By air, land, and sea, Russia has launched a devastating attack on Ukraine, a European democracy of 44 million people, and its forces are on the outskirts of the capital, Kyiv. For months, President Vladimir Putin denied he would invade his neighbour, but then he tore up a peace deal, sending forces across borders in Ukraine's north, east and south. As the number of dead climbs, he stands accused of shattering peace in Europe. What happens next could jeopardise the continent's entire security structure. Why have Russian troops attacked? Russian troops are advancing on Ukraine's capital from several directions after Russia's leader ordered the invasion. In a pre-dawn TV address on 24 February, he declared Russia could could not feel "safe, develop and exist" because of what he claimed was a constant threat from modern Ukraine. Airports and military headquarters were hit first, near cities across Ukraine, then tanks and troops rolled into Ukraine from the north, east and south - from Russia and its ally Belarus. Many of President Putin's arguments were false or irrational. He claimed his goal was to protect people subjected to bullying and genocide and aim for the "demilitarisation and de-Nazification" of Ukraine. There has been no genocide in Ukraine: it is a vibrant democracy, led by a president who is Jewish. "How could I be a Nazi?" said Volodymr Zelensky, who likened Russia's onslaught to Nazi Germany's invasion in World War Two. President Putin has frequently accused Ukraine of being taken over by extremists, ever since its pro-Russian president, Viktor Yanukovych, was ousted in 2014 after months of protests against his rule. Russia then retaliated by seizing the southern region of Crimea and triggering a rebellion in the east, backing separatists who have fought Ukrainian forces in a war that has claimed 14,000 lives. Late in 2021, Russia began deploying big numbers of troops close to Ukraine's borders, while repeatedly denying it was going to attack. Then Mr Putin scrapped a 2015 peace deal for the east and recognised areas under rebel control as independent. Russia has long resisted Ukraine's move towards the European Union and the West's defensive military alliance, Nato. Announcing Russia's invasion, he accused Nato of threatening "our historic future as a nation". How far will Russia go? It is now clear that Russia is seeking to overthrow Ukraine's democratically elected government. Its aim is that Ukraine be freed from oppression and "cleansed of the Nazis". President Zelensky said he had been warned "the enemy has designated me as target number one; my family is target number two". This false narrative of a Ukraine seized by fascists in 2014 has been spun regularly on Kremlin-controlled TV. Mr Putin has spoken of bringing to court "those who committed numerous bloody crimes against civilians". What Russia's plans are for Ukraine are unknown, but it faces stiff resistance from a deeply hostile po[CENSORED]tion. In January, the UK accused Moscow of plotting to install a pro-Moscow puppet to lead Ukraine's government - a claim rejected at the time by Russia as nonsense. One unconfirmed intelligence report suggested Russia aimed to split the country in two. In the days before the invasion, when up to 200,000 troops were near Ukraine's borders, Russia's public focus was purely on the eastern areas of Luhansk and Donetsk. By recognising the separatist areas controlled by Russian proxies as independent, Mr Putin was telling the world they were no longer part of Ukraine. Then he revealed that he supported their claims to far more Ukrainian territory. The self-styled people's republics cover little more than a third of the whole of Ukraine's Luhansk and Donetsk regions, but the rebels covet the rest, too. How dangerous is this invasion for Europe? These are terrifying times for the people of Ukraine and horrifying for the rest of the continent, witnessing a major power invading a European neighbour for the first time since World War Two. Dozens have died already in what Germany has dubbed "Putin's war", both civilians and soldiers. And for Europe's leaders, this invasion has brought some of the darkest hours since the 1940s. It was, said France's Emmanuel Macron, a turning point in Europe's history. Recalling the Cold War days of the Soviet Union, Volodymyr Zelensky spoke of Ukraine's bid to avoid a new iron curtain