing the ritual of moving clocks forward in the spring and back in the fall a "ridiculous, twice yearly production." "We are going with the far more popular alternative, Saving Daylight, which gives you a longer, brighter Day," Mr. Trump wrote in a social media post in May. "And who can be against that."

A sizable bloc of Florida Republicans in Congress is leading the charge on legislation that would do just that, mandating daylight saving time nationwide for the entire year. Representative Vern Buchanan of the Tampa Bay area is backing the bill, and Representative Anna Paulina Luna, another Tampa Bay-area Republican, cosponsored it. House leaders agreed to allow a vote on the measure this week as a sweetener for Ms. Luna in their efforts to persuade her to lift a legislative blockade she had maintained as she sought to force Senate action on a voting restriction bill Mr. Trump has championed.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/07/15/0346241/house-votes-for-permanent-daylight-saving-time?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Опубликован выпуск библиотеки SVT-AV1 4.2.0 (Scalable Video Technology AV1) c реализациями кодировщика и декодировщика формата кодирования видео AV1, для ускорения которых задействованы присутствующие в процессорах x86_64 и ARM расширения для аппаратного распараллеливания вычислений. Проект создан компанией Intel в партнёрстве с Netflix с целью достижения уровня производительности, пригодного для перекодирования видео на лету и применения в сервисах, отдающих видео по запросу (VOD). В настоящее время разработка ведётся под эгидой альянса Open Media (AOMedia), курирующего развитие формата кодирования видео AV1. Ранее проект развивался в рамках проекта OpenVisualCloud, который также разрабатывает кодировщики SVT-HEVC и SVT-VP9. Код распространяется под лицензией BSD.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65903

TOP20 VISITORS:

[1] ChatGPT point=12 web=25 up=214.2MB (85%) <--- ChatGPT (1/hr)
[2] ClaudeBot point=0 web=453 up=10.9MB (4%)
[3] PetalBot point=5 web=1238 up=8.2MB (3%) <--- PetalBot
[4] 216.244.66.x point=0 web=84 up=4.2MB (1%)
[5] 37.252.14.x point=144 web=0 up=2.6MB (1%) <--- ake (6/hr)
[6] TikTok point=0 web=104 up=2.4MB (<1%)
[7] Amazon point=0 web=154 up=2.1MB (<1%)
[8] 217.114.158.x point=25 web=0 up=1.3MB (<1%) <--- fox (1/hr)
[9] 217.182.195.x point=0 web=1 up=0.9MB (<1%)
[10] Facebook point=0 web=100 up=0.9MB (<1%)
[11] 104.250.53.x point=0 web=92 up=0.8MB (<1%)
[12] 176.57.188.x point=0 web=1 up=0.4MB (<1%)
[13] 65.108.78.x point=0 web=2 up=0.3MB (<1%)
[14] Google point=0 web=33 up=0.3MB (<1%)
[15] 145.239.65.x point=0 web=1 up=0.3MB (<1%)
[16] 104.250.52.x point=0 web=19 up=0.1MB (<1%)
[17] 117.132.188.x point=0 web=2 up=0.1MB (<1%)
[18] 17.246.19.x point=0 web=21 up=91KB
[19] 85.208.96.x point=5 web=3 up=73KB <--- 85.208.96.x
[20] 17.22.237.x point=0 web=14 up=51KB

TOTAL TRAFFIC: 251MB

An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: The Iranian government abused well-known vulnerabilities in the global telecoms infrastructure to locate U.S. military personnel in the build-up to the Iran War, as well as in the early days of the conflict, according to Financial Times. The Iranian government exploited Signaling System 7, or SS7, a set of protocols for 2G and 3G networks that has long been the backbone of how cellular networks connect to each other to route subscribers' calls and texts around the world, the newspaper reported, citing research by the Mobile Surveillance Monitor, as well as anonymous government officials with knowledge of the spy campaign.

Intelligence agencies have long abused SS7 to track cellphones abroad, which is what happened in this campaign. Using this technique, Iran was reportedly able to locate U.S. military forces stationed in military bases as well as hotels in Iraq, Bahrain, and other countries in the Middle East, which allowed the regime to strike them. These attacks resulted in several injuries. Apart from SS7, Iran also abused advertising technology used to serve tailored ads to cellphone users, another well-known surveillance technique that relies on everyday technology.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/2121249/iran-abused-mobile-networks-vulnerabilities-to-locate-us-military-in-middle-east?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Опубликован выпуск сервисного менеджера s6-rc 0.7.0.0, предназначенного для управления запуском скриптов инициализации и сервисов. Поддерживается отслеживание дерева зависимостей и автоматический запуск или завершение сервисов для достижения указанного состояния. Инструментарий s6-rc может применяться как в системах инициализации, так и для организации запуска произвольных сервисов в привязке к событиям, отражающим изменение состояния системы. Система поддерживает скрипты инициализации, совместимые с sysv-init, и может импортировать информацию о зависимостях из sysv-rc или OpenRC. Код написан на языке Си и распространяется под лицензией ISC.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65905

OpenAI is reportedly developing a screen-free, portable smart speaker meant to act as a personalized home computer and humanlike AI companion. "It will help control smart-home appliances, play media, answer questions, respond to messages and tap into the range of capabilities offered by OpenAI's ChatGPT," reports Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter. The device, expected to be unveiled this year and released in 2027, would mark OpenAI's first major hardware push after acquiring Jony Ive's io Products. Bloomberg reports: Apple sued OpenAI last week, accusing the company of stealing trade secrets. But OpenAI believes that the device veers significantly from anything Apple has on the market today and that it's unlikely that it violates trade secrets belonging to the iPhone maker, the people said. OpenAI's success in hardware will hinge on bringing a novel approach to the market -- something it aims to do with the smart speaker. For instance, the device's technology is meant to become increasingly personalized and proactive as it gains a deeper understanding of its owner over time, according to the people.

