NYT Connections today — hints and answers for Tuesday, October 15 (game #492)

Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need clues.

What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Wordle hints and answers, Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Connections today (game #492) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

• DRIVE
• PENNYWISE
• SAFETY
• NICKELODEON
• QUARTERBACK
• HISTORY
• DIMENSIONAL
• HOMEY
• DEFENSE
• GUARD
• JOKER
• DISCOVERY
• OXYGEN
• DEMOCRAT
• CENTER
• RONALD

NYT Connections today (game #492) - hint #1 - group hints

What are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?

• Yellow: Linebacker is another
• Green: Channel surfing
• Blue: 'Funny' people
• Purple: 4th letter

Need more clues?

We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…

NYT Connections today (game #492) - hint #2 - group answers

What are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?

• YELLOW: FOOTBALL POSITIONS
• GREEN: CABLE CHANNELS
• BLUE: FICTIONAL CLOWNS
• PURPLE: WHAT “D” MIGHT STAND FOR

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Connections today (game #492) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #492, are…

• YELLOW: FOOTBALL POSITIONS CENTER, GUARD, QUARTERBACK, SAFETY
• GREEN: CABLE CHANNELS DISCOVERY, HISTORY, NICKELODEON, OXYGEN
• BLUE: FICTIONAL CLOWNS HOMEY, JOKER, PENNYWISE, RONALD
• PURPLE: WHAT “D” MIGHT STAND FOR DEFENSE, DEMOCRAT, DIMENSIONAL, DRIVE

---

• My rating: Hard
• My score: Fail

---

My verdict on today's Connections: too American. That's not a criticism as such – my days of ranting about the NYT's refusal to make a game that works for people worldwide are over. After all, it is a US publication, so I just have to accept that there will be days like today where it is just too difficult for a Brit like me.

For instance, talk about FOOTBALL POSITIONS and my mind goes to soccer; I'm looking for goalkeeper and winger, not CENTER, GUARD, QUARTERBACK and SAFETY. I know enough about the game that I made a couple of attempts at solving it, but though I was fairly sure about QUARTERBACK and GUARD I didn't know enough to get the other two, adding various combinations that included DEFENSE instead.

Likewise, CABLE CHANNELS cost me a guess, because I have never heard of OXYGEN, and with FICTIONAL CLOWNS I was not aware of HOMEY. It was all just too far outside of my comfort zone.

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

---

Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Monday, 14 October, game #491)

• YELLOW: RUMMAGE COMB, DIG, ROOT, SIFT
• GREEN: SOUNDS OF THUNDER CLAP, PEAL, ROLL, RUMBLE
• BLUE: WAYS TO WEAR YOUR HAIR UP BRAID, BUN, PONY, TWIST
• PURPLE: THINGS THAT CAN HAVE LEAVES BOOK, SALAD, TABLE, TREE

---

What is NYT Connections?

NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.

On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.

It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.

It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

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Samsung Galaxy smartphones may replace the Settings menu with AI: report

Samsung is keen to incorporate AI across every facet of your life, but that could mean one major removal from Galaxy smartphones. A report from ETNews points to a future where the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE will have AI features but no Settings menu. The article says that Samsung believes the AI in its phones will be able to anticipate your needs without you having to make any adjustments, thus making Settings a redundant feature.

The concept is part of Samsung's desire for the Galaxy smartphones to be fully AI-driven. Though the exact form of a Settings-free smartphone hasn't been unveiled yet, there are already hints about how the device's AI could use a combination of conversation with the user and the way they use the device to adapt its performance without requiring the kind of menu adjustments currently common. It would encompass many aspects of the smartphone's performance. That means the basics, like notifications, brightness of the screen, and its layout.

The main focus for Samsung in using AI to replace Settings appears to be the camera and the keyboard, according to the report. That makes sense since they are used in the broadest number of ways. There are a lot of editing options for photos, but these days, your device handles a lot of the photo-quality enhancements before you do anything. Adding AI to the equation could extend that functionality in subtle but useful ways, like automatically switching to night mode or otherwise adapting to location and setting.

For keyboards, the AI could help personalize your typing. Auto-predicting words are usually about the most common phrases in general, but AI could fiddle with those elements to where they best fit your actual writing style and word preferences. Personalization and automation are Samsung's watchwords.

