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DeepSeek Harness has added a new Creator Mode, which aims to create plugins directly from text prompts.

While AI models are capable of generating responses to prompts and determining a course of action, actually carrying it out requires a harness. Harnesses connect large language models (LLMs) to tools and systems that can perform actions, such as scheduling an appointment in a calendar or making a phone call. Put an AI model and a harness together, and you get an AI agent.

DeepSeek's aptly named Harness is an open-source harness based around the idea that "everything is a plugin." A plugin is a piece of software that's added on to an existing program to give it new functionality, without altering the original. 

Accordingly, Harness' new Creator Mode allows users to enter text prompts in order to generate new plugins. In a demonstration video, DeepSeek showcased examples of AI-generated plugins such as digital sticky note wall, a poster design tool, and a Minecraft-like video game. 

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DeepSeek has published some of the prompts used in the demonstration, offering them in both English and Chinese so users can try them out. However, DeepSeek noted that "some plugins were refined through several rounds of conversation, so a single prompt may not reproduce exactly what you see in the video."

Linux has no shortage of distros, and keeping track of which ones are worth trying can be difficult. Some distros focus on making Linux easier for newcomers, while others experiment with different desktop environments, system components, or specialized tools. Every year, a few distros manage to attract more attention than usual, and 2026 has been an interesting year for several of them.

We should all probably spend less time staring at screens. At least, that's what the professionals tell us. And yet the average person needs to be online. They use the internet for work, to pay bills, to access government resources, and to follow political leaders. Many have turned social media into their livelihoods.

And if you skip one day on the internet, you are sure to miss a year's worth of memes, references, and even historical events. In fact, social media is where more than half of Americans get their news, if not from a chatbot assistant.

It's online where you'll be lulled into doomscrolling, engage in unhealthy digital interactions, or witness violence. A good portion of what you see may not even be real. It may be trying to intentionally deceive you. For those staying online, there is at least one way to protect yourself from false information: Stop and ask why.

SEE ALSO: Is it legit? How to tell if that website or social media account is a scam

Why am I still scrolling? Why did this account post this particular opinion? Why is this ad targeting me? Why would this platform allow this?

Pausing is a stopgap for misinformation, media literacy experts say. A few minutes is often all it takes.

Learning to slow down in an internet built for speed

In this age of AI and misinformation, not many people are being taught the basics of consuming modern media. 

"Most states don’t require districts to offer news and media literacy instruction," said Chuck Salter, president and CEO of the News Literacy Project. The News Literacy Project promotes K-12 media literacy curriculum to address growing gaps among the next generation of news consumers. 

In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General called for intentional media literacy instruction. A 2024 survey of educators by The National Association for Media Literacy Education found that only 12 percent of schools offered media literacy as part of their core curriculum. Yet news and media literacy is an essential life skill, experts argue. 

More than half of Americans use social media to get their news. Credit: Pew Research Center

How are adults faring? Around 25 percent of U.S. adults read at the lowest literacy level. When it comes to digital literacy skills, one third of U.S. workers lack basic knowledge. Around half say they find it difficult to spot fake news when scrolling online, according to a 2025 Pew Research survey. 

SEE ALSO: Kids aren't learning to type anymore Lots of slop 

Even the savviest social media users — who are increasingly turning to these platforms for both news and entertainment coverage — are navigating an overwhelming amount of posts aimed to deceive them. 

"Social media is littered with false and misleading content," said Sofia Rubinson, Senior Editor at misinformation watchdog NewsGuard. In addition to an abundance of intentionally stimulating content, "it is inevitable to come across AI fakes, twisted political claims, and foreign disinformation when scrolling."  

More than one-third of new web content is now AI-generated, according to recent data from Pew Research. Other reports allege more than half of the internet is made up of "AI slop." And estimates of the number of bot social media accounts range from 10 percent of platforms to nearly 50 percent. 

Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince claims agentic bot usage constitutes 57.4 percent of total internet traffic, while human traffic has dropped to 42.6 percent.

False and manipulative content performs best for Big Tech

Despite claims of free speech and open town squares by its leaders, social media isn't a neutral conveyor of information, Marijus Briedis, Chief Technology Officer of online security company NordVPN, told Mashable. "Feeds are built to move you quickly and reward things that provoke a reaction. That is a design choice, and it happens to be the exact environment where synthetic content performs best."