closing Russia off from the civilised world. For the families of both armed forces, there will be anxious days ahead. Ukrainians have already suffered a gruelling eight-year war with Russian proxies. The military has called up all reservists aged 18 to 60 years old. Top US military official Mark Milley said the scale of Russian forces would mean a "horrific" scenario, with conflict in dense urban areas. This is not a war that Russia's po[CENSORED]tion was prepared for, either, as the invasion was rubber-stamped by a largely unrepresentative upper house of parliament. The invasion has knock-on effects for many other countries bordering both Russia and Ukraine. Five countries are seeing an influx of refugees, while the UN children's agency says its projected scenario is for up to five million refugees. Poland, Moldova, Romania, Slovakia and Hungary are all braced for arrivals. What can the West do? Nato has put warplanes on alert, but the Western alliance has made clear there are no plans to send combat troops to Ukraine itself. Instead, they have offered advisers, weapons and field hospitals. Meanwhile, 5,000 Nato troops have been deployed in the Baltic states and Poland. Another 4,000 could be sent to Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary and Slovakia. At the same time, the West is targeting Russia's economy, financial institutions and individuals: The EU and UK have imposed personal sanctions on President Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov The EU also wants to restrict Russian access to capital markets and cut off its industry from latest technology and defence. It has also targeted 351 MPs who backed Russia's recognition of the rebel-held regions Germany has halted approval on Russia's Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, a major investment by both Russia and European companies The US is targeting 10 of Russia's biggest financial institutions, with about 80% of its banking assets, so they will struggle to do transactions in dollars or euros The UK says all major Russian banks would have their assets frozen, with 100 individuals and entities targeted; and Russia's national airline Aeroflot will also be banned from landing in the UK. Ukraine has urged its allies to stop buying Russian oil and gas. The three Baltic states have called on the whole international community to disconnect Russia's banking system from the international Swift payment system. That could badly affect the US and European economies and Germany says is reluctant to agree to it. The Russian city of St Petersburg will no longer be able to host this year's Champions League final for security reasons. Link : https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56720589

What is it? As with other less powerful Volkswagen T-Roc models, the T-Roc R doesn’t receive a power hike with this mid-life facelift, but it does benefit from a series of exterior styling changes and upgrades to its interior, which combine to give it a more contemporary look and more premium feel than before. It remains delightfully urgent, with a raspy exhaust note that pops and crackles on the overrun in Race driving mode to give you the full aural performance car experience when you so desire. The turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine displays some lag as the induction begins to build at lower end of the dial. Still, it's very determined and also quite smooth through the mid-range, where it's very responsive and willing. Volkswagen’s seven-speed dual-clutch automatic (DSG) gearbox is quick and smoother than ever before. It delivers rapid upshifts in automatic mode and is every bit as eager when you operate it in manual mode via the R-specific steering-wheel-mounted paddles. Drive is sent to all four wheels via a fifth-generation version of Volkswagen’s 4Motion four-wheel drive system. It's not as advanced as the system used by the latest Volkswagen Golf R, but its ability to vary the amount of power sent to the front and rear wheels provides the T-Roc R with excellent traction. What's it like? You can deploy the 296bhp and 295lb ft with great confidence, both in wet and dry conditions. Predictably given the lack of any significant mechanical upgrades, the 0-62mph time is the same as before, at 4.9sec, as is the limited 155mph top speed. Don’t let that put you off, though. The all-season performance