News: Software News

A Recent Windows Update prevents Mozilla's workaround to set Firefox as the default browser

Tue, 21 Dec 2021 22:00:07 +0000

Windows 11 has been in the news for many reasons this year, not all of those have been positive. The recent Windows Update that was released last week brings yet another unwelcome change, it effectively removes Mozilla's workaround to set Firefox as the default web browser.

But we should have seen this coming. It all began when Windows 11 made it more difficult to change the default apps, it requires a few more clicks. The unaware user won't know where to look for the setting, and will have to rely on Edge, not by choice, but because they had no idea how to change the browser.

In September, Mozilla found a fix by reverse engineering the default apps protocol, thus allowing users to set Firefox as the default browser. So far so good, right. The workaround didn't go unnoticed, and a Microsoft spokesperson released a statement to The Verge, which said that a fix would be issued in a future Windows Update, to correct this improper redirection.

Soon after this, the developer of the open source program, EdgeDeflector, discovered a new problem. The Windows 11 build released at that time, Build 22494, changed the way how file associations are handled. His software could no longer intercept the microsoft-edge:// links, meaning the program could not be used to redirect the URLs from the Start Menu's search results, to open in the default browser.

This was the "fix" from Microsoft. Mozilla wasn't pleased about this, and cried foul, again!. It wasn't alone in this regard. Microsoft's antics attracted the ire of many, and Vivaldi's founder slammed Microsoft Edge's practices as anticompetitive. Browser wars have never been pretty, but Microsoft is just being petty.

Windows Update prevents Mozilla's workaround to set Firefox as the default browser

A new build that was released in the Windows Insider Preview program does simplify things a bit, it allows you to change your default browser with a couple of clicks. That's not exactly the solution, but it's somewhat easier for users, compared to the previous options. Just when it looked like the situation was improving, last week's Windows Update has once again caused disarray among users. The news, first reported by How To Geek, confirms the anti-consumer move by Microsoft.

Windows 11 is all about personalization or so the promos tell us, well where's the freedom of choice for people to use what they want? Those are the personal choices that matter, not colorful animations and fancy glass backgrounds.

I'm not sure if this was the reason, but here is my theory on why the change might have been implied. You see, with the introduction of the Widgets panel in Windows 11, Microsoft provides a curated newsfeed that the user can customize. The marketing surrounding this feature, tells you that Widgets allows you to access all the info that you want, quickly from the taskbar. The problem here is that these links in the Widgets page open in Microsoft Edge, even if you have set a different browser as your default handler. More links equals more clicks, which in turn means more chances for users to switch to Edge.

Speaking of which, Edge will pester you with recommendations to set itself as the default browser. The lack of options to conveniently set the default browser, the messages mocking Chrome, the anticompetitive practices by Bing add to a long list of problems, that we have seen with the browser. Even the latest new feature in Edge, Buy Now and Pay Later, has been a controversial one. I wonder how Manifest v3 will be handled by Microsoft Edge, once support for version 2 ends.

Microsoft has gone nuts, and its forced changes are screaming for an antitrust investigation. It happened once before, and I wouldn't be remotely surprised if the issue is taken up in court again.

A Recent Windows Update prevents Mozilla's workaround to set Firefox as the default browser

Developer creates ‘Quite OK Image Format’ – but it performs better than just OK

Tue, 21 Dec 2021 14:29:18 +0000

Open source, offers fast, lossless compression, and has a very charming name

A developer named Dominic Szablewski has given the world a new file format with a splendid name: the Quite OK Image Format (QOI).

The file format might be better than that. Szablewski explained that he decided the world needed a new image format because the likes of PNG, JPEG, MPEG, MOV and MP4 “burst with complexity at the seams.”

“Every tiny aspect screams ‘design by consortium’,” he added, going on to lament the fact that most common codecs are old, closed, and “require huge libraries, are compute hungry and difficult to work with.”

Szablewski thought he could do better and appears to have achieved that objective by cooking up some code, floating it on GitHub, and paying attention to the 500-plus comments it generated.

While Szablewski admits that QOI will not compress images as well as an optimized PNG encoder, he claims “losslessy compresses images to a similar size of PNG, while offering 20x-50x faster encoding and 3x-4x faster decoding.”

Most importantly, to Szablewski, the reference en-/decoder fits in about 300 lines of C and the file format spec requires is just one page long.

“In the last few weeks QOI implementations for lot of different languages and libraries popped up,” Szablewski wrote on his blog, with Zig, Rust, Rust, Rust, Go, TypeScript, Haskell, Ć, Python, C#, Elixir, Swift, Java, and Pascal among the options.

“There is a native application to view .QOI files, plugins for Gimp, Paint.NET and XnView MP, support in SDL_Image (pending) and many more,” he added.

“With all this going on, it looks like QOI might actually end up being a thing,” he wrote. “I don't expect it to appear in web browsers, where compression ratio is much more important, anytime soon. But there are use-cases in games or other applications where the performance benefits certainly make sense.”

You can check out the QOI yourself at qoiformat.org. ®

Steve Ballmer tried to name Cortana virtual assistant as Bingo

Mon, 20 Dec 2021 21:16:23 +0000

Back in 2014, Microsoft introduced Cortana virtual assistant. Microsoft had a list of names for their digital assistant before it was named Cortana. ‘Alyx’ was the name that was leading the list, but the immense support for ‘Cortana’ name in the UserVoice website made Microsoft to choose it over Alyx.

In a recent interview, Sandeep Paruchuri, a former Cortana PM, revealed that Steve Ballmer tried to name Cortana as Bingo. He also mentioned that Ballmer wanted the whole thing to be Microsoft branded.

“Luckily, Satya had different ideas, and was a huge supporter of the project because of his belief in the power of AI. Under his leadership, Cortana got to keep her name and was declared ready to ship,” Sandeep added.

You can read more on Cortana’s history in the link below.

Source: Big Bets

Steve Ballmer tried to name Cortana virtual assistant as Bingo

Test this new Linux kernel – but don’t forget Christmas or that you have a family, says Linus Torvalds

Mon, 20 Dec 2021 13:33:17 +0000

Confirms version 5.16 will receive an eighth release candidate

Linus Torvalds has confirmed that version 5.16 of the Linux kernel will take a little longer to develop than usual, thanks to Christmas.

“Things are calming down, and rc6 is fairly small,” he wrote in his weekly State of the Kernel post. “That's normal for this time in the release schedule, but it's also normal for this time of year.”

The emperor penguin opined that “the next two weeks will be very quiet, and smaller still.”

