Daily Tech News 27 April 2026

Top Story

It's been a while since we've had a big tech news story. No disasters, no miracles. Things haven't suddenly gotten better - or at least, not much, and they haven't gotten drastically worse.

So here's an object lesson in not trusting lifelong drug addicts with a pattern of pathological lying, by which I mean AI. (Twitter)

The company PocketOS was using the AI tool Cursor to do some routine maintenance in their staging environment. Cursor found a problem and decided to fix it. To fix it it decided to... Delete the database and all backups.

Okay, not the end of the world; it's the staging environment, not the production environment.

Right?

Oh.

You might ask why they gave Cursor access to the production environment when it was only supposed to be working on staging, and the answer is, they didn't. It hunted around the files it did have access to until it found an API key, and it used that.

On top of that, the hosting service they were using only had snapshots, not independent backups. Delete the database volume (virtual disk) and all the snapshots disappear as well.

The hosting service did manage to recover the volume, though it took some time and was not something a user could do themselves. Remember folks, it's not backed up until you have three copies, in two different formats, on two continents.

Tech News

The year of Unix on the desktop, 1985 edition. (YouTube)

The AT&T Unix PC was slow, expensive, heavy, noisy, and unreliable, but...

Uh.

Oh, the keyboard was pretty good.
The year of Unix on the desktop, 2026 edition. (PC World)

Framework is shipping more units of its new Laptop 13 Pro with Ubuntu than with Windows.

And that's just preinstalled models. It's also available with no OS for you to install your own, and that's counted separately.
Commodore - yes, that Commodore - is not going to lock out customer updates to the FPGA firmware running the Commodore 64 - no, not that Commodore 64. (Tom's Hardware)

The new model is substantially more powerful while being a 100% precise hardware emulation of the original, using an FPGA - basically a chip that you reprogram its circuitry on the fly. But if you reprogram it wrong you could end up with a moderately expensive (the Commodore 64 Ultimate starts at $325) brick.

But it will void your warranty, so brick at your own risk.
Samsung's new 10a DRAM process measures less than 10nm using a 4F cell, and will be followed in 2029 by a 10d process that will be 3D. (WCCFTech)

I assure you it all makes sense.

Musical Interlude

Disclaimer: Or at least perfectish.

Posted by: Pixy Misa at 04:30 AM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 G'Day everyone

Posted by: Skip at April 27, 2026 04:31 AM (Ia/+0)

2 w00t

Posted by: m at April 27, 2026 04:31 AM (8NTVk)

3 https://tinyurl.com/venchbhd
20 Posts from Doug Ross Substack

Posted by: Skip at April 27, 2026 04:32 AM (Ia/+0)

4 >>>Remember folks, it's not backed up until you have three copies, in two different formats, on two continents.

yikes

Posted by: m at April 27, 2026 04:33 AM (8NTVk)

5 >>>Remember folks, it's not backed up until you have three copies, in two different formats, on two continents.

... and, but, in line with the Musical Interlude: Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good?

Which maybe doesn't apply in IT.

Posted by: m at April 27, 2026 04:35 AM (8NTVk)

6 Guten morgen, horde.

Posted by: clarence at April 27, 2026 04:35 AM (nD5wh)

7 PDT's 60 Minutes interview:

60 Minutes
@60Minutes
7h
Extended interview: @NorahODonnell sat down with President Trump to discuss the moment he was rushed out of the White House Correspondents' Dinner after a gunman charged a security checkpoint

Posted by: m at April 27, 2026 04:40 AM (8NTVk)

8 Mornin'

Posted by: Puddleglum, cheer up for the worst is yet to come at April 27, 2026 04:50 AM (sAmhv)

9 It’s not backed up until it is on a disk on a shelf.

Posted by: Accomack at April 27, 2026 04:52 AM (GbONR)

10 The 60 Minutes interview (40 minutes) is a real litmus test; do you favor PDT or Norah O'Donnell.

Norah O'Donnell has Crazy Eyes.

Posted by: m at April 27, 2026 04:55 AM (8NTVk)

11 10 The 60 Minutes interview (40 minutes) is a real litmus test; do you favor PDT or Norah O'Donnell.

Norah O'Donnell has Crazy Eyes.
Posted by: m

I thought they were empty. Lifeless. She's an NPC. She's just playing out her script.

Posted by: Puddleglum, cheer up for the worst is yet to come at April 27, 2026 04:59 AM (sAmhv)

12 9 It’s not backed up until it is on a disk on a shelf.
Posted by: Accomack at April 27, 2026 04:52 AM (GbONR)

The "shelf" part might be a problem for ace.