remains at a very high level. When you dial it back, there are flexible qualities to the engine in either Eco, Comfort or Normal mode. This makes for relatively relaxed and refined driving traits, both around town and at typical motorway cruising speeds in taller gears. The 1560kg T-Roc R is assured over more challenging roads. The progressive steering, which alters the amount of assistance dependent on speed, is characteristically light and devoid of much communication. However, it gets a high-geared ratio, imbuing the car with brisk turn in and pleasing all-round agility, if little in the way of true feel. The MacPherson strut front and four-link rear suspension is lowered by 20mm and stiffened quite appreciably over other T-Roc models to improve body control, erring towards firm in Race mode. It's fine on smooth surfaces but tends to contribute to quite a bit of vertical movement and bump thump over rougher roads. Setting it apart from its less powerful T-roc models, the facelifted T-Roc R continues to have its own unique styling touches. Included is a more heavily structured front bumper with high-gloss-black highlights, vertically stacked daytime running lights (mirroring the look of those used by the latest Golf R) and a larger central air duct than that seen on standard T-Rocs. Other traditional R styling details include standard 18in Jerez alloy wheels (optionally 19in); aluminium-look door-mirror housings; a larger spoiler integrated into the top of the tailgate; darkened tail-light lenses with new-look LED graphics; and a new rear bumper with high-gloss-black detailing, an integrated diffuser and quad tailpipes (optionally available as Akrapovič titanium ones, as on the Golf R). Inside, the top of the dashboard gets a soft-touch material in place of the hard plastic used previously. There's also a new standard 8.0in Digital Cockpit instrument display and a 9.2in) infotainment touchscreen, the latter featuring a new tiled menu and altered graphics as part of a third-generation MIB upgrade. New or revised functions include traffic-sign recognition, conversational voice control, optional Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and an embedded SIM card to allow access to Volkswagen’s WeConnect streaming services. Reflecting its performance positioning, the T-Roc R also adds a thicker-rimmed flat-bottomed R steering wheel with an integral R mode button, R-specific instrument graphics, stainless-steel pedal caps and footrest, more heavily contoured R seats and a series of R-specific driving-monitor functions on the touchscreen, among other individual touches. Link : https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/volkswagen/first-drives/volkswagen-t-roc-r-2022-review

Name of the game: Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator Price: 9,36$ Link Store: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1210320/Potion_Craft_Alchemist_Simulator/ Offer ends up after X hours: in 2 hours Requirements: MINIMUM: Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system OS: Windows 10 Processor: Intel i3-6100 or equivalent Memory: 8 GB RAM Graphics: GeForce GTX 670 / Radeon HD 7970 DirectX: Version 10 Storage: 5 GB available space

Ford’s hardcore Ranger Raptor pick-up has swapped its 2.0-litre turbo diesel engine for a substantially more powerful 3.0-litre petrol V6 and undergone a radical redesign influenced by the US-market F-150 Raptor. It will be the first version of the new fourth-generation Ranger to go on sale in Europe, with deliveries getting under way in late summer. The standard truck, revealed in 2021, will follow by the end of this year. The new 3.0-litre twin-turbo petrol V6 puts out 284bhp – a 74bhp hike – and 362lb ft. Although Ford has yet to reveal performance figures, the new Raptor is expected to comfortably outpace the previous version, which needed 10.1sec to hit 62mph from rest. However, the current 2.0-litre diesel engine will also be made available in the Raptor from 2023. A ‘race-bred’ anti-lag system, similar to that used by the Ford GT supercar and Ford Focus ST hot hatch, keeps the turbos spinning for three seconds after lift-off, to enable the driver to get back on the power sooner after coming out of a corner, for example. The turbos are also mapped to start spinning at different times in each of the automatic gearbox’s 10 ratios, in order to give the