OpenAI envisions the device anticipating needs, surfacing information proactively and serving as an expert on its user, they said. Though the speaker is designed to stay in the home, it will be easy to move around the house. OpenAI believes the product's defining feature will be its personality and ability to connect on a humanlike level with users. The speaker incorporates mechanical elements that can move on their own, creating a sense that it is alive and not just an object responding to commands. The machine also will draw on personal information such as emails to better understand its owner. The goal is for the device to feel like a companion and become a physical manifestation of OpenAI's ChatGPT. Still, the exact plans could change as the company works through the development and legal process.

The device's communication abilities will rely on a more advanced version of the ChatGPT Voice Mode -- GPT-Live -- that OpenAI rolled out this month. The new voice mode is designed to act more like a human. It can listen and talk at the same time, adapt more naturally during conversations, and quickly process information. Though the new product resembles a speaker, OpenAI internally describes it as the first of its kind: a computer built for AI to help make busy people more productive. It includes a camera and other sensors that help it understand a user's surroundings and context, as well as advanced AI models beyond those available on conventional smart speakers. Another central difference is that the device includes a rechargeable battery, allowing it to be carried from room to room throughout the day. A user could bring it into the laundry room while doing chores, move it into the kitchen for cooking assistance, and later place it in a living room or bedroom to have it play music. It can also remain plugged into a single room if the customer chooses.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/2116245/openais-first-device-will-be-moveable-screenless-speaker-built-as-ai-companion?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Google Images is getting a Pinterest-like redesign that turns image search into a personalized discovery feed, with "For You" galleries, real-time updates, and collections for saving visual ideas. "Google is also adding a way for users to create AI images right in Search, as it celebrates 25 years since the debut of Google Images," reports TechCrunch. From the report: After navigating to the redesigned Google Images, users will see a "For You" gallery of images tailored to their interests and browsing history. Like Pinterest, the gallery is designed for continuous browsing, with Google saying it updates in real time with new images. As users browse, they can save ideas to their "collections," which will appear as tabs above the main gallery of photos. For example, users can create collections for things like vacation outfit ideas, travel inspiration, and ways to design a reading nook, which they can come back to later.

[...] As for generating images directly in Search, Google says the feature is meant for moments when you have a highly specific idea for an image that doesn't already exist online. Google is bringing image generation directly into AI Overviews on Search and will use its latest Nano Banana model to transform a text prompt into a custom visual. The feature can also help users reimagine spaces and visualize ideas, such as seeing what a room might look like painted red or what a dorm room with a coastal theme could look like.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/215259/google-images-gets-a-pinterest-like-redesign-focused-on-discovery?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

A lawsuit from 26 Meta employees alleges the company used AI-driven scoring and monitoring systems to select workers for layoffs, disproportionately targeting employees with disabilities or those who had taken protected medical, family, pregnancy, or parental leave. "Meta did not assemble the termination list through the considered judgment of managers who knew the work. Instead, Meta used a constellation of internal artificial-intelligence systems -- including a system referred to internally as 'Metamate,' employee-trained 'second-brain' agents, keystroke- and activity-monitoring data, AI-token-usage dashboards, and algorithmically assisted performance ranking and calibration -- to score, rank, and select employees for inclusion on the list," the lawsuit (PDF) said. Ars Technica reports: Employees were allegedly graded, among other things, on how much they used Meta's AI tools. "Meta's internal dashboards classified employees by their stage of adoption of its artificial-intelligence tools, using categories such as 'AI Native,' 'AI First,' and 'AI Enabled,'" the lawsuit said. The lawsuit is apparently "the first against a major U.S. company to challenge the alleged use of AI in conducting layoffs," according to Reuters. The complaint alleges that Meta's tools for monitoring employees did not account for differences caused by disabilities and protected leaves. "Those tools draw on inputs -- performance ratings, calibration scores, productivity and output metrics, 'AI-native' ratings, and AI-token consumption -- that, by design, cannot be accumulated by an employee who is on protected medical or family leave, or whose output is reduced by a disability," the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit alleged that Meta management did not take steps to adjust scores for employees who took leave or who requested reasonable accommodations for disabilities. "Meta did not neutralize those inputs for protected leave; did not exclude protected-leave-takers or accommodation-seekers from the selection cohort; and did not pause the system for the individualized, leave- and accommodation-neutral review that the law requires," the complaint alleged. "The result was that employees who took protected leaves were disproportionately selected for layoff, based on scoring that not only failed to account for their protected leaves, but in effect penalized the employees for exercising their legal rights to these leaves." The 26 plaintiffs requested leaves or disability accommodations in the 24 months before being selected for layoffs, the lawsuit said. The layoffs are not yet finalized, but employees are scheduled to start losing their jobs on July 22, the lawsuit said. "These claims lack merit and are not based on facts," said Meta in a statement. "Workforce management and organizational decisions were and are made by people, not AI."

