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a phone displaying Wordle

Oh hey there! If you're here, it must be time for Wordle. As always, we're serving up our daily hints and tips to help you figure out today's answer.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for June 30's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Wordle.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles used to be available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it. Unfortunately, it has since been taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

Will Ferrell's character in the 2003 film Elf.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

The letter D appears twice.

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter B.

SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL.

The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to Wordle #1107 is...

BUDDY.

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Reporting by Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.



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A phone displaying the New York Times game 'Connections.'

Connections is the latest New York Times word game that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for June 30's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer. If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hit about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

  • Yellow: Truism

  • Green: Ways to heat the grill

  • Blue: Types of trees

  • Purple: Putting together a hot tub

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Connections: How to play and how to win

Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

  • Yellow: Old Saying

  • Green: Grill Fuel Sources

  • Blue: Trees

  • Purple: Hot Tub Components

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to Connections #385 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

  • Old Saying: ADAGE, CHESTNUT, MAXIM, SAW

  • Grill Fuel Sources: CHARCOAL, ELECTRIC, GAS, WOOD

  • Trees: ASH, CHERRY, EBONY, GUM

  • Hot Tub Components: FILTER, HEATER, JET, PUMP

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Is this not the Connections game you were looking for? Here are the hints and answers to yesterday's Connections.



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Twitch Streamer Achievement Awards

Twitch streamers, will you be receiving a Bleed Purple Statue?

Among YouTube creators, one surefire way to show you've made it is if you've received a YouTube Creator Award. These are physical plaques that YouTube sends to channel owners who've hit certain subscriber milestones.

At Twitchcon Europe 2024 in Rotterdam on Saturday, Twitch announced its own version of these physical awards: Twitch Streamer Achievement Awards.

SEE ALSO: YouTube demonetized Dr Disrespect over allegations from earlier Twitch ban

The awards will be given out under Twitch's Streamer Achievement Program. Unlike YouTube, which bases awards on subscriber milestones, Twitch is focusing on rewarding creators for viewership milestones. 

Twitch streamer award eligibility

Twitch streamers who hit certain viewership numbers based on hours watched will receive a Bleed Purple Statue. 

Like YouTube's version of the program, there will be three different milestone tiers that Twitch streamers can hit which will reward them with three different versions of the Bleed Purple Statue.

Let's compare the two programs:

Over on YouTube, channels that hit 100,000 subscribers receive a Silver Creator Award. Once a channel hits 1 million subscribers, they are eligible for the Gold Creator Award. The final award is the Diamond Creator Award, which YouTubers receive when their channel hits 10 million subscribers. (YouTube also did create a special edition award that they gave to MrBeast when his channel hit 200 million subscribers.)

In order to receive a Bleed Purple Statue, Twitch streamers must hit 5 million hours watched on their channel. If they hit 50 million hours watched on their channel, there is a Marble version of the award. Hitting a whopping 250 million hours watched on their channel nets them a Chrome version of the award. 

Twitch streamer LittleBigWhale was the first to receive a statue live at Twitchcon Europe, where Twitch first unveiled all three versions of the award.

According to Twitch, eligible creators will receive invitations to accept their Bleed Purple Statue later this summer.



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Dr Disrespect

Since being banned from Twitch four years ago, streamer Dr Disrespect has amassed millions of subscribers at his new home on YouTube. 

However, now that the reason behind his Twitch ban has become public, Dr Disrespect may have to find yet another new platform to stream on.

YouTube has confirmed that it has suspended Dr Disrespect, whose real name is Herschel "Guy" Beahm, from its Partner Program, effectively demonetizing his channel.

SEE ALSO: The Dr Disrespect allegations and fallout, explained

"We have suspended DrDisrespect’s channel from the YouTube Partner Program following serious allegations against the creator," reads a statement provided to news outlets by a YouTube spokesperson. "This action means the channel is no longer able to monetize on YouTube."

What did Dr Disrespect do?

Beahm aka Dr Disrespect was a popular Twitch streamer until he was banned from the platform in 2020. For years, the reason for his ban was unknown to the public.

