time zone Archives

AppWizard

September 4, 2025

Steam is down — live updates on massive outage as ‘Hollow Knight: Silksong’ launches

The launch of Hollow Knight: Silksong has caused significant traffic and service slowdowns on major gaming platforms, including Steam, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo eShop. Despite user complaints, there has been no official response from the platforms or Team Cherry. Reports of outages on Steam increased, with users facing difficulties in purchasing the game, although it is available on other platforms like Humble Bundle. Over 100,000 players logged in on Steam shortly after launch. Reviews for the game are currently unavailable as review codes were not distributed before release. As the day progressed, outage reports began to decrease, and Steam reported nearly 36 million active users, although performance remained slower than usual. The issues were primarily attributed to the overwhelming demand for the game, which launched at 10 AM ET.

Winsage

August 16, 2025

10 Windows features that would actually help productivity

Windows has been perceived as prioritizing corporate interests over user preferences, with persistent prompts for subscriptions and data collection through Microsoft accounts. In a recent interview, Pavan Davuluri, Microsoft's corporate VP of Windows + Devices, discussed a future vision for Windows that integrates voice, vision, and touch, but raised questions about user demand for these changes. Users have expressed a desire for specific features to enhance productivity, including: 1. Multiple clipboards for simultaneous content copying. 2. Two or three visible clocks in the taskbar for time zone management. 3. A fourth modifier key for customizable keyboard shortcuts. 4. The ability to remap all keyboard shortcuts. 5. A movable, resizable taskbar for better workspace control. 6. A firewall for audio to manage sound interruptions. 7. The ability to pin apps to specific screens on multiple monitors. 8. A feature to launch multiple related apps at once. 9. An easy audio device switching option on the taskbar. 10. A reduction in Microsoft-induced distractions and notifications.

AppWizard

August 5, 2025

Key Benefits of Hiring a Detroit-Based Android App Development Company in 2025

The mobile app market is experiencing significant growth in 2025, with Android holding over 71% of the global smartphone market share. The North American Android app development sector is projected to reach .31 billion by 2026, driven by increased smartphone adoption and a shift to mobile-first strategies. Small and medium-sized enterprises view mobile apps as essential for customer engagement and operational efficiency, with 87% recognizing their importance. Detroit has become a key player in mobile app development, benefiting from its strategic location in the Eastern Time Zone, which facilitates real-time collaboration with partners across North America. The city offers competitive tax incentives, lower operational costs, and a growing pool of tech talent, with major companies like Google and Microsoft establishing operations there. Local development teams in Detroit can engage in synchronous collaboration, enhancing decision-making and minimizing miscommunication. They possess a deep understanding of North American business practices and regulatory requirements, leading to better-designed apps that resonate with users. Engaging Detroit-based developers can be more cost-effective than offshore alternatives, as local teams typically complete projects 30-40% faster. The average cost to develop a medium-complexity Android app in Detroit ranges from ,000 to 0,000, significantly lower than in cities like San Francisco. Detroit's tech talent pool has expanded due to local universities and coding bootcamps, producing graduates specializing in mobile app development. The city attracts experienced developers seeking better work-life balance and lower living costs. Canadian companies benefit from Detroit's proximity and cultural similarities, facilitating partnerships and simplifying cross-border projects. U.S. development services are often competitively priced for Canadian businesses when considering quality. Detroit's Android app development firms are integrating advanced technologies such as AI, machine learning, and IoT into applications. The city's automotive industry expertise enhances development for connected vehicles and industrial IoT systems. Local development relationships focus on long-term partnerships, ensuring ongoing support and updates for applications. Proximity allows for regular communication and strategic planning, fostering better outcomes and stronger business relationships.

AppWizard

July 28, 2025

Grounded 2 launch times and release date

The early access release of Grounded 2 coincides with the 1.0 update for Abiotic Factor and the decorating experience in Tales of the Shire. Grounded 2 was unveiled during the Xbox Game Showcase in June. The launch times for Grounded 2 are as follows: Eastern Time (ET) at 12:00 PM, Central Time (CT) at 11:00 AM, Mountain Time (MT) at 10:00 AM, Pacific Time (PT) at 9:00 AM, and GMT at 4:00 PM. The full version of Grounded 2 does not have a specific launch date, but the previous game spent over two years in early access. Developer Obsidian Entertainment plans to release new content every four to five months, with updates expected to be longer and more substantial than those in the original game.

Winsage

July 22, 2025

7 Windows features I enabled that weren’t turned on by default

Windows 11 includes several features that enhance user experience, many of which need to be activated through the Settings app: - Nearby sharing: Enables file transfers between nearby PCs using Bluetooth and local network connections. Users can customize detection settings. - Storage Sense: Automates the cleanup process for unnecessary files, activating when storage is critically low, with options for scheduling cleanups. - Automatic time zone switching: Adjusts the time zone automatically when traveling, requiring location services to be enabled. - Wireless display: Allows modern laptops to serve as a second display using Miracast technology, which can be activated in the Settings app. - HDR: Enhances dynamic range for movies and games, but must be enabled in the display settings. - Night light: Reduces blue light emissions to alleviate eye strain, with customizable schedules. - Clipboard history: Allows users to save multiple copied items for easier pasting, activated by pressing Windows + V.

