When news of Bethesda joining the Xbox family first broke several months ago, many were concerned about what it could mean for the future of Bethesda’s games on non-Xbox platforms. Now that the deal officially has gone through, we have finally received an answer. In the future, some Bethesda titles could be available on Xbox and PC only, which means PlayStation fans could find themselves missing out. “The Bethesda deal is a huge move for Microsoft and Xbox,” Josh Chambers, an editor at HowtoGame, told Lifewire via email....

How to Identify a Failed Component When a component fails, there are a few indicators that can identify the component that failed and aid in troubleshooting the electronics. This article explains Causes of Component Failure Parts fail, and electronics break. Good design practices can avoid some component failures, but many are simply out of your hands. Identifying the offending component and why it might have failed is the first step in refining the design and increasing the reliability of a system that experiences repeated component failures....

Cause of Your Modem Resetting Your incoming internet connection from your ISP goes directly from the cable in your wall to the modem. Your entire home’s internet connection depends on that modem. When it unexpectedly restarts, it doesn’t matter how great your mesh system is, how great your wiring is, or even the “perfect” placement of your W-Fi router. All your work and your productivity at risk. Your streaming TV and movies will stop, too....

SpaceHey has gotten recent attention since it was modeled after the MySpace platform, which debuted in 2003 and peaked between 2005-2008. Even if it would be nice to customize your profile and pit your friends against each other for the coveted top eight spots again, experts say nostalgia can only go so far. “The retro aspect is going to be good for a short while, but I don’t think it’s going to be enough to be the next TikTok or Clubhouse,” Tom Leach, co-founder and director of Hike Agency, told Lifewire in a phone interview....

Recent lobbying by AT&T pushes back against recent proposals to subsidize fiber-to-home deployment across the United States. In a blog post published on the company’s website, Joan Marsh, executive vice president of federal regulatory relations, claims that pushing fiber would only lead to “overbuilding,” and that service options of 50 Mbps down/10 Mbps up, or even 100/20 Mbps, is more than sufficient. Furthermore, Marsh says it isn’t practical to assume fiber can or even should be used to service every home in rural America....

Phones and smartwatches make it trivially easy to track our habits and run apps that are supposed to help us keep to those habits until they stick. But often, these apps and services favor forcing us to comply via rigid enforcement, whether we’re counting calories, counting steps, or following a workout plan. These tactics may work for some people, but for the rest of us, a gentler approach might be a lot more effective....

Cheap camera lenses used to be terrible. Soft images, poor construction, and middling specs meant you only bought one if you were on a super-tight budget. But ever since the dawn of mirrorless cameras, cheap, capable lenses have streamed out of China. Many models have design flaws, and in some brands the quality control can leave you with a bad unit, but they’re getting better and better. TTArtisan is one of the better lens makers, and I have its 35mm ƒ1....

The Magic Keyboard with Trackpad transforms Apple’s tablet into a more-than-credible laptop alternative. All apps work with the trackpad, but when apps are redesigned to take full advantage, everything works better.. “iPad with keyboard and trackpad is a whole new experience and much more productive in our view,” founder of Ulysses app Max Seelemann told Lifewire via direct message. “Productivity is all Ulysses is about, so this is a required feature for us....

Facebook for Newbies Facebook can be thought of as your little piece of personal real estate on the internet where you get to customize your profile and make status updates to communicate with your friends. You even get current and personalized news of friends’ updates as well as updates from brands, blogs, and public figures delivered to you via the news feed. Use Facebook if You Want to Stay in the Know If you have friends or family members that are very active on Facebook, or if you like to follow breaking news stories online, then connecting with those people and public pages is a great way to stay right on top of what’s happening as it happens....

I owned and loved the first generation Moto 360 watch, which I still think is the most attractive wearable ever made. Unfortunately, it barely worked and quickly ran out of juice. as well. The news that Google is revamping the Wear OS in conjunction with Samsung makes me long for an alternative to the Apple Watch Series 6 that I’ve got on my wrist. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with the Series 6....

