News: Software News

A closer look at Windows 11’s recent changes

Sun, 25 Jul 2021 22:40:41 +0000

A closer look at Windows 11’s recent changes

Windows 11 was officially announced last month with a redesigned Start, taskbar and Action Center experience. At the moment, Windows 11 is available to testers in the Dev Channel of the Insider program.

Microsoft is still on Windows 11 and the company has introduced new features and improvements with the latest cumulative updates. In addition to big improvements, we're also expecting nifty improvements for the context menu, taskbar, and other areas of Windows 11.

Windows Update assistance

Microsoft is testing a new feature that would calculate and display the estimated installation time of an update. This feature is now available for everyone and it will appear when a new cumulative or feature update is ready to be installed in Windows Update.

However, this feature doesn't seem to be working properly as Windows Update always displays a five-minute estimate.

Search box

The Start menu is getting a new search box to make it easier to find your apps, documents, pictures and more. At the moment, the search bar is merely a shortcut and it will simply open the Windows Search panel

Taskbar

In the latest builds, Microsoft is working on a new modern design for the hidden icons flyout which is available on the lower right of the Taskbar

Similarly, the taskbar can now be enabled across multiple displays.

Microsoft is testing a new taskbar design that will tell you when an app requires attention. The app icons will automatically flash on the Taskbar, but the flash effect would be subtle. Microsoft says these changes will match the look and feel of Windows 11, and the focus is on reducing the impact of unwarranted distractions.

Context menu

Microsoft is refreshing the right-click menu within the operating system to reduce clutter and enable Fluent Design acrylic effect. With Windows 11, Microsoft is bringing refinements to contextual file operations in the right-click context menu.

Windows 11 context menu comes with these improvements:

Common commands are placed right next to where the menu is invoked.
“Open” and “Open with” are grouped together.
Apps extend the menu with IExplorerCommand + app identity. Unpackaged Win32 apps can use Sparse Manifests. IExplorerCommand support extends back to Windows 7.
App extensions are grouped together below Shell verbs.
Cloud Files provider apps are placed next to the Shell commands to hydrate or dehydrate the file.
Apps with more than 1 verb are grouped into a flyout with app attribution.
“Show more options” loads the Windows 10 context menu as-is for access to low-use Shell verbs and apps still working on porting over. No commands have been removed entirely.
Shift-F10 or the keyboard menu key will also load the Windows 10 context menu.

Microsoft Teams integration

Microsoft has now enabled the Microsoft Teams chatting feature in the Windows Taskbar. This feature is based on Microsoft Teams WebView and it will simply allow users to launch Teams chat or meetings directly from the taskbar.

Teams chat app

As shown in the above screenshot, you’ll see your most recent individual and group conversations. At the moment, you can tap on the Chat icon in the Taskbar to reach out to your contacts and friends.

It can automatically sync existing contacts via Skype or Outlook and you can also add contacts via an email address or phone number. You can generate an invite link to easily invite others to a group chat or video call.

Microsoft is still working on Windows 11 and we'll see more improvements in the coming builds.

A closer look at Windows 11’s recent changes

Microsoft Edge 92 won't autoplay all media anymore by default

Sun, 25 Jul 2021 22:38:20 +0000

Microsoft Edge 92 won't autoplay all media anymore by default

Microsoft released a new stable version of its Edge web browser, Microsoft Edge 92, earlier this week. Edge 92 is a big update that introduces lots of new features for home users and Enterprise customers.

One of the changes of Edge 92 impacts autoplay content on the web. Microsoft Edge, up until now, allowed all sites to autoplay content by default. Starting in Edge 92, that is no longer the case.

Microsoft flipped the media autoplay setting to limited instead. Limited allows some content to be played automatically, but it requires that users have interacted with the site previously. If you are a regular on YouTube, YouTube videos continue to autoplay. If you visit a site for the first time, content won't autoplay as you never interacted with the site before.

Configuring Media Autoplay in Microsoft Edge

Microsoft Edge supports three states for media autoplay:

Allow -- All media will play automatically. Refresh the page to see changes to this setting.
Limit -- Media will play depending on how you've visited the page and whether you interacted with media in the past. Refresh the page to see changes to this setting.
Block -- Media will be blocked when navigating between different sites. Refresh the page to see changes to this setting.

Allow was the default in Edge 91 and earlier, Limit is the new default from Edge 92 on.

Block is not displayed by default. It is the strictest setting, as it will block all media from playing automatically regardless of whether you have interacted with the site previously.

Here is how you add Block as an option:

Load edge://flags/#edge-autoplay-user-setting-block-option in the Microsoft Edge address bar.
Set the experimental flag to Enabled.
Restart Microsoft Edge.

The block option experiment has been available for quite some time. We reviewed it back in mid-2020 already. See How to block autoplaying videos in the new Microsoft Edge web browser.

How to control media autoplay in Edge

Load edge://settings/content/mediaAutoplay in the browser's address bar.
Activate the menu next to "Control if audio and video play automatically on sites".
1. Set it to Allow to allow all autoplay.
2. Set it to Block to block all autoplay.
3. Set it to Limit to allow autoplay on sites you've been to before.

Microsoft Edge honors the new autoplay setting right away.

Autoplay exceptions for sites

If you set the media autoplay setting to limit or block, but have a site that you want media to autoplay on, you may use the built-in allow list to do so.

Load the main autoplay preference page again: edge://settings/content/mediaAutoplay
Click on the "add" button to add a site to the allow list
Type or copy its address without protocol, e.g. [*.]example.com to allow audio and video autoplay on example.com and all of the subdomains of the site.
Select "add" to add the site to the list of exclusions.

Microsoft Edge 92 won't autoplay all media anymore by default

Hands-on with the new Microsoft Teams experience for Windows 11

Sun, 25 Jul 2021 22:34:51 +0000

Hands-on with the new Microsoft Teams experience for Windows 11

Earlier this week, Microsoft released another Windows 11 build to Windows Insiders in the Dev Preview ring. The new build brought improvements to the UI as well as the new Microsoft Teams integration. Microsoft announced the Teams integration at the Windows 11 launch event last month. With the feature now rolling out to Windows Insiders, we decided to take a closer look at the new Teams integration for Windows 11.

First time setup

After you install the new Windows 11 build, you will see a Teams icon on the taskbar. Clicking on the option will open Team for the first-time setup. The setup is pretty simple.

Microsoft allows you to use your regular MSA account for personal use. You can also use your work or school account if you have one and want it easily accessible.

Once you select the account, Microsoft will ask you to verify ownership (if you have two-factor authentication) as well as add a phone number. This will add as a secondary username and also allow others to find you on Teams.

Lastly, Microsoft will confirm the settings and ask you if you want to use your existing Outlook or Skype contact list to find people on Microsoft Teams. One thing to note here is that if you have used Windows Phone in the past or you use Outlook to sync your contacts then you will see your address book on Teams (provided you selected the sync Outlook contact list on the last step).

Using the app

The experience is same more or less. However, with a personal Teams account, users can now use it as way to stay connected to their loved ones. Moreover, you can now enter an email address to send a Teams message to them.

This works in two parts: if the person already uses Teams, they will get a general chat notification. However, if the person you are messaging does not use Teams, they will get an email inviting them to join Teams and continue the chat.

One thing that I personally believe can enhance the Teams experience is the support for SMS. While you can message people using phone numbers, they have to be in your contacts. Unfortunately, you can’t directly start a conversation with someone if they are not in your contacts. This is something that Microsoft can add in the future to allow users to start conversations by just entering the phone number of the person they want to talk to and if the person is not on Teams, they will get an invite to join the app.

However, there is one way to invite others to a text chain and that is via the 'invite using link' option. As the name suggests, the option generates a custom link that can be shared with others to allow them to join a conversation.

Lastly, Microsoft is also expected to merge the Meet Now feature into Teams in the feature. It will further enhance the user experience by allowing users to make audio and video calls using Microsoft Teams. Currently, the feature exists just as a placeholder button, but the company is expected to add it before Windows 11 is shipped as an update to existing Windows users.