AI anticipation

In some ways, smartphone makers have been moving in this direction for years. When was the last time you manually adjusted battery settings beyond standard and battery-saving? Of course, the question is whether AI can predict complex and ever-changing setting preferences. When do you want your phone to brighten? Which app should have your volume set low or high?

For the average user, having AI handle your settings could mean fewer distractions and not having to sort through menus every time you want to adjust a particular aspect of the phone. Automating tasks and anticipating needs might help Samsung’s AI features and devices stand out amid an increasingly crowded field. That said, how Samsung collects and uses the data needed for the AI to make these adjustments will likely be crucial for the company to explain. It could all happen on the device without a need for sharing private information, but if not, people might not be as excited to try it out.

Don't expect your Settings menu to vanish immediately. There's no timeline yet, but it could be part of Samsung’s next major software update when the Android 15-based One UI 7 comes out for the Galaxy S series.

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How to use a new free AI tool for writing songs (including lyrics) for free

Do you have an idea for a song but are not sure how to write it? Maybe you just have some lyrics you want to put a tune to? A new free AI music generator called Tad AI offers you a chance to bring those ideas to life, producing royalty-free songs in seconds with minimal input. The relatively simple interface produces some pretty impressive results. Whether it can thread the needle and avoid the issues causing legal and ethical headaches for Suno, Udio, and other AI music generators remains to be seen. 

Tad AI provides various levels of assistance in writing music. It's similar to its rivals but is notably intuitive in how you produce the song. You can describe how you want the song to sound in as much detail as you choose, but Tad AI does have quite a lot of musical genres and moods you can select from that are already available. The genre options obviously relate to the genre of the tune, but the mood-based list of options can vary the tone within that genre, as a rock or rap song could be sad, romantic, or angry while still being the same genre.

Along with the music, you can also ask Tad AI to write lyrics that match a written prompt. The AI will produce the lyrics based on your intent or the theme. You can also write your own lyrics. Then, you just need a title, and the AI will do the rest. 

After playing around with it for a bit, I produced the song below. The music is all Tad AI, but I wrote the lyrics after the first few attempts by Tad AI didn't really hit the spot for me. They did inspire me though, and if Tad AI was a human, I'd co-credit them with the arrangement at least and probably have to negotiate over lyric rights. You can listen to it below and hear it at this link.

 

Royalty (and lawsuit) free?

As AI music generators become more prominent and roll out new features like Suno’s genre remixer and its mobile app, the issue of lawsuits from major music labels is only likely to get more complex. That’s why one of the major selling points for Tad AI is its ability to generate royalty-free music if you sign up for its paid plans. If Tad AI’s promise of 100% original compositions is backed up fully, the appeal to aspiring music creators, not to mention brands on a budget, is obvious. 

Songs without potential legal challenges or licensing fees are music to the ears of those looking to save on costs. It might even be helpful with existing content on platforms like YouTube, which recently launched a tool that can remove copyrighted music from your video without taking it down completely. You could instead replace it with something from Tad AI.

You can use Tad AI for free, though you only get a limited number of credits, and each song costs about five credits. If you want more, you can sign up for the basic plan at $10 a month and get 1,000 credits, about 200 songs, and three concurrent songs produced. The Pro plan for $30 a month gets you 3,000 credits, six concurrent songs produced and even faster song generation. You have to pay for the full royalty-free track access, so that’s probably where anyone looking to use the tool professionally will go. 

You might also like...

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The Meta Quest 3S is fantastic, but there’s one big reason to choose the Quest 3 instead

I finally got my hands on the Meta Quest 3S VR headset to test it out for our in-depth Meta Quest 3S review, and using the headset has given me flashbacks of using the Oculus Quest 2 – and made me realize how rubbish its visuals were this whole time.

The Meta Quest 3S uses the same chipset and has the same RAM as the Meta Quest 3, meaning it can play all the same VR games and apps as its sibling like the upcoming Batman: Arkham Shadow (it even comes with a free copy of the game). But its most noticeable downgrade is its displays. Instead of the crisp 2064 x 2208 pixels per eye dual-display setup of the Quest 3 you have to make do with the Quest 2’s 1832 x 1920 per eye single display setup, which the Quest 3S is repurposing.

