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Policymakers warn levies could increase inflation and unemployment in threat to US central bank’s mandate View the full article

A reader writes: I am currently looking for a new job because I am currently being taken advantage of … again (being given more and more work because I am skilled enough I handle it, but no pay increase so underpaid for my experience and the world we live in right now). So pay is the main factor for me in this job search. My first instinct is to just completely ignore the job postings without the pay listed because I don’t want to waste my time. A job may look perfect but if it’s for the same amount I’m making now (or less!) or not that much more, I don’t care what it is. (I also don’t care what it is if the pay is right. If I think I can do it, I’m applying.) But with no way of knowing right off the bat, why bother? Is that a mistake? Potentially, because some of the jobs that don’t list what they pay could turn out to pay enough that you’d consider them. On the other hand, you’re not wrong that it’s a waste of time to apply for jobs that don’t pay enough. So ultimately this comes down to whether you feel like you’re getting enough interviews from your current strategy or not. If you are, then great — no need to change anything. But if you’re not happy with how your job search is going — or, maybe, if a job looks really interesting to you — play around with applying anyway, and then ask about pay early on. In fact, it’s reasonable to ask about the pay as soon as you’re invited to interview. When a company reaches out to set up an interview, you can say, “I’d love to talk more. Before we confirm an interview time, can you share the salary range for the position? It wasn’t listed in the ad, and I don’t want to take up your time if we’re not in the same ballpark.” Not every company will give you a straight answer to that, but a lot will. (And fortunately it’s no longer considered an outrageous faux pas to ask, like it weirdly used to be.) If they won’t tell you, you have the option of saying, “I’d need at least $X to move from my current job. Knowing that, does it make sense to move forward?” Not everyone wants to do this because naming a number first means potentially giving up some of your negotiating power later, but given your particular set of priorities (where you’d consider passing up the job altogether otherwise), there’s an argument for doing it. The post should I ignore job postings that don’t list the salary? appeared first on Ask a Manager. View the full article

Artificial intelligence (AI) is upending the economic engine of the web, and Google is at the center of the disruption, according to Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince. What Prince said. In a recent interview with the Council on Foreign Relations, Prince said: “AI is going to fundamentally change the business model of the web. The business model of the web for the last 15 years has been search… search drives everything that happens online.” The Google tipping point. Google’s value exchange with content creators has collapsed, Prince said: “Ten years ago… for every two pages of a website that Google scraped, they would send you one visitor. … That was the trade. … Now, it takes six pages scraped to get one visitor.” That drop reflects the rise of zero-click searches, which happen when searchers get answers directly on Google’s search page. “Today, 75 percent of the queries… get answered without you leaving Google.” This trend, long criticized by publishers and SEOs, is part of a broader concern: AI companies are using original content to generate answers that rarely/never drive traffic back to creators. AI makes the problem worse. Large language models (LLMs) are accelerating the crisis, Prince said. AI companies scrape far more content per user interaction than Google ever has — with even less return to creators. “What do you think it is for OpenAI? 250 to one. What do you think it is for Anthropic? Six thousand to one.” “More and more the answers… won’t lead you to the original source, it will be some derivative of that source.” This situation threatens the sustainability of the web as we know it, Prince said: “If content creators can’t derive value… then they’re not going to create original content.” The modern web is breaking. AI companies are aware of the problem, and the business model of the web can’t survive unless there’s some change, Prince said: “Sam Altman at OpenAI and others get that. But… he can’t be the only one paying for content when everyone else gets it for free.” Cloudflare’s right in the middle of this problem — it powers 80% of AI companies and a 20-30% of the web. Cloudfaire is now trying to figure out how to help fix what’s broken, Prince said. AI = money fire. Prince is not against AI. However, he said he is skeptical of the investment frenzy. “I would guess that 99% of the money that people are spending on these projects today is just getting lit on fire. But 1% is going to be incredibly valuable.” “And so maybe we’ve all got a light, you know, $100 on fire to find that $1 that matters.” The full quote. “AI is going to fundamentally change the business model of the web. The business model of the web for the last 15 years has been search. One way or another, search drives everything that happens online. And if you look back 10 years ago, if you did a search on Google you got back a list of 10 blue links. And we have data on how Google processed those 10 blue links. And the answer was that for every two pages of a website that Google scraped they would send you one visitor, right? So scrape two pages, get one visitor. And that was the trade. Over that period of time of the ten years some things have changed at Google. One thing that hasn’t changed is the crawl rate. They’re still scraping at the exact same rate that they have over that period of time. But now it takes six pages scraped to get one visitor. What’s changed? The answer is that today, 75 percent of the queries that get put into Google get answered without you leaving Google, get answered on that page. So if you want to ask, when did David Rubenstein start Carlyle? About 10 years ago it would take you to maybe a Wikipedia page or something else. Today, the answer comes up right on the page, and you don’t have to go anywhere else. The consequence of that means that original content creators that are creating that content, if they were deriving value through selling subscriptions or putting up ads, or just the ego of knowing that someone is reading your stuff, that’s gone, right? That’s has fallen off a cliff. And that’s the good news. So it was 2:1 10 years ago for Google. It’s 6:1 today. What do you think it is for OpenAI? 250:1. What do you think it is for Anthropic? 6,000:1, right? And so the business model of the web can’t survive unless there’s some change, because more and more the answers to the questions that you ask won’t lead you to the original source, it will be some derivative of that source. And if content creators can’t derive value from what they’re doing, then they’re not going to create original content. And I think the smartest AI companies out there, Sam Altman at OpenAI and others, get that. But at the same time, he can’t be a sucker. He can’t be the only one paying for content when everyone else gets it for free. And so something has to change with that business model. And we sit in between 80 percent of the AI companies use Cloudflare, similar—you know, 20 to 30 percent of the web uses Cloudflare. And so we sit in the middle of that. And I think part of what we’re thinking about is that. In terms of, is AI a fad, is it overhyped? I think the answer is probably yes and no. I would guess that 99 percent of the money that people are spending on these projects today is just getting lit on fire. But 1 percent is going to be incredibly valuable. And I can’t tell you what 1 percent of that is. And so maybe we’ve all got a light, you know, $100 on fire to find that one dollar that matters.” The interview. Bernard L. Schwartz Annual Lecture With Matthew Prince of Cloudflare View the full article

Senior executive says tech group is looking at start-up options for iPhone and Safari browserView the full article

Labour seeks to show voters it is getting to grips with number of foreigners coming to work in BritainView the full article

