IT General

SAVE $149.02: The Home Depot's iconic 12-foot skeleton is on sale for just $149.98 (normally $299) as of Oct. 24 — a 50% savings. However, it's only available for in-store pickup.

Opens in a new window Credit: The Home Depot 12 ft. Grave & Bones Giant-Sized Skelly with LifeEyes $149.98 at The Home Depot
$299 Save $149.02   Get Deal

It's been six years since the Home Depot launched its 12-foot skeleton yard decoration to viral, meme-ified acclaim. And for the past five, "Skelly" has been impossible to find in stock around Halloween — much less on sale. This year, that finally changes.

As of Oct. 24, the Home Depot's 12-foot skeleton is marked down to just $149.98. That's a whopping 50% off its usual sticker price of $299 and the first I've ever seen it go on sale in all my years covering its cult following.

There's a catch, though: At the time of writing, the 12-footer wasn't available for delivery. You can only buy it for half off if you find it in stores, and you can't reserve it for pickup ahead of time — i.e., you'll have to go on a bit of a wild Skelly chase.

The skeleton, the myth, the legend. Credit: The Home Depot

You can use the "Check Nearby Stores" feature on Skelly's product page to see if it's sitting on a shelf somewhere near you. For reference, three of the ten Home Depot locations within ten miles of me had limited stock available.

SEE ALSO: Is the Home Depot's viral 12-foot skeleton a victim of President Trump's tariffs?

If your Skelly search comes up dry, know that some of the Home Depot's other giant-sized Halloween decorations are on sale for 50% off and available for delivery (see below). I'd also recommend checking out my colleague Leah's list of the best Halloween clearance sales across all major retailers for more decorating deals.

• 5 ft. Long Grave & Bones LED Skelly's Cat — $99 $199 (save $100)

• 5 ft. Grave & Bones Skelly's Sitting Dog with LifeEyes — $124.98 $249 (save $124.02)

• 7 ft. Dead Water LED Megalodon Shark — $174.98 $349 (save $174.02)

• 8 ft. Wide Gruesome Grounds Giant-Sized Color Changing Animated LED Wyvern — $199.98 $399 (save $199.02)

Smartphone videography fans can now look forward to the all-new DJI Osmo Mobile 8 smartphone stabilizer and gimbal. Less than a year after releasing the Mobile 7 Pro series, DJI announced a new and improved Osmo Mobile 8, packed with helpful features.

Right now, you can get the powerful Anker 737 Power Bank for a major 32% discount. This is a great deal, dropping the price to just $75 on Amazon from its original $110. This portable charger is the perfect way to make sure your devices stay powered up with its huge 24,000mAh capacity.

With any software, the more you use it, the more hacks and shortcuts you discover, and never a truer word has been said when it comes to Microsoft Excel. What's more, as the program evolves, you add new tricks to your toolkit. Here are some of my favorites—old and new—that I couldn't live without.

SAVE 40%: As of Oct. 24, you can get the ASUS ROG Strix 24.5-inch gaming monitor (XG259CMS) on sale for $179, down from $299, at Amazon. That's a 40% discount or a $120 price cut. It's also the lowest price we've seen on this model to date.

ASUS ROG Strix 24.5-inch gaming monitor (XG259CMS) $217.49 at Amazon
$299 Save $81.51   Get Deal at Amazon

If you're a gamer, then you're probably aware that getting a super-high refresh rate usually means shelling out big bucks, especially for a reputable brand like ASUS ROG. But right now, you can get a Strix model with some seriously speedy specs at a much more budget-friendly price.

As of Oct. 24, you can get the ASUS ROG Strix 24.5-inch gaming monitor (XG259CMS) on sale for $179, down from $299, at Amazon. That's a 40% discount or a $120 price cut. It's also the lowest price we've seen on this model to date.

SEE ALSO: The 50+ best gifts for gamers that they won't already have

This monitor has a 24.5-inch Full HD (1080p) Fast IPS panel with a 310Hz refresh rate and a 1ms response time (GTG). Translation: motion should look incredibly smooth, and input lag minimal, which is exactly what you want for competitive shooters or racing games. It's also G-SYNC Compatible and features ASUS's ELMB Sync tech to further reduce motion blur and tearing.

It supports HDR400 for better contrast and brightness, covers 110 percent of the sRGB color space, and has a handy USB-C port that supports DisplayPort Alt Mode for a cleaner connection to laptops or other devices. The stand is fully adjustable (height, tilt, swivel, and pivot), and it even has a tripod socket if you want to mount a webcam directly to it.

For under $180, getting this level of speed and features from the ROG Strix lineup is a pretty great find.

Creator IShowSpeed is not a big fan of AI deepfakes — and he's not the only one.

During a recent livestream, the streamer with more than 45 million YouTube followers watched several Sora 2 videos featuring deepfakes of himself laughing, coming out as gay ("No no chat, this is not real. This is actually AI"), kissing a fan, racing a cheetah, and visiting Nepal ("Look, bro. I haven’t even been to Nepal yet"). Reacting to the videos, he said he was "turning this shit off."

