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  • 5 tiny tweaks that make a new Linux install feel perfect in just a few minutes

    5 tiny tweaks that make a new Linux install feel perfect in just a few minutes

    You’ve just installed Linux, and everything looks shiny and new. The desktop is clean, the system is running, and you’re ready to dive in. But before you start using it day to day, there are a few simple steps you can take that can make the experience nearly perfect. Linux distributions like Ubuntu, Fedora, or Debian come ready to use right after installation, but with a little fine-tuning, you can take things from good to great.

    Update and enable repositories

    Start from the start

    First, make sure your fresh install is fully updated. This brings in any bug fixes and performance improvements. For example, on Ubuntu, you would run sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade. This ensures you aren’t running into issues already solved upstream.

    While you’re at it, double-check that you have access to all standard repositories. Ubuntu’s installer usually enables universe and multiverse (for more software and codecs), but if not, enable them via Software & Updates (GUI) or by editing /etc/apt/sources.list.

    Tweak the user interface

    Make your Linux desktop more comfortable and personal

    Ubuntu GNOME Tweaks

    A few visual tweaks can make your Linux desktop more comfortable and personal. If you’re on GNOME, try installing something like GNOME Tweaks. These tools unlock settings that aren’t available in the default menu, such as changing themes, fonts, and the placement of title-bar buttons.

    Fonts also make a big difference in how your desktop feels. While Linux defaults are decent, you can install fonts like Roboto or Noto Sans for the interface, and Fira Code or Cascadia Code for coding. Themes and icons are another quick way to refresh the desktop. I personally like the Papirus icon theme, which has a modern look and is available in the repos for Ubuntu, Fedora, and Arch. You can also try GTK themes like Adwaita-dark, Yaru, Arc, or Nordic.

    On Ubuntu’s dock, you might want apps to minimize when you click their icons, similar to Windows or macOS. By default, this isn’t enabled, but you can turn it on with:

    gsettings set org.gnome.shell.extensions.dash-to-dock click-action 'minimize'

    Get better default apps

    Don’t settle for boring apps

    Default applications on many Linux distributions are chosen for broad compatibility, but you can often get a better experience by switching to alternatives that suit your workflow.

    Start by upgrading your terminal emulator. The terminal is your best friend on Linux, and a more feature-rich terminal emulator than the stock one will only make things better for you. For example, Guake provides a drop-down terminal that you can toggle with a key, which makes it very handy for quick command usage.

    File managers are another area where alternatives shine. GNOME’s default, Nautilus, has become more minimal over the years. I prefer Yazi, which is a terminal-based file manager written in Rust. It’s keyboard-driven, incredibly fast, and packed with features. The interface runs in the terminal with visuals similar to ncurses, and it stays responsive even in very large directories.

    Most distributions ship with a minimal set of applications, so it’s worth installing essentials early on. Common additions include LibreOffice for documents, VLC for media, and GIMP or Krita for image editing. Browsers are another area worth attention. Ubuntu now ships Firefox as a Snap package, which can feel sluggish. You can replace it with a Flatpak version, Mozilla’s own .deb, or switch to one of these alternatives.

    Take a look at the battery and power settings

    Optimize for battery consumption

    For laptop users, a few quick changes can improve both battery life and heat management. A good first step is installing TLP, a power management utility that automatically adjusts CPU scaling, disk I/O, USB autosuspend, Wi-Fi power, and more.

    The default configuration works well for most users, and on ThinkPads it also supports battery charge thresholds, letting you cap charging at, say, 80% to extend long-term battery health. If your distro already uses power-profiles-daemon, you may want to disable it to avoid conflicts.

    Adjusting display and graphics settings can also save power. Lowering screen brightness is the simplest and often most effective step. If your system has hybrid graphics, switch to the integrated GPU when on battery. On Ubuntu, you can use NVIDIA Prime or the “Power Mode” option in settings. Fedora KDE offers a similar Prime applet.

