TheRegister
AI to more than double global datacenter electricity use by 2030, say global policy wonks
Analysis Global datacenter electricity use is set to more than double by 2030 - slightly surpassing Japan's total consumption - with AI named as the biggest driver.…
AI can't stop making up software dependencies and sabotaging everything
The rise of AI-powered code generation tools is reshaping how developers write software - and introducing new risks to the software supply chain in the process.…
Mapping legend Ordnance Survey releases blocky Britain in Minecraft – again
Have you ever wanted to explore a blocky low-resolution version of the UK? Well, you're in luck, because the Ordnance Survey has created a Minecraft representation of it, claimed to be as realistic as anything ever can be in the game.…
Microsoft total recalls Recall totally to Copilot+ PCs
After temporarily shelving its controversial Windows Recall feature amid a wave of backlash, Microsoft is back at it - now quietly slipping the screenshotting app into the Windows 11 Release Preview channel for Copilot+ PCs, signaling its near-readiness for general availability.…
Pentagon celebrates snipping a whole 0.58% from defense budget in IT, DEI cuts
The US Department of Defense (DOD) has canceled contracts for "consulting and other non-essential services" in the latest round of cuts conceived by Elon Musk's DOGE unit.…
China ups tariffs on US goods to 125%, calls Trump's war a 'joke'
World War Fee China is upping tariffs on US imports to 125 percent, branding the Trump administration's tax policies a "joke."…
PIRG's 'Electronic Waste Graveyard' lists 100+ gadgets dumped after support vanished
Those well-meaning agitators at the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) are back, this time with an interactive "Electronic Waste Graveyard" cataloging a range of devices tossed aside after software support expires or cloud connections flatline.…
IBM shareholders asked to back greater lobbying transparency
An activist investor has called on IBM to report on its lobbying practices, which he alleges include spending “dark money” with organizations that campaign against climate change reporting and legislation.…
The most important experimental distro you've never heard of gets new project lead
After five years, the extremely experimental GoboLinux project is springing back to life with a new maintainer and a new release.…
Bezos cost Amazon more than Jassy did in 2024 compensation stakes
Amazon exec chairman Jeff Bezos may not have a daily operational role at the cloud and e-commerce megacorp he founded, but he still got a bigger compensation package than the person currently pulling the strings from the chief executive's office.…
Windows 2000 Server named peak Microsoft. Readers say it's all been downhill since Clippy
The results are in, and it appears that – at least as far as The Register's most loquacious commenters are concerned – Windows Server 2000 was Microsoft's peak.…
Billions pour into AI as emissions rise - returns stay pitiful, say Stanford boffins
AI continues to improve – at least according to benchmarks. But the promised benefits have largely yet to materialize while models are increasing in size and becoming more computationally demanding, and greenhouse gas emissions from AI training continue to rise.…
Southern Water uses Capita's AI tool to flush customer complaints
Scandal struck UK utility company Southern Water is extending a long-running managed services contract with Capita, everyone's favorite outsourcing badass, for up to five years at an estimated cost of £92.4 million ($121 million).…
Ransomware crims hammering UK more than ever as British techies complain the board just doesn't get it
The UK government's latest annual data breach survey shows the number of ransomware attacks on the isles is on the increase – and many techies are forced to constantly informally request company directors for defense spending because there's no security people on the board.…
Users hated a new app – maybe so much they filed a fake support call
On Call Some working weeks are full of achievements, and others miserably unproductive. Here at The Register, we always make sure that if nothing else we produce a fresh instalment of On Call, the column that recounts readers' tales of delivering top-notch tech support.…
VMware opens beta for an upgrade to its midrange vSphere Foundation bundle
VMware has revealed another big upgrade is on the way, this time for its vSphere Foundation suite.…
The sound of Windows 95 about to disappoint you added to Library of Congress significant sound archive
The Brian-Eno-composed sound played by Windows 95 when booted has been added to the US Library of Congress’s list of nationally significant recordings.…
Self-driving car maker Musk's DOGE rocks up at self-driving car watchdog, cuts staff
In February, Elon's Musketeers at President Trump's cost-trimming DOGE operation turned up at the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which regulates the kinds of self-driving cars the billionaire wants to build.…
Ex-Meta exec tells Senate Zuck dangled US citizen data in bid to enter China
Facebook's former director of global public policy told a Senate committee that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg was willing to do almost anything to get the social network into China - including, she alleged, offering up Americans' data.…
Apps-from-prompts Firebase Studio is a great example – of why AI can't replace devs
Cloud Next Google on Wednesday announced Firebase Studio, a product pitched as "a cloud-based agentic development environment" – in other words, a browser-based coding workspace that includes AI to help developers to prototype and build apps without writing every line of code themselves.…