So he’s confirmed the thought bubble he floated last week about allowing version 5.16 of the kernel to reach an eighth release candidate.

The reason for the extra release is “not because this release looks particularly problematic, but simply due to the seasonal holidays.”
“There's no point in releasing a final 5.16 and opening the merge window when people are still on holiday or just coming back. So we'll have at least one extra week of rc this release, even if no nasty issues appear.”

Torvalds rated the chances of further releases as slim, based on his assessment of work on the current cut of the kernel.

The maintainer-in-chief’s mpst signed off with his customary suggestion that penguinistas take this week’s release for a spin.

“I know most of us are preparing for Christmas, but give it a whirl, ok? How important are those presents (and that family) anyway?”

If you follow Torvalds’ advice, you’ll find lots of drivers to ponder, mainly pertaining to networking, USB, and GPUs. Torvalds also rated bpf seltest as quite prominent.

The decision to issue an eighth release candidate means Linux 5.16 should emerge on January 9th. The first significant date of the Linux year is Linux.conf.au, which kicks off on January 14th, 2022. Developers may therefore find the first few days of the merge window are busy, before tuning in to the FOSS action down under. ®

Source

Web Capture tool in Microsoft Edge now ‘working' in PDF files as well

Sun, 19 Dec 2021 21:45:06 +0000

Microsoft Edge has allowed capturing customized screenshots of web content using the Web Capture tool, but it never worked for PDF files, until today. The latest Canary Build of Microsoft Edge is allowing the Web Capture button even when the tab has opened a PDF file.

Even in the latest stable build of Microsoft Edge web browser, the Web capture button and the option in the ellipsis menu remain grayed out when a tab is displaying a PDF file. However, this behavior has changed in the latest Canary or experimental build of the Chromium-based web browser. Although the tool doesn’t work flawlessly, the fact that Microsoft is allowing this is a strong indicator of the feature being available for PDFs.

Web Capture is a powerful tool that surpassed the Web Notes tool. It works across the Internet. Even Mozilla Firefox has long had one. The feature allows quickly capturing screenshots to copy or share. Web Capture can also mark up full web pages with scrolling, just like in Android. Microsoft has previously indicated that it is actively developing additional functionality such as adding ink or highlights to the captures, capturing full webpages, and scrolling while marking them.

All these practical and useful features allowed Internet users to quickly capture screenshots of selective areas, add remarks and share them easily over multiple web-based platforms, including office collaboration tools.

It appears Microsoft is now gradually allowing the Web Capture tool to be used while viewing a PDF file. The company chose to disable the feature when the Edge web browser was displaying a PDF file. The Redditor who first discovered the tool’s applicability in PDF files has indicated that the tool is very experimental in nature. In other words, Microsoft is working on the feature. However, as the feature has appeared in the Canary build, it should make it into the stable build of the web browser eventually.

Web Capture tool in Microsoft Edge now ‘working' in PDF files as well

Firefox 95.0.2 fixes crashes on systems with certain AMD CPUs

Sun, 19 Dec 2021 21:43:24 +0000

Mozilla Firefox 95.0.2 was released on December 19, 2021; it fixes a single crash issue that affects certain AMD processors on Windows 7, 8 and 8.1 devices.

The new version of the Firefox web browser comes just a few days after the release of Firefox 95.0.1, and about two weeks after the release of the last major version release of 2021, Firefox 95.0.

Firefox 95.0.2 is already available. Installations should receive the update of the browser automatically, provided that automatic updates have not been turned off. Affected users, those on AMD devices on which Firefox crashed frequently recently, may want to run the update as soon as possible to address the issue.

Select Firefox Menu > Help > About Firefox to display the installed version, and run a check for updates. The new version should be picked up and installed automatically at this point.

The official Firefox 95.0.2 release notes list a single fix:

Addresses frequent crashes experienced by users with certain AMD CPUs running on Windows 7, 8, and 8.1

The issue appears to affect Firefox running on Windows 7, 8 and 8.1 systems only. Only systems with AMD CPUs are affected, but the release notes don't provide more details on the matter.

Firefox ESR, the Extended Support Release version of the browser, is not affected by the issue. The last version, Firefox ESR 91.4.1, is not changed therefore. It was released just a few days ago alongside Firefox 95.0.1 to address a connection issue that affected several Microsoft domains and two crashes in the Linux and Windows version of the web browser respectively.

Firefox 95.0 was released on December 7, 2021. It marked the availability of Firefox in the Microsoft Store, and introduced a number of improvements and fixes besides that.

Interested Firefox users can check out the official release notes on the Mozilla website.

Firefox 95.0.2 fixes crashes on systems with certain AMD CPUs

Debian 11 ‘Bullseye' updated to 11.2 with 40+ security updates and 60+ bugfixes

Sun, 19 Dec 2021 15:38:30 +0000

The Debian project has released a second update for the stable distribution Debian 11, codenamed “Bullseye”. Although the latest update is not a major revision, it includes more than 40 security updates, in addition to 60+ bug fixes.

Nearly two months after releasing Debian 11.1, the team behind the Linux distro has sent out an incremental update that fixes multiple bugs, and also addresses several security issues. One of the most prominent of the patches, include a fix for actively exploited Log4j vulnerability.

If you have been applying updates, you'll automatically be on Debian 11.2. You can check to see if you have the latest updates through the graphical update tool. Alternatively, experienced users can fire up the Terminal and update Debian with the command sudo apt update && sudo apt full upgrade.

The Debian development team has also offered live images (ISO) as well as installers for the supported architectures, which includes x86_64 amd64, i386, PowerPC 64-Bit Little Endian (ppc64el), IBM System z (s390x), MIPS 64-Bit Little Endian (mips64el), MIPS 32-Bit Little Endian (mipsel), MIPS, Armel, ARMhf and AArch64 (arm64) ready.

Some of the most popular applications and software have received an update. The security updates are reportedly meant for Firefox-ESR, WordPress, Apache2, Flatpak, LibreOffice, FFmpeg, and Samba. With the latest update, the Linux kernel is now on version 5.10.83-rt58. All the details about the Debian 11.2 update have been provided on the official website.

Unfortunately, fixes for the X.Org vulnerabilities are still unavailable in the Stable release channel.

Source

In the new year 2022, Microsoft is bringing a new "Windows Wednesday" live show

Sat, 18 Dec 2021 21:53:16 +0000

Microsoft announced earlier today that it will be hosting an all-new "Windows Wednesday" 30-minute live show beginning next year in 2022 on the 5th of January when the pilot episode will be aired.