    Most modern desktops also support power profiles. In GNOME, KDE, and other environments, you’ll usually find Power Saver, Balanced, and Performance modes. Switch to Power Saver on battery to reduce CPU boost and brightness, then use Balanced or Performance on AC. Both Ubuntu and Fedora include powerprofiles-daemon to handle this automatically.

    Ditch the usual options

    The command line is where Linux really shines, and a few small upgrades can make it far more enjoyable and productive.

    Start with the shell itself. Most distros use Bash by default, which is powerful but basic in its interactivity. Zsh is a popular alternative, especially when paired with frameworks like Oh My Zsh, which add auto-suggestions, syntax highlighting, and themes. Fish is another great option that works well out of the box with smart defaults and built-in suggestions, without heavy configuration.

    Beyond the shell, replacing some classic tools with modern alternatives can make the terminal feel faster and friendlier. bat is a drop-in replacement for cat that adds syntax highlighting and line numbers, perfect for reading code or configs. ripgrep (rg) is a faster, smarter grep that searches recursively by default and skips irrelevant directories like .git. fd is a simpler replacement for find with colored output and Git-aware defaults.

    For monitoring, htop is a huge upgrade over top, offering an interactive, colored process view where you can sort, scroll, and kill processes easily. btop takes it further with a graphical interface full of gauges and charts.

    Linux is better than you think

    Linux comes with endless possibilities. If you are starting off, you might want to check out these alternatives to default Linux tools. You might also want to explore distros that are good for beginners.

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  • Stroke centres in England given AI tool that will help 50% of patients recover | Stroke

    Stroke centres in England given AI tool that will help 50% of patients recover | Stroke

    Half of all people who experience a stroke in England will now recover thanks to a revolutionary AI scanning system that increases the number of patients avoiding serious disability.

    The NHS has equipped every stroke centre in England with life-saving software that quickly tells doctors if they need to perform emergency surgery and can triple the rate of recovery.

    The world-first technology analyses brain CT scans of stroke patients arriving at hospital, taking just a minute to identify the type and severity of stroke and the most appropriate treatment.

    It means doctors can then offer drugs or surgery much more quickly, with the system shortening the average time between patients arriving at hospital and starting treatment by one hour – from 140 minutes to 79 minutes.

    Quicker treatment means the proportion of patients recovering with no or only slight disability – defined as achieving functional independence – has tripled from 16% to 48% in NHS pilots of the system.

    Now the tool has been introduced at all 107 stroke centres, and could transform the care of the 80,000 people who have a stroke in England each year. The announcement came on the final day of the European Society of Cardiology congress in Madrid, the world’s largest heart conference.

    David Hargroves, the NHS national clinical director for stroke, said: “This AI decision support technology is revolutionising how we help people who have been affected by a stroke.

    “It is estimated a patient loses around 2m brain cells a minute at the start of a stroke, which is why rapid diagnosis and treatment is so critical. AI decision support software provides real-time interpretation of patients’ brain scans – supporting expert doctors and other NHS staff to make faster treatment decisions.

    “NHS stroke teams have been leading the way in rolling out AI, and with every stroke centre now using the technology, it is already playing a key role in improving the care of thousands of people in England every year.”

    Rapid intervention is vital if a stroke is suspected. Blood supply to part of the brain is blocked during a stroke and if not treated quickly it can be fatal or cause permanent, long-term disabilities, such as paralysis, memory loss and communication issues.

    But it can be difficult to know whether patients need an operation or drugs, because the interpretation of brain scans is complicated and specialist doctors are required. The AI system is able to recognise patterns in brain scans that human eyes cannot see, removing uncertainty and delays in treatment.

    Meanwhile, at the conference in Madrid, a study revealed how living on a noisy road can increase the risk of stroke even when there is a minimal amount of pollution.

    Doctors advised sealing windows or moving to a quieter bedroom to escape passing traffic, which can cause stress and disrupt sleep.