[ Read more of this story ]( https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/2054236/lawsuit-claims-metas-layoff-decisions-were-made-by-ai-not-humans?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Опубликованы результаты тестирования задержек при использовании устройств ввода в играх, запускаемых в окружениях на базе X11 и Wayland. Дополнительно оценено влияние включения адаптивного изменения частоты обновления экрана (VRR, variable refresh rate) и использования вместо DXVK форка dxvk-low-latency с оптимизациями для снижения задержек. Тестирование подтвердило встречающиеся в среде игроков мнение, что окружения на базе X11 позволяют добиться более высокой отзывчивости ввода, чем при использовании Wayland. Также подтверждено благотворное влияние на отзывчивость включения VRR и применения dxvk-low-latency.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65901

Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis is calling for a U.S.-led AI standards body to review frontier models for national security risks such as cybersecurity and biological threats. His proposal would create a federally overseen public-private organization, initially voluntary and eventually mandatory for U.S. deployment. CNBC reports: Google DeepMind boss Demis Hassabis, a Nobel laureate, said in an article posted on X on Tuesday that "urgent action" was needed to address risks associated with artificial general intelligence (AGI) -- the point at which AI matches or surpasses human intelligence. "We've already seen the challenges frontier models pose for cybersecurity, and other threats including nuclear and bio risks may soon emerge as capabilities continue to advance," he said.

[...] Hassabis said the U.S. was well positioned to lead in developing an AI framework "given its economic and technical standing." "It could establish a new Standards Body modelled on a federally overseen public-private partnership or self-regulatory organisation, much like the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), with a board that includes independent leading technical experts and open-source representatives," he added. FINRA regulates brokerage firms and exchange markets in the U.S.

The proposed body would need "substantial" funding "in order to attract world-class technical talent and provide the necessary compute resources for large-scale testing," Hassabis said. Funding would "likely" come from industry, he added. Frontier labs would initially voluntarily share models with the body for review up to 30 days before release, before becoming mandatory for deployment in the U.S. market after being shown to be "effective." "Specific agentic AI tests could look for attempts to bypass safety guardrails or signs of deception, and ensure best practices, such as digitally watermarking AI-generated images and generating human-readable output tokens to understand model reasoning," Hassabis said. Further reading: Over 200 Economists Say 'We Must Act Now' On AI's Economic Impact

[ Read more of this story ]( https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/1934241/google-deepmind-calls-for-us-to-spearhead-ai-standards-body?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Today, the Linux Foundation launched the x402 Foundation to standardize internet-native payments for AI agents, APIs, and applications, based on Coinbase's contributed x402 protocol. Backed by companies including AWS, American Express, Cloudflare, Google, Mastercard, Stripe, and Visa, the effort aims to make payments work directly over HTTP (assuming users are comfortable letting AI agents handle financial transactions).

"The whole idea is to give agents access to money and, through that financial independence, improve their set of capabilities to pretty much anything on the internet," Lincoln Murr, Coinbase's AI product lead, told CNBC last month when the company announced the protocol. "In the 2010s, every internet company dealt with the transition from desktop and web into a mobile environment. And now in the late 2020s, we're seeing the exact same thing happen where agents are going to be the new primary economic actors on the internet."

[ Read more of this story ]( https://linux.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/1853255/linux-foundations-latest-foray-is-to-standardize-internet-native-payments-for-ai-agents?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Сильвестр Ледрю (Sylvestre Ledru), директор по инжинирингу в Mozilla, объявил о переходе на двухнедельный цикл подготовки релизов Firefox. Начиная с сентября новые выпуски будут формироваться каждые две недели, а не раз в 4 недели. Изменение уже отражено в графике подготовки релизов: последним с 4-недельным циклом разработки станет Firefox 154, намеченный на 18 августа. Далее через 2 недели 1 сентября выйдет Firefox 155, 15 сентября - Firefox 156, 29 сентября - Firefox 157.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65900

OnePlus will reportedly announce this week that it is shutting down its brand in the U.S. and Europe, following months of signs that parent company Oppo was winding down the brand's global presence. India and China are reportedly unaffected, but it's unclear whether Oppo will replace the brand directly in those markets. The move also raises questions about future support for existing OnePlus users. 9to5Google reports: WinFuture reports that OnePlus is gearing up for an official withdrawal from the U.S. and European markets, with the announcement due in the "coming days" this week. Closed-door press conferences have apparently happened, with no details shared on the exact reason OnePlus as a brand is shutting down in these markets. India and China are, as far as this report claims, not affected. The report, citing "well-informed sources," notes that this OnePlus announcement will come amid "fundamental changes" to Oppo's strategy, but the big point here is the global death of OnePlus.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://mobile.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/1641233/oneplus-is-reportedly-shutting-down-in-the-us-europe?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

IBM shares plunged after the company warned that Q2 revenue and earnings would miss expectations, blaming customers' sudden shift in spending toward AI hardware instead of software services. However, CEO Arvind Krishna did not place all the blame on IBM's customers. The CEO also said it "faltered" by failing to "anticipate the magnitude of the capex reprioritization."