Posted by: m at April 27, 2026 05:02 AM (8NTVk)

13 News anchor has medical emergency. Doctors can't explain miracle that saved his life, but he attributes it to God. Faithpot site:

https://tinyurl.com/4tj8ce74

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 27, 2026 05:03 AM (ix8EF)

14 It would be weird to have function keys on the left hand side of the keyboard. Weird.

Posted by: Aetius451AD at April 27, 2026 05:04 AM (bss/y)

15 This woman ( Ce Ce Winans) has a nice voice and I like her thoughts on the importance of prayer. Scroll down for video. Faithpot site:

https://tinyurl.com/4e9mdv8b

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 27, 2026 05:06 AM (ix8EF)

16 Man gives us his first class plane seat to a frail 94 year old passenger he doesn't know:

https://tinyurl.com/nz79rkdy

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 27, 2026 05:08 AM (ix8EF)

17 Hey techsters, Not trolling here. I’m a capable PC user but have no desire to spend a lot of time running my own support desk. How realistic is it to move to a non windows OS that isn’t Apple but still be able to use latest version office programs or equivalent? Will browser based SAAS programs run in a UNIX browser?

Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 05:09 AM (RPJMX)

18 PocketOS's staging AND production database deleted by the AI tool Cursor:

https://youtu.be/eqBR8knRM2w

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at April 27, 2026 05:12 AM (O7YUW)

19 I think finally have my Garmin reset
Have a great day horde

Posted by: Skip at April 27, 2026 05:12 AM (Ia/+0)

20
Man writes on "Yielded and still" and Jeremiah 18:1-6

https://tinyurl.com/mw6xjjuy

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 27, 2026 05:13 AM (ix8EF)

21
g'mornin', 'rons

Posted by: AltonJackson at April 27, 2026 05:13 AM (2/MrR)

22
How realistic is it to move to a non windows OS that isn’t Apple but still be able to use latest version office programs or equivalent? Will browser based SAAS programs run in a UNIX browser?

Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 05:09 AM

the answer is, of course, Linux.

Posted by: AltonJackson at April 27, 2026 05:22 AM (2/MrR)

23
Commodore

Chiclet keyboards will rise again!

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) Imprison! Imprison! Imprison! at April 27, 2026 05:23 AM (xG4kz)

24
I think finally have my Garmin reset
Have a great day horde
Posted by: Skip

When we next hear from Skip, there'll be banjo music in the background and talk of "No, not that holler, this holler..."

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) Imprison! Imprison! Imprison! at April 27, 2026 05:26 AM (xG4kz)

25
The "shelf" part might be a problem for ace.
Posted by: m

Butied in the rubble of a shelf is just as safe... right?

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) Imprison! Imprison! Imprison! at April 27, 2026 05:27 AM (xG4kz)

26 We had two visitors at our church yesterday. I would like to ask for prayers for them: J & M. The daughter J had to move her mom, M
From her home from.NY to assisted living in NJ. I could tell it was hard for both of them. The mother gave me a hug and said, " I don't know how much longer I'll be here but I thank you for the worship service." I got choked up. Such nice people having struggles.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 27, 2026 05:28 AM (PFs9e)

27 A little past minute 16:00, Norah O'Donnell says, "I was in the [ball]room. Not far from you, Mr. President. Could hear what sounded like gunshots. Or commotion. People nearby could smell the gunpowder."

Could smell the gunpowder. From the lobby?

Posted by: m at April 27, 2026 05:29 AM (8NTVk)

28 Which Garmin device do you have Skip, and why did you need to reset it?

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at April 27, 2026 05:30 AM (O7YUW)

29 the answer is, of course, Linux.
Posted by: AltonJackson at April 27, 2026 05:22 AM (2/MrR)

Yes. Some flavor thereof. And how realistic is that if I’m not interested in tinkering with the thing all the time simply to get it running? MSoft is recommitting to the path of creepy, intrusive and piratical, switching to Apple seems like leaving one plantation for another.

Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 05:34 AM (RPJMX)

30 Good morning, all. Just happy to see another day.

Posted by: JM in Illinois at April 27, 2026 05:34 AM (yia+x)

31 Could smell the gunpowder. From the lobby?

Posted by: m at April 27, 2026 05:29 AM (8NTVk)

It was brimstone emanating from Trump’s assembled cabinet. IYKYK.

Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 05:36 AM (RPJMX)

32 2026 White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting (Wikipedia)

Wikipedia says that the "main security screening area" was NOT in the lobby (mea culpa). It was "outside the banquet hall."

