Linux creator Linus Torvalds has released version 6.11 of the open-source operating system kernel. The new release, while not considered major by Torvalds, introduces several notable improvements for AMD hardware users and Arch Linux developers. ZDNet: This latest version introduces several enhancements, particularly for AMD hardware users, while offering broader system improvements and new capabilities. These include: RDNA4 Graphics Support: The kernel now includes baseline support for AMD's upcoming RDNA4 graphics architecture. This early integration bodes well for future AMD GPU releases, ensuring Linux users have day-one support. Core Performance Boost: The AMD P-State driver now includes handling for AMD Core Performance Boost. This driver gives AMD Core users more granular control over turbo and boost frequency ranges. Fast Collaborative Processor Performance Control (CPPC) Support: Overclockers who want the most power possible from their computers will be happy with this improvement to the AMD P-State driver. This feature enhances power efficiency on recent Ryzen (Zen 4) mobile processors. This can improve performance by 2-6% without increasing power consumption. AES-GCM Crypto Performance: AMD and Intel CPUs benefit from significantly faster AES-GCM encryption and decryption processing, up to 160% faster than previous versions.

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Amazon employees will be required to return to the office five days per week starting on January 2nd, 2025.

“We’ve decided that we’re going to return to being in the office the way we were before the onset of COVID,” CEO Andy Jassy says in a memo sent to staff on Monday. Employees have been required to work from the office three days per week since May 2023, and Jassy says that “if anything, the last 15 months we’ve been back in the office at least three days a week has strengthened our conviction about the benefits.”

Jassy says that staffers won’t have to be in the office to deal with things like a sick kid or emergencies. “But, before the pandemic, it was not a given that folks could work remotely two days a week, and that will also...

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It’s a weird year for iOS.

Usually, the new software version arrives all at once. Not so with iOS 18. The foundational stuff has arrived, and in a normal year, things like RCS support and a redesigned control center would be more than enough. But iOS 18’s headline feature, Apple Intelligence, isn’t even part of this initial release, and we may not see some of its most interesting features until well into 2025. The iOS 18 rollout starts now, and it’s just going to keep on rolling for the foreseeable future.

iOS 18 is an ambitious update, even without Apple Intelligence in the picture. Customization options are at an all-time high, and with some tinkering, you’ll be able to personalize your iPhone like never before. It’s almost...

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Microsoft is rolling out a “50 for 50” program to mark its own 50th anniversary.

The company says it will make 50 grants of $50,000 each to organizations that are “addressing the evolving needs of the Puget Sound region,” the common name for the Seattle area, including Redmond, where the company is based.

The grants will be announced starting in October, and running through April 2025, which is the 50th anniversary of the company’s founding. It’s an extension of Microsoft’s longstanding philanthropic programs.

The grants will “support the important work they do to address the needs of the region, focusing on efforts that benefit the community, protecting civic jewels and iconic places, and supporting our neighbors in need,” Microsoft President Brad Smith said in a blog post announcing the plan Monday morning.

It’s “a great opportunity for the company to say thank you for the decades of support that we’ve had here in our headquarters state,” said Kate Behncken, global head of Microsoft Philanthropies, in an interview.

Grantees were selected with help from special advisory council in the Seattle region, Behncken said.

The company is marking its anniversary with a broader program that it calls “One Future. One Sound.”

Microsoft says the company and its employees have donated a cumulative total of $1.3 billion to about 23,500 organizations in Washington state through the company’s giving campaign and matching program.

Beyond the “50 for 50” grant program, Microsoft says it will also make gifts to additional institutions in the Seattle region. The company cited its support of the Friends of Waterfront Park to support programming, construction, public safety, and maintenance of the park slated for the site of the former Alaskan Way Viaduct.

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Microsoft has abandoned plans to overhaul its Edge browser interface, scrapping the design choice unveiled in February 2023. The redesign -- featuring a sleeker look with rounded tab buttons and increased blur effects -- aimed to give Edge a distinct identity as the company pushed into AI services. The new design never officially launched and the company has no intention to launch it later, according to Microsoft-focused news outlet Windows Central. A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed to Windows Central that the company is moving away from the rounded tabs concept. Some elements of the redesign will remain, including webpage borders and a repositioned user button, but the majority of the proposed changes have been shelved. The decision marks a retreat from Microsoft's efforts to visually differentiate Edge from Google Chrome and align it with Windows 11's design language.

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