"These conditions require our teams to execute perfectly, and this quarter we faltered. We did not adapt and move quickly enough, and numerous large deals failed to close on the timelines we expected, driving the majority of our shortfall." Fast Company reports: In the preliminary report, IBM said that for its second quarter of fiscal 2026, it expects revenue of $17.2 billion, which is up 1%. It also said it expects a Non-GAAP Diluted Earnings Per Share (EPS) of $2.93, up 5%. However, as noted by CNBC, these preliminary results are below what analysts were expecting, which was $17.86 billion in revenue, and an EPS of $3.01, according to FactSet data.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/1634227/ibm-stock-collapses-after-a-grave-warning-about-ai?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

New York has become the first U.S. state to impose a moratorium on large new data centers, pausing construction for one year over concerns that AI-driven data center growth is raising utility bills, straining water supplies, and burdening communities. "As data center development threatens to hike up utility bills, deplete our natural resources, and create uncertainty for New Yorkers, it's my responsibility to take action and lead," said New York Governor Kathy Hochul. She will also pursue legislation to repeal sales tax exemptions for large data centers, Hochul added. Reuters reports: The construction ban will apply to data centers that use 50 megawatts or more of power, officials in the governor's office said. During the moratorium, the state's Department of Environmental Conservation will not issue any discretionary permits not already deemed complete, the governor's office said. Instead, Hochul directed state officials to develop a Generic Environmental Impact Statement to ensure that new data centers coming online are held to "consistent standards," as well as examine the potential environmental impacts of the construction and operation of data centers in the state. The ban will be lifted once the state finalizes those standards, according to Hochul's office.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://news.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/1520222/new-york-becomes-first-state-to-impose-data-center-moratorium?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from the BBC: StubHub and its CEO, Eric Baker, have been hit with a proposed $5-million class-action lawsuit in the United States over the company's ties to large-scale scalpers -- connections reported by CBC News last week. The suit, filed Monday by New York ticket buyer Louis Sanquini, alleges deceptive practices and fraudulent misrepresentation over StubHub's promoting itself as a "marketplace for fans to buy and sell tickets." The online ticket resale giant has faced a storm of customer complaints after cancelling thousands of World Cup tickets. The company has repeatedly said it is simply a technology platform that does not buy, sell or possess tickets. However, CBC reported last week that Baker disclosed in recent filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that he runs Andro Capital, a hedge fund that engages in large-scale resale of millions of dollars' worth of sports and concert tickets on the StubHub resale platform.

Sanquini filed the proposed class action in the Southern District of New York, arguing consumers were kept in the dark and that he believed StubHub was a "neutral" marketplace. Lead counsel Kevin Steinberg told CBC News in an emailed statement that "consumers deserve honesty and transparency." A CBC investigation found that the CEO of online ticket reseller StubHub owns and manages a hedge fund that scalps millions of dollars of its own tickets. "While what StubHub is alleged to have engaged in and perpetrated upon millions of patrons is unfathomable, this case is about transparency and consumer trust. If companies make representations to the public, consumers are entitled to expect that those representations are complete and accurate," he said.

The claim reads: "Defendants' failure to disclose this conflict of interest, while affirmatively marketing StubHub as a fan-to-fan marketplace, deceived Plaintiff and the Class and caused them to pay prices, and accept terms, they would not have accepted had the truth been known." Sanquini argues that had he known StubHub's CEO held a financial interest and that the company was helping finance professional resellers, he would never have used the resale site to buy tickets to see rock band Kiss in 2023 or to attend a New York Red Bulls-New York City FC Major League Soccer match in 2024.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/0735222/stubhub-ceo-hit-with-deceptive-practices-class-action-over-mass-scalping?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

После пяти месяцев разработки опубликован стабильный релиз композитного сервера Weston 16.0, развивающего технологии, содействующие появлению полноценной поддержки протокола Wayland в Enlightenment, GNOME, KDE и других пользовательских окружениях. Разработка Weston нацелена на предоставление высококачественной кодовой базы и рабочих примеров для использования Wayland в десктоп-окружениях и встраиваемых решениях, таких как платформы для автомобильных информационно-развлекательных систем, смартфонов, телевизоров и прочих потребительских устройств. Код проекта распространяется под лицензией MIT.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65898

Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M) have created what they describe as the world's most detailed 3D cellular atlas of the human brainstem, linking whole-brain MRI views to individual neurons across more than 500 tissue sections. The free online atlas, called Anchor, could help researchers better understand diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, stroke, and SIDS by showing how healthy and diseased brain tissue differs cell by cell. The BBC reports: Built from high-resolution microscope images rather than costlier molecular techniques, it creates a detailed three-dimensional map of the brainstem, identifying more than 200 clusters of brain cells and nerve pathways. Eight chemical markers help distinguish different cell types, producing one of the clearest pictures yet of this vital, but poorly, understood part of the brain. The brainstem occupies only a sliver of the brain, yet it keeps people alive. It links the brain to the spinal cord and controls breathing, heartbeat, sleep, wakefulness and movement.

[...] Users can zoom from the whole brainstem seen on MRI down to individual neurons while maintaining their precise spatial relationships. The researchers have made the atlas freely available online, hoping it becomes a reference tool for neuroscientists, neurologists and neurosurgeons worldwide. Its applications could also extend well beyond anatomy. By comparing healthy brainstem maps with diseased tissue, scientists may better understand disorders ranging from Parkinson's disease and stroke to Alzheimer's disease and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). More precise maps could also help neurosurgeons navigate one of the brain's most delicate regions with greater confidence.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://science.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/0723207/indian-scientists-produce-most-detailed-3d-atlas-of-the-human-brainstem?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Astronomers have detected erythrulose, a sugar found in raspberries and self-tanners, in a gas cloud near the center of the Milky Way. While not essential for life itself, the molecule can convert into a form thought to be important for life's origins, adding evidence that key prebiotic ingredients may be widespread across the galaxy. The Associated Press reports: Using two dish-shaped radio telescopes in Spain, researchers collected data from a large gas cloud near the center of the Milky Way. They identified the sugar in gas form by comparing telescope signals to samples in the lab. It's the latest kind of sugar detected in space -- in a region crossed by NASA's twin Voyager, the farthest spacecraft to ever travel from Earth.

