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Nature Needs to be Protected Before we can Address Climate Crisis

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It was about time for the political agenda ​to consider the climate emergency we are currently facing. In the last few months, a crisis that has received very little awareness, but is incredibly urgent, is the disastrous reduction in our nature and wildlife.

The United Kingdom is among the countries that have an incredibly low amount of nature, and this status is only worsening. A report that peaks into the situation of British nature was released this year and noted that almost half the species observed showed a strong or average decline over the last few years. The shocking discoveries showed that 15 percent of the U.K.’s wildlife species are at high risk of extinction. Birds and animals such as curlew, water vole, adder, or common toad are now facing a cruel fate.

There are numerous conservation organizations in the U.K., such as the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, RSPB, Plantlife, and so on. They do an incredible job in protecting the wildlife, but they have not been able to stop the abrupt decline.

Nature Needs Protection

The Green Party has also had the most determined policies regarding the nature of any other political party, having over 70 such proposals, such as reducing pesticide use, and re-purposing the economy. However, it is not sufficient only to have strong measures, but taking action to protect the nature is more than crucial.

A report from five of the most prominent conservationists and nature writers in Britain to create a plan on how to make sure nature survives was recently commissioned. The report is called A New Deal for Nature. 

Its motion considers individual, public, but also government action. They include national parks, farming, biosecurity, the marine environment, but they also focus on education. More precisely, it talks about how to allow children to have access to nature so they can recognize the natural environment, develop a love for it, and feel the need to preserve it.

The authors of the report say they want to be radical, aspirational, and inclusive, basing on the best science accessible today. Some measures in the proposal could be considered controversial, but nature needs to be saved.

The Sims 4: Release Date for The New ‘Snowy Escape’ Expansion

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The developers of The Sims 4 life simulation game are still working to bring new exciting content for the fans, although the successor The Sims 5 is also in the works. The Sims 4 already has some great expansions, but the fans should prepare for ‘Snowy Escape’ to hit the game soon enough.

As you might have already guessed, the ‘Snowy Escape’ expansion is meant to bring the Holiday fever to the player, as he’ll have to adapt in a world covered by snow. The developer Maxis Studios itself announced the expansion, so there’s no room for any doubt.

Release Date: November 13

‘Snowy Escape’ arrives for The Sims 4 at this date, and it brings more gameplay options such as snowboarding, rock climbing, and skiing. Players will have the chance to live in the new world of Mount Komorebi. Another great addition is the Lifestyles and Sentiments system, which is capable of granting more options for the character creation process.

SimGuruFrost, who is the Global Community Manager for The Sims, announced a Sims 4: Snowy Escape livestream on Twitch, and it will be hosted by Graham Nardone, the producer of The Sims 4. In the livestream, questions will be answered and the fans will get to see gameplay elements and Create-A-Sim.

System requirements

Those willing to play The Sims 4 on PC will have to meet at least the following system requirements:

  • Operating system: Windows 7 (SP1), 8, 8.1, or 10
  • Processor: 1.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, AMD Athlon 64 Dual-Core 400, or something equivalent
  • Memory: 4 GB RAM
  • Hard drive: 15 GB of free space, and a minimum of 1 GB additional space for saved games and custom content.
  • DVD drive: DVD-ROM drive required when installation is made from disc
  • Graphics card: 128 MB of RAM and support for Pixel Shader 3.0
  • Supported Graphics cards: NVIDIA GeForce 6600, ATI Radeon X1300, Intel GMA X4500 or better
  • DirectX version: DirectX 9.0, 10 and 11 Compatible

The upcoming expansion pack will be available for PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, as well as Xbox One. There’s no word for a release date of The Sims 4 for the next-generation consoles PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.

Avira vs. Avast in 2020: Which One is the Better Antivirus?

Surfing among the web these days with your guard down is cyber suicide. Malware, ransomware, spyware, and adware are on the rise, and packing your PC with a strong and capable antivirus is a ‘must’. Don’t rely only on your knowledge for what websites to avoid, as viruses can enter your system by other methods as well.

Avira and Avast are two of the best antivirus software out there, and we’re glad to analyze them today in order to find out which one is better.

  1. Introduction

Avira is a strong antivirus software that also offers a VPN. The protection offered is capable of blocking online threats like ransomware, spyware and malicious websites. Avira can even improve your PC’s performance, speed it up, and accelerate its startup.

