Now, if a malicious user edits a Wikipedia article at the right place and adds a reference footnote, they can trick Slack into rendering a link that doesn’t exist in the article. That link can later be edited to redirect the victim to a malicious website.

Watch out - sharing a Wikipedia link on Slack could be a serious security no-no

Researchers document the Wiki-Slack attack, a new technique that uses modified Wikipedia pages to target end users on Slack.

Attackers Can Use Modified Wikipedia Pages to Mount Redirection Attacks on Slack

New reports from Microsoft and eSentire highlight some of them in the area called attackers-in-the-middle, or AITM. It’s a variation on the general man-in-the-middle types of attacks and packs a potent punch when combined with automated phishing-as-a-service kits.

New and more sophisticated phishing techniques leverage a variety of malicious tactics

GITEX GLOBAL 2023 – eSentire, Inc., the Authority in Managed Detection and Response (MDR), today announced that Inspira Enterprise Inc, (Inspira), a leader in business outcome-based ...

Inspira Joins eSentire’s e3 Partner Ecosystem to Deliver Award-Winning Managed Detection and Response Services to Organizations Globally

GITEX GLOBAL 2023 – eSentire, Inc., the Authority in Managed Detection and Response (MDR), today announced that Inspira Enterprise Inc, (Inspira), a leader in business outcome-based cybersecurity solutions and digital transformation, has joined its CRN 5 ...

WATERLOO, Ontario & DUBAI, United Arab Emirates–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#BHUSA—GITEX GLOBAL 2023 – eSentire, Inc., the Authority in Managed Detection and Response (MDR), today announced that Inspira Enterprise Inc, (Inspira), a leader in business outcome ...

WATERLOO, Ontario & DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, October 18, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GITEX GLOBAL 2023 – eSentire, Inc., the Authority in Managed Detection and Response (MDR), today announced ...

Together, eSentire and Inspira will help customers anticipate, withstand, and recover from cyberattacks across their entire attack surface, whether on-premises or in the cloud. Benefits of adopting eSentire Managed Detection and Response include: ? Rapid time to value, with service onboarding in only 14 days on average

Inspira Joins eSentire's e3 Partner Ecosystem to Deliver Award-Winning Managed Detection and Response Services to Organizations Globally

