As spotted by Windows Central, Microsoft's Manager of the Linux on Windows team Ben Hillis has confirmed that WSL 0.65.1 is available for all Windows Insiders, regardless of the release channel they are currently on. The idea is to cast a wide net for feedback by making it available for all Insiders and then use that feedback to determine whether the release is fit for general availability:

For WSL 0.65.1 we are trying something new! The build will be first available to Windows Insiders (all rings) first, then rolled out to everybody once we get positive signals on release quality. https://t.co/Sr087lHOq8

 — 𝕓𝕖𝕟 𝕙𝕚𝕝𝕝𝕚𝕤 (@benhillis) August 3, 2022

If you're wondering what new features are in tow, here is the lengthy changelog:

• Improvements to localhost relay to have better performance and accurately report bind failures.
•  Use /dev/ptp0 to keep guest clock (sic) in sync with the host
•  Improve the error message if the distro list can't be fetched and wire it to wsl.exe --list --online

•  Update Linux kernel to 5.15.57.1

•  Fix 9p filesystem regressions since the last v5.10 WSL2 kernel
•  Enable support for the Precision Time Protocol (PTP) clock device
•  Enable Retbleed mitigations in x86_64 builds
•  Enable nftables and traffic control
•  Enable VGEM driver

•  Update Microsoft.WSLg to version 1.0.41

•  WSLg: add default x11 bell sound
•  WSLg: Update /etc/wsl.conf to set the default user to wslg
•  WSLGd: add option to start weston under gdbserver
•  WSLGd: simplify weston command line construction
•  compositor: add wslgd-notify
•  compositor: Stop trapping SIGINT
•  compositor: load xwayland module last
•  rdp: resize margin adjustment for MoveWindow/SnapArrange PDU
•  rdpaudio: use pthread_cancel instead of pthread_kill
•  xwayland: give Xwayland its own session
•  xwayland: Don't track focus for override redirect windows

The MSIX bundle for WSL v0.65.1 can be grabbed from the same GitHub page.

Source: Microsoft via Windows Central

Source

The release notes for this update are as follows:

• HDR and 10-bit color support (Windows, macOS/Linux support limited)
• Native Apple Silicon Support (macOS)
  • Note that many third-party plugins will need to release Apple Silicon versions of their plugins in order for them to work on Apple Silicon builds of OBS
• Upgrade UI framework to Qt6 (All platforms)
  • NOTE: Unfortunately, this means OBS Studio can no longer support the following operating systems:
    • Windows 7 & 8
    • macOS 10.13 & 10.14
    • Ubuntu 18.04
    • All 32-bit operating systems
  • Additionally, many third-party plugins that depend on legacy Qt5 components may not work until they are updated.
• obs-websocket 5.0 plugin native integration. Read more here! (All platforms)
• Updated AMD Encoder implementation (Windows)
• Support for ScreenCaptureKit on macOS 12.5+ for significantly improved capture performance (macOS)
• Significant improvements to Apple VT encoder (macOS)
• Application-specific audio capture (Windows)
• Integrated NVIDIA Background Removal (Windows)
• Automatically split recordings by time or filesize (All platforms)
• New default theme, Yami (All platforms)
• And much, much more!

To download the beta or read the full release notes, head over to the OBS Studio GitHub page. Right now, you can download the beta as an .exe, .dmg, or grab the source code. A Flatpak and Ubuntu PPA will be coming soon, but are not ready yet. If you’re using OBS Studio through Steam, you can access the beta by right-clicking OBS Studio in Steam, selecting Properties…, then going to Beta and selecting “beta” from the drop-down.

The Flatpak installation instructions will be as follows (don’t type the dollar sign):

$ flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub-beta https://flathub.org/beta-repo/flathub-beta.flatpakrepo

$ flatpak install flathub-beta com.obsproject.Studio

To use the Ubuntu PPA, you’ll need the following commands:

• Install

$ sudo add-apt-repository ppa:obsproject/obs-studio-unstable

$ sudo apt install obs-studio

• Uninstall

$ sudo add-apt-repository --remove ppa:obsproject/obs-studio-unstable

$ sudo apt remove obs-studio

If you plan on beta testing, be sure to look out for subsequent betas and release candidates, as these will fix any issues that are discovered.

OBS Studio 28.0 beta released, set to be an “enormous release”

This is a patch release to fix issues in v0.61.0 to fix a few bugs we deemed important for stability based on incoming rates. See v0.61.0 for full release notes.

Changelog:

#19708 - Fixed an issue causing the PowerToys start menu shortcut to not be installed when updating PowerToys. This only happens on upgrade path.
#19722 - Fixed an issue which created a crash report in the Event Viewer when trying to show PowerRename's Windows 11 context menu entry.

You can download PowerToys 0.61.1 from the Microsoft Store using this link or the official repository on GitHub. If you already have PowerToys installed on your computer, the app will notify you about available updates, or you can manually update from settings. As noted above, you can also learn about changes in the previous 0.61 release.

If you are unfamiliar with PowerToys, it is a set of advanced utilities provided by Microsoft and the open-source developer community. It contains various tools, such as an app launcher, bulk file renamer, color picker, a utility to customize shortcuts, etc. Microsoft frequently updates PowerToys with new features and fixes.

Microsoft PowerToys 0.61.1 includes fix for missing Start menu entry and more

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22621.450 and Build 22622.450 (KB5015890) to the Beta Channel. In addition to the handful of fixes and improvements noted below, this update includes improvements to how we apply updates on top of each other as well.

