Canonical: give Windows 10 the shove and embrace Ubuntu
I use two desktop operating systems regularly -- Windows 10 and Ubuntu. The former is on my main PC, while the latter came pre-installed on a laptop. I’ve always liked Ubuntu, but never enough to make it my primary OS. Because I spend my days writing about Windows it’s kind of a no brainer that I should immerse myself in Microsoft’s operating system.
However, Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu, would like people to question their choice of OS, now that Windows 10 is here.
HP announces mt42 -- an AMD-powered Windows 10 IoT Enterprise mobile thin client
Well, 2015 is yet another year where Windows dominates the workstations of most businesses. While some companies will utilize Chromebooks or iPads for light work and consumption, Microsoft's venerable operating system just keeps on keepin' on.
Windows 10 IoT Enterprise in particular, when paired with thin clients, can be a remarkable tool for many industries, such as healthcare, servicing, financial and more. Today, HP unveils the 14 inch mt42 -- an AMD-powered mobile thin client that the company claims is the "world's thinnest, lightest and most powerful quad-core", and it looks like a winner.
Windows 10 users won't see Chrome notifications in the Action Center any time soon
If you were hoping to see Chrome notifications integrated into Windows 10, prepare to be disappointed: it's not going to happen. While the Action Center might seem the natural home for Google's web browser to display messages, developers have a different opinion.
In short, Chrome's notifications are staying as they are. Despite a campaign for Action Center support, the request has been labeled Won'tFix and there's no sign that this will change for some years to come. Chrome and Windows 10 have already clashed heads once, but this time Google seems unlikely to back down.
Windows 10 vs Windows 8.1: Which is fastest?
The comparisons were inevitable right from the start. When Microsoft releases a new operating system then people are going to look at it against the previous version, especially when the old one was a bit hated and unsuccessful. It really wasn't bad, but perception is everything, and the folks who heard it was bad steered clear of it.
But how do the two platforms stack up against one another in a performance test? The researchers at security firm AVG Labs decided to take a look.
Turn your smartphone's camera into a 3D scanner with Microsoft's Mobile Fusion app
Microsoft has been really busy lately, and now it has shown one of the things it has been working on -- a 3D scanner inside a regular smartphone.
The app, called MobileFusion, turns your average smartphone camera into a high-tech 3D scanner, allowing you to scan objects and turn them into 3D models for viewing, sharing and 3D printing, right in front of your very eyes.
Windows 10 now on 75 million devices according to Microsoft
It's been a wild month for Microsoft, given the roll out of the operating system many had been waiting for. For those who were perturbed with Windows 8 and those who skipped it all together, Windows 10 is a definite step up. It's a bit of a hybrid and it came out quickly -- much faster than past versions.
Now after much rather useless speculation, we have numbers that are actually attributed to Microsoft. The information comes via Yusuf Mehdi, Corporate Vice President of Marketing for Windows and Devices, who shared the facts on his Twitter account.
Windows 10 Mobile will not support 4GB smartphones -- are you affected?
Microsoft has updated a landing page for Windows 10 Mobile to reveal that Windows Phone 8.x devices with less than 8 GB of internal storage will not be upgraded to the upcoming operating system. This will come as bad news to some folks who have invested in the platform.
Windows 10 Mobile can very well run on devices that were designed with Windows Phone 8 or Windows Phone 8.1 in mind, as long as there is enough storage space to accommodate the new OS. It, for instance, runs well on both my Nokia Lumia 920 and Lumia 520. Manufacturers which have cut corners are, obviously, to blame for this.
Microsoft will launch Office 2016 on 22 September
Just as with Windows 10, Microsoft has been running a preview program for Office 2016. After launching the Mac version of the office suite, we’ve been waiting for news about the PC edition will be released. Now, thanks to a leaked document, we now know it is due to launch on 22 September.
Internal documents obtained by WinFuture.de show that Office 2016 is set to launch in less than a month for home and professional users. Microsoft is preparing staff for the event, asking them to install the preview version for now and keep an eye on the Office 2016 Launch Hub for training documentation and other materials.