    The analysis examined traffic noise and air pollution around the homes of 26,723 Danish men aged 65 to 74 over four decades. It found a 14.9 dB increase in traffic noise – the difference between a quiet sidestreet and a main road – raised the risk of stroke by 12.4%.

    The lead author Dr Stephan Mayntz, from Odense university hospital in Denmark, said: “Traffic noise is a significant environmental risk factor for stroke, independently associated with a higher risk even at low levels of air pollution.

    “These findings highlight the need to address traffic noise as part of public health interventions to reduce the stroke burden. This isn’t about brief loud events; it’s the chronic day-evening-night noise that disrupts sleep and activates stress pathways.”

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  • Christian Eriksen, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain & the 10 best free agents who can be signed outside of the transfer window

    Christian Eriksen, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain & the 10 best free agents who can be signed outside of the transfer window

    The official period for doing business might be over, but there is still the opportunity to pull off a shrewd move in the free agent market

    Another frenzied transfer window has come to an end, with the market once again dominated by the Premier League in a record-breaking summer of spending by top-flight English sides. But despite the deadline passing, there are still deals to be done.

    Away from the big bucks shelled out on the likes of Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz and Benjamin Sesko, those who like to do things on the cheap – or are perhaps prone to leaving things until the very last minute and beyond – will now be scouring the free agent market for potential opportunities. In the Premier League, unattached players can be signed at any time and can play immediately, provided there is space in a club’s registered squad.

    It’s a limited pool, but there is the potential to pull off a shrewd move if you act quickly. Below, GOAL looks at the 10 best players currently available to sign for absolutely nothing…

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  • Adding aspirin raises cardiovascular events in high-risk CCS patients on anticoagulants

    Adding aspirin raises cardiovascular events in high-risk CCS patients on anticoagulants

    Adding aspirin increased the risk of cardiovascular events, death and major bleeding in high-risk patients with chronic coronary syndrome (CCS) who had prior stenting and were receiving long-term chronic oral anticoagulation (OAC), according to late-breaking research presented in a Hot Line session today at ESC Congress 2025 and simultaneously published in New England Journal of Medicine.

    Explaining the rationale of the AQUATIC trial, its Principal Investigator, Professor Martine Gilard from Hospital Cavale Blanche, Brest, France, said: “After stent implantation, many patients with CCS (stable coronary artery disease) are at high risk for future cardiovascular events due to conditions including diabetes, chronic kidney disease and diffuse multivessel disease, and some require long-term anticoagulation, particularly due to atrial fibrillation (AF). Managing the risk of further cardiovascular events in these patients is challenging and there is limited trial evidence to guide the optimal antithrombotic strategy. We designed the AQUATIC trial to formally test the efficacy and safety of adding aspirin to OAC, a combination that is commonly used for this high-risk population in clinical practice.”

    This was a double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, randomized trial conducted at 51 centers in France. Eligible patients had CCS and stent implantation (>6 months before), were at high atherothrombotic risk and required long-term OAC for any reason (mainly AF). High atherothrombotic risk was defined as either a history of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) during an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) (with ≥1 stent(s) >6 months) or history of PCI (>6 months) outside the context of ACS but with high-risk features such as diabetes, chronic kidney disease, diffuse multivessel disease (involvement of three coronary vessels), history of complex PCI or peripheral artery disease. Patients were randomized 1:1 to aspirin or placebo on top of OAC (either a direct OAC or vitamin K antagonists). The primary efficacy endpoint was a composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, systemic embolism, coronary revascularisation and acute limb ischaemia. The key secondary safety endpoint was major bleeding according to the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH) definition.

    The trial was stopped early on the advice of the independent Data Safety Monitoring Board after a median follow-up of 2.2 years due to an excess of all-cause mortality in the aspirin group. The 872 patients randomized had a mean age of 72 years and 14.5% were male.