• Build 22622.450 = New features rolling out.
• Build 22621.450 = New features off by default.

Here are all the improvements in the Beta builds 22621.450 and 22622.450:

• New! We enhanced Microsoft Defender for Endpoint’s ability to identify and intercept ransomware and advanced attacks.
• New! We compressed a file regardless of its size if you have configured Server Message Block (SMB) Compression.
• New! We improved storage replication that occurs over low bandwidth or congested wide area networks (WAN).
• We fixed an issue that causes Windows to display tablet mode features for some devices that do not have touchscreens.
• We fixed an issue that causes some application windows to have blank sections in the Task View preview.
• We fixed an issue that occurs for some of you when you copy files from network drives. The error code is 0x80070026.
• We fixed a token leak issue in the LsapGetClientInfoEx
• We fixed an issue that, in certain cases, causes sihost.exe to use a high amount of the CPU.
• We fixed an issue that causes Microsoft Edge to stop responding when you use IE mode. This issue also prevents you from interacting with a dialog.

Here are the known issues in today's builds:

[General]

• There is an issue in the recent Beta Channel updates that is causing the Photos app to crash, and a fix will be rolling out soon via a Photos app update via the Store.
• We’re investigating reports that SQL Server Management Studio is failing to launch for some Insiders.
• [NEW] We’re looking into reports that audio stopped working for some Insiders after upgrading to Build 22622.440.

[File Explorer]

• The left-half of the File Explorer title bar may not be draggable via mouse or touch.
• The up arrow is misaligned in File Explorer tabs. This will be fixed in a future update.

You can find the official blog post here.

Windows 11 Build 22622.450 (KB5015890) brings improved Defender, fixes high CPU usage

The headlining feature this time around is an updated region capture API which not only allows applications to video-capture your tab but also crop it. Developers have been strongly in support of this API, according to Google.

Another feature that has caused some stir in the browser community is an enhanced Web Bluetooth API in Chrome 104. This API now integrates with the Permissions Policy empowers websites to communicate with other devices over Bluetooth, but not cross-origin iframes. Google believes that this opens multiple productivity and communication avenues without compromising on security.

However, it has faced stiff resistance from Mozilla and Apple, both of whom have “negative” feedback about the API. Apple believes that the API lowers security and enables fingerprinting behaviors. The company says that it “do[es] not yet see a path to resolving those concerns”. Mozilla has voiced similar concerns by calling the API “harmful” and noting that:

This API provides access to the Generic Attribute Profile (GATT) of Bluetooth, which is not the lowest level of access that the specifications allow, but its generic nature makes it impossible to clearly evaluate. Like WebUSB there is significant uncertainty regarding how well prepared devices are to receive requests from arbitrary sites. The generic nature of the API means that this risk is difficult to manage. The Web Bluetooth CG has opted to only rely on user consent, which we believe is not sufficient protection. This proposal also uses a blocklist, which will require constant and active maintenance so that vulnerable devices aren't exploited. This model is unsustainable and presents a significant risk to users and their devices.

In terms of other changes in Chrome 104, four legacy client hints, namely “dpr”, “width”, “viewport-width”, and “device-memory”, are being removed because they go against the standards set by the Client Hint Infrastructure. Similarly, the U2F security key API and component extension Cryptotoken are being placed in maintenance mode too, because they have already been incorporated in more modern implementations like WebAuthn. As such, site owners have been encouraged to migrate to modern standards too.

The Multi-Screen Window Placement API is being enhanced to allow sites to open a full-screen window and a smaller pop-up companion window on multi-display configurations. Prior to this, users were required to take extra steps to accomplish the same. Another improvement in the same space is that permissions to request full-screen content can now be transferred across multiple trusted windows.

Other smaller changes present in Chrome 104 are as follows:

• Block iframe contexts navigating to filesystem: URLs
• Cookie Expires/Max-Age attribute upper limit are now capped at 400 days, there was no cap on expiry previously
• CSS object-view-box
• Subresource loading with Web Bundles
• Support visual-box on overflow-clip-margin
• Web Custom formats for Async Clipboard API
• WebGL canvas color management

That's still not all, though, as we have to unpack capabilities in developer and origin trials. Starting off with the former, there are better and more accurate screen labels for user interactions on the Multi-Screen Window Placement API. There is also a configuration which websites can use to allow customers to opt out of credit card information storage on developer servers, this UX implementation is legally required in some regions. The timer on the throttling of loaded background pages can be reduced with a flag too, this should allow better battery and CPU utilization, without reducing performance.

In terms of origin trials, we have the focusgroup CSS property that enables you to utilize keyboard arrows keys to shift focus across certain UI elements. Other capabilities in origin trials include shared element transitions for improved transition animations for single-page applications (SPAs) as well as increased max nesting level for the setTimeout(0) method.

As can be seen, Chrome 104 is a significant update. It will start rolling out in the later hours of today. If Chrome does not automatically update to version 104 for you throughout the course of the day, head over to Help > About Google Chrome to trigger the update once it becomes available. Next up is Chrome 105 which will hit the Beta channel on August 5, and will land on Stable on August 30.

Chrome 104 is coming today with a controversial Web Bluetooth API hated by Apple and Mozilla

Frontpaged:   Google Chrome 104.0.5112.81

Before music streaming platforms rose to prominence, we needed to rip our music from CDs and play the resulting MP3 files on a media player.

One of the most beloved media players to play MP3s was Winamp, which included retro skins and animated visualizations that synced with your music.

Winamp ceased development after version 5.666 was released in 2013. That was until October 2018, when Winamp 5.8 was leaked online, and the developers decided to publish it themselves on the Winamp.com website.

