This is the Achilles heel of MS.
On the one hand they try to be backwards compatible it's almost a full circle.
On the other hand it's slowing down the implementation of new things and/or creating unwanted security issues that cannot really be resolved.
And for some reason Apple can get away with 6 or so years of hardware/OS support, but when MS does it it's hell on earth?
When Apple decided to move to their own processors, nobody was complaining about e-waste? So many Apple devices are going to be discarded soon because Apple is not supporting Intel hardware anymore.
And software creators are already moved away from the Apple/Intel combo for the most part.
- Run a good virus/thread scanner all the time and keep using the gray noodles up there.
If it's basic emailing & web browsing it would be fine for Win10 to run a little longer.
Most of the people who need more 'power' don't have PC's over 5 years old, so already on WIn11, or being able to switch.
You can upgrade to Gen5 NVMe SSD for cheap with this Crucial 2TB T710 deal by Sayan Sen
If you’re hunting for 2 TB of ultra-fast storage under $300, the Crucial T710 NVMe SSD for $280 is a great deal worth considering (purchase link under the specs table below).
This PCIe Gen5 ×4 M.2 2280 drive is said to deliver up to 14,500 MB/s sequential reads and 13,800 MB/s sequential writes, plus up to 2.2 million random read IOPS and 2.3 million random write IOPS throughputs, thus promising fast load times whether you’re gaming, editing 4K video, or working with large datasets.
The T710 uses Micron G9 TLC NAND flash to maintain performance consistency during sustained workloads, and thus has an endurance rating of 1,200 TBW (terabytes written) for the 2TB model we are talking about here.
Compared to last-generation PCIe Gen4 drives that top out around 7,400 MB/s reads and 7,000 MB/s writes, the T710 nearly doubles your bandwidth. In terms of features, it supports AES-256 encryption for data security and firmware optimized for DirectStorage to accelerate game asset streaming on Windows.
The single-sided PCB is 0.15 inches tall without the optional heatsink and 0.83 inch with it, and therefore should fit into almost any modern motherboard slot. As you know, adding a decent heatspreader is compulsory for PCIe Gen5 SSDs or else they throttle under sustained loads.
According to Crucial, it also draws about 25 percent less power than the T705 under similar workloads. The full technical specs of the Crucial T710 2TB are given below: Specification
Interface
NVMe (PCIe Gen5 ×4)
Form Factor
M.2 2280 (single-sided)
Sequential Read (1 MB)
14,500 MB/s
Sequential Write (1 MB)
13,700 MB/s
Random Read (4 KB)
2.2 million IOPS
Random Write (4 KB)
2.3 million IOPS
Endurance
1,200 TBW
MTBF
1.5 million hours
Encryption
AES-256 with TCG Opal 2.01+
DirectStorage
Microsoft DirectStorage-optimized firmware
Power Consumption
Up to 8.25 W under load
Dimensions (without heatsink)
3.15 × 0.87 × 0.15 in
Dimensions (with heatsink)
3.15 × 0.92 × 0.83 in
Get the Crucial T710 at the link below:
Crucial T710 2TB Gen5 NVMe SSD, +Acronis Software - CT2000T710SSD8-01: $279.99 (Sold and Shipped by Amazon US)
This Amazon deal is US-specific and not available in other regions unless specified. If you don't like it or want to look at more options, check out the Amazon US deals page here.
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Children are forming emotional bonds with AI chatbots, report says by Paul Hill
AI chatbots are rapidly becoming a fixture in children’s digital lives thanks to their integration into platforms kids already use such as search engines, games, and social media. A report from the internet safety organization, Internet Matters, has found that two-thirds of kids in the UK, between the ages of nine and 17 in the UK, have used AI chatbots; usage has significantly grown in the last 18 months.
The most popular chatbots used by children, according to the Me, Myself and AI report, were ChatGPT (43%), Google Gemini (32%), and Snapchat’s My AI (31%). The group of kids that were more likely to AI chatbots (71%) were vulnerable children, this is compared to 62% of non-vulnerable peers. Vulnerable kids were nearly three times as likely to use companion bots such as Character.ai and Replika.
The rise of AI among children is similar to the rise of social media back in the 2000s. One difference is that governments seem a bit more on top of things with AI and have pushed companies to focus on AI safety with most bots including guardrails - though, they’re not perfect.
We are frequently told that AI is a tool to speed up your work, but children (as well as adults) are using AI in more emotional ways such as for friendship or for advice. The report states that a quarter of the kids had gotten advice from bots and a third said that chatting to AI feels like talking to a friend. Again, these numbers rise to half among vulnerable children.
Among all the kids, quite a large one in eight use AI chatbots because they have nobody else to talk to. This figure rises to one in four among vulnerable kids. One of the most concerning aspects of AI use is that children may get inaccurate or inappropriate responses - 58% of the kids asked think that using an AI chatbot is better than manually searching for information on Google, bringing up concerns that it’s being overly relied upon.
User testing found that Snapchat’s My AI and ChatGPT sometimes provided explicit or age-inappropriate content. It also found that filtering systems could be bypassed by users, potentially exposing kids to information they shouldn’t have access to.
The report cites experts who warn that as AI gets more human-like, children may spend more time interacting with them, especially those that are more vulnerable. This could lead to them becoming more emotionally reliant on these bots, which could be unhealthy.
One of the expected, but concerning, points is that children are often left to explore AI chatbots on their own or with limited input from adults. While most of the kids had been spoken to about AI by their parents, specific concerns had not been explained like the accuracy of AI-generated information - only a third of parents had discussed accuracy, despite two-thirds of parents wanting to.
Additionally, despite children supporting the idea of schools teaching them about AI chatbot use, including risks like inaccuracy, over-reliance, and privacy, just 57% of kids reported speaking with teachers or their school about AI. Just 18% had multiple conversations about the matter.
To address the issues, the report calls for a system-wide approach that involves industry, government, schools, parents, and researchers to safeguard children. It said that industry needs to provide parental controls and literacy features, and the government needs to ensure regulations keep up with the technology.
For schools, the report says AI and media literacy should be embedded at all key stages, teachers need to be trained on AI, and there should be guidance on appropriate AI use. Parents need to be supported to guide their child’s AI use and have conversations about AI, when to use it, and when to seek real-world support. Image via Depositphotos.com
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