Technology

There is tragically no music video for Charli XCX and Lorde's remix of "Girl, so confusing." But if there were, I imagine it would look a lot like I Love LA's first episode.

SEE ALSO: 'I Love LA' review: Rachel Sennott's comedy is an influencer-focused laugh riot

Rachel Sennott's HBO comedy follows a Los Angeles-based friend group, at the center of which is junior talent manager Maia (Sennott) and her bestie and rising It Girl client Tallulah (Odessa A'zion). While the pair eventually resolve to take L.A. by storm, their relationship in the series begins in a much frostier place, one reminiscent of the unspoken resentment and insecurities in Charli XCX's original version of "Girl, so confusing" from brat.

On that track, the singer wonders whether the target of the song — first implied, then outright confirmed to be Lorde — likes her or hates her. "Can't tell if you wanna see me / Falling over and failing," she sings, a feeling that applies to both the pressures of the music industry that she and Lorde are navigating and to fraught friendships in general.

Case in point: Maia and Tallulah. The pair were originally meant to move from New York to L.A. together, before Tallulah bailed on the plan. In the years since, Maia has primarily experienced Tallulah through social media, watching Tallulah's star rise as she books high-profile projects like a Marc Jacobs Heaven campaign. In the early moments of the show, Maia obsesses over Tallulah's Instagram posts, even though she's had her muted. She's obsessed with the image of Tallulah's success, and also with what Tallulah thinks of her — or if she even does anymore.

Rachel Sennott and Odessa A'zion in "I Love LA." Credit: Kenny Laubbacher / HBO

Maia winds up blocking Tallulah as an act of 27th birthday rebelliousness. Little does she know, Tallulah is on her way to L.A. at that very moment to surprise her for her birthday. From that point on, it's hell for Maia. Tallulah hijacks her day, begging for a beach trip, inviting herself to dinner, and later getting a hotel suite for a party Maia didn't even want. (To add insult to injury, Tallulah gets the suite by saying it's her own birthday — that way she can post about it in exchange for a free party.) Throughout, she flaunts her success in New York, her rich boyfriend, and her Balenciaga bag. It's Maia's worst nightmare: Her college friend seemingly made the right call in abandoning her, while she's stuck in a stagnating career.

SEE ALSO: TikTok's 'Google Maps Girl' trend has us lost and strutting to Charli xcx

As Maia spirals, she cooks up lies to make it seem like she's doing far better than she really is. She claims she got a promotion when she didn't. She brags that she and her boss Alyssa (Leighton Meester) are thick as thieves, when Alyssa barely gives her the time of day. The lies and Tallulah's antics pile up until Maia can't take it anymore, leaving her and Tallulah to battle it out in the bathroom at her birthday party.

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Here, the truth comes out: Tallulah's been lying, too. She's broke, her boyfriend dumped her and kicked her out, and she hasn't landed anything on the level of the Heaven campaign in a year. Just like Maia thought Tallulah was killing it, Tallulah thought Maia was killing it, and she was hurt by her coldness throughout the weekend. To paraphrase Lorde, both women believed each other's projection, and now they totally get where the other is coming from.

Tallulah's revelation is a stunning reversal, one that prompts an honest reconciliation between the friends. They entered the bathroom yelling at each other in anger, but they leave squealing with excitement at what the future holds for the two of them.

Following an entire episode's worth of passive-aggressive tension, the scene provides the same catharsis as hearing Lorde jump on "Girl, so confusing" and declare she and Charli XCX should "work it out on the remix." Prior to the release of the remix, people were frothing at the mouth for drama, trying to figure out who the song was about, then wondering how Lorde would feel or respond. The remix proved a much more joyful conclusion, an honest apology of how one's own insecurities can harm relationships with others.

Similarly, before the bathroom scene, I was ready for a knock-down, drag-out fight between Maia and Tallulah. And after only seeing things from Maia's perspective for much of the episode, I was just as infuriated with Tallulah as she was. (Multiple times during my first watch, I just wrote down, "Ugh, Tallulah.") Still, seeing the two air their grievances and immediately come crashing back into their friendship ended up being far more freeing and rewarding than any catfight. And while "Girl, so confusing feat. Lorde" doesn't actually feature in I Love LA, its spirit shines through in Maia and Tallulah's makeup.

That might not be all for Charli XCX in the series, though. Sennott has spoken about wanting to cast her in future seasons of I Love LA, telling co-star Jordan Firstman in an Elle interview that "it would be fun to have Charli [XCX] on as something so different from herself." The pop star has already played herself on Overcompensating, with hilarious results. Could she complete the 2025 zillenial sitcom trifecta with future roles in I Love LA and Adults?

New episodes of I Love LA premiere Sundays at 10:30 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max.