straightest acceleration curve. Ford Performance programme manager Justin Capicchiano told Autocar: “It’s a totally engrossing experience. You’ve got a rowdy twin-turbo petrol V6. It makes a great noise – we spent a lot of time in the sound lab – and it comes with the performance to go with it now. It’s got the looks, the bark and the bite. We’re really proud of this one.” As with the previous Raptor, modifications over the standard Ranger go well beyond the powertrain. The chassis has been comprehensively revised to enhance off-road performance and durability, with new mounts and reinforcements throughout, extended-travel suspension with lower-friction 2.5in live-valve Fox dampers and a 2.3mm-thick steel bash plate that is twice the size of the standard Ranger’s. The Raptor also gets a new electronically controlled two-speed transfer case, a locking differential at the front and rear and a total of seven driving modes, three for the road and four for rough terrain. The visual enhancements extend to a bespoke grille with massive badging, flared wheel arches, 17in alloy wheels wrapped in chunky all-terrain tyres and an array of aero-enhancing styling cues. Inside, the Raptor comes with “jet fighter-inspired”’ seats, orange trim accents and stitching and magnesium paddle shifters. The best way to describe the evolution, said Capicchiano, is to “think of the current truck as the ST version and the new one moving towards the RS side of it. It’s a step up in character and performance”. Link : https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/new-2022-ford-ranger-raptor-gets-284bhp-petrol-v6

Overclocking expert Luumi on YouTube recently made a new video testing the utility and functionality of a 3D-printed LGA1700 bracket from the Australian extreme overclocker Karta. The custom bracket, which Karta made using one of the best 3D printers on the market, puts less pressure on Alder Lake CPUs installed into the socket, preventing the CPUs from bowing in the middle. Luumi tested the bracket against workarounds involving washers and found temperatures to be very similar. For the uninitiated, it recently came to light that Intel's ILM (Independent Loading Mechanism) for the LGA1700 socket is not well optimized for Alder Lake CPUs and can put excess pressure on the CPU, causing the integrated heat spreader to bow in the middle. Thankfully, this issue doesn't affect CPU reliability, but it increases CPU temperatures by several degrees. A month ago, German publication Igor's Lab discovered a method to nullify these effects entirely. The mod involved adding M4 washers behind the socket holder, which increased the socket's height and reduced the ILM's pressure on the CPU. The results turned out to be very successful, with a 5 degrees Celsius reduction in CPU temperatures when using 1mm washers. Karta took Igor's approach one step further by 3D printing an entirely new bracket from plastic with the additional height adjustment. In testing, Luumi found the 3D-printed mod to be successful but not as successful as he'd hoped. Luumi tested the 3D-printed bracket with an Intel Core i5-12600K and EVGA's $829 Z690 Dark Kingpin motherboard with the infamous Prime95 stress test. He compared the thermal results between the stock ILM (without the washer mod) and the custom LGA1700 bracket. Temperature was incredibly similar between the two setups with less than a one degrees Celsius difference. However, Luumi noted that this could be a problem with the water block that already had a convex outline from previous use. He showcased the mounting pressure between the stock ILM and the 3D-printed LGA1700 socket. He noticed that the mounting pressure was terrible with the latter, where only the center of the CPU was getting the most attention, whereas the edges of the CPU lacked significant contact. On the other hand, it wasn't true of the stock ILM run where mounting pressure was far more linear between the center and edges of the chip. Luumi will test the custom LGA1700 bracket again once he laps the water block in a future video, so we should see far better results. However, since Igor's washer mod has proved successful, we should see the same results with this 3D-printed solution under more appropriate conditions. In a worst-case scenario, the ILM might need some height adjustment to get the best temperatures out of Intel's Core i5-12600K.