According to YouTube, picture-in-picture (PiP) is coming to the iPhone any day now (for YouTube TV users anyway). PiP video has been built into the iPad since iOS 9 in 2015. And, just seven years later, YouTube will finally support it, albeit in a limited manner. But why has it taken so long? And can’t you do this already? “Also, this is not the only area in which Google has dragged its heels when it comes to embracing iPhone and iPad features....

Ford CEO Jim Farley recently caused a ruckus with the statement, “We got to go to non-negotiated price.” A statement in relation to selling cars online. That’s a huge deal for the automotive world. It’s not a new idea, but coming from Ford, it’s not something to be taken lightly. Especially in a world where some dealerships are marking up Ford Broncos over $40,000. As a fun reminder, the Ford Bronco starts at around $30,000....

Do You Need to Encrypt Your Emails? Many people suspect that security is mostly hype. You don’t really need to bother with all those complicated passwords, antivirus software, firewalls and such. It’s all just security software vendors and security consultants trying to scare everyone so they can sell their products and services. There are common sense steps everyone should take to secure their computers and networks, but there is certainly no shortage of hype in the news....

Users under 18 are turning away from streaming services in favor of social media and gaming, according to a new study by Deloitte. Nearly half of US respondents say they watch more user-generated content than they did six months ago, and half say they always spend more time watching it than they had planned. “The appeal of social media and games are obvious; it’s where their friends are, and it’s how they communicate,” Mike Metzler, a senior digital marketing manager at Conviva, which monitors streaming media, told Lifewire in an email interview....

Some may see Mojang making an official statement saying they’ve stopped the development of Minecraft or have started a sequel to the game (spin-offs like Minecraft: Story Mode do not count) as the ending to the core game. In this case, Minecraft, from the perspective as a standalone-title (and not a franchise) would end. From that point, whether or not Mojang decided to make a Minecraft 2 or something of the sorts, the core game would be definitively over, finished, and called a final product....

What Is an X_T File? A file with the X_T file extension is a Parasolid model part file. They’re also known as Modeller Transmit files. Different CAD programs can export to, and import from, the X_T format. The files are text-based and composed essentially of numbers, which some CAD programs can read to identify the 3D model’s geometry, color, and other details. Parasolid model parts stored in binary are saved with the X_B file extension....

What Is an XTM File? A file with the XTM file extension is most likely a CmapTools exported map. These files use the XML format to store graphics and text for use in the IHMC CmapTools (concept map tools) software. The Xtremsplit software uses XTM files, too, but they are unrelated to maps. Instead, they are used to split a large file into smaller pieces, and also to join said pieces back together, so that they’re easier to send online....

What Is an XV File? A file with the XV file extension is most likely a Khoros Visualization Image file. Other XV files are as a container format by the Xunlei (also called Thunder) download manager software to store video content. These files are generally protected in such a way where you can’t open or convert them using any other computer but the one that created it. How to Open an XV File Khoros Visualization Image files can be opened with the free XnView program....

The social networks have been testing the feature and hinting at its broader availability for years, but announced in a blog post on Wednesday that they are finally rolling out the optional feature to everyone. “We tested hiding like counts to see if it might depressurize people’s experience on Instagram.” Instagram wrote in its blog post announcing the feature. “What we heard from people and experts was that not seeing like counts was beneficial for some, and annoying to others, particularly because people use like counts to get a sense for what’s trending or popular, so we’re giving you the choice....

While being able to use your smartwatch as a walkie-talkie isn’t a new concept—the Apple Watch already does this—it’s something new to the Galaxy Watch 4. Specifically, the Galaxy Watch 4 and 4 Classic, with no other models listed at the moment. The new app will let you communicate with other Galaxy Watch users (who also are using the app) directly by holding the microphone button. According to XDA Developers, while Samsung recommends running the WalkieTalkie app while your watch is connected to your phone, it’s not necessary....