Tech Optimizer

July 8, 2025

How TimescaleDB helped us scale analytics and reporting

At Cloudflare, PostgreSQL and ClickHouse are used as primary databases for transactional and analytical workloads. PostgreSQL is preferred for product development due to its speed, versatility, and reliability, with hundreds of instances running in various configurations. ClickHouse, introduced in 2017, allows ingestion of tens of millions of rows per second with millisecond-level query performance but comes with trade-offs. The Digital Experience Monitoring (DEX) product was developed with a focus on simplicity and rapid shipping, utilizing a team of three engineers and collaboration with other teams. DEX's initial launch included fleet status logs uploaded every two minutes and synthetic tests with usage caps, leading to a successful MVP launch ahead of schedule. The architecture included an HTTP API, PostgreSQL for storing configurations, and a React UI in the Cloudflare Dashboard. PostgreSQL was chosen for analytics due to its ability to handle structured logs, with a table created for device state logs lacking a primary key but optimized with unique and standard indexes for common queries. The UPSERT query was used for data insertion, and the order of columns in multicolumn indexes was optimized for performance. After launching DEX, the system scaled to 1,000 inserts per second, leading to performance degradation. Precomputed aggregates were implemented to improve query performance, resulting in up to a 1000x improvement. Table partitioning was considered but ultimately not pursued due to its manual management requirements. TimescaleDB was explored as an alternative to enhance query performance, offering features like automatic partition management, continuous aggregates, and compression. A side-by-side comparison with PostgreSQL showed significant performance improvements, particularly for longer time windows. TimescaleDB's integration allowed for efficient data retention and aggregation, simplifying the infrastructure. Following the success of DEX, other teams at Cloudflare began using TimescaleDB for analytics and reporting, consolidating data from various sources and managing high ingestion rates effectively by optimizing data handling techniques such as switching to COPY for bulk inserts and adjusting replication settings.

AppWizard

July 8, 2025

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4: Release Date, Release Times, Early Access Details For Xbox & PC

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3+4 will be released on July 8th, 2025, for Deluxe Edition owners and on July 11th, 2025, for the standard edition, which will be available on Xbox Game Pass. Early access starts at 12am ET / 5am BST on July 8th and the official release for Xbox Game Pass users is at the same time on July 11th. The Deluxe Upgrade costs £18.00 and offers early access, bonus content including playable characters, additional songs, and exclusive items, but does not include the full game. The standard edition will be available at no additional cost for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass members.

AppWizard

June 25, 2025

Minecraft’s New Villains—This Hostile Mob Steals Everything

Cyber criminals are targeting Minecraft's player base, particularly the 65% of players under 21, who are often less aware of cyber threats. A recent report from Check Point reveals a sophisticated malware campaign that embeds malicious software in counterfeit Minecraft mods shared on platforms like GitHub. This malware operates in stages, starting with a Java downloader, followed by a stealer, and an advanced tool to harvest sensitive information such as passwords and cryptocurrency wallet details. The campaign is linked to Russian-speaking attackers and uses a distribution-as-a-service model to spread malicious links. Disguised as legitimate cheat tools, these files install additional malware on users' devices, capturing credentials from browsers and applications, and sending data back to attackers. To protect against these threats, it is advised to download mods only from trusted sources, be skeptical of cheat tools, keep antivirus software updated, and be cautious of offers that seem too good to be true.

AppWizard

June 6, 2025

How to watch the Summer Game Fest livestream

The Summer Game Fest will be live on Friday, June 6, 2025, at 2 PM Pacific Time, 5 PM Eastern, and 10 PM in the UK. It will be streamed on YouTube, Twitch, and Steam. The event will feature sponsors like 2K Games, Bandai Namco, Capcom, CD Projekt, Xbox, PlayStation, and Epic Games, with Hideo Kojima expected to appear. There will also be an in-person event for media representatives. Content related to SGF will be organized under the Summer Game Fest 2025 tag, with additional video content on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube.

AppWizard

May 12, 2025

Doom: The Dark Ages launch times, release date, and advanced access period

John Doomguy, also known as The Doom Guy or The Doom Slayer, is featured in the upcoming game Doom: The Dark Ages. The game will have staggered launch times, with advanced access for pre-order customers starting on May 12 in the evening for the Western Hemisphere and on May 13 for Africa and Eurasia. Those who did not pre-order will be able to access the game on May 14 in North and South America. Unlock times by time zone for Doom: The Dark Ages are: - 5 pm PT, May 14 (Los Angeles) - 8 pm ET, May 14 (New York) - 7 pm CT, May 14 (Chicago) - 1 am BST, May 15 (London) - 2 am CEST, May 15 (Berlin) - 10 am AEST, May 15 (Sydney) - 12 pm NZST, May 15 (Auckland) Advanced access launch times by time zone are: - 5 pm PT, May 12 (Los Angeles) - 8 pm ET, May 12 (New York) - 7 pm CT, May 12 (Chicago) - 1 am BST, May 13 (London) - 2 am CEST, May 13 (Berlin) - 10 am AEST, May 13 (Sydney) - 12 pm NZST, May 13 (Auckland) Preloading for Doom: The Dark Ages is available for PC users, allowing both advance access and standard pre-order customers to prepare for the game’s launch.