Name of the game: Tiny Combat Arena Price: 11,75$ Link Store: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1347550/Tiny_Combat_Arena/ Offer ends up after X hours: 1 March Requirements: MINIMUM: OS: Windows 10 Processor: x86, x64 architecture with SSE2 instruction set support Memory: 1024 MB RAM Graphics: DX10, DX11, DX12 capable DirectX: Version 10 Storage: 1024 MB available space

Star Wars: The Old Republic's Legacy of the Sith expansion has not quite been the crescendo of the MMO's 10-year anniversary celebrations BioWare was surely hoping for. While Steam has seen an upswing in positive reviews since the update arrived, reactions on the official forums, Reddit and Twitter paint a very different picture. The issues players have raised are pretty consistent: Legacy of the Sith's story is over and done with very quickly, there are plenty of significant bugs, the UI changes are an eyesore and the radical changes to classes, now combat styles, are a step back. One of the main common threads is the size of the update. Framing these as expansions has been criticised before, with Onslaught, but the criticism seems much louder now, with countless forum posts and replies calling it out. On Twitter, meanwhile, players are merely responding to the launch tweet with a sarcastic "expansion", with heavily implied air quotes. Even by the standards of Onslaught, Legacy of the Sith does feel slight when it comes to missions. At a couple of hours long, it's brisk, and once you're done you'll need to wait for the daily zone and operation, as BioWare is still working on them. But it comes with more significant changes elsewhere, namely the class and story overhaul. With my alt obsession, the freedom to play through the Bounty Hunter storyline as a Vanguard or start as a Jedi Sage and eventually become a Sith Sorcerer has made me ecstatic. And there are secondary combat styles now, letting you effectively switch classes on the fly—at least with the appropriate legacy unlock, otherwise you'll need to switch in sanctuaries and cantinas. This change hasn't drawn the ire of players, but other class changes definitely have. Their transformation into combat styles came with a huge overhaul of abilities, which has been more subtractive than additive. Some have been outright removed, while others have been turned into choices, where you can only pick one of several you could have previously used freely. Fundamental abilities, the stuff that's in your core rotation, have mostly been left alone, but several combat styles do feel like they've been defanged. Perhaps this was to encourage players to use their secondary combat style, but getting players to use a new feature by making an old one less effective probably isn't the best way to go about it. And activating different loadouts requires players to be out of combat and buy the aforementioned legacy unlock if they want to swap outside of a few specific areas; it's not the same as having a single class with decent utility. There are also strange incongruities where it's hard to tell if it's a bug, a missing asset or a weird choice, like new monochromatic icons that are neither as evocative or as clear as the old ones. The old class symbols were these colourful representations of the weapons and abilities that made them iconic: lightning for the Inquisitor, a flamethrower for the Bounty Hunter. The origin symbols that replace them are black and white doodles of heads: a guy in a hood, another guy in a hood, a guy in a hat, some helmets. It looks particularly strange in the new ability tree, which you can see above, where new plain blue icons sit next to the brightly-coloured old ones. Players have also noted more serious issues, some of which have been added to the official known issues list. I've encountered some myself that aren't included, like spawning in the wrong place and not being able to leave without teleporting to my ship and then launching the episode again. At least I started where I left off, and in the right place, but it took me an embarrassingly long time, running around like an idiot, to realise it was a bug. The response on Steam, at least in terms of user reviews, hasn't been nearly as critical. Since the update launch, there's been a spike in reviews, naturally, but here the positives far outweigh the negatives, with 158 positive to 19 negative on February 15, and 106 to 69 a day later. Most recent positive reviews don't focus on the update, however, while the vast majority of negative ones specifically call it out. On the Steam forum, meanwhile, the atmosphere is a bit more downbeat. Over on the official forums, the community appears to be at the bargaining point in their journey through the stages of grief, hoping BioWare will address the response and using their subs as bargaining chips. So far, though, BioWare has just stuck to updating the known issues list and notifying players about downtime.