The Meta Quest 3S also relies on the Quest 2’s fresnel lens system instead of the pancake lenses used by the Quest 3. I won’t get into the weeds of how these lenses differ technically, but know that fresnel lenses are bulkier and cause blurriness at the fringes of your field of view.

The Quest 3 is worth upgrading to

Back when I was regularly using my Oculus Quest 2 – which was later rebranded as a Meta Quest 2 – I definitely noticed that the visuals weren’t as crisp as watching a show on my phone or playing a game with my PS5 on a 4K TV. But I’d also often feel that people who were overly critical of the resolution or screen door effect were being too harsh (the screen door effect is when you see black lines over the display because you can see the gaps between pixels).

I had a fantastic time using it and felt (and still feel) it was hands-down the best VR headset for most people at its peak thanks to its solid performance for its super-low price.

The Meta Quest 3 ruined the Meta Quest 2 for me (Image credit: Meta)

But back then the Oculus Quest 2 was my baseline for VR headsets; I had never used another headset before – save for the odd demo at a gaming convention or university fair. Now that my baseline is the superior Meta Quest 3 I finally understand everyone’s Quest 2 visuals criticisms.

That’s not to say the Meta Quest 3S isn’t an excellent VR headset for the price. Starting at $299.99 / £289.99 / AU$499.99 for the 128GB model and achieving what the Meta Quest 3S achieves is nothing to sniff at. If you're new to VR and haven't yet been spoiled by better VR headsets, then its issues won't be as noticeable or annoying.

However, when weighing up your options between the two Meta Quest 3 headsets, remember it’s not just a matter of picking your preferred storage size as there are some significant other differences to consider.

Top-quality visuals won’t matter to everyone, and when you’re immersed in an interactive experience the Quest 3S’ deficiencies aren’t as noticeable. Just note that if you plan to be a VR power user that hops in a couple times a week at least, and who wants to enjoy Netflix or Xbox game streaming in VR or MR, then the sharper Meta Quest 3 is the headset you should get.

So if you can still find the 128GB Meta Quest 3 before it sells out try to grab it before the discontinued model is gone for good and you have to make do with the pricier 512GB model instead.

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Nvidia RTX 5090 GPU price hike could be much less painful than a previous rumor suggested

Nvidia’s RTX 5090 may not be as eye-wateringly expensive as a recent rumor suggested, according to another leaker who has chimed in on the matter.

Moore’s Law is Dead floated the idea of an RTX 5090 that could cost from $2,000 up to $2,500, but on X, Kopite7kimi – another regular leaker in the world of GPUs – has claimed that this is ‘totally fake’ no less.

Totally fake.October 10, 2024

Kopite7kimi adds to the thread: “I don’t believe there will be a significant price increase for RTX 5090.”

Predictably enough, the subsequent replies on X are full of attempts at guessing what the price point of the RTX 5090 might be. Not to mention trying to get the leaker to offer something firmer than there not being a significant hike for the next-gen flagship GPU, but Kopite7kimi wouldn’t be drawn to add anything else.

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(Image credit: Nvidia / Future)

Analysis: Make some noise (once again), PC gamers

Clearly, Kopite7kimi feels quite strongly about the RTX 5090 pricing prediction from Moore’s Law is Dead, as shown by the language of their reply (‘totally fake’ is a pretty blunt statement, let’s face it).

Of course, Kopite7kimi is still predicting a price hike for the RTX 5090 GPU, but just that Nvidia won’t make this a ‘significant’ increase, which we guess would indicate something in the region of a rise of $100 to $200 ($300 at a push, perhaps).

We’d like to be reassured by this latest nugget from the grapevine, but we remain nervous about the potential pricing of the RTX 5090 – and the rest of the next-gen Blackwell range of graphics cards for that matter. Notably, Kopite7kimi doesn’t talk about the price of the RTX 5080 here (or RTX 5070), which are the GPUs where the cost is really going to matter to consumers when it comes to buying one of the best value GPUs.

