Apple asked the European Union to scrap its landmark digital competition law on Thursday, arguing that it poses security risks and creates a “worse experience” for consumers. From a report: The US tech giant and the EU have repeatedly locked horns over the bloc’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which Brussels says seeks to make the digital sector in the 27-nation bloc fairer and more open. “The DMA should be repealed while a more appropriate fit for purpose legislative instrument is put in place,” Apple said in a formal submission to the European Commission as part of a consultation on the law.

[…] “It’s become clear that the DMA is leading to a worse experience for Apple users in the EU,” the tech giant said in a blog post accompanying its submission. “It’s exposing them to new risks, and disrupting the simple, seamless way their Apple products work together.”

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Australian indie game studio Team Cherry released Hollow Knight: Silksong on Sept. 4, and within three weeks, the combat/platformer climbed up Steam’s most played chart, made Xbox’s most played list, and gained legions of fans on Switch and PlayStation consoles. So a lot of people are playing it. If you’re one of them, and you’ve uncovered every secret in Pharloom (or you just need a break), here are 10 more games you might like.

They’re (roughly) all in the metroidvania family of games, so they feature 2D platforming, exploration of interconnected worlds, and unlockable upgrades that both open new-areas and add skills. But those seemingly narrow genre conventions can contain everything from the lighthearted comedy of Guacamelee! to the grim, dark world of Blasphemous 2.

Hollow Knight (2017)

If you went out of order and played the sequel first, you can still go back and check out the first game. Made by the same studio as Silksong, Hollow Knight offers a similar mix of platforming, combat, and exploration in the same universe as Silksong. If you’re into story, the lore revealed in Hollow Knight will almost definitely give context to everything in Silksong. Added bonus: while Hollow Knight is not an easy game by any definition, it has a more gentle learning curve than its sequel.

Hollow Knight is available on PC, Mac, Switch, Playstation, and Xbox systems.

Super Metroid (1994)

The metroidvania sub-genre is half-named for the Metroid series, so you gotta check out the blueprint. All of the Metroid games have their merit, but, in my opinion, the first entry in the series that totally gelled is 1994’s Super Metroid, an all-time classic originally released for the Super Nintendo. The controls can take a little getting used to for modern gamers, but Metroid invented the “exploration+combat+platforming” genre vibe, and it’s still a top-notch gaming experience, even for people who weren’t born when the original came out.

Super Metroid is playable on every Nintendo system, from the Super Nintendo to the Switch 2.

Castlevania: Circle of the Moon (2001)

The “vania” part of the metroidvania genre refers to the Castlevania series, so video game archeologists who like Silksong would be doing themselves a huge favor by checking out some Castlevania. But be judicious in your choices: some games in the series are amazing and some are…less so. You could make a case for many other Castlevania games, but Circle of the Moon is my pick if you like Silksong. It’s extremely challenging, features beautiful graphics (for 2001) and tons of secrets to uncover through open-world platforming, just like Hollow Knight: Silksong.

Circle of the Moon was re-released as part of the Castlevania Advance Collection (that also includes Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance, Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, and Castlevania: Dracula X) for Switch, PlayStation, Windows, and Xbox systems.

Animal Well (2024)

Enough moldy oldies! If your favorite parts of Silksong are the beautiful graphics, sweeping soundtrack, exploration, and deep lore, but you’re not so hot on the combat and punishing platforming, check out Animal Well, a metroidvania game that’s heavier on puzzles than fast reflexes. Animal Well is the kind of game you get deeply addicted to. It lures you in with beautiful visuals and a lighthearted vibe, but you’ll soon find yourself awake at three in the morning, trying to uncover every last secret this work-of-video-game-art is hiding.

Animal Well is available for Windows, Playstation, Xbox, and Nintendo systems.

Cuphead (2017)

Okay, Cuphead isn’t really a metroidvania game, but I’m including it here for people who crave the difficult platforming and punishing boss battles of Silksong, but don’t really care for the exploration. This universally beloved game features a vibe based on cartoons from the 1920s and 30s, and presents players with some of the hardest boss battles in video game history. Like Silksong, Cuphead looks so stylish you might not expect the difficulty, but downing bosses is crazy hard, though it rarely feels frustrating because it’s so satisfying.