Netflix is rolling out a redesign to its TV app, which subscribers will see beginning on May 19. The update is intended to make it easier to find and choose content you actually want to watch rather than endlessly scrolling through the service's library. What's new on the Netflix TV appWhen your Netflix interface updates, you'll find the navigation bar always visible at the top of the screen. There are shortcuts to Search, Shows, Movies, Games, and My Netflix, and a centralized hub for Continue Watching, My List, and Remind Me. The back button on your remote will take you directly to the navigation bar. Tiles for each piece of content will be much larger and show title details—such as whether it was recently added (or is leaving soon) or has won awards, as well as the synopsis, runtime, and key cast members—up front. The app will also provide more responsive recommendations in real time as you browse based on trailers you watch, titles you thumbs up or down, and searches. Netflix will also highlight live events at the top of the home screen. The new features are rolling out globally to most TVs and TV streaming devices over the course of a few weeks, so if you don't see it on May 19, it's likely coming soon. Netflix is also refreshing the mobile app experience, with a vertical video feed of clips and trailers. Users can tap to watch the full version of the show or movie, add it to My List, or share it. The company has been testing an OpenAI-powered feature on iOS that provides recommendations based on conversational phrases describing your mood, so you can search for content using terms other than specific titles, actors, and genres. Initially available only to select users in Australia and New Zealand, this will roll out as an opt-in beta more widely this week. View the full article

ChatGPT leads the AI search market with an 80% share, while traditional search engine use reportedly declines. The post ChatGPT Leads AI Search Race While Google & Others Slip, Data Shows appeared first on Search Engine Journal. View the full article

Two sides are far apart with only fortnight until post-Brexit ‘reset’ summit in London View the full article

You can’t go long these days without hearing the word “tariff,” and for most of us, just hearing it induces anxiety. Family budgets, already a challenge, are going to get a lot more difficult once the predicted price increases and shortages kick in—one study predicts that these new tariffs will cost American households an average of $3,800 this year alone. If you’re determined to avoid tariff surcharges, you’ve got your work cut out for you—especially when it comes to groceries. About 15% of our food supply is imported, but that number doesn’t necessarily account for food that is sourced domestically but uses imported ingredients. And some staples, like coffee or bananas, are almost exclusively imported. But if you’re hoping to avoid tariffs on your grocery bills, you have a few slim options to explore. AlbertsonsAmidst all the warnings of rising grocery prices, there’s been one hint of good news: Grocery giant Albertsons announced in late March that it wouldn’t tolerate automatic price increases from its suppliers due to tariffs. It’s explicitly framed as a policy designed to keep prices at their current levels. That doesn’t mean there won’t be any price increases—Albertsons clarified that it would take increases under consideration, but its suppliers would have to basically apply to raise their prices, and the company would consider whether to grant the request. But Albertsons already sources about 90% of its products domestically (though this doesn’t mean ingredients or other components that might be affected by tariffs aren’t included in those domestic products), so this policy could have some real impact on prices. The good news here is that Albertsons is huge. They operate more than 20 supermarket chains, including Safeway, Acme, Carrs, and Balducci's Food Lovers Market—a total of more than 2,200 stores across the country. You can see a full list of chains owned by Albertsons here to see if there are locations near you. Other strategiesIf you’re not close to an Albertsons store and are still determined to void tariffs as much as possible, you have few other options: Shop local. Buying as many groceries from farmer’s markets and other direct sources will avoid most tariff price increases, though farmer’s markets tend to be slightly more expensive than grocery stores in the first place, so you might not save that much money by going that route. Selective shopping. You can also continue to shop at your local supermarket but pay closer attention to the import status of the items you buy. While you probably won’t find much domestic coffee in your grocery store, there are many items that aren’t imported and thus should avoid most tariff-driven price increases. This can be laborious, and since domestically-made products can still suffer from tariffs if they include imported ingredients or packaging there’s no guarantee you’re evading higher prices by looking for a “made in the USA” designation. It’s going to be difficult to avoid tariff price increases unless you live near an Albertsons grocery store, at least for the time being. Until more grocery chains follow their lead (or Albertsons rescinds the policy under pressure from their suppliers) that’s your best bet for avoiding the tax. View the full article

A reader writes: Over the past year, I have been coaching my employee, “Mike,” on various performance issues and it has gotten to the point that we need a formal performance improvement plan. I don’t think this should be a surprise to him, but I’m getting the impression that he does not really understand how serious it is. We have very different communication styles. I prefer to be direct and detailed. Mike tends to use generalizations and can take a long time to think and gather his thoughts before answering a question. I’ve been working on softening my approach and asking clarifying questions to make sure we are on the same page, but things still get lost in translation sometimes. I have a great manager who is working with me on the PIP and helping to coach Mike. She is incredibly encouraging and took the lead on the conversation to let him know we were going to make a plan. The thing is, I’m worried that he only heard that we want to work with him to get him whatever tools he needs to be more organized and additional training. I have not noticed any improvement or efforts to find solutions from Mike, and I don’t want him to feel blindsided and shut down when we deliver the actual plan and deadlines. Are these conversations usually positive? I was expecting to go back over where his performance is falling short and ask what would help him so we can set up an achievable plan. Should I check in with him or just wait? I answer this question — and two others — over at Inc. today, where I’m revisiting letters that have been buried in the archives here from years ago (and sometimes updating/expanding my answers to them). You can read it here. Other questions I’m answering there today include: Job candidate didn’t turn his camera on Do I really need to take calls from work on my honeymoon? The post will my employee be blindsided by an improvement plan? appeared first on Ask a Manager. View the full article

The latest TikTok trend is leading to fire evacuations at schools across Connecticut. As part of the trend, students are filming themselves inserting items such as pencils, paper clips, and push pins into the charging ports of their school Chromebooks to set them on fire. Why? For a laugh and a brief break from schoolwork. One such “tutorial” gained 1.5 million views on TikTok before being removed, showing a student pushing a lead pencil into the back left corner of the port. “You might have to wiggle it a bit,” the user explained. Another student tried to film a “how-to” video last week, managing to cause a laptop fire and triggering an evacuation at Newington High School, as reported by WDBJ7. Since Monday, both Derby High School and Cromwell High School have experienced similar incidents. “On Thursday, I was alerted by both my director of security and high school principal that we had a Chromebook that was smoking,” Maureen Brummett, superintendent of Newington Public Schools, told NBC Connecticut. She further explained that after an investigation, it was clear that the damage to the laptop was “done intentionally” rather than being a result of a malfunction, and that students would be held accountable for replacing the school equipment. “Chromebooks are expensive and they’re going up in price, so when a student does intentionally destroy a Chromebook, it’s their responsibility to replace it. We have an insurance program, but it’s not covering intentional damage,” she added. DJ Zordon, a Newington fire marshal, described arriving at the scene to find a room filled with smoke. “We did see video from students… and that’s one of the biggest things. The batteries that are essentially catching on fire, once they burn, they’re producing this toxic smoke,” Zordon told NBC Connecticut. For those thinking about participating in the trend, the consequences go beyond just a damaged Chromebook. “The school has to be evacuated, firefighters respond to the firehouse and subsequently to the scene, and it takes resources away from any other emergencies that might be happening at that time,” Zordon added. While no injuries have been reported, when batteries like those in laptops catch fire, there is a risk of explosion, which could lead to burns or injury from flying shrapnel. Investigations are ongoing across the schools, and warnings have been issued to students and their families. Maybe this is one trend to skip. View the full article

