fortune 777 game slot online
2024 was a momentous year in personal technology for reasons both good and bad. Looking back, these are the stories I think mattered the most. Many of them are ongoing and will continue impacting us into next year and beyond. But all left a mark. Speaking of which, I write a lot. I know that probably seems obvious. But I get up every day, work, and then do it again the next day, and I don't really think in terms of what this looks like over time. Reviewing all the posts that Laurent and I wrote this past year quickly grew daunting, and rather than let it get away from me, I decided to break it down into more easily manageable parts. None of which were particularly manageable. Overall, I've written over 1,150 articles and posts this past year, 267 of which were for Thurrott Premium. That's an average of 22 articles each week, 5 of which were, on average, for Thurrott Premium. Or 4 per day, assuming a 7-day work week, as I do work 7 days per week, every week. And these numbers will grow a bit, since there are still a few days left in 2024 as I write this. Of those 1,150 articles (and 267 Premium articles), 35 were From the Editor's Desk editorials, many of which were personal in nature (as opposed to personal technology topics). I wrote 37 installments of Ask Paul, most of which are several thousand words long (and will do one more tomorrow, so 38). I wrote or updated 35 chapters in the Windows 11 Field Guide. There were 28 articles in the developer-oriented Modernizing .NETpad (2024) series, with more to come. 20 laptop and PC reviews, as noted earlier (which are not Premium posts, but lengthy). During all this, I also spent an unknowable amount of time over several months spinning up a new book, Eternal Spring: Our Guide to Mexico City, with my wife Stephanie, a major undertaking. It's now available in preview form on Leanpub, and just getting it out the door required a marathon all-weekend push. And then there was the time I wasn't writing, but was instead recording podcasts and getting ready for those podcasts. I recorded 51 episodes of Windows Weekly, which takes up 3 hours of every Wednesday, not counting the time it takes to make the notes, or over 150 hours. There were 50 episodes of Hands-On Windows, though only 48 have been published so far, and this show takes several hours of prep because of the screen grab requirements. And then over 140 episodes of First Ring Daily, which is only arduous because of the daily 9 am requirement. And yikes. In any event, straining all that through a personal filter, here's how I view the most important developments of 2024 in personal technology. 💀 Intel's death spiral Like Microsoft, Intel ruled supreme over personal computing when it was just about PCs, and this explains why the term Wintel--Windows + Intel--is still so well known. But we live in the post-PC world now, and smartphones--or, more generally, mobile computing--and the web long ago surpassed the PC in usage, rel... With technology shaping our everyday lives, how could we not dig deeper? Thurrott Premium delivers an honest and thorough perspective about the technologies we use and rely on everyday. Discover deeper content as a Premium member. Paul Thurrott is an award-winning technology journalist and blogger with 30 years of industry experience and the author of 30 books. He is the owner of and the host of three tech podcasts: with Leo Laporte and Richard Campbell, , and with Brad Sams. He was formerly the senior technology analyst at Windows IT Pro and the creator of the SuperSite for Windows from 1999 to 2014 and the Major Domo of Thurrott.com while at BWW Media Group from 2015 to 2023. You can reach Paul via , or . Join the crowd where the love of tech is real - become a Thurrott Premium Member today! Sign up for our new free newsletter to get three time-saving tips each Friday
This story will be updated. AUGUSTA, Maine — The Legislature’s watchdog committee cannot force the state to hand over confidential files from high-profile child death cases, Maine’s high court ruled Thursday. The 26-page ruling from the Maine Supreme Judicial Court ended a yearslong dispute between the administration of Gov. Janet Mills and the Government Oversight Committee, which has led the Legislature’s investigations of the embattled child welfare system. It has been a major area of focus for Maine’s policymakers since two high-profile child deaths in 2018. A study found that Maine had the highest rate of child maltreatment among states in 2020. More than 100 child welfare workers called on Mills last week to replace their boss, ensuring that the subject area will be on the agenda again for lawmakers in 2025. The legal dispute between lawmakers and the state goes back to the summer of 2022, when the state rejected the oversight committee’s subpoena for confidential files on four children who were under the age of 4 when they were killed by parents during the previous year. The state argued that the oversight committee’s staff — not the lawmakers who direct them — could view the confidential files and said that releasing them could imperil prosecutions that were ongoing at the time but have since finished with guilty verdicts. Lawmakers sued, saying that ignoring their subpoena violates the constitutional separation of powers. A lower-court judge sided with the state, prompting the legislative committee to appeal in 2023 to the high court. It upheld the ruling on slightly different grounds, citing legislative history and court precedent to argue that only legislative staff are allowed to see confidential material. “Each entity is prescribed a distinct role, and their respective roles inform the nature and scope of access to confidential information and records such as those at issue here,” the court ruled. More articles from the BDNIdaho US senator says ‘jury’s still out’ on how to handle women serving in military combat