On the show, Microsoft says that it will discuss mostly topics related to development in the Windows environment, but some other stuff may be covered as well. The company says:

Some topics we’ll be covering include Windows Terminal, Windows Subsystem for Linux, Windows Sounds, PowerToys, and Fonts, just to name a few.

The show will basically feature subject matter experts who will be demonstrating these various tools and discuss their usefulness. It will be hosted by Kayla Cinnamon, who is a Program Manager at Microsoft, and she will be accompanied by Scott Hanselman on some of the episodes.

In case you wanted Microsoft to cover any particular topic on the show, you are asked to contact Kayla Cinnamon on Twitter.

As stated earlier, the first show will be live on 5 January, Wednesday. The show will air on the Windows Developer YouTube channel and Microsoft's Learn TV page at 8:00 a.m. PST or 4:00 p.m. UTC. The consequent Windows Wednesday episodes will also air at this time.

Here's a link to the official press release regarding Windows Wednesday.

In the new year 2022, Microsoft is bringing a new "Windows Wednesday" live show

6 Years after release, Microsoft is still working on migrating the Windows Control Panel

Sat, 18 Dec 2021 21:51:30 +0000

When Microsoft released Windows 10 in 2015, it launched the operating system with a new Settings application, which it designed as a modern replacement for the Control Panel.

The company moved some applets from the Control Panel to the Settings application, but left most applets untouched at the time. It did announce that the Control Panel was going away and that the Settings application would become the main control hub for preferences on Windows 10. Some options to access the Control Panel were removed in the Creators Update, and a few applets were migrated to the Settings application in the six years since the release of Windows 10.

It is now the end of 2021, six years after the release of Windows 10. Windows 11 has been released in the year, even though Microsoft stated earlier that Windows 10 would be the last version of Windows.

The Control Panel is still available, as only some applets have been migrated so far. Now, with the last build of Windows 11 in 2021 comes the migration of two Control Panel applets. Both applets have been disabled by Microsoft in the Control Panel; they are now placeholders that point to the relevant section in the operating system's Settings application.

The two applets in question are Installed Apps and Update History. Both won't open anymore when opened in the Control Panel.

Links to Programs & Features in Control Panel will now open to Settings > Apps > Installed Apps. EDIT: In other words, links to the page to uninstall or change programs on your PC.

We're moving Uninstall Updates (for cumulative updates, etc.) from Control Panel to a new page in Settings under Settings > Windows Update > Update History.

The Settings pages to control installed apps and manage the update history are not new, as they have been present in previous versions of Windows 10 and 11. Administrators who used one or both of the applets of the Control Panel can't do so anymore.

The Settings applications often lack functionality that the Control Panel applets offered. The software uninstallation applet displayed installed programs in a table, which users could sort and add information, such as the installation location.

The uninstall an update applet displayed a table of installed updates as well, and users could sort it and add information to it.

The installed apps page of the Settings application lacks these options. You can search installed apps, sort by date, name or size, or filter by drive. Information such as the installed path can't be added.

Closing Words

If Microsoft keeps up the pace, the Control Panel will still be present when Windows 12 is released in 2027. It is clear that the change removes functionality. While the core functionality is still there, helpful features such as the option to add information to the listings or sort listings using other parameters, are no longer available.

Administrators may resort to using third-party programs to uninstall software, or the Windows Package Manager for that purpose.

6 Years after release, Microsoft is still working on migrating the Windows Control Panel

Microsoft has fixed the Windows 11 battery indicator bug

Fri, 17 Dec 2021 21:57:00 +0000

Microsoft has fixed a bug in Windows 11 which has seen some laptops reporting battery levels above 100%.

The bug was first noticed by Redditor Zondax who wrote:

The issue has now been fixed in the latest Windows 11 Inside Build 22523 in the Dev channel, with Microsoft writing:

The battery icon tooltip should no longer unexpectedly show a percent above 100.

Microsoft has not explained what caused the issue. With the fix currently being tested in the Dev channel, we assume it will roll out to Windows 11 users in the Stable channel in the next few weeks.

via Softpedia

Microsoft has fixed the Windows 11 battery indicator bug

Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition to be withdrawn as of 31 December 2021

Fri, 17 Dec 2021 09:20:00 +0000

Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition for Windows computers will be withdrawn as of December 2021. After this month, Bitdefender Antivirus Free will officially be discontinued and will no longer be available for download.

Bitdefender Antivirus Free to close down on December 2021

Overview

Bitdefender is committed to delivering innovative, effective security solutions to its customers. As platforms evolve, so do our products and technologies. As a result, Bitdefender continuously develops and shapes its solution set.

The End of Life (EOL) process is an essential part of the lifecycle for security products.

As such, Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition for Windows will reach its End of Life in December 2021. This free antivirus will no longer be available on the Bitdefender website after this month. It will keep its antivirus features but will stop receiving updates including security fixes after the official End of Support date.

End of Life for Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition (Windows)

The Bitdefender EOL process begins with the End of Life announcement and involves the following major milestones:

End of Life: December 2021. The last month when Bitdefender Antivirus Free is available for download. After this date, we will no longer develop, repair, maintain, or test new versions of this software.
End of Support: June 30, 2022. The last date customers can receive support for Bitdefender Antivirus Free. After this date, the product will also reach its End of Support Life.

What this means for existing customers

We are retiring the ability to download and install Bitdefender Antivirus Free for Windows as of December 2021.
Bitdefender Antivirus Free for Android is unaffected and will continue. Only the free Windows desktop version is being phased out.
Existing Bitdefender Antivirus Free for Windows installations will continue to work and detect malware until June 30, 2022 when all updates will cease, and you will need to find an alternative. We hope this gives you time to choose and install another solution that will keep your Windows computers protected. As cybersecurity experts, we strongly advise you not to simply leave your PC unprotected going forward. Malware attacks are more sophisticated than ever, so it is critical to have robust protection that keeps you and your devices safe at all times.
All Bitdefender Antivirus Free customers will receive in-product notifications and emails from bitdefender@hello.bitdefender.com advising that their antivirus edition is to be withdrawn. The email also includes a special discounted offer for Bitdefender Total Security.

At any point, to avoid any disruption in their security protection, users may choose to migrate to one of our other security solutions. To make the transition easier, we’ve created a limited special discount offer for Bitdefender Total Security subscription, a substitute solution that offers the best anti-malware protection against e-threats across all major operating systems. This offer to upgrade to Bitdefender Total Security is only available to Antivirus Free Edition users, and will only be valid until December 31, 2021.