eSentire

esentire

Why Cybersecurity Firms Should Stop Bragging

Nowadays, quite a few companies are banking on new technologies and taking on the risks that come with them. Blockchain is hyped up but expensive and precarious, mobile app development is easy to pull off but throws you into a highly competitive market, etc. There’s no shame in using trusted and effective technologies, making a choice in favor of things like Scala and its contemporaries. So to prove that Scala is a viable choice, let’s take a look at successful companies and startups using Scala for product development. How Six Tech Giants Use Scala Before we go step by step, let’s just quickly look at a general list of top companies using Scala: LinkedIn Twitter Netflix Tumblr Foursquare AirBnB Pretty impressive, right? Now, let’s see how they use it and why. LinkedIn This well-know networking site announced its use of Scala in 2015 with the introduction of LinkedIn Signal. Built on the shoulders of Scala and JRuby, the system was meant to be a social search application with unique algorithms. The on Scala put it pretty concisely themselves: “if you are simply going to write Java with Scala syntax then you are not getting your money's worth”. This is very true and its one of the reasons why LinkedIn’s Scala usage is different from all others. They’ve merged it with things like Sinatra, Voldemort, and Norbert to create a mutli-functional Swiss army knife that they can use for all aspects of development. company experts LinkedIn, like some other companies, has supposedly raised concerns internally about Scala being too complex. However, this is refuted by the very experts that use it. They offer up the key point: Scala is only difficult on the outside. When you get into it, it’s a very easy tool to wield and the results it delivers are nothing short of outstanding. Twitter We’ll be upfront and mention that Twitter doesn’t use Scala exclusively. They also take advantage of Ruby on Rails. However, the latter is pretty poor for long-term processes and large-scale caching. That’s where Scala steps in. According to a , they like Scala because it’s flexible and fast. This matters a lot when you’re working on a product as massive and with as many diverse features as Twitter has. They use offshoots and variations of Scala for everything including streaming, search, data transfers, and graphing data. Twitter engineer Scala for development wasn’t the first choice for the company as onboarding newbies can get tough with a language that multi-faceted. However, the initial time cost is made up in flexibility and subsequent ease of use. Twitter engineers have built up a collection of custom libraries and made current development more streamlined for themselves. As a fun aside, Twitter jokes that they probably employ half of the world’s Scala experts and the other half is likely academics or working at Foursquare. Now, the isn’t working for Foursquare or teaching at universities… So it seems like we’re a hidden treasure when it comes to Scala developers! SysGears team Netflix The streaming giant uses Scala for search algorithms, restful APIs (and stable too, occasionally), and recommendations. Now, we could debate how well those recommendations actually work but the company is clearly satisfied. There’s an hour-long talk on the specifics of with plenty of fascinating code examples. Scala use at Netflix Netflix borrows Groovy and Java code to rework it in Scala and add interactive elements to the service, which is part of what made it successful in the first place. For Netflix, Scala is a cornerstone upon which much of the online version of the service was built. Its capabilities for machine learning changed the way the whole architecture of Netflix existed. And Scala made the tech giant what it is today. So, yes, Scala for machine learning is a great topic in and of itself. Tumblr The service might be a laughing stock now after its multiple questionable choices in terms of user restrictions but, just a couple of years ago, Tumblr was a sprawling and popular social network. This kind of expansion from its roots of a modest microblogging platform was made possible with… You guessed it, Scala! The company used a mix of Redis, Kafka, Scala, and a few other tools to keep scalability high. In fact, it even made its own framework - , also based on Scala. It’s intended to boost performance and keep things simple, two of the key characteristics you need if you want a service that scales well to a huge audience. Colossus Interestingly, one of the factors that pushed Scala through at Tumblr was the availability of devs with Ruby and PHP know-how. That made onboarding easy and likely encouraged experimentation. Tumblr immediately took advantage of Finagle, a library made by Twitter (a great example of Scala usage extending beyond the company and lifting others). Once Scala was taken on, the service slowly migrated its internal operations to it, relying more and more on Scala to do the job. Their new JVM-centric methods laid the groundwork for Tumblr to retool their architecture and handle a major shift to Scala, kind of similar to Netflix’s internal structure. However, Tumblr used Scala for scalability and not machine learning, showcasing the versatility of the programming language yet again. Foursquare It’s not as easy to find data on how and why Foursquare uses Scala. Well, the why is simple - because it’s flexible and, according to , helps with automation and has a very expressive type system. That’s some great praise and it’s even been put to action in an unexpected way. official sources The above example of Foursquare using Scala type system is surely just one of the ways the company has utilized the programming language. However, the more interesting aspect of it is that Scala was seemingly a non-contested choice with a big stake put on it. This kind of reliance is a good sign for the language as a whole and its community. With the support from tech giants and startups (we’ll get to those soon) as well as developers like the , the art of Scala is spreading every day. SysGears team AirBnB AirBnB is a truly international service on a huge scale and the one thing that’s always going to be a problem for this kind of company is finances. Not a lack of them but rather the issue of reporting them correctly and tracking the cash flow. This is where Scala came in for AirBnB as they to use the language based on its fault tolerance, type system (there it is again!) and fast data processing. And it didn’t disappoint as the new pipeline scales horizontally, works for current products, and will scale well with future ones. decided The main reasons why Scala got its place under the sun in AirBnB’s architecture are these: Scaling without sacrificing performance Functional programming won over declarative programming Quicker runs (4-5 hours) A sprawling test framework This is what we’d call very smart usage of the language, something that relies on all benefits of Scala and does so with elegance. That’s the kind of approach SysGears likes to take and the kind of approach that enriches the language itself and the community around it. How Four Startups Use Scala These are the new groundbreaking ways to use Scala, championing the technology in today’s environment. eSentire Despite confirming that Scala is still seen as a pretty high entry barrier, this startup has been using the technology for a while. Their main reason to love the language is the way functional programming combines quality with dependability. No downtime and outages will be a problem when using Scala. At least, that’s what the eSentire team posits. Hiya Holding the line against spam that plagues mobile devices, Hiya is using Scala as its sword and shield. According to the startup’s founder Nodir Yuldashev, they’ve already made customer-facing apps as well as internal solutions and data platforms, all with the help of Scala. This versatile approach to Scala development for startups is what sets the company apart and proves the potential of the language for future use. AdColony This mobile advertising startup is reaching over a billion people using Scala-based data processing. And, according to the founder, they’re putting more and more stake into the language as it’s elegant, fast, and almost everybody who comes to the company is willing to learn the ropes. Nortal This Estonian startup uses Apache Spark to build machine learning algorithms (move over, Netflix!) The company prefers Scala thanks to its flexibility and compatibility with big data solutions, which are two of the top Scala benefits. If you’d like to join the list of companies using Scala to get quality, fault tolerance, and success - SysGears expertise is here for you. Come discuss your ideas and we’ll build a project together.

