Technology

Excel tutorials are everywhere, but many "pro tips" are actually bad habits in disguise. From broken formulas to messy data formatting, here are the popular tips that are secretly ruining your workbooks and what to do instead.

Luxury sedans don’t sell themselves anymore. In today’s market, SUVs and crossovers grab most of the attention, which means traditional four-doors have to work a lot harder to stand out.

There are people who fight over terminals the way audiophiles fight over headphones—deeply passionate and extremely opinionated. If this behavior confuses you, it's probably because no one explained what these tools are actually competing on. Spoiler alert: it's not the ability to run commands—every terminal can do that. Here's a breakdown of how terminals differ from one another, and which ones you should care about.

A smart speaker is supposed to connect everything easily and let you control your house without effort. We gave up some privacy for the convenience of setting timers, controlling lights, and getting quick answers just by speaking a command. As these speakers get smarter, it feels like they've become a little too human.

I finally got tired of using Gigabit networking with my NAS, so I upgraded to 2.5GbE. The upgrade was actually cheaper than I expected, and the results were better than I expected. Moving to 2.5GbE completely changed how my NAS works in my homelab, and I think it will for you, too.

More people are looking for alternatives to proprietary apps every day—even hugely popular apps like Google Maps. OpenStreetMap is the backbone of many open-source map apps, but it relies on volunteers to keep it updated. StreetComplete makes it easy and fun to participate.

Workers trying to log in to Microsoft Outlook experienced unexpected problems Monday morning, with some users receiving error messages and unexpected signouts.

On its official Microsoft service status page, the company confirmed that some Microsoft 365 Business and Enterprise customers were experiencing a service interruption, directing them to X for more information.

The Microsoft 365 Status page on X stated that some customers were unable to log in to the email software.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

"We've discovered some users may experience intermittent sign‑in failures, including 'too many requests' errors, or unexpected sign‑outs. We're analyzing service telemetry further to identify any potential next steps and mitigation actions."

The platform DownDetector also reported a spike in user error reports beginning around 5 a.m. ET Monday morning, with a majority of users identifying login issues as the problem.

(Disclosure: DownDetector and Mashable are both owned by the same parent company, ZiffDavis.)

Microsoft Outlook also experienced an outage in January.

This is a developing story...

Omegle is in the ground, and Thundr is dancing on its grave. Since Omegle's demise in late 2023, the internet has been introduced to a number of Omegle alternatives, from the tame to the explicit. Thundr is a random video and text chat service that's emulating Omegle the most in 2026. Think of it as Omegle with actual guardrails, offering far more ways to get your exact match through tags, country selection, and AI moderation. Thundr prides itself on being one of the safer random cam connection sites, claiming to instantly block nudity, spam, and hate speech.

SEE ALSO: What happened to Omegle? The rise and fall of the internet's favorite stranger danger

But what is Thundr, and is it really Omegle's best replacement? And is the site as safe as it claims to be?

How does Thundr work?

Like Omegle, Uhmegle, Flingster, DirtyRoulette, and the like, Thundr matches users to random strangers across the globe through video or text chat. Like most alternatives, Thundr has a customizable matching process designed to help users find better matches, faster. Add up to 33 tags, select your preferred countries, and Thundr will do its best to connect you accordingly. Note: Thundr is one of the only cam sites that allow users to choose multiple countries without payment.

While this doesn't affect matching, Thundr also offers a number of color themes for a better visual experience, including Dark, Light, Pink, Brat (neon green, likely inspired by Charli XCX's hit 2024 album), and more.

Thundr requires every user to create an account before connecting with strangers, with options to sign up via Google or Apple. This is a safety measure, which is a breath of fresh air in this space since most similar sites don't bother — but it's very easy to create an anonymous account even without an email, so it's difficult to say how safe this requirement is.