Source

Windows 11: Microsoft moves uninstalling apps from Control Panel to Modern Settings

Thu, 16 Dec 2021 21:55:25 +0000

Microsoft has been slowly moving Windows settings from the Control Panel to the new Modern settings app, and the latest to make the move is the Programs and Features page in the Control Panel, which now links to the Settings -> Apps -> Installed apps page in the modern Settings app.

The change is present in the latest Windows 11 Insider Build 22523 released yesterday. The page appears to be completely removed, as even when you enter AppUpdatesFolder in Windows key + R shell: AppUpdatesFolder, you now end up in the new settings.

Also moved is Windows Update -> Update history -> Under “Additional options”, the entry “Uninstall updates”, while OptionalFeatures.exe for the optional Windows features via Windows key + R still works.

It appears old-time Windows users will have to learn some new tricks as Microsoft slowly modernises their desktop operating system.

Source:Deskmodder

Windows 11: Microsoft moves uninstalling apps from Control Panel to Modern Settings

Firefox 95.0.1 fixes Microsoft.com connection issues and other bugs

Thu, 16 Dec 2021 21:53:27 +0000

Mozilla plans to release a minor upgrade for the stable version of its web browser today. Firefox 95.0.1 is a bug fix release that will address several issues in the browser, including a connection issue to several Microsoft domains.

The connection issue was posted to Bugzilla, Mozilla's bug tracking site five days ago. The reporter received an error message, MOZILLA_PKIX_ERROR_OCSP_RESPONSE_FOR_CERT_MISSING, while trying to open a page on the Docs subdomain of the main Microsoft website.

The page, listing supported AMD processors by Windows 11, returned an error message and not the actual content. Firefox displays a Secure Connection Failed error page with the aforementioned error message.

Several users reported issues on other subdomains, including https://msdn.microsoft.com/, https://go.microsoft.com/ and https://support.microsoft.com/.

The issue appears to come and go sporadically, but the planned update of Firefox will resolve it for all stable users of the web browser.

Firefox 95.0.1 fixes three additional bugs. The first affects the Linux version of Firefox only. It addresses a crash in WebRender on "some Linux/X11" systems according to Mozilla. The Bugzilla report suggests that crashes "have increased a bit over the last month" and that the crash takes down the entire browser and not just a single process.

The next issue fixes a crash on Windows devices, specifically crashes when shutting down. The volume of crashes was exceptionally high according to Mozilla and made up about a quarter of the top 50 crash signatures reported to Mozilla during the time.

The volume jumped from 500-1000/day to multiple thousands per day around Oct 26th or so. We heard there was a Windows update around that time. However there are crashes on win7/8/10 and 11. Just the one most common signature for this issue has had 16000 crashes in the last 7 days, and about 1/4 of the top 50 crash signatures are from this issue, including #2.

The final issue is again limited to Firefox running on Linux devices. It fixes a website contrast issue that some users experienced when Dark Mode was enabled on the operating system level.

Firefox 95.0.1 will be released later today for all desktop operating systems that Mozilla supports. Users may open Menu > Help > About Firefox to run a manual check for updates once the update is released officially to update Firefox as soon as possible.

Firefox 95.0.1 fixes Microsoft.com connection issues and other bugs

Update for Windows 10 and 11 blocks default browser redirect, but there's a workaround

Wed, 15 Dec 2021 23:32:53 +0000

It seems that Microsoft has quietly backported the block, introduced a month ago in a Dev build of Windows 11, on tools like EdgeDeflector and browsers from being the true default browser in Windows 10, with the change being implemented in Windows 11 too. Starting from KB5008212, which was installed on all supported versions of Windows 10 yesterday with Patch Tuesday, it is no longer possible to select EdgeDeflector as the default MICROSOFT-EDGE protocol.

The change was also ported to the current version of Windows 11 with yesterday's Patch Tuesday with the installation of KB5008215 rendering it impossible to choose anything but Microsoft's Edge browser.

Upon installing the KB5008212 update in Windows 10, the EdgeDeflector choice is removed, and the first time you open a link from the OS level - which you can invoke by right clicking on Start and choosing Run, and then typing microsoft-edge:https://www.neowin.net -, you will be prompted to select a default browser and you can only select Microsoft's Edge browser or "Search for an app in the store".

Fortunately, there's a workaround against these anti-competitive ... and desperate measures; first discovered by gHacks, the open source tool MSEdgeRedirect uses a completely different method. Instead of relying on the (now blocked) protocol handler, it "filters and passes the command line arguments of Microsoft Edge processes into your default browser ". So, although it no longer relies on the protocol, the tradeoff is that it needs to be running in the background to work its magic. But you have to ask yourself, how badly do you want to "deflect" Microsoft's Edge browser?

All the app does is redirect links that are designed to open in Microsoft Edge. In a future version, it will also be possible to set the default search engine, since without tools like EdgeDeflector and Mozilla's Firefox, search terms from places like the Start menu opens Microsoft's Bing instead of your chosen default search provider.

As of writing, the latest version is 0.4.1.0 and upon launching the installer, Microsoft's SmartScreen pops up and blocks the app from running, but you can choose Run anyway to install it. gHacks notes that browsers and security applications may display warnings about the program: it is new and designed with AutoIt, that's the reason why it may be flagged.

Ultimately, it's up to you if you want to take back control.

Update for Windows 10 and 11 blocks default browser redirect, but there's a workaround

Microsoft releases Windows 11 Preview Build 22523 with several improvements

Wed, 15 Dec 2021 23:25:31 +0000

Microsoft today announced the release of Windows 11 Preview Build 22523 to Dev Channel Insiders. In this build, Microsoft has moved a couple of settings from Control Panel into the Settings app. This build also comes with several bug fixes. Find the full change log below.

Changes and Improvements

We have rolled out snap groups in ALT + TAB and Task View just like when you hover open apps on the taskbar, and you see them there, to all Insiders in the Dev Channel.
When File Explorer is open to This PC, the add media server and (if appropriate) remove media server option is now available when you click the “…” in the command bar.
As part of our ongoing effort to bring over settings from Control Panel into the Settings app:
- Links to Programs & Features in Control Panel will now open to Settings > Apps > Installed Apps.
- We’re moving Uninstall Updates (for cumulative updates, etc.) from Control Panel to a new page in Settings under Settings > Windows Update > Update History.

Fixes

[Taskbar]

Fixed an issue related to text input initialization that could lead to the shell (for example, Start menu and search) becoming non-responsive on ARM64 PCs.
The battery icon tooltip should no longer unexpectedly show a percent above 100.
App icons should no longer overlap the date & time on secondary monitors when there are a lot of open apps.