How Six Tech Giants and Four Startups Use Scala

Your software is excellent. So, what’s preventing your customers from knowing more about—and adopting—more of your software offerings? Cross-portfolio access to your software applications and features can help customers derive value from a greater number of your products. Yet, three common impediments may be in the way of getting customers to embrace the valuable features and services that you provide. 1. They Don’t Know About All You Offer. If you’ve used Microsoft Word for word processing, you’ve probably also tried Microsoft Excel for creating and editing spreadsheets, both part of Microsoft 365 (formerly the Microsoft Office Suite). Maybe you use Adobe Acrobat Pro and occasionally have tried to edit some photos in Adobe Photoshop; both applications are part of Adobe Creative Cloud. In each of these examples, you’ve explored the offerings within a software supplier’s portfolio. The need for users to explore the software they use from their preferred providers isn’t just limited to what’s available from these ubiquitous offerings. Software producers across a wide variety of industries—medical, payments, restaurant management, fintech, security, and many more—offer robust software suites and portfolios. They include a variety of applications; each application includes varied, evolving features. Customers may select to do business with a company for a particular application or function of that app. Those same customers are likely looking for other functionalities to support their business. Maybe the customer needs an advanced function that may be available in different versions. Maybe they require limited-time access (such as for seasonal or project-based needs) to a particular application or feature. Maybe they’re looking for a new app to meet a specific need. If they don’t know what you offer, they’ll look elsewhere. You’re missing out on business. 2. You Make It Difficult for Customers to Try New Things. You sold a perpetual license to a customer for your flagship application. Maybe that user loves it and is loyal to that product. When you release a new feature, is it available to that user? Or are they locked into a restrictive software license, such as a perpetual monetization model (for which they paid for unlimited use of a particular software version), perhaps meaning that they can only get that new great feature if they upgrade to a newer version? Do they require a full year’s subscription for the product they need for just two weeks? If your entitlement management process (how access to software, devices, systems, and content is administered) is overly restrictive, you may be undermining business growth. By restricting access to your software products, you’re inherently preventing the exploration and adoption of your product. You’re preventing customers from learning about and trying everything you offer. 3. Your Approach to Software Monetization Isn’t Flexible Enough to Match Capacity and Demand. Each of your customers rides the waves of busy seasons in their particular business. When things are hectic, their demand for your product may go up. Perhaps they need additional users to access your software. Perhaps they would like to access your software’s premium features. Perhaps they need an additional application in your portfolio. If you’re unable to deliver the capacity that they demand, you’re missing out on opportunities to sell your entire portfolio to that account. __Elastic access __is a flexible approach that can remedy this mismatch. Rather than providing a static leased licensing capacity, elastic access offers an agile approach to the delivery of flexible usage rights. This pay-per-use approach (using what is sometimes called “prepaid,” “flexible credits,” “metered tokens,” or “consumptive tokens”) is highly practical for products and services where fluctuating usage patterns are likely. Customers can exchange prepaid credits to access any offering within your portfolio. This approach provides usage rights that stretch to accommodate your customers’ need for sporadic periods of higher consumption, allowing them to pay for specifically what they need during seasonal peaks, for specific projects, or for short-term occasional use by a particular license holder. Not only does a customer gain access to the product they need, but it helps align the expense you charge with the value that customers receive from your products. With elastic access, every consumptive event is reflected in real time. You benefit from real-time, granular usage data. This provides rapid software usage insights that can help product managers see the results of changes to products, influencing product roadmap and pricing/packaging decisions, while also supporting cross-sell and upsell initiatives. A flexible approach can also help software companies expand into new markets by providing easy entry to offerings. Access to Your Entire Portfolio Benefits the Entire Business Customers want to buy software in ways that fit their needs. Instant scalability, streamlined procurement, cost optimization and cost allocation functionality, and the ability to try new offerings without committing to long-term subscriptions are all essential for many customers. When you provide these, it benefits your bottom line, supporting customer retention and recurring revenue. Reducing friction in the sales process is always good business. Your software is excellent. So, what’s preventing your customers from knowing more about—and adopting—more of your software offerings? Your software is excellent. So, what’s preventing your customers from knowing more about—and adopting—more of your software offerings? Cross-portfolio access to your software applications and features can help customers derive value from a greater number of your products. Yet, three common impediments may be in the way of getting customers to embrace the valuable features and services that you provide. 1. They Don’t Know About All You Offer. If you’ve used Microsoft Word for word processing, you’ve probably also tried Microsoft Excel for creating and editing spreadsheets, both part of Microsoft 365 (formerly the Microsoft Office Suite). Maybe you use Adobe Acrobat Pro and occasionally have tried to edit some photos in Adobe Photoshop; both applications are part of Adobe Creative Cloud. In each of these examples, you’ve explored the offerings within a software supplier’s portfolio. The need for users to explore the software they use from their preferred providers isn’t just limited to what’s available from these ubiquitous offerings. Software producers across a wide variety of industries—medical, payments, restaurant management, fintech, security, and many more—offer robust software suites and portfolios. They include a variety of applications; each application includes varied, evolving features. Customers may select to do business with a company for a particular application or function of that app. Those same customers are likely looking for other functionalities to support their business. Maybe the customer needs an advanced function that may be available in different versions. Maybe they require limited-time access (such as for seasonal or project-based needs) to a particular application or feature. Maybe they’re looking for a new app to meet a specific need. If they don’t know what you offer, they’ll look elsewhere. You’re missing out on business. 2. You Make It Difficult for Customers to Try New Things. You sold a perpetual license to a customer for your flagship application. Maybe that user loves it and is loyal to that product. When you release a new feature, is it available to that user? Or are they locked into a restrictive software license, such as a perpetual monetization model (for which they paid for unlimited use of a particular software version), perhaps meaning that they can only get that new great feature if they upgrade to a newer version? Do they require a full year’s subscription for the product they need for just two weeks? If your entitlement management process (how access to software, devices, systems, and content is administered) is overly restrictive, you may be undermining business growth. By restricting access to your software products, you’re inherently preventing the exploration and adoption of your product. You’re preventing customers from learning about and trying everything you offer. 3. Your Approach to Software Monetization Isn’t Flexible Enough to Match Capacity and Demand. Each of your customers rides the waves of busy seasons in their particular business. When things are hectic, their demand for your product may go up. Perhaps they need additional users to access your software. Perhaps they would like to access your software’s premium features. Perhaps they need an additional application in your portfolio. If you’re unable to deliver the capacity that they demand, you’re missing out on opportunities to sell your entire portfolio to that account. __ Elastic access __is a flexible approach that can remedy this mismatch. Rather than providing a static leased licensing capacity, elastic access offers an agile approach to the delivery of flexible usage rights. This pay-per-use approach (using what is sometimes called “prepaid,” “flexible credits,” “metered tokens,” or “consumptive tokens”) is highly practical for products and services where fluctuating usage patterns are likely. Elastic access Customers can exchange prepaid credits to access any offering within your portfolio. This approach provides usage rights that stretch to accommodate your customers’ need for sporadic periods of higher consumption, allowing them to pay for specifically what they need during seasonal peaks, for specific projects, or for short-term occasional use by a particular license holder. Not only does a customer gain access to the product they need, but it helps align the expense you charge with the value that customers receive from your products. With elastic access, every consumptive event is reflected in real time. You benefit from real-time, granular usage data. This provides rapid software usage insights that can help product managers see the results of changes to products, influencing product roadmap and pricing/packaging decisions, while also supporting cross-sell and upsell initiatives. A flexible approach can also help software companies expand into new markets by providing easy entry to offerings. Access to Your Entire Portfolio Benefits the Entire Business Customers want to buy software in ways that fit their needs. Instant scalability, streamlined procurement, cost optimization and cost allocation functionality, and the ability to try new offerings without committing to long-term subscriptions are all essential for many customers. When you provide these, it benefits your bottom line, supporting customer retention and recurring revenue. Reducing friction in the sales process is always good business.