Scientists have found interesting chemistry in our galaxy, including building blocks for genetic material and parts of the cell. They spotted a cousin to table sugar near the center of the Milky Way about 25 years ago, and black grains from asteroid Bennu retrieved by NASA's Osiris-Rex spacecraft yielded other sugars, including a key DNA ingredient. The latest sugar isn't essential for life, but can easily convert to a form that's thought to be crucial to kick-starting life on Earth. And it's one of the most complex sugars spotted so far, said astrophysicist Erika Hamden with the University of Arizona. The results were published in the journal Nature Astronomy.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://science.slashdot.org/story/26/07/14/073233/scientists-find-sugar-deep-in-our-galaxy?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

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Исследователи из Мичиганского университета разработали инструментарий MVPNalyzer для выявления утечек информации и анализа работы VPN, и проверили с его помощью 281 VPN-приложение для платформы Android. Для изучения были отобраны наиболее популярные VPN-приложений, распространяемые через каталог Google Play. VPN-приложения, в которых были выявлены те или иные проблемы с безопасностью и приватностью, в сумме насчитывают 2.4 миллиарда установок. Основные выводы.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65892

An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press: Hundreds of economists say in an open letter that institutions "must act now" to address how artificial intelligence could transform the economy and could put many people out of work. The statement released Monday was signed by top economists, along with computer scientists and some executives at tech companies including Anthropic, Google and OpenAI.

"AI may become radically more powerful over the next 10 years," says the letter organized by Stanford University's digital economy lab. "This could drive an unprecedented transformation of our economy, larger than the Industrial Revolution, but unfolding over a vastly shorter time frame. It could bring risks, including large-scale job displacement, as well as opportunities such as major gains in living standards."

The letter, which has only four sentences, says leaders must "build the incentives, guardrails, and institutions needed to steer AI in a direction that complements humans and benefits society." The Stanford lab says the letter has so far been signed by more than 200 economists and AI researchers, including 16 winners of a Nobel Prize. "We must be intentional and make collective, democratic choices, rather than letting market forces play out and risking leaving most citizens behind," wrote computer scientist and AI pioneer Yoshua Bengio, who was also among the signatories. He said it "it is highly plausible that AI will drastically transform our economies."

Other signatories include Google CEO Eric Schmidt, LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman, and Nobel laureates Joseph Stiglitz, Daron Acemonglu, and Simon Johnson.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/2210232/over-200-economists-say-we-must-act-now-on-ais-economic-impact?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Microsoft is overhauling Windows 11 search to prioritize local apps, files, and settings over web results while removing ads, promotions, MSN/Bing clutter, and other distractions. "You've have been asking for search that is faster, more relevant, and easier to use -- whether you're opening an app, finding a file, or changing a setting," Microsoft says in a new blog post. "Because the Windows Search Box is where many people start, we focused first on making results more dependable, easier to scan, and clearer before you click." Windows Central reports: The company is highlighting several key improvements, including clearer results that does a better job at showing why a search result is appearing when a query has been typed, alongside prioritizing local results before reaching out to the web.

Search is also getting better at handling things like typos, which should help surface the right results even when the user misspells an app or file. The search home pane will no longer show MSN or Bing content, and promotional content and ads will no longer appear in search results.

These upgrades are now rolling out to Windows Insiders in the Experimental Channel, and are expected to roll out to all Windows 11 users later this year. Insiders may not see the changes right away as they are rolling out in waves. The full list of changes can be found here.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/2149251/microsoft-promises-to-fix-search-with-major-windows-11-overhaul?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

CISA and allied governments are warning users to secure their routers as Russian state-backed hackers continue compromising the devices and turning them into proxy nodes to disguise attacks against critical infrastructure. The advisory urges users to disable outdated SNMP versions, use strong passwords, update firmware, and turn off unnecessary router services to reduce the risk of being swept into these botnets. Ars Technica reports: "Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) Center 16 cyber actors continue to exploit poorly configured and vulnerable networking devices worldwide, opportunistically compromising multiple critical infrastructure sector networks," the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said Monday. The hacking groups are tracked under various names, including Berserk Bear, Energetic Bear, Crouching Yeti, Dragonfly, Ghost Blizzard, and Static Tundra. The advisory was co-issued by governments from around the world, including Australia, Denmark, New Zealand, and the UK.

The primary means of compromise the agency warned about was hackers scanning IP ranges with active Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) agents that accept common or default authentication credentials. These scans are run by the very sorts of router botnets the actors are trying to enroll the targeted device in. By sending malicious traffic from spoofed addresses, the hackers can use the SNMP agent on poorly configured routers to run malware. SNMP allows users to collect and organize information about managed networking devices or to modify that information to change device behavior.