Microsoft releases Cortana to Android as public beta
Microsoft’s Cortana is now officially available on Android. The company announced earlier this year that it would release its digital voice assistant to Android and iOS later this year. Prior to the official release, a private Android beta of Cortana leaked this July. Today the company releases a public beta client of Cortana for devices powered by Google's mobile operating system.
In case you’ve used Cortana on a Windows Phone handset before, it wouldn’t take much time to get settled with it on Android. It maintains the same interface and functionalities. In case you haven't used it before, Cortana is Microsoft's answer to Google's Google Now assistant. You can use Cortana to ask for directions, and get your queries answered, among other things.
As stock markets tumble, Kim Dotcom recommends Bitcoin -- again
Kim Dotcom -- he of Megaupload/Mega infamy -- has been out of the headlines for a while, but he's creeping back into the public eye once again with the launch of a new music streaming service, Baboom.
However, Dotcom is not just interested in promoting his latest venture, he also has a lot to say about many aspects of the tech world.
Back when he launched file sharing site Mega, rebuilt from the rubble of Megaupload, Dotcom was a proponent of the cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Now he's at it again, advising people to invest in Bitcoin in the wake of the Chinese -- and then global -- stock market tumble.
Screen flicker and Explorer crashes in Windows 10? Blame Norton Antivirus, iCloud, or IDT Audio
We've looked at many of the problems that you might experience after upgrading to Windows 10 -- from issues with audio to bothersome browsers. Some users are having problems with the explorer.exe process crashing and an annoying screen flicker. Three particular applications -- Norton Antivirus, iCloud, or IDT Audio -- have been cited as culprits, and Microsoft and Symantec have solutions.
There's no need to go as far as uninstalling Windows 10, but Microsoft does suggest that you restart your computer in Safe Mode and uninstall any of the aforementioned programs. Of course, Symantec would much rather than you continued to use Norton Antivirus, so the company has its own fix for the problem.
How to completely remove OneDrive from Windows 10
OneDrive, Microsoft’s cloud storage service, is heavily integrated into Windows 10. We've already explained how you can remove the OneDrive entry from File Explorer, but what if you don’t want the service in your new OS at all?
You can disable or uninstall it completely by following these simple steps. This will remove it from File Explorer, and everywhere else.
How to view and delete your browsing history in Microsoft Edge
If you’re used to using Firefox or Chrome (or Internet Explorer for that matter), switching to Microsoft Edge in Windows 10 can be a little confusing at first, as it’s not always obvious how to do relatively straightforward tasks in the new browser.
We've already shown you how to change Microsoft Edge's default download folder, and also how to change the default search engine (one of our most frequently asked questions). But how do you access your browsing history in Edge?
LG announces G Pad II 10.1 tablet
LG is slowly refreshing its Android tablet line, announcing today the successor to last year's G Pad 10.1. The new G Pad II 10.1, as it is called, is generally better across the board, featuring a higher-quality screen, faster internals and a price tag that is just as attractive.
There are a couple of standout features on G Pad II 10.1. It comes with Android 5.1.1 Lollipop out-of-the-box, which is the latest version of the operating system available at this time. LG has teamed up with Microsoft, pre-loading the latter's Office suite on the tablet. Also part of the partnership is 100 GB of OneDrive storage offered for free to users of G Pad II 10.1 for two years. And, for those who want to use a G Pad II 10.1 hooked up to a mobile network, there is a 4G LTE model.
How to make Windows 10's UAC prompts less obtrusive
User Account Control (UAC) has been part of Windows since Vista. When it was first introduced it was incredibly annoying, but over the years Microsoft has tamed it a little to the point where it only springs into action when it has to. Most of us don’t really pay too much attention when the prompts pop up now.
However, they can still be rather obtrusive at times. Try to launch regedit in Windows 10, for example, and you’ll be presented with a full screen UAC prompt that temporarily prevents you from doing anything else until you've clicked it away. This is the most annoying aspect of UAC, but the good news is you can stop the prompts from taking over your PC in this way.
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