Hands-on with the new Microsoft Teams experience for Windows 11

Microsoft 365 drops support for Internet Explorer 11 in August

Sun, 25 Jul 2021 22:32:02 +0000

Microsoft 365 drops support for Internet Explorer 11 in August

Microsoft has reminded customers that Microsoft 365 apps and services will drop support for the legacy Internet Explorer 11 (IE11) web browser next month, on August 17, 2021.

After the end of support is reached, those still trying to connect to Microsoft 365 may face degraded user experience or connection failures.

"These apps and services will phase out over weeks and months to ensure a smooth end of support, with each app and service phasing out on independent schedules," the Microsoft 365 team said earlier this week.

According to Microsoft, users experiencing issues when attempting to access Microsoft 365 apps or services after August 17 will not be offered support.

No new features will be released, and the daily usage experience will most likely get steadily worse until the M365 apps and services slowly phase out.

Additionally, using the new Microsoft Edge's Internet Explorer mode will not help extend IE11 access to Microsoft 365 products beyond the end of support.

Image: Microsoft

This is how the M365 application experience will look like for IE11 users starting with August 17:

Outlook Web App: Users logging in with AAD accounts will still receive the full OWA experience but will not receive new features beginning August 17, 2021, while users logging in with Microsoft Accounts (MSA) will be redirected to the Outlook Web App Light experience.
Open with Explorer/View in File Explorer (SharePoint): We understand that some customers may continue to use Open with Explorer and View in File Explorer (only accessible in IE11) to access document libraries. To avoid disruption, these customers will be able to use these features for now when they go to a document library in IE11. These features remain in maintenance mode and aren't receiving further development. We encourage all customers to move to a modern browser and OneDrive sync for a better user experience and easier access to files. For more information on how to prepare your SharePoint environment for end of support on IE11, please read this Docs article.
All other apps and services will phase out over weeks and months to ensure a smooth end of support with each app and service phasing out on independent schedules.

IE11 to reach EOS on some Windows 10 versions next year

This reminder comes after Microsoft first announced plans to ditch support for the Microsoft Edge Legacy and Internet Explorer 11 web browsers in Windows 10 and Microsoft 365.

Following that initial announcement, Microsoft Teams had already dropped support for Internet Explorer 11 on November 30, 2020.

Two months ago, Redmond also revealed that it would also retire the legacy browser on some Windows 10 versions on June 15, 2022, replacing it with the new Chromium-based Microsoft Edge.

After being retired on systems running Windows 10 client SKUs (version 20H2 and later) and Windows 10 IoT (version 20H2 and later), the Internet Explorer desktop app will be disabled, automatically redirecting users to Microsoft Edge when launched.

Enterprise organizations depending on legacy Internet Explorer-based websites and apps for critical processes can still use them with Microsoft Edge's IE mode (more info available in this Getting Started guide.)

In related news, WordPress, the most popular blogging platform, also announced in March 2021 that it is planning to drop support for Internet Explorer 11 as the browser's usage has already dipped below 1%.

Microsoft 365 drops support for Internet Explorer 11 in August

Microsoft’s fix for Windows 10 gaming issues is coming soon

Sat, 24 Jul 2021 22:38:07 +0000

Microsoft’s fix for Windows 10 gaming issues is coming soon

With the release of Windows 10's March 2021 updates and subsequent updates, some users have been experiencing performance issues when playing games. These gaming issues include decreased frame rate, stuttering in certain games, and flickering textures.

The problem was widely reported in March and NVIDIA had even recommended that users should remove the recent Windows 10 updates to resolve these issues in response.

In April, a server-side emergency patch was immediately issued by Microsoft in response to user complaints and the same fix is now included in July 2021 patch for Windows 10 version 21H1, 20H2, and version 2004. However, some users are still having issues, suggesting that the patch was incomplete.

Thankfully, Microsoft is testing another fix. In release notes of beta build 19043.1147, Microsoft has confirmed that it's working on a fix for an issue that prevents power plans and game mode from working, causing lower FPS and reduced performance for gamers.

"We fixed an issue that prevents power plans and Game Mode from working as expected. This results in lower frame rates and reduced performance while gaming," the company noted in the changelog.

In addition to gaming fix, Microsoft is also fixing an issue that causes the File Explorer window to lose focus when you are mapping a network drive.

These bug fixes will be released in the production channel as part of the upcoming optional update and August 2021 Patch Tuesday.

Microsoft’s fix for Windows 10 gaming issues is coming soon

Windows July update breaks printing and scanning when using smart-cards

Sat, 24 Jul 2021 22:36:01 +0000

Windows July update breaks printing and scanning when using smart-cards

Microsoft seems to be having to deal with issues related to printers for a while now. This year alone, starting with the March update that caused the blue screen of death (BSOD) when trying to print, and more recently with the PrintNightmare print spooler service vulnerability. And Microsoft's troubles aren't stopping there.

Today, the firm has confirmed that its recent July security update version KB5004237, which was released on July 13, is causing problems when printing on certain systems when trying to utilize smart cards for user authentication. This time, alongside printing problems, scanning on such systems may also not work.

According to the Redmond firm, the KB5004237 July 13 cumulative update fixed printing problems on such printers that were connected via USB. However, it seems the update has also introduced a new bug as a result of the changes made for dealing with the CVE-2021-33764 vulnerability. This is causing the new issue on Domain Controller servers which act as gatekeepers responsible for dealing with such authentication requests.

It has been noted however that while working with smart cards may fail, username and password authentication should work without issue. Here's how Microsoft has described the problem:

After installing updates released July 13, 2021 on domain controllers (DCs) in your environment, printers, scanners, and multifunction devices which are not compliant with section 3.2.1 of RFC 4556 spec, might fail to print when using smart-card (PIV) authentication.

The problem has been detailed a bit more under KB5005408 which explains that client printers and scanners must be compliant with either of the following:

Use Diffie-Hellman for key-exchange during PKINIT Kerberos authentication (preferred).

Both support and notify the KDC of their support for des-ede3-cbc ("triple DES”).

Here, KDC refers to a Key Distribution Center.

The Windows platforms affected by this issue are:

Client: Windows 10, version 21H1; Windows 10, version 20H2; Windows 10, version 2004; Windows 10, version 1909; Windows 10, version 1809; Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2019; Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2016; Windows 10, version 1607; Windows 10 Enterprise 2015 LTSB; Windows 8.1; Windows 7 SP1
Server: Windows Server, version 20H2; Windows Server, version 2004; Windows Server, version 1909; Windows Server, version 1809; Windows Server 2019; Windows Server 2016; Windows Server 2012 R2; Windows Server 2012; Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1; Windows Server 2008 SP2

Microsoft has said that it's investigating the issue and will provide a temporary workaround. For people having problems, the company has asked to update the necessary drivers and firmware and to consult with the device manufacturers when needed. You may find more details about the problem here on the company's official page.

Windows July update breaks printing and scanning when using smart-cards

New Windows Office Insider Preview Build 14315.20008 now available for Beta Channel subscribers

Sat, 24 Jul 2021 07:06:54 +0000

New Windows Office Insider Preview Build 14315.20008 now available for Beta Channel subscribers

Microsoft has released a new Office Insider Preview Build 14315.20008 for Windows users registered in the Beta Channel of the Office Insider program. The new Office build brings no new features but offers bug fixes for Word, Outlook, and PowerPoint. You can read the full official changelog below.

Changelog

Word

Notable fixes

We fixed an issue where the application unexpectedly closed when inserting a link in a comment.

Outlook

Notable fixes

We fixed an issue where a user was unable to open or preview emails.

PowerPoint

Notable fixes

We fixed an issue where an exception caused an unexpected close of the application.

To update to the latest Microsoft Office Insider Preview Build, open any Office program and go to File> Account> Update Options> Update Now.

New Windows Office Insider Preview Build 14315.20008 now available for Beta Channel subscribers

The latest Windows 11 Insider Preview Build is breaking Windows Hello, here is the fix

Sat, 24 Jul 2021 05:09:49 +0000

The latest Windows 11 Insider Preview Build is breaking Windows Hello, here is the fix

Many Windows 11 Insiders are running into a Windows Hello “Something went wrong” error after installing the latest preview build 22000.100.