Why Aren’t Customers Exploring Your Entire Software Portfolio?

How to Craft Inclusive AI Prompts That Mitigate Bias

The Zone returns: its gates have re-opened 17 years later, promising a journey like no other. November 20 has officially become a red-letter day for gamers worldwide with the release of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl—the long-awaited sequel to the iconic franchise by the Ukrainian studio GSC Game World. The original title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, debuted in 2007 and immediately captured the imaginations of a generation with its unique blend of atmospheric exploration, survival horror, and first-person shooter action. Now, almost two decades later, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 has arrived to rekindle that old flame and ignite a new one in a whole new generation of gamers. Dedicated to Ukraine's Heroes In a poignant tribute featured in the game’s launch trailer, GSC Game World dedicated S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl to Ukraine's current defenders. Through death and pain, war, fear, and cruelty, Ukraine will endure and prevail. It always has, and it always will. Dedicated to everyone who has fought and continues to fight for Ukraine. Eternal memory to those taken by this war. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKO4PL8Xzik&t=27s&embedable=true This heartfelt message resonates far beyond gaming, reflecting the resilience and determination of a nation under siege. Smashing Records Before Launch Before its official release, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 had already made waves, topping Steam's global paid games chart earlier in the week and coming in second overall to the free-to-play Counter-Strike 2. Demo versions showcased at Summer Game Fest, Gamescom, and Tokyo Game Show earned high praise from gaming journalists and experts. In his interview with GamesRadar+ at Gamescom 2024, Yevhenii Kulyk, the technical producer of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, revealed that they deliberately avoided procedural generation—a commonly used design technique that creates or arranges variations of in-game assets to save time and costs. Instead, the team painstakingly handcrafted every building and room to deliver a completely unique experience. As he explained, "Everything you may notice or experience in our game was made by the hands of our talented level designers, level artists, team designers, and so on. You will not notice two exact buildings or two exact rooms with the same placement of the same props of meshes or something like that. So every player that is playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 will get their story." The estimated time to complete the game is around 100 hours of pure gameplay. While building on the legacy of the original title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 also incorporates modern gameplay mechanics, stunning graphics, and an immersive open world that appeals to a new generation of gamers. This ensures the series continues to thrive, drawing in younger players who are new to the Zone. A Launch That Rocked the Internet The launch caused such a feeding frenzy that internet services in Ukraine struggled to keep up as fans rushed to download the game. Within hours, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 recorded over 113,000 concurrent players on Steam alone. The game is also available on PC via GOG and Epic Games, on Xbox Series X|S, and through Game Pass, so the actual player count is likely far higher. Expect these numbers to soar over the weekend as gamers dive into the Zone worldwide. The Long Road to Release S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 was first announced in August 2010 and was planned for release in 2012. However, in 2011, GSC Game World founder Serhii Hryhorovych disbanded the team to pursue his passion for motorsport. It wasn't until 2018 that the project was resurrected, with Hryhorovych promising a 2021 release. Since then, the game has faced countless delays caused by factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a fire in GSC's Prague office, and others. Despite these challenges, the game has finally reached the finish line—a testament to the team's grit and determination. More Than a Game: A Cultural and Political Statement In today's world, where politics and pop culture are deeply intertwined, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is a powerful statement. The war impacted more than just the timing of the game’s release. Following the full-scale invasion, the game’s title was updated to use the Ukrainian spelling, “Chornobyl,” replacing the Russian version, “Chernobyl.” Additionally, GSC Game World removed Russian voiceovers and made the decision not to sell the game in Russia. The game’s unapologetically patriotic themes have drawn the ire of Russian officials, with some calling for the game to be banned. In 2023, Russian hackers targeted GSC Game World, leaking 30 GB of game data in an unsuccessful attempt to blackmail the developers. Far from backing down, GSC used the incident to rally support from fans worldwide. A Surefire Commercial Success While exact figures remain under wraps, expectations are sky-high. Some experts estimate that the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl generated $18.3 million in revenue, with the entire franchise (including S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky (2008) and S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat (2009)) selling over 33 million copies and earning $34.1 million. Analysts peg the budget for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 at $30–60 million, making it the most expensive game ever developed in Ukraine. From Screenshots to Gameplay: The Wait Is Over For gamers, the time for speculation is over. In a playful nod to the game's release, one Ukrainian company even offered employees an extra day off if they could prove they'd purchased the game on Steam. Whether during late-night gaming sessions or weekends dedicated to exploring the Zone, the moment to transition from reading about the game to living it has arrived. And even if you’re not an avid gamer, experiencing this masterpiece can be a tribute to Ukraine’s defenders and the resilient spirit of its people. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl isn’t just a game—it’s a cultural landmark, a story of perseverance, and a powerful reminder of what determination can achieve, both in gaming and beyond. Discover more about the game’s creation, the creative journey behind it, and how the war in Ukraine shaped its gameplay by watching this insightful documentary on YouTube! The Zone returns: its gates have re-opened 17 years later, promising a journey like no other. The Zone returns: its gates have re-opened 17 years later, promising a journey like no other. November 20 has officially become a red-letter day for gamers worldwide with the release of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl —the long-awaited sequel to the iconic franchise by the Ukrainian studio GSC Game World. red-letter day S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl The original title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl , debuted in 2007 and immediately captured the imaginations of a generation with its unique blend of atmospheric exploration, survival horror, and first-person shooter action. Now, almost two decades later, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 has arrived to rekindle that old flame and ignite a new one in a whole new generation of gamers. S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl Dedicated to Ukraine's Heroes Dedicated to Ukraine's Heroes In a poignant tribute featured in the game’s launch trailer, GSC Game World dedicated S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl to Ukraine's current defenders. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl Through death and pain, war, fear, and cruelty, Ukraine will endure and prevail. It always has, and it always will. Dedicated to everyone who has fought and continues to fight for Ukraine. Eternal memory to those taken by this war. Through death and pain, war, fear, and cruelty, Ukraine will endure and prevail. It always has, and it always will. Dedicated to everyone who has fought and continues to fight for Ukraine. Eternal memory to those taken by this war. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKO4PL8Xzik&t=27s&embedable=true https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKO4PL8Xzik&t=27s&embedable=true This heartfelt message resonates far beyond gaming, reflecting the resilience and determination of a nation under siege . nation under siege Smashing Records Before Launch Smashing Records Before Launch Before its official release, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 had already made waves, topping Steam's global paid games chart earlier in the week and coming in second overall to the free-to-play Counter-Strike 2 . topping Counter-Strike 2 Demo versions showcased at Summer Game Fest , Gamescom , and Tokyo Game Show earned high praise from gaming journalists and experts. Summer Game Fest Gamescom Tokyo Game Show In his interview with GamesRadar+ at Gamescom 2024, Yevhenii Kulyk, the technical producer of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, revealed that they deliberately avoided procedural generation —a commonly used design technique that creates or arranges variations of in-game assets to save time and costs. Instead, the team painstakingly handcrafted every building and room to deliver a completely unique experience. interview interview procedural generation As he explained, "Everything you may notice or experience in our game was made by the hands of our talented level designers, level artists, team designers, and so on. You will not notice two exact buildings or two exact rooms with the same placement of the same props of meshes or something like that. So every player that is playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 will get their story." The estimated time to complete the game is around 100 hours of pure gameplay. While building on the legacy of the original title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 also incorporates modern gameplay mechanics, stunning graphics, and an immersive open world that appeals to a new generation of gamers. This ensures the series continues to thrive, drawing in younger players who are new to the Zone. A Launch That Rocked the Internet A Launch That Rocked the Internet The launch caused such a feeding frenzy that internet services in Ukraine struggled to keep up as fans rushed to download the game. Within hours, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 recorded over 113,000 concurrent players on Steam alone. feeding frenzy 113,000 concurrent players The game is also available on PC via GOG and Epic Games, on Xbox Series X|S, and through Game Pass, so the actual player count is likely far higher. Expect these numbers to soar over the weekend as gamers dive into the Zone worldwide. The Long Road to Release The Long Road to Release S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 was first announced in August 2010 and was planned for release in 2012. However, in 2011, GSC Game World founder Serhii Hryhorovych disbanded the team to pursue his passion for motorsport. It wasn't until 2018 that the project was resurrected, with Hryhorovych promising a 2021 release. Since then, the game has faced countless delays caused by factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a fire in GSC's Prague office, and others. Despite these challenges, the game has finally reached the finish line—a testament to the team's grit and determination. More Than a Game: A Cultural and Political Statement More Than a Game: A Cultural and Political Statement In today's world, where politics and pop culture are deeply intertwined , S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is a powerful statement. politics and pop culture are deeply intertwined The war impacted more than just the timing of the game’s release. Following the full-scale invasion, the game’s title was updated to use the Ukrainian spelling, “Chornobyl,” replacing the Russian version, “Chernobyl.” Additionally, GSC Game World removed Russian voiceovers and made the decision not to sell the game in Russia. The game’s unapologetically patriotic themes have drawn the ire of Russian officials, with some calling for the game to be banned. impacted more “Chornobyl,” “Chernobyl.” some calling In 2023, Russian hackers targeted GSC Game World, leaking 30 GB of game data in an unsuccessful attempt to blackmail the developers. Far from backing down, GSC used the incident to rally support from fans worldwide. A Surefire Commercial Success A Surefire Commercial Success While exact figures remain under wraps, expectations are sky-high. Some experts estimate that the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl generated $18.3 million in revenue, with the entire franchise (including S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky (2008) and S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat (2009)) selling over 33 million copies and earning $34.1 million. Analysts peg the budget for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 at $30–60 million, making it the most expensive game ever developed in Ukraine . estimate expensive game ever developed in Ukraine From Screenshots to Gameplay: The Wait Is Over From Screenshots to Gameplay: The Wait Is Over For gamers, the time for speculation is over. In a playful nod to the game's release, one Ukrainian company even offered employees an extra day off if they could prove they'd purchased the game on Steam. Whether during late-night gaming sessions or weekends dedicated to exploring the Zone, the moment to transition from reading about the game to living it has arrived. And even if you’re not an avid gamer, experiencing this masterpiece can be a tribute to Ukraine’s defenders and the resilient spirit of its people. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl isn’t just a game—it’s a cultural landmark, a story of perseverance, and a powerful reminder of what determination can achieve, both in gaming and beyond. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl Discover more about the game’s creation, the creative journey behind it, and how the war in Ukraine shaped its gameplay by watching this insightful documentary on YouTube ! documentary on YouTube