    The primary efficacy outcome occurred in significantly more patients in the aspirin group than the placebo group (16.9% vs. 12.1%; adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 1.53; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.07 to 2.18; p=0.019). All-cause death also occurred in significantly more patients with aspirin vs. placebo (13.4% vs. 8.4%; adjusted HR 1.72; 95% CI 1.14 to 2.58; p=0.010).

    The risk of major bleeding was more than three-fold higher in the aspirin group than the placebo group (10.2% vs. 3.4%; HR 3.35; 95% CI 1.87 to 6.00; p<0.0001).

    A total of 467 and 395 serious adverse events were reported in the aspirin and placebo groups, respectively.

    In conclusion, Professor Gilard said: “Among patients with CCS at high atherothrombotic risk who require OAC therapy, aspirin significantly increased the risk of major cardiovascular events, all-cause mortality and major bleeding, and its use should be discouraged. Other studies have investigated antithrombotic therapy for stable coronary artery disease and AF, 2,3 but this is the first randomized trial to include patients who had prior stenting and with high atherothrombotic risk − event rates were around seven times higher in AQUATIC than in previous trials. Our findings can now be considered in future ESC Guidelines to build on current recommendations, which are based on expert consensus.”

    Source:

    European Society of Cardiology (ESC)

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  • 33 hungry SpaceX Raptors from below photo of the day for Sept. 1, 2025

    33 hungry SpaceX Raptors from below photo of the day for Sept. 1, 2025

    Since its founding in 2002, SpaceX has worked to revolutionize the spaceflight industry, mainly through developing reusable rockets that can land and fly again. This includes the company’s Falcon 9 rocket, which has become the workhorse of global launches, ferrying cargo and astronauts to the International Space Station under contracts with NASA, among many other tasks.

    But beyond the Falcon 9, SpaceX has been developing its Starship megarocket, which is designed to carry massive payloads and large crews on deep-space missions to the moon, Mars and beyond.

    What is it?

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  • Nestle dismisses CEO Freixe after romantic relationship with staffer

    Nestle dismisses CEO Freixe after romantic relationship with staffer

    Nestle CEO Laurent Freixe addresses the Annual General Meeting of Nestle in Ecublens near Lausanne, Switzerland, April 16, 2025.

    Pierre Albouy | Reuters

    Nestle has abruptly dismissed its CEO Laurent Freixe for failing to disclose a romantic relationship with a subordinate, the Swiss food giant said on Monday, a dramatic removal a year after he took the reins.

    The maker of products ranging from KitKat to Nesquik said that it had appointed veteran insider Philipp Navratil, who had headed the Nespresso coffee unit, as Freixe’s successor with immediate effect.

    The shock departure threatens more volatility for Nestle amid a tough consumer environment and the global threat of trade tariffs. The firm announced in June that long-standing Chairman Paul Bulcke would stand down next year.

    Nestle said Freixe’s departure follows an investigation overseen by Bulcke and Lead Independent Director Pablo Isla into an undisclosed romantic relationship with a direct subordinate, which breached the company’s code of business conduct.

    “This was a necessary decision,” said Bulcke in a statement. “Nestle’s values and governance are strong foundations of our company. I thank Laurent for his years of service.”

    “We are not changing course on strategy and we will not lose pace on performance.”

    Company veteran Freixe took over the CEO role exactly one year ago after Nestle ousted his predecessor Mark Schneider.

    The sudden exit is the latest management reshuffle at a global consumer goods and food company this year, including Nestle rival Unilever, Diageo and Hershey.

    Kohl’s fired CEO Ashley Buchanan in May after an investigation found he had pushed for deals with a vendor with whom he had a personal relationship, after little more than 100 days in the position.

    Navratil began his career with Nestle in 2001 as an internal auditor. After holding various commercial roles in Central America, he was appointed country manager for Nestle Honduras in 2009.

    He assumed leadership of the coffee and beverage business in Mexico in 2013, and transitioned to Nestle’s Coffee strategic business unit in 2020.