Since then, the developers have promised an updated version with cloud streaming support and more modern features. Finally, in November 2021, the Winamp.com website received a facelift with a new logo and a beta signup form to be notified when new versions were released.

4 years in the making

Last week, Winamp 5.9 RC1 Build 9999 was released, marking it as the first version released in 4 years and as the first release candidate of the revitalized media player.

While the Winamp release candidate does not contain too many changes, the main goal of this release was to upgrade the code base from Visual Studio 2008 to Visual Studio 2019. Now that this has been completed, the team can add new features and capabilities to the media player.

A byproduct of these changes is that Winamp requires Windows 7 SP1 or later, dropping support for Windows XP and Vista, which have long been out of support.

"This is the culmination of 4 years' work since the 5.8 release.  Two dev teams, and a pandemic-induced hiatus period inbetween," reads the changelog for Winamp 5.9 RC1 Build 9999.

"To the end-user, it might not seem like there's a whole heap of changes, but the largest and hardest part was actually migrating the entire project from VS2008 to VS2019 and getting it all to build successfully.

"The groundwork has now been laid, and now we can concentrate more on features. Whether fixing/replacing old ones or adding new."

Known issues in new version

The release candidate was first spotted by Ghacks, who said that some VirusTotal antivirus engines detect the new version as malicious. However, the Winamp team has stated that they are false positives and reported them to the antivirus vendors.

Users have already started reporting bugs to the Winamp forums, including older plugins no longer working due to an msvcr90.dll dependency.

However, a user shared a fix that could be added to the program's manifest file, which fixes the problem and will be included in the next version of Winamp.

Other problems with this release include the Milkdrop visualization plugin presets not working correctly, various UI issues, random crashes, and other features broken or missing. A complete list of changes and known issues can be found in the Winamp 5.9 RC1 Build 9999 changelog.

Features earmarked for future versions include native support for opus, ogv/ogm, TS, H.265, HLS, and VP9 formats and support for new online services.

While there are some bugs to be worked out in this release candidate, it works well enough to give it a try. However, if you are looking for something a bit more stable, you can give the Winamp Community Update Project (WACUP ) a try for now.

Winamp releases new version after four years in development

Firefox 103.0.1 is already available. The new version of the browser can be downloaded from Mozilla's official download repository or by using the built-in updating functionality.

To use it, select Menu > Help > About Firefox; this opens a small window that displays the version of Firefox.  Firefox runs a check for updates whenever the window is opened to download and install new versions.

Firefox 103.0.1 is the first point release of Firefox 103. Mozilla released Firefox 103 on July 26 to the public. The new release introduced a new option to access toolbar items with the keyboard and enabled Total Cookie Protection as well.

The official release notes for Firefox 103.0.1 lists just two items:

• Enabled hardware acceleration on newer AMD cards.
• Fixed a crash on Firefox shutdown caused by a bug in the audio manager.

Mozilla does not list the newer AMD cards that have hardware acceleration enabled in the release notes. A quick check on Mozilla's bug tracking website Bugzilla reveals that it has been enabled for AMD Yellow Card cards. First devices with AMD's new card, designed specifically for laptops and other mobile devices, started to become available earlier this year.

Firefox users who bought such a device may notice improvements when accessing graphics-heavy content such as games or videos.

Here is how to check if hardware acceleration is enabled in Firefox:

1. Load about:preferences in the browser's address bar.
2. Scroll down until you come to the Performance group.
3. Uncheck "Use recommended performance setting".
4. Firefox expands the preference and reveals if hardware acceleration is enabled.
5. Check the "Use recommended performance settings" box again.

The second issue that is fixed in the new Firefox release addresses a crash during shutdown that was caused by an audio manager bug.

Now You: do you use hardware acceleration?

Mozilla Firefox 103.0.1 fixes a crash

Frontpaged:   Mozilla Firefox Browser 103.0,1

Here are the release highlights in PowerToys 0.61.0:

• Quality of life improvements for Always on Top, FancyZones and PowerToys Run.

And here is the full changelog for version 0.61.0:

General

• Upgraded the Windows App SDK runtimes to 1.1.2.
• The new Windows 11 context menu entries are now correctly added to Windows 11 dev channel insider builds. (This was a hotfix for 0.60)
• The old context menu entries are shown alongside the new Windows 11 context menu entries to be compatible with software that overrides the Windows 11 context menu behavior. (This was a hotfix for 0.60)
• Consolidated C# language version across the solution. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Removed deprecated Segoe icon glyph codes and replaced them with the correct ones. Thanks @niels9001 and @Jay-o-Way!
• Fixed an issue that caused a random accent key to be pressed on certain keyboard layouts when enabling some modules.

Always on Top

• Fixed border flickering when activating. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Fixed a bug causing Always on Top to activate and hang when exiting PowerToys. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Fixed black edges appearing on rounded corners.
• Fixed a bug that was causing 100% CPU consumption.

FancyZones

• Fixed a bug that caused layouts to not be applied correctly when many monitors reported having the same serial number. (This was a hotfix for 0.60)
• Fixed a bug that caused layouts to not be applied correctly on some virtual monitor setups (This was a hotfix for 0.60)
• A "Rows" default layout is now applied to vertical monitors, instead of a "Columns" layout. Thanks @augustkarlstedt!

Image Resizer

• Screen reader now announces the size name instead of the class name.

File explorer add-ons

• Fixed an issue when creating thumbnails for SVG files created using Inkscape.

