NYT Strands hints and answers for Friday, April 17 (game #775)

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Thursday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Thursday, April 16 (game #774).

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 NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.

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 #775) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Shell company

NYT Strands today (game #775) - hint #2 - clue words

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

• TALK
• CORK
• POLL
• SLUR
• MELON
• SPOUSE

NYT Strands today (game #775) - hint #3 - spangram letters

How many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 7 letters

NYT Strands today (game #775) - hint #4 - spangram position

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

First side: left, 4th row

Last side: 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 #775) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #775, are…

• OYSTER
• CLAM
• CONCH
• ABALONE
• LIMPET
• MUSSEL
• SCALLOP
• SPANGRAM: MOLLUSK

• My rating: Easy
• My score: Perfect

Unlike previous rounds I was right to take today’s theme literally and go off in search of sea creatures that have shells, aka a MOLLUSK, which automatically led me to today’s spangram.

This was my 81st spangram first. How many do you have?

As a lover of seafood I found this search quite an easy one. ABALONE was my only moment of uncertainty and I suffered word blindness by missing my favorite food of all, SCALLOP.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Thursday, April 16, game #774)

• HOBBY
• RECREATION
• SIDELINE
• INTEREST
• PASTIME
• SPANGRAM: JUSTFORFUN

What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which 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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What goes around comes around: Jury finds Live Nation guilty of working as an illegal monopoly to dominate the live music market, and I’m thrilled for the future of ticket prices at gigs

• Live Nation has been found guilty of running an illegal monopoly
• The case ruled that Live Nation has been overcharging fans by $2 a ticket
• It could result in Live Nation splitting from Ticketmaster

The verdict is in: Live Nation and Ticketmaster have been running an illegal monopoly to assume their reign over live event ticketing competitors. And I, like many music fanatics, am simply thrilled.

Following a lengthy four-day deliberation during a seven-week trial, a Manhattan jury on Wednesday April 15 found Live Nation and its subsidiary site, Ticketmaster, guilty of violating federal and state antitrust laws, in order to suffocate rival sites. Penalties will be decided at a later date, but this could vary from staggering financial charges to the potential break-up of the two companies.

The ruling comes shortly after Live Nation reached a settlement with the US Department of Justice (DOJ), where the company would’ve been required to divest certain parts of the business and cap its venue exclusivity contracts to four years. Though some US states joined the settlement, 33 other state attorneys didn’t, believing that it failed to restore competition among live event ticketing sites.

During its deliberation, the jury found that Ticketmaster had been overcharging customers by almost $2 per ticket (approximately £1.27) over a few years. Judge Arun Subramanian will decide the total damage penalty owed by Live Nation based on these findings. On top of this, Live Nation has countless exclusivity contracts with venues across the US, another strategy the company has used to seize control over the live events market and eliminate competition.

Speaking with the BBC, Morgan Harper of the American Economic Liberties Project described the verdict as "a historic victory for fans, artists, concert promoters and venue owners who have suffered for decades under the thumb of Ticketmaster's monopoly". But Live Nation has been far from silent, also telling the BBC that "the jury's verdict is not the last word on this matter”.

In addition, Live Nation's legal representative, David R. Marriott, had quite a bit to say during the closing arguments. “We are fierce competitors,” he said, adding that Live Nation is simply “trying to win the business”.

This verdict marks what could be a victorious conclusion for the live music sector, and comes almost two years after the suit was first filed in 2024 by Biden’s DOJ. The growing frustration from music fans, artists, and venues alike served as the catalyst for bringing Live Nation to court, especially following the Taylor Swift Ticketmaster catastrophe in 2022.

A bright (and inexpensive) future on the horizon

So what does this mean for the future of live music? Well, it all depends on the penalties owed by Live Nation which are yet to be determined.

However, given the extremity of its market dominance tactics, it could be that Live Nation will have to divest an even larger portion of its business compared to what was proposed in the settlement. This could lead to the disbanding of Live Nation and Ticketmaster, which, on top of costly court charges, could significantly dampen Live Nation’s dominance in the sector and balance out the competition.

This could also signify a brighter future for ticket pricing, and live music events run by large touring artists may no longer be a ‘luxury product’ — which we saw happen with the Oasis reunion and Beyonce’s Cowboy Carter Tour, the latter of which I was forced to skip due to sky-high pricing.

Ultimately, this verdict isn’t just about holding the big names accountable, it’s about making live music a financially-accessible entity for music lovers everywhere.

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Netgear routers seemingly won’t be banned in the US after all – and this just proves the ban was never about security

• Federal Communications Commission (FCC) gives Netgear a conditional approval to avoid router ban
• It seems Netgear is still using components made outside of the US
• Other router makers are still facing a ban

Last month, the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) introduced a ban on routers made outside of the US, and while the official reasoning behind the ban was “an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States and to the safety and security of U.S. persons,” as I wrote at the time, the ban made little sense, considering how many routers are made (or use parts that have been made) outside of the US.

And my confusion over the ban has turned to anger with the news (as reported by The Verge) that Netgear will be exempt from the ban, with the FCC granting the company a “conditional approval” to import and sell its routers.

