stan616’s 77-day build could have ended in disaster at any time
YouTuber Spends 77 Days Building One Piece’s Marineford In Minecraft On Hardcore And It Looks Awesome
Monthly Archives: February 2026
Firefox 148 adds master switch for browser bot bother
While Thunderbird 148 improves MS Exchange support and sign-on securityIt’s not the only new feature in Firefox 148 yet one thing is very definitely the big news: the global off switch for its AI features that the company announced earlier this month is now included.…
LG Opens Preorders For Its Massive 52‑Inch 5K2K 240Hz Gaming Display
If you’ve been waiting for LG to release its bodacious 52-inch UltraGear Evo G9 gaming monitor, then we have good news to share. After being announced in December just ahead of CES, this monstrous display is now available to preorder, just make sure your desk is big enough to support it. If not, add a larger desk to your shopping list while
In Overwatch, Mercy Is Winning In Skins And Losing In Everything Else
The hero shooter’s soft reboot is making healbotting a pain in the ass
systemd 260-rc1 Released: New “mstack” Feature, System V Service Scripts No Longer Supported
The first release candidate of systemd 260 is now available for testing. Systemd 260 finally does away with System V service scripts support. Also notable to systemd 260 is the work around the new “mstack” feature…
Come Face to Face With the Best Nature Photography of the Year
Nature really has a lot to say, if we’re willing to take a closer look.
“Miracle of science”: New Santini Aero Race jersey uses fabric made from captured CO2
Santini’s commitment to sustainability has previously seen it switch to recycled materials and compostable packing. But now it’s taking a step into the future with a fabric that is made from CO2 emissions.
The new Santini Aero Race cycling jersey, which will officially launch in April, features Polartec’s new Power Dry Carbon fabric. This uses carbon capture technology to compress CO2 emissions from steel mills into polyester fibres.
Explaining the tech at the COREBike trade show, Santini’s Jonathan Sangan said the process was a “miracle of science”, and that the fabric’s credentials extend beyond being good for the environment.
“That [process] creates an extremely lightweight fabric, but also an extremely breathable fabric with a lot of UV protection”, Sangan said.
Official details about the Polartec fabric have not been released yet. But the name suggests it will be a version of the company’s Power Dry base layer material, which is said to quickly wick moisture away and to be comfortable against the skin.
Polartec is not the first to use carbon capture to create polyester materials. Companies such as Fairbrics, Craghoppers and LanzaTech are already using the technology to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
LanzaTech has worked with brands such as LuLuLemon and On, which released its first collection using the technology in 2023.
Santini uses Polartec’s Power Dry Carbon fabric for the new jersey’s front and rear panels, while it uses a ribbed aero fabric for the sleeves and across the upper back.
The jersey will cost £160, putting it at the premium end of the market. But Sangan says the fabric should trickle down to lower price point kit in the coming years.
Alongside the standard Aero Race, there will be a limited edition Mads Pedersen version as part of Santini’s forthcoming collaboration with the Lidl–Trek rider.
The collaboration will also launch in April and is said to have an aesthetic that expresses Pedersen’s “grit and distinctive style”.
This is the most recent example of cycling products using more environmentally friendly materials from Polartec.
In 2024, Santini released the Magic rain jacket which uses Polartec’s PFAS-free and waterproof Power Shield RPM fabric.
Last year, Castelli released the new Perfetto jacket which uses Polartec Aircore – another PFAS-free fabric which is said to be lightweight, breathable, windproof and water repellant.
Santini’s Mads Pedersen collection is set to launch at the end of April and is said to be “dedicated to aerodynamics and speed”. The Italian clothing company is the official apparel supplier to Lidl–Trek, Pedersen’s cycling team.