Many of these design choices are currently under the spotlight of federal and state regulators, including features like endless scrolls, personalized recommendation algorithms, and autoplay. 

Other, less noticeable, platform choices make it worse, like the sporadic ability to embed or link to external sources on sites where users most often get their news, including TikTok and X. Without these built-in fact-checking opportunities, we're forced to rely on our own intuition.

"We scroll fast, react on instinct, and read likes and shares as 'lots of people believe this,'" explained Roei Sherman, senior director of research at cloud security firm Mitiga. 

Limited moderation helps fake news spread

Our scrolling habits, combined with the algorithm's rules of engagement, are further enabled by Big Tech's ongoing moderation problem.

"You have a much more free flow of information, which has always been the case in the United States, but there's an even further lack of moderation occurring now," explained Zohaib Ahmed, CEO of deepfake detector Resemble.AI. 

Large platforms like Meta and X have decimated human moderation teams in recent years, while simultaneously weathering allegations of censorship by their AI-powered moderation tools. YouTube, a hot spot for AI slop, has also loosened its moderation guidelines. 

Ahmed explains that advanced AI models have pushed us further toward the "Indistinguishability Threshold," or the point at which the human senses fail to distinguish between legitimate and illegitimate content without the help of technology itself. 

He adds that indistinguishability stirs confusion and conflict in online content moderation, too, especially on platforms that have slashed professional teams in favor of community fact-checking. 

"That creates more commentary that can be split down the middle, that can be very opinionated and isn't very precise when it comes to labeling misinformation or disinformation," Ahmed said. "The average user will simply gloss over that, and they won't think to dig in any further than what the human moderators have already done."

AI agents might be setting us up to believe anything

The popularization of friendly chatbots and helpful AI agents have made many more susceptible to scams and manipulation, experts told Mashable. 

"We tend to be far too loose with the AI agents we interact with daily," said Eyal Elazar, head of market intelligence for e-commerce security business Riskified. When it comes to scams, bad actors weaponize this psychology and count on users to let their guard down around "cutesy" personable agents, he explained.

Credit: Cole Kan/Mashable/Getty

Meanwhile, AI continues to promise the user an unburdened life. AI agents, AI-powered search engines, and chatbots encourage users to consolidate access to information into a single helpful tool. According to Elazar, the human desire for frictionless experiences, where everything is at our fingertips with a single click or one chatbot prompt, may end up being our biggest vulnerability.

"AI makes it really easy to avoid thinking for yourself," Salter said. "We have to exercise our agency." 

Learning new internet habits

A lot has changed in just a few years. It's easy to fake a crowd. It's cheap to run a scam. And fake media no longer looks fake, Sherman said. Now, "the instincts we built up have stopped working, and we haven't built new ones yet," Sherman said.

Protecting yourself doesn’t take a technical background. - Andrew Jones, Adaptive Security

How do we build those new habits? We fight back by slowing down, said Andrew Jones, co-founder of AI security firm Adaptive Security.

"Social media rewards speed. Every autoplay, every infinite scroll, every push notification trains us to react in a second and move to the next post," he said. "Protecting yourself doesn’t take a technical background."

Jones said it's more important than ever to build a pause into your everyday routine, even if it take some effort. But just a few minutes sets yourself up to fight back, no matter your skills. 

Skepticism, not cynicism

We need to exercise caution, experts say, but not let ourselves fall into conspiracy. Skepticism is healthy. Cynicism is dangerous, warns Salter. "It can lead us to believe what we want to or reject information that challenges us, regardless of whether it’s true," he said. 

If you choose to stay online, stay tethered to the real world. Fact check information with real people you know. Discuss viral posts with your friends.

"Once people understand that anything can be faked, they start doubting the real things too," said Briedis. "You do not get that back easily."

Adam Robinson, a prolific Austin-based tech founder, was one of the nine people who died in the shocking Learjet crash in Florida on Sunday.

Robinson, along with his wife Helen Sharp, their two young children, their nanny, two other adults, and two pilots perished in the crash, which was captured on dash cam footage. Video of the crash quickly spread across social media, with footage showing the moments the Learjet went down near a roadway in Palm Beach County.