    He moved to Nespresso in July 2024, and joined the Nestle executive board on January 1 this year.

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  • Woody Allen Wants to Direct Donald Trump in Another Movie

    Woody Allen Wants to Direct Donald Trump in Another Movie

    Woody Allen wants Donald Trump for his next movie.

    During a recent appearance on Bill Maher’s “Club Random” podcast, the four-time Oscar winner said Trump was “a pleasure to work with” when he appeared in his 1998 film “Celebrity,” and that he’d be happy to work with the president again if given the chance.

    “I’m one of the few people who can say he directed Trump. I directed Trump in [‘Celebrity’],” Allen recalled. “He was a pleasure to work with and a very good actor. He was very polite, hit his mark, did everything correctly and had a real flair for show business. I could direct him now. If he would let me direct him now that he’s president, I think I could do wonders.”

    Trump briefly played himself in Allen’s ensemble dramedy. During his scene, he is interviewed by a celebrity reporter about his latest real estate developments. In a rare turn of self-deprecating humor, Trump tells the reporter, “Well, I’m working on buying St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Maybe doing a little rip-down job and putting up a very, very tall and beautiful building.”

    Allen went on to say that he voted for Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election and disagrees with Trump on “99%” of issues, but as an actor, he was “very good” and had a “charismatic quality” when stepping in front of the camera.

    “I’m surprised he wanted to go into politics,” he said. “Politics is nothing but headaches and critical decisions and agony. This was a guy I used to see at the Knick games, and he liked to play golf, and he liked to judge beauty contests and he liked to do things that were enjoyable and relaxing. Why anyone would want to suddenly have to deal with the issues of politics is beyond me.”

    Allen added, “I disagree with many, almost all, not all, but almost all of his politics, of his policies. I can only judge what I know from directing him in film. And he was pleasant to work, and very professional, very polite to everyone. Very, you know, as I say, I would like to direct him now as president and let me make the decisions. But that’s not gonna happen.”

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  • Stocks Rebound Modestly as Testing Month Begins: Markets Wrap

    Stocks Rebound Modestly as Testing Month Begins: Markets Wrap


    This content was published on

    (Bloomberg) — US stock futures staged a small rebound from a technology-led selloff, setting a steadier tone as a testing month begins with markets near record highs.

    S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 contracts advanced 0.2%, with cash trading in US stocks and Treasuries closed for the Labor Day holiday. The dollar was little changed.

    Europe’s Stoxx 600 rose 0.2%. BAE Systems Plc and Rheinmetall AG led advances in defense shares after the Financial Times reported that Europe is working on detailed plans for potential post-conflict deployments in Ukraine. Asian equities were mixed, with a 19% surge in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. contrasting with a slump in chipmaking shares.

    In commodity markets, silver rose above $40 an ounce for the first time since 2011. Gold inched closer to an all-time high as optimism grew for an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve this month.

    Wall Street’s rally to all-time highs faces a crucial stretch, with jobs numbers, inflation data and the Fed’s rate call all landing within the next three weeks. The flurry of events will help determine whether stocks can extend gains or lose momentum as traders navigate what is historically the weakest month of the year for US markets.

    Tariff tensions and questions over the Fed’s independence are compounding the risks.

    “The bar to derail a Fed Rate cut on Sept. 17 appears high,” Deutsche Bank AG economist Peter Sidorov wrote. “But with Fed funds futures now pricing over 140 basis points of easing by the end of 2026, markets are expecting an amount of easing that since the 1980s has only occurred around recessions.”

    Evercore ISI strategists led by Julian Emanuel argue that investors shouldn’t be unsettled by a bull-market pullback, projecting a 20% gain in the S&P 500 by the end of 2026. They add that market “scares” are to be expected, and view short-term turbulence as an opportunity to increase exposure.

