employment Archives

AppWizard

August 12, 2025

Android on trial

Google has approached the Supreme Court regarding an antitrust case that could significantly impact India's digital economy, particularly concerning its dominance over the Android operating system and the requirement for app developers to use Google's payment systems, which can impose commissions of 15-30%. The Competition Commission of India (CCI) found Google to be a dominant entity, concluding that its practices constituted abuse of power, resulting in a penalty of ₹936 crores. Google appealed this decision, leading to a reduced penalty of ₹217 crores from the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), which did not classify Google as a "gatekeeper." Google has since filed additional appeals with the Supreme Court, which is set to hear the case in November. A study on Indian farmers revealed that extreme heat, with temperatures exceeding 43°C, significantly impacts their livelihoods, leading to increased food insecurity and undernutrition. While average calorie consumption remained stable, the incidence of "strong undernutrition" rose, affecting approximately 3 million individuals. The study found that extreme heat forces families to seek non-farm employment and adapt their food sources, often leading to a decline in job retention and increased vulnerability due to limited access to credit. The findings suggest that climate change is exacerbating challenges in Indian agriculture, necessitating policy interventions to enhance resilience and support affected households. India's cabinet approved a one-time ₹300 billion payout to state-run fuel retailers to compensate for losses from selling subsidized LPG. Tata Motors reported a 63% year-on-year drop in Q1 consolidated profit, while Nayara faced scrutiny over Russian oil imports. The Supreme Court upheld a ruling classifying telecom towers as movable property, providing tax relief for telecom companies. Tesla India signed a nine-year lease for a showroom in Delhi, marking its expansion into the Indian market.

AppWizard

August 6, 2025

McDonald’s says its focus on value — and a must-have Minecraft meal — boosted second-quarter sales

McDonald’s has increased its sales in the second quarter by focusing on value and innovative offerings, particularly through the introduction of the McValue menu in January, which has revitalized customer traffic in U.S. locations. The McValue menu allows customers to purchase one item for when they buy a full-priced item, attracting a diverse clientele. Despite this success, the company faces challenges from declining traffic among lower-income consumers, particularly those with household incomes of ,000 or less, with double-digit declines noted during the April to June period. In April, McDonald’s launched a meal tied to “A Minecraft Movie” in 100 countries, marking its largest global campaign, and the associated collectible figures sold out in less than two weeks. The introduction of new chicken products has also increased chicken market share across McDonald’s ten largest markets. In contrast to competitors like Yum Brands and Chipotle, McDonald’s reported a 5% revenue increase to .8 billion for the April to June period, with same-store sales rising nearly 4%. Net income for the second quarter increased 11% to .9 billion, with adjusted earnings of .69 per share meeting Wall Street expectations.

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 2, 2025

From Pixels To Paychecks: How Minecraft Is Launching Gen Z’s Careers

Minecraft has sold over 350 million copies, making it the best-selling video game of all time. Colin McDonald, who started playing Minecraft at age 13, now leads a software development company called Moonsworth, which has created a popular modpack for the game. Many players have turned their passion for Minecraft into successful careers, including operating servers and creating YouTube channels. The Minecraft Partner Program, initiated in 2017, has generated over 0 million in revenue and rewarded 43 partners with payouts exceeding million. Players are developing problem-solving, technical, and entrepreneurial skills through Minecraft, leading to a shift from a degree-based economy to a skills-based one. Lauri Lifljandski, founder of WiseHosting, credits his programming skills and entrepreneurial spirit to his experiences in Minecraft, highlighting the game's role in fostering resilience and creativity.

AppWizard

July 23, 2025

Google Play, Android ecosystem generated ₹4 lakh cr. in revenue for Indian app publishers in 2024: Google

On July 23, 2025, Google announced that its Play and Android ecosystem generated ₹4 lakh crore in revenue for app publishers and the economy in 2024, creating approximately 35 lakh jobs. India has the second largest number of active developers on Google Play, contributing over 10 lakh developer jobs. Surveys indicate that 72% of Indian users accessed the internet for the first time via an Android device, with 85% using Android phones as their primary gateway to digital public services. The open-source nature of Android has led to estimated savings of ₹25,200 crore in development and operational costs. At the Google I/O Connect India 2025 conference, Google introduced initiatives such as localizing data processing for Gemini 2.5 Flash, new AI tools in Firebase Studio, a training program with Unity, and partnerships with start-ups from the India AI Mission. Google is also working with BharatGen at IIT Bombay to develop Automatic Speech Recognition and Text-to-Speech models for Indic languages.