With control of a device, the hackers then use it as an exit node when probing or attacking targets in the communications, defense, energy, financial services, and government sectors. By funneling the malicious traffic through a benign-appearing device on a trustworthy IP address, the attackers are able to lower the chances of getting blocked by firewalls and other security defenses. Monday's advisory made no mention of identical operations carried out in recent years by China. So-called residential proxies are also a go-to tool used by financially motivated criminal hackers to obscure their true IP address. In many cases, these sorts of proxies are made up of millions of streaming devices that are sold with preloaded malware.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://it.slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/2139254/us-government-warns-that-russia-state-hackers-are-coming-after-your-router?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

German textile firm ZEGO has filed for insolvency and is blaming a March cyberattack that shut down production for nearly six weeks. "ZEGO's filing adds another name to the short but growing list of companies that say a digital break-in was commercially fatal to their business," reports The Register. From the report: In a notice to customers and suppliers, the organization said it had exhausted every available option before seeking insolvency protection. Managing director Johannes Zenglein described the filing as "one of the most difficult steps in our company's 37-year history." "The cyberattack of March 29, 2026, however, impacted our company to an extent that we could not fully compensate for despite our best efforts," Zenglein wrote. "The consequences resulted in a production outage of nearly six weeks and significant financial strain. These effects ultimately impacted our financial situation so severely that filing for insolvency became necessary."

ZEGO did not disclose what kind of attack it suffered, whether ransomware was involved, who was behind it, or whether customer or employee data was compromised. What it has made clear is that the operational disruption alone was enough to push the business beyond the point of recovery. ZEGO said insolvency proceedings have now been initiated, but insisted the filing does not necessarily spell the end of the business. It said it plans to keep production running while administrators attempt to restructure the business, preserve jobs, and keep customers and suppliers on board.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/2111209/german-firm-files-for-insolvency-after-cybercriminals-shut-down-production-for-6-weeks?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

A coalition of 12 states led by California is suing to block the $111 billion Paramount Skydance-Warner Bros. merger, arguing it would reduce competition in theatrical distribution, blockbuster films, and basic cable licensing. The challenge (PDF) defies the DOJ's approval of the deal. Variety reports: The coalition, led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, alleges that the $111 billion transaction violates the Clayton Act by lessening competition in three distinct markets: wide-release theatrical distribution, "top-grossing" theatrical distribution, and basic cable licensing. "The unlawful merger of these two entertainment behemoths would lead to higher prices, lower quality, and less content for film and television, harming movie theaters, basic cable distributors, and ultimately, audiences on every sofa and movie theater seat in the U.S.," Bonta said in a statement on Monday.

The suit argues that the combined company will control 27% of the wide-release theatrical distribution market, 30% of the submarket comprising "anticipated blockbuster films," and 27% of the basic cable bundle. The states argue that such consolidation will harm theaters and cable and satellite providers that rely on competition among distributors. Paramount and Warner Bros. are two of the five remaining legacy studios. Together, all five -- including Disney, Sony and Universal -- control 86% of theatrical distribution and 90% of blockbuster distribution, the states said. Warner Bros. and Paramount are also the second- and third-largest basic cable distributors, respectively.

[...] The states are expected to seek an injunction to block the transaction, which Paramount expects to close sometime after July 22. The 12 states in the coalition are Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Washington. [...] All are represented by Democratic attorneys general. "Consolidation here not only leads to higher prices -- it also leads to fewer opportunities for important stories to come to life, and fewer ways for audiences to encounter stories, ideas, and perspectives beyond their own experiences," Bonta said. "In this country, no one is above the law. With this lawsuit, California and our sister states are fighting for free and fair markets, not rigged markets. America has no kings in government or our economy."

[ Read more of this story ]( https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/1740256/states-sue-to-block-paramount-warner-bros-merger-defying-doj?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

According to the Wall Street Journal (paywalled), Apple agreed to use Intel's U.S. chipmaking plants after White House officials pressured Tim Cook during tariff-relief talks last summer. MacRumors reports: In August 2025, Apple CEO Tim Cook was in Washington to lobby the Trump administration to drop its proposed 100 percent tariff on semiconductor imports -- a levy that would have raised costs across Apple's product line. Apple reportedly secured an exemption after pledging to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in the U.S., although many of those investments were already planned. During the meetings, president Trump and commerce secretary Howard Lutnick are said to have urged Cook to use Intel's fabrication plants to make some of Apple's chips. The link between the tariff talks and the Apple-Intel deal had not been previously reported.

Almost a year later, Trump announced via his Truth Social platform that Apple would begin using Intel-made chips in some products. "We need to design and build our Chips right here in America," the president posted. The news sent Intel shares to record highs. According to a person familiar with the negotiations cited by the WSJ, Apple plans to have Intel make chips for both Mac laptops and iPhones. The report doesn't say which chips or in what volume, and Apple is expected to remain reliant on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, or TSMC, for the majority of its custom silicon.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/1732247/apple-reportedly-agreed-to-intel-chips-to-avoid-white-house-tariffs?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

America "is facing what's projected to become the largest labor shortage in its history," according to experts interviewed by the Washington Post:

Economists warn that the worsening labor problem, due in part to a skills shortage and population shifts, will be vast and reach beyond tech. It "could hobble the American economy for years to come," predicts the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. Lightcast, a labor market data company, calls it "the largest labor shortage the country has ever seen." JPMorgan Chase warns of a national security risk from "a pervasive talent deficit that constrains the nation's capacity to build, compete, and protect its interests." There will be shortages in the tens or even hundreds of thousands of nurses, physicians, teachers, engineers, pharmacists, mental health counselors, construction worker and airplane mechanics — jobs AI generally can't do...