Keyboard Manager

• Adjusted wording on the editor when keys are orphaned.

Mouse utility

• Fixed a bug that caused the current Find My Mouse spotlight to hang when activated in the top left corner of the screen. (This was a hotfix for 0.60)

PowerRename

• The PowerRename window reacts to current dpi when created.

PowerToys Run

• Fixed a typo in the WindowWalker plugin UI. Thanks @rohanrdy!
• Improved performance by saving the search history files only on exit. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• PowerToys Run no longer shows results for some plugins when querying for empty spaces in a global query. Thanks @davidegiacometti!
• Added support for showing localized names for some win32 programs in the programs plugin. Thanks @htcfreek!
• The program plugin will now consider settings changed directly in ProgramPluginSettings.json. Thanks @bezgumption!

Settings

• PowerToys Run settings page properly greys out the score adjustment setting when a plugin is not global. Thanks @jefflord!
• PowerToys Run plugins score adjustment field accepts only numeric characters. Thanks @jefflord!
• Will not run if started directly from its executable, as it was before the WinUI 3 upgrade.
• Fixed a typo in a PowerToys Run settings page description. Thanks @eltociear!

Installer

• Removed the dead code to make a msix installer.
• Updated the .NET dependency to 6.0.7.
• Won't create a new PowerToys shortcut on update if it's been removed manually by the user.

PowerToys 0.61 comes with a couple of known issues:

• After installing PowerToys, the new Windows 11 context menu entries for PowerRename and Image Resizer might not appear before a system restart.
• There are reports of users who are unable to open the Settings window. This is being caused by incompatibilities with some applications (RTSS RivaTuner Statistics Server and MSI AfterBurner are known examples of this). If you're affected by this, please check the linked issue to verify if any of the presented solutions works for you.

You can download PowerToys 0.61.0 from the Microsoft Store using this link or the official repository on GitHub. If you already have PowerToys installed on your computer, the app will notify you about available updates, or you can manually update from settings.

If you are unfamiliar with PowerToys, it is a set of advanced utilities provided by Microsoft and the open-source developer community. It contains various tools, such as an app launcher, bulk file renamer, color picker, a utility to customize shortcuts, etc. Microsoft frequently updates PowerToys with new features and fixes.

Microsoft PowerToys 0.61.0 brings improvements to Always on Top, FancyZones and more

Linus Torvalds uses an Arm-powered M2 MacBook Air to release latest Linux kernel

Google Chrome retains its dominant position with a massive 66.19% market share that went down 0.74 points in July 2022. Safari is the third most popular desktop browser with an unchanged 8.94% share, and Firefox is keeping up with 8.08% (+0.28 points).

Although Microsoft recently killed Internet Explorer 11, some users cannot move away from the former king of the desktop browser market. Statcounter reports that about 0.75% still use the good-old Internet Explorer.

1.  Google Chrome - 66.19% (-0.74)
2.  Microsoft Edge - 10.84% (+0.2)
3.  Apple Safari - 8.94% (+0.01)
4.  Mozilla Firefox - 8.08% (+0.28)
5.  Opera - 3.06% (+0.08)

On the mobile side of the market, Google Chrome has 65.16%, 0.72 points down compared to June 2022. Safari is second with 24.22% (+0.13), and Samsung Internet is third with 4.86% (+0.05 points). Microsoft Edge for Android and iOS remains nowhere to be seen, with its market share being too small to register in the latest report from Statcounter.

1.  Google Chrome - 65.16% (-0.72)
2.  Apple Safari - 24.22% (+0.13)
3.  Samsung Internet - 4.86% (+0.05)
4.  UC Browser - 1.63% (+0.48)
5.  Opera - 1.59% (-0.03)

You can check out Statcounter's latest report on the official website.

Source

With Linus Torvalds' modern versioning after 19~20 point releases has been when he bumps to the next major version number... Linux 4.0 succeeded Linux 3.19 while Linux 5.0 came after Linux 4.20. He hasn't been consistent whether the major version bump comes after 19 or 20, but usually makes a joke about when he runs out of fingers and toes for counting. In Sunday's Linux 5.19 announcement, he indicated that the next kernel version will likely be 6.0.

Torvalds remarked, "I'll likely call it 6.0 since I'm starting to worry about getting confused by big numbers again."

So all the excitement around the big features coming for Linux 5.20 will likely be christened as Linux 6.0. It will be quite a great match for Linux 6.0 if the initial Rust code manages to land, the possibility of MGLRU, PREEMPT_RT patches getting very close to the finish line and potentially submitted this merge window, the Intel DG2/Alchemist graphics being refined, AMD RDNA3 potentially being in good shape, and a heck of a lot more coming for this next cycle. See the Linux 5.20 feature preview to learn more about what's on deck for Linux 5.20~6.0.

Source

Cinnamon edition

According to the team’s leader, Clem Lefebvre, 152 issues were reported during the beta period and many were fixed ready for the launch. He confirmed that there are still a number of issues that need sorting, but these are of a lower severity and will be addressed in a post-release update through the update manager. He also confirmed that the team is now working on enabling upgrades from Linux Mint 20.3 to Linux Mint 21. An announcement will be made when this is opened up.