SEE ALSO: bbno$ says 'F*CK AI' — and he's putting his money where his mouth is

"Why does this look too real? Bro, no, that’s like my face," he said.

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OpenAI's Sora 2 allows users to create videos using celebrity likenesses — but only if those celebrities opt in. While IShowSpeed apparently gave permission, he admitted during his stream that it "was not the right move to do."

"Whoever told me to make it public, chat, you’re not here for my own safety, bro. I’m fucked, chat," he said.

IShowSpeed isn't the only public figure pushing back against the use of AI deepfakes. Zelda Williams, daughter of Robin Williams, recently urged fans on Instagram to "please, just stop sending me AI videos of Dad," according to IGN. Steve Harvey and Scarlett Johansson have both supported legislation aimed at banning deepfakes, per CNN.

Even within influencer culture, there's growing resistance. Creator Zay Dante told Mashable that he’s “just not an AI guy,” while a YouGov survey of U.S. consumers reported by Reuters found that more than 50 percent of Gen Z and younger generations "already dislike engaging with AI-generated influencers."

Meet The Mashable 101: the creators keeping the internet interesting. From meme-makers to movement-starters, these are the people powering our timelines today.

Hybrid SUVs continue to dominate the efficiency game, but one model in 2025 manages to stand out for more than just its low fuel consumption. It’s not only the most affordable hybrid SUV you can buy this year, but also the most efficient, a rare combination in a market where price and performance don’t often align.

Netflix has a fancy algorithm that supposedly surfaces the best shows for you, but I'm not convinced it's a replacement for a good old-fashioned personal recommendation. Netflix's home screen can feel overwhelming, to the point where you don't end up watching anything.

Your Linux computer probably has repositories full of free and open source software waiting to be installed. It's hard to know what's worth trying, so that's why I've been digging around the Linux development world for the most useful.

The AI boom may be changing the meme landscape, but it also has people increasingly worried about their jobs — and seemingly with good reason. According to a recent report from The New York Times, Amazon has plans to make robots a big part of its workforce in the future.

"We just learned that Amazon plans to replace more than half a million jobs with robots," says Stephen Colbert in The Late Show clip above. "The news of Amazon's plan comes from a cache of internal strategy documents viewed by The New York Times. Wow, that's the kind of scoop you used to get at The Washington Post, if only Bezos hadn't changed their slogan from 'Democracy Dies in Darkness' to '20% Off Next-Day Delivery of Six-Pack Men's Ankle Socks.' [Amazon owner Jeff Bezos has owned The Washington Post since 2013.]

"According to the documents, in order to calm the worried workers, Amazon is avoiding terms like 'automation' and instead will be using terms like 'advanced technology,'" Colbert continued. "And to imply the AI workforce will collaborate with humans, they will replace the word 'robot' with 'cobot'. And instead of calling all that 'bulls**t', I will call that 'advanced livestock butt derivative.'"

KPop Demon Hunters is the pop culture phenomenon that has already defined 2025. The most-watched movie on Netflix proved such a smash hit that the streamer rolled out a sing-along theatrical release, not once but twice! The soundtrack hit #1 on Billboard, with "Golden" becoming the longest-running #1 hit by a girl group on the Billboard Hot 100 in the 21st century. All of this is fueled by the fans. Love for KPop Demon Hunters is everywhere online, but perhaps it's most enthralling on TikTok, where fans share their excitement through singing, dancing, and cosplaying. Just like in the movie, the KPop Demon Hunters themselves love seeing their fans express themselves.

So, when Arden Cho and May Hong, who provide the voices for Rumi and Mira, came by Mashable's Say More studio, Entertainment Editor Kristy Puchko presented them with some of our team's favorite KPop Demon Hunter TikToks for their reactions. Whether it's a baby bopping to Saja Boys' "Soda Pop," a fleet of little Rumis, or cosplayers recreating even the quirkiest characters, Hong and Cho were elated, sharing their thoughts on each vid.

With Halloween around the corner, KPop Demon Hunters fans will likely be out in force at costume parties and the return of the theatrical sing-along release. For more from Arden Cho and May Wong, check out Mashable's full Say More interview on YouTube. There, they reveal what it was like recording the dialogue for Rumi and Mira, what their favorite moments were, and what it means to be such a pivotal part to the movie that's appealing to kids, parents, and child-free entertainment reporters.

KPop Demon Hunters: A Sing-Along Event returns to theaters on Oct. 31. KPop Demon Hunters is now streaming on Netflix.

You’ve got a fully equipped workshop in your basement or garage. Maybe it’s outside in your shed. But let’s be honest: when a hinge is feeling a little loose or a picture frame needs hanging, the last thing you want to do is put on shoes and trek outside. You should have a stash of tools in your immediate living space.