Among the trends that have been leading to this moment: a mismatch between the careers college graduates are pursuing and the jobs employers are struggling to fill. Far fewer students are majoring in health care fields than are needed to meet demand, for instance. "We have pumped so many young people into business and finance" when what's really in demand are graduates in other fields, [said Ron Hetrick, Lightcast's principal economist]. "It's like a factory producing these workers like widgets, even though society is saying, 'We really don't need them.' And the factory just keeps pumping them out." But the principal reason for the looming workforce shortages is much more basic. A protracted decline in birth rates is coinciding with a record wave of retirements, data shows.

From 2024 to 2032, when the last baby boomers sign up for Social Security payments, more than 18 million college-educated workers will leave the labor force while fewer than 14 million enter it, according to the Georgetown center. Meanwhile, even as the number of people with associate and bachelor's degrees falls, the number of jobs requiring them will grow, the center forecasts. That will leave a gap of 4.6 million workers. Lightcast puts the deficit at an even higher 6 million... The effect of population shifts on the supply of talent, with or without degrees, has been compounded by a drop in the proportion of high school graduates choosing to go to college, a sharply reduced rate of immigration, and a growing number of Americans leaving the workforce altogether because of such issues as lack of child care, early retirement, incarceration and substance addiction, according to the Chamber of Commerce.

Three interesting statistics from the article:

U.S. college/university enrollment in 2023 was down by nearly 2 million students since its peak in 2010, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Education Department.
America's low birth rate since 2010 "means the number of college-age Americans is forecast to decline by another 13 percent through 2041."
South Dakota has just 41 workers for every 100 open jobs... while California and nine other states have more workers than jobs, the Chamber of Commerce found.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://it.slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/0443258/america-may-soon-be-facing-largest-labor-shortage-in-its-history?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Разработчики GNOME OS, дистрибутива для разработчиков и тестировщиков GNOME, представили инициативу по созданию инструментария для упрощения тестирования экспериментальных версий программ в дистрибутивах, распространяемых в форме атомарно обновляемых монолитных системных образов. Развиваемый инструментарий GNOME OS Developer Tool Suite позволит собирать, распространять и тестировать расширения к дистрибутивам, поставляемым в форме системных образов. Инструментарий даст возможность разработчикам и тестировщикам изменять части системы и тестировать вносимые изменения, не нарушая при этом монолитность системного образа, не используя изолированные от системы контейнеры и не отключая механизмы обеспечения безопасности.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65897

BrianFagioli writes: Cloudflare has launched Precursor, a new behavioral bot detection system that monitors mouse movement, typing cadence, scrolling, clipboard activity, page visibility, and other signals across an entire browsing session. The system is designed to catch advanced bots that can run JavaScript, use real browsers, and pass traditional CAPTCHA challenges. Cloudflare says Precursor does not record actual keystrokes and instead studies timing and rhythm. The company also says the data is not tied to user identities or persistent profiles. Even so, software that watches how people move and type throughout a visit raises privacy concerns, especially as Cloudflare claims bots now generate roughly 57 percent of all Internet requests.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/1645252/cloudflare-precursor-watches-your-mouse-and-keyboard-to-decide-if-you-are-human?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

The European Union is considering major new restrictions on children's access to social media, including age limits, phased access, and an outright ban. "This is not about whether children can access social media," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. "It is about when social media can access our children." The Verge reports: Social media platforms could also be forced to prove their services are not harmful before young people are allowed to use them. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc's executive arm could propose new legislation within months, after reviewing recommendations from a panel of experts released today.

The panel recommended using a phased approach, including "no screens at all" for children under 3, supervised internet use for those under 13, and some limits for older teens. It also said social media platforms should have to prove their services are safe to younger users, an approach von der Leyen said she supports. Von der Leyen said the Commission will consider the report and return with proposals "after the summer." Any legislation would still need approval from the European Parliament and the EU's 27 member countries before becoming law across the bloc.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/1638208/social-media-limits-are-coming-for-teens-across-europe?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

A new Incogni survey suggests Americans are pulling back from social media, with more than half saying "maintaining an online presence feels like work" and 55% reporting they post less than they did five years ago. "The full study concludes that there's been a significant shift in public attitudes toward social media," reports PCMag. "Where it was once fun and relaxing, it's now growing dark and angsty..." From the report: As the chart shows, there's also a clear correlation with age. A full 60% of Gen Z respondents feel the pain of maintaining a social presence. Perhaps they have a niggling hope that they might still be discovered as an influencer? Those of us in the Boomer category are clearly more relaxed about it, with just 38% saying that maintaining a social presence feels like work. The survey quizzed respondents about how they feel when they don't keep up with checking their socials and, by extension, how they'd feel if they just plain quit. They were given choices, both positive (peace, relaxation, and relief) and negative (anxiety, fear of missing out, and discomfort).

Overall, positive reactions held slightly greater sway, with an average of about 21% compared with 19% for negative reactions. The Gen Y contingent accentuated that split, with 25% positive and 21% negative, while Gen X went even further, with 20% positive and just 13% negative. But the Gen Z group flipped the results, identifying 27% negative and 26% positive reactions to going without social media.

There's another force pushing folks away from the socials: increasing politicization. Of the survey's respondents, 44% agreed that political content is driving people away from social media, and only 20% disagreed. Among Gen Z respondents, the impetus was stronger: 48% agreed, and just 13% disagreed. These negative feelings associated with politics only serve to highlight the positive reactions to deleting your social media.