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: From Legacy to Legend 

Authors:
(1) Guillaume Staerman, INRIA, CEA, Univ. Paris-Saclay, France;
(2) Marta Campi, CERIAH, Institut de l’Audition, Institut Pasteur, France;
(3) Gareth W. Peters, Department of Statistics & Applied Probability, University of California Santa Barbara, USA. Table of Links Abstract and 1. Introduction 2. Background & Preliminaries 2.1. Functional Isolation Forest 2.2. The Signature Method 3. Signature Isolation Forest Method 4. Numerical Experiments 4.1. Parameters Sensitivity Analysis 4.2. Advantages of (K-)SIF over FIF 4.3. Real-data Anomaly Detection Benchmark 5. Discussion & Conclusion, Impact Statements, and References Appendix A. Additional Information About the Signature B. K-SIF and SIF Algorithms C. Additional Numerical Experiments A. Additional Information About the Signature In this section, we provide additional information regarding the signature. Firstly, the formula for the coordinate signature is provided, followed by some further information about the truncated signature and the link of the signature with moments. We then introduce references and further discussion for the computation of the signature, the linear-closed form utilised and, lastly, a review of the inner product of tensors required for the signature method is presented. Computation of the Signature. The signature is usually computed on the linear paths reconstructed from observations (Lyons and McLeod, 2022; Fermanian, 2021) thanks to the two properties listed below. First, the signature benefits from a closed form when computed on linear paths. Second, a concatenation formula has been provided by Chen (1958), where the coordinate signature of two concatenate segments is given by a tensor product of the specific coordinate signatures on each segment. These two properties are described formally below. In practice, the signature is usually computed as follows. First, a linear path is reconstructed by interpolation from the observed data. In a second step, the signature of each segment of the linear path are calculated separately thanks to the closed-form (2). Then the signature of the entire path is computed recursively using the Chen’s identity property. Definition of Inner Product of Tensors for Signature Method. Following Chevyrev and Oberhauser (2022) and Lee and Oberhauser (2023), we introduce the inner product of the tensors required to compute the truncated signature and its kernel. This paper is available on arxiv under CC BY 4.0 DEED license. Authors: (1) Guillaume Staerman, INRIA, CEA, Univ. Paris-Saclay, France; (2) Marta Campi, CERIAH, Institut de l’Audition, Institut Pasteur, France; (3) Gareth W. Peters, Department of Statistics & Applied Probability, University of California Santa Barbara, USA. Authors: Authors: (1) Guillaume Staerman, INRIA, CEA, Univ. Paris-Saclay, France; (2) Marta Campi, CERIAH, Institut de l’Audition, Institut Pasteur, France; (3) Gareth W. Peters, Department of Statistics & Applied Probability, University of California Santa Barbara, USA. Table of Links Abstract and 1. Introduction Abstract and 1. Introduction 2. Background & Preliminaries 2. Background & Preliminaries 2.1. Functional Isolation Forest 2.1. Functional Isolation Forest 2.2. The Signature Method 2.2. The Signature Method 3. Signature Isolation Forest Method 3. Signature Isolation Forest Method 4. Numerical Experiments 4. Numerical Experiments 4.1. Parameters Sensitivity Analysis 4.1. Parameters Sensitivity Analysis 4.2. Advantages of (K-)SIF over FIF 4.2. Advantages of (K-)SIF over FIF 4.3. Real-data Anomaly Detection Benchmark 4.3. Real-data Anomaly Detection Benchmark 5. Discussion & Conclusion, Impact Statements, and References 5. Discussion & Conclusion, Impact Statements, and References Appendix A. Additional Information About the Signature A. Additional Information About the Signature B. K-SIF and SIF Algorithms B. K-SIF and SIF Algorithms C. Additional Numerical Experiments C. Additional Numerical Experiments A. Additional Information About the Signature In this section, we provide additional information regarding the signature. Firstly, the formula for the coordinate signature is provided, followed by some further information about the truncated signature and the link of the signature with moments. We then introduce references and further discussion for the computation of the signature, the linear-closed form utilised and, lastly, a review of the inner product of tensors required for the signature method is presented. Computation of the Signature. The signature is usually computed on the linear paths reconstructed from observations (Lyons and McLeod, 2022; Fermanian, 2021) thanks to the two properties listed below. First, the signature benefits from a closed form when computed on linear paths. Second, a concatenation formula has been provided by Chen (1958), where the coordinate signature of two concatenate segments is given by a tensor product of the specific coordinate signatures on each segment. These two properties are described formally below. Computation of the Signature. In practice, the signature is usually computed as follows. First, a linear path is reconstructed by interpolation from the observed data. In a second step, the signature of each segment of the linear path are calculated separately thanks to the closed-form (2). Then the signature of the entire path is computed recursively using the Chen’s identity property. Definition of Inner Product of Tensors for Signature Method. Following Chevyrev and Oberhauser (2022) and Lee and Oberhauser (2023), we introduce the inner product of the tensors required to compute the truncated signature and its kernel. Definition of Inner Product of Tensors for Signature Method. This paper is available on arxiv under CC BY 4.0 DEED license. This paper is available on arxiv under CC BY 4.0 DEED license. available on arxiv