Unlike Middle Eastern kingdoms, the US is a debtor nationView the full article

When I asked experts for their #1 PPC tip for beginners (see my introduction to search ads), many said it’s smart to focus on keywords that are less popular, more specific, and cheaper. This guide will help you find those…Read more ›View the full article

LinkedIn just released its 2025 Grad Guide highlighting the fastest-growing cities, industries, and job titles for new workers with and without a bachelor’s degree. A variety of industries and professions made the list. However, the new data offers a few surprises when it comes to what grads and non-grads are pursuing most often, with many non-grads heading into careers that once required college degrees—and many graduates in fields that don’t. When it comes to where young professionals are moving post-college, the Sun Belt states, including Tucson, Dallas, Tulsa, Knoxville, and Chattanooga, are turning into hot locations for new graduates to get to work. Entry-level non-grads are heading to big cities more often. San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, New York, Boston, Miami, and D.C. all made the list. But so did a few smaller hubs like Detroit and Orlando. Entry-level workers without a degree joining a variety of industries, with the fastest-growing fields being customer service, education, and real estate. Notably, financial services, a field which has typically required a college degree, is also on the list, meaning young professionals are breaking into the field in other ways that don’t involve four years of formal education. Marketing seems to be hugely popular for non-grads, too. It shows up three times on the list of the fastest-growing entry-level jobs, meaning marketing skills can be learned outside of a four-year college—perhaps by tech-savvy Gen Zers leaning into skills they learned by coming of age with social media at their fingertips. Non-grads are more frequently becoming marketing specialists, social media marketing specialists, and marketing coordinators. College grads are also joining a variety of industries, including in fields that don’t traditionally require a college degree. Case in point: Number one on the list of fastest-growing fields is construction. Real estate, utilities, wholesale, and administrative services were all growing fields for college graduates, too. Perhaps least surprisingly, new grads are leaning into technology, with artificial intelligence engineers landing as the fastest-growing job on the list. View the full article

A hearing Wednesday before Nevada’s high court could provide the first public window into a secretive legal dispute over who will control Rupert Murdoch’s powerful media empire after he dies. The case has been unfolding behind closed doors in state court in Reno, with most documents under seal. But reporting by The New York Times, which said it obtained some of the documents, revealed Murdoch’s efforts to keep just one of his sons, Lachlan, in charge and ensure that Fox News maintains its conservative editorial slant. Media outlets including the Times and The Associated Press are now asking the Nevada Supreme Court to unseal the case and make future hearings public. The court is scheduled to hear arguments in the afternoon in Carson City, the capital. Murdoch’s media empire, which also includes The Wall Street Journal and New York Post, spans continents and helped to shape modern American politics. Lachlan Murdoch has been the head of Fox News and News Corp. since his father stepped down in 2023. The issue at the center of the case is Rupert Murdoch’s family trust, which after his death would divide control of the company equally among four of his children — Lachlan, Prudence, Elisabeth and James. Irrevocable trusts are typically used to limit estate taxes, among other reasons, and can’t be changed without permission from the beneficiaries or via a court order. Rupert Murdoch has attempted to alter the trust, however, and Prudence, Elisabeth and James have united to try to stop that. James and Elisabeth are both known to have less conservative political views than their father or brother, potentially complicating the media mogul’s desire to keep Fox News’s political tone. The dispute has had many twists and turns, including a probate commissioner ruling against Rupert Murdoch in December. In a 96-page opinion, the commissioner characterized the plan to change the trust as a “carefully crafted charade” to “permanently cement Lachlan Murdoch’s executive roles” inside the empire “regardless of the impacts such control would have over the companies or the beneficiaries” of the family trust, according to the Times. Adam Streisand, a lawyer for Rupert Murdoch, told the newspaper at the time that they were disappointed with the ruling and intended to appeal. Another evidentiary hearing is scheduled for this month. —Associated Press View the full article

Summer brings sunshine, vacations, outdoor concerts—and the inability to leave your house without accidentally spending 20 bucks. Your budget is never a truly fixed thing. It changes with the state of the economy (hello, tariffs), your paycheck, and even the changing of the seasons. With a bit of planning, you can enjoy all the summer season has to offer without the financial stress. Here are my hacks to create a practical summer budget that lets you make the most of these warmer months without breaking the bank. Plan around events, not calendar datesOne of the biggest summer budgeting mistakes is thinking in terms of months rather than specific activities. Instead of creating a general "July budget," break down your summer into the actual events you plan to attend: Family beach vacation Wedding weekend Local festivals Holiday celebrations Back-to-school shopping By organizing your budget around specific events, you can allocate funds more precisely and avoid the "where did my money go?" feeling at the end of the month. Set a weekly "spontaneous spend" capSummer weekends often bring impromptu invitations—a backyard BBQ where you need to bring something, a last-minute beach day, or an outdoor concert you just heard about. Rather than letting these spur-of-the-moment activities derail your budget, create a dedicated "spontaneous spend" allowance each week. Whether it's $30 or $100, having this pre-approved fun money gives you the freedom to say "yes" to unexpected opportunities without guilt, while still maintaining financial boundaries. Embrace "themed" savings accountsI've said before that dividing your money into multiple accounts helps you see all your saving goals separately, so they’ll be easier to track. Similar to cash stuffing (where you can only spend money in a certain category from its designated envelope), this approach forces you to be more intentional and disciplined about where your money is going. Create separate digital envelopes or savings accounts for your major summer expenses: summer travel, kids' camp costs, recurring happy hour appointments, and so on. Most online banks let you create multiple savings buckets at no extra cost. By keeping these funds separate from your regular checking account, you'll resist the temptation to dip into your vacation money for everyday expenses. Implement the 24-hour rule for summer purchasesWhen temperatures rise, so does impulse spending on seasonal items like new patio furniture, outdoor gear, or summer fashion. Combat this by instituting a 24-hour waiting period for any non-essential purchase over $50. Often, the cooling-off period reveals that you don't actually need that inflatable pool flamingo or designer sunglasses. For larger purchases, extend this to a 48-hour or even 72-hour rule. Create a summer-specific meal planFood costs typically increase during summer months due to social gatherings, vacation eating, and, you know, the temptation of ice-cream trucks. Some ways you can combat this: Planning picnic-friendly, portable meals that work for beach days or park outings Researching grocery stores at your vacation destination and planning a "first day" shopping trip Setting a specific "dining out" budget for vacation days Taking advantage of seasonal produce that's cheaper during summer months A summer-focused meal plan acknowledges that your eating patterns change with the season while keeping food expenses in check. Plus, it gives you an excuse to get into some new recipes! Check out my colleague Allie Reinmann's tips for making the most of summer berries, or whipping up a budget-friendly summery shrimp roll. Audit your subscription services before vacationsBefore heading out on summer trips, take inventory of your subscription services. Are you paying for streaming services you won't use while traveling? Consider pausing memberships like: Gym memberships Meal kit deliveries Beauty box subscriptions Digital subscriptions you won't have time for Many services offer pause options rather than full cancellations, making it easy to temporarily reduce monthly expenses during your heaviest travel periods. Build in budget buffer zonesEven the best budget needs flexibility, especially during summer. As you're estimating travel costs and setting spend caps, add a 15% buffer. Gas prices, summer storms, and all other kinds of unexpected costs always emerge. This buffer creates financial breathing room and prevents minor overages from snowballing into major budget problems. The bottom lineSummer should be about creating memories, not financial stress. A little preparation now means you can focus on sunshine and fun later—without the looming dread of post-summer credit card bills. Remember that the best summer budget isn't necessarily the tightest one, but rather the one that aligns with your priorities and gives you permission to enjoy what matters most to you this season. View the full article