Nvidia’s flagship graphics cards remain a relatively niche proposition, and to some extent there is an attitude that people will pay through the nose for these GPUs, almost whatever the cost (within some kind of vague reason). And that’s partly why expectations of the RTX 5090 costing so much are relatively easily accepted (not meaning that people like this notion, not at all – it’s just that they can readily believe it, ourselves included).

If you look at the prices that the current RTX 4090 has hit now (Lovelace flagship models are continuing to rise in price), and you take into account Nvidia’s big AI ambitions – with heavyweight Blackwell GPUs for AI usage that make a fortune, turning huge profits compared to GeForce graphics cards, so AI is where the priority for chip allocation will inevitably lie – it’s easy enough to be pessimistic about how much the RTX 5090 will cost.

We guess the good news here, though, is the expression of such a different viewpoint on the potential price hike for the RTX 5090 reminds us that the rumor mill is a volatile place by its very nature.

We should further remember that Moore’s Law is Dead did also heavy caveat his pricing prediction in terms of it being Nvidia exploring and mulling where to pitch its next-gen GPUs – no actual decision has been made yet. Indeed, the YouTuber further raised the possibility that letting slip these prices could even be an intentional move from Nvidia to gauge reaction from PC owners out there (as if you couldn't predict what that would be).

Still, the point remains that all the rumor peddlers out there are saying Nvidia has not made any decision on pricing yet. And in that respect, it may not be a bad idea to pre-emptively rail and make noise about potentially hefty price hikes for Blackwell GPUs – to ensure Team Green hears the displeasure of would-be buyers of the RTX 5090, and indeed 5080 and 5070. All of these next-gen GPUs might be aired at CES 2025 (possibly alongside new Blackwell laptop graphics cards, too).

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NYT Connections today — hints and answers for Monday, October 14 (game #491)

Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need clues.

What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Wordle hints and answers, Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Connections today (game #491) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

• PONY
• ROLL
• COMB
• BOOK
• ROOT
• TREE
• CLAP
• TABLE
• BUN
• SALAD
• DIG
• RUMBLE
• SIFT
• TWIST
• PEAL
• BRAID

NYT Connections today (game #491) - hint #1 - group hints

What are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?

• Yellow: Look for
• Green: Sonic boom
• Blue: Up-do
• Purple: Eats shoots and __

Need more clues?

We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…

NYT Connections today (game #491) - hint #2 - group answers

What are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?

• YELLOW: RUMMAGE
• GREEN: SOUNDS OF THUNDER
• BLUE: WAYS TO WEAR YOUR HAIR UP
• PURPLE: THINGS THAT CAN HAVE LEAVES

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Connections today (game #491) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #491, are…

• YELLOW: RUMMAGE COMB, DIG, ROOT, SIFT
• GREEN: SOUNDS OF THUNDER CLAP, PEAL, ROLL, RUMBLE
• BLUE: WAYS TO WEAR YOUR HAIR UP BRAID, BUN, PONY, TWIST
• PURPLE: THINGS THAT CAN HAVE LEAVES BOOK, SALAD, TABLE, TREE

---

• My rating: Easy
• My score: Perfect

---

I'm disappointed at myself for not solving today's purple group, because it's a really nice connection; THINGS THAT CAN HAVE LEAVES, featuring BOOK, SALAD, TABLE and TREE. I did stare at it for a while hoping for inspiration, but none came and I ended up entering those four words by default and solving it without knowing why I was doing so. This is arguably the worst thing about Connections – the fact that you can complete it by only getting three of the four groups. Maybe there should be a way whereby when faced with that final puzzle you get to write in your answer, and an AI assistant decides whether it's correct or not (I imagine too many people play Connections for a human to be the arbiter).

That's my only criticism today, though. This was a fairly simple Connections game, but a perfectly enjoyable one.

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

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Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Sunday, 13 October, game #490)

• YELLOW: MADE OF KERATIN CLAW, HOOF, HORN, NAIL
• GREEN: ROAD RUNNER CARTOON STAPLES ANVIL, BOULDER, COYOTE, TNT
• BLUE: KINDS OF PANTS CAPRI, CARGO, HAMMER, STIRRUP
• PURPLE: ___ ROLL CALIFORNIA, DRUM, EGG, HONOR

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What is NYT Connections?

NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.