Full-featured motherboards based on the Intel Z690 chipset don’t come cheap, with some models costing more than $600. In this marketplace, ASRock’s $469 PG Velocita is a relatively-affordable option costing more than $100 less than the Z690 Taichi we reviewed previously and providing built-in Wi-Fi 6E, a PCIe 5.0 x4 M.2 socket and strong overclocking capability. However, stiff competition from other Z690 boards and a last-gen audio codec keep the PG Velocita from making our list of best motherboards.which. The Z690 version of the PG Velocita brings an updated appearance, improved power delivery, and an integrated PCIe 5.0 x4 M.2 socket. Like all of the other Z690-based boards we’ve tested, we again see more of an iterative update with the significant changes coming in the form of support for the new socket and all of the benefits Alder Lake brings to the table, including PCIe 5.0 functionality. The Z690 PG Velocita tweaked its appearance over the Z590 version in a couple of ways, including a chipset heatsink redesign, some color swaps on the M.2 heatsinks, and a redesign of the IO cover. Overall, we feel it’s an improvement. The board also increased the M.2 socket count to four (from three), including one native PCIe 5.0 x4 (128 Gbps) socket, which we don’t see too much on Z690 boards. There are plenty of USB ports on the rear IO area; however, the only 20 Gbps port is on the front panel. ASRock even includes a GPU holder to support your heavy graphics cards. Performance for the PG Velocita varied, but for the most part, it was average among the other DDR5 boards we’ve tested so far. Gaming performance was spot on, as was AIDA memory bandwidth testing. Power consumption was ever-so-slightly above average, not that you’d notice on your power bill. Overall, out-of-the-box performance is not a concern. The Z690 PG Velocita is built with a black, eight-layer PCB. Over the rear IO area is a black and grey plastic shroud that partially covers the active VRM heatsinks. The first RGB element hides below this shroud and lights up the lines around the Chrome ASRock branding. All of the M.2 sockets on the bottom half of the board get a heatsink as well. The chipset heatsink sports a unique circle design with RGBs and a see-through plexi part just above. Overall, the black and red appearance should match well with most build themes, but to me, it doesn’t quite give off the premium vibe some other boards in this class do. Focusing on the top half of the board, we get a better look at the VRM heatsinks, RAM sockets, and other connectivity in this area. Starting on the left, we already discussed the RGB lighting hidden below the shroud. It’s an accent and won’t take over the inside of your chassis, but the LEDs are saturated, producing nice color. The VRM heatsinks, while not as large as others, have active cooling on the left bank and a heat pipe that connects the two in order to share the thermal dissipation duties. Unlike with previous iterations, this fan started quiet and remained quiet throughout our testing. Two 8-pin EPS connectors provide power for the CPU. Continuing right, we run into the four reinforced DRAM sockets that support up to 128GB of DDR5. ASRock lists speeds up to DDR5 6400+, but your mileage may vary. In order to reach those speeds, you need an appropriate memory kit and a solid IMC on the processor (along with a BIOS that will do it). Just above the DRAM slots are the first three (of eight) 4-pin fan headers. We have the CPU_FAN, CPU_FAN2/WP, and VRM_FAN headers in this area. The first CPU fan and VRM fan headers support 1A/12W of output, while the CPU_FAN2/WP header in the middle supports up to 3A/36W. The rest of the chassis fans output 1A/12W outside of the WP header (bottom edge) which is good for 2A/24W. There are plenty of headers and power for your fans and water pump. To the right are the first RGB headers. Here we find two 3-pin ARGB headers, while on the bottom of the board is another 3-pin ARGB and a 4-pin RGB header. Control over the RGB lighting is handled by the ASRock Polychrome software, which worked fine in our limited testing. Sliding around to the right edge, we run into the onboard power and reset buttons followed by the 24-pin ARX connector to power the board. The first USB 3.2 Gen1 (5 Gbps) header and a front-panel USB 3.2 Gen2x2 (20 Gbps) Type-C header are below that. On the power delivery front, the Z690 PG Velocita got a slight upgrade from its Z590 counterpart. More power stages were added, and the VRM type was upgraded to SPS MOSFETs. Power comes from the 8-pin EPS connector(s) and onto a Renesas RAA229131 20-channel controller. Next, it goes to the 16 60A Intersil ISL99360 SPS MOSFETs. While the 960A available is incredibly low compared to similarly priced boards, it still handled our Intel i9-12900K processor at stock and while overclocked. Moving down to the bottom of the board, we notice heatsinks covering all the important parts, but not much else. Starting on the left with audio, hidden below the plastic cover is the last generation flagship Realtek ALC 1220 codec and five dedicated audio capacitors. Most users will be happy with this solution, though other boards use the latest and greatest Realtek codec at the same price point. For the price, I would like to have seen the latest and greatest (ALC 408x) used here. In the middle of the board, we find a few PCIe slots, along with four M.2 sockets sprinkled in among them. Starting with PCIe, there are four total slots--three full-length slots (top two are reinforced) and two open-ended x1 size slots. The top two full-length slots are wired for PCIe 5.0 and CPU-connected, while the bottom slot is PCIe 4.0 and fed from the chipset. The primary GPU slots run at x16/x0 or x8/x8, both PCIe 5.0. This configuration supports AMD Crossfire multi-GPU technology, but curiously (as it has the lanes/bandwidth), not Nvidia SLI. The x1 slots source their bandwidth from the chipset and run at PCIe 3.0 x1. For M.2 connectivity, the Z690 Velocita has four sockets, an increase of one over the previous generation. The top socket, M2_1, supports PCIe 4.0 x4 modules up to 80mm, with M2_3 running the same speed and supporting the same PCIe protocol but supporting larger 110mm modules. M2_2 supports both SATA and PCIe drives with speeds up to PCIe 3.0 x4 (32 Gbps) and 80mm devices. M2_4 is your ‘Blazing’ PCIe 5.0 x4 (128 Gbps) socket. It supports PCIe modules up to 80mm. Note that the first PCIe socket downgrades to x8 mode with this socket occupied.