Paris hopes Chancellor Friedrich Merz will bring new dynamism to European defence projectsView the full article

For example, let’s say your brand gets 20,000 searches in a month, and your three main competitors get 15,000, 10,000, and 5,000 searches, respectively. The total branded search volume in your category is 50,000. To calculate your share of search:…Read more ›View the full article

The Federal Reserve could keep its key rate unchanged for several more months as it evaluates the impact of President Donald The President’s widespread tariffs on hiring and inflation, some economists say, even as the White House pushes for a rate cut. The Fed is nearly certain to keep its rate unchanged when it concludes its latest policy meeting Wednesday. Chair Jerome Powell and other Fed officials have signaled that they want to see how the duties—including 145% on all imports from China—impact consumer prices and the economy. The central bank’s caution could lead to more conflict between the Fed and the The President administration. On Sunday, The President again urged the Fed to cut rates in a television interview and said Powell “just doesn’t like me because I think he’s a total stiff.” With inflation not far from the Fed’s 2% target for now, The President and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent argue that the Fed could reduce its rate. The Fed pushed it higher in 2022 and 2023 to fight inflation. If the Fed were to cut, it could lower other borrowing costs, such as for mortgages, auto loans, and credit cards, though that is not guaranteed. The President also said Sunday he wouldn’t fire Powell because the chair’s term ends next May and he will be able to appoint a new chair then. Yet if the economy stumbles in the coming months, The President could renew his threats to remove Powell. A big issue facing the Fed is how tariffs will impact inflation. Nearly all economists and Fed officials expect the import taxes will lift prices, but it’s not clear by how much or for how long. Tariffs typically cause a one-time increase in prices, but not necessarily ongoing inflation. Yet if The President announces further tariffs—as he has threatened to do on pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, and copper—or if Americans worry that inflation will get worse, that could send prices higher in a more persistent way. Kathy Bostjancic, chief economist at Nationwide, said this could keep the Fed on the sidelines until September. “It’s hard for them to cut sooner because they’ve got to weigh, what’s the inflation impact?” Bostjancic said. “Is this going to be somewhat persistent and add to inflation expectations?” Economists and the Fed are closely watching inflation expectations, which are essentially a measure of how much consumers are concerned that inflation will worsen. Higher inflation expectations can be self-fulfilling, because it Americans think prices will rise, they can take steps that push up costs, such as asking for higher wages. For now, the U.S. economy is mostly in solid shape, and inflation has cooled considerably from its peak in 2022. Consumers are spending at a healthy pace, though some of that may reflect buying things like cars ahead of tariffs. Businesses are still adding workers at a steady pace, and unemployment is low. Still, there are signs inflation will worsen in the coming months. Surveys of both manufacturing and services firms show that they are seeing higher prices from their suppliers. And a survey by the Federal Reserve’s Dallas branch found that nearly 55% of manufacturing firms expect to pass on the impact of tariff increases to their customers. “The bottom line is that inflation will be rising significantly over the next six months,” Torsten Slok, chief economist at the Apollo Group, said in an email. Yet the tariffs could also weigh heavily on the economy, particularly because of the uncertainty they have created. Huge tariffs on about 60 other nations, announced April 2, were then postponed until July 9, but could be reimposed. Business surveys show that firms are postponing investment decisions until they have greater clarity. Ryan Sweet, chief U.S. economist at Oxford Economics, said the uncertainty surrounding trade policy gives him “night terrors.” “The economics of uncertainty are absolutely suffocating,” Sweet said. “Businesses that don’t know the rules of the road, their knee-jerk reaction is to sit on their hands. And that’s what they’re doing.” But if the uncertainty delays hiring, slows the economy and pushes up the unemployment rate, the Fed could quickly shift toward interest rate cuts. A sharp economic slowdown could eventually cool inflation by itself, economists say. “If you felt like the economy was really slowing down, then I think that would probably take precedence (over inflation), because usually the way the committee thinks is that will also drag inflation somewhat with it,” said Jim Bullard, former president of the Federal Reserve’s St. Louis branch, and currently dean of Purdue University’s business school. In March, the Fed signaled that it could cut rates twice this year. But since then, the The President administration imposed duties that Powell said last month were larger and broader than the Fed expected. The duties, Powell acknowledged, could both slow growth and lift prices, which puts the Fed in a tough spot. It would usually cut rates to boost growth and hiring, while it would raise them to cool spending and inflation. Powell signaled that if the two goals came into conflict, Fed officials would put more weight on inflation concerns. “Without price stability, we cannot achieve the long periods of strong labor market conditions that benefit all Americans,” Powell said. —Christopher Rugaber, AP Economics Writer View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Microsoft announced a pair of ultraportable Surface devices yesterday, both of which differ significantly from their predecessors. There's the creatively named Surface Laptop 13-inch, which is shrunken down from the previous model's 13.8-inches, as well as a new version of the Surface Pro, which is down from 13-inches to a 12-inch chassis. Like the rest of the Surface lineup, both are positioned to compete in the same space as Apple's MacBook Air, which comes in 13-inch and 15-inch varieties, and the latter could even potentially come for the iPad Pro, which hovers around a similar price point. The trick this time around? Aside from being smaller, they're also cheaper. The compromisesAlong with shrinking the sizes and prices on these new Surface devices, Microsoft has also cut down the specs a bit to match. The 13-inch laptop, available in ocean (a metallic blue), violet, or platinum finishes, slashes the resolution of the previous iteration down from 2304 x 1536 to 1920 x 1280, to accommodate the smaller display. The panel also lacks HDR, and the refresh rate has dropped from 120Hz down to 60Hz. The 12-inch Pro model also, notably, doesn't include a keyboard by default, although this isn't entirely unique for the Surface Pro. The Surface keyboard has been redesigned, too, and while it still connects magnetically, it lays flat rather than at an angle. Additionally, Microsoft has ditched the included slot for the Surface Pen, which will now attach to, and charge directly on, the back of the Surface Pro itself. Finally, the Pro's display has also dumped some refresh rate overboard, dropping to 90Hz from 120Hz, although it maintains a 2196 x 1464 resolution. Also gone from both Surface models are the handy Surface Connect ports with their magnetic attachment points, replaced with standard USB-C 3.2 ports. While this means fewer proprietary cables, it also means that there's a danger of tripping on the cord and, instead of having the cable easily disconnect, pulling your entire laptop onto the floor. Finally, for internals, both of the new Surface devices are built around the 8-Core Snapdragon X Plus chip from Qualcomm. These lose two cores off the default of prior models. Both also default to a respectable 16GB of RAM, though a fairly scant 256GB of storage, with the option to double it to 512GB (the default on prior models) if you're willing to pay for the privilege. Can these budget Surface models hold up against Apple?Generally, when it comes to raw specs, Apple's alternatives outclass these new Surface releases, with one caveat. Let's start with displays. Here, Apple has more features and supports higher resolutions. The Liquid Retina panel in the MacBook offers HDR with a resolution at 2560 x 1664, although it's also limited to a 60Hz refresh rate. Meanwhile, despite being smaller then the 12-inch Surface Pro, the iPad Pro 11-inch model sports a sharp 2420 x 1668 resolution (which can go up to 2752 x 2064 on the 13-inch version), plus it's OLED and has a variable refresh rate that tops out at 120Hz. As for performance, while the Snapdragon chip in the new Surfaces is certainly efficient, it doesn't compare favorably to Apple's M4 chip, which is at the heart of both the latest iPad Pro and MacBook Air. It falls behind in both single-core and multi-core performance, so Apple's devices have a clear advantage for those that prioritize horsepower. But one significant difference between the two Surface devices is how they're cooled, which sees at least one improvement over prior Surface iterations. Like the MacBook Air and iPad Pro, the smaller 12-inch Pro is completely fanless, and the more thermally efficient processor has also allowed Microsoft to remove the vents present in the previous version of the Pro. Sadly, the same can't be said of the 13-inch Surface Laptop, which still includes fans. Lower pricesMicrosoft's goal with these new models seems to have been to keep prices as low as possible, so these compromises do come with savings, and here is one spot where PC beats Mac. Starting prices for these models fall below $1,000 and, most importantly, below the MSRP of the MacBook Air and iPad Pro. The Surface Laptop 13-inch starts at $899 and the Surface Pro 12-inch at $799, while the base MacBook Air retails for $999 for the 13-inch model and $1,199 for the 15-inch model. The iPad Pro, meanwhile, starts at $999 for the 11-inch version and $1,299 for the 13-inch upgrade. If cost is king, the new Surface lineup may be the best fit for you, but bear in mind that there's only a $100 margin between the base price of the Surface Laptop and the MacBook Air. That said, upgrades are costly on both sides. Again, adding the keyboard to the 12-inch Pro will add another $150 to your price tag, and bumping the storage up to 512GB will inflate the price another $100, meaning you're looking at $1,049 for the full package. Similarly, the 13-inch laptop jumps another $100 if you want to increase the storage to 512GB, totaling $999. But upgrading nearly any facet of one of the Apple devices adds up quickly as well; for instance, jumping from 256GB to 512GB of storage on the Air will immediately add $200 to the price tag. So, as is common when looking at PC vs. Mac, the question ultimately comes down to price vs. performance. Surface is now more budget-friendly than ever, but there are compromises to keep in mind with those savings. Luckily, the rest of Microsoft's Surface lineup is still as available as ever, so if you pay up, you can find more performant alternatives to Apple's machines. The Surface Laptop 13-inch is available to preorder from Amazon, Microsoft, and other retailers. The Surface Pro 12-inch is also available for preorder from Best Buy, Microsoft, and Amazon, and both models will begin shipping on May 20th. View the full article

