Bedrock Archives

AppWizard

August 8, 2025

Taking Inventory: Tipped Arrow

Tipped arrows can inflict potion effects on both allies and enemies. They are crafted by surrounding a lingering potion with eight arrows, producing eight tipped arrows. These arrows deal standard arrow damage along with the potion effect upon impact. They can be used strategically in combat, such as using arrows of slowness against fast-moving mobs or arrows of weakness against strong foes, although some entities are immune to these effects. Tipped arrows can also provide beneficial effects like regeneration and speed to teammates, but caution is needed to avoid harming allies. In Bedrock Edition, tipped arrows can be crafted using cauldrons filled with potions. The infinity enchantment on bows does not apply to tipped arrows, and dispensers can launch tipped arrows for strategic traps.

AppWizard

August 8, 2025

Scammers targeting kids and teens Minecraft gamers, security expert warns

Cybersecurity experts have raised concerns about potential threats targeting young players in Minecraft, particularly within its modding community. Mods can enhance gameplay but may also serve as vehicles for malware deployment. The Java Edition of Minecraft, which allows downloads from third-party websites, poses a higher risk compared to the Bedrock Edition, which features a built-in marketplace with safety reviews. Scammers can use mods to install malware that operates like a Trojan horse, potentially leading to the theft of sensitive information, including financial details. Although children may not have sensitive data, they often use shared devices, making cybersecurity education important. Experts recommend parental guidance, antivirus protection, and open discussions about internet safety. Microsoft has emphasized its commitment to player safety, implementing features such as abuse reporting, parental controls, and proactive moderation to create a safer gaming environment.

AppWizard

August 7, 2025

5 Best Minecraft Modpacks That Will Change Your Gameplay Forever

Minecraft modpacks are curated collections of modifications that can significantly change gameplay. The text highlights five notable modpacks: 1. RLCraft: Known for its high difficulty, it introduces realistic survival mechanics, deadly mobs, and hundreds of hours of challenging gameplay. 2. SkyFactory 4: A tech-heavy skyblock experience starting from a solitary tree, featuring over 200 unique achievements and a modular progression system. 3. Enigmatica 6: Balances magic, technology, and exploration with quests, over 300 mods, and exploration-based gameplay, suitable for both beginners and experienced players. 4. All the Mods 9: Contains a vast array of mods, offering cross-compatibility between tech and magic, and is best played on powerful servers to avoid performance issues. 5. Pixelmon: Merges Minecraft with Pokémon, featuring over 800 Pokémon, realistic mechanics, and community events. Hosting modded Minecraft servers is recommended for optimal performance, allowing for smooth gameplay and easy collaboration with friends. Most modpacks are free to download, but some require robust hardware or dedicated servers. Most major modpacks are designed for Minecraft Java Edition, as Bedrock has limited modding support.

Winsage

August 6, 2025

AWS Offers OpenAI’s Models on Its Platform for the First Time

OpenAI has made its gpt-oss models, with 120 billion and 20 billion parameters, available for public use on AWS's Bedrock platform, marking the first open model release since GPT-2 in 2019. These models are not entirely open source, as users do not have access to the underlying code or training datasets. AWS's chief evangelist, Danilo Poccia, expressed enthusiasm for the integration of these models, which are designed for coding, scientific analysis, and mathematical reasoning, and can be integrated into business workflows. Analysts note that OpenAI's models provide substantial value compared to competitors, aligning with Amazon's cost-saving strategy. AWS hosts various open models, but Claude from Anthropic was absent from the recent press release, indicating a complex competitive landscape. The addition of OpenAI's models to AWS is seen as a potential step towards deeper collaboration between the two companies.

Winsage

August 6, 2025

OpenAI open weight models now available on AWS

AWS has introduced two new OpenAI models with open weights, the gpt-oss-120b and gpt-oss-20b, available through Amazon Bedrock and Amazon SageMaker JumpStart. These models are designed for text generation and reasoning tasks, excelling in coding, scientific analysis, and mathematical reasoning, with performance comparable to leading alternatives. They support a context window of 128K and adjustable reasoning levels (low, medium, high). Users can access these models via an OpenAI-compatible endpoint in Bedrock, utilizing the OpenAI SDK or Bedrock APIs for integration. To access the models in Amazon Bedrock, users must request access through the console and can evaluate them using the Chat/Test playground. The process for using the OpenAI SDK involves configuring the API endpoint and authentication with an Amazon Bedrock API key. Users can build AI agents using frameworks that support the Amazon Bedrock API or OpenAI API, with deployment facilitated by Amazon Bedrock AgentCore. The OpenAI models are available in the US West (Oregon) region through Amazon Bedrock and in the US East (Ohio, N. Virginia) and Asia Pacific (Mumbai, Tokyo) regions via SageMaker JumpStart. Each model provides full chain-of-thought output capabilities for enhanced interpretability. They can be modified and customized to meet specific needs, and security measures are in place to ensure robust evaluation processes. Compatibility with the standard GPT-4 tokenizer is also included. For cost details, users can refer to the Amazon Bedrock and SageMaker AI pricing pages.