    European bonds weakened broadly, with a week to go before a confidence vote that could topple France’s government. The French-German 10-year spread, a key measure of risk, was little changed at 79 basis points. The gauge closed at 82 on Aug. 27, the highest since January.

    “I wouldn’t be surprised to see the spread between Germany and France test 100 basis points,” said Alexandre Baradez, chief market analyst at IG in Paris. “This could encourage further profit selling in European banking stocks, moreover since the European Central Bank seems to be on pause when it comes to rate cuts.”

    What Bloomberg Strategists Say…

    “A holistic indicator of market-based risks in France is wider than it’s been since June last year when President Macron called a snap election. That’s in contrast to the go-to measure for risk in France, government bond yield spreads with Germany, which are only as wide as they were in November when Michel Barnierresigned as Prime Minister. Spreads only capture one aspect of market-based risk, however.”

    —Simon White, Macro Strategist. Click here to read the full analysis

    A stronger economic outlook is set to help European equities escape their narrow trading range, according to top Wall Street strategists.

    Goldman Sachs Group Inc. expects the Stoxx 600 to climb about 2% to 560 by year-end, supported by improving growth prospects, light positioning, and relatively attractive valuations. JPMorgan Chase & Co. strategist Mislav Matejka sees the recent loss of momentum as a “healthy” development.

    Elsewhere, Indonesian stocks tumbled the most in nearly five months as political risks flared, with President Prabowo Subianto canceling a China trip after deadly unrest over living costs and inequality. Stress also was evident in the bond market, with yields on the nation’s 10-year government note rising to the highest in almost three weeks.

    Corporate News:

    Revolut Ltd. has kicked off a process for some employees to sell their shares in the company at a $75 billion valuation. McLaren Racing Ltd., the owner of the Formula One team currently leading the championship, will be valued at more than £3 billion ($4.1 billion) in a stake sale, according to two people familiar with the matter. New World Development Co.’s controlling shareholder, the billionaire Cheng family, is considering injecting capital into the debt-laden builder as early as the end of the year, Bloomberg News has reported. Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA called a board meeting on Monday to decide whether to raise its $18 billion bid for rival Mediobanca SpA, Bloomberg News has reported. Equinor ASA said it intends to subscribe for new shares in wind developer Orsted A/S, the first major investor after the Danish government to back the sale. OpenAI is seeking to build a massive new data center in India that could mark a major step forward in Asia for its Stargate-branded artificial intelligence infrastructure push. Some of the main moves in markets:

    Stocks

    S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% as of 3:24 p.m. New York time Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.2% The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.1% The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 0.6% Ibovespa Index fell 0.2% S&P/BMV IPC was little changed Currencies

    The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro rose 0.2% to $1.1710 The British pound surged 0.3%, more than any closing gain since Aug. 22 The Japanese yen was little changed at 147.19 per dollar The offshore yuan slipped 0.2%, more than any closing loss since July 30 The Mexican peso was little changed at 18.6526 per dollar Cryptocurrencies

    Bitcoin rose 0.2% to $109,306.67 Ether fell 2.1% to $4,362.57 Bonds

    The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.23% Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 2.75% Britain’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to the highest since May 22 Commodities

    West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.9% to $64.61 a barrel Spot gold rose 0.8% to the highest on record This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

    –With assistance from Sagarika Jaisinghani, Michael Msika and Sebastian Boyd.

    ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.

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  • Julia Roberts does her best, but After the Hunt feels like a pointless provocation – The Irish Times

    Julia Roberts does her best, but After the Hunt feels like a pointless provocation – The Irish Times

    After the Hunt

        

    Director: Luca Guadagnino

    Cert: None

    Genre: Drama

    Starring: Julia Roberts, Ayo Edebiri, Andrew Garfield, Michael Stuhlbarg, Chloë Sevigny

    Running Time: 2 hrs 19 mins

    Thank goodness for the insistent score from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. It throws modernist shapes, with panicked strings and urgent brass, in a film otherwise entirely devoid of momentum.