Google is getting worse – or at least, that’s what “we” say. The common complaint: Search is dying, SEO is trash, and Google is nearly unusable. X, LinkedIn, and Reddit are awash with complaints about deteriorating search quality. The contradicting reality: Search remains the dominant channel for web traffic. Google still holds 90% of the search market, grew 20% year over year, and processes 5 trillion searches annually. If it were truly broken, wouldn’t we have left by now? The complex truth: Poet John Keats described “negative capability” as the ability to hold conflicting ideas without demanding a simple answer. That’s where we are with Google: it may be improving in many ways while simultaneously feeling worse. The truth resists easy categorization. This article: Challenges the claim that Google is objectively worse. Explores the real ways it might have declined. Examines what the available data does and doesn’t show. Unpacks why it feels worse regardless of the facts. Explains why we still can’t say for sure if it actually is. Maintaining search quality is a deadly tightrope act Google wants to maximize profits. That means keeping us on its cash cow, search, and clicking on ads. Simple, right? Not quite. The deeper you go, the more complex the incentives become. To keep the machine running, Google has to: Keep shareholders happy. Send enough traffic to creators to keep them publishing. Keep advertisers spending. Deliver fast, relevant results to users. Every tweak to Search sets off a chain reaction across these groups, often creating tension or imbalance. Google makes more money by showing more ads, but that comes at the cost of user satisfaction. Ironically, the happier users are, the less Google earns compared to when users are just slightly less happy. Quality is a soft, slippery metric – hard to define and even harder to measure. Ask five people and you’ll get five definitions. When we talk about search quality, we mean this: Great content from reputable sources ranks well. The user finds what they need quickly and easily. That’s a solid proxy for user-centered quality, but it may not match Google’s priorities. To stay dominant and profitable, Google has to juggle the expectations of all its stakeholders. From its perspective, search quality improves if usage grows and revenue rises. What (could have) led to a decline in Google search quality? As the market leader, Google has always operated under pressure, but in the last 2–3 years, that pressure has intensified. Here are five external forces that have increasingly constrained Google’s strategy. Shopping no longer starts on Google Amazon has carved out a major share of high-value commercial queries. 59% of millennials use Amazon first for product searches. 50% of product searches start on Amazon. 61-74% of European shoppers use Amazon instead of Google. In response, Google: Changed SERP layouts (especially in the U.S.). Continued pushing the product grid SERP feature. Introduced AI-based and personalized shopping results in the Shopping tab. Social media is more engaging – and drives demand Social platforms have evolved into informal search engines, especially among younger users. 40% of Gen Z prefers TikTok or Instagram over Google for restaurant searches. Social is part of the “messy middle” of the purchase journey. TikTok excels in search, Instagram tries to model after them. Google is adapting by integrating more social-style features into search: Videos. Shorts. The Perspectives filter. AI incumbents reshaped the way we find information Despite pioneering transformer tech, Google hesitated – opening the door for competitors. Google isn’t a first mover and has to catch up. Bard (now Gemini) stumbled in early demos. “Funny” AI Overviews. While Gemini shows promise, Google is no longer the bold innovator. ChatGPT’s lead in user adoption is significant. Distrust toward Google Once guided by “don’t be evil,” Google now faces skepticism from all sides. Traffic to publishers is considered “a necessary evil.” They prioritize partners like Reddit. “They prefer themselves over everyone.” Can Google still be trusted? “Yes, as long as you aren’t a competitor, advertiser, or user.” 5. Legal pressure limits flexibility The DOJ’s antitrust trial is Google’s biggest legal challenge to date. The DOJ laid out its plan to regulate Google, which Google didn’t like (e.g., selling off Chrome, its magic powder). If Google is forced to sell Chrome, its power would decrease dramatically over time. Google’s dilemma under pressure With great power comes… fragility. Google’s dominance gives it unmatched reach – but it also makes every misstep a potential knockout. The result? A more cautious, mistake-averse strategy. 4 common arguments for why Google got worse (plus my two cents) 1. Google favors itself This is the most popular argument – and it’s not baseless. Louise Linehan analyzed the data and found: Google’s own store appears more often in AI Overviews than competitors. Google Flights is gaining visibility. In 50 of 57 cases, Google-owned properties saw increases in organic traffic. More recently, self-linking has expanded: People Also Ask now includes AI Overviews. AI Overviews link back to more Google search results. Things to know also loops users back into search. This argument has merit, but its weight depends on how the average user perceives these shifts. If users don’t mind being looped back into Google, it may not register as a problem. Google does earn more from ad clicks, not just pageviews. So, if users stay trapped in search without heading to monetizable queries, that’s not automatically a win for Google. The flywheel only works if they can direct that loop toward ads. 2. Google intentionally degrades search quality Some argue Google is deliberately making search worse to boost revenue (we’ll look at the data later). Revenue = Ad price x Query count. Google increased CPC over time and is incentivized to increase query volume. They’ve experimented with degrading quality before. But given today’s scrutiny and pressure, I doubt they can afford to run tests like that now. Their priorities – and risks – are different. 3. Google serves too much Reddit It’s true: Reddit’s presence in search results has exploded. Forum content is everywhere. Google partnered with Reddit for faster indexing. Reddit Answers is now powered by Gemini. But Reddit isn’t the only forum seeing gains. Reddit’s rise isn’t just about a deal, it reflects user preference. During Reddit’s blackouts, Google visibly panicked, signaling how much it relies on the platform. In 2023, 1% of all queries included Reddit. On Kagi, a customizable search engine, users can block, lower, raise, or pin domains. Reddit ranks low on the “blocked” list and high on the “raised” and “pinned” lists. 4. Google is good but not great AJ Kohn’s piece “It’s Goog Enough” makes a compelling case. He covers more than what’s listed here, so give the full article a read. Highlights include: Google pushed organic results 64% deeper down the SERP (2013 vs. 2020). Google increased the size of shopping ads by 34%. Google started placing ads between organic results. Google relies too much on brands (in my opinion, as a plaster for other problems like generative AI content floods). Google clutters SERPs with images and SERP features. AI Overviews compound the issue. They occupy space like any other SERP feature, but without user interaction. Sometimes, interacting with them can even hide organic results altogether. This argument lands: Google seems focused on preserving the status quo, not innovating. Still, users don’t seem too bothered. Plus, Bing is loading up on ads, and Google labels their ads more clearly. Most of these arguments are rooted in subjective impressions. So, what does the data actually say? Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. Business email address Sign me up! Processing... See terms. Is there scientific data to prove Google got worse? Google’s internal search quality study (2020) There was an internal search quality study at Google in 2020. For three months, Google degraded search by 1 IS point (equal to losing twice of Wikipedia’s information). Revenue losses were minuscule. Does this prove Google can make search worse on purpose? I don’t think so, at least not long-term. Three months is a short time. The minuscule revenue losses were first-order consequences. With measures like that, there are usually second- and third-order consequences. Recent survey data With any survey, tread cautiously. There are often problems with: Sample size. Samples not reflecting the general population. Suggestive questions. Additionally, what we say, what we do, and what we feel often differ quite a bit. Let’s look at three recent surveys: U.S. customers were more satisfied in 2023 than in the five years prior, per a Statista survey. About 42% find search engines like Google less useful, per The Verge’s “Remodeling the Internet” study. This means more than half find them more useful. 63% of people think that Google search results were better last year, per WalletHub. But there are caveats: Sample sizes were small, for instance: Statista: <1,000Verge: ~2,000WalletHub: ~9,000 Even combined, this isn’t enough to generalize broadly – especially globally. U.S.