The other three adult passengers on the plane were identified as Rachael Reed, Charmi Fehr, and Anita Maria Appelido Cetina, according to People. The pilots included pilot Edward Daniel Murphy and co-pilot Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras.

Robinson, 45, was a tech executive who listed himself on LinkedIn as the CEO of MoltSets, RB2B, and Retention.com.

"Most teams use MoltSets to build prospect lists and enrich them with validated email addresses," according to its website.

RB2B offered customers website visitor identification software, while Retention.com helped businesses identify internet users.

“Identify the person behind a session, refresh their identity, then expand into the attributes and audiences your team actually uses,” is how the platform describes itself.

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Robinson and his group were headed from Austin to the Bahamas when their jet crashed in a residential neighborhood near Palm Beach. The crash caused a giant fireball that has displaced 600 people from nearby mobile homes, according to the Palm Beach Post.

This story is developing...

It's almost here. Grand Theft Auto VI comes out later this month.

Many GTA 6 fans have been planning for this game's release for years. Some have put PTO requests in or have set aside vacation time to get lost in Leonida, the fictional U.S. state where the game takes place.

Now, some non-gamers just won't understand what the big hubbub is about, and you need to prepare for those naysayers too. If your parents, significant other, or employer give you a hard time about taking time away from "real life" for a video game, just show them this.

Mark Tilbury, a British multi-millionaire who shares entrepreneurship tips to his YouTube audience of more than 9.3 million subscribers, has just released a video explaining how buying GTA 6 can save consumers an estimated $5,000.

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According to Tilbury, this $99.99 investment in purchasing GTA 6 could actually be a financial win. Tilbury breaks down how GTA 6 provides gamers with at least 80 hours of entertainment, which breaks down to $1.24 per hour of fun. 

Furthermore, GTA 6 is chock full of side missions, which could lead to even more hours of entertainment. Tilbury estimates that by factoring that in, GTA 6 provides entertainment at a cost of only 50 cents per hour, far less than concerts, movie tickets, or eating out.

To make his case, Tilbury breaks down a consumer's playing time into 4 hours per night for roughly 50 evenings' worth of entertainment. Tilbury points out that a night out at a bar could easily cost $100 per night, thus saving consumers $5,000 if they stay home and play GTA 6 instead.

Now, obviously, your mileage will vary. Most gamers aren't spending $100 per night at a bar. But if you're looking to defend your planned time with GTA 6, Tilbury may provide some good points for your argument.

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While other platforms, like Netflix, might have the edge when it comes to series and documentaries, there are few platforms that can hold a candle to Paramount+ when it comes to their collection of movies. From cinematic classics to modern blockbusters, it has something for just about everyone.

TL;DR: Lingzio combines structured language lessons with AI conversation practice and pronunciation feedback. Get lifetime access to its Premium Plan for $59.99 (reg. $199).

Opens in a new window Credit: Lingzio Lingzio Language Learning Premium Plan: Lifetime Subscription $59.99
$199 Save $139.01   Get Deal

A 100-day language-learning streak is impressive, but it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re ready to hold a conversation. Lingzio combines traditional lessons with AI conversation practice and pronunciation feedback to help you figure out where you need work. For a limited time, you can score a lifetime subscription to its Premium Plan for just $59.99 (reg. $199).

Choose from six languages: Spanish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and English. You can keep up to three languages in your account and switch between them whenever you like, with your progress saved for each one. Only one language can be active at a time.

The lessons follow the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), covering levels A1 through C2, from beginner to advanced. There’s no limit on how many lessons you can complete, and you’ll also get unlimited vocabulary flashcards, listening exercises, a built-in grammar guide, and progress tracking.

For speaking practice, Lingzio includes an AI tutor that lets you work through conversations instead of just reading dialogue on a screen. You can also use voice recognition to check your pronunciation and identify areas that need more attention.

The Premium plan includes 20 minutes of AI conversation practice, or roughly five scenes, and 150 pronunciation checks each month. Those allowances reset on the first of every month without rolling over, although you can purchase additional AI conversation time if, say, you have an upcoming trip and want to bring your A-game.

