Author: Frank Salvato

Google Search Advocate John Mueller said businesses should stop debating whether traditional search engine optimization (SEO) is being replaced by so-called generative engine optimization (GEO) and instead concentrate on real user behavior, actual traffic data and how audiences find and engage with their sites in an AI-driven landscape. Mueller emphasized that what you call your strategy doesn’t matter, but understanding where your referral traffic comes from and how much of your audience uses AI tools versus traditional search is what drives smart prioritization of resources. He reiterated that AI isn’t going away and many SEO fundamentals still apply to visibility…

A fresh wave of coverage and commentary has reignited the longstanding cultural debate about whether violent video games, especially high-budget, hyper-realistic titles like Grand Theft Auto 6, have crossed a line by increasingly mimicking real-world violence and blurring the gap between digital escapism and lifelike simulation. Industry observers and critics argue that the technological push toward photorealism raises ethical and psychological questions about the impact such games could have on players, especially youth, and whether there should be greater scrutiny or restraint in how violence is depicted and rewarded in interactive media. This conversation builds on decades of controversy over…

Microsoft has quietly introduced a quality-of-life update to Word across web, Windows, and Mac that makes creating hyperlinks far easier for everyday users. Instead of the traditional process of selecting text, opening the Insert Link dialog, and then entering or pasting a URL, Word now automatically converts plain text into a hyperlink when you highlight the text and paste a link directly over it using standard paste keyboard shortcuts like Ctrl + V on Windows or Cmd + V on Mac. This approach significantly cuts down friction and keeps users in their workflow, especially in professional settings where adding references,…

In the emerging AI-centric PC market, the long-touted future of personal computers being revolutionized by generative AI is showing signs of strain, with industry experts pointing to shifting hardware priorities, slowed consumer demand, and supply-chain pressures. At CES 2026, major players highlighted a trend toward integrating AI capabilities directly into PCs and other “edge” devices, driven by smaller, efficient AI models that can run locally and reduce dependence on cloud processing, yet consumer interest remains muted and the broader PC market may contract in 2026 as memory bandwidth is diverted to more profitable AI data centers. Intel’s new chips, Qualcomm…

Using advanced artificial intelligence methods, a team of mathematicians has identified a host of previously unseen “glitches” in fluid-dynamics equations — including unstable singularity candidates that have long eluded discovery. The work, building on physics-informed neural networks (PINNs), revisits simplified fluid models and detects scenarios where solutions blow up in ways traditional methods couldn’t uncover, offering fresh momentum toward solving deep open problems tied to the Navier-Stokes equations and other foundational partial differential equations that govern fluid motion. Source coverage confirms this effort is part of a broader push where AI is not just speeding numeric simulations but acting as…

Cisco Systems has released security updates for its widely used Identity Services Engine (ISE) and ISE Passive Identity Connector (ISE-PIC) to address a medium-severity security flaw tracked as CVE-2026-20029, which could allow authenticated attackers with administrative privileges to access sensitive system information. This vulnerability results from improper parsing of XML in the web-based management interface, enabling an attacker who uploads a malicious file to read arbitrary files on the underlying operating system, potentially exposing data even administrators shouldn’t access. Proof-of-concept exploit code has already been published, prompting Cisco to urge organizations using affected versions to apply the patches immediately; versions…

Google has warned publishers against reshaping or fragmenting their content solely for the benefit of artificial intelligence systems and large language model-driven ranking — a move that underscores broader industry concerns about how AI-generated search summaries and zero-click AI features are disrupting traditional traffic and revenue models for publishers. The company’s Search Liaison, Danny Sullivan, emphasized on Google’s Search Off the Record podcast that publishers should avoid tactics such as creating separate machine-formatted versions of content or restructuring pages to satisfy generative AI signals, warning that such optimization gambits are likely to fail as search evolves. This message comes amid…

YouTube is updating its search functionality to give users more control over the types of videos that appear in search results by introducing a new filter that separates short-form Shorts from longer, traditional videos; the update adds a dedicated “Shorts” option under the search “Type” menu so viewers can explicitly choose to show or exclude Shorts, renames the “Sort By” menu to “Prioritize,” replaces the old “View count” sort with a “Popularity” metric that also considers watch time, and removes underperforming features like “Upload Date – Last Hour” and “Sort by Rating” as part of the broader effort to streamline…

NASA leadership has reviewed extensive engineering data on the Orion spacecraft’s heat shield—originally flagged for unexpected char loss during the uncrewed Artemis I reentry—and concluded that the existing thermal protection system can safely support the Artemis II crewed lunar-flyby mission now slated for spring 2026, using a modified reentry profile to mitigate prior issues while maintaining astronaut safety and program momentum. Sources: https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-shares-orion-heat-shield-findings-updates-artemis-moon-missions/https://aerospaceamerica.aiaa.org/artemis-ii-crew-expresses-confidence-in-orion-capsule-heat-shield/https://spacepolicyonline.com/news/more-delays-for-artemis-artemis-ii-slips-to-april-2026-artemis-iii-to-mid-2027/ Key Takeaways • NASA’s internal review, backed by technical analysis, affirms the current Orion heat shield will protect the Artemis II crew with planned trajectory adjustments.• Artemis II mission timing has shifted to April 2026, largely due…

Google appears close to introducing a long-anticipated update to its Phone by Google app that finally lets Android users set their own visual identity card that shows up on other people’s phones when making calls — a capability long offered on Apple’s iPhone as Contact Posters but missing in Android’s “Calling Cards” feature. According to independent leaks and beta teardown reports, a new “My Calling Card” setup section has been discovered in the latest app beta, showing a full creation flow where users can pick an image, fonts and visibility settings for their personal card. This fills a glaring omission…