Posted by: m at April 27, 2026 05:41 AM (8NTVk)

33

17 Hey techsters, Not trolling here. I’m a capable PC user but have no desire to spend a lot of time running my own support desk. How realistic is it to move to a non windows OS that isn’t Apple but still be able to use latest version office programs or equivalent? Will browser based SAAS programs run in a UNIX browser?
Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 05:09 AM (RPJMX

-----

Zorin Linux has a very similar interface to windows. Also office type software

Here's a 16 minute video on how to try it without installing it. But you can install it also

https://tinyurl.com/ms7vrtxp

Posted by: JM in Illinois at April 27, 2026 05:44 AM (+5Sz0)

34
Let's all go to the lobby,
Let's all go to the lobby,
Let's all go to the lobby,
And have ourselves a firefight!

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) Imprison! Imprison! Imprison! at April 27, 2026 05:45 AM (xG4kz)

35 Stuck to the fridge with a magnet

Posted by: Accomack at April 27, 2026 05:45 AM (8jVAy)

36 I hate Microsoft.

Posted by: Accomack at April 27, 2026 05:46 AM (8jVAy)

37 Jen Kiggans has decided to run for reelection. It is a repeat of the Kiggans Navy vs Luria Army race

Posted by: Accomack at April 27, 2026 05:48 AM (GbONR)

38 @33/JM in Illinois: Yeah, but that's not what Pete wants. He wants a non-Microsoft OS that's capable of running all Microsoft software natively.

I don't think we're there quite yet, though WINE and Proton are definitely leading the way towards that goal with a lot of success shown so far.

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at April 27, 2026 05:50 AM (O7YUW)

39 I find Apple pleasant. They are jerks but for some reason I don’t mind them. I guess it’s their competence.
Microsoft is a raging drunken asshole who does random stupid shit and refuses to leave.

Posted by: Accomack at April 27, 2026 05:52 AM (GbONR)

40 Just read the article about Framework. This isn't quite a dent in Microsoft's sales but it's nice to see that more people are looking into Linux more seriously.

Posted by: NR Pax at April 27, 2026 05:52 AM (RjOoY)

41 @36/Accomack: "I hate Microsoft."

Right there with you. I've had to actually use a copy of Windows 11 recently, updating it and getting the tax software installed for this year's taxes.

It. Is. Awful. Seriously, I remember the goal of UI's was to make them "User Friendly" (easy to use.) This has "User Obnoxious" stamped all over it.

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at April 27, 2026 05:52 AM (O7YUW)

42 Grumpy, I wasn’t very clear. I’d move away from MSoft if I could but realistically whatever you switch to must be able to open Office (word and excel primarily) files and save in a format that those programs can read as well.

Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 05:55 AM (RPJMX)

43 Oh, and once I'm done this year's taxes, I'm beginning a project to see if I can get the tax software to run under Linux Mint using WINE or something like it, so I can install and use next year's version under Linux, and never have to inflict this Microsoft garbage on myself again.

The company that makes the tax software I use (uFile) set Windows 11 as a minimum standard for this year's version. Look, I get it. Windows 10 official support got turned off for most people last year, but there's still a bunch of people with extended support they purchased, and because of that, it was too early for major applications to set Windows 11 as the minimum acceptable OS to install on.

And yet... they did. And so I'm working with a Windows 11 partition on a laptop that came with it, and it is a train-wreck full of flaming dumpsters. I hate it so much.

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at April 27, 2026 06:02 AM (O7YUW)

44 42 Grumpy, I wasn’t very clear. I’d move away from MSoft if I could but realistically whatever you switch to must be able to open Office (word and excel primarily) files and save in a format that those programs can read as well.
Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 05:55

-----

LibreOffice and OnlyOffice are Linux software packages that can open up word and excel files. Did I mention that they're free?

Posted by: JM in Illinois at April 27, 2026 06:02 AM (0CnOs)

45 42 Grumpy, I wasn’t very clear. I’d move away from MSoft if I could but realistically whatever you switch to must be able to open Office (word and excel primarily) files and save in a format that those programs can read as well.
Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 05:55 AM (RPJMX)

LibreOffice is open souce ( and free ) . I've been using it for years and it reads and writes native Office formats.

You might also look at Apache OpenOffice ( which LibreOffice is based on ) .

Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at April 27, 2026 06:03 AM (WkL+O)

46 JM beat me by *that* much

Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at April 27, 2026 06:03 AM (WkL+O)

47
And how realistic is that if I’m not interested in tinkering with the thing all the time simply to get it running?

Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 05:34 AM

Linux Mint is very smooth right out of the box, very little tinkering to be done. My son does more tinkering / tweaking / updating / whatev on his one year-old Win11 computer than I have to do on my Linux Mint 19.something box.

the current Mint (22.?) is 'sposed to be very good (I haven't tried it yet); all the gamers are raving that it will run Steam with no extra "coding"

not sure about SAAS, but I don't see why you couldn't use it in a Linux environment.

Posted by: AltonJackson at April 27, 2026 06:03 AM (2/MrR)

48 Pete Bog, LibreOffice has a Linux version:

https://www.libreoffice.org/

I know it can save MS Office formats on the Mac and Windows versions, so I'm assuming it's the same in Linux.

Posted by: SpeakingOf at April 27, 2026 06:04 AM (6ydKt)

49 46 JM beat me by *that* much
Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at April 27, 2026 06:03 AM (WkL+O)

----

But as an actual user, you have much more to offer about the products

Posted by: JM in Illinois at April 27, 2026 06:05 AM (bslOC)

50 Any tips or pointers for setting up a desktop with Winblows 11 Home without going online or creating a Micro$ponge account?

Posted by: Anna Puma at April 27, 2026 06:07 AM (2GVsD)

51 Thanks for all the help. I’ve got to start looking into this. Windows11 is a disaster.

For a long time I was able to avoid this by saying that Google was so creepy it made MSoft and Apple look good by comparison. Microsoft said “Hold my beer”.

Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 06:10 AM (RPJMX)

52 50 Any tips or pointers for setting up a desktop with Winblows 11 Home without going online or creating a Micro$ponge account?

Posted by: Anna Puma at April 27, 2026 06:07 AM (2GVsD)

Here's a Tom's Hardware Guide from September 2025, Anna:

https://tinyurl.com/25ahj73c

I can't guarantee it because MS desperately wants people to have to create a MS account instead of a local account and they keep gimping workarounds.

Posted by: SpeakingOf at April 27, 2026 06:11 AM (6ydKt)

53 I bought an apple macbook a couple months ago.Rather than go to windows eleven. Not an apple fanboy, and it takes some learning. But it works

Posted by: JM in Illinois at April 27, 2026 06:12 AM (ys9lh)

54 Thanks, will give it a perusal.

Posted by: Anna Puma at April 27, 2026 06:14 AM (2GVsD)

55 As for Pixy-Misa's story about Cursor, did it ask "Want to play a game?" as it stole the key?

Posted by: Anna Puma at April 27, 2026 06:16 AM (2GVsD)

56 Just be aware that while LibreOffice is quite good at pulling in Microsoft Office formatted documents, the more complex the formatting is on the Microsoft side, the more chance you have of seeing a badly translated section in the document once it's opened in LibreOffice.

It's NOT perfect (yet.)

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at April 27, 2026 06:18 AM (O7YUW)

57 Meanwhile I found out a relative died a few days ago. He had an interesting life and was noteworthy for graduating from UVA at 70. The man was a highlight in the family gatherings on Thanksgiving.

Posted by: NR Pax at April 27, 2026 06:18 AM (RjOoY)

58 Posted by: NR Pax at April 27, 2026 06:18 AM (RjOoY)

I'm glad that you have good memories of a special man. May the Lord bring those positive memories to mind for all who appreciated him, and provide comfort and strength.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 27, 2026 06:23 AM (rZCVI)

59 Morning, 'rons and 'ettes.

Posted by: olddog in mo at April 27, 2026 06:27 AM (YpHnX)

60 Condolences on your loss, NR Pax.

Posted by: SpeakingOf at April 27, 2026 06:32 AM (6ydKt)

61 Little flowers bloom
Spring sunshine brightly arrives
Close your eyes and dream

fin

Posted by: clarence at April 27, 2026 06:39 AM (nD5wh)

62
Could smell the gunpowder. From the lobby?

Posted by: m at April 27, 2026 05:29 AM (8NTVk)

They could certainly hear the rattle of musketry.

Brian Williams: "In a second the air was full of the hiss of bullets and the hurtle of grapeshot. The mental strain was so great that I saw at that moment the singular effect mentioned, I think, in the life of Goethe on a similar occasion - the whole landscape for an instant turned slightly red."

Posted by: Hadrian the Seventh at April 27, 2026 06:43 AM (tgvbd)

63 Thanks for the kind thoughts, folks. The man was as politically correct and culturally sensitive as I am. It was a good balance from most of the family.

