Microsoft

Microsoft has accidentally leaked a tool that lets users try out every new feature that's in development. It's grabbed the attention of tech enthusiasts but is very much not a good idea for the average user. The tool came to light when Microsoft ... promoted an event called "Bug Bash". Normally that's an internal "all hands on deck" process where developers are told to hold off their normal work for a set period and instead concentrate solely on finding bugs in software. Microsoft opened this process up to members of the Windows Insider program that lets the public access in-development version ... (view more)

Software engineers have been debating whether today's operating systems are slower to respond than their predecessors. It led one site to experiment with running Windows XP on a new computer. After some hassles of getting it going, it turned out ... that XP felt extremely fast to use, albeit with a serious risk of malware infection. The debate started when Julio Merino put together "real-time videos" of an old machine running Windows NT 3.51 (a business version roughly equivalent to Windows 95 for consumers) and a modern machine running Windows 11. (Those of us of a certain age may have to ... (view more)

Windows 11 should soon have an option to repair a broken system without a complete reinstall. The feature will work through Windows Update. If it works as described, users will be able to fix problems by switching to a stable and working version of ... Windows 11 without the two major hassles that often come with a reinstall. For example, it won't require users to download an entire copy of the Windows 11 and write to USB, then boot from the USB in order to perform the install; but, most importantly, it won't wipe out installed applications after the reinstall has completed. The new feature is ... (view more)

The latest Windows 11 update brings a host of new features. The emphasis appears to be very much about minor improvements rather than a major overhaul. All users who have the latest edition of Windows 11 (codenamed 22H2) will now get the "Moment 3" ... update. Those on older editions will only be getting the regular security patch. "Moment 3" doesn't include any dramatic changes but rather includes new and tweaked features that will have small but meaningful benefits. For example, File Explorer and the desktop will get "access keys," designed to bring the benefits of shortcut keys without the ... (view more)

Windows 11 users are continuing to report hard drives performing more slowly after mandatory system updates. The problem appears to affect solid state drives rather than traditional older model hard drives with moving parts. The Windows Latest ... website gathered together reports from its own forums, discussion site Reddit, and Microsoft's support forums. It concluded that the "performance issue doesn't appear to be widespread, but it is real." (Source: windowslatest.com ) One piece of evidence that something is actually amiss rather than it just being a fluke pattern is that those complaining ... (view more)

A lawyer is suing Microsoft for $1.75 million after being locked out of his email account. David M Schlachter says a bug meant he couldn't verify his identity, making the account useless. According to Schlachter, the problem was with his paid Office ... 365 account. After using it for six years, he was locked out in May by a two-step verification check. The check would send a verification code to his phone, either via a text message or an automated voice call. However, when Schlachter tried to choose one of these options and initiate the check, he'd simply see a message reading "Sorry, we're ... (view more)

Microsoft is to forcibly upgrade computers running a version of Windows 10 that's about to stop being supported. It's billed as a way to keep users "protected and productive." The update will cover consumer devices plus "non-managed business ... devices" running Windows 10 version 21H2. That was the version with the major feature update in the second half of 2021. (Source: theregister.com ) The move should only affect users who have switched off automatic updates, which is why the forced update won't be to everyone's taste. The chances are that many people in this position have deliberately ... (view more)

A recent report from StatCounter (March, 2023) suggests that Windows 11 is running on one out of every five Windows PCs (approximately 20 percent). Windows 11 has experienced a steady growth rate, increasing its market share from 19.13% to 20.94%, ... gaining 1.81 percentage points in March, 2023. While Windows 10 also saw an increase, it was not as significant as in February 2023 when Microsoft stopped support for Windows 7 and 8.1. Despite the increase in Windows 10's market share, Windows 11's growth rate indicates that users are more interested in the newer operating system. These numbers may ... (view more)

The Windows 11 taskbar will soon have a quick option to kill a task or process. It's something users currently need to do by opening Task Manager. The precise terminology of stopping Windows doing something has changed over the years, with terms ... including programs, applications, tasks and processes. The actual distinctions don't really matter that much to the average user, but they include whether the issue is with Windows itself or an application. They also depend on whether the user is trying to stop an entire application or simply one of multiple things it is doing, such as running ... (view more)

A Microsoft Defender update has caused havoc by removing desktop, Start Menu and Taskbar shortcuts. Some users even say entire programs have disappeared. The closest thing to good news is that, although it affects both Windows 10 and 11, the problem ... only appears to affect Windows enterprise versions, rather than home users. That's because the problem is with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, a version of the security tool designed for networked computers. For most affected users, the problem is "limited" to the various shortcuts disappearing. Some have also reported that using the Windows key ... (view more)