MATE edition

There are lots of changes in Linux Mint 21 that should improve the overall experience. For those who prefer more conservative changes, you’ll be glad to hear the desktop layout is pretty much identical to prior releases. The main changes are as follows:

• Blueman replaces Blueberry for Bluetooth support. Blueman is desktop agnostic, so works better across the different Linux Mint editions.
• Thumbnails have been improved with support for more file types including AppImage, ePub, MP3, RAW pictures, Webp.
• Sticky notes can be duplicated. If you choose random colour notes, they cycle a selection of colours instead of random selection to ensure different coloured notes.
• A new process monitor in the system tray lets you know if automatic updates or system snapshots are running in the background. These activities can impact system performance temporarily, so the indicator is just there to let you know what’s causing any slowdown.
• XApps have been improved: Timeshift is now an XApp, Webp support has been added to xviewer and thumnails, Thingy received UI improvements, and the WebApp manager supports more browsers.

Xfce edition

If you are ready and raring to get Linux Mint 21, just hold your horses and assess your position. If you are running Linux Mint 20.3 and have lots of data on your system, it might be better to wait for the upgrade path to open, which now uses a graphical upgrade tool. As long as you’re not concerned with data preservation, head over to the Linux Mint site now and grab the Linux Mint edition you want.

Linux Mint 21 ‘Vanessa' released, available in Cinnamon, MATE, and Xfce flavours

Frontpaged:   Linux Mint 21

As usual, we will only be listing issues that are "open", sorted by upvote count on the Feedback portal. Also note that this list may cover multiple platforms and does not only include Windows. Although we typically add Microsoft's response next to each line item, we won't do it this time because the fact of the matter is that the company has not bothered responding to any feedback item.

With that out of the way, let's begin!

1. Ability to share individual sections or pages (instead of entire notebooks) - 7,420 upvotes
2. Ink to text conversion on iPad - 5,014 upvotes
3. Local storage of notebooks on Mac - 4,130 upvotes
4. Mac and Outlook integration - tasks, meeting minutes, export to OneNote - 3,513 upvotes
5. Include OneNote for Desktop in Office 2019 - 3,186 upvotes
6. Add Find Tags and Summarize Tags on Mac - 3,184 upvotes
7. Page Templates for OneNote on Mac, just like Windows - 2,740 upvotes
8. Custom tags on Mac - 2,595 upvotes
9. Group objects and anchor ink to text and images - 2,505 upvotes
10. Drawing (Annotating, Highlighting and Handwriting) on Mac - 2,457 upvotes

Overall, it's interesting to see that many of the feedback items are Mac-specific, with users of those devices complaining about being treated like second-class citizens when it comes to OneNote functionalities. Although there are recent comments on almost all of these items indicating that they have still not been catered to by Microsoft, it's a bit difficult to say for sure since the company hasn't officially responded to anything.

It's a bit disappointing to see the OneNote team being unresponsive to user feedback, even though this is a dedicated portal where users of the app can voice their complaints directly to Microsoft. While the Redmond tech giant may be listening to its users, the deafening silence is clearly annoying some people because some of the items mentioned in the list have been open for over 10 months. It remains to be seen how quickly the OneNote team can introduce new capabilities while also aiming for feature parity between Windows and Mac.

Are you an active OneNote user? What more functionalities would you like to be added to the app?

Here are the top 10 features people want in OneNote

That said, Microsoft has confirmed two things recently. In a recently updated blog post (spotted by Thurrott.com), the company has noted that the upcoming version of Windows 10 has a "scoped" set of features and Microsoft will share more details about it later this year. So while we do know that new features will eventually arrive, we don't know exactly what they will be.

Meanwhile, another blog post intended to help commercial customers and companies in Windows 10 deployments has explicitly noted that there are no changes in the Windows Hardware Compatibility Program (WHCP) for version 22H2. All the requirements are exactly the same as Windows 10, version 2004. That said, this is not really surprising since WHCP guidelines have remained static for the past few versions of Windows 10. You can find more details quoted below:

• WHCP requirements – No change. Windows 10, version 2004 requirements remain applicable for Windows 10, version 22H2.
• Windows Hardware Lab Kit – No change. Since WHCP requirements will persist in Windows 10, version 22H2, the Windows Hardware Lab Kit (Windows HLK) will also remain the same. There will not be a new Windows HLK release for Windows 10, version 22H2 and partners can continue using Windows 10, version 2004 HLK for certification.
• Errata – No change. All Windows 10, version 2004 errata will continue to be valid for Windows 10, version 22H2.
• Windows HLK playlist – No change. The Windows HLK version 2004 playlist can be used for Windows 10, version 22H2.
• Driver signature – No change. Drivers that meet all the applicable Windows 10, version 2004 requirements will be digitally signed with the same signature attributes.
• Submission – No change. Windows 10, versions 2004, 20H2, and 21H1 can be used for WHCP submission.
• WHCP qualification – Windows 10, version 2004
• Required OS version – Windows 10, version 22H2
• HLK version – HLK version 2004

All in all, Windows 10 version 22H2 is available to install right now but it's unclear what features will be eventually lit up in it. Microsoft will share more details on this front in the coming months. It is also important to note that Windows 10 is supported until 2025, but it seems like development efforts will be more concentrated towards Windows 11.

Microsoft suggests new features will be coming to Windows 10 version 22H2

Multiple testers report that Edge Canary does not open after installing the latest update. Microsoft quickly pulled the problematic release, leaving many users stuck with a botched browser. If you are one of those unlucky insiders, here is how you can bring Edge Canary back to life.