Are you posting less on social media than you did five years ago, and are you being more selective about who can see what you post? Then you're with the majority. More than half of the respondents answered yes to each of those questions. But would you ever parlay fewer posts into no posts (aka quit posting entirely)? When asked what it would take to finally get them to terminate a social media account, a die-hard group of one in six respondents said there's nothing that could make them quit. But more than half could picture quitting due to security concerns, and almost half accepted the possibility that harassment or hate speech could send them packing. Others cited the amount of time wasted on scrolling through social media and the mental health threats of doomscrolling.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/0548235/why-55-of-americans-stopped-posting-on-social-media?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The New York Times: A state-owned newspaper in China recently published a satellite image of a data center in Gainesville, Va., writing in English that the development of artificial intelligence posed a threat to Americans' physical and financial well-being. A comic strip made to look as if it had been published by a Maryland news outlet -- created with OpenAI's ChatGPT by people in China, the tech company said -- circulated on X this year, blaming data centers for soaring electricity bills. It showed a tycoon smoking a cigar and clutching bags of cash. A video shared on X by a known covert Russian influence operation questioned the viability of a data center that an American company, Firebird, is constructing in Armenia, the small Caucasus nation that has been a focus of Kremlin pressure. "The country's electrical grid instability may render it useless," the video's narrator says.

All are examples of a push by foreign adversaries to seize on what polls have shown is deep ambivalence -- verging at times on hostility -- about the spread of the data centers needed to power A.I. in the United States and elsewhere. China, Russia and, to a lesser extent, Iran have sought to use state media outlets to turn the controversy over data centers in the United States into "a domestic fracture point," according to a new analysis by Alethea, a threat intelligence company, which identified scores of articles and posts on social media this year. These campaigns, whose impact on public opinion remains to be seen, have raised alarms in Washington, where A.I. is seen as a top issue heading into this year's midterm elections.

[ Read more of this story ]( https://slashdot.org/story/26/07/13/0530223/china-russia-and-others-seek-to-inflame-debate-over-ai-data-centers?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

Сразу во 2-м и 3-м чтении 8.07.2026 был принят очень важный для целой отрасли закон. Закон носит рамочный характер и предполагает, что правительство выпустит массу подзаконных актов, регулирующих отдельные технические и правовые вопросы. Закон, в случае одобрения Советом Федерации и Президентом РФ, вступит в действие в основном уже с 1 сентября 2026 г., хотя полностью все положения заработают с 1 марта 2027 г. В ситуации уже состоявшегося внедрения моделей, там где потребуется применение только национальных или суверенных моделей, их можно будет продолжать использовать до 1 сентября 2032 г.

( [ читать дальше... ]( https://www.linux.org.ru/news/ai/18337915#cut0 ) )

"Git and email are the two really only tools I use," Linus Torvalds said at Open Source Summit India 2026. But ZDNet reports that he also shared his thoughts on Rust, C, and patch-checking tools:

"I use Google as a way to look things up." He added, "I'm unusual; most of the other maintainers end up using many more tools, and I think a lot of them are starting to use AI tools for patch checking," while he "works at a higher level. I work with people, not tools."

When asked about Rust both in Git and the kernel, he pushed back against hype: "I'm not sure Rust is going to take over the world. I still think Rust is very interesting, [but] I still find C to be a much simpler tool." Torvalds continued, "I'm much more excited about all the tools we have for verification of C," including "automated patch verification tools" and "automated email checking tools for patches like Sashiko." Summing up, Torvalds told the Mumbai audience: "I'm more of a hack-and-slash kind of person, and I still like the raw and simple power of C, and I don't think that's going to change."

Torvalds also warned against overestimating Rust's benefits: "Rust fixes a few easy bugs that you can make in C, but it does not fix the logic errors, right? It does not think for you, and when you write incorrect code, the language does not matter. The end result will be incorrect." On mixed C/Rust code bases, he pointed out that guarantees are limited: "The guarantees that Rust give you only apply in the Rust-only parts of your code base, and wherever you interact with C code, all bets are off," with most Rust code in Linux talking to "core kernel C code" that is "much better quality... because that code has been tested in every single environment."

At the same time, Torvalds pointed out, "some of our big and more high-profile bugs in the kernel lately have been logic errors" rather than the kind of memory errors Rust prevents.

"It was just bad programming, which sadly happens even in carefully maintained subsystems and important kernels that are supposed to be very secure."

[ Read more of this story ]( https://linux.slashdot.org/story/26/07/12/2126243/linus-torvalds-on-rust-c-bugs-and-ai-patch-checking-tools?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.

После пяти месяцев разработки опубликован выпуск проекта IncidentRelay 1.1, развивающего открытую систему для организации дежурств, маршрутизации оповещений и сопровождения инцидентов, запускаемую на собственном сервере (self-hosted). IncidentRelay 1.1 отмечен как первый стабильный выпуск (ветка 1.0 имела статус бета-версии). Проект ориентирован на SRE, DevOps и инфраструктурные команды, которым требуется локально разворачиваемая альтернатива SaaS-сервисам для управления дежурством (on-call management), применения политик эскалации и реагирования на инциденты. Код проекта написан на Python и распространяется под лицензией MIT.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65895

Организация The Document Foundation объявила о начале бета-тестирования офисного пакета LibreOffice 26.8. Готовые установочные пакеты подготовлены для различных дистрибутивов Linux, Windows и macOS. Релиз состоится 18-20 августа.

https://www.opennet.ru/opennews/art.shtml?num=65894