Then on June 21, a former Twitch employee seemingly confirmed why Dr Disrespect was exiled from the platform where he had millions of followers: The streamer had allegedly been exchanging inappropriate messages via Twitch with a minor.

The potential reason behind Dr Disrespect's 2020 Twitch ban quickly became a trending story online. Forced to address the issue, Beahm first attempted to brush off the allegations before issuing a second statement confirming that he did exchange "inappropriate" messages with a minor via a since-shuttered Twitch messaging feature.

"Were there twitch whisper messages with an individual minor back in 2017?  The answer is yes," Beahm posted on his @DrDisrespect account on Elon Musk's X. "Were there real intentions behind these messages, the answer is absolutely not. These were casual, mutual conversations that sometimes leaned too much in the direction of being inappropriate."

Why was Dr Disrespect demonetized on YouTube?

Even though Beahm's inappropriate conduct with a minor occurred on Twitch, his confirmation of the allegations meant that YouTube now had a legitimate reason to suspend him from the company's own monetization program.

"Our Creator Responsibility Guidelines are clear that if a creator’s off-platform behavior harms our users, employees, or ecosystem, we may take action to protect our community, including by suspending monetization," reads YouTube's statement on the demonetization of Dr Disrespect's YouTube channel. "While these behaviors are rare, they can cause widespread harm to the YouTube community, and potentially damage the trust among creators, users, and advertisers.”

It's unclear just how much Beahm will lose due to his Dr Disrespect channel being demonetized. Estimates from YouTube analytics platform SocialBlade place the channel's revenue at as much as six figures per year. However, these estimates don't account for Beahm's losses as a result of losing exclusive partnership deals. 

While Beahm says Twitch ended up paying him out for the partnership deal that the two parties had as part of the settlement, a Rolling Stone report found that Beahm lost out on a potential similar deal with YouTube. 

Former YouTube head of gaming partnerships, Ryan Wyatt, told the news outlet that the company couldn't independently confirm the allegations years ago. But, the rumors YouTube had heard concerning Beahm's inappropriate interactions with a minor resulted in the company dropping any pursuit of a partnership deal with the streamer.

Now, we know that those rumors were true. As a result, Beahm not only lost any sort of exclusive deal with YouTube, but also basic creator monetization on the Dr Disrespect YouTube channel.



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Sam Reid as Lestat in

Ahead of Sunday's Season 2 finale, AMC renewed its TV adaptation of Interview with the Vampire for a third season. Cue cheers and fainting (not from blood loss)!

Seasons 1 and 2 of Interview, unsurprisingly, focused on the first novel in Anne Rice's The Vampire Chronicles series, Interview with the Vampire. What will Season 3 be about?

SEE ALSO: 'The Bear' falls victim to its own success: Full Season 3 review

Interview with the Vampire Season 3

The next season will adapt the second book in Rice's vampire series, The Vampire Lestat. As you would expect, this novel focuses on the character Lestat de Lioncourt (Sam Reid). We saw a hint of The Vampire Lestat in Season 2 during a flashback to Lestat's first meeting with the vampire Armand (Assad Zaman), and when Lestat mentions his former lover, Nicki. Season 3, however, will take an even bigger bite from Lestat's story. (The AMC show has also planted Easter eggs for other books in the series.)

This is a summary of what IWTV Season 3 will hold, as shared in AMC's press release:

Resentful of the perfunctory portrayal in the trashy best-seller Interview With the Vampire, the Vampire Lestat sets his story straight in a way only the Vampire Lestat can — by starting a band and going on tour. Gabrielle. Nicholas. Magnus. Marius. Those Who Must Be Kept. They join Louis, Armand, Molloy, Sam, Raglan, Fareed and others we can’t tell you about yet on a sexy pilgrimage across space, time and trauma. No Auto-Tuning. No Trigger Warnings. All Feels Amplified.

That's right: It's time for rock star Lestat. Other names in the announcement, like Lestat's mother Gabrielle, are getting fans excited.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Reid also shared his excitement over the growing cast of characters, saying, "For me, Gabrielle, Lestat's mother, is such an amazing character. I really can't wait to meet her and see what that character is like, and I also think the dynamic between Gabrielle, Louis and Lestat is really interesting, so I'm very keen to see how that unfolds."