TL;DR: Give your PC a big upgrade for just $9.97 (reg. $199) with this Microsoft Windows 11 Pro license.

Opens in a new window Credit: Microsoft Microsoft Windows 11 Pro $9.97
$199 Save $189.03   Get Deal

Don’t underestimate how much a new operating system can do for an old computer. If you have a PC, upgrading to Microsoft Windows 11 Pro can make it feel like a brand-new machine. And right now, you can make the switch for just $9.97 (reg. $199).

Give your dusty old PC a serious makeover with a Microsoft Windows 11 Pro license. It ushers in a whole new way to use your computer. Enjoy a seamless interface and brand-new features to streamline your workflow, including a more powerful search experience, improved voice typing, snap layouts, and seamless redocking.

SEE ALSO: Make your year-end workload easier with this $20 Microsoft Office license

If you’re paying a subscription for an AI model, you can cancel it with this upgrade. Windows 11 Pro puts Copilot right on your desktop, making it your personal AI-powered assistant.

Using your PC as your primary work computer? You’ll appreciate access to tools like Microsoft Teams, Azure HD, Windows Sandbox, and BitLocker device encryption. If you prefer to use your computer for gaming, you’ll love DirectX 12 Ultimate, which delivers incredible graphics that take your games to the next level.

No matter what you do on your computer, you can rest easy knowing Windows 11 Pro offers serious cybersecurity upgrades. You can secure your device with biometric logins, encrypted authentication, and enhanced antivirus protection.

Grab a Microsoft Windows 11 Pro license for just $9.97  (reg. $199) for a limited time.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

For most people, software means installation, which buries programs deep inside an operating system. While this old-school model works, you constantly need admin rights, you gather a ton of digital junk, and you have to redo all your settings every time you switch devices. However, there is a better way to use software.

TL;DR: Get everything you need from AI with a lifetime subscription to this handy platform, 1min.AI Advanced Business Plan, $79.99 with code SAVE20 until tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT.

Opens in a new window Credit: 1minAI 1min.AI Advanced Business Plan Lifetime Subscription $79.99
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If the concept of AI doesn’t confuse you, the dozens of different models and their unique strengths probably do. Let 1min.AI simplify it all for you, placing multiple models in one convenient spot. And right now, you can get a lifetime subscription to the 1min.AI Advanced Business Plan for just $79.99 with code SAVE20 until tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT.

Tired of tab-hopping from ChatGPT to Gemini to Mistral? What if you could access multiple AI models in a central hub? 1min.AI allows you to put in your request and get results from multiple popular AI models on one convenient platform — from generating images to crafting social media posts to writing code.

SEE ALSO: Meta leans into AI in your feeds

1min.AI takes the guesswork out of choosing the right AI model by delivering responses from several, so you can decide which fits best. And it does so without you having to pay the subscription costs for dozens of models. Just be sure to review the final output and make any light edits if needed.

This lifetime subscription to 1min.AI’s Advanced Business Plan gives you access to an unlimited prompt library, unlimited storage, and unlimited brand voice options forever. You’ll also get 4,000,000 credits monthly — enough to write 1,112,500 words per month, research up to 5,933 SEO keywords per month, generate up to 1,186 images per month, and create up to 37 videos per month.

If you ever need more credits, it’s easy to earn free ones by just using the web app, referring a friend, or leaving a review.

Act fast to score a lifetime subscription to 1min.AI Advanced Business Plan for just $79.99 with code SAVE20 through tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Are you curious about Arch Linux but scared off by the horror stories of constant breakage or the need for terminal wizardry? Wondering what’s actually true, and what’s internet folklore? Well, here are four myths about Arch Linux that you should stop believing—because they won’t stop spreading!

The latest Android flagship killers have just launched—but the U.S. is being left out of the party. These new phones are powered by the new Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip, along with other top-tier specs, and they're coming in at surprisingly low prices.

One of the best things about Samsung phones rarely comes up in reviews. That's Good Lock, an official customization suite that makes Galaxy phones the most customizable on the market—a tool that has supplanted the need I once had to install a custom launcher.

You may soon be able to give posts the thumbs-down on Bluesky. The Twitter dupe recently announced it would be testing a "dislike" button, aimed at improving the personalization of users' feeds.

The idea is that thumbs-downing posts you don't like will directly affect the posts you see in your feed.

Wrote Bluesky about the test feature in a blog post:

"Soon, we’ll start testing a 'dislike' option as a new feedback signal to improve personalization in Discover and other feeds. Dislikes help the system understand what kinds of posts you’d prefer to see less of. They may also lightly inform reply ranking, reducing the visibility of low-quality replies. Dislikes are private and the signal isn’t global — it mainly affects your own experience and, to an extent, others in your social neighborhood."