[File Explorer]

Did some work to address an issue that was leading to losing keyboard focus sometimes after pressing Enter when using F2 to rename OneDrive files.

[Spotlight collection]

After enabling spotlight collection, your first image (after Whitehaven Beach) should arrive a little faster now.
Added icons to the spotlight collection context menu entries.

[Input]

Improved reliability of invoking voice typing.
Fixed an issue where the border of our text input experiences (voice typing, emoji panel, etc) wasn’t drawing correctly when a contrast theme was enabled.
Mitigated an intermittent crash with the pen menu process if it was launched and then immediately closed before the launch happened.

[Widgets]

We fixed the issue causing links to not open properly when opening the widgets board using hover.

[Settings]

Settings content should no longer get truncated off the side of the window when making the Settings window small.
Settings should no longer sporadically crash when opening comboboxes, which was impacting certain settings such as the ability to set custom click actions for the pen.
Addressed an issue where the “Add a device” option in Bluetooth & Devices was silently crashing when trying to connect new Bluetooth devices.
Added a number of keywords to make the Voice Access feature appear in settings search results.

[Other]

Fixed an issue that was causing ARM64 PCs to experience bug checks citing a memory management error in the previous flight.
Fixed an issue that was causing DWM to crash (causing the screen to flash repeatedly) when trying to use certain apps.
Mitigated an issue leading to certain apps hanging when Narrator was running.
Added some missing information when examining the details in the properties of narratorquickstart.exe.
Addressed an issue where Narrator would not respond to UIA events such as notifications, live regions or text events.

NOTE: Some fixes noted here in Insider Preview builds from the active development branch may make their way into the servicing updates for the released version of Windows 11 that became generally available on October 5th.

Known issues

[General]

You may be unable to sign-in to certain apps such as Feedback Hub. Restarting your PC should correct the issue.
We’re investigating reports that some Insiders are seeing driver and firmware update failures in recent builds with the error 0x8007012a.

[Start]

In some cases, you might be unable to enter text when using Search from Start or the taskbar. If you experience the issue, press WIN + R on the keyboard to launch the Run dialog box, then close it.

[Taskbar]

The taskbar will sometimes flicker when switching input methods.
The network icon sometimes goes missing in the taskbar when it’s supposed to be there. If you encounter this, please try using Task Manager to restart explorer.exe.
If you have multiple monitors connected to your PC and right-click on the date and time on the taskbar on your primary monitor, it will crash explorer.exe

[Search]

After clicking the Search icon on the Taskbar, the Search panel may not open. If this occurs, restart the “Windows Explorer” process, and open the search panel again.

[Settings]

When viewing the list of available Wi-Fi networks, the signal strength indicators do not reflect the correct signal strength.
Settings may crash when going to System > Display > HDR.
There is a blank entry under Bluetooth & Devices.

[Spotlight collection]

If you’re using spotlight collection, the current image does not currently migrate on upgrade, which may leave you with a black desktop background after upgrading to this build. This should be addressed in the next flight.

[Widgets]

Changing the taskbar alignment can cause the Widgets button to disappear from taskbar.
Widgets board may not have the correct resolution when hovering the entry point on a secondary monitor.
The Widgets board may be temporarily blank.
When having multiple monitors, Widgets content on taskbar may get out of sync between monitors.
With the taskbar left-aligned, information such as temperature is not shown. This will be fixed in a future update.

[Voice access]

Some text authoring commands, e.g., “select that” or “delete that”, may not work as expected across Windows applications.
Recognition of some punctuation marks and symbols such as @ sign is not accurate.

Source: Microsoft

Microsoft releases Windows 11 Preview Build 22523 with several improvements

Microsoft to set Windows Terminal as default console in Windows 11

Wed, 15 Dec 2021 23:22:12 +0000

Microsoft is working on making Windows Terminal the default terminal emulator program in Windows 11 instead of the Windows Console Host, starting next year.

Windows Terminal was unveiled by Redmond at the Build developer conference in May 2019 and was officially launched two months later, in July 2019.

Unlike the current default app, the Windows Terminal app comes with support for multiple console tabs in a single window and choosing between the cmd shell, PowerShell, and Linux distro shells installed via the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL).

In May 2021, Microsoft added support for setting Windows Terminal as the default terminal app in Windows Insider builds, an option that was later ported to Windows 11.

"Over the course of 2022, we are planning to make Windows Terminal the default experience on Windows 11 devices," Windows Terminal Program Manager Kayla Cinnamon said.

"On Windows 11, you are able to set Windows Terminal as your default experience. This setting can be found in multiple places: inside the Developer settings page of Windows settings, inside Windows Terminal’s settings on the Startup page, and inside the Windows Console Host property sheet."

Windows 11 default terminal (Microsoft)

Microsoft will start rolling out the new default terminal option with the Windows Insider Program, slowly moving through release rings until the Windows Terminal becomes the default terminal app on all Windows 11 systems.

To track Windows Terminal's development process and file feature requests, you can follow the project's GitHub repository.

"We would love to have your feedback while we are working on this to help iron out all of the bugs and ensure everyone has a great experience with Terminal," Cinnamon added.

Microsoft to set Windows Terminal as default console in Windows 11

WhatsApp Beta for Windows gets updated with new emoji features

Wed, 15 Dec 2021 23:20:25 +0000

WhatsApp Beta for Windows has received an update. Taking the app to version 2.2148.3, the update introduces the ability to create different skin tone combinations for couple of emojis. Apart from that, the update includes a new document preview mode, bug fixes, and improvements. You can read the changelog below.

Changelog

New emojis with combinations – Users will now be able to submit new emojis and will be able to create different skin tone combinations for couple emojis.

New document preview mode.

Bug fixes and various improvements.

You can download the WhatsApp Beta app from the below link or go to the Microsoft Store and search for the app.

WhatsApp Beta

Developer: ‪WhatsApp Inc.‬

Price: Kostenlos

via WBI

WhatsApp Beta for Windows gets updated with new emoji features

New Intel 30.0.101.1191 driver fixes stability issues in Windows 10 and 11 DWM, and more

Wed, 15 Dec 2021 23:18:55 +0000

Intel has released its new Windows DCH graphics driver version 30.0.101.1191 earlier today. The new driver fixes a crucial stability problem in Windows' Desktop Window Manager (DWM) that Intel integrated graphics were facing. The DWM helps the Windows OS in the composition of a variety of visual effects that we see on the desktop like 3D effects and animations, high-resolution support, and more.