Avast has over 400 million users, and there’s no wonder why. Avast is capable of securing your passwords, avoiding fake websites, blocking viruses and other malware, scanning for WiFi weaknesses, stopping webcam spying, improving ransomware security, and more.

  1. Features

Avira

Avira is not doing bad at all in this area. The dangers of random WiFi networks or for simply surfing among various websites cannot be taken lightly. For this, Avira offers a compelling solution of a VPN (Virtual Private Network) , although we must say that the feature is available only for Avira Prime users.

Among its highlight, we can also mention a clean-up tool called System Speedup Pro, which is capable of removing temporary files and speed up your PC. With Avira, you don’t have to worry anymore about your apps becoming outdated, because the antivirus is packed with a scanner capable of updating any apps from your computer.

Privacy is also something that Avira is very focused on. The software can optimize how your data is used and even remove privacy cookies.

There’s also worth mentioning that Avira can also offer protection for your smartphone if it’s running on Android or iOS. Avira can even find your mobile device if you lose it or if someone steals it from you.

Avast

Anybody is reticent when it comes to installing new software on his PC. That’s where the Avast Sandbox comes in handy, as it lets you test certain apps or open pretty much any suspicious files in some sort of quarantined mode. This prevents the accessed file from interacting with the rest of your computer. Avast will also tell you this way if there is any security issue going on with that file, and you’ll be able to remove it without any risk of infection.

As Avira, Avast also offers VPN protection. You just can’t overlook the importance of using a VPN these days, as you cannot know when you’re desperately in the need of catching some random WiFi signal. Avast also offers a tool for cleaning up files and removing junk files.

  1. Prices

We have to admit that pricing is a very important criterion when choosing the right software. Saving money is always a good idea, as they don’t grow in trees. Both Avira and Avast offer free-of-charge versions, but for extra features, you must pay.

Avira

The cheapest and basic version is the Avira Antivirus Pro, as an annual subscription costs $60, and it covers three devices. This will grant you scanning for downloads and emails, privacy protection, top-tier antivirus protection, and a web filter for blocking suspicious websites.

Next-up is the Avira Internet Security version that includes all of the features that Antivirus Pro has to offer, and also access to the Software Updater Pro and Password Manager Pro. Avira Internet Security is worth $13 more than Antivirus Pro.

We surely can’t forget the Avira Prime version, as it’s the best one in terms of quality. It includes all the features of the other versions, and even more. Thus, we must mention VPN protection, privacy tune-up tools, the network scanner, and mobile security for Android or iOS devices. Avira Prime asks for $99.99 per year for five devices.

Avast

Avast Premium Security is the cheapest offer, but it’s practically a bundle of two plans. Premium Security Single-Device is one of them, it’s worth about $70 per year, and it offers antivirus protection for one PC for nearly. Most of the Avast features are included, like secure-file encryption, the sandbox testing tool, and more.

Avast Ultimate is the most expensive plan at its demanded $100 per year. Besides the standard features, it offers VPN protection, a password manager, and more.

  1. Customer support

Regardless of how great a program is, customer support is crucial. There will always be different issues occurring, and finding yourself waiting days and weeks for an email sent to the developers is an awful scenario.

Avira

Only premium customers can benefit from direct email and phone support. But you can simply access the official website of the service, as Avira offers there detailed info, a FAQ section, and how-to guides.

There’s also the option to post on the community forum if you don’t find what you’re looking for. The staff should respond ASAP because they’re in charge of the forum.

Avast

Like in the case of Avira, direct support for Avast is only available for premium users. But if you install the premium trial, you can benefit from Avast’s direct support.

Furthermore, Avast has a huge amount of helpful info and instructions for its users, grouped by different categories. This antivirus also has a support forum.

However, if you still can’t get your desired answers in the case of Avast, Avira, or any other software, remember that there’s always YouTube and the good old search engine from Google.

Conclusion

We believe Avast is better than Avira as it offers more security-related features and extra utilities in its security suites. Avast also puts a minimal impact on system performance. However, Avira is believed to be ahead of Avast for its better malware detection. If the price is a decisive aspect for you, you must take into account that Avira is cheaper than Avast.

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Last of Us Part 2: We Are Too Excited and Here’s Why

The Last of Us Part 2 is bound to be an amazing game when it gets launched on PS4.  Before the June 19 release date, Naughty Dog, the developers, has talked about the sequel. This game seems to be the biggest PS4 game out there.