On the home page, Thundr claims to be different from nearly every other cam site out there: "Thundr uses a match-making algorithm that is designed to give you an amazing experience from the first match, and it only gets better with time." In our experience, this is half true. You can add tags and select countries, but the country filter works noticeably better than the tag filter. You'll find someone with a similar tag maybe every 20ish people.

Where it gets interesting is how the algorithm actually learns. It seemingly sorts users based on nudity and sexually explicit conversation more than anything else. Match with hundreds of faces, take your dick out once, and suddenly, everyone Thundr pairs you with is there for the same thing. While that works great for NSFW users, the algorithm will occasionally misfire and place users who did nothing wrong into NSFW matches, pigeonholing people who are otherwise there for connection. Outside of the SFW versus NSFW divide, we haven't seen much evidence that the algorithm is doing anything more sophisticated than that.

Is Thundr free?

Yes, Thundr is free to use, including all the aforementioned filter options. The only form of payment Thundr offers is something called Boosts. A Boost is a one-time purchase that puts you at the front of Thundr's match queue from 10 to 60 minutes, making it more likely you'll be paired with higher-quality users. Thundr doesn't say much about Boosts on the site itself, but when they launched, the creator of Thundr took to Reddit to explain: "All that happens is that when a user is boosted, they are temporarily at the top of the match queue. This means they're more likely to be matched to what the platform thinks is the highest quality users."

When it comes to pricing, here's what you're looking at as of April 2026, according to a Thundr pop-up:

• Small Boost: $3.99 for 10 minutes

• Normal Boost: $7.99 for 30 minutes

• Super Boost: $16.99 for 60 minutes

But, do Boosts on Thundr work? We're unsure. We haven't tested this ourselves, but users on Reddit claim the answer is a big, fat "no".

Is Thundr available on mobile?

Thundr is browser-only and does not currently have a dedicated app, but you can use it on your phone through your mobile browser. It's worth noting that the mobile version works slightly differently from the desktop one. On desktop, the experience mirrors classic Omegle, with a skip button in the corner of your screen near your camera feed to move on to the next person. On mobile, that button still exists, but users can also swipe up to skip. 

Is Thundr NSFW?

Yes, Thundr is NSFW. Although the site prides itself on its AI moderation, nudity and explicit content slip through more often than you'd expect. You must be 18+ to use Thundr.

Is Thundr safe?

A hard question to answer. Thundr claims to have end-to-end encryption (meaning Thundr and other third parties cannot see messages), zero data-sharing, and AI moderation, and seemingly does its best to keep explicitly-minded users in their own corner of the site. But this doesn't always work. You have to actively do something Thundr deems sexual to end up in the NSFW zone, meaning someone can expose an unsuspecting user to explicit content just to trigger the algorithm.

Here's something else we take issue with. In Thundr's FAQ section, the question "How does Thundr's free video chat let me chat with strangers safely?" is answered like this:

"Every live video or text session is end-to-end encrypted and protected by real-time AI that instantly blocks nudity, hate speech, and spam. You can report, skip, or mute any stranger with one tap, so you enjoy free video chat without compromising safety."

This is false. Just because Thundr separates explicit users into their own corner doesn't mean nudity is blocked. It just means that it's pushed elsewhere. When you get to this side of Thundr, you will know by the amount of penises that appear on screen over and over and over again, which wouldn't happen as much prior. That's not blocking nudity, that's just doing something else with it.

Adding a mandated sign-in requirement is an excellent step, but anyone can have an email without confirming their age (or make an anonymous account without an email and do the same). Children under 18 can access Thundr just as easily as adults, and given what can slip through the moderation, that's a serious problem.

Final thoughts on Thundr

Thundr is doing something many other sites are not doing: requiring users to sign in. Although Thundr does not say it explicitly, this holds people accountable in a way. This will push away a number of bad actors who intend on using Thundr for the wrong reasons, ultimately making Thundr safer than a lot of Omegle alternatives. Like always, when using Thundr or any other cam site that connects users to strangers from around the globe, use caution. The internet has always been a weird place. Thundr is no exception.