The driver also brings bug fixes for a few games. The full list is given below:

Playability improvements for Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary* in classic graphics mode on 11th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors with Intel® Iris® Xe graphics.
Crash or hang seen in Battlefield 2042* (DX12), FIFA 21* (DX12) on 11th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors with Intel® Iris® Xe graphics.
Minor graphic anomalies seen in Shadow of the Tomb Raider* (DX11).
Error message seen when running Rise of the Tomb Raider* (DX12) on Intel® Iris® Xe Discrete graphics.
Stability improvements with Desktop Window Manager (DWM) on 6th generation Intel® Core™ Processors through 10th generation Intel® Core™ Processors.

There are many known open issues too. They are:

Intermittent crash or hang may be seen in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War* (DX12), Call of the Duty: Vanguard* (DX12), Far Cry 6* (DX12), CS: GO* (while changing display mode between full screen and windowed), The Sims 4* (hot plug or unplug of external display).
Minor graphic anomalies may be observed in Baldur’s Gate 3* (Vulkan), Dark Souls 3* (DX11), Far Cry 6* (DX12), Halo Infinite* (DX12), Metro Exodus* (DX12), Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord* (DX11), Red Dead Redemption 2* (Vulkan), The Surge 2* (Vulkan), Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint* (DX11).
“Update driver” pop-up error may be seen while launching Battlefield 1* after upgrading from 30.0.100.9955 or older drivers due to the driver version roll-over.
[11th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors with Intel® Iris® Xe graphics]: Intermittent crash or hang may be seen in ANVIL* (DX12), Breathedge* (DX11), Detroit: Become Human* (Vulkan), Microsoft Flight Simulator* (during installation), NBA 2K21* (DX12) (when switching resolution from 1920 x 1080 to 1600 x 900 and 1280 x 720), The Ascent.
[11th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors with Intel® Iris® Xe graphics]: Minor graphic anomalies may be seen in Adobe Premiere Pro 2020 during video playback, Call of the Duty: Vanguard* (DX12), Call of the Sea* (DX11), Crysis Remastered* (DX11), Elex* (DX11), Forza horizon 5* (DX12), Forza Horizon 4* (DX12), Just Cause
4*(DX11), Rage 2* (Vulkan), Red Dead Redemption 2* (DX12), The Ascent (DX11).
[Intel® Iris® Xe Discrete graphics]: Intermittent crash or hang may be seen in Conan Exiles* (Low End Laptop Mode” in game settings), Forza Horizon 4* (DX12), Forza Motorsport 6* (DX12), Spyro: Reignited Trilogy*(DX11).
[Intel® Iris® Xe Discrete graphics]: Minor graphic anomalies may be observed in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla* (DX12), Code Vein*(DX11), Death Stranding* (DX12), Microsoft Flight Simulator*(DX11), GRID 2019* (DX12).
[11th and 12th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors]: Display is getting blanked out with 4K@60hz resolution connected via dock.
[12th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors with Intel® UHD graphics]: Intermittent crash or hang may be seen in Marvel’s Avengers* (DX12), Metro Exodus* (DX12) (after changing quality), Shadow of the Tomb Raider* (DX12), The Sims 4* (when loading save file).
[12th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors with Intel® UHD graphics]: Minor graphic anomalies may be observed in Gears 5* (DX12), Genshin Impact*(DX11), Ring of Elysium* (DX12).
[12th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors with Intel® UHD graphics]: Blank screen observed on 8k TV Monitor after setting to clone mode with 4k display
Intermittent crash or hang may be seen in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy* on 11th Generation Intel® Core™ Processors with Intel® Iris® Xe graphics (under investigation).

The new 30.0.101.1191 Intel graphics driver is compatible with all Intel CPUs 6th gen and up. Iris Xe discrete graphics is also supported. In terms of OS compatibility, the driver supports Windows 10 version 1809 and newer. To download the driver, head over to Intel's official display driver page via this link.

In case you are looking for Radeon Vega M driver for Kaby Lake G, check out this article instead.

New Intel 30.0.101.1191 driver fixes stability issues in Windows 10 and 11 DWM, and more

Microsoft releases Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 8.1 and Windows 7

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Microsoft has released the latest Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 8.1 (KB5008263) and Windows 7 (KB5008244). Both updates fix more or less the same problems but both include known issues. Without further ado, here’s what’s new.

Windows 8.1/Windows Server 2012 R2

Improvements and fixes

This security update includes improvements and fixes that were a part of update KB5007247 (released November 9, 2021) and addresses the following issue:
Update to support the cancellation of daylight savings time (DST) for 2021 for the Republic of Fiji.
Addresses a known issue that causes error codes 0x000006e4, 0x0000007c, or 0x00000709 when connecting to a remote printer that is shared on a Windows print server.
Addresses a known issue that might prevent apps, such as Kaspersky apps, from opening after you attempt to repair or update the apps using the Microsoft Installer (MSI).

Known issues in this update

Symptom

Workaround

Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, “STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)”. This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege.

Do one of the following:

Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege.

Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership.

Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release.

Windows 7/Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1

Improvements and fixes

This security update includes improvements and fixes that were a part of update KB5007236 (released November 9, 2021) and addresses the following issue:
Update to support the cancellation of daylight savings time (DST) for 2021 for the Republic of Fiji.
Addresses a known issue that causes error codes 0x000006e4, 0x0000007c, or 0x00000709 when connecting to a remote printer that is shared on a Windows print server.
Addresses a known issue that might prevent apps, such as Kaspersky apps, from opening after you attempt to repair or update the apps using the Microsoft Installer (MSI).

Known issues in this update

Symptom

Workaround

After installing this update and restarting your device, you might receive the error, "Failure to configure Windows updates. Reverting Changes. Do not turn off your computer", and the update might show as Failed in Update History.

This is expected in the following circumstances:

If you are installing this update on a device that is running an edition that is not supported for ESU. For a complete list of which editions are supported, see KB4497181.

If you do not have an ESU MAK add-on key installed and activated.

If you have purchased an ESU key and have encountered this issue, please verify you have applied all prerequisites and that your key is activated. For information on activation, please see this blog post. For information on the prerequisites, see the How to get this update section of this article.

Certain operations, such as rename, that you perform on files or folders that are on a Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) may fail with the error, "STATUS_BAD_IMPERSONATION_LEVEL (0xC00000A5)". This occurs when you perform the operation on a CSV owner node from a process that doesn’t have administrator privilege.

Do one of the following:

Perform the operation from a process that has administrator privilege.

Perform the operation from a node that doesn’t have CSV ownership.

Microsoft is working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release.

Most users will be able to install these updates via the Windows Update tool automatically, however, you can download KB5008263 and KB5008244 manually from the Microsoft Update Catalog.