Gen Z’s all a bot getting the job done Fast-tracking it up the corporate ladder is now just a few clicks away, per new data which finds that 82% of youngish hotshots lean on artificial intelligence to do their work. An eye-popping 88% say the use of advanced technology helps them overcome “task paralysis.” It’s an affliction, similar to the social media-viral “functional freeze” phenomena , that flares up when workday duties become too demanding. “The future of work is here — and it’s AI-powered,” Yulie Kwon Kim, Vice President of Product at Google Workspace, said in a release . “Rising leaders are not only advocating for AI,” continued Kim, “they’re deploying this technology in meaningful ways, from improving communication with colleagues to freeing up time for strategic work.” And the Zs are nothing if not a generation that appreciates high-wired hacks for doing less and minimizing stress. Be it tapping ChatGPT to renegotiate their salaries , or ditching traditional resumes to land employment via “hire me” TikToks, newcomers to the workforce are constantly coming up with new ways to make 9-to-5 life easier. The study, a November report conducted by for Google Workspace, found that the resourceful fledglings of Gen Z — young adults under age 27 — are leveraging AI to tackle fairly simple tasks like drafting emails from scratch and jotting down notes during meetings. Researchers polled over 1,000 “young leaders,” big-business newbies between the ages of 22 and 39, to find that both Gen Zs and millennials — workers under age 42 — regularly utilize AI while on the clock. “Ninety-three percent of young leaders who identify as Gen Z and 79% who identify as millennials use 2 or more tools on a weekly basis.” But their dependence on digital assistance isn’t just about taking the easy way out. “The data shows how AI can help scale business-critical soft skills, such as the ability to collaborate with others, communicate effectively, lead a team and more,” said study authors. “It not only helps individuals get work done faster and more efficiently,” they added, “but also changes how they work in meaningful ways.”CINCINNATI — Homeowners in Hamilton County will receive a property tax rebate in 2025. Hamilton County commissioners on Thursday voted to take 30 percent of the one-half percent sales tax proceeds from the stadium deal, or $31,400,000, and apply it to property tax reductions for the 2024 tax year payable in 2025. The vote was 2-1, with Alicia Reece and Stephanie Summerow Dumas voting "yes" and Denise Driehaus voting "no." "Homeowners are facing mounting challenges, including high property taxes, increased utility bills, and rising food costs," Hamilton County Commissioner Alicia Reece said in a press release about the vote. "Many, especially our senior citizens, are struggling to make ends meet. If we can honor our commitments to the sports teams, we must honor our commitments to the taxpayers." The rebate comes from when voters approved a one-half percent sales tax increase to help fund new stadiums in 1996, they were promised a property tax rebate as part of the deal. While the county was able to meet the rebate in the years following the tax's passage, it has only offered the rebate a few times in the last decade. Property taxes for many rose after 2023's sexennial property reassessment in the county, so the relief will be a welcome one. "Our board has made investments in new affordable housing, but we must also prioritize helping people keep the homes they already have. At the same time, the state of Ohio must address the housing revaluation formula and allow us to freeze property taxes for those who need it most," Reece said. Watch Live:
After Trump’s win, Black women are rethinking their role as America’s reliable political organizers
Jaylon Johnson isn't interested in bright spots with the Bears' skid at 5 games
John Parker Romo made a 29-yard field goal to lift the Minnesota Vikings to a 30-27 overtime win against the host Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon. Romo buried the game-winning kick in his third career game for Minnesota (9-2), which won its fourth game in a row. The score capped a 10-play, 68-yard drive for the Vikings after the Bears went three-and-out on the first overtime possession. Sam Darnold completed 22 of 34 passes for 330 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Vikings. Wideout Jordan Addison finished with eight catches for a career-high 162 yards and a touchdown. The overtime defeat spoiled an impressive performance from rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, who completed 32 of 47 passes for 340 yards and two touchdowns for Chicago (4-7). D.J. Moore had seven catches for 106 yards and a touchdown, and Keenan Allen finished with nine catches for 86 yards and a score. Chicago erased an 11-point deficit in the final 22 seconds of regulation to send the game to overtime. Romo had put Minnesota on top 27-16 when he made a 26-yard field goal with 1:56 remaining in the fourth quarter. Williams trimmed the Bears' deficit to 27-24 with 22 seconds to go. He rolled right and found Allen wide open in the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown, and moments later he fired a strike to Moore for a two-point conversion. The Bears recovered an onside kick on the next play to regain possession at their 43-yard line with 21 seconds left. Cairo Santos' onside kick bounced off the foot of Vikings tight end Johnny Mundt, and Tarvarius Moore recovered it. D.J. Moore put the Bears in field-goal position with a 27-yard reception across the middle of the field, and Santos made a 48-yarder as time expired to even the score at 27-all. Minnesota led 24-10 after three quarters. Romo made a 40-yard field goal early in the third quarter, and Aaron Jones punched in a 2-yard run with 1:22 left in the period to put the Vikings on top by two touchdowns. Addison and Jalen Nailor each had receiving touchdowns in the first half for Minnesota. Roschon Johnson scored on a 1-yard run for the Bears' only touchdown of the first half. Chicago trailed 14-10 at the break. --Field Level Media