More from COREBike
Microsoft Japan Raided Over Suspected Violation of Anti-Monopoly Law
An anonymous reader shares a report: Japan’s Fair Trade Commission raided Microsoft Japan’s offices on Wednesday as part of an investigation into whether it improperly restricted customers of its Azure platform from using rival cloud services, a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
The source said Japan’s antitrust authorities would also be seeking clarification from Microsoft’s parent company in the United States. Microsoft Japan is suspected of setting conditions that effectively shut out other services by limiting access to popular services on other cloud platforms, the source said.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Sub-Scheduler Support Could Be One Of The Most Exciting Features To Come For Linux 7.1
While there are many great Linux 7.0 features with that still-young development cycle, looking ahead to Linux 7.1 this summer there’s an interesting feature on track: cgroup sub-scheduler support for sched_ext…
Resident Evil Requiem Is The Best-Reviewed Main Entry In Over 20 Years
The last time a mainline Resident Evil game did this well according to Metacritic was in 2004
NASA’s Historic Moon Mission On Hold Amid Unexpected Artemis Rocket Issue
The ground at Kennedy Space Center began to hum yesterday evening as the crawler-transporter lurched into motion, beginning the slow, four-mile journey to return the Artemis II Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft to the Vehicle Assembly Building. This rollback (for repairs to the rocket) will add another significant delay
Trump’s MAHA influencer pick for surgeon general goes before Senate
Casey Means, President Trump’s nominee for surgeon general, will appear before the Senate Health Committee on Wednesday and is likely to face scrutiny over her qualifications for becoming the country’s top doctor.
Though Means holds a medical degree from Stanford Medical School, she dropped out of her medical residency and holds no active medical license. Instead, she has pursued a career as a wellness influencer, embracing “functional” medicine, an ill-defined form of alternative medicine. She co-founded a company called Levels, which promotes intensive health tracking, including the use of continuous glucose monitoring for people without diabetes or prediabetes, which is not backed by evidence.
Last year, an analysis by The Washington Post found that Means earned over half a million dollars between 2024 and 2025 from making deals with companies described as selling “diagnostic testing,” “herbal remedies and wellness products,” and “teas, supplements, and elixirs.”
Kioxia Targets Flagship Phones With Blazing-Fast 10.8GB/s UFS 5.0 Storage
Faster storage is en route to future high-end smartphones and other mobile devices, and it’s coming in the form of UFS 5.0 chips based on the next-generation of Unified Flash Storage protocol. JEDEC is still in the process of standardizing UFS 5.0, but in the meantime, Kioxia said it is already sending out evaluation samples to chipset vendors
Some Sims 4 Players Are Quitting After A Mysterious Bug Turns All Their Family Photos Black
“EA killed this franchise.”
[$] No hardware memory isolation for BPF programs
On February 12, Yeoreum Yun posted a
suggestion
for an improvement to the security of the kernel’s BPF implementation: use
memory protection keys to prevent unauthorized access to memory by BPF
programs.
Yun wanted to put the topic on the list for discussion at the Linux
Storage, Filesystem, Memory Management, and BPF Summit in May, but the
lack of engagement makes that unlikely. They also have a patch set implementing
some of the proposed changes, but has not yet shared that with the mailing list.
Yun’s proposal does not seem likely to be accepted in its
current form, but the kernel has
added hardware-based hardening options in the
past, sometimes after substantial discussion.
Tadej Pogačar and Met team up to release two ‘ethereal’ helmets
The jury might be out on whether he’s the greatest of all time, but few would argue that Tadej Pogačar isn’t one of the most captivating cyclists to watch. His long distance attacks and super-human efforts, which appear to leave his competitors wheezing, often beg the question, how on earth is he doing that?
That’s the spirit Met aims to capture with its new collection of limited-edition Tadej Pogačar helmets, released today.
Pogačar and Met, which provides helmets to his UAE Team Emirates XRG squad, have collaborated on special versions of the Manta aero helmet and the Trenta 3K Carbon.
The two helmets feature an iridescent finish, which is described as “ethereal as the rider who inspired it” and “leaning into the idea of the ultimate flow – the dream state where effort fades yet speed increases.”
A more relatable experience might be for effort to fade and speed to drop with it, but there’s no denying the appeal of Met’s flight of fancy. After all, who doesn’t want days when “performance comes easy”?
You’re probably better off spending your money on a coach than a helmet if you’re after improved performance, but if these World Champion-inspired lids do appeal then the Manta costs £250 / $350 / €280 and the Trenta 3K Carbon will set you back £390 / $540 / €440.
Met launched the Trenta 3K Carbon last year after Pogacar was spotted using it at the 2025 Tour de France.
The Venta 3K Carbon has an integrated carbon wing which is said to eliminate the need for EPS foam from the internal frame, which facilitates a “continuous internal air channel”.