On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.

It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.

It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

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NYT Strands today — hints, answers and spangram for Monday, October 14 (game #225)

Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.

Want more word-based fun? Then check out my Wordle today, NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Strands today (game #225) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Get out of here!

NYT Strands today (game #225) - hint #2 - clue words

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

• TUCK
• RUCK
• SOLE
• DOLL
• BUNG
• NEAT

NYT Strands today (game #225) - hint #3 - spangram

What is a hint for today's spangram?

• Packed and ready

NYT Strands today (game #225) - hint #4 - spangram position

What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First: left, 4th row

Last: right, 4th row

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #225) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #225, are…

• DOLLY
• BUNGEE
• TRUCK
• BOXES
• FOAM
• CRATE
• TAPE
• STRAP
• SPANGRAM: MOVINGDAY

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• My rating: Moderate
• My score: 1 hint

---

It's a long time since I moved house – 14 years and counting, although before that I'd moved 10 times in a decade. And honestly, none of my moves were anywhere near as organised as the NYT's fictional example that provides answers such as FOAM, BUNGEE and DOLLY; mine were strictly cardboard-boxes-tape-and-a-few-friends-in-a-hired-van jobs.

Setting aside my relative unfamiliarity with the subject, this is a fairly tricky Strands puzzle anyway, with lots of short words to find. Sure, short words are theoretically easier to uncover than long ones in that there are fewer possibilities for where the letters could go, but they can be harder to solve simply because there are many four-letter words on the board, and if you don't know what the concept is, you don't know where to start.

I did get going without help, as it happens, but uncovered DOLLY first and could not imagine how that might relate to 'Get out of here!' Adding BUNGEE didn't really help, and it was only once I found TRUCK and BOXES that it all came together. I still needed one hint to get started on the bottom-right corner of the board, though; this was a harder game than many that we've had recently.

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

---

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Sunday, 13 October, game #224)

• VEST
• SWEATER
• FLANNEL
• FLEECE
• CARDIGAN
• SCARF
• SPANGRAM: FALLFASHION

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What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's new word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now out of beta so is a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable and can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.

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Windows 11 could soon fix your password headaches as Microsoft welcomes third-party passkeys to the OS

Microsoft is making it easier for Windows 11 users to log in to their various services and websites without having to remember a plethora of passwords, instead using passkeys, for which the software giant has just broadened its support.

Specifically, Microsoft has just introduced support in Windows 11 for third-party passkeys (in other words, passkeys made by companies other than Microsoft).

Passkeys are a more secure method of signing into devices, apps, or websites which can leverage biometric authentication such as facial recognition, a fingerprint ID, or PIN via Windows Hello. For the uninitiated, Windows Hello is a security feature in Windows 11 that offers biometric authentication (facial or fingerprint), or indeed a PIN.

Passkeys utilize two unique keys - one stored with the service you're logging into, and the other is on your Windows 11 device, protected by those biometrics (or a PIN) - and they offer far stronger security than traditional username and password combos.

(Image credit: Future)

Another step towards a password-free world

Microsoft is constantly working to bolster the security of Windows 11 devices, and part of that is a push towards a world that no longer relies on passwords - but more secure logins such as passkeys.

As part of this, Microsoft brought in the ability to use passkeys with Microsoft consumer accounts (rather than just commercial users) earlier this year (back in May 2024).

So now, this capability is being extended to allow the use of passkeys made by third-party developers in Windows 11. That includes the likes of apps such as 1Password and Bitwarden, as Microsoft informs us it’s collaborating with the developers of those applications - and others - in a post on its Windows Developer Blog, aiming for more seamless integration of such third-party offerings in Windows 11.

Microsoft has also updated Windows 11 to make it easier to use Windows Hello and passkeys. The idea is when you open a website or app that supports logging in with a passkey, you’ll be prompted to select how you’d like to save the passkey – whether you want to use it with your Microsoft account, or another service.

It’s good to see passkey support being widened, and Microsoft getting behind this security measure, and I’m happy enough to give them a go as while I’m alright at living with traditional passwords, I run into a lot of the same frustrations with them as many of you probably do.

I’m also glad that Microsoft is taking a collaborative approach to working with third-party developers here in implementing something that hopefully works well for Windows 11 users.