-centric: Search satisfaction in the U.S. doesn’t reflect global experience. The Verge survey used suggestive framing: Respondents were asked to agree/disagree with:“I find search engines like Google becoming less useful.” That phrasing nudges people toward a negative view. Still, there’s value in the expert commentary at the end of the WalletHub piece. Two responses in particular stood out. Rand Fishkin said (emphasis mine): “I think personal opinions about Google’s “quality” are not very meaningful. The data shows that Google has as many searches per searcher as ever and that their market dominance by share has never been stronger. To me, those are indications that, regardless of complaints by many tech-savvy folks, Google is doing as good a job as ever at keeping users and convincing them to come back.” Additionally, Michael King stated the following (emphasis mine): “SEOs and publishers are not the primary audience for Google, so if Google makes changes that generate better performance based on their evaluation measures, I am inclined to trust that because they have a top-level view of performance that someone from the outside can never have.” There are no good surveys to make the claim that Google got worse. ‘Is Google Getting Worse?’ study If you didn’t read this study yourself, you probably heard about it at least 386 times, as it “proves that Google got worse.” I refute. The study lasted from 2022 to 2023 and included 7,400 keywords with a pattern like “best [product category]”. A niche riddled by affiliate spam for decades. Even if the study concluded Google worsened in the tested field, that’s just one of many fields it plays in. Additionally, 2022-2023 might as well be the Paleolithic era in tech time – that’s how fast things move. How did the researchers measure quality? Type-token ratio (= vocabulary richness and diversity). Readability. Affiliate link presence (in the content). SEO proficiency. HTML page structure (emulating Google guidelines). From my SEO experience, this seems like a fraction of what Google measures to determine quality. But that doesn’t matter if you read the researchers’ conclusions (emphasis mine): “We find that search engines measurably target SEO and affiliate spam with their ranking updates. Google’s updates in particular are having a noticeable, yet mostly short-lived, effect. In fact, the Google results seem to have improved to some extent since the start of our experiment in terms of the amount of affiliate spam.” Basically: Google demonstrated improvements. Google outperforms Bing and DuckDuckGo at filtering spam. Content quality decreased across the board (it’s SEO goblins at work). Search quality can decrease without any changes from Google. The issue with all the data we have We don’t have enough of it, both in numbers and replication. The process for something to be scientifically proven is: The initial publication of a study undergoes peer reviews, which alone is not sufficient. The study undergoes replication attempts to verify the results, assume generalizability, and identify errors. One study, even if it was methodologically sound, isn’t enough to prove either side right. Why we think Google is worse (even if it isn’t) We mistake ourselves as the (only) target audience Tech-savvy people, especially SEOs (myself included), operate in a bubble. Our search experience isn’t comparable to a normal person. We “cry” about stuff the vast majority of people don’t care about. We are out of touch with reality. Also, there’s the Facebook effect. The idea is that we complain a lot, yet engage with the product as often or more frequently. Here are a few more examples: Ryanair is driving record numbers, yet public opinion suggests no one wants to fly with them. People say “Amazon is criminal,” yet the company makes more money than ever. I’ll add a personal anecdote. For a long time, a smart group of pro wrestling fans (the Internet Wrestling Community, called IWC) complained about WWE, the biggest wrestling company. Special forums, Reddit, and social media were plagued with negativity. Even in arenas, those “smart fans” were audible on camera. At the same time, WWE was doing well. A vocal minority that loves to complain, lament and moan about everything, yet, watches every show. Understand: We’re not the target audience. We’ve built a self-amplifying narrative History shows that if you tell a big enough lie and repeat it, people will eventually believe it, known as the illusory truth. I’m not saying “Google getting worse” is a lie. I don’t have the data to refute or verify my opinion, and neither does anyone else (besides Google). As market leader, Google is under close supervision. If they make a mistake, it rarely goes unnoticed and people talk about it, publishers write about it, and content creators document it. Once you “really see things for the first time,” they seem everywhere. This is the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon. When you spot flaws in Google search (or their AI products), you’ll perceive them more frequently, especially if you’re looking for them. Taking shots at Google is mainstream in SEO, so better join the party: “The mentality of a herd makes it easy to manage. Simply get more members moving in the desired direction and the others – responding not so much to the lead animal as to those immediately surrounding them – will peacefully and mechanically go along.” – Robert Cialdini, psychologist and author We love to blame others It’s easier to point fingers at others than at ourselves. We like to think we’re the rational ones – “I’m not irrational, narcissistic, or greedy. It’s everyone else.” Google says: “Our systems find 40 billion spammy pages every day.” That’s 14,600,000,000,000 pages a year, an unimaginable number. Why do search engines (not just Google) struggle to combat spam and find quality content? It’s buried in the trash we put out there. More trash (for example, due to AI), the harder it is to surface great results. Even if you argue that the average content quality is higher, the bell curve changes: More average stuff = less bad and exceptional stuff. The center becomes easier to hit, the ends harder to notice. This leads to content entropy, where the perceived density of good content is shrinking. Search feels worse, but not due to any Google changes. Lastly, we produce more mediocre content and love to manipulate. There’s classic SEO manipulation like: Buying links. Faking E-E-A-T. Exploiting Reddit. Infesting high authority pages as parasite. With AI and LLMs reshaping the web, it’s starting to feel like the Wild West again. And when rules blur, some resort to tactics like: Strategic text sequencing. Hidden content (this still works). Cloaking. Bribes. SEO is weaponized for business and political impacts. How ironic, we have less fun and destroy the system’s usefulness. What really reveals how good or bad Google actually is Talk is cheap; behavior isn’t. Surveys and opinions can be misleading. What people do matters more than what they say. When someone claims, “No one Googles anymore,” chances are they’re either pushing an agenda or unaware of their own habits. In reality, 99.8% of LLM users still rely on Google. We don’t always say what we think or do what we say. But we reveal our true preferences through our actions, and Google still dominates. We can’t confidently say ‘Google got worse’ We don’t have enough data to make the claim. What we know: Google earns more money than ever. Google has more users than ever. Google’s stock price levels are better than ever (barring recent political influence). What we don’t know with certainty: If Google provides enough traffic or value for content creators to continue in the long run (currently, it looks like they do). If Google serves the best results in a fraction of a second. Google does a good job overall. Good enough to retain users and better than competitors. Google doesn’t need to provide the best product. It just needs to provide the least inconvenient option that’s easiest to justify. When I wrote this piece, two questions kept coming back to me: If Google search really got worse, when was it actually better? In 2013, I searched for a washing machine after moving out. The results were flooded with affiliate links from people who hadn’t tested the product. It’s not clear things were ever significantly better – just different. If Google got worse, wouldn’t that mean other search engines and LLMs got worse too? The study cited notes that Google struggles with spam – but so do Bing, DuckDuckGo, and others. LLMs aren’t immune either. ChatGPT leans on Bing. Google uses its own index. Perplexity claims independence but often sources from Google. Yes, search could be better. But this isn’t a Google problem – it’s a web problem. Search quality is a function of both the index and the content it pulls from. Google is the gardener, but it can only work with the plants we grow. What now? So, where do we go from here? Diversify your traffic portfolio: Google owes us nothing. We’re too dependent on them and they will do whatever satisfies most stakeholders well enough. Entertain negative capability: Resist forming a clean, emotionally driven narrative. Keep two opposing ideas in your head simultaneously and don’t jump to conclusions too quickly. Put biases aside and look for the truth: The truth of my analysis is that I don’t know. I can’t prove either side, and that’s OK. Sometimes, we have to live with ambiguity. Focus on genuinely valuable content: Manipulation is always short-sighted, short-term, and short-lived. To escape mediocrity, you need to be excellent. Ignore what people say, watch what they do: We rarely do as we say and that includes all of us. The truth needs to be seen, not heard. Consider your role in the search ecosystem: It’s cheaper and more effective to work on yourself than to criticize others or to blame circumstances outside of your control. We’re all part of this living, breathing web. If we want better search, we need to contribute to it. View the full article