Name of the game: Infernax Price: 18.00$ Link Store: https://store.steampowered.com/app/374190/Infernax/ Offer ends up after X hours: in 44 hours Requirements: Minimum : Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system OS: Windows 7 Processor: Intel Core i3-540 or AMD Phenom II X2 550 Memory: 4 GB RAM Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GT 320, 1GB or AMD Radeon HD 6570, 1GB Storage: 500 MB available space Sound Card: multipass Recommended : Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system OS: Windows 7 Processor: Intel Core i3-540 or AMD Phenom II X2 550 Memory: 4 GB RAM Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GT 320, 1GB or AMD Radeon HD 6570, 1GB Storage: 500 MB available space

Cooler Master's latest flagship 360 AIO, the MasterLiquid PL360 Flux, expands the brand's already formidable liquid cooling lineup. With an incredibly attractive front bezel and brushed-metal face finish, the PL360 Flux has an elegant design to accompany its relatively standard cooling potential. While it doesn’t provide cutting-edge thermals, it certainly doesn’t disappoint. For the vast majority of system builders, the Flux aims to deliver performance that meets day-to-day gaming and desktop needs. That makes it a solid choice for a cooling system with the ability to add some style and personality to no-nonsense desktop builds. Cooler Master ships the MasterLiquid PL360 Flux with a relatively robust set of mounting gear, so it's ready out of the box to support most current and previous-gen AMD and Intel mainstream, and enthusiast desktop CPUs while also supporting high-end desktop (HEDT) chips as well. Included in the bundle is a Cooler Master aRGB controller to manage aRGB lighting with an integrated 9-pin USB header, but the package does not offer PWM fan or pump speed control. The heart and soul of the PL360 Flux features a newly designed, dual-chambered pump and ceramic bearing, which is touted to provide better flow through the cooling system while an enlarged copper cold plate and revised cooling fins are meant to pull heat away from the CPU IHS and dissipate more efficiently into the coolant stream. A pair of 90-degree swivel fittings feed into sleeved tubing while providing a high level of flexibility for tricky installations. Pump power and management comes via a dedicated 4-pin PWM connector, lighting is managed via standard 3-pin 5v aRGB plug and the pump itself has an expected average lifetime of more than 210,000 hours. The base of the PL360 Flux showcases a rather defined and somewhat enlarged milled copper cold plate which allows the cooler to also support the massive Threadripper IHS–although as we’ll see later, it does not come close to completely covering the massive AMD high-end desktop (HEDT) parts. Included with the Cooler Master PL360 Flux is an integrated aRGB (5v) lighting management module which makes use of a 9-pin USB header to connect with your internal motherboard socket. While the cooler comes standard with three (3) 120mm aRGB PL-Flux fans, the lighting module doesn’t provide additional dedicated sockets for other compatible accessories, unless aRGB splitters are purchased separately to allow for shared lighting control. The 360mm aluminum radiator is relatively standard for large AIOs and features a set of gloss-on-matte writing which says ‘Designed By Cooler Master’ along the side of the heat exchanger. The trio of 120mm PL-Flux fans are rated up to 2300 RPM and feature 4-pin PWM management, while 3-pin aRGB (5v) plugs handle lighting effects. Cooler Master specs the fans with an expected lifetime of more than 160,000 hours of operation. As mentioned before, the copper cold plate only covers the center 2/3 of the Threadripper integrated heat spreader (IHS). And while this does provide coverage over most of the processor’s cores, it relies heavily on the IHS to help dissipate thermal loads evenly, so the PF360 Flux can pick up the heat and remove it from the CPU package.