This was a known issue Microsoft was aware of prior to the release of the build, with Microsoft saying:

Windows Hello (Face) may show an error saying “Something went wrong” when attempting to sign in after upgrading.

There are two workarounds. One is simply to use your PIN, until the next build fixes the issue.

The other is to uninstall the Windows Hello biometric driver and let Microsoft install a fresh version that works better.

To do this:

Open Device Manager
Navigate to “Biometric devices”
Right-click on and choose to Uninstall “Windows Hello Face Software Device”
Reboot your PC.

Your PC should automatically install a new driver which should fix the issue.

The latest Windows 11 Insider Preview Build is breaking Windows Hello, here is the fix

Microsoft backtracks on Windows 11 using dark mode by default

Fri, 23 Jul 2021 21:07:08 +0000

Microsoft backtracks on Windows 11 using dark mode by default

During the Inspire event, Microsoft announced that it would ship commercial Windows 11 SKUs in dark mode by default to support remote work. A week later, the company is backtracking on this decision.

Speaking at Inspire event, Melissa Grant, Director of Windows Enterprise Marketing, explained that dark mode would be the default standard for commercial Windows 11 because users are spending "much more time staring at bright screens".

"Since we're spending so much more time staring at bright screens, not just for endless email, but also countless meetings, plus keeping up with our personal lives, to give your eyes a rest we're going to ship all of the Windows 11 commercial SKU in that IT favourite - beautiful dark mode by default. Of course, light mode is available if that's your preference." -Melissa Grant

In a statement to BleepingComputer, a Microsoft spokesperson clarified that the above information was inaccurately shared during the Inspire event. The company told us that Windows 11 SKUs will continue to default to light mode, but PC manufacturers can ship devices with dark mode if they want to.

"We are aware that inaccurate information about Windows 11 shipping in dark mode on by default to all commercial SKUs was recently shared and apologize for the confusion," Microsoft told BleepingComputer.

"To clarify, Microsoft will ship Windows 11 SKUs in light mode on by default. However, OEMs can choose to ship their devices in dark mode and customers will have the choice to easily customize their experience in Settings to dark mode or light mode."

"Of course, users can always switch between dark or light mode from Windows Settings and Microsoft has also confirmed that it will "continue listening to customer feedback to ensure Windows 11 meets customers’ needs."

It is unclear why Microsoft backtracked on their decision, but based on their statement, it is likely due to negative customer feedback regarding the change.

Microsoft backtracks on Windows 11 using dark mode by default

Apologetic Audacity rewrites privacy policy after 'significant lapse in communication'

Fri, 23 Jul 2021 20:43:29 +0000

Apologetic Audacity rewrites privacy policy after 'significant lapse in communication'

Of course kids are allowed. Whatever gave you the impression they weren't?

Open-source audio editor Audacity this week posted an apology on GitHub in response to the entirely predictable furore over the platform's privacy policy.

An updated privacy policy accompanied the apology, in which the team insisted it had just been misunderstood, and that a look at the source would have shown its intentions.

"We are deeply sorry for the significant lapse in communication caused by the original privacy policy document," it said. The fact that it didn't regret the actual document itself seemed to alarm a good many users.

The update removes phrasing that "discourages children under 13 years old from using Audacity." The wording has also been updated to emphasise that no additional data is being collected for law enforcement purposes and that no personally identifiable information is being stored.

We'd wondered if the age restriction was perhaps related to consent for data collection and, indeed, the company said: "After extensive further consultation with our lawyers, we have determined that this provision is unnecessary given the actual mechanics of data transmission and storage. The provision had been included out of an abundance of caution, but in the end turned out not to be required."

It sounds like somebody got a bit too handsy with the copy and paste buttons, popped in some boilerplate text and sent it out into the wild world of GitHub without first considering the implications. Coming so soon after the telemetry fiasco, one would have hoped that Audacity's new owner, Muse Group, might have paused before poking an already angry open-source bear.

Alas, it seems not. The company said: "We are now taking steps to improve our processes for releasing any information related to Audacity in the future to ensure that users are appropriately informed."

It has taken a while for the change to occur, and at least one user observed it was "too little, too late," although the majority opinion on the update appears to be positive. New boss Martin Keary (aka Tantacrul) apologised for the tardiness and laid the blame on the time-consuming process of getting legal teams involved.

"What we want more than anything else," he said, "is for people to see clearly what we are doing."

Which, we suspect, might be the problem in the eyes of many of Audacity's users. ®

Source

Meet Clapper: A Sleek Looking Linux Video Player for Minimalists

Fri, 23 Jul 2021 12:50:55 +0000

Meet Clapper: A Sleek Looking Linux Video Player for Minimalists

Love minimalism? You’ll love Clapper.

Clapper is a new video player for Linux. Actually, it’s more for GNOME than Linux.

Built on top of GNOME’s JavaScript library and GTK4 toolkit, it blends naturally in the GNOME desktop environment. It uses GStreamer for media backend and OpenGL for rendering.

I like application with minimalist approach. While VLC is the Swiss Knife of media players, I prefer MPV player for the sleek, minimal interface. And now I think I am going to stick with Clapper for sometime.

Clapper uses hardware acceleration by default. It supports Intel and AMD GPUs and works on both Xorg and Wayland.

Clapper doesn’t use the traditional upper window bar. There are auto-hiding preference menu, mode changer and window control buttons for you to access a few features. This gives it a sleek, minimalist look.

It has three modes:

Windowed mode: the default mode shows the progress bar and window control
Floating mode: the progress bar is hidden and the player is floating on top of other applications like the ‘always on top‘ feature or ‘picture in picture’ mode
Fullscreen mode: Player goes full screen, progress bar is bigger but they all auto-hide

Interface of Clapper video player with preference control and window modes

Clapper also has an adaptive UI which can also be used on Linux-based smartphones and tablets. So if you have got yourself a Pine Phone or Librem5, you can use Clapper on it.

There is support for subtitles with option to change the font. However, the subtitles didn’t work in my testing. There is also no option to explicitly add subtitles to a playing video. This is something that must be improved.

Like VLC, Clapper also gives you the option to resume playback from the last point if you open the same video file again. One of the handy features I love in VLC.

Clapper supports playing videos from the internet as well if you provide the URL.

Here, in the screenshot, I am playing a YouTube video in Clapper. It is a beautiful song sung by a beautiful singer and actress. Can you guess which song or movie it is?

Clapper playing a video from YouTube

Install Clapper on Linux

Clapper is available in AUR for Arch and Manjaro users. That should not be a surprise for anyone. AUR has everything under the sun.

For other distributions, Clapper officially provides Flatpak package. So, please enable Flatpak support for your distribution and then use the following command to install it:

flatpak install flathub com.github.rafostar.Clapper

Once installed, simply search for it in the application menu or right click on a video file and choose to open it with Clapper.

Clapper is far from being the perfect video player. However, it has potential to become a popular Linux application.

If you use it, please do share your experience. If you find bugs, please notify the developer.

Source

Ubuntu 20.10 “Groovy Gorilla” Reached End of Life, Upgrade to Ubuntu 21.04 Now

Fri, 23 Jul 2021 12:29:27 +0000

Ubuntu 20.10 “Groovy Gorilla” Reached End of Life, Upgrade to Ubuntu 21.04 Now

The time has come to say goodbye to the Ubuntu 20.10 “Groovy Gorilla” operating system release as it has now reached end of life on July 22nd, 2021.

As announced a while ago by Ubuntu maker Canonical, the Ubuntu 20.10 release, dubbed Groovy Gorilla, will no longer be supported with software and security updates from July 22nd, 2021. This means that, if you’re using Ubuntu 20.10, you should consider upgrading to a newer release as soon as possible.

Ubuntu 20.10 was released nine months ago on October 22nd, 2020, and was the first Ubuntu release to ship with desktop images for the Raspberry Pi 4 single-board computer. It was powered by Linux kernel 5.8 and featured the GNOME 3.38 desktop environment by default.