A reader writes: I am a localized executive director for a nationwide nonprofit. Like so many not-for-profits under the current uncertain administration, we are going through some extreme financial strains. Our national office has been tightening belts all over the organization, including layoffs, frantic leadership calls that include a certain amount of crying when delivering yet another slate of difficult news, and frequent lane-shifting of priorities to the point where others in roles like mine are fleeing the sinking ship. Job descriptions are all changing to almost exclusively fundraising, even in roles that didn’t include it before, and the goals are simply not achievable. I feel really strongly about the mission, but have realized I am probably past the point where I should have taken literally any other job to save myself from this financial chaos. I have done absolutely everything I can to shield my local team from certain absurd national demands, but now I need to pass along certain items and the team have realized what is happening and are quitting quickly. Unfortunately, this has resulted in some terrible behavior from the staff: they are stealing items before they quit. At first, I had excuses for people and what was going on in their lives, but it has become a solid pattern of theft — from computer monitors to work-from-home-issued IT gear, to items they suspect could go un-noticed from a storage area (such as event pop-up tents, tables, space heaters, boxes of printer paper, file folders, etc.), and it is getting worse and worse. The last person stole several thousand dollars worth of goods and made it so that we could no longer operate a major fundraiser. All of this is being reported to our HR team, as it is their policy for them to handle employee communication and payouts after their last day. However, this has become very casual, with them now stating “there is not much we can do.” But … really?! This has a huge impact on any ability for us to do business or fundraise. Every item taken needs to be replaced, and I need to find donations or grant funds to replace it. We’re already just limping by. What kind of precedent does this set for any future staff who see this continuing to happen? Worst of all, my managers, who see their team behaving this way time and again, see me as a leader having no power to do anything. Is this really the approach that should be taken from the perspective of leadership, or another symptom of an organization on the verge of collapse? I would love your opinion. Wow, stealing from a nonprofit that’s already struggling to survive under the current administration is … a choice. And to the point that it’s prevented at least one fundraiser from going forward?! It sounds like you need to do the following: 1. Lock up things that can be locked up. That storage area with the event supplies? It needs a lock on the door. 2. Inventory all the organization-supplied equipment people have at home and get each person’s signature on a list of what they have, with a statement that it’s owned by the organization and needs to be returned when their employment ends. Do this right away. 3. When someone resigns, talk explicitly about what equipment and supplies they’re in possession of and what the plan is for inventorying and returning it. Then follow up — well before their last day — and make sure it’s happening. Also, make it as easy as possible for them to return things they have at home, meaning you should provide prepaid shipping labels or even arrange equipment pickups so they don’t have to do anything. The more you make it clear that of course these things will be returned as a matter of routine, the more likely it is that they will be. 4. Talk to people about what’s happening and what the impact has been. It’s possible they’ve deluded themselves into thinking keeping these items don’t really matter to the organization (maybe they think that with the national org in chaos, your local office isn’t long for the world and so none of those goods will end up being used?). It’s worth taking the time to lay out that it does matter and it is impacting work of value. The more specific you can be, the better. 5. If someone steals thousands of dollars of goods, that should be a police issue. You can’t do that on your own, but you should suggest it to your HR team, pointing out that the longer these thefts are allowed to happen without consequences, the more other employees will believe it’s acceptable and the harder the problem will become to contain. Also: often in this situation people will suggest deducting the cost of any missing property from the employee’s last paycheck, or even holding their final pay until property is returned. In most cases, you can’t legally do that. You’re required by federal law to pay wages on the next regular payday for the covered pay period, and many states have laws governing when an employee must receive their (full) final paycheck when they leave their job. You might be able to deduct the cost of missing property if you have the employee’s written authorization ahead of time and they’re non-exempt (it depends on the state), but more commonly you’d need to invoice them for what’s missing or even take them to small claims court (something your employer probably isn’t going to be up for doing). The post resigning employees are stealing our property on their way out appeared first on Ask a Manager. View the full article