Whether you’re preparing to order food abroad, speak with international clients, or learn a language your family uses, the combination of lessons and speaking exercises gives you several ways to practice.

Lingzio works through a browser on computers, phones, and tablets, with no separate app to download. You’ll need an internet connection for lessons and a microphone for speaking exercises. Each license supports up to three devices, and this deal is available to new users only.

Normally $199, get lifetime access to Lingzio Premium for just $59.99.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

TL;DR: Drime’s Essential Plan combines 2TB of cloud storage with document editing, timestamped comments, and e-signatures. Lifetime access is on sale for $149.97 (reg. $299).

Opens in a new window Credit: Drime Drime Secure Cloud Storage: Lifetime Subscription $149.97
$299 Save $149.03   Get Deal

You send a project to a client, only for feedback to come pouring in through emails, documents, and messages. Before you know it, keeping track of the latest version becomes a project of its own. Drime helps cut through the back-and-forth by bringing file storage, editing, sharing, and collaboration into one place. Its Essentials plan includes 2TB of cloud storage with lifetime access, and you can get it on sale for $149.97 (reg. $299).

The storage itself is useful, especially if you regularly work with large files. Drime doesn’t impose a file size limit on individual uploads, so you can store raw photos, videos, or project archives without splitting them into smaller pieces, provided you have enough storage space. You can also sync files across compatible desktop and mobile devices.

And when it’s time to share those files, you have a few options beyond simply sending a link. You can create custom links, add password protection, set expiration dates, and check access statistics. That gives you more control over who can open a file and how long a shared link remains available.

For projects that need feedback, Drime supports timestamped comments on videos and PDFs. That means reviewers can point to specific moments or sections rather than leaving you to figure out which part of a file they’re talking about.

There are also built-in document and media editing tools, plus Drime Sign for collecting electronic signatures. Shared workspaces support teams of up to 15 members, and 120 days of version history lets you recover earlier versions when a revision doesn’t go as planned.

If you’re concerned about security, Drime hosts files in the European Union and offers an end-to-end encrypted Vault for sensitive documents. The Vault encrypts files locally, and Drime says it can’t read their contents.

The Essentials plan is available to new and existing users. Redemption happens through the web app within 30 days of purchase, and Intel-based Macs aren’t currently supported by the desktop app.

Formerly $299, get a lifetime Drime Essentials subscription with 2TB of storage for $149.97.

StackSocial prices subject to change

Here's a problem you maybe didn't even know was a problem: turning on your PC. If your desktop sits atop your desk (as it should—please get it away from that carpet), you probably don't have far to reach. But if it's tucked underneath it, or you want to connect to it remotely, then you're out of luck.

Chrome is the preferred browser for most people, but it can sometimes become a performance nightmare. Talking of performance, the problem might extend far beyond just having too many tabs open. Even on my ASUS TUF Gaming laptop, which has 16GB of RAM, I noticed Chrome's baseline RAM usage was high when I checked it in Windows Task Manager.

TL;DR: The Samsung 34-inch Odyssey G5 ultra-wide gaming monitor is on sale for $249.99 at Amazon, down from its $399.99 list price.

Opens in a new window Credit: Samsung Samsung 34-inch Odyssey G5 $249.99 at Amazon
$399.99 Save $150 Get Deal at Amazon

Prices for Samsung’s Odyssey G5 have usually hovered around $280, but Amazon has surprised gamers with a fresh discount, dropping the price below $250 for a limited time. If you want an ultra-wide monitor for GTA 6, this might be the perfect upgrade. 

As of Nov. 2, the Samsung 34-inch Odyssey G5 (G55T) is going for $249.99 at Amazon, a hefty $150 price cut from the usual $399.99. With 38% off, that’s the lowest price we’ve seen since April (confirmed via price tracker camelcamelcamel). There's no third-party seller involved, as Amazon is fulfilling orders itself — with complimentary delivery currently scheduled for Nov. 7, or Nov. 6 with faster shipping. 

What makes the G5 a must-buy is its unusually broad 21:9 screen, packing 3440 x 1440 Ultra-WQHD resolution plus HDR10 into a 34-inch VA panel. 