But, not being an LTS (Long-Term Support) release, Ubuntu 20.10 only received software and security updates for nine months, until July 22nd, 2021. After this date, Canonical will stop feeding updates to the Groovy Gorilla release, which, in time, will become vulnerable to all sort of attacks.

On July 21st, 2021, Canonical published the last security update for Ubuntu 20.10 (Groovy Gorilla), so if you’re still using the distro for a few more days or weeks until you are ready to upgrade to Ubuntu 21.04, you should be safe using it, but consider upgrading as soon as possible.

As such, it’s wise to make a backup of your most important files and start upgrading to Ubuntu 21.04 (Hirsute Hippo), which features a newer kernel for better hardware support (Linux 5.11), support for GNOME 40 apps, and Wayland by default.

Ubuntu 21.04 will be supported for six more months, until the end of January 2022, but Canonical will release Ubuntu 21.10 (Impish Indri) later this year, on October 14, 2021, with the latest GNOME 40 desktop environment series by default, Linux kernel 5.14, and many other enhancements.

Source

Google now shows why it ranked a specific search result

Fri, 23 Jul 2021 12:08:24 +0000

Google now shows why it ranked a specific search result

Google now list several of the factors it used to rank a result in the about this result section.

Google can now list several of the factors or reasons why it ranked a specific search result in its search results listings, the company announced. This feature is an expansion to the about this result box that launched in February 2021.

Google Search can show the terms it matched on the web page and your query, including the terms that were related but not direct matches. Google also lists if links from other websites influenced the ranking, if the results had related images, if there were geographical reasons for the result ranking and more. In fact, Google said there are several factors this section can disclose when it comes to why Google ranked a specific page in its search results.

Google also lists search tips in this area to help you refine your query, if you find the result to not meet your desired outcome.

What it looks like. Here is a screen shot of what this looks like. As you can see in the “your search & this result” section, Google lists numerous bullet points for why it ranked this specific snippet. The section above, the “source” section is old and that was launched in February, as mentioned above.

What factors does Google show. Google did not tell us all the factors it shows but here are the ones I spotted while testing:

Search terms that appear in the result. In this case, Google will show you what terms were matched from the searcher’s query to the content and/or HTML on the web page that Google ranked. Matches are not just the visible content but also can be words in the HTML, like the title tag or other meta data.

Search terms related to your search. So not only will Google match based on your exact query but also terms “related” to that query. In the example above, the query was [shot] but Google expanded that to mean “vaccine.”

Other websites with your search terms link to this result. This is where sites that have these search terms on their pages and links, actually link to the result listed in the Google Search results. Yes, clearly links are still used by Google for ranking purposes.

This result has images related to your search. Google will also look at the images on the page to determine if those images, maybe the filename of the image, are on that page and are related to your query.

This result is [Language]. Language is important and right now this is an English only feature, but when it expands, Google can show other languages. So if you search in Spanish, Google may be more likely to show you Spanish results. Or if you search in Spain, Google may show you Spanish results as well.

This result is relevant for searches in [region]. Google may use the searchers location, the site’s location and the query to determine if the searcher wants to find a web page that is more relevant to a specific region. In the example above, someone searching in Vermont to [get the shot] probably wants to get local vaccine websites in Vermont. Sometimes queries can be down to the city level and sometimes the region is not relevant. Google will show those details in this area.

Search tips. Google will also let searchers hover their mouse cursor over the underlined words in this box to get search tips on how to narrow their search results better. In the screenshot below, you can see Google suggesting the search may want to add a minus sign to the word running in order to filter out those words in their search.

Google can offer a number of search tips that are specific to the query and the “about this result” box for that page.

Source

New Windows 11 concept shows what Task Manger with dark mode could look like

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 23:42:48 +0000

New Windows 11 concept shows what Task Manger with dark mode could look like

Source: Jakub

Last month, Microsoft finally unveiled the much-anticipated Windows 11 update. The new update comes with an updated UI, performance, and productivity improvements. Microsoft has also released the minimum system requirements for Windows 11 which includes Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 among other things, but the latter can be bypassed for now.

One of the key highlights of Windows 11 is the new rounded UI that is pleasing to the eye. Along with the new UI, Microsoft is also embracing the dark side with an improved system-wide dark mode. Unfortunately, the company has again skipped Task Manager for some reasons as the app still lacks support for dark mode.

However, Twitter user Jakub has given us a look at what Task Manger could look like if Microsoft ever decides to add support for dark mode. The concept shows off Task Manager wrapped in dark background that blends in well with the wallpaper and compliments the text, which uses the new Segoe UI Variable Display font. The usage charts, on the other hand, may look familiar to anyone who has played around with Linux distros.

Overall, the design looks elegant as well as gives users the ability to switch to dark mode on Task Manager. We do hope that Microsoft adopts the design or a variation of the design for Windows 11.

For more information on Windows 11, you can check out our article on minimum system requirements as well as the list of CPUs that support Windows 11. Apart from the general requirements, Microsoft has also listed out specific feature requirements for Windows 11 including webcams, Bluetooth and Precision Touchpad on all upcoming laptops. Last month, Microsoft also updated the PC Health Check app to show why a device is not ineligible to receive the Windows 11 update. However, the company will allow some manufacturers to bypass the TPM 2.0 requirement and it is also allowing Windows Insiders with unsupported hardware to test Windows 11 Insider Builds. Several manufacturers have published a list of hardware that will be compatible with Windows 11.

If you are still out of the loop, then you can check out hands-on video. If you want to get in-depth information about Windows 11 then you can check out our article covering all the new features and changes.

New Windows 11 concept shows what Task Manger with dark mode could look like

Edge’s Sleeping Tabs will now tell you how much resources it’s saving

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 23:40:14 +0000

Edge’s Sleeping Tabs will now tell you how much resources it’s saving

Microsoft thinks Sleeping Tabs are great. Sleeping tabs builds upon the core of Chromium’s “freezing” technology. Freezing pauses a tab’s script timers to minimize resource usage. A sleeping tab resumes automatically when clicked, which is different from discarded tabs, which require the page to fully be reloaded.

Microsoft says Sleeping Tabs use 26% less memory and 29% less CPU than a normal tab, which also translates into battery life savings.

Now Microsoft wants users to be aware of just how great they are, with the latest Edge Canary telling users just how much resources putting their tab to sleep has saved.

The percentage resources saved will now be displayed alongside the tab preview image.

Microsoft has also made other improvements to Edge Canary related to PWAs.

As Microsoft announced earlier, notifications for PWAs will soon be displayed in the context of the PWA rather than from the Edge browser.

This is enabled via the Desktop PWAs improvements in notification icon and title flag.

The improvements are now available in the latest Edge Canary browser.

via Leo Varela

Edge’s Sleeping Tabs will now tell you how much resources it’s saving

Microsoft Edge 92 releases today, brings a new Password Health dashboard and more

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 23:37:04 +0000

Microsoft Edge 92 releases today, brings a new Password Health dashboard and more

Microsoft will begin rolling out Edge version 92 to the stable channel today with a bunch of improvements. As is customary, the company has posted a blog detailing the new features that have been added to the browser through the course of the development of version 92, some of which have been available for Insiders to test.

The first of the announcement caters to users gearing for back-to-school shopping. A new Back to School hub is being added to Bing that aggregates and categorizes product listings based on search results for easier discovery and comparison. Additionally, the hub ties in with other shopping features present in Edge to provide price drop notifications, price history, coupons, product recommendations, and more.

Next up is the addition of the Password Health dashboard that lets users manage their passwords and ensure the integrity of their credentials. The tool allows users to check if saved passwords are strong or if they have been reused, allowing them to set up strong passwords. Users are also notified whether their saved passwords have been breached, allowing them to change them immediately.

Another new capability being added to the password management feature is the ability to use saved passwords to sign into mobile apps via the mobile version of Edge. This means that the password management tool can be used to sign into apps such as Instagram, enhancing the usability of the feature.

Microsoft is also formally introducing a new Outlook extension for Edge, in preview form. The extension lets users quickly view, draft, or search for emails, check To Do lists and calendar invites, and more, right from a flyout in the browser, negating the need to navigate to the dedicated app or the Outlook web app for quick actions. The offering is not tied to a specific version of the browser and can be downloaded from the Add-ons page.