Cuphead is playable on PC, Mac, Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch.

Ori and the Blind Forest (2015)

Both Ori and the Blind Forest and its sequel, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, are excellent follow-ups to Hollow Knight: Silksong. They look beautiful and offer the joy of exploration, combat using a myriad of constantly unlocking new powers, deep and engaging lore, and an extremely smooth progression from powerless nooblet to God-tier combatant.

You can play Ori and the Blind Forest on Switch, PC, and Xbox systems.

Cave Story (2004)

Back in 2004, Cave Story was envisioned as a throwback to the golden age of Nintendo platformers of the 1980s. The ensuing 20 years of gaming added an extra layer of nostalgia, but Cave Story totally works, no matter what era you play it in. Level design has rarely been done better, the story starts simple but moves in surprising directions, and the pixel art style still looks retro-fresh. The gameplay is more linear than the Hollow Knight games, but it still offers a world of hidden secrets to uncover, addictive platforming, and creative boss battles.

You can play Cave Story on PC, Mac, and Switch.

Islets (2022)

If you’ve just finished Silksong, your cramped-up hands could probably use a break. A bit of an undiscovered gem, Islets is an indie metrovania game with a cozy vibe courtesy of graphics that look hand-drawn, smooth-as-butter gameplay, an intriguing story, and memorable, hilarious characters. Many of the elements are shared across games, but Islets differs from Silksong in terms of mood and difficulty. Where Silksong is heavy on dark mystery, Islets is more charming, funny, and hopeful. It’s also a lot more forgiving if you have slower reflexes.

You can play Islets on PC, Switch, and Xbox systems.

Guacamelee! (2013)

Speaking of giving yourself a break, Guacamelee! is 180-degree tonal change Hollow Knight: Silksong. Inspired by Mexican folklore, Guacamelee! casts the player as a luchador saving a colorful world through beating up tons of bad guys. It nearly totally lacks the broody energy of Hollow Knight: Silksong, but the 2D platforming, skill-based progression, and exploration of interconnected world will be familiar.

You can play Guacamelee! on PC, Mac, Xbox, Playstation, and Switch systems.

Blasphemous 2 (2023)

If you want a game that’s darker than Hollow Knight: Silksong, Blasphemous 2 might be the download for you. Its Spanish Gothic visuals are a far cry from the colorful world of Hollow Knight, and its dark, religious tone and brutally visceral combat provides a nice contrast to Silksong’s cute vibe. Looks and tone-wise, Blasphemous 2 sits squarely on the “Castlevania” side of metroidvanias, but maybe the darkest of its many secrets is that it’s not as punishingly difficult as the Hollow Knight games.

You can play Blasphemous 2 on PC, Switch, Playstation, and Xbox consoles.

Apple has demanded Brussels scrap its landmark Big Tech legislation, marking a step up in US tech giants’ fight against European oversight.

The EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which entered into force in 2022, aims to curb the power of Big Tech and level the playing field for smaller rivals, with fines of up to 10 percent of global revenue for companies that do not comply.

Apple’s call to repeal the law comes at a time of transatlantic tensions over the EU’s digital rule book, including the DMA.

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A good outdoor floodlight camera is supposed to do two things: light your property and capture footage you can actually use. The Arlo Wired Floodlight Camera covers both at a fair price. It’s currently marked down to $99.99 on Amazon (regularly $149.99), and price trackers confirm this is the lowest it’s ever been.

Arlo Wired Floodlight Camera

$99.99
at Amazon

$149.99
Save $50.00

$99.99
at Amazon

$149.99
Save $50.00

What you get is a sturdy, weather-resistant housing with two dimmable LED lamps that pump out 2,000 lumens of brightness. The light alone makes it useful for backyards, driveways, or any dark spots around your home. Below the lamps, the built-in camera records sharp 2K video with a wide 160-degree field of view, so you’re not stuck with grainy or narrow footage.

Once you start using it, the camera’s mix of features becomes more obvious. The floodlights double as a trigger for color night vision, though there’s also infrared for black-and-white capture. Reviews note that daytime video looks crisp, with strong color detail, and night recordings, especially in black and white, maintain good contrast. The setup also packs features like two-way audio, an 80dB siren, and support for Alexa, Google, and IFTTT integrations, so it can slot into most smart home setups. That said, the Arlo Wired Floodlight Camera does not support Apple HomeKit, which could be a limitation if you’re deep into that ecosystem.