The easiest way to launch Edge Canary is to right-click its icon on the taskbar and select InPrivate Mode. It will be enough to launch and update Canary once Microsoft releases a new version with a fix. If you need a permanent solution, restore the previous Canary version using the following steps:

1. Download Microsoft Edge Canary 105.0.1334.0 offline installer.
2. Open the downloaded file using with 7-Zip or another software for working with archives.
3. Open the folder inside the executable file and copy all the files inside it.
4. Go to C:\Users\Your username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Edge SxS\Application\105.0.1336.0. Note that you may have version 105.0.1335.0 instead of 105.0.1336.0.
5. Paste the copied files and replace existing ones if necessary.
6. Microsoft Edge Canary should now launch without issues.

This story is another reminder that using Canary as your primary browser is a bad idea. Microsoft allows running various Edge channels side-by-side, so the best option is to have a stable release for daily work and Canary or Dev for testing purposes.

Source: Microsoft Tech Community Forums

Edge Canary fails to open after last update, here is how to fix it

Meetings

There are a bunch of new features for Microsoft Forms in Teams. Basically, the Forms app is being replaced by "Polls", so that it's more discoverable and indicative of what its core functionality is. Some UI changes have been implemented too, including moving the list of suggested polls from the bottom to the side pane, an entry point to the Polls portal, and a results view for the poll creator.

Other smaller features for Polls include the ability to reuse older polls, new animations after submitting responses, a rating poll, and a better view for results with dynamic responses and color indicators.

Phone and calling

A nifty capability in this section is the ability to hide specific calls from your call history. Similarly, the call recording announcement will now play in your default language.

There are several other improvements for Common Area Phone in terms of licensing, enrollment, and management. Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT) by Spectralink have now been integrated with SIP Gateway as well. This is primarily useful for frontline workers.

Devices

Microsoft Teams Room users can now utilize the "Manage" button to check out a room through the Teams panel. Alternatively, the same UI element can also be leveraged to extend the reservation of the room.

Microsoft has made it easier for Teams-certified peripherals that have camera toggles to "more efficiently" turn your video on and off using buttons. Meanwhile, the latest batch of Teams-certified devices now includes the Logitech Tap IP and Logi Dock.

Chat and collaboration

A useful feature that Microsoft has added in this area is integration with LinkedIn. There's a dedicated tab that will allow you to view the LinkedIn details of your colleagues, including past experiences, roles, and education. You will also be able to send them LinkedIn connection requests directly from Teams.

The @TeamOwners handle can be used to tag all team owners in a channel, you don't need to tag them individually anymore. And if you use the Teams app on the iPad, you'll find it more responsive to the screen size and orientation.

Management

A new capability that Teams admins will really appreciate is the ability to remove individual policy assignments in bulk. This is useful because individual policies are prioritized but if you wish that all users follow a company-wide policy, you can remove individual policies in one go.

Security, compliance, and privacy

A minor change in this area is that the Teams Export API now supports Teams reactions. It already supports messages, attachments, emoji, GIFs, and @Mentions.

Teams for Education

Microsoft has partnered with Moodle and the Microsoft Teams Meetings LTI and Classes LTI apps are now available directly on the Moodle platform.

Frontline workers

If you're at IT admin managing a lot of frontline teams, you'll be pleased to know that you can use a single PowerShell command to deploy up to 500 teams, each with 25 members. Alternatively, members can be removed in bulk too.

There's also a new feature called Device Test, described as follows:

Device Test allows virtual appointment users to validate and configure hardware components before joining an appointment through Microsoft Teams. Users will be able to validate camera, microphone, and browser compatibility, as well as the internet connection at any moment before the scheduled appointment start time. Benefits of Device Test include:

• Complete a full test call with Azure Communication Service

• Easy access to the troubleshooting guide

• Ability to share test results with appointment organizers

In the same vein, those in the UK can now send SMS confirmations and reminders for Teams meeting links organized through the Bookings app inside Teams.

Government

While this is a more specialized area that is probably not catered to our core audience, Teams Government customers can now leverage meeting options and Large Gallery and Together Mode views for Teams on VDI.

Of course, we have only glossed over some of the details and if you're interested in diving deeper into all of the aforementioned updates, head over to Microsoft's blog post here.

Here are all the new features Microsoft added to Teams in July 2022

Microsoft is preparing an update for its web browser Edge that will help develop new synergies across its product suite.

As per new (opens in new tab) entries (opens in new tab) in the Microsoft 365 product roadmap, users of the productivity suite will soon benefit from the ability to access both their Outlook email inbox and Office documents via a dedicated sidebar within Edge.

Due to roll out next month, the update is designed to limit the need for workers to switch continuously between windows when performing tasks, with all the necessary tools housed within the browser instead.

Microsoft Edge: the browser for business?

Although Microsoft Edge enjoyed a period of rapid growth after its relaunch back in 2020, the browser continues to lag behind Chrome and Safari, both of which enjoy a far greater market share, the latest figures (opens in new tab) show.

Despite a consistent stream of feature updates, renewed marketing efforts and the integration of Edge into the company’s new Windows 11 operating system, Microsoft has struggled to move the needle in any significant way.

The software giant has also scored a number of own goals that are unlikely to have ingratiated Microsoft Edge with potential new users.

For instance, Microsoft was recently forced to walk back a policy that added an unreasonable amount of friction to the process of changing the default browser in Windows 11 after users made their displeasure known.

Microsoft also came under fire for efforts to block links opened via its own services (e.g. Windows 11 widgets, the Start Menu etc.) from launching in any other browser but Edge, another tactic that drew criticism from the community.

But the upcoming update hints at a change in approach; the company is now seeking to lean on the popularity of services like Outlook and other elements of the Microsoft 365 suite to incentivize a switch to Edge, a subtler tactic less likely to draw the ire of the community.

