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AppWizard

June 10, 2025

Russia’s State Duma passes bill to create state messaging app as it considers blocking WhatsApp

The Russian State Duma has approved a bill to create a state messaging application, coinciding with discussions about potentially blocking messaging platforms like WhatsApp. The app is intended to enhance government service accessibility and improve information security. Key features include integration with state databases, identification and payment processing capabilities, legal equivalence for documents submitted through the app, and inclusion of educational services. The Russian government will choose a company to develop the app. This legislative move follows previous restrictions on foreign social media platforms, including the blocking of Facebook and Instagram in March 2022 and Viber and Signal in 2024. Roskomnadzor is also considering similar restrictions for WhatsApp, owned by Meta, which is labeled as an "extremist organization" in Russia. Additionally, YouTube has faced throttling of speeds, initially attributed to technical issues but later confirmed by lawmakers to be intentional.

Tech Optimizer

June 10, 2025

Why Instacart Moved to Postgres & pgvector to Boost Semantic Search

Instacart serves 14 million daily users and manages billions of products, necessitating advanced search capabilities that go beyond keyword matching to understand user intent. The search system must reflect real-time inventory changes, leading to significant workloads on the database. Instacart transitioned from Elasticsearch and FAISS to a hybrid architecture using Postgres and pgvector, improving search performance and reducing write workloads by tenfold. This normalization allowed for better storage of machine learning features and improved flexibility. Moving compute closer to storage with NVMe resulted in a twofold increase in search performance. Instacart's migration to pgvector eliminated data duplication and operational complexity, enhancing search quality and user satisfaction, evidenced by a 6% decrease in searches with zero results.

BetaBeacon

June 10, 2025

Download Candy Crush Saga (free) for Windows, Android, APK, iOS and Web App | Gizmodo

Candy Crush Saga is a popular game that can be downloaded for free and played without spending any money. It is available on major platforms such as Android, iOS, and Facebook. The game is convenient, provides specific tasks for each level, and offers a rhythm of gameplay. It also has level building, little pushes on what to do, and can be soothing with its music, animations, and colors. There are alternatives to Candy Crush Saga such as Matchington Mansion, Homescapes, and Disney POP TOWN for those who enjoy puzzle games with nice graphics and smooth mechanics.

AppWizard

June 9, 2025

How to Turn Off Meta AI Features on Facebook, Instagram or WhatsApp

Meta AI, integrated across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp, does not provide a straightforward way to disable it entirely. Users can minimize its influence by following specific steps: - On Facebook, users can disable AI-generated comment summaries in the “audience and visibility” section of the “settings” tab. - In Messenger, users can mute Meta AI through the “information” tab by clicking the “i” button and selecting the mute option. - On Instagram, users can mute Meta AI by clicking the Meta AI logo, accessing its information page, and toggling the mute option. - In WhatsApp, users can mute notifications from Meta AI by selecting the AI icon and adjusting notification settings. European users have a form available on Facebook’s help page to object to their data being used for training purposes. In 2024, the European privacy group NOYB filed complaints against Meta AI in 11 countries regarding data usage. Although Meta paused its training plans for nearly a year, it resumed in April 2025, notifying EU users and providing an opt-out form. Meta AI utilizes user-generated content from its platforms for training, raising privacy concerns, especially for users outside the EU who cannot opt out of data collection.

Winsage

June 9, 2025

Microsoft: Remedy for security vulnerability due to deleted “inetpub” folder

A recent Microsoft security update has created a new folder named "inetpub" on Windows systems, which is essential for system security. If users delete this folder, it can lead to significant vulnerabilities. Microsoft has released a Powershell script, Set-InetpubFolderAcl.ps1, to restore the "inetpub" folder and set the correct permissions. Systems that installed the April security update (KB5055528) must take immediate action if the "inetpub" directory is missing. The script also updates access rights for the "DeviceHealthAttestation" directory, if it exists. Administrative rights are required to run the script. This issue was highlighted by IT security researcher Kevin Beaumont, who noted that deleting the "inetpub" folder could disrupt the installation of future security updates.

AppWizard

June 7, 2025

Here’s how to watch the Future Games Show Summer Showcase

The Future Games Show Summer Showcase will feature over 50 upcoming games and will be live on June 7 at 1 pm PT/4 pm ET/8 pm GMT. It will be hosted by Matthew Mercer and Laura Bailey. The event will include world premieres, exclusive game demos, developer interviews, and trailers for various titles. Featured games include Directive 8020, Herdling, Crisol: Theater of Idols, and The Finals. The showcase will be available on platforms such as Twitch, YouTube, X, Facebook, TikTok, GamesRadar, Steam, PC Gamer, IGN, Gamespot, BiliBili, Ginx TV, and ESR. Localized subtitles will be provided in multiple languages, and viewers on YouTube can access ASL and BSL. An exclusive Twitch Drop for The Finals will be available for those who watch on the Future Games Show Twitch channel for over 15 minutes.

AppWizard

June 6, 2025

Natwest is down? Users report issues with banking app and mobile login

Reports of issues with the NatWest app emerged on DownDetector around 8:45 AM today, with many users experiencing problems primarily related to mobile banking and login functionalities. Customers reported their frustrations on X (formerly Twitter), highlighting difficulties accessing their accounts. The NatWest Help account acknowledged a technical issue affecting the app and stated that their team was addressing the situation urgently.

AppWizard

June 6, 2025

PC Gaming Show 2025: How to watch and what to expect

The PC Gaming Show is scheduled for Sunday, June 8 at 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. BST. It will feature over 70 games from various publishers and can be viewed on platforms such as Twitch, YouTube, X, Facebook, PC Gamer, GamesRadar+, GOG.com, Ginx.tv, Steam, and Bilibili. An on-demand version will be available for later viewing. Confirmed titles include: - Win ‘The Rig’: A chance to win a custom-built gaming PC. - Kaizen: A Factory Story: A sandbox automation puzzler. - All Systems Dance: A rhythm-driven narrative adventure. - Mycopunk: A customizable co-op shooter. - Ultrakill: The world premiere of Layer 8, a retro FPS. - Paralives: A life simulation game for designing homes and characters. - Pigface: A fast-paced FPS. - Lost Rift: A survival and extraction first-person shooter. - Poncle’s next surprise: Not Vampire Survivors, details to be revealed during the show.

AppWizard

June 6, 2025

PC Gaming Show returns June 8 — here’s when and how to watch the show

The PC Gaming Show will take place on Sunday, June 8, 2025, at 3 PM Eastern and 12 Noon Pacific time, featuring over 70 game reveals, world premieres, and exclusive trailers. It will be live-streamed on platforms including YouTube, Twitch, X/Twitter, Facebook, Steam, Bilibili, and GOG.com. A PC build giveaway will also be part of the event, with details on how to enter provided during the show.

AppWizard

June 5, 2025

Lilo & Stitch North America Box Office: Soon To Join A Minecraft Movie, Becoming 2nd Hollywood Film Of 2025 To Cross This Milestone!

Disney's live-action adaptation of Lilo & Stitch has earned 2.73 million at the North American box office within 12 days of release. On its twelfth day, the film grossed .5 million, a 60.37% increase from the previous day. It is close to crossing the 0 million threshold in the domestic market and has a total worldwide box office collection of 7.26 million, with 4.52 million from overseas markets.