The bigger drawback is that while motion triggers recording, you’ll need an Arlo Secure subscription to actually save and review those clips. Without it, you’re limited to live viewing. With it, you unlock a 60-day video history, smart alerts that can tell whether a person, car, or package is detected, and activity zones to cut down on false alarms. The plan starts at $7.99 per month for one camera, but goes up from there if you want more coverage or monitoring.

Installation is another thing to keep in mind. This isn’t a battery-powered unit you can slap onto a wall with adhesive: It’s a wired floodlight that requires hooking into your home’s electrical system. Arlo’s app does include a QR code with step-by-step instructions, and some reviewers say it took them fewer than 10 minutes with the right mount. Still, if you’re not confident about cutting power and connecting wires, it’s safer to hire someone. If you’re comfortable with that and fine with paying for a subscription, this deal is pretty compelling for an outdoor home security camera with a floodlight.

There are plenty of rivalries in the US launch industry. People who build big and brawny machines tend to have egos to match. And if you chat up the senior executives of these rocket companies off-line, they are often more than happy to say derogatory things about their competitors.

But rarely are such sentiments expressed in public, without filter.

Chris Kemp, the chief executive officer of Astra, apparently didn’t get the memo about playing nice. Kemp made some spicy remarks at the Berkeley Space Symposium 2025 earlier this month, billed as the largest undergraduate aerospace event at the university (see video of the talk). He provided an overview of Astra’s successes and failures, and generally sought to make a good impression on prospective interns at the company, and future employees. The university is only a few miles away from the company’s Bay Area headquarters.

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Apple has long opposed the Digital Markets Act, which is pretty much expected for a Big Tech company. Now, a bit over a year after it came into force, Apple has asked the European Commission to repeal it, according to the Financial Times and Bloomberg. “The DMA should be repealed while a more appropriate fit for purpose legislative instrument is put in place,” the company has told the commission in its first public consultation to review the legislation. The EU’s Digital Markets Act, which was signed into law in 2022, aims to rein in Big Tech’s power and to improve competition for smaller players. If a company is found to have violated DMA’s rules, it could pay between 10 to 20 percent of its global revenue. 

In a blog post separate to the feedback it submitted to the Commission, Apple detailed how DMA affects its users in the EU. The company said that because the law requires it to make sure certain features work on non-Apple products, feature rollouts get delayed in the region. Its team has not found a way to securely bring iPhone Mirroring to non-Apple devices, for instance, because it requires a lot of engineering work. As a result, Apple has yet to release that feature, along with Live Translation via AirPods, as well as Visited Places and Preferred Routes on Maps, in the European Union. 

Apple also said that since the DMA requires it to allow sideloading, other app marketplaces and alternative payment systems, users in the region are exposed to more risks. They’re more exposed to things like fake banking apps and disguised malware, and they could also come across third-party payment systems that wouldn’t allow refunds. If you’ll recall, the European Commission slapped Apple with a $587 million fine in April for preventing developers from informing customers about sales and other offers outside the App Store. Apple called the penalty “unprecedented” and filed an appeal. 

“Regulators claimed the DMA would promote competition and give European consumers more choices,” Apple wrote in its post. “But the law is not living up to those promises… That’s why we’re urging regulators to take a closer look at how the law is affecting the EU citizens who use Apple products every day.” Even though the company is clearly against the DMA, it said it’s dedicating “thousands of hours” to bring features to the EU. A spokesperson for the Commission told the Times that it’s normal for companies to “need more time to make their products compliant” and that the Commission is helping them get there. “[C]ompliance is not optional, it’s an obligation,” the spokesperson added. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/apple-repeats-its-long-held-criticism-of-the-eus-digital-markets-act-130058440.html?src=rss

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YouTube’s end screens are useful for creators, but often annoying for viewers. They allow creators to insert links to other content during the last moments of the video. The issue, however, is those links appear as large on-screen elements that cover the video you’re watching. While many videos are basically over by this point, some are still going, and you might miss out on the final five to 20 seconds because of the end screen.