Microsoft releases Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 8.1 and Windows 7

Windows 11 KB5008215 update released with application, VPN fixes

Tue, 14 Dec 2021 21:45:38 +0000

Microsoft has released the Windows 11 KB5008215 cumulative update to fix security vulnerabilities and bugs introduced in previous versions.

KB5008215 is a mandatory cumulative update containing security updates, performance improvements, and bug fixes for Windows 11 21H2.

You can install this update by going to Start > Settings > Windows Update and clicking on 'Check for Updates.'

KB5008215 update offered in Windows Update

Windows 11 users can also manually download and install the KB5008215 update from the Microsoft Update Catalog.

What's new in the Windows 11 KB5008215 update

After installing the KB5008215 update, Windows 11 will change its build number to 22000.376.

Strangely, Microsoft is very quiet regarding what is fixed in the Windows 11 KB5008215 update.

"This update contains miscellaneous security improvements to internal OS functionality. No additional issues were documented for this release," reads the KB5008215 support bulletin.

However, the preview update released last month included the following fixes, which are likely in this update.

We fixed a known issue that might prevent apps, such as Kaspersky apps, from opening after you attempt to repair or update the apps using the Microsoft Installer (MSI).
We fixed an issue that prevents a virtual private network (VPN) tunnel from connecting. The error message is, “The Modem (or other connecting device) is already in use or not configured properly”.

Microsoft also states that they made changes to the servicing stack to resolve bugs or issues preventing Windows updates from properly being installed.

Windows 11 KB5008215 update released with application, VPN fixes

Windows 10 KB5008212 & KB5008206 updates released

Tue, 14 Dec 2021 21:41:20 +0000

December 2021 Patch Tuesday is rolling out to devices on Windows 10 version 2004, version 20H2, version 21H1 and version 21H2. As per the official release notes, Microsoft has published two cumulative updates - KB5008212 (newer versions) and KB5008206 (older versions).

Like the November release, this month's security updates include security fixes for November 2021 Update, May 2021 Update, October 2020 Update (version 20H2), and May 2020 Update (version 2004). It's also the last security update for version 2004, which has been retired today.

The update is now rolling out via Windows Update, WSUS, and the Microsoft Update Catalog with numerous bug fixes and performance enhancements.

Like every Patch Tuesday, you can check for and install new updates by going to Settings, clicking on Windows Update, and selecting 'Check for Updates' to install the updates.

What's new in the latest cumulative update for Windows 10

Microsoft has fixed security and non-security bugs with the December update. For instance, a bug that could affect the rendering of variable fonts has been fixed. Likewise, another bug has been fixed where the Settings page closes unexpectedly close after you uninstall a font. Here's a list of other fixes:

Updates an issue that might cause the 32-bit version of Microsoft Excel to stop working on certain devices when you export to PDF.
Updates an issue that displays letters or characters at the wrong angle when you use the Meiryo UI font and other vertical fonts. These fonts are frequently used in Japan, China, or other countries in Asia.
Updates an issue that causes Internet Explorer to stop working when using the Input Method Editor (IME) to insert elements.
Updates an issue that causes the Settings page to unexpectedly close after you uninstall a font.
Updates an issue that affects your ability to rename a file using folder view in File Explorer when you use the new Japanese IME.
Updates an issue that turns off screen capture and recording functionalities on the Windows Game Bar after a service failure.
Updates an issue that prevents the applications that you use often from appearing on the Start menu as they should.
Updates an issue that causes Internet Explorer to stop working.

Windows 10 KB5008212 & KB5008206 updates released

How to display CPU, GPU and RAM usage natively on Windows 11

Mon, 13 Dec 2021 21:46:04 +0000

If you like to keep a close eye on the CPU, GPU and RAM usage of devices running Windows 11, you may find the following native option useful. Keeping an eye on the performance of the device can be useful, for instance when you are troubleshooting issues that you are experiencing.

Windows includes a native option to display certain usage metrics, but most users have not heard of the option probable. Windows 10 and 11 systems come with the Xbox Game Bar application installed.

Use the keyboard shortcut Windows-G to display its overlay. Select performance and you see the device's CPU, GPU and RAM usage in realtime on the screen. While that is handy already, it is only visible on the screen temporarily. The overlay is closed automatically when you click elsewhere or switch to other applications or programs.

There is however an option to pin certain widgets so that they become visible all the time. All it takes for that is to activate the pin icon of the panel, in this case of the performance panel that displays CPU, GPU and RAM readings.

The panel remains visible on the screen in that case, so that you see the performance stats in realtime all the time.

Some options are available to change the display. Open the Xbox Game Bar app using the shortcut again and select the preferences icon in the title of the widget that you want to display all the time.

You may use the preferences to change the position of the graph, to hide certain metrics that you don't require, and to change the accent color and transparency.

Note that you can hide the graph in the widget by hovering over it and clicking on the up and down arrow icon that is displayed. The option is available while the rest of the Xbox Game Bar app is not visible. Note that you can't move the widget around when the app is minimized.

The widget is displayed for the duration of the session only. You need to use the keyboard shortcut Windows-G and select Performance in each new session to restore the display of the widget on the screen.

Our colleagues over at Deskmodder note that you can place the widget on the Windows taskbar using the method.

Closing Words

The performance widget of the Xbox Game Bar application is handy in certain cases. Maybe you want to check on the system's RAM or CPU usage, or check the "hunger" of specific games or applications.

How to display CPU, GPU and RAM usage natively on Windows 11

Vivaldi CEO criticizes Microsoft Edge for anti-competitive practices

Mon, 13 Dec 2021 21:43:43 +0000

In 2013, the European Union slapped a massive $731 Million fine on Microsoft for failing to offer users a choice to set a default browser. 8 years have passed since then, has the Redmond company learned its lesson? Vivaldi's CEO/Co-founder Jón von Tetzchner, says no.

Tetzchner founded Opera browser along with Geir Ivarsøy in the mid-90s, before leaving the company in 2011. He founded Vivaldi Technologies in 2013, though the browser they created was released a couple of years later.

Around the same timeframe, in 2015, Microsoft unveiled Edge, built with the in-house Chakra core engine, as the new default browser in Windows 10. More importantly, this was the first step in replacing/retiring the legacy Internet Explorer.

What annoyed users is that Windows 10 complicated the way to set a different browser as the default handler. You need to jump through a couple of hoops in the Settings app, before selecting the application of your choice. This move was heavily criticized, notably by Mozilla. Fast-forward to 2021, and the same applies to Windows 11, though the new Edge is based on the Blink engine, from the Chromium open source project. For reference, Vivaldi, Opera also use the same engine.