Why anger? Well, I wasn’t really sold on the security argument — not because there are no security issues with routers — but because the heavy-handed approach would mean US consumers would end up with a lot less choice when shopping around for a new router.

This looks like a case of special treatment

As I wrote last month, the initial ban meant that if Netgear (and other router makers) wanted to get around the ban, they’d need to move their manufacturing to the US — something that many companies would likely find prohibitively expensive.

With Netgear getting conditional approval to continue selling its routers (which explicitly states that companies need to “establish or expand manufacturing in the United States”), you might think that means Netgear is moving all parts of its manufacturing to the US, but there’s been no indication from the company that this is the case.

So, it feels like Netgear is getting special treatment. As this Reddit thread points out, Netgear was quick to praise the ban, stating “We commend the Administration and the FCC for their action toward a safer digital future for Americans,” while other router makers kept quiet.

Following the ban, Netgear’s stock rose by a not inconsiderable 16.7%, suggesting there was a lot confidence that Netgear would avoid the ban, whilst benefitting from the fact that future products from rivals, especially TP-Link, will be banned.

The reason I mention TP-Link is because not only does it make a lot of the routers found on our best router list; it has been steadily eating away at Netgear’s marketshare in the US, and also provides the free routers that over 300 ISP (Internet Service Providers) in the US offer. Crucially, TP-Link is a company that originally hails from China, which means it’s particularly vulnerable to the US ban.

With its biggest competitor facing a ban of future product sales (existing products will remain on sale), while somehow avoiding the ban itself, Netgear looks set to win big — and that’s where my frustration with this stems from.

Banning some companies while turning a blind eye to others is blatantly anti-consumer, as it could mean US consumers have little choice but to buy Netgear products.

It also undermines the FCC’s claim that this ban is about security. If that really was the case, Netgear wouldn’t be able to get an exemption without moving its entire hardware production line to the US.

It’ll be interesting to see if Netgear does indeed follow through and make all of its routers in the US. If not, will other US router makers who, like Netgear, still use components from outside the US, also get exemptions?

If the answer to both those questions is ‘no’, then this situation could get even messier — and I’ll likely get even angrier.

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NYT Strands hints and answers for Thursday, April 16 (game #774)

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Wednesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Wednesday, April 15 (game #773).

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 NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.

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 #774) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… This is not working

NYT Strands today (game #774) - hint #2 - clue words

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

• NEST
• BRUT
• PURE
• SLEPT
• MATE
• FIRED

NYT Strands today (game #774) - hint #3 - spangram letters

How many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 10 letters

NYT Strands today (game #774) - hint #4 - spangram position

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

First side: left, 1st row

Last side: right, 7th row

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

NYT Strands today (game #774) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #774, are…

• HOBBY
• RECREATION
• SIDELINE
• INTEREST
• PASTIME
• SPANGRAM: JUSTFORFUN

• My rating: Hard
• My score: 1 hint

I completely got the wrong end of the stick with today’s theme and took “this is not working” literally as I searched for words connected to things being broken.

Fortunately, my fruitless search also included plenty of non-game words and a hint of HOBBY set me on the path of discovering more words associated with free time pursuits, including RECREATION — which was so long I was convinced it would turn yellow and become the spangram.

Instead, today’s yellow snake was JUSTFORFUN, which is possibly where I am going wrong with my hobbies as all of them — cycling, puzzles and watching football/soccer — involve more pain than fun.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, April 15, game #773)

• TOPAZ
• TURQUOISE
• OPAL
• GARNET
• DIAMOND
• PERIDOT
• SPANGRAM: BIRTHSTONE

What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which 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.

https://ift.tt/r8mL2Kd

AI could mean the end of the Wayback Machine, as news websites are increasingly blocking it to prevent content scraping

• A growing number of major news sites are blocking the Wayback Machine
• That reportedly includes 23 organizations that are preventing their content from appearing in the archive
• This is happening due to fears that the Wayback Machine is being exploited for AI content scraping

The Wayback Machine is under serious threat (and not for the first time), as a growing number of major news websites appear to be blocking the archiving system.

If you're not familiar with the Wayback Machine, it's run by the non-profit Internet Archive, and is essentially a time machine that preserves a history of the web (and more besides). This can be vital when it comes to historical research, for example, or monitoring changes to websites.

As Wired reports (via 9 to 5 Mac), there's a growing trend of online news outlets blocking the web crawler that the Internet Archive uses to gather its snapshots. Some 23 big news sites are now doing so, according to Originality AI (which specializes in AI detection).

That includes the New York Times (based on a Nieman Lab report) and USA Today, with Wired highlighting that the latter recently published a report on how the US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement delayed the disclosure of key info about the impact of detainment policies. This was a piece which used the Wayback Machine extensively in its research.

The irony of USA Today using this data in such a way, and yet blocking the Wayback Machine from accessing its own content — which could potentially keep the news site itself honest in the future — isn't lost on Wayback Machine director Mark Graham.

Graham told Wired: "They're able to pull together their story research because the Wayback Machine exists. At the same time, they're blocking access."