He'd been wanting to go to UVA for a long time and he finally persuaded his wife. She gave in on the condition that they didn't live in the dorms.

Posted by: NR Pax at April 27, 2026 06:49 AM (RjOoY)

64 Posted by: NR Pax at April 27, 2026 06:49 AM (RjOoY)

LOL. And what did he study at UVA?

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at April 27, 2026 06:55 AM (PFs9e)

65 God bless, day off wanting to sleep in. But the cats got into a snarling disagreement with me caught in the middle. So got up, stumbled around, opened the door, and put dry food down. So now they can interact or avoid each other outside.

And I am still awake.

Posted by: Anna Puma at April 27, 2026 06:55 AM (2GVsD)

66 LOL. And what did he study at UVA?
Posted by: FenelonSpoke

Interdisciplinary Studies. Focused on Humanities and Creative Writing.

Posted by: NR Pax at April 27, 2026 06:59 AM (RjOoY)

67
In a fit of madness, I have embarked, for no good reason at all, on a long and almost totally pointless project to recreate show result spreadsheets for Lacey, Dutch and Delilah. Date, show, location, judge (Breed and Group), entry, result, points earned (Breed and Group) and, if they lost, to whom.

The searchable AKC records online only go back 10 years and Lacey was shown from 2000 to 2004. I have dates, locations and judges for her, but most of the judges she showed to are under the sod now. Still, I think I can piece it together. All 378 shows.

Posted by: Hadrian the Seventh at April 27, 2026 07:03 AM (tgvbd)

68 Good luck Hadrian storming that castle, we're depending upon you.

And don't have the fish.

Posted by: Anna Puma at April 27, 2026 07:05 AM (2GVsD)

69 Nood JJ

Posted by: Mr Aspirin Factory at April 27, 2026 07:06 AM (HiAA1)

70 Birdbath status?

Posted by: Just Wondering at April 27, 2026 07:06 AM (2Ez/1)

71 In a fit of madness, I have embarked, for no good reason at all, on a long and almost totally pointless project to recreate show result spreadsheets for Lacey, Dutch and Delilah. Date, show, location, judge (Breed and Group), entry, result, points earned (Breed and Group) and, if they lost, to whom.

The searchable AKC records online only go back 10 years and Lacey was shown from 2000 to 2004. I have dates, locations and judges for her, but most of the judges she showed to are under the sod now. Still, I think I can piece it together. All 378 shows.
Posted by: Hadrian the Seventh at April 27, 2026 07:03 AM (tgvbd)
----
Everyone needs a hobby!

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at April 27, 2026 07:06 AM (gnNyN)

72 And yet... they did. And so I'm working with a Windows 11 partition on a laptop that came with it, and it is a train-wreck full of flaming dumpsters. I hate it so much.

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at April 27, 2026 06:02 AM (O7YUW)

It's pretty well-traveled to run Win 11 as a VM in VirtualBox.

I do it on Linux Mint, primarily for 2 Win 11 programs. It's way better than running it on a partition.

VM snapshots are a headache-free way to deal with the various MS update enshittification.

Posted by: Comrade Flounder, Disinformation Demon at April 27, 2026 07:16 AM (dK+Kv)

73
The seamless interchangeability of a file between the Microsoft Office LibreOffice systems can be an adventure. I had a presentation that I created in LO about ten years ago. I delivered it using MSOffice, where the bottom quarter of every slide was off the screen. It wasn't the end of the world, but it was disconcerting.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) Imprison! Imprison! Imprison! at April 27, 2026 07:21 AM (xG4kz)

74 Will browser based SAAS programs run in a UNIX browser?

Posted by: Pete Bog at April 27, 2026 05:09 AM (RPJMX)

Browser SAAS should be OS independent. At least that's my expectation. Try it out on a live USB thumbdrive environment before you install from same. I'd reckon that there are video tutorials on YouTube.

And echoing others, Linux Mint is as smooth as you want it to be or as involved as you want it to be. There will be a learning curve, however slight. But the freedom, control, stability, and lack of nagging you'll discover will shock you.

Posted by: Comrade Flounder, Disinformation Demon at April 27, 2026 07:26 AM (dK+Kv)

75 It wasn't the end of the world, but it was disconcerting.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) Imprison! Imprison! Imprison! at April 27, 2026 07:21 AM (xG4kz)

Yeah, ten years has seen much improvement, but there will still be some lingering issues as pointed out.

My latest Wow! moment came when running a Windows only game on Mint with Steam/Proton.

Posted by: Comrade Flounder, Disinformation Demon at April 27, 2026 07:29 AM (dK+Kv)

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