Now, YouTube is giving you a way to hide these screen—albeit, with a major caveat. The company announced the change on Wednesday, saying users will now see a “Hide” button on videos that contain and end screen. The Hide button will be in the top-right corner of the player, which you can click to dismiss the end screen and get back to watching your content. If you want to, you can bring back the end screen by clicking a “show” button.

While it sounds like a step in the right direction, this is not a setting that applies to all videos you watch on YouTube. Instead, it only applies to the individual video in question. As such, you’ll need to dismiss the end screen every time you watch a video that has one. This is an odd decision: You need to wait to hide the end screen when you see it, which means you only have five to 20 seconds left in your video anyway. You might even want to rewind the video if you didn’t click the Hide button in time. I’d appreciate having the option at the start of the video at least, but, more so, I’d like the option to dismiss end screens across the board. You only need to take a quick look at The Verge’s comment section on this topic to see I’m not alone.

YouTube says it made this decision based on user feedback, as they’ve heard viewers want to “minimize distractions on videos,” and to “focus on the content they’re watching.” The company is also removing the Subscribe button that appears when you hover over the video’s watermark, as there is already a subscribe option below the player.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Conversation: Twenty-one years after Facebook’s launch, Australia’s top 25 news outlets now have a combined 27.6 million followers on the platform. They rely on Facebook’s reach more than ever, posting far more stories there than in the past. With access to Meta’s Content Library (Meta is the owner of Facebook), our big data study analysed more than three million posts from 25 Australian news publishers. We wanted to understand how content is distributed, how audiences engage with news topics, and the nature of misinformation spread. The study enabled us to track de-identified Facebook comments and take a closer look at examples of how misinformation spreads. These included cases about election integrity, the environment (floods) and health misinformation such as hydroxychloroquine promotion during the COVID pandemic. The data reveal misinformation’s real-world impact: it isn’t just a digital issue, it’s linked to poor health outcomes, falling public trust, and significant societal harm. […]

Our study has lessons for public figures and institutions. They, especially politicians, must lead in curbing misinformation, as their misleading statements are quickly amplified by the public. Social media and mainstream media also play an important role in limiting the circulation of misinformation. As Australians increasingly rely on social media for news, mainstream media can provide credible information and counter misinformation through their online story posts. Digital platforms can also curb algorithmic spread and remove dangerous content that leads to real-world harms. The study offers evidence of a change over time in audiences’ news consumption patterns. Whether this is due to news avoidance or changes in algorithmic promotion is unclear. But it is clear that from 2016 to 2024, online audiences increasingly engaged with arts, lifestyle and celebrity news over politics, leading media outlets to prioritize posting stories that entertain rather than inform. This shift may pose a challenge to mitigating misinformation with hard news facts. Finally, the study shows that fact-checking, while valuable, is not a silver bullet. Combating misinformation requires a multi-pronged approach, including counter-messaging by trusted civic leaders, media and digital literacy campaigns, and public restraint in sharing unverified content.

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In the great technology gold rush of the 21st century, artificial intelligence (AI) is the motherlode. While giants like Google and Microsoft build the digital pickaxes and shovels, the race to equip the millions of prospectors—the small and medium businesses (SMBs) that form the backbone of the economy—is reaching a fever pitch. For years, this market has been a brutal slugfest between titans like Dell and Lenovo, a war fought over server specs and price points. But this week, Lenovo threw a devastatingly effective combination punch. With its new suite of IT infrastructure solutions, Lenovo has shifted the fight away from raw hardware and onto a battlefield of its own choosing: radical simplicity. This isn’t just a product launch; it’s a brilliant, multi-layered strategic ambush aimed squarely at Dell’s core business model, positioning Lenovo to become the default AI infrastructure provider for the SMB world.

The ‘Easy Button’ for the AI Revolution

The genius of Lenovo’s announcement lies in its profound understanding of its target audience. SMBs do not have armies of IT specialists, data scientists or procurement experts. They have a handful of over-extended people who need technology that simply works. The core of Lenovo’s new offering is the “Business Ready Infrastructure in a Box”—a concept so powerful it’s almost insulting in its simplicity. Instead of forcing a small business owner to navigate a dizzying array of server configurations, memory options and software licenses, Lenovo is offering pre-tested, pre-validated and pre-integrated solutions designed for specific outcomes.