Name of the game: Barotrauma Price: 6,24$ Link Store: https://store.steampowered.com/app/602960/Barotrauma/ Offer ends up after X hours: 17 February Requirements: Minimum : Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system OS: Windows 7/8.1/10 (64-bit versions) Processor: Dual Core 2.4 GHz Memory: 4 GB RAM Graphics: 2 GB memory (dedicated VRAM or shared RAM), Shader Model 2.0+ DirectX: Version 11 Storage: 1 GB available space Additional Notes: 64-bit operating system is required Recommended : Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system OS: Windows 7/8.1/10 (64-bit versions) Processor: Quad Core 3.0 GHz Memory: 8 GB RAM Graphics: GeForce GTX 950 or Radeon R9 370 or equivalent with at least 2 GB VRAM DirectX: Version 11 Network: Broadband Internet connection Storage: 1 GB available space Additional Notes: 64-bit operating system is required

Intel has released request for comments (RFC) patches for its Linux kernel graphics driver enabling the development of third-party discrete GPU drivers for non-x86 architectures. This will potentially enable interested parties to build drivers for Intel's upcoming discrete graphics processors and make them work on Arm, RISC-V, POWER and other architectures under Linux. "Quicky and dirty hack based on some old ideas," is how Tvrtko Ursulin, an Intel engineer, described the patch series discovered by Phoronix. "Thought maybe the approach might interest the Arm port guys. But with IS_GEN_RANGE removed easy gains are not so big so meh. Maybe some more easy wins with IS_DISPLAY_VER but I have not looked into that side." Intel has been the leading supplier of integrated GPUs for well over a decade. However, since its GPUs are embedded inside its x86 CPUs, Intel did not need to enable non-x86 support for its drivers. Therefore, Intel's current graphics drivers for integrated GPUs are compiled and tuned for x86. However, uncoupling them from this architecture makes sense for Intel's upcoming standalone Xe-HPG GPUs for desktops and notebooks. Likewise, Xe-HPC GPUs for datacenters and supercomputers do not need to be tied to x86 architecture (even though they will be exclusively used with x86 processors, at least initially). For now, the series of patches that propose to untie the Intel Linux kernel graphics driver from x86 architecture are in RFC status, and it is unclear whether any developers will bite. Furthermore, we have no idea whether enthusiasts will build Intel Linux kernel graphics drivers for Arm or RISC-V system-on-chips, as there could be many software and hardware obstacles to overcome. One of the ways to attract the attention of enthusiasts and developers to a hardware platform is to make it compatible with a broad range of software platforms and allow people to experiment with it. For obvious reasons, the Linux community is one of Intel's target markets for its upcoming Arc Alchemist graphics cards and Xe-HPC compute accelerators, so being a little friendlier to the Linux crowd is a must. Enabling non-x86 support under Linux is a page that Intel is apparently taking from AMD's book. AMD makes the source code of some of its drivers available to the Linux community and therefore be adapted and built for various CPU architectures. For example, an enthusiast managed to make AMD's Radeon RX 6700 XT work on SiFive's HiFive Unmatched RISC-V desktop motherboard for developers last year.

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