Unlocking the Power of Signatures in Anomaly Detection

How K-SIF and SIF Revolutionize Anomaly Detection in Complex Datasets

If you're starting a project, you'll probably have a few questions, like how to get your product out there and how to start selling. We'll save sales for another time and just focus on how to bring your business to market. 1. CustDev/JTBD + Soft Launch when a small group pays for your solution: you interview clients to understand how you can make their lives easier and why they subscribe to your product. At this stage you're not trying to actively promote your product, you're turning a hypothesis/solution into a productYou need to determine the fit of the product before you can aggressively go to market. As such, a soft launch is important to achieve this goal. Don't invest a lot of resources before you've determined who the target client will be and how to convince them that your product is worth their moneyPennylane is a startup building a competitor to Xero and Quickbooks. In building their product, they surveyed 150 founders and agency owners - their primary ТА When they launched their product, almost all of the companies they interviewed became their paying clients.(often, it's the target situation rather than the TA that carries weight) 2. Maximise the impact of GtM with key messages Unless you're working on a revolutionary product (or disruptive innovation, according to Christensen) that creates a whole new kind of demand, you probably have competitors + substitutes and they already have clients. Who'll benefit most from the unique value you create? Remember, the key is to focus onclient value, not wishful thinking. You shouldn't try to create a product that you think is great but doesn't meet the needs of the market. Once you understand who will benefit most from the product, the GtM will focus entirely on that audience. They are the ones who will see your value the quickest and will be the easiest to convert into clientsSo you've done your research, you've got a few clients after a soft launch, and you're great at articulating what's unique about your product. Now it's time to start selling! 3. When does GtM end and what happens next? One thing's for sure: you can set targets, but you need more than one metric to say with certainty that you should move from GtM to growth. My definition of the end of GtM and the beginning of growth is when a MtM growth rate >10% for several months in a row and ROMI >2xMost GtM companies follow a J-curve. They succeed first (soft launch), then struggle to get to the next stage (GtM), before finding a stable cost structure and starting the growth stage. You should try 3-4 channels during your GtM, but the most successful startups focus almost exclusively on 1-2 that they absolutely own. Your goal is to determine which one delivers the best ROMI for the volume you needThis is how you hit the bull's eye in your growth, as G. Weinberg, founder ofDuckDuckGo, explains in his book Traction. The main outcome of the GtM phase will be the confirmation of an effective scaling strategy, with ad revenues and returns growing.It can then be said that this phase is complete and the company is ready for the growth phaseOnce you've gone through all this, it's worth moving on to retention issues. If you're starting a project, you'll probably have a few questions, like how to get your product out there and how to start selling. We'll save sales for another time and just focus on how to bring your business to market. 1. CustDev/JTBD + Soft Launch 1. CustDev/JTBD + Soft Launch when a small group pays for your solution: you interview clients to understand how you can make their lives easier and why they subscribe to your product. At this stage you're not trying to actively promote your product, you're turning a hypothesis/solution into a product You need to determine the fit of the product before you can aggressively go to market. As such, a soft launch is important to achieve this goal. Don't invest a lot of resources before you've determined who the target client will be and how to convince them that your product is worth their money Pennylane is a startup building a competitor to Xero and Quickbooks. In building their product, they surveyed 150 founders and agency owners - their primary ТА When they launched their product, almost all of the companies they interviewed became their paying clients. (often, it's the target situation rather than the TA that carries weight) 2. Maximise the impact of GtM with key messages Unless you're working on a revolutionary product (or disruptive innovation, according to Christensen) that creates a whole new kind of demand, you probably have competitors + substitutes and they already have clients. Who'll benefit most from the unique value you create? Remember, the key is to focus on client value , not wishful thinking. client value You shouldn't try to create a product that you think is great but doesn't meet the needs of the market. Once you understand who will benefit most from the product, the GtM will focus entirely on that audience. They are the ones who will see your value the quickest and will be the easiest to convert into clients So you've done your research, you've got a few clients after a soft launch, and you're great at articulating what's unique about your product. Now it's time to start selling! 3. When does GtM end and what happens next? One thing's for sure: you can set targets, but you need more than one metric to say with certainty that you should move from GtM to growth. My definition of the end of GtM and the beginning of growth is when a MtM growth rate >10% for several months in a row and ROMI >2x Most GtM companies follow a J-curve. They succeed first (soft launch), then struggle to get to the next stage (GtM), before finding a stable cost structure and starting the growth stage. You should try 3-4 channels during your GtM, but the most successful startups focus almost exclusively on 1-2 that they absolutely own. Your goal is to determine which one delivers the best ROMI for the volume you need This is how you hit the bull's eye in your growth, as G. Weinberg, founder of DuckDuckGo , explains in his book Traction. The main outcome of the GtM phase will be the confirmation of an effective scaling strategy, with ad revenues and returns growing. It can then be said that this phase is complete and the company is ready for the growth phase Once you've gone through all this, it's worth moving on to retention issues. DuckDuckGo