A weak Canadian dollar is being blamed as a key culprit behind sticky inflation at the grocery store, a trend one expert says he expects to persist heading into the holidays. While overall inflation has moderated in recent months, settling back at the Bank of Canada’s two per cent target in October, consumers are once again feeling the pinch on groceries. The annual cost of food bought from the store rose 2.7 per cent annually last month, accelerating from a rate of 2.3 per cent in September. October marked the third consecutive month grocery prices outpaced the rest of the consumer basket tracked by Statistics Canada. Driving those costs higher in October were more expensive fresh vegetables and fruit, which rose at annual rates of 7.3 per cent and 7.6 per cent, respectively. Pain at the grocery store is nothing new for Canadians. As Canada grappled with decades-high inflation over the past few years, grocery prices were among the largest contributors. Ipsos polling conducted exclusively for Global News in late August found that 43 per cent of Canadians are worried they might not have enough money to feed their families. Prices on food bought from stores rose over 20 per cent over the three years between July 2021 and June 2024, according to StatCan. That rapid rise helps to explain why Canadians are still feeling “sticker shock” at the grocery store, explains personal finance expert Rubina Ahmed-Haq. “When we go to the grocery store, we still have recent memory of what avocados cost, what a loaf of bread costs, what a carton of eggs costs,” she says. “It’s still something that we’re getting used to, that prices are here to stay at this level. They just aren’t increasing as aggressively year-over-year.” The acute pain of food inflation in recent years is one of the justifications Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cited this week in announcing the Liberal proposal for a two-month GST/HST “holiday” applying to many common grocery items. Sal Guatieri, senior economist and director at BMO Capital Markets, tells Global News that, in contrast to the global bout of inflation from the past few years, today’s price jumps at the grocery store are not necessarily universal. In Canada, while grocery inflation was up 2.7 per cent in October, the latest figures from the United States show food prices were up just 1.1 per cent annually. Guatieri says there’s a few reasons why food inflation looks different on either side of the border, but the most glaring perhaps is the weak Canadian dollar and surging strength of the United States’ greenback. The loonie fell below the 71-cent mark compared to the U.S. dollar to start this week, marking a four-year low before recovering somewhat. Guatieri says this differential is felt particularly hard at grocery stores in Canada, particularly in the colder weather seasons when much of the fresh food Canadians eat is imported from the U.S. Import prices for food have been growing “quite strongly,” Guatieri says, rising 14 per cent in the past year. Canadians are likely feeling the compounding effect of a weak loonie and drought earlier in the year on beef prices, he says, with the latter reducing cattle stocks and limiting supplies of beef coming from south of the border. Guatieri says consumers can also expect prices to rise a bit sharper heading into the end of the year, particularly ahead of the holiday season when Canadians are buying and eating more food than usual. “They celebrate more, certainly with friends and family. And so the demand for food products, especially at the grocery store, tends to go up,” he says. While the Canadian dollar has been flailing against its American counterpart for well over a year, much of the loonie’s weakness can be traced to the results of the U.S. presidential election. Donald Trump’s looming second administration comes with threats of blanket tariffs on trading partners and other economic policies aimed at stimulating growth in the U.S. While it remains to be seen what campaign promises will become policy when he assumes office in January, Guatieri says that the general risks of a Trump presidency lean more towards higher inflation. That’s important for the U.S. Federal Reserve, which looks at where inflation is heading as it sets its benchmark interest rates. Expectations that the Fed might not cut as much as previously expected are important for setting currency exchange rates — the differential between the Bank of Canada’s policy rate and its counterpart in the U.S. affects the value of the loonie. With the Bank of Canada getting a headstart on the Fed in its rate-cut cycle, the two central banks’ policy rates stand at a wide differential, discouraging investors from piling into the loonie and instead pushing them to relative safety in the U.S. dollar. BMO notes that part of the loonie’s recovery this week came from reined-in expectations for the Bank of Canada’s own pace of rate cuts, which came from an upside surprise to inflation and some reaction to the Liberal stimulus proposals. But Guatieri says that a Trump presidency is still likely to be bad news for the Canadian dollar. “That does suggest the Canadian dollar could be on the defensive for quite some time,” he says. Ahmed-Haq says there are a few strategies Canadians ought to employ or revisit when they head to the grocery store, even if price hikes aren’t in the double-digits anymore. For one, making a list and doing an inventory of what you need — and what you already have — before heading to the grocery store is critical for avoiding food waste, particularly on perishable items that can be quick to go bad. “When you throw things out, that is really throwing money in the garbage,” Ahmed-Haq says. She also recommends avoiding putting too much focus on grocers’ loyalty programs. While one loyalty program can be helpful, if shoppers are visiting multiple stores and are enrolled in many different rewards schemes, it can dilute the effectiveness of any savings. Instead, Ahmed-Haq recommends those who live near discount chains take advantage of those, where lower prices can often be found at the expense of wider selections. “Price still trumps everything,” she says. — with files from Global News’s Anne Gaviola