Other minor feature additions include the ability to save web captures to an existing or new collection, making it easy to collate screenshots in the browser for use later. The firm is also adding support for reactions to news items on the New Tab page, allowing users to react to and comment on news items. The firm adds that the feature is limited to some markets and is expected to expand to more regions in the coming month.

Edge 92 will begin rolling out to users later today and should be automatically downloaded in the background once it is made available. The detailed changelog with information such as security baselines will be made available here once the rollout has commenced.

Microsoft Edge 92 releases today, brings a new Password Health dashboard and more

FrontPaged: Microsoft Edge 92.0.902.55

Windows 11: Déjà vu all over again?

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 23:31:53 +0000

Windows 11: Déjà vu all over again?

Microsoft's Windows 11 documentation tells PC buyers to look for computers with 'Free upgrade to Windows 11' stickers. Where have we heard something like that before?

For longtime Microsoft watchers, there might have been a moment of déjà vu last month as the Redmond, Wash. developer announced its upcoming Windows 11 operating system.

The moment? When they read this line in the company's official Windows 11 FAQ: "If you're currently shopping for a new PC look for 'Free upgrade to Windows 11' on the fact tag."

A decade and a half ago, Microsoft used something similar to market the PCs that were supposed to run its then-impending Windows Vista, with stickers at retail and labels online stating which machines were "Vista Capable."

That 2006 campaign was a disaster for Microsoft. A lawsuit charged Microsoft with deceiving consumers with the Vista Capable program, which led to the release of embarrassing internal emails in which executives blasted the campaign and expressed frank opinions about the OS itself.

The company created the Vista Capable program to maintain PC sales momentum, notably during the holiday season of 2006, as the January 2007 launch of Vista neared. As revealed in court documents, Microsoft had bent to pressure from Intel, which needed to unload inventory, by lowering system requirements to include a bottom-level Intel graphics chipset.

Internally, some at Microsoft balked at the change in system requirements, calling Vista Capable PCs "junk" and telling personal tales of spending thousands on a system that, in the end, couldn't run Vista or couldn't deal with Vista's advanced features, including the new Aero UI (user interface).

The lawsuit, which was awarded class-action status — dramatically expanding the pool of plaintiffs and, thus, the amount Microsoft might have to pay in damages assuming a loss — also revealed other bits of interest. An expert for the plaintiffs, for instance, estimated that Microsoft had made $1.5 billion from the sale of licenses for PCs marked as "Vista Capable" in the months leading up to OS launch. Other estimates pegged Microsoft's potential liability at $8.5 billion if a settlement was reached.

There was no link between the Vista Capable debacle and the operating system's later ultimate failure. (Vista was adopted by about one in five Windows users at its peak, less than a third reached by the precursor Windows XP or the successor Windows 7.) But the disclosures couldn't have helped; they reinforced the reputation already being built for Vista, that it was an over-ambitious effort that needed a higher-horsepower PC.

Huge numbers of users decided to stick with XP and ride that pony until it dropped in early 2014, then switch to Windows 7, skipping Vista.

Security drives the bus

Windows 11 could experience similar headwinds because, like Vista, its system requirements are more exacting than its antecedent.

"This next generation of Windows will raise the security baseline by requiring more modern CPUs, with protections like virtualization-based security (VBS), hypervisor-protected code integrity (HVCI), and Secure Boot built-in and enabled by default to protect from both common malware, ransomware, and more sophisticated attacks," Microsoft said in a post on the operating system's approach to security.

Windows 11's system requirements can be found here and here.

The stumbling block will be the processor requirement, which Microsoft said — after some initial dissembling — would definitely put Intel's 8th-generation (and AMD's Zen 2) on the Windows 11-compatible side, with the possibility that 7th-generation (and Zen 1) will be as well. Anything earlier, and the device will be out in the cold.

Bottom line: Some PCs sold relatively recently, say in the last three years, may not run the new OS.

Microsoft couched the harsher requirements — relative to previous OS upticks, anyway — as necessary for security purposes. That's the case, too, with the requirement of TPM, or "Trusted Platform Module," version 2.0, for its ability to securely store encryption keys and the like. Microsoft called TPM 2.0 "a critical building block" for security and contended that "PCs of the future need this modern hardware root-of-trust to help protect from both common and sophisticated attacks like ransomware and more sophisticated attacks from nation-states."

All this led to confusion right from the start. Which PCs would run Windows 11? Which might? Microsoft botched the opening round so badly that it yanked a compatibility checker and rewrote (or clarified, your pick) pieces and posts about requirements multiple times, sometimes with acknowledgements that it was doing so, sometimes, well, without.

Free upgrade to Windows 11

Microsoft will not want to repeat the Vista Capable mistake with an official declaration on each PC. Instead, sellers will mark such systems with the "Free upgrade to Windows 11" phrase.

Microsoft may clarify this, but if that's all the company will do for available PCs, it smacks of an obtuse and opaque maneuver meant to avoid responsibility. A label reading "Free upgrade to Windows 11" guarantees nothing about compatibility.

The simplest solution would be to mark devices "Will run Windows 11," but something that straightforward would risk a repeat of Vista Capable. No surprise — that's not the direction Microsoft went.

OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) don't have the luxury of dodging the question. They're using an if-we-have-it-then-it-will-run-11 tactic to inform potential customers that their wares are capable of running Windows 11. Some have already done so.

HP, for example, tells customers "Our current Windows-based PCs will be upgradeable to Windows 11 when it's available later this year," albeit with a caveat that some features require specific hardware. Likewise, Dell states, "All Dell PCs with Windows 10 currently being sold on dell.com will be able to upgrade to Windows 11" on its website.

Ironically, Microsoft hasn't followed the lead of Dell and HP; pages touting its own Surface line do not make the same claim that all will run the new OS. There is some copy about the compatibility checker, however, the one Microsoft withdrew and is reworking.

Older devices can still 'run' Windows 11

It's no coincidence that Microsoft announced Windows 11 and the "Cloud PC" concept dubbed "Windows 365" within three weeks of each other.

Unlike in previous OS turnovers, Microsoft has an end-around it can offer customers — commercial customers initially, but you can expect it to filter down to very small businesses/consumers later — who find themselves with hardware that can't meet the operating system's system requirements.

According to Microsoft, the virtualized instances of Windows 11 that Windows 365 will create, store, and maintain on the firm's Azure service will stream to any device equipped with a browser and connected to a sufficiently fat pipe to the internet. The local PC, if that's what it is, could be powered by a not-suitable-for-Windows-11 6th-generation Intel processor, and it wouldn't matter.

Computerworld expects that Microsoft will use this to pitch Windows 365 to organizations that want to move to Windows 11 but that have a heterogeneous collection of desktops and laptops, some able to run the OS natively, some unable to as much as boot up 11. While Windows 11 could be deployed to the former, the latter would need to be physically replaced with newer devices or set up with Windows 365 licenses.

Even if the organization intended to replace the aged PCs with newer, physical devices, Windows 365 could be used until their replacement cycles come around.

Windows 11: Déjà vu all over again?

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Here are the known issues in Windows 11 build 22000.100

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 23:29:20 +0000

Here are the known issues in Windows 11 build 22000.100

Microsoft today rolled out Windows 11 build 22000.100 to Insiders running Dev channel builds. The cumulative update brings with it - among other things - improvements to the taskbar UI and the system tray, adding subtle design improvements, in line with the Windows 11 experience.

The improvements include a better UI for the system tray, along with a new visual cue for when an app requires attention on the taskbar thanks to a background task. However, the ability to run Android apps, something that the firm announced during the Windows 11 unveil event, is yet to be added. When it does make it to the OS, it will happen through the Amazon Store that will be housed within the Microsoft Store.

The firm isn't bringing any huge changes to the OS, as it is still addressing bugs and reliability concerns that are being reported by users running the Dev channel builds, while prepping the builds for the Beta channel. However, along with the list of bugs fixes, there are still a bunch of known issues that are being tracked. Here is the complete list of issues in Windows 11 build 22000.100:

[REMINDER] When upgrading to Windows 11 from Windows 10 or when installing an update to Windows 11, some features may be deprecated or removed. See details here.