Want to run modern apps at the edge of your business, like in a retail store or on a factory floor? There’s an “AI Edge-Ready Node” for that. Need to protect your critical data from ransomware? There’s a “Business Protection in a Box” bundled with industry-leading Veeam software. This is a direct assault on the traditional IT sales model, which often thrives on complexity and customization. Lenovo is effectively providing an “easy button,” removing the guesswork and specialized knowledge required to build a modern, AI-ready IT foundation. By bundling its reliable ThinkSystem servers with essential software from partners like Microsoft and Scale Computing, Lenovo isn’t just selling components; it’s selling confidence.

The Financial Coup d’État: TruScale vs. Traditional CAPEX

The second, and arguably more potent, weapon in Lenovo’s arsenal is its financial model. The biggest barrier for SMBs adopting new technology isn’t just complexity; it’s the massive, upfront capital expenditure (CAPEX). Traditionally, a growing business had to buy a server that was far more powerful than its current needs, hoping to one day grow into it—a risky and capital-intensive bet. Lenovo’s TruScale Infrastructure as-a-Service (IaaS) completely upends this model.

By offering a flexible, consumption-based subscription, Lenovo is allowing SMBs to treat their on-premise IT infrastructure like a cloud service. This shifts the cost from a crippling upfront purchase to a predictable operational expense (OPEX). Businesses can scale their services up or down as needed, paying only for what they use. This is more than just a pricing option; it’s a strategic advantage that removes financial risk and aligns the cost of technology directly with business growth. Lenovo’s case studies, citing 30% faster rollouts and a Brazilian company that tripled its performance, are powerful proof points. This financial flexibility is a killer feature for any CFO in the SMB space.

Outmaneuvering Dell: The Battle for the SMB AI Market

When you assemble these pieces, the strategic picture becomes crystal clear, and it has Dell squarely in its sights. For decades, Dell’s strength has been its direct-to-consumer model and its vast, highly customizable portfolio. It is the master of selling components. Lenovo’s new strategy is a textbook example of asymmetric warfare: it’s refusing to fight on Dell’s terms. Instead of competing on component specs, Lenovo is competing on complete, outcome-based solutions.

Where a business might go to Dell’s website and get lost in a sea of configuration options, Lenovo is offering a simple, curated menu. This approach is perfectly tailored to a market segment that values time and simplicity over granular control. The message is powerful: “Don’t worry about the ‘how’; just tell us the ‘what’, and we’ll give you a box that does it.” While Dell has its own APEX as-a-service offering, Lenovo’s current marketing and solution-bundling feels more aggressively and purposefully targeted at the specific pain points of smaller businesses. By creating an ecosystem with trusted names like Veeam and Microsoft, Lenovo is also positioning itself as a central, trusted partner, not just a hardware vendor. This builds a stickier, long-term relationship that is harder for competitors to disrupt.

Wrapping Up

Lenovo’s announcement is one of the most strategically significant moves in the IT infrastructure space this year. It’s a masterclass in understanding a customer segment and tailoring a multi-pronged attack that leverages product, finance and marketing in perfect harmony. By bundling pre-configured hardware and software into simple, outcome-driven “boxes” and wrapping it all in a flexible, cloud-like subscription model, Lenovo has created a deeply compelling offer for the millions of SMBs looking to step into the AI era. This isn’t just about selling more servers; it’s about fundamentally changing the conversation, and in doing so, it puts immense pressure on Dell and the rest of the market to respond or risk being left behind.

As many as 2 million Cisco devices are susceptible to an actively exploited zeroday that can remotely crash or execute code on vulnerable systems.

Cisco said Wednesday that the vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2025-20352, was present in all supported versions of Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE, the operating system that powers a wide variety of the company’s networking devices. The vulnerability can be exploited by low-privileged users to create a denial-of-service attack or by higher-privileged users to execute code that runs with unfettered root privileges. It carries a severity rating of 7.7 out of a possible 10.

Exposing SNMP to the Internet? Yep

“The Cisco Product Security Incident Response Team (PSIRT) became aware of successful exploitation of this vulnerability in the wild after local Administrator credentials were compromised,” Wednesday’s advisory stated. “Cisco strongly recommends that customers upgrade to a fixed software release to remediate this vulnerability.”

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