Via PC World

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NYT Strands today — hints, answers and spangram for Sunday, October 13 (game #224)

Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.

Want more word-based fun? Then check out my Wordle today, NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Strands today (game #224) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Time to get cozy

NYT Strands today (game #224) - hint #2 - clue words

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

• FAST
• SALE
• FISH
• FISHES
• DILL
• CRAG

NYT Strands today (game #224) - hint #3 - spangram

What is a hint for today's spangram?

• Wrap up warm

NYT Strands today (game #224) - hint #4 - spangram position

What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First: top, 3rd column

Last: bottom, 4th column

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #224) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #224, are…

• VEST
• SWEATER
• FLANNEL
• FLEECE
• CARDIGAN
• SCARF
• SPANGRAM: FALLFASHION

---

• My rating: Easy
• My score: 1 hint

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I needed the near-obligatory one hint to get started today, with the theme clue of 'Time to get cozy' not giving me quite enough info to be able to work out that the answers were all examples of FALLFASHION as the spangram would have it.

Once I had that, it wasn't too bad, although my idea of fall fashion (autumn fashion where I am in the UK) is more t-shirt and hoodie than CARDIGAN, FLEECE or FLANNEL. But they were all relatively easy to find, and I doubt many people will struggle today.

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

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Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Saturday, 12 October, game #223)

• PORKY
• BUGS
• GRANNY
• DAFFY
• FOXY
• FOGHORN
• PETUNIA
• SPANGRAM: CHARACTERS

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What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's new word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now out of beta so is a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable and can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.

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NYT Connections today — hints and answers for Sunday, October 13 (game #490)

Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need clues.

What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Wordle hints and answers, Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Connections today (game #490) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

• CARGO
• BOULDER
• CLAW
• HAMMER
• ANVIL
• HORN
• CALIFORNIA
• COYOTE
• EGG
• STIRRUP
• DRUM
• TNT
• CAPRI
• HOOF
• HONOR
• NAIL

NYT Connections today (game #490) - hint #1 - group hints

What are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?

• Yellow: Hard body part
• Green: Meep meep!
• Blue: You wear them
• Purple: blank [What a ball would do on a slope]

Need more clues?

We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…

NYT Connections today (game #490) - hint #2 - group answers

What are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?

• YELLOW: MADE OF KERATIN
• GREEN: ROAD RUNNER CARTOON STAPLES
• BLUE: KINDS OF PANTS
• PURPLE: ___ ROLL

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Connections today (game #490) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #490, are…

• YELLOW: MADE OF KERATIN CLAW, HOOF, HORN, NAIL
• GREEN: ROAD RUNNER CARTOON STAPLES ANVIL, BOULDER, COYOTE, TNT
• BLUE: KINDS OF PANTS CAPRI, CARGO, HAMMER, STIRRUP
• PURPLE: ___ ROLL CALIFORNIA, DRUM, EGG, HONOR

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• My rating: Moderate
• My score: 1 mistake

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There are days when the NYT's difficulty ratings for Connections make no sense to me. Purple today is one of the 'blank' varieties, where you have to find the missing word that unites the four answers. These are typically the hardest, and always form (as far as I know) the purple group. But there's no way that today __ ROLL was tougher than the green ROAD RUNNER CARTOON STAPLES or blue KINDS OF PANTS group.

I solved them all, but only thanks to a love of Road Runner that dates back 40-odd years. I doubt everyone will be so lucky. And I would have had no chance of solving the blue group, because I've never heard of HAMMER PANTS or STIRRUP PANTS. Am I out of touch? Quite possibly…

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

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Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Saturday, 12 October, game #489)

• YELLOW: DRAPED ACCESSORIES SCARF, SHAWL, STOLE, WRAP
• GREEN: TOLERATE BEAR, STAND, SWALLOW, TAKE
• BLUE: BIRD ONOMATOPOEIA COO, GOBBLE, HONK, HOOT
• PURPLE: STARTS OF CELL PHONE MAKERS APP, GOO, MOTOR, SAM

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What is NYT Connections?

NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.

On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.

It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.