The Adaptive Lighting custom component in Home Assistant can change the brightness and color temperature of the lights in your smart home throughout the day to mimic the natural light of the sun. This can help make lighting feel more comfortable throughout the day and may help support better sleep habits.

I've tried vibe coding for fun mostly. But I realized that when done right, it can make some quality software products, especially if you're a vibe coder with programming knowledge. That's why I've been testing different techniques and found some that work really well.

Though bloody, Euphoria's "version of the Red Wedding" actually had a very pink colour palette.

Season 3, episode 3 of the HBO series saw combustible lovers Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) and Nate (Jacob Elordi) getting married in a ceremony that was just as lavish and over-the-top as it was harrowing.

SEE ALSO: 'Euphoria' just did its version of the Red Wedding

The Euphoria wedding was filmed on the south lawn of The Langham, Huntingdon in Pasadena, as well as on a Warner Bros set for the interior reception scenes. From the ceremony to the afterparty, Cassie and Nate's wedding is a cornucopia of pink drapery, Cartier jewels, and $50,000 flower arrangements, including rose aisle arches and a custom C&N logo.

In a behind-the-scenes video from HBO, production designer François Audouy said he talked to Euphoria creator Sam Levinson early in pre-production with his vision: "I told him that I was inspired by a shrimp cocktail."

"I literally sampled the pinks from a shrimp and then that became the color palette for the wedding," Audouy added.

I mean... Credit: HBO / YouTube That feeling of a $50,000 flower budget. Credit: Eddy Chen / HBO Shrimpy pinks abound. Credit: Eddy Chen / HBO

If you watch the episode again, you can see the production team, including set decorator Anthony Carlino, not only took cues from the favoured dish of 1960s dinner parties, but included a ton of prawns within an ice sculpture, emblazoned with Nate and Cassie's initials. The team also wrote a menu, which includes blinis, steak tartare, and smoked salmon and crème fraîche — all the fancypants canapés you'd expect. And you'll notice Cassie's bridesmaids dresses, designed by Euphoria costume designer Natasha Newman-Thomas, are the same shrimpy pink.

🦐 loooool 🦐 Credit: HBO / YouTube

"It's a bit over-the-top, all these incredibly detailed tables, and the flower arrangements, and the food — it's supposed to be very Californian," Audouy said of the Spanish Revival-style interior set the Euphoria team built at Warner Bros. for the reception scenes. The level of detail here is just staggering, from the wedding table to the table setting (with Fujifilm Instaxes) and that horrendous ice sculpture of Cassie and Nate.

🦐 Credit: HBO / YouTube 🦐 Credit: HBO / YouTube 🦐 Credit: HBO / YouTube

If the wedding site looks familiar, The Langham is regularly used for film and TV shoots; the hotel's website lists The Parent Trap, Hacks, Westworld, The Brothers Sun, Modern Family, and American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace. It's also where Ashley and JP’s wedding was filmed for The Bachelorette in 2012, which feels right for Cassie and Nate.

Wedding planning website The Knot prices The Langham at $34,500 average spend for a wedding, however, that seems hilariously under Cassie and Nate's budget. Mashable has reached out to The Langham for a quote of our own.

With those $50,000 florals, the multi-venue hire, Cassie’s Natasha Newman-Thomas/Jackson Wiederhoeft dress and Cartier jewellery, Nate’s Bottega Veneta tuxedo, the full band, DJ and dance floor, wedding planner, highly opulent food and drink budget, and those lavish table settings, we’re thinking six figures at a minimum. But remember, Nate’s in serious debt and though Cassie’s making that OnlyFans money, they’re not millionaires. Yes, Nate’s financial situation has toe-curling consequences.

New episodes of Euphoria Season 3 premiere Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max.

