OpenAI releases GPT 4.1 models and Elon Musk should be terrified for Grok
OpenAI has just thrown a serious wrench into the AI landscape with the release of three new models: GPT-4.1, GPT-4.1 mini, and GPT-4.1 nano. They’re dramatic improvements over GPT-4o, raising the bar for what AI can actually do. If Elon Musk wasn’t already nervous about Grok falling behind, he probably should be now. In comparison, Grok is starting to look a bit… dusty.
At the top of the stack is GPT-4.1, which now dominates in critical areas like coding, long-context comprehension, and instruction following. This model scores 54.6 percent on SWE-bench Verified, a benchmark designed to measure real-world software development ability. That puts it well above GPT-4o and even higher than GPT-4.5, which it’s now set to replace. Developers relying on these models to generate accurate patches or edit large codebases are going to find GPT-4.1 a lot more practical.
Debian 12-based MX Linux 23.6 is the Windows 11 alternative of your dreams
You know what, folks? Sometimes, the best updates are the ones that don’t try too hard. That’s exactly the case with MX Linux 23.6. There’s no nonsense to be found here -- just a strong Linux distribution that continues to get better.
While Microsoft continues to push AI distractions and questionable design changes in Windows 11, MX Linux sticks to what matters: speed, stability, and letting the user stay in control. In fact, MX Linux 23.6 could truly be the Linux distribution of your dreams!
Illumio uses security graphs to identify threats
The idea of security graphs was floated last year by Microsoft to make it easier to identify risks across networks.
Today Illumio is one of the first to make commercial use of this idea with the launch of Illumio Insights, the industry's first cloud detection and response (CDR) solution powered entirely by an AI security graph.
Organizations fix under half of exploitable vulnerabilities
The latest State of Pentesting report from Cobalt reveals that organizations are fixing less than half of all exploitable vulnerabilities, with just 21 percent of GenAI app flaws being resolved.
It also highlights a degree of over-confidence with 81 percent of security leaders saying they are 'confident' in their firm's security posture, despite 31 percent of the serious findings discovered having not been resolved.
Kodi is finally fixing its Blu-ray playback nightmare
The Kodi foundation is looking to make major changes to how its popular home theater system handles Blu-ray playback, with the aim of making the experience as straightforward as playing a regular media file.
At the moment, Blu-ray support in Kodi involves three less-than-satisfactory options. As the team explains “Kodi can show the Blu-ray menu, with all the navigation overhead; you can ask to play the main movie, and Kodi will just take a guess and play the longest media item on the disc, which may or may not be what you want; or you can go into file view, and wander around until you find that the main movie is labelled as item 636 out of a list of ... well, lots.”
Quantum solution aims to secure communication using satellites
Today is World Quantum Day -- which probably means that it simultaneously both is and isn't. Seriously though, we're used to hearing dire warnings about how quantum computing threatens encryption and private communication, but of course it can also be part of the solution.
A new alliance between Partisia, a leader in multiparty computation (MPC), Squareroot8, a provider of quantum-safe communication solutions and NuSpace, a company specializing in IoT connectivity services and Satellite-As-A-Service wants to place a Quantum Random Number Generator (QRNG) on a satellite in space.
Microsoft says that an empty folder created by a system update increases Windows 11 security
Cast your mind back to just last week, and there was the usual chaos of problematic updates from Microsoft. But one of the more peculiar things about one of the updates was the creation an empty folder called inetpub after installing the KB5055523 update for Windows 11.
The appearance of this folder caused confusion, but failed to be explained by Microsoft. Users who were irritated by the folder materializing unbidden simply deleted it without side effects -- but now Microsoft has spoken out. The company says that the folder should not be deleted because it improves system security -- but leaves many questions unanswered.
How software engineering can tackle performance challenges [Q&A]
Software engineering organizations often grapple with challenges that hinder their output -- including productivity blind spots, duplicate work, deadlines that don't stand a chance, burnout, and other hidden costs that eat up time and energy.