It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

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AI tastebuds are better at identifying what's in food than you

Picking out individual ingredients from a dish can be a fun, if difficult, part of a meal. Professional chefs and food scientists can spend years refining their palettes. Now, a robot may be able to join in the activity thanks to the researchers behind a robotic taster that combines AI and an electronic tongue capable of detecting tiny differences in flavor.

The Penn State research team has published a paper detailing how the AI 'brain' uses the artificial tongue to detect how much water is in a cup of milk, the mix of beans in a coffee blend, and even incipient rot in fruit juice that would be impossible for a human to spot. 

Electronics to identify components in a mixture isn't a new idea. That's how machines can measure things like acidity and temperature. But, what the researchers have done goes beyond that by using AI to mimic the way your tongue, nose, and brain interpret the taste of things beyond a simple detection of pH balance. Using the advanced sensors known as ISFET (graphene-based ion-sensitive field-effect transistor), the electronic tongue can measure a lot of complex chemicals at the same time instead of needing multiple kinds of sensors like a thermometer and pH testing stick. 

The sensors produce a huge amount of data, which standard computer processors might take a while to sort out, and the analysis wouldn't tell you much about how watered down the milk is or how freshly squeezed your orange juice is. Instead, the researchers used AI in the form of a neural network that can mimic some of how humans process taste. 

Flavor AI

After teaching the AI how different chemicals affect the electronic tongue's sensors, the neural network could accurately identify different types of soda and the freshness of juice more than 80% of the time. That was just the beginning, however. When the scientists took the metaphorical leash off the AI and let it come up with its own way of analyzing the data, the AI's accuracy shot up to 95%, barely ever getting a wrong answer.

The combination of measuring subtle aspects of food plus using AI to judge what they mean is an impressive simulation of how humans taste things. It can also do so when a difference is too subtle for human perception, like if milk isn't bad yet but will be soon.

Food tests for purity and freshness are only some of what an accurate AI tongue could do for people. Taste is, at its most basic level, a way of identifying chemicals. That means the AI taster could help in more than just the kitchen. It could theoretically help in industrial factories or in medical diagnostics, spotting biomarkers of disease or changes in your health. These concepts are still in the early discussion phase, but the electronic tongue may be a taste of the future.

You might also like

• Hands-on with Google's Project Astra, the AI that knows where you left your keys
• Forget self-driving cars, the robot can get in and drive for you – if it can overcome some major limitations
• And that’s how it all started: AI managed to design a robot that walks — from scratch, and in less than 60 seconds

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Planning on updating to Windows 11 24H2? You might want to grab a snack, as Microsoft admits it could take a very long time

Windows 11 24H2 has got off to a somewhat wobbly start - with a number of bugs being discovered, though thankfully, there are no huge blunders (yet) - but one thing to be aware of is that the upgrade can take a pretty long time to install.

There’s an official Reddit thread detailing what features and changes users can expect to see with version 24H2 of Windows 11, as well as a FAQ section. And in the latter, Microsoft admits that 24H2 can be very slow going with respect to the time it takes to install.

Microsoft observes: “This is a significantly larger update than the regular monthly updates you have been installing up until now. In some cases, it can take a few hours to install, so be patient! You do not need to babysit it, and you can continue to use your computer during most of the installation.”

So, as noted, you can keep using your PC while the installation process is churning away in the background. Or so Microsoft assures us, anyway, though performance will be affected to some extent at times. And, of course, once the update is ready to go, you will be forced to sit through a whole lot of spinning circles and multiple reboots where you can’t do anything (with your PC, anyway).

(Image credit: Future / James Holland)

What’s the secret of a great installation? Timing

If you want a rough idea of installation times, there’s a report from PC World which tested how long it takes to install Windows 11 24H2 on various laptops. While noting that Microsoft describes 24H2 as a ‘full OS swap’ to underline how noticeably bigger it is than previous updates, PC World recorded installation times varying from just over an hour, to one hour and 45 minutes. Four laptops were tested in total, with the average time taken for those devices being around an hour and a half. So yes, that is longer than most folks are used to - certainly these days anyway.

PC World notes that as you’d expect, as a general rule, older laptops take longer to update, and I echo its recommendation that you set aside some time in your day (an hour or two) if you want to update to version 24H2. Time during which you can at least keep glancing at, and keeping an eye on, your PC while it’s updating.