Microsoft is pushing Edge in multiple ways. It is the company's operating system and browser, technically they can advertise whatever they want, which is precisely what they are doing. Whether it is competitively ethical, is the matter in question.

Jón von Tetzchner shared a screenshot, taken from his new laptop, on Vivaldi's blog. The image shows a search query for the word Vivaldi on Microsoft's Search Engine, Bing. The top result displayed a controversial message which says, "There is no need to download a new web browser. Microsoft recommends using Microsoft Edge for a fast, secure and modern web experience....."

When I saw that image, I thought, "No way that is real, it can't be". I was wrong, here is a screenshot from my own laptop, with the same message. I should mention that I have Firefox has my default browser, and not Edge.

That's not something anyone would like to see, least of all if you're a CEO of a rival browser maker, so Tetzchner getting upset about this is understandable. He goes on to criticize Microsoft Edge for anti-competitive practices including the complicated process of switching the browser, during which Windows 10 again asks you not to switch browsers.

Another screenshot shows Microsoft Edge offering the user to customize their experience, and the recommended settings sets Edge as the default browser. This is a screen I have seen many times, on new installs of Windows.

Now, of course you could ask. Why would you use Edge if you had set Vivaldi as the default browser. That is a good question, but Windows 10 and 11 are a step ahead. If you use the Start menu for online searches, and click on a web result, the operating system will redirect that link to open in Microsoft Edge, and not in your default browser. There are ways to bypass this, but not without the help of third-party software.

So, if you are not a tech-savvy user who switched to a different browser, but used search from Start, opened the link, and accepted Edge's recommended settings, it will be set as your default browser.

To be fair to Vivaldi, I don't believe Microsoft is targeting the browser. This message also appears when you search for Chrome and Firefox. If you don't see the message, keep the tab in focus, exit the browser, and reopen Edge. When it loads the page, you will see the prompt appear for a few seconds before disappearing.

From a browser maker's perspective, suggestions like these are literally going to steal users away from your browser. So the complaints are fair, Microsoft should let users make the choice on their own.

Tetzchner slammed Microsoft's moves as desperate, and called out the Microsoft Rewards program as a way to pay users to use the browser. Speaking of which, Brave Rewards does a similar thing, it's got nothing to do with Microsoft, but I want to point out the trend of incentivizing users to stick with the browser.

While some readers may view the tone of Tetzchner post as a rant, as a Firefox user I agree with his points. Microsoft is trying to turn the browser market into a monopoly. It is a numbers game between Chrome and Edge the two players hold the majority of the browser shares, while the likes of Firefox, Vivaldi, Opera and Brave are dwindling in the competitive industry.

Of these, Mozilla is the only browser brand to circumvent Microsoft's shenanigans, to make it easy for Firefox users to set it as their default browser. That said, the latest Insider Preview builds of Windows 11 do make it a tad easier to switch to a different web browser. It's an improvement, but it's still not as convenient as it used to be prior to Windows 10.

Tetzchner has asked users in the US or EU, to write to or call representatives to investigate Microsoft related to Edge's anti-competitive. I'm not sure if this will happen, it didn't with Windows 10. People have gotten used to it for 6 years, but things have been getting out of hand recently.

Microsoft Edge's recent antics

Ars Technica's article focused on how Microsoft Edge started warning users of the risk of downloading Google Chrome. Really, Microsoft? I never support Google, but even I think this is unfair and dumb. The Verge reported that Edge was displaying some messages mocking Chrome.

Microsoft Edge runs on the same technology as Chrome, with the added trust of Microsoft.
I hate saving money,' said no one ever. Microsoft Edge is the best browser for online shopping.
That browser is so 2008! Do you know what's new? Microsoft Edge.

The irony in that last one is pure gold. That said, Google isn't any better in my opinion, its open-source mobile operating system, Android, ships with a dozen or so of the search giant's apps including Google Chrome, Gmail, YouTube, Maps, Calendar, etc. A few of these are useful, but a good chunk of it is bloatware, which you can disable but not uninstall permanently. And for people who value their privacy or don't use Google services or prefer other apps/services, all of it is unwanted weight used by the system storage. Apple's iOS is similar in this regard, but I don't think its users expect anything different from the Cupertino company. Android is the more open, customizable OS that lets you side-load apps.

Vivaldi CEO criticizes Microsoft Edge for anti-competitive practices

Here is how to enable the Windows 11 Spotlight collection feature

Sun, 12 Dec 2021 21:31:08 +0000

Windows spotlight is a feature that automatically downloads and displays Bing pictures on your lock screen. The feature is available on both Windows 11 and Windows 10. But in Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22518, the spotlight feature has gotten better as it now takes care of your desktop backgrounds.

Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22518 has a new feature called Spotlight collection that changes your desktop background automatically every day. To put it simply, Windows 11 will now automatically change both the lock screen and background of your PC.

Microsoft is currently testing the Spotlight collection feature with Windows 11 Insider. However, Insiders will have to have the Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22518 or higher installed on their PCs.

If you are running the Windows 11 Build 22518 or higher, you can enable the feature by following a few simple steps.

How to enable Windows 11 Spotlight collection feature

Open the Settings app
Go to Personalization
Choose Background
Click on the “Personalize your background” dropdown
Select Spotlight Collection

Once you enable the feature, you’ll see a new background and will also notice a new Spotlight icon on the top right side of the screen. Clicking on the icon will tell you more about the background.

Here is how to enable the Windows 11 Spotlight collection feature

Telegram Desktop app gets updated to version 3.3 with new Creator options

Sun, 12 Dec 2021 21:29:28 +0000

Telegram Desktop has received an update on Windows 10 and 11, taking it to version 3.3.

The update appears to be aimed at giving creators greater control over their channels and making it easier to monetize their presence.

The update also includes other changes, about which you can read them below.

Telegram update Changelog

Content creators can limit the ability to save media, take screenshots, and forward messages from their groups and channels.
Delete messages in private chats based on a specific date or time period.
Post as one of your channels in public groups and channel comments.
When you request access to a community and its admin or bot contacts you with a message, you’ll see which chat it’s from at the top of the chat.
Admin bots can now ask users to complete actions before they are allowed to join – such as accepting community rules, passing a test, or making a donation to content creators.

You can download and install the Telegram Desktop on your Windows 10 PC from the below link, or you can head over to Microsoft Store and search for the app.

Telegram Desktop

Developer: ‪Telegram Messenger LLP‬

Price: Kostenlos

via WBI

Telegram Desktop app gets updated to version 3.3 with new Creator options