Featured Video For You How TikTok is Changing the Music Industry

Electric vehicles often face the range wall, a common concern for car buyers when trying to decide whether to go full-electric or stick with a gasoline vehicle. If a person is taking frequent cross-country road trips, this range wall becomes a major factor in their buying decision.

Network issues can be frustratingly difficult to troubleshoot, especially if they're intermittent. Sometimes it is a hardware problem, sometimes it is the layout of your home, and yet other times, it comes down to a software issue.

"Our main story tonight concerns AI: It saves significant time writing emails, and all it costs us is everything else on Earth."

That's how John Oliver launches his latest Last Week Tonight segment on AI chatbots, taking half an hour to break down the darker side of artificial intelligence apps — from chatbots becoming sexually explicit with young users to the dangerous lack of safeguards in place when people use them to talk about suicide.

Oliver ends by advising parents to speak with their children about what chatbots they're using, and "treat these apps with extreme caution" if you're pre-disposed to mental health issues.

"In general, it is good to remember that however much an app may sound like a friend, what it is is a machine. And behind that machine is a corporation trying to extract a monthly fee from you. And that kind of sums up for me what is so dystopian about all this, because while that guy you saw earlier said that selling AI friends is low risk because they're just entertainment, that's not actually how friends work. Friends can be the most important figures in your life," says Oliver. "True friends know when to listen, when to push back, and when to worry about you."

If you're feeling suicidal or experiencing a mental health crisis, please talk to somebody. You can call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org. You can reach the Trans Lifeline by calling 877-565-8860 or the Trevor Project at 866-488-7386. Text "START" to Crisis Text Line at 741-741. Contact the NAMI HelpLine at 1-800-950-NAMI, Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. ET, or email info@nami.org. If you don't like the phone, consider using the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Chat. Here is a list of international resources.

SAVE $20: As of April 27, the Lego Botanicals Mini Bonsai Trees are on sale for $44.99 at Amazon, a return to their lowest-ever price at the retailer.

Opens in a new window Credit: Lego Lego Botanicals Mini Bonsai Trees (10373) $44.99 at Amazon
$64.99 Save $20.00   Get Deal

Lego's Botanicals sets are perfect builds for spring and summer, thanks to their bright colors and blooms that are beautiful on display. If you've been searching for a new set to piece together, the Lego Botanicals Mini Bonsai Trees (10373) are a terrific little trio. They're even discounted right now at Amazon, so there's no better time to grab them.

As of April 27, the Lego Botanicals Mini Bonsai Trees have dropped to $44.99 at Amazon, marking a return to their lowest-ever price. Usually they're listed for $64.99, so this is your chance to save $20. It's currently marked as a limited time deal, so this set may not stay on sale for long.

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The Lego Botanicals Mini Bonsai Trees is a delightful display, coming with 709 pieces in total that create three trees: a ginkgo bonsai tree with vibrant yellow leaves, a black pine bonsai tree with green needles, and a wisteria bonsai tree that features lovely lilac flowers.

Since it's a display piece, it's a set that's recommended for adults of ages 18 and over. However, if you know someone younger who wants to tackle this set, just have an adult help them out with the building process.

Again, since it's a limited-time offer, this deal on the Lego Botanicals Mini Bonsai Trees may not be available for long. If you're hoping to have it as part of your Lego collection, now is the time to scoop it up and save.

There's a long-standing myth that the "best" Excel users write the longest formulas. Excel mastery used to be measured by how many functions you could cram into one cell, but that standard no longer holds up. Modern tools have changed the game—what once looked like a genius nested formula is often just technical debt in disguise.

Far too often, I see 3D printing guides skip one of the most important steps of all—prototyping. Making prototype prints is absolutely crucial to getting a quality end product. Just about every time I skip prototyping, I regret it. So, here’s why you should value and pay attention to prototyping way more than 3D printing guides normally let on.

SAVE $40: As of April 27, the Fitbit Charge 6 is on sale at Amazon for $119.95. This is $40 off its list price of $159.95.