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.

System and Windows Terminal is missing when right-clicking on the Start button (WIN + X).

Taskbar:

The Taskbar will sometimes flicker when switching input methods.

Settings:

When launching the Settings app, a brief green flash may appear.

When using Quick Settings to modify Accessibility settings, the settings UI may not save the selected state.

Settings will crash when clicking “Facial recognition (Windows Hello)” under Sign-in Settings if Windows Hello is already set up.

File Explorer:

Explorer.exe crashes in a loop for Insiders using the Turkish display language when battery charge is at 100%.

The context menu sometimes doesn’t render completely and ends up truncated.

Clicking a desktop icon or context menu entry may result in the wrong item being selected.

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.

When you hover your mouse over the Search icon on the Taskbar, recent searches may not be displayed. To work around the issue, restart your PC.

Search panel might appear as black and not display any content below the search box.

Widgets:

Widgets board may appear empty. To work around the issue, you can sign out and then sign back in again.

Launching links from the widgets board may not invoke apps to the foreground.

Widgets may be displayed in the wrong size on external monitors. If you encounter this, you can launch the widgets via touch or WIN + W shortcut on your actual PC display first and then launch on your secondary monitors.

Store:

We are working to improve search relevance in the Store including resolving an issue where in some cases the ordering of search results is inaccurate.

The install button might not be functional yet in some limited scenarios.

Rating and reviews are not available for some apps.

Windows Security

“Automatic sample submission” is unexpectedly turned off when you restart your PC.

Windows Hello (Face) may show an error saying “Something went wrong” when attempting to sign in after upgrading. To work around this, sign in with your password or PIN and:

Open Device Manager.

Uninstall “Windows Hello Face Software Device” under “Biometric devices”.

Localization

There is an issue where some Insiders may be some missing translations from their user experience for a small subset of languages running the latest Insider Preview builds. To confirm if you have been impacted, please visit this Answers forum post and follow the steps for remediation.

Issues such as the File Explorer bug might make it difficult for users to run apps reliably, so it is best to be aware of the problems before considering these builds for your daily driver. Additionally, there are some Windows Hello issues that have workarounds.

Windows 11 build 22000.100 is rolling out via Windows Update to Dev channel users running the latest version of the OS. The release to the Beta channel should happen soon as the firm skipped releasing the latest 21H1 updates, citing the impending release of Windows 11 builds. Currently, there aren't any official ISOs available either for those hoping to perform a clean install of these builds.

Here are the known issues in Windows 11 build 22000.100

Windows 11 build 22000.100 is now out with taskbar improvements and Teams chat

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 23:26:42 +0000

Windows 11 build 22000.100 is now out with taskbar improvements and Teams chat

Microsoft is today rolling out Windows 11 build 22000.100 to Insiders running Dev channel builds. The cumulative update brings with it - among other things - further integration of Teams and some additional visual tweaks to the taskbar.

What these builds are yet to add, however, is the ability to run Android apps, something that the firm announced during the Windows 11 unveil event. When the capability does make it to the OS, users will be able to run Android apps from the Amazon Store that will be housed within the Microsoft Store. Currently, there is no word on when that feature is expected to be added.

With that out of the way, here is the complete list of features being added with build 22000.100:

Changes and Improvements

We have started rolling out Chat from Microsoft Teams to Insiders in the Dev Channel. Not everyone will see it right away,

The hidden icons flyout on the lower right of the Taskbar has been updated to match the new visuals of Windows 11. (Please note – it may not look right after updating to this build – toggling between two themes will correct the issue.)

We added the ability to quickly access Focus assist settings directly from Notification Center.

When a background activity from an app requires attention, the app will flash on the Taskbar to get your attention. In Windows 11, we have updated this design so that it still grabs your attention but with a calming treatment that minimizes the impact of unwarranted distractions. The subtle flashing eventually stops, and you will see a slightly red backplate and red pill under the app icon continuing to note a background activity needs your attention. Let us know what you think!

The touch keyboard icon in the Taskbar has been adjusted to be more consistent with the size of the other icons in the corner of the Taskbar.

The Taskbar calendar flyout will now fully collapse down when clicking the chevron in the top corner to give you more room for notifications.

In the latest Microsoft Store update rolling out to Insiders, we made navigation in our new Microsoft Store feel fast and fun. When you select an app or movie you’re interested in, you might notice some animations that help you keep track of what you’re browsing. Give it a try, we hope you like it as much as we do.

As usual the company has also been hard at work fixing issues with Windows 11 that have been reported by Insiders, among other things.

Fixes

Taskbar:

We fixed the issue that was causing Explorer.exe to crash when the date and time button on the Taskbar is clicked to access new notifications with Focus Assist turned off.

Added the missing settings icons for the context menu entries when right clicking network, volume, and battery in the Taskbar.

Fixed an issue that was making the clock in the Taskbar get stuck and out of sync.

Addressed an explorer.exe that could happen after resuming from standby, related to the volume icon in the Taskbar.

There is an issue where the progress bar below app icons in the Taskbar wasn’t always displaying when it was expected to and have fixed it.

Clicking on the Taskbar when either Start or Search is open will now make them dismiss.

If you tap Taskbar icons using touch you should now see the same icon animation that was visible when using the mouse.

The lunar calendar (when enabled) text should no longer overlap the numbers in the Taskbar calendar flyout.

The calendar flyout should now show the correct month when in a collapsed state.

The date at the top of the calendar flyout should now follow your preferred format and not the format matching your display language.

If the Start menu is open, when hovering over Task View the window will now appear above Start menu instead of behind it.

Right-clicking Task View will now make the preview window dismiss so you can actually use the context menu.

Fixed an issue where if you click on a snap group in the Taskbar, it might not bring up all the app windows after docking and undocking.

The icons used for the On / Off indicators in the Taskbar for the Pinyin IME are now a consistent size.

Signing out and back in when battery saver is running should no longer result in Taskbar becoming transparent.

Mitigated an issue making the network icon sometimes unexpectedly not show in the Taskbar.

The Taskbar previews will no longer draw offscreen after upgrading to this build.

Settings:

We fixed an issue causing multiple buttons and options in Settings to not work in the previous flight, including Go Back and Reset Your PC under Recovery, enabling Developer mode, renaming your PC, and enabling Remote Desktop.

The page titles in Settings should no longer be drawing too high up / off screen.

Searching for add and remove programs in Settings should now return the expected Settings page.

We’ve done some work to help search in Settings initialize faster.

Addressed an issue that was causing crashes in Settings when interacting with the Windows Insider Program section.

Fixed an issue that could make Settings crash on launch.

Fixed an icon rendering issue in Power and Battery Settings.

Fixed some reliability issues with the Language and Region page in Settings.

Made a change to help address a problem where the preview in Personalization Settings sometimes unexpectedly showed you were using a black wallpaper when you weren’t.

The font used in the Lock Screen Settings preview should now match the actual lock screen.

Fixed a bug making all the icons in Quick Settings appear unexpectedly flipped for Insiders using the Arabic display language.

Using the brightness slider in Quick Settings should now show a number as you’re adjusting, like it does with volume.

File Explorer:

Using mouse to open the context menu in File Explorer and on the desktop should no longer display a keyboard focus rectangle on first launch (until you start using the keyboard to navigate it).

We’ve tweaked the context menu to address feedback that sometimes submenus were unexpectedly closing when you were trying to use them.

Fixed a flicker where you could see New become New Item in the context menu.

We’ve done some work on the context menu positioning logic so that submenus should no longer appear partially offscreen or unexpectedly far away.

We fixed two issues impacting explorer.exe reliability when bringing up the context menu, including specifically when right-clicking on a zip file.

Addressed an issue causing the “Unpin from Start” option when right clicking an app to not work.

Search:

Fixed an issue making Search’s shadow appear boxy.

Have adjusted the positioning of the Search window when the Taskbar is left aligned, so that it matches Start.

We’ve addressed an issue where what was displaying when hovering over the Search icon in the Taskbar wasn’t in sync with what would actually launch when you clicked one of the entries.

