microsoft

The latest Windows 10 update, which is rolling out now, has thrown up at least three highly reported problems for users. The most significant is that some computers are losing WiFi access. The Windows 10 May 2019 update affects some computers which ... have a Qualcomm WiFi adaptor and don't yet have the latest driver for it. A driver is a small piece of software that helps a hardware device or component interact with an operating system. Some users in this situation have suffered what Microsoft is calling an "intermittent loss of WiFi connectivity." It's responded by blocking the update from ... (view more)

Microsoft has ditched Windows 10 "Sets," a feature planned as a major rethink of how Windows 10 works. In simple terms, it would have replaced traditional windows (such as File Explorer or a MS Word) with browser-like tabs. The feature was first ... revealed by Microsoft in late 2017 and later went out to some users in the Windows 10 test panel. The concept was simple: to offer an alternative to the current methods of switching between open applications such as using Alt-Tab to cycle between them, or clicking on icons in the taskbar at the bottom of the screen. Browser-Like Experience ... (view more)

Microsoft has warned that having a USB device or memory card in a computer could block a major Windows 10 update. It's a simple problem that's made far worse by a resulting error message, which is incredibly confusing. The issue is likely to do with ... the new policy that no longer requires users to 'eject' a USB device before removing it from the system . The problem is with computers trying to install the latest Windows 10 May 2019 Update. It's the first of the two major updates this year (and every year after) that introduces new features rather than simply fixing bugs. The "May 2019 update" ... (view more)

A security researcher says an Internet Explorer flaw could affect people who don't even use the outdated browser. It's a reminder of the dangers of opening unexpected email attachments. John Page has published details of the bug which affects ... version 11 of Internet Explorer (the latest) on both Windows 7, 8 and 10. The bug involves a file format called MHT. It's a format that's not used much these days but used to be common back when Internet Explorer was king. It's used to download an entire web page (including images and other media) into a single file. It's not needed today as browsers can ... (view more)

Microsoft is going back to its old policy of letting users choose what Windows updates they get and when they get them, albeit with some restrictions. It's also going to put updates through more testing before rolling them out. One of the biggest ... change (and perhaps most controversial) with Windows 10 was the abandonment of the old policy by which users could take a case-by-case approach to downloading updates . The default in Windows 10 for home users has been that everything downloads and installs automatically, though exactly when this happens varies from device to device. That's partly ... (view more)

According to a recent report, Microsoft products made up eight of the ten most exploited software bugs last year according to a security company. That's higher than in recent years, largely because Adobe Flash is becoming a less rewarding target for ... hackers as it loses popularity. As recently as 2015, most of the top ten involved bugs with Flash. Microsoft took the unwanted lead in 2017 with seven entries on the list. (Source: bleepingcomputer.com ) Internet Explorer Tops The List The top spot for 2018 went to a bug in the Windows VBScript engine . That's a tool that handles code designed for ... (view more)

Microsoft has warned an update coming next month is absolutely critical for users running Windows 7. Without it, computers won't be able to use any future Windows security and feature updates, leaving users extremely vulnerable to malware infections ... (or worse). It's all to do with a change in the way Microsoft delivers security updates in a secure manner. Whenever Microsoft releases an update, it comes with a digital signature to prove that it came from Microsoft's servers and that the code it contains has not been tampered with. You can think of these security measures much the same way when ... (view more)

January 2020 marks the end of extended support for Windows 7 from Microsoft. This means Windows 7 users have just one year left to upgrade to either Windows 8 or 10 (or an alternative), before their systems become a major security risk. Support for ... Windows 7 comes in a two-stage process. The first is known as mainstream support, which means the system is under warranty and Microsoft offers free technical support over the phone and its online forums. During this time, Microsoft also continues developing new features, and users can get hot fixes which patch any performance or security problems ... (view more)

Microsoft will soon "reserve" seven gigabytes of hard drive space to make sure Windows 10 works reliably. But the setup may not work as planned. The change is scheduled for the next major twice-yearly update, expected in April, 2019. It's called ... "reserved storage" and involves earmarking part of the PC's hard drive as a place to store "updates, apps, temporary files, and system caches." These files are separate to the permanent ones used for Windows itself. (Source: microsoft.com ) 7GB Figure Could Increase According to Microsoft, the move will have two benefits. The first is to make sure the ... (view more)

Microsoft may have to pay more than a thousand dollars to a user whose PC was upgraded to Windows 10 without permission. The money covers damage after allegedly breaking the computer. The case is in Finland where the Finnish Consumer Disputes Panel ... ruled on a complaint by a user. Local media reports say that companies usually pay up in such cases. (Source: mspoweruser.com ) The claim followed an unwanted update from Windows 8.1 to Windows 10 in March 2016. That's when Microsoft was using the Windows Update service to download the Windows 10 files and then automatically install it on a restart ... (view more)