According to Anthony Newman, the co-director of the game, it will be so big that players will probably miss entire story sequences: “In this game, we’ve gone so far in making the level design open that there are actually entire story moments, entire combat encounters, full scripted sequences that you may completely miss.”

The original was very linear, and Newman’s comments make us want to get our hands on the game even more.

The Last of Us 2 is only weeks away from its release. The sequel will take place five years after the first game, and the survivors are not in Wyoming.

The official description reads that after a journey across the post-pandemic USA, Joel and Ellie settle down in Wyoming. They live in a community that gives them stability, even if there’s still the threat of the Infected and desperate survivors. But there’s a violent event that leads into chaos, and Ellie will leave, looking for justice. She will hunt those responsible, but the past will also get a hold on her.

The game will offer its players dynamic stealth gameplay, tense melee combat, and a fluid movement system.

The story will make players ask themselves what’s good and what’s wrong when Ellie is forced to deal with some of the consequences.

Fans who pre-ordered the game will get a PSN avatar of Ellie’s tattoo and an upgrade for her pistol, a manual with upgrades and recipes, and various supplements which are needed to unlock recipes and upgrades.

Xbox Series X vs. PS5 – Uniqueness, Performance and Improvements Comparison

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The next generation of gaming consoles is upon us!

If we compare the PS5 and Xbox Series X, there are various aspects we can take into consideration.

Next-gen consoles are all about power!

The speed of the next-gen systems is their main selling point, alongside astonishing visuals and internal specs (which, to be fair, aren’t too different, though Microsoft appears to have the winner set up on paper).

You might be wondering which console of the two should you opt for. We are here with a few arguments to make a choice easier!

Uniqueness

Both giants tried to differentiate their systems with particular designs, and they took custom approaches to next-gen services and exclusives.

Microsoft is foregoing exclusive Series X games to focus on Xbox Game Pass and cross-gen capabilities. Simultaneously, the Japanese company will stick to its first-party lineup with exclusive PS5 games and features that will use the new DualSense controller as an extension.

For the moment, Sony announced that Spider-Man Miles Morales and Horizon Forbidden West would be exclusive to PS4 and PS5.

Xbox Series X and Series S pre-orders went live on September 22, while PS5 pre-orders went live earlier, on September 17.

Stay tuned to learn more about the pre-order status and shipping of the consoles!

The PS5 will be released on November 16 for most regions, while the new Xbox will be available on November 10, 2020.

It’s believed that most third-party games like Cyberpunk 2077 will be available on both systems right away.

Price-wise, both systems cost approximately the same. Both companies offer more affordable, digital-only versions of the consoles.

Performance

The PS5 will be powered by a custom version of AMD’s 3rd generation AMD Ryzen chipset, featuring eight cores with its Zen 2 architecture and Navi graphics.

The CPU will have a base frequency of 3.5GHz.

The GPU will feature 36 compute units clocking at 2.23 GHz and resulting in 10.28 TFLOPs.

The console is also equipped with 16GB of GDDR6 with a bandwidth of 448 GB/s.

The system will be capable of ray tracing, s lightning technique previously seen on top-tier computers, which is now “built into the GPU hardware” of the PS5.

The Xbox Series will use the same Zen 2 and RDNA 2 setup. However, it will pack 12 teraflops of computing performance with over 3300 shaders reserved to 52 compute units. It will stay at a frequency of 1,825 GHz, and its speed won’t vary.

The impressive detail about the system is that it will return the same clock speed regardless of the GPU’s temperature while you are gaming.

The Series X can run 8K content (but it’s not yet sure if that also includes games).

The Series X will return similar ray-tracing capabilities, and it will also include a super-quick internal NVMe SSD that can be expanded with a propriety NVMe card. It can work as a virtual RAM to improve load times by up to 40x.

Base RAM will be of the GDDR6 family, with the Series X packing 16GB, a significant step up from the Xbox One X’s 12GB GDDR5.

Conclusion

In the end, it depends on what you prefer – The series X is a more potent choice, with Microsoft’s fantastic offers and plans available at hand. However, it lacks a bit in terms of exclusives, as Microsoft is prioritizing its Game Pass.

On the other hand, Sony kept the tradition going with a relatively simple offer and a handful of exclusives.