Alongside a couple of new Surface devices, Microsoft has also announced a number of notable upgrades on the way for Windows 11, covering the Start menu, Copilot AI, and core Windows utilities such as Paint and the Snipping Tool. The Start menu changes are significant, and I wrote about them last month when they were first spotted in hidden code. The menu is becoming bigger, more customizable, and more usable, with the option to see all apps immediately—and several options for how those apps are arranged on screen. If you don't want to see recommended shortcuts (to recent files, for example), these can be hidden. You can also increase the size of the pinned apps panel. Another change is the addition of a "phone companion" (essentially the Phone Link app) on the right of the Start menu. This revamp is coming to the Windows Insider channel in the next month, Microsoft says, and there are several other updates on the same timetable. One is AI actions in File Explorer, which will give you access to AI-powered features from the right-click menu: Think summarizing documents and editing images. Another feature coming soon to Windows Insider users is AI text generation and summarizing in Notepad, plus lightweight formatting options. For the first time you'll be able to make text bold and italic inside Notepad, and introduce lists and headings. There will also be support for the Markdown formatting language. Already available to Windows Insiders, and coming soon to everyone else, we have Copilot Vision. It means you can chat with the AI about whatever's on screen—whether you want shopping advice or help with image editing— and Microsoft has previously given us a good idea of how it works. Features for Copilot+ PCsSome of the newly announced features are arriving first on Copilot+ PCs (those that meet a certain performance criteria) with Snapdragon chipsets. Again, these updates are appearing in the Windows Insider channel first, before making their way to everyone else with a Copilot+ PC. Microsoft has intimated that they'll roll out eventually to PCs powered by AMD or Intel. First, Microsoft is putting an AI agent inside Settings, so you can get help finding the toggle switch you need or figuring out how to do something. One example shown in the Microsoft demo is typing "my text is too small" to find the option for font size. The AI agent can even change settings for you, if you give it permission. We're also getting more actions for the Click to Do feature (essentially an AI-powered, context-sensitive right-click menu), including options to schedule meetings in Teams or launch the Immersive Reader mode for text. Windows search is getting a boost too, with greater coverage for photos, settings, and the Microsoft Store. The Photos app built into Windows has slowly been getting better and better, and it'll soon pick up a relight feature for dynamic lighting control. You'll be able to set up to three lighting sources, and adjust the brightness and intensity, while seeing the changes on the image in real time. As for Paint, it's gaining the ability to create custom stickers from text prompts, and a new object select tool that will use AI to select objects with a single click. If you need to move or remove something in an image, this should make the process of selecting it faster and more straightforward. The Windows Snipping Tool is getting more features as well: intelligent screenshot cropping, the ability to extract text from screenshots, and a color picker. Finally, the Narrator on Copilot+ PCs is being upgraded to offer rich image descriptions, so it'll be able to describe charts, photos, and other visual elements that are on screen. View the full article

An index of applications for home purchases jumped 11.1%, the most since January, while a gauge of refinancing increased at a similar rate, according to Mortgage Bankers Association data released Wednesday. View the full article

Conservative leader talking ‘rubbish’ after denouncing national insurance carve outView the full article