Tech Optimizer

August 5, 2025

Building a job search engine with PostgreSQL’s advanced search features

Job search platforms connect employers and candidates through advanced search engines that analyze structured and unstructured data. These platforms require robust database technologies for executing complex queries, full-text and semantic searches, and geospatial functionalities. A modern job search engine consists of a data repository that stores job listings and candidate profiles, and a search engine that facilitates bidirectional searches. Key features of an effective job search engine include: - **Full-text search**: Provides lexical matching for job titles and skills, supporting exact phrase matching and typo-tolerant searches. - **Semantic search**: Uses vector-based similarity to understand context and relationships beyond literal terms. - **Geospatial search**: Incorporates geographic considerations to find opportunities within specific distances. PostgreSQL serves as both a data repository and search engine, supporting full-text search, semantic search via the pgvector extension, and geospatial queries using the PostGIS extension. The job search engine utilizes PostgreSQL to manage job listings and candidate profiles, enabling real-time searches across millions of entries. The data model for a job search engine includes tables for jobs and resumes, with columns for full-text search vectors, semantic vectors, and geographical locations. PostgreSQL's full-text search capabilities include tokenization, dictionaries for language-aware parsing, and ranking functions for relevance. Advanced features such as proximity search, simple and weighted ranking, and fuzzy matching enhance search accuracy. Vector embeddings represent text in high-dimensional space, allowing for semantic searches that recognize similar roles or skills. PostgreSQL supports vector similarity searches with specialized indexing methods like IVFFlat and HNSW for efficient querying. Geospatial search capabilities in PostgreSQL enable location-aware job searches, allowing candidates to find jobs within commuting distances. Combining different search techniques, such as full-text and semantic searches, provides more relevant results. Performance optimization features in PostgreSQL address challenges related to computational complexity, indexing overhead, and concurrent query loads. The architecture discussed is applicable to various applications beyond job search platforms, including e-commerce, real estate, content recommendation systems, travel, and healthcare provider matching.

AppWizard

August 4, 2025

Huge news for base organisers and decorators, Minecraft’s next drop will add shelves

Players can expect new features in Minecraft, including shelves for item display and organization, crafted from various materials. Powered shelves can swap items simultaneously and connect for efficient management. The Copper Golem can now serve a decorative role, oxidizing into statues that hold poses, with the option to restore their functionality through waxing. These features are currently available for testing in the Bedrock Edition, with similar opportunities anticipated for Java players.

AppWizard

August 4, 2025

Let’s Play: Better on Bedrock

The latest update introduces a new user interface (UI) that enhances the gaming experience by transforming player interaction with the game environment. A new feature allows players to see a tooltip when hovering over any block, item, or mob, providing essential information such as the identity of the block or item, the appropriate tool required for interaction, whether the item can be harvested, and if it is a classic Minecraft feature or a new addition from the Bedrock is Better update. This enhancement helps players understand their surroundings better and appreciate the game's history.

AppWizard

August 3, 2025

Fix: “Skin Images Must Be 64×64 or 64×32 PNG Files” Error in Minecraft

Uploading a custom skin in Minecraft can result in the error message: “Skin images must be 64×64 or 64×32 pixel PNG files.” This indicates that the skin does not meet Minecraft’s requirements, which specify that skins must be either 64×64 or 64×32 pixels and in PNG format. Factors contributing to upload failures include using unofficial skin sources, incorrect file formats or dimensions, compatibility issues with different skin types, and temporary server problems. To troubleshoot skin upload issues: 1. Convert the image to PNG format using Paint by opening the file and saving it as a PNG picture. 2. Change skin dimensions to 64×64 or 64×32 pixels using a skin editor tool, verifying dimensions through file properties. 3. Disable the “Only Trusted Skins” setting in Minecraft Bedrock Edition to allow custom skins from non-official sources. 4. Convert the skin into a skin pack using the MCBuild Skin Pack Generator, ensuring the file is in PNG format and under 40KB in size. If problems persist, contact Mojang Support or check the official Minecraft bug tracker for ongoing issues.

AppWizard

July 30, 2025

Minecraft Goes Luxe with Swarovski’s Dazzling Figurines

Swarovski has launched a collaboration with Minecraft, creating crystal figurines of iconic characters Steve and Alex, as well as the Creeper and Pig. The collection is called “Your Adventures Crystallised.” Additionally, a “Crystal Suit” Character Creator item for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition is available, which can be redeemed by scanning a QR code on the packaging. The figurines are priced between EUR 280 and EUR 300 and are available in select Swarovski stores and online.