    That’s not to say that Nora Garrett’s #MeToo script for Luca Guadagnino’s new feature, shown at Venice International Film Festival, doesn’t work awfully hard to push buttons. Conveniently set against the fraught contemporary environs of Yale University’s philosophy department, After the Hunt offers a dull retread of the PC-gone-mad arguments that have dominated the culture wars since the 1990s.

    Characters announce, with all the subtlety of a brick to the face, that they are “terrified because of the climate in higher education these days”. Others wonder why their generation – Gen Z – is fair game for their elders in a film that consistently has Gen Z in the crosshairs.

    Julia Roberts attempts to marshal this muddle into an acceptable dramatic shape. She plays Alma Imhoff, an inexplicably sexy philosopher – white pantsuits! – worshipped by Hank (Andrew Garfield), a mentee turned doctoral colleague, and by Maggie (Ayo Edebiri), a promising student. Her asshole husband, Frederik (Michael Stuhlbarg), watches wryly from the sidelines and plays opera scores by John Adams as his wife basks in glory.

    Then double disaster strikes in a wild conflation of coincidences. Maggie accuses Hank of sexual impropriety on the same evening she discovers sensitive documents relating to Alma’s past. The aftermath is not unlike getting stuck at a dinner party for dullards. Hank rages against the “privileged coddled hypocrites” whom he teaches; Alma frets about the “business of optics” and warns Maggie not to talk to the press – “You will become radioactive.”

    This ought to coalesce into Roberts’s Tár moment. For about 15 minutes her character has a punishing meltdown of similar dimensions to Cate Blanchett’s conductor. But for the rest of the film she’s playing an entirely different part, a study of froideur and stoicism with a voguish opioid-abuse habit.

    How ironic that MGM – which, through Margaret Booth, codified the fluid Hollywood style of editing – is credited on a film that unsuccessfully attempts to tear up that rule book. In this spirit, every aspect of Guadagnino’s film feels like a pointless provocation, from the Woody Allen-inspired opening credits to the use of Morrissey on the soundtrack.

    The cinematographer Malik Hassan Sayeed, so brilliant on Spike Lee’s Girl 6 and He’s Got Game, makes Godardian choices in a film that can’t offer similarly stimulating dialogue. A final meeting between Alma and Maggie is framed like the Pacino-De Niro restaurant meet-up in Heat. But that’s not the underpowered film we’ve been watching.

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  • Samsung Galaxy A17 5G rolls out to more European markets

    Samsung Galaxy A17 5G rolls out to more European markets

    Samsung’s affordable A series phone, the Galaxy A17 5G, is now available for purchase in additional European countries. The handset first made its appearance online in early August and subsequently went on sale in the UK. It was also launched in India late last month.

    The Galaxy A17 5G is now available in Germany, the Netherlands, and several other EU countries. In Germany, the handset is priced at €229 ($270) for the 128 GB variant. The 256 GB storage option will cost you €309 (​​$360).

    Customers planning to buy the Galaxy A17 before September 18 via the Samsung online store in Germany or the Samsung shop app will be eligible to receive a free SmartTag 2. Notably, signing up for the Samsung Members loyalty program will give users a 10 percent discount on the handset.

    Galaxy A17 sports a 6.7-inch Super AMOLED display with Full HD+ resolution and a refresh rate of 90Hz. At the front, the phone has a 13 MP camera for selfies.

    Samsung Galaxy A17 5G rolls out to more European markets

    The handset is equipped with the Exynos 1330 SoC and packs a 5,000 mAh battery with 25W fast charging support. The Galaxy A17 5G gets a triple rear camera setup that consists of a 50 MP main camera, a 5 MP ultrawide unit, and a 2 MP macro lens.

    Samsung Galaxy A17 5G

    Other features of the Samsung Galaxy A17 5G include a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, IP54 rating, Android 15-based One UI 7, and a microSD card slot for storage expansion.

    Source

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