Microsoft

Microsoft staff will no longer answer questions about Windows 7 and 8.1 in support forums. It's also keeping quiet about several other hardware and software products. The products concerned are already mostly into Microsoft's "extended support", ... rather than "mainstream support" periods. That means Microsoft is no longer adding new features to the software, handling warranty claims, or offering free support through online tools or phone lines. Instead, it merely issues patches for security problems and bugs. While Microsoft no longer offered direct help services for the ... (view more)

Microsoft has released the latest major update to Windows 10 for 2018. The main changes are most useful for people who do a lot of work on their PC, particularly if they use multiple computers. The update is part of Microsoft's new approach to ... evolving Windows 10. It continues to issue monthly security fixes, but has dropped the old approach of issuing new features as and when they are ready, then rounding them up in a 'service pack' every year or so before eventually moving on to the next version of Windows. Instead, the idea is to never have a completely new version, but rather to add new ... (view more)

Microsoft is ditching a special version of Windows 10 that was based around security and low costs. That said, Windows 10 S had some major restrictions on the programs it could run. Though it will no longer be available as a standalone edition, it ... will now be included as an optional mode in some Windows computers. That means Microsoft is likely continuing to target schools with the option. To many analysts, Windows 10 S was Microsoft's take on the Google Chromebook range. The distinguishing feature of Windows 10 S was that it only ran apps that were downloaded and installed from the Windows ... (view more)

Microsoft says new Windows laptops could last more than 20 hours of continued use without needing a recharge. Other changes mean its plausible the machines could be permanently connected to the Internet. The difference is all about the processors: ... the part of the computer that actually does the calculations which are at the heart of every computing activity. Usually Windows PCs run x86 processors (or compatible), most commonly produced by Intel and AMD. Now Microsoft is making a fresh attempt at Windows laptops that run the rival ARM processors, which are already used in the vast majority of ... (view more)

The final route to getting a free upgrade to Windows 10 will officially end on December 31, 2017. That's when Microsoft has decided to ditch a special program that many users have been using as a free upgrade loophole. Officially home users could ... only get the free upgrade (from Windows 7 or 8.1) between July 2016 and July 2017 - the one year after the new system launched. That meant avoiding the standalone price of $119 for the Home edition or $199 for the Professional Edition. No Proof Needed For Loophole However, eagle-eyed users noted after this date it was still possible to upgrade by ... (view more)

The latest major update to Windows 10 starts rolling out to the general public this week. Some of the most useful changes will be behind the scenes, but there will be the first hints in a longer-term program to revamp the way the system looks on ... screen. The "Fall Creators Update" is the latest of the twice-yearly major Windows 10 updates that add new features. That's in contrast to the more frequent updates that fix performance and security problems. As usual, it's been available to people in Microsoft's testing programs before this roll out. Windows 10 Fall Creators Update will be a ... (view more)

Microsoft has confirmed it will sell another standalone edition of the Office suite for people who don't want an annual subscription. It will receive updates, but only for an unspecified period. Despite the name, Office 2019 will come out in the ... second half of next year. It's described by Microsoft as both a "perpetual release" and a "perpetual update", which is a somewhat unwieldy way to distinguish it from Office 365. (Source: office.com ) Office 365 is a subscription model in which users get continuous updates for as long as they pay either a monthly or annual subscription, but when they ... (view more)

Microsoft claims Windows 10 performance is improving while glitches are less common. It appears one explanation may be a slowdown in the update rollout process. The claims come in a blog post comparing the two most recent 'major update' versions of ... Windows 10, the twice-yearly updates that bring new features rather than just fixing performance and security bugs. It cites figures collected in telemetry reports, in which it tracks the activity on computers, something that Microsoft says helps improve the system, but raises privacy concerns among some critics. Boot Time And Log-In Speedier ... (view more)

Microsoft is to give Windows 10 users more details about exactly what an app is able to do on their computer. It's a similar security measure to that available on some mobile device apps. Until now, apps only usually have to get a Windows user's ... permission when they want to access location data, for example in a mapping tool. That's changing with the 2017 Fall Creators Update, the next major twice-yearly feature update for Windows 10. Microphone and Webcam Access Need Permission The change means apps will need the user's permission to access key hardware components on the computer such as a ... (view more)

Microsoft has promised it won't download new Windows software to users without permission again. The promise staves off legal action in Germany, though is somewhat outdated with the changes to the way Windows is developed. The legal case followed ... the discovery in 2015 that Microsoft had automatically downloaded Windows 10 installation files to users regardless of whether they had shown any interest in upgrading to the new system. The idea was to make it quicker for people get up and running if they did upgrade, as well as spreading out the load of Windows download servers to avoid the ... (view more)