If you’ve launched websites using Search, those should now be properly displayed in the recent searches when hovering over the Search icon in the Taskbar.

Made a change to address an issue where some Insiders were unexpectedly not seeing the brightness slider in Quick Settings after upgrading.

Widgets:

We fixed an issue resulting in your widget configurations not getting saved and unexpectedly being reset.

The widgets board and content should now be sized for the correct screen when using multiple monitors.

Addressed an issue where sign-in wasn’t working for widgets in some scenarios due to authentication hanging.

We’ve made another fix to address the clock in the widgets board not following your preferred format.

Other:

Device Security should no longer say “Standard hardware security not supported” for Insiders with supported hardware.

With this build the access keys for WIN + X (so that you can do things like “WIN + X M” to launch Device Manager) should now appear consistently.

Fingerprint sign in should no longer stop working after rebooting your PC.

Addressed an accessibility issue where keyboard focus would disappear from Start after pressing Tab then Shift + Tab.

Fixed a bug causing the informational pop ups in voice typing to not dismiss on click.

Fixed an infinite loop making some Insider’s devices hang during shutdown.

We made an adjustment to help address an issue causing the title bar to not render correctly on certain apps.

Made a fix to stop your wallpaper from flashing when switching between Desktops.

Updated the snap layouts window to now use the default animation for flyouts instead of just popping in.

Addressed an issue that was making Sticky Notes and Microsoft To Do crash on launch sometimes.

Fixed a DWM memory leak that was happening when rotating your device back and forth between landscape and portrait mode.

Made a change to address the issue where text could become truncated in the message dialog from Windows Update alerting that an update was ready.

Window borders should now be displayed correctly when using high contrast.

Turning off “Show shadows under windows” in Performance Options should now actually turn off the shadows under windows.

We’ve made some tweaks to fix an issue where context menus and tooltip were appearing far from the mouse when using Windows with the Arabic display language.

Addressed an issue where the network icons on the lock screen and login screen weren’t consistent.

With the fixes come the list of known issues that users must be aware of. With the OS is still being prepped for the Beta and Release Preview channels, there are a bunch of hiccups that might make the OS unstable for daily use. You can check out the list of known issues here.

Windows 11 build 22000.100 is rolling out via Windows Update to Dev channel users running the latest version of the OS. As mentioned earlier, there is no word yet on when these builds will begin rolling out to the Beta channel, but it should happen soon as the firm skipped releasing the latest 21H1 updates, citing the impending release of Windows 11 builds. Currently, there aren't any official ISOs available either for those hoping to perform a clean install of these builds.

Windows 11 build 22000.100 is now out with taskbar improvements and Teams chat

iPadOS 14.7 and macOS Big Sur 11.5 come with plenty of bug fixes and security updates

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 23:15:36 +0000

iPadOS 14.7 and macOS Big Sur 11.5 come with plenty of bug fixes and security updates

It's unusual for iPadOS to come after iOS, but it's here.

Apple has released new versions of its iPadOS and macOS operating systems just a couple of days after the company updated iOS, watchOS, and tvOS.

The iPadOS update adds some new features and shares a lot with its iOS counterpart, while the macOS release is a modest one that focuses on a couple of bug fixes.

It's unusual for an iPadOS update to arrive after an iOS update, and it's likely that Apple delayed iPadOS at the last minute to address some issue, but we don't know for sure. In any case, the update is here now.

iPadOS 14.7

Many of the new features and bug fixes Apple lists in iPadOS 14.7's release notes are the same as those seen in iOS 14.7 earlier this week. The first bullet point highlights the ability to tie two individuals in a family unit to the same Apple Card account, allowing them to develop credit together.

The update also introduces a way to manage timers on a HomePod and tweaks the Podcasts interface. In one iPad-specific note, Apple says it has fixed a problem that caused audio to skip when using USB-C-to-3.5 mm headphone jack adapters.

Apple's full release notes from iPadOS 14.7 are as follows:

iPadOS 14.7 includes the following improvements and bug fixes for your iPad:

Apple Card family adds the option to combine credit limits and share one co-owned account with an existing Apple Card user

Home app adds the ability to manage timers on HomePod

Podcasts library allows you to choose to see all shows or only followed shows

Share Playlist menu option missing in Apple Music

Dolby Atmos and Apple Music lossless audio playback may unexpectedly stop

Braille displays could show invalid information while composing Mail messages

Audio may skip when using USB-C to 3.5 mm headphone jack adapters with iPad

macOS Big Sur 11.5

macOS Big Sur 11.5 also landed for supported Macs today, but it is a smaller release that delivers a few bug fixes and several security updates. It has the same Podcasts tweak as seen in iOS and iPadOS, and it fixes an issue related to data in the Music app and another with smart cards on M1 Macs.

Here are the full macOS 11.5 release notes:

macOS Big Sur 11.5 includes the following improvements for your Mac:

Podcasts Library tab allows you to choose to see all shows or only followed shows

This release also fixes the following issues:

Music may not update play count and last played date in your library

Smart cards may not work when logging into Mac computers with the M1 chip

For more detailed information about this update, please visit: https://support.apple.com/kb/HT211896

You can read about the security updates in these releases on Apple's website, and there are quite a few for this version of macOS. Apple also clarified that this week's iOS update (and iPadOS, too) addressed a widely publicized Wi-Fi-related vulnerability. From the security update documentation:

Impact: Joining a malicious Wi-Fi network may result in a denial of service or arbitrary code execution

Description: This issue was addressed with improved checks

With these macOS and iPadOS releases, Apple has now updated its entire suite of operating systems. These updates may be the last ones (other than emergency security or bug fixes) before Apple launches major new versions of iOS and macOS this fall.

iPadOS 14.7 and macOS Big Sur 11.5 come with plenty of bug fixes and security updates

Google pushed a one-character typo to production, bricking Chrome OS devices

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 23:13:05 +0000

Google pushed a one-character typo to production, bricking Chrome OS devices

Google broke a conditional statement that verifies passwords. A fix is rolling out.

Google says it has fixed a major Chrome OS bug that locked users out of their devices. Google's bulletin says that Chrome OS version 91.0.4472.165, which was briefly available this week, renders users unable to log in to their devices, essentially bricking them.

Chrome OS automatically downloads updates and switches to the new version after a reboot, so users who reboot their devices are suddenly locked out them. The go-to advice while this broken update is out there is to not reboot.

The bulletin says that a new build, version 91.0.4472.167, is rolling out now to fix the issue, but it could take a "few days" to hit everyone. Users affected by the bad update can either wait for the device to update again or "powerwash" their device—meaning wipe all the local data—to get logged in. Chrome OS is primarily cloud-based, so if you're not doing something advanced like running Linux apps, this solution presents less of an inconvenience than it would on other operating systems. Still, some users are complaining about lost data.

ChromeOS is open source, so we can get a bit more detail about the fix thanks to Android Police hunting down a Reddit comment from user elitist_ferret. The problem apparently boils down to a single-character typo. Google flubbed a conditional statement in Chrome OS's Cryptohome VaultKeyset, the part of the OS that holds user encryption keys. The line should read "if (key_data_.has_value() && !key_data_->label().empty()) {" but instead of "&&"—the C++ version of the "AND" operator—the bad update used a single ampersand, breaking the second half of the conditional statement.

Enlarge / ChromeOS's programming typo. It happens to the best of us.

It sounds like, because of this error, Chrome OS never properly checked user passwords against the stored keys, so even correct passwords came back with a message saying, "Sorry, your password could not be verified."

The whole selling point of Chrome OS is that it's reliable and unbreakable, and botched updates like this hurt the OS. It's not clear how such an obvious, show-stopping problem like this made it into the stable release channel. Chrome OS has three testing channels that changes are supposed to go through—the "canary," "dev," and "beta" channels—with weeks of testing between releases. Somehow this bug escaped that entire process. This problem also seems like something a unit test or automated testing could have caught—not being able to log in is pretty obvious.

The error marks the second defective Chrome OS update pushed out this month. An update at the beginning of July made CPU usage spike on some models, slowing them down to a crawl.