So, to be clear, dislikes won't be visible to the public — meaning people won't see what you dislike or how many dislikes any given post might have.

SEE ALSO: NFL Bluesky is fantastic. Here's why and how to join in.

While that's not a drastic change to how Bluesky works, it could lead to an improvement for daily scrolling. Bluesky's "Discover" tab is widely ignored — or worse, hated — by its power users because it's largely filled with corny posts that racked up likes. As writer Mike Pearl noted at Gizmodo, if the dislike button were to actually filter out posts and subjects you dislike, it could prove to transform the Discover tab into something "useful and maybe even dangerously addictive."

The internet is full of bad posts, but it seems like soon you might be able to do something about it on Bluesky.

If you’re like me, you probably have a bunch of USB cables scattered around your home for different purposes, whether charging a device or transferring data. But once you have too many, they mount into a pile and become difficult to tell apart.

You can fill your home with sensors that measure things like temperature, humidity, whether you left the garage door open, and who’s at home. Valuable as these are, there’s one sensor that stands head and shoulders above the rest in terms of the amount of money and hassle it can save you.

Looking for Flatpak recommendations that go beyond the usual LibreOffice and GIMP suggestions? Want to know which apps a Linux enthusiast actually uses every single day? Here are my seven must-have Flatpaks that I install on all my Linux systems!

Google Photos feels like the digital safe for tons of our most precious memories, offering what seems like endless space for our pictures and videos. It's a tool many have grown very used to, but a default setting that quietly but seriously changes the very quality of the photos and videos we trust it with.

In case you missed it, the president demolished the East Wing of the White House to make room for his ballroom. Saturday Night Live mocked President Donald Trump's "renovation" with a funny, fitting sketch featuring host Miles Teller playing both of HGTV's Property Brothers.

SEE ALSO: SNL's 'Weekend Update' mocks Donald Trump's 'tone deaf' White House bathroom renovation

The show mocked Trump's penchant for gaudy decor — gold leaf is everywhere — as well as the president's decision to drastically reshape the White House during a government shutdown. It's a good bit and a subject matter the show visited often over the weekend.

Google Keep is an essential tool in my phone's arsenal. I use the app to jot down everything. From random thoughts I later turn into articles like this one, to elaborate grocery lists. Over the years, my grocery list-building skills have grown considerably; let me share them with you.

For a year or two, I treated my phone as my primary gaming console. It was all fun and games until I picked up on a few gamer-hostile trends that have gradually soiled the experience.

Saturday Night Live's "Weekend Update" mocked President Donald Trump's gaudy White House bathroom renovation amid the government shutdown.

SEE ALSO: Watch Donald Trump crash the NYC mayor debate in SNL's cold open

"Critics of President Trump are calling him tone deaf for posting pictures of his newly renovated White House bathroom during the government shutdown," said host Michael Che. "But I'm happy the floor looks slippery."

Trump this week posted a series of pictures of the renovated Lincoln bathroom.

"I renovated the Lincoln Bathroom in the White House," Trump wrote on his rightwing site Truth Social. "It was renovated in the 1940s in an Art Deco green tile style, which was totally inappropriate for the Lincoln Era."

SNL's Update further mocked Trump this weekend, poking fun at his Halloween event at the White House and the fallout from the shutdown.

Most people use their 3D printers to produce small items that are handy around the house, but what if you could print furniture or huge models in one go? That’s exactly what Elegoo promises with its aptly-named OrangeStorm Giga.

The terminal is clunky and inefficient without additional customizations. If you're a beginner, you may feel that this is as good as it gets, but it's not. One tool in particular stands out and can improve your experience drastically. I outline several reasons why fzf is my favorite terminal tool.

What's better for a chilly weekend in November than a show that you can binge-watch from the comfort of your home? Netflix has a string of eagerly awaited shows slated to release this month, including the return of some of its most popular titles.

Saturday Night Live, a New York City institution, parodied the city's contentious mayoral race this weekend, which has garnered an uncharacteristic amount of national attention. The show's star-studded cold open centered on a debate between Zohran Mamdani (Ramy Youssef), Andrew Cuomo (Miles Teller), and Curtis Sliwa (Shane Gillis).

The sketch played into the public perceptions of the candidates — Mamdani as charismatic and hopeful, Cuomo as desperate and creepy, and Sliwa as a truly strange NYC creature.

SEE ALSO: Jon Stewart interviews Zohran Mamdani on 'The Daily Show'

Gillis stole the show, impersonating Sliwa's wild asides about his violent run-ins with shady characters in the city's past. That is, until Donald Trump (James Austin Johnson) showed up to crash the debate. And wherever you think Trump's bizarro soliloquy is going, trust me — you don't.