Of course, if more and more organizations start to block the Wayback Machine, then its ability to keep a historical record of online content is going to be increasingly eroded.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Analysis: blame AI (again)

So why is this happening? This isn't about readers circumventing paywalled content using the Wayback Machine, in case you thought that was the issue at stake. Would it surprise you to learn that it's actually about AI, in a roundabout way? Of course it wouldn't, and in predictable fashion it seems that the Internet Archive is caught up in the broad backlash against AI here.

What these news organizations say they object to is not a historical record of their content being maintained, but the fact that this archive can be used by third-party AI firms to train their models (LLMs).

As Wired points out, New York Times spokesperson Graham James said: "The issue is that Times content on the Internet Archive is being used by AI companies in violation of copyright law to directly compete with us."

In short, the worry for these companies is that they might be able to block such AI scraping activities themselves, but this will still be happening behind their backs via the Wayback Machine. It's not just major news outlets that have these worries, either, but also social media platforms, notably Reddit, which has blocked the Wayback Machine's web crawler due to the exact same concerns.

While there are other possible sources and ways of indirectly scraping news content, the Wayback Machine is the most obvious target for rogue AI operators, as it maintains such an extensive library of web history.

So, this is a complex issue bound up in AI scraping and a whole lot of grey areas in terms of the legality therein. However, the effect on what is an important resource for keeping a check on governments or media giants — and holding them accountable for what was said in the past, or what's been entirely deleted from the web in some cases — is clearly a worrying one.

Graham asserts that: "There's no question that the general locking-down of more and more of the public web is impacting society's ability to understand what's going on in our world."

A petition entitled 'Journalists applaud the Internet Archive's role in preserving the public record' has been put together and sent off with over 100 signatures from working journalists. Meanwhile, a dialogue remains ongoing between the Internet Archive and said news publishers, so hope of finding a workable solution here isn't lost yet.

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NYT Strands hints and answers for Wednesday, April 15 (game #773)

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Tuesday, April 14 (game #772).

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 NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.

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 #773) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Gift of the month

NYT Strands today (game #773) - hint #2 - clue words

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

• DIET
• GONE
• QUEST
• POST
• SHUT
• RATE

NYT Strands today (game #773) - hint #3 - spangram letters

How many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 10 letters

NYT Strands today (game #773) - hint #4 - spangram position

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

First side: left, 4th row

Last side: right, 8th row

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

NYT Strands today (game #773) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #773, are…

• TOPAZ
• TURQUOISE
• OPAL
• GARNET
• DIAMOND
• PERIDOT
• SPANGRAM: BIRTHSTONE

• My rating: Hard
• My score: 2 hints

After spotting “birth” on the board it took me a while to connect it up to the rest of the spangram and find BIRTHSTONE; I was expecting it to become birthday.

From here it was just a case of finding gemstones that represent particular months — of which I know a sum total of zero, despite having purchased a few as gifts over the years.

It was then something of a struggle, but the letters Z and Q helped narrow things down and point towards TOPAZ and TURQUOISE, plus OPAL — as it was sandwiched between them. With my first finds out of the way I was able to navigate the rest of the game, but even so it took me a hint and proceeded at snail's pace.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Tuesday, April 14, game #772)

• HAZY
• BLURRY
• SOFT
• CLOUDY
• FADED
• MUTED
• BEDIMMED
• SPANGRAM: OUTOFFOCUS

What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which 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.

https://ift.tt/RvbLOX1

NYT Strands hints and answers for Tuesday, April 14 (game #772)

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Monday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Monday, April 13 (game #771).

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 NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.

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 #772) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… It’s a little unclear

NYT Strands today (game #772) - hint #2 - clue words

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

• BATH
• TOOL
• LADY
• FATHOM
• BLADE
• SIDE

NYT Strands today (game #772) - hint #3 - spangram letters

How many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 10 letters

NYT Strands today (game #772) - hint #4 - spangram position

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

First side: left, 1st row

Last side: left, 8th row

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

NYT Strands today (game #772) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #772, are…

• HAZY
• BLURRY
• SOFT
• CLOUDY
• FADED
• MUTED
• BEDIMMED
• SPANGRAM: OUTOFFOCUS

• My rating: Hard
• My score: Perfect

“It’s a little unclear” is a phrase I could use every day in relation to Strands and its baffling letter soup that slowly comes into focus.

My lack of mental clarity was brilliantly summed up by today's search, which put the spotlight on words that described vision that is off — often deliberately so, for artistic purposes — and thought process lacking in similar sharpness.

Despite my slow progress I managed to complete the board without a hint, although there was plenty of hesitation (not least over BEDIMMED, which still doesn’t look like an actual word  to me), and paused in the final moments to admire the ocular-shaped spangram. It’s a marvel how they achieve these low-key wonders.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Monday, April 13, game #771)

• BICYCLE
• GRILL
• MOWER
• WHEELBARROW
• TOOLS
• HOSE
• SPANGRAM: STORAGESHED

What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which 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.

https://ift.tt/W2gQp8s