Google pushed a one-character typo to production, bricking Chrome OS devices

Canonical Pushes New Ubuntu Kernel Updates to All Supported Releases

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 15:39:44 +0000

Canonical Pushes New Ubuntu Kernel Updates to All Supported Releases

Canonical published today new Linux kernel updates for all of its supported Ubuntu releases to address several security vulnerabilities discovered by various researchers in the upstream Linux kernels.

The new Ubuntu kernel security updates are available for Ubuntu 21.04 (Hirsute Hippo), Ubuntu 20.10 (Groovy Gorilla), Ubuntu 20.04 LTS (Focal Fossa), Ubuntu 18.04 LTS (Bionic Beaver), as well as as for the ESM (Extended Security Maintenance) branches of Ubuntu 16.04 and Ubuntu 14.04.

Patched in these kernel updates is CVE-2021-33909, a 7-years-old privilege escalation flaw discovered by Qualys Research Labs in Linux kernel’s file system layer, which could allow an unprivileged user to create, mount, and then delete a large directory structure of over 1GB in size. This flaw affected all supported Ubuntu releases.

Only for Ubuntu 20.10, Ubuntu 20.04 LTS, and Ubuntu 18.04 LTS systems, the new kernel updates address CVE-2021-32399, a race condition discovered in Linux kernel’s Bluetooth subsystem that could lead to a use-after-free of slab objects, allowing an attacker to execute arbitrary code, and CVE-2021-23134, a use-after-free vulnerability discovered by Nadav Markus in the NFC implementation, which could allow a privileged local attacker to crash the system or execute arbitrary code.

Also fixed for Ubuntu 20.10, Ubuntu 20.04 LTS, and Ubuntu 18.04 LTS systems is CVE-2021-33034, a use-after-free vulnerability discovered in Linux kernel’s Bluetooth HCI driver that could allow a local attacker to cause a denial of service (system crash) or execute arbitrary code.

Only for Ubuntu 20.10 and Ubuntu 20.04 LTS systems, there’s a fix for CVE-2021-3506, an out-of-bounds (OOB) memory access flaw discovered in the F2FS module, which could allow a local attacker to cause a denial of service (system crash).

Only for Ubuntu 20.04 LTS and Ubuntu 18.04 LTS systems, the new kernel updates patch CVE-2020-26558 and CVE-2021-0129, two flaws discovered in Linux kernel’s Bluetooth subsystem that could allow an authenticated attacker to expose sensitive information.

And lastly, affecting only Ubuntu 18.04 LTS systems, the kernel updates fix CVE-2021-33200 and CVE-2021-31829, two flaws discovered by Piotr Krysiuk in the eBPF implementation that could allow a local attacker to cause a denial of service (system crash), execute arbitrary code, or expose sensitive information (kernel memory).

Also fixed are several nastly flaws discovered by Mathy Vanhoef in Linux kernel’s Wi-Fi implementation, namely CVE-2020-24586, which could let a physically proximate attacker to inject packets or expose sensitive information, CVE-2020-24587, which could allow a physically proximate attacker to decrypt fragments, CVE-2020-26139, which could allow a physically proximate attacker to inject malicious packets to crash the system, and CVE-2020-26147, which could allow a physically proximate attacker to inject packets or exfiltrate selected fragments.

Canonical urges all Ubuntu users to update their systems as soon as possible to the new kernel versions available in the stable software repositories of Ubuntu 21.04, Ubuntu 20.10, Ubuntu 20.04 LTS, Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, Ubuntu 16.04 ESM, and Ubuntu 14.04 ESM. To update your installations, simply run the sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade command in the Terminal app, or use the Software Updater utility. Please keep in mind to reboot your systems after installing the new kernel versions!

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LibreOffice 7.1.5 Released with 55 Bug Fixes, Still Focuses on Improving MS Office Compatibility

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 15:35:03 +0000

LibreOffice 7.1.5 Released with 55 Bug Fixes, Still Focuses on Improving MS Office Compatibility

The Document Foundation announced today the general availability of the LibreOffice 7.1.5 update for the latest LibreOffice 7.1 office suite series, bringing more bug fixes and improved interoperability with the MS Office document formats.

Coming about a month and a half after LibreOffice 7.1.4, the LibreOffice 7.1.5 update is here to fix more bugs and issues to provide users of the LibreOffice 7.1 office suite series with a more stable and reliable office suite experience. A total of 55 bugs were addressed, according to the changelogs from here and here.

Like with previous maintenance updates, the LibreOffice 7.1.5 release also focuses on improving the document interoperability with the MS Office suite. As such, documents in the DOC, DOCX, PPTX, and XLSX formats should now perform better.

If you’re using the LibreOffice 7.1 office suite series on your GNU/Linux distribution, it’s highly recommended that you update to the LibreOffice 7.1.5 point release as soon as possible. To do that, you can upgrade directly from your distro’s repositories or by downloading the RPM or DEB binaries from the official website.

Please note that the LibreOffice 7.1.5 update is a “Community” release targeted at power users and technology enthusiasts who are looking for bleeding edge features of the open-source office suite. It is not intended for deployment in enterprise environments.

The next point release in the LibreOffice 7.1 series is version 7.1.6, which is expected to arrive after the summer holidays, in early September 2021. LibreOffice 7.1 will be supported until November 30th, 2021, but the The Document Foundation plans to release LibreOffice 7.2 in mid-August 2021.

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Microsoft Announces Major Microsoft Edge Update for Linux

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 14:38:11 +0000

Microsoft Announces Major Microsoft Edge Update for Linux

Sync features are coming to Edge on Linux

Microsoft Edge is currently available as a stable browser on Windows and Mac, but as far as the Linux version is concerned, only a preview is offered to users on this platform.

But on the other hand, Edge for Linux is evolving at a pretty fast pace, and this week, Microsoft announced that Linux users can now sync their favorites in the browser.

Needless to say, you need to be logged int with a Microsoft account, but in addition, you also need to enable the MSA sign in flag to get the new capabilities.

“Microsoft Edge on Linux now includes the ability to login with your Microsoft account and sync your favorites, passwords, extensions, and more! As an insider, we would love your feedback on how well this experience works for you,” Microsoft said in an announcement this week.

Worth knowing is that AAD accounts are not yet supported, but once you provide your Microsoft credentials, you should eb able to configure the sync feature and decide what data you want to roam across devices. Favorites, passwords, and other browser data are currently supported.

Edge stable for Linux coming later this year?

The sync process doesn’t take more than a few seconds, and when you click your profile icon in the browser’s UI, you should see whether syncing is enabled or not.

The new feature is only available in Microsoft Edge Dev 91.0.831.x, so make sure you update to this version if you’d like to try it out.

Microsoft hasn’t yet provided an ETA as to when Edge for Linux is supposed to hit the stable channel, but most likely, the whole thing is supposed to happen later this year. I expect some info in this regard to be shared at the Build developer conference when Microsoft will also offer a thorough look at the new improvements coming to Edge browser.

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Microsoft launches private preview of Visual Studio 2022 for Mac

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 07:10:50 +0000

Microsoft launches private preview of Visual Studio 2022 for Mac

Microsoft has announced the start of the private preview stage for Visual Studio 2022 for Mac. To sign up, volunteers can register their interest using this form, if you are successful, Microsoft will contact you with a link to download the preview.

Microsoft said that this is the first release of its .NET IDE with a refreshed interface that fully integrates with the macOS UI and fixes crashes. While the UI integrates better with macOS, Microsoft also notes that it feels more familiar with the experience on Windows so users swapping between platforms will have a flatter learning curve.

The Redmond company said that it has high standards for quality with Visual Studio 2022 for Mac and therefore wants to squash more bugs during a private preview phase before opening it up to a larger public preview. While this update brings a footer status bar, a new tab model for the documents/tool window, and refreshed dark and light themes, future previews will bring a new preferences UI, tool window drag and drop, and a Git branch selector in the status bar.

Feedback is crucial for Microsoft especially at this early stage in the product cycle. To report your feedback, in Visual Studio for Mac, go to Help > Report a Problem or Help > Provide a Suggestion.

Microsoft launches private preview of Visual Studio 2022 for Mac