AppWizard

July 23, 2025

Google Play, Android fuel Rs 4 lakh crore app revenue, economy boost in India during 2024: Report

A report by Public First estimates that Google Play and Android generated Rs 4 lakh crore in revenue for app publishers and the Indian economy in 2024. The digital economy in India is one of the largest and fastest-growing globally, driven by smartphone adoption, affordable data, and a vibrant developer ecosystem. The combined ecosystem of Google Play and Android contributed to the creation of over 35 lakh jobs in 2024. India has over 10 lakh developer jobs, with nearly 79% of Indian app developers serving overseas users. Indian developers achieved a total of 720 crore app downloads from the Play Store, including 600 crore from domestic users and 120 crore from international users.

Tech Optimizer

July 2, 2025

CompTIA State of the Tech Workforce 2025 released, Meta joins Kotlin Foundation, Percona launches Transparent Data Encryption for PostgreSQL

CompTIA's State of the Tech Workforce 2025 report shows a 1.2% growth in the tech workforce in 2024, totaling 5.9 million professionals, with projections of reaching 6.1 million by 2025. California, Texas, New York, Florida, and Virginia are the leading states in tech employment, while Texas, North Carolina, Florida, New Jersey, and Tennessee have seen the most growth. Major cities with advancements in tech job opportunities include New York City, Orlando, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, and Baltimore. Meta has joined the Kotlin Foundation to promote Kotlin within its development ecosystem and will contribute to a grants program for open-source library authors. Percona has launched an open-source Transparent Data Encryption extension for PostgreSQL, allowing organizations to secure data at rest without licensing fees or vendor lock-in. The extension supports deployment without application changes, multi-tenant environments, control over encryption strategies, and centralized key management.

AppWizard

June 26, 2025

This month 25 years ago in PC gaming, our biggest concerns were pro gaming, moral panics about violent games… and we still thought Halo was a PC exclusive

In June 2000, PC Gamer UK highlighted the emerging world of esports, featuring professional gamers Amir Haleem and Sujoy Roy, who had earned significant prize money and were considering transitioning to full-time gaming careers. The magazine suggested that gaming could become a viable profession, drawing parallels to sports figures like David Beckham. By 2025, Haleem became CEO of a blockchain company, while Roy led partnerships at OG esports, reflecting the evolution of professional gaming careers amid ongoing concerns about sustainability and burnout. The 2000 Channel 4 Dispatches documentary 'Video Nasties' sparked debates about violent video games, claiming they could influence players' perceptions of real-world situations. Anticipation for Team Fortress 2 was high, with promises of innovative gameplay elements, while Bungie's Halo was initially expected as a PC-exclusive but was designed for console controls. The summer of 2000 saw few notable game releases, with The Longest Journey receiving modest reviews. Additionally, Bluetooth technology was beginning to gain traction in the market, although its use in competitive gaming was met with skepticism.

AppWizard

June 26, 2025

Intel is making another round of layoffs

Intel is reducing its workforce, with approximately 107 employees affected at its Santa Clara headquarters, as indicated by a WARN notice. The company plans to cut 15 to 20 percent of its workforce in the chip manufacturing division. This decision is part of a broader strategy for future growth, aiming to become a leaner and more efficient company. Intel has set goals to cut operating costs by billion in the 2025 financial year and an additional billion in 2026.

AppWizard

June 20, 2025

Report: The Chinese Room has laid off small number of staff

The Chinese Room has reportedly reduced its workforce, with about ten employees seeking new job opportunities, although the studio has not confirmed the layoffs or the number of affected employees. Studio Director Ed Daly stated that more information about the studio's situation will be shared in the coming weeks. The studio, acquired by Sumo Digital in 2018, recently developed the Siren's Rest DLC for Still Wakes The Deep and took over the development of Paradox's Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 in 2023. Sumo Group has undergone significant changes, shifting back to a work-for-hire model and experiencing departures of its founders and several developers. Speculation exists regarding the future of The Chinese Room, including the possibility of a sale.