Microsoft has also targeted improvements from a performance and security perspective, which business users in particular are bound to appreciate. In recent months, for example, the company has bolstered the in-built password manager, rolled out an integrated VPN service and deployed new tricks to improve browsing speeds.

If Microsoft Edge is to compete head-to-head with the market leaders, the team will need to stake a claim to a particular niche or use case. In the business market, perhaps it has found one.

Source

In November 2020, registration was made necessary for all domestic and offshore companies offering online services in the country. However, signing up for this process also gave authorities the power to urge platforms to release data of specific users and to take down any content that the government deems unlawful or "disturbs public order" within a maximum of 24 hours.

Recently, firms were pressed by the authorities to register under the new licensing rules by Wednesday or risk having their platforms taken down. While over 5,900 domestic companies and roughly 100 foreign companies had registered by Monday, some including Meta and Google did not do so until the deadline was extended till Friday.

Samuel Abrijani Pangerapan, a senior official at Indonesia's Communications Ministry has revealed that some sites have now been taken down as a result of not registering. These include Yahoo, PayPal, Steam, Epic Games, and more.

The move has proved quite controversial and has received massive backlash from numerous people on social media with hashtags like "BlokirKominfo" (which translates to "Block Communication Ministry") trending on Indonesian Twitter and people complaining about how the government had damaged the country's gaming industry and freelance workers depending on PayPal.

The affected companies are yet to publicly respond, so it remains to be seen if they will register under government regulations.

Source

Like the new taskbar overflow in the Beta Channel, the Windows Spotlight theme is available only to some insiders, even though Microsoft did not mention partial rollout in the release notes. Here is how you can enable the new Windows Spotlight theme in Windows 11 build 25169 (via @PhantomOfEarth).

Important: Vivetool is a third-party app for tinkering with unreleased Windows features that could cause software issues and instabilities. Proceed at your own risk and always back up important data before experimenting with the operating system.

1. Download the latest Vivetool release from its repository on GitHub using this link. Extract the app wherever it is convenient for you.
2. Run Windows Terminal as Administrator and open the Vivetool folder with the CD command. Here is an example: CD C:\Vivetool.
3. Now execute the following command: vivetool /enable /id:39258685.
4. Restart your computer.
5. Open the Settings app and go to the Personalization section. The Windows Spotlight theme should be right next to other default themes.

To disable the Windows Spotlight theme, use the vivetool /disable /id39258685 command.

Besides a new Dev build, Microsoft also released fresh updates in the Beta and Release Preview channels. Those releases bring several new features, such as the updated taskbar overflow, the redesigned "Open with" dialog box, dynamic widgets, etc.

How to enable new Windows Spotlight theme in Windows 11 build 25169

Here is what is new in VMWare Fusion 22H2 Tech Preview:

• Windows 11 on Intel and Apple Silicon, with 2D graphics and networking support.
• VMTools installation support for Windows 11 guest operating system on M1-based Macs.
• Virtual TPM device with fast encryption support.
• Improved Linux support on M1.
• 3D Graphics HW Acceleration and OpenGL 4.3 in Linux virtual machines.
• Universal Binary for Apple Silicon and Intel Macs.

With VMWare Fusion 22H2 Tech Preview, Mac users can create virtual machines that comply with Windows 11's hardware requirements. Fusion now supports Virtual Trusted Platform Module 2.0 with Fast Encryption, providing improved performance and a secure enclave for sensitive data (there is an option to encrypt a VM fully).

In addition to TPM 2.0 support, VMWare Fusion 22H2 brings a WDDM driver for 2D graphics, allowing users to operate Windows virtual machines at high screen resolutions.

It is worth noting that VMWare Fusion 22H2 is currently in public beta (you can download it here), so expect bugs and rough surfaces when using the software. Also, Windows 11 support still requires some extra work and polish. You can learn more about the latest VMWare Fusion release and its known issues in a post on the official VMWare blog.

VMWare brings Windows 11 support to Fusion on Apple Silicon

The current version of Chrome allows changing the default browser within its settings, but the implementation requires switching to the Windows Settings app. On the other hand, Firefox has a much more convenient single-click solution Mozilla introduced in 2021. The same implementation will soon make it to Chrome.

Here is how Google describes the code change on Chromium Gerrit:

Make Chrome the default browser. This function works by going through the url protocols and file associations that are related to general browsing, e.g. http, https, .html etc., and directly setting the relevant registry entries for each.

There is no information on when the updated behavior will be available, but you can expect it to appear in preview channels for testing ahead of public release.

Changing the default browser was a big controversy after Microsoft made it incredibly difficult to switch from Edge to anything else in Windows 11. Instead of providing a single-click option, the company forced users to change more than ten file associations just to make Windows 11 open links in Chrome or any other browser. After a significant backlash, Microsoft gave in and fixed the problem. Parts of Windows 10 and 11 are still tied to Edge, but you can change that with the MSEdgeRedirect tool.

Google will soon make it easier to set Chrome as the default browser in Windows

Instagram might be walking back its horribly received TikTok-style redesign and cutting down on the app’s constant avalanche of recommendations, but that won’t prevent recommended content from appearing in your feed altogether. It turns out there’s a fix for that you might not be aware of; I didn’t even know it was a thing until Instagram head Adam Mosseri casually mentioned it in one of his Stories earlier this week.

It’s possible to snooze recommendations and suggested posts from your main Instagram feed for 30 days. Hallelujah! And even better — it only takes a couple taps.