This contributes to Met’s claim that the Venta 3K Carbon is its most ventilated road helmet, but the brand has still optimised it in the wind tunnel for aero performance. The helmet has a MIPS liner and Virginia Tech awarded it a full five stars.
Met launched the Manta aero helmet in 2024, and it’s said to be more aerodynamic than its predecessor thanks to a lower and “tupe-shaped” profile at the rear. Despite being an aero helmet it still features 15 vents to cool your head and keep you comfortable. The Manta also has a MIPS liner.
The Amusement Demo Impressions: An A-Maze-ing Premise With Weak Roomscale
The Amusement shows a lot of potential as a narrative puzzler, but its implementation of roomscale movement may push players away early in the demo.
Roomscale VR games are becoming a rarity these days as the realities of limited play spaces and VR ‘epic fail’ videos may have softened developer interest in these types of experiences. That hasn’t stopped recent efforts like Hotel Infinity, Laser Dance, and Eye of the Temple from offering up terrific gameplay. When done right, a roomscale game is some of the most immersive time spent in VR.
The Facts
What is it?: A roomscale narrative puzzle adventure
Platforms: Steam (played on Quest 3 via Virtual Desktop)
Release Date: February 23, 2026 (part of Steam Next Fest)
Developer: Curvature Games
Publisher: ARTE France
Price: free (demo only)
Enter The Amusement, a narrative adventure with environmental puzzles and the promise of a poignant family story. The Amusement utilizes roomscale movement with an optional teleportation system. It starts out well enough in a confined room with items to pick up, observe, and add to inventory. Then it quickly proceeds to the bulk of the demo, a zig-zag of a garden maze with thin paths that were painful to navigate with the movement system as currently designed.
I played The Amusement demo twice. First, in a limited play space with teleportation, a cumbersome exercise limited by a snap-only turning system without an option to change the size of the turn angle. This was not ideal by any stretch and made the garden maze section quite annoying to play through. I don’t recommend it.
Then, I rearranged my room to get a completely open space and the maze still feels too constricted. Unlike the aforementioned Laser Dance & Eye of the Temple where you are constantly ducking, dodging, and otherwise navigating obstacles, in The Amusement I just walked a few steps, turned, walked a few more, wash, rinse, repeat until you reach a tube with a wheel to rotate into another part of the maze. If you accidentally walk into an object, the screen simply blacks out, telling you to reposition.
It is immersive. It’s just not interesting and fails to capitalize on being roomscale in the same way the aforementioned games do. I hope that in the full release, there will be more open areas with environmental pieces to interact with that really take advantage of the 1:1 movement. The maze is roughly half of the demo’s runtime, so in this short sample size, it sticks out more than it likely will in the full release.
Comfort
The Amusement uses roomscale 1:1 movement with an option for teleportation instead. At the time of this article, snap turn is the only stick turn method with no option to adjust the turn angle. The game has a vignette effect for turning and climbing that can be turned off in settings.
This game involves climbing, which may be problematic for new VR users.
It’s a real shame too because the simple process of walking through the world is the only real flaw in an otherwise strong demo. The lead character, Samantha, has been sent by her mother to investigate her late father’s amusement park. The story is delivered through a combination of cardboard cutout animations, shadows cast against the walls of the world, and voiceovers all befitting the cinematics of the 1920s, the setting for the game. This very effectively evokes the sense that Samantha is reliving her complex childhood memories as the story moves along.
The Amusement screenshots captured by UploadVR
The puzzles themselves make great use of VR. Navigating the garden maze to find an item that could be used as a makeshift ladder rung and using a yo-yo of all things to move between rooms is very creative and rewards thinking outside the box.
PC Specs
This demo was played on Steam using a Meta Quest 3 and Virtual Desktop on the Ultra preset. The game itself was played on the default graphics settings.
My PC has an RTX 5070 Ti with 16GB of VRAM, a Ryzen 5 5600X processor, and 64GB of DDR4 RAM.
The more I played, the more I was reminded of both Eye of the Temple and The 7th Guest VR. The Amusement combines the physical movement (climbing and navigating) of the former with the environmental, sometimes tabletop-based puzzle solving of the latter.