Windows 11 24H2 is in the process of being rolled out in a phased, gradual manner, and when it’s your device’s turn, the upgrade should be offered automatically. You can keep manually checking for it in Windows Update if you’re keen, though.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE...

• Windows 11 could soon get a cool feature to seamlessly link your Android phone to the Start menu - and a nifty gamepad perk, too
• Windows 11 24H2 update yoinks 8.6GB of your precious drive space and refuses to give it back – but a fix is coming
• Windows 11 PCs could soon get the ability to set up much faster Wi-Fi hotspots to share their internet with other devices

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Quordle today – hints and answers for Friday, October 11 (game #991)

Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now nearly 1,000 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.

Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my Wordle today, NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

Quordle today (game #991) - hint #1 - Vowels

How many different vowels are in Quordle today?

• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*.

* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).

Quordle today (game #991) - hint #2 - repeated letters

Do any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?

• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 0.

Quordle today (game #991) - hint #3 - uncommon letters

Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?

• Yes. One of Q, Z, X or J appears among today's Quordle answers.

Quordle today (game #991) - hint #4 - starting letters (1)

Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?

• The number of today's Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 0.

If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you're not ready yet then here's one more clue to make things a lot easier:

Quordle today (game #991) - hint #5 - starting letters (2)

What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?

• R

• A

• P

• Z

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

Quordle today (game #991) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle, game #991, are…

• RINSE
• ANIME
• PUSHY
• ZEBRA

I don't know about you but I love the idea of a PUSHY ZEBRA. You know, moving all the other animals away from the watering hole so it can have it all to itself, that kind of thing. I'm sure there's a Pixar animation in there somewhere. But I digress. ZEBRA is arguably the hardest word in today's Quordle, although ANIME does give it some competition. It not only starts with a very uncommon letter in the form of Z, but also has a B in an unusual spot (B tends to start words and not much else). ANIME, meanwhile, is formed of mostly common letters (M is the slight outlier), but caused a lot of trouble when it was a Wordle answer a while ago. Overall: tricky day, folks.

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

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Daily Sequence today (game #991) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #991, are…

• FETCH
• WARTY
• FROCK
• ABATE

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Quordle answers: The past 20

• Quordle #990, Thursday 10 October: UNTIL, MARSH, METAL, WINDY
• Quordle #989, Wednesday 9 October: TRIAL, HUSKY, DOWNY, TRADE
• Quordle #988, Tuesday 8 October: TROUT, HATER, BARGE, DOZEN
• Quordle #987, Monday 7 October: CAULK, HALVE, APING, HEATH
• Quordle #986, Sunday 6 October: FUDGE, TENOR, BEGAT, ROUSE
• Quordle #985, Saturday 5 October: ELECT, CROAK, FRISK, JAUNT
• Quordle #984, Friday 4 October: ELFIN, GRAIL, PATIO, RECAP
• Quordle #983, Thursday 3 October: TENTH, REMIT, CURVE, TOAST
• Quordle #982, Wednesday 2 October: ARGUE, CRANE, TOKEN, PRINT
• Quordle #981, Tuesday 1 October: FRILL, MADLY, GRANT, NYLON
• Quordle #980, Monday 30 September: CRUSH, TARDY, TEACH, STUMP
• Quordle #979, Sunday 29 September: SERIF, BORNE, WRITE, SLEEK
• Quordle #978, Saturday 28 September: BUSHY, CIVIC, SNOUT, EQUIP
• Quordle #977, Friday 27 September: GUEST, CHASM, ROOST, BASAL
• Quordle #976, Thursday 26 September: STAGE, VOGUE, CLUMP, HEATH
• Quordle #975, Wednesday 25 September: UMBRA, DADDY, GLAZE, PRANK
• Quordle #974, Tuesday 24 September: SPACE, INNER, SPAWN, BEGAT
• Quordle #973, Monday 23 September: GUILT, STERN, ANNEX, FIELD
• Quordle #972, Sunday 22 September: ZESTY, MEATY, ALIVE, DRAWN
• Quordle #971, Saturday 21 September: VITAL, FRAIL, SPEAR, EERIE

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