On Lestat's music career, he told THR, "Because we have [composer] Daniel Hart helming the music of the show, I'm very excited to see whatever he creates, and to be working with him on that is astonishing." Hart is a frequent collaborator with filmmaker David Lowery, having composed music for Lowery's films since 2013's Ain't Them Bodies Saints, and he has also worked as a touring musician for bands such as St. Vincent and Broken Social Scene.

AMC hasn't released more details about the season, including when it'll air, but fans can read the 1985 novel The Vampire Lestat for a taste of what's coming. The modern-day portion of the series is set in 2020s Dubai, as journalist Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian) interviews Louis de Pointe du Lac (Jacob Anderson) and Armand for his exposé on vampires. Since The Vampire Lestat takes place post-publication of the titular interviews with vampires, fans are already speculating what a 2020s music career for Lestat will look like: Promoting music on TikTok? Brat prince summer?

Some AMC shows, including IWTV, will soon be available to stream on Netflix, though no release date has been announced. For now, Interview with the Vampire airs on AMC and AMC+.



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Yet another piece of AI news makes one wonder, "Who asked for this?" Meta is rolling out AI chatbots based on real creators.

That's right! You might soon be able to DM with an AI chatbot on Instagram that a creator made to mimic themself. Isn't that...something?

SEE ALSO: Meet the stans who DM their faves about their day

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself made the announcement.

"Rolling out an early test in the U.S. of our AI studio, so you might start seeing AIs from your favorite creators and interest-based AIs in the coming weeks on Instagram. These will primarily show up in messaging for now and will be clearly labeled as AI," he said.

Popular creators likely get more messages than they can begin to parse through, so this will be a way for them to outsource that work to AI. Though one could say — and I would say — talking with a chatbot is far from having a genuine conversation.

Instead of having a human interaction with a creator or celeb you admire, you can speak to some artificial amalgamation of their personality. A shadow of the real thing. Plato would be proud.

SEE ALSO: AI-generated 'All Eyes on Rafah' online movement provokes debate

TechCrunch reported that Meta will begin the rollout with just 50 creators and a limited number of Insta users before expanding it over the next couple of months and then doing a full launch by August.

Maybe some folks will find the experience novel, but it feels like another AI solution in need of a problem. There is something so lonely about chatting with an AI version of a real person. Anyway, you'll soon be able to do just that on Instagram.



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Adobe has rolled out a new addition to its Lightroom photo editing platform called Generative Remove. It leverages Firefly, Adobe's generative AI model, to enable novice and hobbyist photo editors alike to select and erase elements from pictures, where the replacement content seamlessly fits in with its surroundings. 

Adobe Lightroom
Credit: Adobe
Adobe Lightroom
A$14.29 at Adobe

With the recent arrival of Generative Remove, three major reasons emerge that make Lightroom a powerful photo editing suite for non-pros:

Easy clean-up

With Generative Remove, Lightroom users can simply mouse or swipe over objects, people — whatever is interfering with their otherwise well-composed photo, and the tool will automatically recognize the thing that doesn’t belong and wipe it from the image. You don’t need to define the element by outlining it. Generative Remove just knows what you’re pointing out and how to get rid of it. 

Plus, the AI engine can generate ultra-realistic backgrounds or mimic complex patterns like paisley based on a photo’s visual information. 

Studio-level lens effects

Lightroom comes with Lens Blur, a tool for adding professional-grade lens effects to your photos in post-production. With this feature, you can achieve the soft focus and macro-lens look and feel associated with studio shooting with the output of any camera or smartphone. 

There are also seven presets to choose from, giving novices an easy way to apply these dreamy effects to their photos.

Mobile-friendly workflow

Adobe Lightoom Devices
Credit: Adobe

Adobe knows that so much of today's photography is captured and viewed by smartphones. The company has built out a truly mobile-optimized UI for its Lightroom app so that creators can manage their photo production from start to finish, all in the mobile app. This includes Generative Remove. 

If you're ready to try your hand at the latest AI-enhanced Lightroom, Adobe is offering a seven-day free trial. Get started here.



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