How to snooze Instagram feed recommendations for 30 days

• Scroll through your main Instagram feed until you come across a recommended post. These are usually accompanied by explanations for why you’re seeing them, such as “because you watched a reel from ____” or “because you follow ____.”
• Tap the X at the upper right. Upon doing so, you’ll see text confirming that the specific post has been hidden. But we’re not satisfied eliminating just one recommendation, my friends. We want to be free from as many of them as possible.

• From the options listed, tap on snooze all suggested posts in feed for 30 days.
• After that, a green checkmark will appear, with confirmation that your feed won’t contain suggested posts for the next 30 days.

And with that, you’re all set. Keep in mind that clearing your feed of suggested posts won’t stop you from seeing Instagram’s many in-feed advertisements. But it’s a handy way of taking at least some greater control over how the app works for you.

Don’t forget that you can also now sort your feed chronologically by tapping the Instagram logo at the upper left and choosing Following.

How to turn off Instagram’s feed recommendations for an entire month

You can find the full changelog below:

This update includes the following improvements:

• We fixed an issue that prevents troubleshooters from opening.
• We fixed an issue that might increase the latency of games when vertical sync (VSync or v-sync) is in use.
• We fixed an issue that affects the ProjectionManager.StartProjectingAsync API and prevents certain locales from connecting to Miracast Sinks.
• We fixed an issue that causes the Smart App Control to block catalog-signed files.
• We fixed an issue that causes the Take a Test app to remove all policies related to lockdown enforcement when you close the app.
• We fixed an issue that might highly distort photos you take using the Camera app. This issue occurs when using certain cameras under certain low light conditions.
• We fixed an issue that throws an exception when you debug drivers using Visual Studio 2022 version 17.2 or later.
• We fixed an issue that causes the Windows profile service to fail sporadically. The failure might occur when signing in. The error message is, “gpsvc service failed to sign in. Access denied”.
• We fixed an issue that prevents virtualized App-V Office applications from opening or causes them to stop responding.

Microsoft have not shared any known issues, with this build.

You can find the official blog post here.

Windows 11 Build 22621.317 (KB5015885) out in Release Preview Channel

It took Microsoft almost a year before making the license for the new operating system available in its store. Nonetheless, we’re still grateful that the tech giant finally made it available in the place, making it more accessible for PC owners, especially for those using virtual machines or planning to build or customize their PCs.

The Store offers two versions of the OS that are designed for users’ varying needs. Windows 11 Home costs $139, while Windows 11 Pro, which has BitLocker device encryption and Windows Information Protection, comes at $199.99.

On a side note, Microsoft stresses that the versions are “designed for PCs that need a new license for Windows and meet the minimum system requirements for Windows 11.” This means if your PC runs on Windows 10 but can’t use Windows Update to get the free upgrade to Windows 11, the digital versions in the store won’t work.

Microsoft Store now offers Windows 11 digital licenses

This is the first update for the popular music player since Winamp 5.8 beta, that was released in 2018.

What's new in Winamp 5.9 RC1

The music player has improved Windows 11 compatibility, support for vp8, https://streams, playback of .itz, .mdz, .s3z & .xmz compressed modules. The program now has a Podcast Directory. The browser tab has been removed from the Bento skin. Aside from these changes, the update fixes some memory leaks. The help link in the application directs users to a new online Help section.

According to the release notes, Winamp has been migrated from VS2008 to VS2019. Winamp now requires Windows 7 SP1 as the minimum required operating system, i.e., it drops support for Windows XP and Vista.

Though it wasn't mentioned in the change log, I noticed that the update also removes many of the old skins.

Issues in Winamp 5.9 RC1

The migration process from VS2008 to VS2019 has resulted in some known issues. The Milkdrop plugin's visualization works, but it has issues with some presets. Eleven of the worst affected presets have been removed, but are expected to be fixed in the Winamp 5.9.1 update that is slated for a future release. View File Info doesn't work, and ReplayGain calculation is broken for Vorbis files, .OGG. These bugs are also expected to be fixed in the next update.

Winamp 5.9 RC1 breaks compatibility with old plugins, including those made by former developer DrO (creator of WACUP), such as the Jump to File Extra (JTFE). Some required DLLs may not load on Windows 7 - 8.1.

Upcoming changes to Winamp

Winamp's developers have also published a list of upcoming changes that they plan to add to the software. This includes native support for more audio formats (opus, ogv/ogm, TS, H.265, HLS, VP9, etc.). MusicBrainz or MusicStory will replace Gracenote features such as Autotag, CDDB. There are plans to add more default services including Lyrics, and Jamendo.

Refer to the release notes for more information.

Warning: Winamp's forums do not have an HTTPS website.

Download Winamp 5.9 RC1 Build 9999 from the Winamp website. The installer for the new version has been flagged by a few antivirus services on VirusTotal, the developers have indicated these are false positives. You can download Winamp 5.666 Build 3516 from the official website. Malwarebytes seems to detect the installer of the old Winamp 5.666 as malicious too.

The music player is quite usable for the most part. This is more of a maintenance release than a feature update. So far, it doesn't contain any of the bloatware that were expected to be bundled into the program, or any NFT stuff that was shared by the company's Twitter account earlier this year. A comment from the lead developer suggests that optional online services could be added to Winamp in the future, but for now they have no details to share about it.

If plugins are important to you, I'd recommend readers to either stick to the old version, or switch to WACUP (WinAmp Community Update Project), I prefer the latter as it is still maintained.

Have you tried Winamp 5.9 ? Share your thoughts about it.

Winamp 5.9 RC1 has been released

Software Updates:   Winamp 5.9.0 Build 9999 RC1