My Take on the Ideal Go-to-Market Strategy

1. Forget about hardware; the real money is in software For months, headlines have fixated on Huawei's limitations in producing advanced 7nm chips, while Apple excels with its cutting-edge 3nm technology. However, this focus on hardware overlooks a critical lesson from history: software, not hardware, drives  profits. Bill Gates built the Microsoft empire not by building hardware—outsourced to IBM—but by dominating the software business. Today, Microsoft’s software business dwarfs IBM's historical combined hardware and software projects. Huawei’s HarmonyOS NEXT, already claimed to be the world’s third-largest mobile OS with over a billion installations, represents a significant milestone. While currently present mostly in China, the system has the potential to expand to other markets, particularly in the Global South. HarmonyOS could appeal to nations seeking to reduce reliance on U.S.-based technology. A large user base often translates into substantial revenue streams over time. Moreover, Huawei is working on extending its OS to personal computers under the name HarmonyOS PC, with a target release in Q3 2025. Even if this initiative gains traction solely within China, particularly in government systems, it could reduce the dominance of Microsoft Windows and Apple macOS, cutting into their lucrative revenue streams. 2. Know-How and Engineering Workforce Unlike hardware chip technology, software OS tools and expertise are widely accessible, starting with the open-source availability of Android OS. This means the necessary know-how is either readily available or easy to acquire. China also boasts a large skilled engineering workforce—reportedly four times larger than that of the U.S.—providing Huawei with ample talent at a competitive cost to develop its new OS. With sufficient time and resources, Huawei is likely to succeed in its HarmonyOS project. 3. Marketing or Reality? Reports suggest that HarmonyOS is facing some challenges. According to a media report, even the migration of China’s own WeChat app to the platform has encountered difficulties. This is not entirely surprising, as building a stable operating system is a highly complex and demanding task. Even Steve Jobs famously staged parts of his iPhone presentation during its early development stages. It required time and engineering effort for Apple to refine and perfect the product. Huawei faces a similar trajectory. If it commits to the project with enough talent, funding, and patience, HarmonyOS could mature into a serious alternative to Microsoft and Apple’s software dominance. 4 References [1] HarmonyOS [2] HarmonyOS NEXT [3] China's first fully home-grown mobile operating system HarmonyOS NEXT launched [4] https://www.huaweicentral.com/category/harmonyos/harmonyos-next/ [5] HarmonyOS NEXT becomes the world’s third major mobile OS, joining Android and iOS [6] Huawei’s HarmonyOS NEXT faces major test with WeChat: Will it pass? [7] Huawei’s China-Made 7nm Chip ‘Years Behind US’, Raimondo Says [8] In Huawei’s battle against Apple, chips are still a weakness, says analyst [9] HuaweiNext-gen Huawei PCs will ditch Windows for HarmonyOS: Chairman [10] Huawei HarmonyOS PC rumored to delay till Q3 2025 [11] HarmonyOS PC UI design allegedly surfaced on Huawei Developer website [12] The Global Distribution of STEM Graduates: Which Countries Lead the Way? [13] How Steve Jobs Faked His Way Through Unveiling the iPhone 1. Forget about hardware; the real money is in software For months, headlines have fixated on Huawei's limitations in producing advanced 7nm chips, while Apple excels with its cutting-edge 3nm technology. However, this focus on hardware overlooks a critical lesson from history: software, not hardware, drives  profits. Bill Gates built the Microsoft empire not by building hardware—outsourced to IBM—but by dominating the software business. Today, Microsoft’s software business dwarfs IBM's historical combined hardware and software projects. Huawei’s HarmonyOS NEXT , already claimed to be the world’s third-largest mobile OS with over a billion installations, represents a significant milestone. While currently present mostly in China, the system has the potential to expand to other markets, particularly in the Global South. HarmonyOS could appeal to nations seeking to reduce reliance on U.S.-based technology. A large user base often translates into substantial revenue streams over time. HarmonyOS NEXT world’s third-largest mobile OS Moreover, Huawei is working on extending its OS to personal computers under the name HarmonyOS PC , with a target release in Q3 2025 . Even if this initiative gains traction solely within China, particularly in government systems, it could reduce the dominance of Microsoft Windows and Apple macOS, cutting into their lucrative revenue streams. extending its OS to personal computers HarmonyOS PC Q3 2025 2. Know-How and Engineering Workforce Unlike hardware chip technology, software OS tools and expertise are widely accessible, starting with the open-source availability of Android OS. This means the necessary know-how is either readily available or easy to acquire. China also boasts a large skilled engineering workforce —reportedly four times larger than that of the U.S.—providing Huawei with ample talent at a competitive cost to develop its new OS. With sufficient time and resources, Huawei is likely to succeed in its HarmonyOS project. large skilled engineering workforce 3. Marketing or Reality? Reports suggest that HarmonyOS is facing some challenges. According to a media report, even the migration of China’s own WeChat app to the platform has encountered difficulties. This is not entirely surprising, as building a stable operating system is a highly complex and demanding task. Even Steve Jobs famously staged parts of his iPhone presentation during its early development stages. It required time and engineering effort for Apple to refine and perfect the product. Huawei faces a similar trajectory. If it commits to the project with enough talent, funding, and patience, HarmonyOS could mature into a serious alternative to Microsoft and Apple’s software dominance. 4 References [1] HarmonyOS HarmonyOS [2] HarmonyOS NEXT HarmonyOS NEXT [3] China's first fully home-grown mobile operating system HarmonyOS NEXT launched China's first fully home-grown mobile operating system HarmonyOS NEXT launched [4] https://www.huaweicentral.com/category/harmonyos/harmonyos-next/ https://www.huaweicentral.com/category/harmonyos/harmonyos-next/ [5] HarmonyOS NEXT becomes the world’s third major mobile OS, joining Android and iOS HarmonyOS NEXT becomes the world’s third major mobile OS, joining Android and iOS [6] Huawei’s HarmonyOS NEXT faces major test with WeChat: Will it pass? Huawei’s HarmonyOS NEXT faces major test with WeChat: Will it pass? [7] Huawei’s China-Made 7nm Chip ‘Years Behind US’, Raimondo Says Huawei’s China-Made 7nm Chip ‘Years Behind US’, Raimondo Says [8] In Huawei’s battle against Apple, chips are still a weakness, says analyst In Huawei’s battle against Apple, chips are still a weakness, says analyst [9] HuaweiNext-gen Huawei PCs will ditch Windows for HarmonyOS: Chairman HuaweiNext-gen Huawei PCs will ditch Windows for HarmonyOS: Chairman [10] Huawei HarmonyOS PC rumored to delay till Q3 2025 Huawei HarmonyOS PC rumored to delay till Q3 2025 [11] HarmonyOS PC UI design allegedly surfaced on Huawei Developer website HarmonyOS PC UI design allegedly surfaced on Huawei Developer website [12] The Global Distribution of STEM Graduates: Which Countries Lead the Way? The Global Distribution of STEM Graduates: Which Countries Lead the Way? [13] How Steve Jobs Faked His Way Through Unveiling the iPhone How Steve Jobs Faked His Way Through Unveiling the iPhone

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