SEE ALSO: The Samsung Odyssey G9 curved gaming monitor is down to $797.99 — save over $500 this weekend

If you’re waiting for Grand Theft Auto 6’s PC port to get announced before you set out to explore Leonida, this monitor is an amazing choice for sweeping across the landscapes of other huge open-world games like Red Dead Redemption 2.

The display has a pronounced 1,000R bend that curves towards you at either end, making the extra horizontal space feel less spread out and more immersive altogether. On the performance side, you're looking at a 165Hz refresh rate paired with a 1ms MPRT response time, giving fast-paced multiplayer games like Fortnite or Apex Legends plenty of headroom for fluid movement.

If you’re ever worried about fluctuating framerates and screen tearing, AMD FreeSync Premium (one of our favorite features to see in gaming monitors) will have you covered courtesy of its handy adaptive sync technology. 

TL;DR: Stay on top of projects with help from this Microsoft Project Professional 2024 lifetime license for Windows, on sale now for $39.97 (reg. $1,129.99) through Nov. 8.

Opens in a new window Credit: Microsoft Microsoft Project Professional 2024: Lifetime License for Windows $49.97
$1,129.99 Save $1,080.02   Get Deal

Between spreadsheets, calendars, notes, and the endless to-do lists, managing a project is a project in and of itself. That’s where Microsoft Project Professional 2024 comes in, offering a visual project management tool that makes it easier to map out timelines, track your progress, and determine how tasks fit together.

Right now, you can lock in a Microsoft Project Professional 2024 lifetime license for Windows for just $39.97 until Nov. 8.

Oftentimes, complicated projects need to be seen to be understood. Microsoft Project Professional 2024 makes that possible, with a user-friendly interface and prebuilt templates that help you keep your projects on track.

This lifetime license for Windows serves as your very own project management assistant on your PC. Better understand your project’s complex schedule with help from multiple built-in timelines. There’s also the option to run what-if scenarios and check out all your options.

Microsoft Project Professional uses baselines to track and compare your progress against your original plans. You can submit timesheets to see how much time has been spent on project and non-project work. You can also hover over team members’ names to check their online status and hop on a Microsoft Teams call to collaborate.

This lifetime license for Windows is tied to your device, not your Microsoft account. You can pay once and enjoy lifetime access without any recurring fees.

Score your own Microsoft Project Professional 2024 lifetime license for Windows for just $39.97 now through Nov. 8.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Everybody loves a good smart home dashboard. There are a million different ways to make one, but they typically involve large, rectangular displays. I decided to go in an opposite direction and use an old Pixel Watch.

Netflix is getting a head start on the holidays this November, with a couple of Christmas movies joining its catalog. There’s a lot to look forward to this month, but before you dive into everything streaming in November, there are a few exciting releases to keep your eye on this week.

Search online for ways to speed up Windows 11's File Explorer, and you'll find plenty of familiar advice: disable thumbnails, clear File Explorer history, switch to This PC, and turn off the Preview Pane. The same handful of recommendations kept appearing in troubleshooting guides, support articles, and forum discussions, so I decided to test them. What surprised me wasn't which tweak worked best. It was how little difference most of them made.

The right tools are critical to any project, and work gets done faster and more efficiently when everyone works in a comfortable, fun environment. This is where power tool accessories, like Milwaukee's Rover Triple Light Panel and M18 Jobsite Radio, hold their own. The Rover Triple Light Panel illuminates your workspace so you can work safely and comfortably, while the Jobsite Radio delivers excellent sound quality and volume for your favorite songs on the job. Get both at 65% off with these Home Depot Deals.

Microsoft has been pushing Windows users to shift to OneDrive after canning its old PC migration tool. Windows 11 had a better option for a while, allowing people to send files directly from one computer to another without the need to use cloud storage. But that choice is gone now with a cloud-first replacement that only offers 5GB of free storage.

Editing your PC's environment variables can save you time in Command Prompt and make your scripts more concise. It also lets you customize where Windows stores certain files. This is what you need to know about getting started adding, editing, or removing entries from your Environment Variables on Windows.

Samsung is my baby, but I don’t feel the same way about every app that comes preinstalled on it. Bixby, Samsung Shop, Samsung News, and a few others rarely make it into my daily routine. I already have alternatives that do their jobs better, so keeping both versions feels unnecessary.