Amazon has launched a new incident report generation tool in CloudWatch, allowing customers to quickly build post-incident analysis reports.

The company announced the new feature in a blog post Wednesday, failing to mention that just days ago half the internet didn't work due to a massive AWS outage.

Amazon CloudWatch is a service that allows customers to monitor apps and resources on Amazon's AWS cloud, as well as other clouds. It is typically used by businesses who run their operations on AWS.

The new feature generates detailed reports by automatically capturing critical operational telemetry, service configurations, and investigation findings, according to Amazon. It's available in a number of regions, including US East, where the recent outage has happened.

The full list of the regions where the tool is available is as follows: US East (N. Virginia), US East (Ohio), US West (Oregon), Asia Pacific (Hong Kong), Asia Pacific (Mumbai), Asia Pacific (Singapore), Asia Pacific (Sydney), Asia Pacific (Tokyo), Europe (Frankfurt), Europe (Ireland), Europe (Spain), and Europe (Stockholm).

SEE ALSO: AWS outage update: Amazon, Alexa, Snapchat, Reddit, more hit by massive outage

To create your first incident report (hopefully not very soon), create a CloudWatch investigation and click on "Incident report."

When your fingers are your primary method of interacting with a browser, you can use some neat tricks to get around faster. Safari for iPhone is full of these time-savers, and they’re all fairly easy to remember.

It’s a big, important weekend as we make our final preparations for Halloween—my favorite holiday. As such, we’re focusing on some fun but creepy-themed shows to watch—two of which are must-see award winners worthy of as much of your time and attention as you’re willing to give. There’s even a one-of-a-kind competition you can binge in a flash, just in case your weekend plans pull you away from your television.

Seth Meyers took "A Closer Look" at the contrast between voter concerns over rising costs in the 2024 election and Donald Trump's $250 million new ballroom a year later.

Meyers began his deep dive segment on Thursday with a look at how inflation was top of mind for voters last year. The Late Night host then contrasted this with a look at the impact of Trump's tariffs on the price of groceries, as well as the president's expensive and controversial 90,000 square foot ballroom. Demolition of parts of the White House's East Wing, built in 1902, began on Monday. By Thursday, workers had completely pulled it down — all despite Trump's promise in July that his new ballroom "won't interfere with the current building...It'll be near it but not touching it."

"So he basically promised to treat it like his marriage," said Meyers, with a trumpeted womp-womp on cue.

SEE ALSO: Stephen Colbert rips into Trump 'going Hulk Smash on the White House'

Meyers also spoke on Trump's statement to reporters that knocking down the East Wing was decided "after really a tremendous amount of study with some of the best architects in the world."

"Oh yeah, who was the architect you talked to, Godzilla?" said Meyers.

"This couldn't be any more of a bait and switch," the host concluded. "Trump got elected by claiming he was going to make life more affordable for hard-working Americans, and now he's demolishing the White House to build himself a gilded vanity project. If you voted for Trump thinking he'd bring down your grocery bills, tough luck."

In the wave of 25W chargers currently hitting the market, power banks are the most impactful for their charging-on-the-go prowess. The Ugreen MagFlow 10000mAh 25W Power Bank delivers on this promise, but it’s going to be too big for many people to use comfortably.

It turns out Adam Brody's unruffled demeanour can't even be disturbed by an onslaught of spicy wings.

In the First We Feast video above, the Nobody Wants This star takes on the Hot Ones challenge, knocking back 10 spicy wings while answering questions on everything from surfing and pre-fame jobs to his big break in TV.

Is he as calm and collected as Jenna Ortega? Hard to say, but it's certainly close.

The NYT Connections puzzle today is not too difficult to solve if you love bright shades.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT Pips hints, answers for October 24, 2025 Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: The peak

• Green: Actions in Word

• Blue: Vibrant

• Purple: A fashion add-on

Featured Video For You Connections: How to play and how to win Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Best years

• Green: Things you can do to text

• Blue: Things known for being colorful things

• Purple: Ending in accessories

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #866 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Best years: HEYDAY, PINNACLE, PRIME, ZENITH

• Things you can do to text: BOLD, HIGHLIGHT, STRIKETHROUGH, UNDERLINE

• Things known for being colorful things: KALEIDOSCOPE, PEACOCK, RAINBOW, SUNSET

• Ending in accessories: BAYWATCH, COOTIE, HERRING, KINGPIN

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for October 24, 2025

Are you also playing NYT Strands? Get all the Strands hints you need for today's puzzle.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Connections.

Today's NYT Strands hints are easy if you're interested in past events.

Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for October 17, 2025 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for October 24, 2025 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Through the ages

The words are related to past times.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words describe the before times.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is horizontal.

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is History.

Featured Video For You Strands 101: How to win NYT’s latest word game NYT Strands word list for October 24

• Stone

• Bronze

• Iron

• History

• Industrial

• Space

• Information

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Strands.