And while metrics can signal a problem, they don't always uncover the root cause or -- more importantly -- how to fix it. To explore this, we spoke to Joe Levy, CEO of Uplevel, an engineering optimization system helping developers independently measure the ROI of AI adoption.
Meta finally updates Messenger to allow sharing larger files
Despite the popularity of WhatsApp and other messaging apps, Meta’s Messenger (or Facebook Messenger) maintains an incredibly healthy userbase. Millions of people continue to use this stalwart of social messaging even though it has various limitations when compared to its rivals.
But Meta has just addressed an issue that has irked users for a long time: the size of file attachments. For far too long, a file size limit of 10MB has been in place -- a limit that is way out of line with modern file sizes (although it was higher for some users). Now it has been increased.
Sony hikes PS5 price again but shockingly skips the USA
Sony has once again bumped up the price of the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition across several markets (Europe, Australia and New Zealand), citing economic challenges like inflation and unstable exchange rates. Starting April 14, gamers in some regions will have to pay more to get their hands on the digital-only version of the console. The price of the standard model with the disc drive is also going up in some countries, though not all. Curiously, despite Donald Trump’s confusing tariffs, one major country isn’t affected at all -- the United States.
In certain regions, the PS5 Digital Edition now costs €499.99 or £429.99, depending on where you live. Other places are seeing even steeper prices, hitting figures like AUD $749.95 or NZD $859.95. The standard version with a disc drive is also being adjusted in those same areas, sometimes hitting nearly NZD $950. The PS5 Pro, on the other hand, remains untouched. For now, at least.
Windows 7 Elite Edition fixes Microsoft's biggest Windows 11 mistake
Ever since Microsoft pulled the plug on support for Windows 7 in January 2020, many users have felt like something was missing. Known for its clean interface, reliability, and minimal bloat, Windows 7 struck a balance that newer versions of Microsoft Windows have struggled to replicate.
While Windows 10 and 11 have introduced modern features and visual updates, not everyone welcomes the shift, especially those who value simplicity and familiarity (and don't want AI features jammed in everywhere). For a lot of longtime Windows users, Windows 7 wasn’t just an operating system; it was the sweet spot in Microsoft’s design history, and its "end of life" marked the beginning of a long search for that classic experience in a modern shell.
Beyond words: What AI is really learning -- and what it knows that we never taught it
Imagine you had to finish every sentence in every book ever written -- with just your best guess of the next word. That’s how large language models (LLMs) like GPT-4 start learning.
LLMs use self-supervised learning, meaning they don’t need someone to label or explain the data to them. Instead, they learn by reading vast amounts of text from books, code, academic papers, Wikipedia (and its 57 million+ articles), Reddit forums, and news articles, in addition to billions of others, and then predicting what word comes next in a sentence -- over and over again.
From bland to beautiful: Seelen UI transforms Windows 10/11 into the OS it should be -- get it today!
If you’ve ever wished that Windows 10 or Windows 11 were a little less, well, boring, you’re not alone. Microsoft’s operating systems are functional, but they hardly wow in the design department.
Thankfully, Seelen UI is here to save the day. It’s a free tool that reimagines what a Windows desktop could look like and behave, providing users with everything they need to completely transform Microsoft’s OS. The customization features on offer allow you to craft a unique, stylish, and practical workspace.
Best Windows apps this week
Six-hundred-forty-two in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 and 11 on the Microsoft Store and elsewhere in the past seven days.
Microsoft released security updates for Windows this week that introduce a few new features to Windows 11 as well. The update creates a mysterious inetpub folder in the root drive next to that, which is empty and can be deleted.
Initial access brokers target mid-sized businesses for ransomware
Initial access brokers (IABs) are the invisible engine of modern cybercrime. They don't execute ransomware attacks, but they do enable them.
Research from Check Point External Risk Management (formerly Cyberint) shows that IABs are increasingly targeting smaller businesses, with 60.5 percent of listings targeting SMBs (companies with $5M - $50M revenue), representing a new 'sweet spot' for attackers.
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