Despite the roomscale movement not really adding anything to the experience, The Amusement demo is still well worth playing. If you enjoy story-based puzzle games and have been waiting for a new one after last year’s stellar Ghost Town, this is one to watch.
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The Amusement story scene captured by UploadVR
The Amusement can be wishlisted now on Steam and Meta Quest and is slated for a Spring 2026 release.
TECHNO Concept Reimagines Android Phones With Swappable Modular Components
TECNO has peered into the future and now believes that modular smartphones are the way to go. Previewed ahead of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) show next week, TECNO has revived a modular concept ecosystem where ones like Google’s Project Ara faltered. By combining an ultra-thin 4.9mm base handset with a suite of magnetic, hot-swappable modules,
Resident Evil Requiem: The Kotaku Review
Capcom’s horror series has perfected its shooting and scares, but fumbles in taking the next step forward
Microshift’s $195.55 Advent MX is its toughest groupset yet with 6x longer cassette life and 4x faster engagement
Microshift has unveiled the new Advent MX drivetrain, which is said to be its most robust, high-performance mountain bike groupset to date.
Designed for trail and all-mountain riding, Advent MX pairs a wide-range 11-50t or 11-48t cassette with a redesigned rear derailleur, updated trigger shifter and what the brand calls its strongest clutch mechanism to date.
The groupset is offered with either a 10-speed or 11-speed cassette, with the brand claiming they last six times longer than Advent X.
Microshift also promises better shifting engagement that’s four times faster, and improved chain retention thanks to a horizontal parallelogram layout and beefed-up clutch.
The groupset is priced at $194.99 / €195.99 for the 10-speed variant, with the XD Driver 11-speed option $244.99 / €239.99.
We tested the drivetrain before launch, so check out Luke Marshall’s review below.
Beefed-up body
Microshift says Advent MX’s design brief was simple: shifting performance doesn’t matter if your chain falls off.
To achieve this, the brand has beefed up the rear derailleur with a horizontal parallelogram that moves strictly sideways.
This is said to isolate vertical and horizontal forces, directing impacts from rough landings into the clutch mechanism rather than disturbing the derailleur body’s alignment.
The clutch has been redesigned to be both stronger and quicker to engage, operating instantly and silently.
IGUS bushings feature in the derailleur construction, and a replaceable derailleur cage is available on the standard MX rear derailleur, enabling riders to swap a damaged cage rather than replacing the entire derailleur
However, the MX Black version does not feature a replaceable cage.
Faster engagement
Microshift says it has removed “dead play” from the shifting mechanism, resulting in four times quicker engagement compared to Advent X.
The new trigger shifter is designed for tighter, more repeatable actuation, with 12mm of lateral adjustment at the clamp. This enables you to move the shifter inboard or outboard to fine-tune lever position without interfering with the brake controls.
A cable-redirection pulley on the derailleur provides a more direct cable path, reducing friction and shifting tension.
According to Microshift, this lower friction enables the use of a stronger clutch without increasing lever effort at the shifter.
The result, says the brand, is a faster response even under high torque – useful when attacking steep, unplanned climbs on your eMTB.
SpeedRamp cassette
At the heart of the system are two new cassettes featuring what Microshift calls SpeedRamp technology.
Microshift claims the new cassettes last six times longer than Advent X, and in high-torque ebike durability testing, says it outlived a competitor’s top offering.
The smallest cogs are individually replaceable, which should help extend service life further.
Chromoly steel sprockets are from 11-28t, with additional hardening on the smaller cogs.
Despite the durability focus, the cassette is claimed to weigh 480g, which Microshift says is competitive among high-durability, wide-range options.
For the first time from Microshift, the cassette is offered in both HG and XD Driver body options – so it will be swappable between bikes already using SRAM or Shimano drivetrains.
10-speed and 11-speed options
Advent MX is available in both 11-speed and 10-speed configurations.
The 11-speed cassette is fully compatible with Shimano CUES cassettes, although the shifter and derailleur are Microshift-specific.
Advent MX 10 is compatible with 10-speed chains and is fully cross-compatible with Advent X and Sword 10, enabling incremental upgrades.
MX and MX Black rear derailleurs share the same cable-pull ratio as Advent X, making them direct replacements from a compatibility standpoint.