An American tech fair in Moscow during the Cold War featured a robot vacuum secretly operated by remote control.

The Warner Bros. streamer has beefed up its horror selection in the name of spooky season.

I know there’s a lot to do on the internet, but you really should stop what you’re doing and watch this 19-minute talk about a bespoke mural that once lived inside a McDonald’s. The talk, given by Cabel Sasser of Panic at XOXO Fest 2024, was filled with silliness and deep dives down unexpected rabbit holes. (I’d expect nothing less from the founder of Panic, the company behind whimsical things like the Playdate handheld and Untitled Goose Game.) Much of the presentation is about the little-known artist behind the mural, the late Wes Cook, who also made some incredible designs that exist in real theme parks. It’s fascinating to learn so much about Cook, and the ending of Sasser’s speech is just fantastic. Every minute of the speech is...

There comes a point in most experienced Steam shoppers' lives where they wonder what would happen if their account was canceled or stolen, or perhaps they just stopped breathing. It's scary to think about how many games in your backlog will never get played; scarier, still, to think about how you don't, in most real senses of the word, own any of them. Now Valve, seemingly working to comply with a new California law targeting "false advertising" of "digital goods," has added language to its checkout page to confirm that thinking. "A purchase of a digital product grants a license for the product on Steam," the Steam cart now tells its customers, with a link to the Steam Subscriber Agreement further below. California's AB2426 law, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom Sept. 26, excludes subscription-only services, free games, and digital goods that offer "permanent offline download to an external storage source to be used without a connection to the internet." Otherwise, sellers of digital goods cannot use the terms "buy, purchase," or related terms that would "confer an unrestricted ownership interest in the digital good." And they must explain, conspicuously, in plain language, that "the digital good is a license" and link to terms and conditions. Read full article

If you've had your eye on a new iPad, now's the time to snag one for nearly half-off at Amazon.

“All the state leaders should be getting their people out … to watch for ballot stuffing,” wrote the leader of the American Patriots Three Percent militia. “Our nation depends on this."

Charging wasn’t even their #1 issue.

We’re inching ever closer to a mid-cycle refresh for the PlayStation 5, as preorders for Sony’s forthcoming console are now available to the masses. Although the $699.99 machine was originally exclusive to the PlayStation Direct storefront, it’s now up for preorder at all major retailers — including Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, and Target. Sony’s retro-styled 30th Anniversary consoles and accessories also went up for preorder at the same time as the standard PS5 Pro, but unfortunately, they quickly sold out and are still unavailable. Regardless of which PS5 Pro model you secure, the main prospect of the PS5 Pro is improved graphics and performance. The new console may lack a disc drive (you can get one for an additional $80), but its new...

You don't need to hand over an arm and a leg to score some scary good deals up to 50% off this season from Govee.

Valve updated Steam’s shopping carts to notify users that they’re only buying a “license” for the game, not the game itself.