Opens in a new window Credit: Fitbit Fitbit Charge 6 $119.95 at Amazon
$159.95 Save $40.00   Get Deal

If this spring weather has you searching for a fitness tracker to join you outside for workouts and activities, Amazon has dropped the price on quite a few different models, including some top picks from Fitbit. Our favorite mid-range fitness tracker, the Fitbit Charge 6, is down to just $119.95.

Overall, this is a $40 discount from the Fitbit Charge 6's list price of $159.95. That's a nice standalone offer, but what makes it even better is every available color is on sale at this price. Take your pick from the black band, white band, or even the vibrant red band if you want a pop of color on your wrist.

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If you're on the hunt for a fitness tracker that's not too over-the-top in terms of stats but also not too simple, the Fitbit Charge 6 is worth a look. In our roundup of the best fitness trackers, we said it's "A shining example of what a mid-budget fitness tracker can be. It offers fantastic value for what you pay, and packs in a lot of the features you'd expect from more high-end fitness trackers like a built-in GPS, 40 exercise modes to choose from, and heart rate connectivity with select exercise machines, just to name a few."

On top of that, its battery life can last up to seven days. That gives you plenty of time before it needs to be recharged.

The Fitbit Charge 6 is marked as a limited time deal right now. So if it sounds like the kind of fitness tracker you've been searching for, this is the time to grab it.

TL;DR: Amazon has the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D 16-Core Processor on sale for $573.99, knocking $125.01 off its $699 list price. That's an 18% discount on a 16-core, 32-thread Zen 5 CPU with second-gen AMD 3D V-Cache, up to 5.7GHz max boost, and AM5 support.

Opens in a new window Credit: AMD AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D 16-Core Processor $573.99 at Amazon
$699 Save $125.01 Get Deal

Upgrading your gaming PC is a simple but expensive idea, but Amazon’s new drop on a premium AMD CPU will certainly help take the edge off. 

As of April 27, the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D 16-Core Processor is on sale for $573.99 at Amazon, down from its $699 list price. Not only does this save you $125.01, but this is also Amazon’s lowest ever price for this particular CPU, as confirmed using price tracker camelcamelcamel.

Taking you far beyond casual gaming, the Ryzen 9 9950X3D is built for more than just a few rounds of Fortnite. It’s been crafted for gamers who love doing a lot at once: playing, streaming, editing, rendering, or switching between heavy workloads — all without having your daily tasks suddenly come to a grinding halt. 

Also packing 32 threads, a 4.3GHz base clock, and up to 5.7GHz max boost, the 9950X3D also uses AMD’s Zen 5 architecture and second-generation 3D V-Cache technology. As a result, you’ll give games and demanding apps more cache to work with. In layman’s terms, it’s built to keep things fast when your PC is being pushed properly, even when you’re playing demanding new gaming titles like Crimson Desert or Pragmata.

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There’s also support for the AM5 platform, DDR5 memory, PCIe 5.0, AMD EXPO memory overclocking, and Precision Boost Overdrive. Overall, that provides a pretty strong upgrade path if you’re building a system that you don’t want to feel outdated in a year.

The one thing to remember is that there’s no cooler included, and AMD recommends a liquid cooler for the best performance. Still, if you’re buying a CPU at this level, that probably isn’t the part of the build where you were planning to cut corners.

To complement your setup with some amazing new visuals, you can also find the 27-inch LG UltraGear OLED monitor for only $499.99 at 44% off. If you’re after something even bigger, the 52-inch LG UltraGear evo (the world's largest 5K2K gaming monitor) is $300 off. 

Vaultwarden is a community-built, open-source server for Bitwarden that you can self-host. It can connect to all official Bitwarden apps and extensions, which means you don't need to replace any of the Bitwarden apps and extensions you've already installed. You can just sign into them with your self-hosted instance of Vaultwarden.