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By Tony Brookhouse on Oct 27, 2018 in Blog, News |

here is some email advice for anyone still not...

By Tony Brookhouse on Oct 6, 2018 in Blog, News |

☰ Windows 10’s latest update is deleting some users’ documents By Tom Warren on October 5, 2018 10:11 am Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Microsoft released its latest Windows 10 October 2018 Update earlier this week, but some users are reporting serious issues. Threads on Reddit, Microsoft’s own support site, and other forums show that some Windows 10 users are upgrading to the October 2018 Update and having their documents, photos, or even entire user profiles wiped out. While some have discovered a temporary fix for the issue, it’s not clear why exactly this is happening. Microsoft has not started automatically pushing this latest update out to Windows Update, so only people that visit Windows Update manually and check for updates will get it installed right now. Still, the fact a number of people are reporting these issues is alarming. Microsoft is currently investigating the reports, but given these early issues we’d recommend not installing the Windows 10 October 2018 Update right now. If you do want to take the risk, make sure you’ve got all your documents and data backed up just in case you’re affected by this particular bug. The Verge has reached out to Microsoft to comment on the issues, and we’ll update you...

By Tony Brookhouse on Mar 17, 2017 in Blog, News |

Microsoft, Please Stop Breaking My PC With Windows 10’s Automatic Updates by Chris Hoffman on March 16th, 2017 Hey Microsoft, could you please stop breaking my PC? The latest WPD driver update released on March 8, 2017 is just the latest in a long string of bad updates. If Windows 10 is going to force these updates on my system, the least Microsoft could do is test them properly first. Don’t get us wrong: automatic updates are very important for security reasons, and we believe they are a good thing. The problem is that Microsoft isn’t just releasing security updates. They’re making major changes to Windows, and not testing the updates properly. They need to do better. Microsoft Just Released a Bad Driver Update, and I Have to Fix It The latest and most obnoxious update—at least for me, personally—was the “Microsoft – WPD – 2/22/2016 12:00:00 AM – 5.2.5326.4762” update released on March 8, 2017. Microsoft removed this update from Windows Update, but not until after my and other PCs installed it. As a Microsoft representative explained in a discussion post on Microsoft’s community forums: “An incorrect device driver was released for Windows 10, on March 8, 2017, that affected a small group of users with connected phones or portable devices.  After installation, these devices are not detected properly by Windows 10” That’s right: Microsoft released a bad driver update that broke the MTP drivers in Windows. MTP is used to access files on connected Android phones and tablets, media players, Windows phones, and some other types of portable devices. This update seems broken for everyone, so how did it get onto Windows Update in the first place? Driver updates are supposed to be tested through the Windows Hardware Quality Labs before they’re allowed onto Windows Update. Apparently that isn’t happening properly. Microsoft caught the problem, so that should be the end of the story, right? Nope. Microsoft isn’t going to release an automatic fix through Windows Update to correct the problem. It’s my job to fix what Microsoft broke on my PC, and it’s your job to fix it on your PC if Windows 10 automatically installed the same update for you. As this is a driver update, there’s no way to “uninstall”...

By Tony Brookhouse on Dec 12, 2016 in Blog, News |

Microsoft has been targeting Mac users with its Surface commercials recently, and it appears they might be paying off. The software giant claims that November was the “best month ever for consumer Surface sales,” following a number of Black Friday deals on the Surface Pro 4. Microsoft still isn’t providing sales numbers, but the company claims “more people are switching from Macs to Surface than ever before.” Microsoft cites “the disappointment of the new MacBook Pro” and its trade-in program for MacBooks for tempting people to switch to Surface. Again, Microsoft refuses to provide numbers but vaguely claims “our trade-in program for MacBooks was our best ever.” Alongside the Surface sales, Microsoft is also expanding on the availability of the new Surface Book with Performance Base. The most powerful Surface Book is now available in Australia and New Zealand, and will arrive in Austria, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Switzerland, and the UK early next quarter. Microsoft isn’t providing and sales guidance for its Surface Studio, or any news on when the all-in-one PC will be available outside the US. Source...

By Tony Brookhouse on Dec 12, 2016 in Blog, News |

With the Windows 10 Creators Update, Microsoft is bringing the Windows Holographic Shell to Windows 10 PCs. With Windows Holographic, Windows 10 users will be able to use some of their apps and games in a VR environment via virtual reality headsets from companies like Dell, Acer, Lenovo, and Asus in 2017. Microsoft has already started including parts of Windows Holographic in the latest Insider builds of Windows 10. The company added a “Windows Holographic” app to Windows 10 with a recent Insider build — and with Windows 10 Build 14986 last week, Microsoft has updated the app. We’re able to try out Windows Holographic in a simulation mode in the latest Insider build of Windows 10 and get our first look at the feature. At the moment, there honestly isn’t anything to be excited about as we were only able to open up the Start Menu in Windows Holographic. Apart from that, we weren’t able to do anything else as there doesn’t seem to be any way of interacting with the system at the moment as this is just a simulation. Windows Holographic does, indeed, look very exciting. We’ll likely get a much better look in 2017 once Microsoft releases newer builds of Windows 10 to Insiders. However, for the most part, the Windows Holographic experience should be very similar to what we already have in the Microsoft HoloLens — so if you already own a HoloLens, this probably won’t be very exciting for you. Source: First Look: This is Windows Holographic in Windows 10 –...

By Tony Brookhouse on Nov 20, 2016 in Blog, News |

  Microsoft has released a new Windows 10 app on the Windows Store. The company’s latest app, Windows Defender Hub, is a simple app that provides the latest news regarding Windows Defender and security on Windows 10. The app pulls articles from Microsoft’s Malware Protection Center website and users can read 6 of the latest articles on the app. If you want to read more articles, you’ll have to open the Malware Protection Center. Help protect your device with the antimalware protection built in to Windows 10. It’s already on your device! There’s nothing to buy, no subscriptions, and no nagware. Windows Defender Hub gives you access to Windows Defender, so you can easily check your protection status or scan your device. Windows Defender Hub also brings you articles from Microsoft about malware and viruses and the latest security trends, even if you use another antivirus program. This new app is likely for the Windows 10 Creators Update which is also expected to introduce a new Windows Defender app with a modern experience. If you are interested in trying out the Defender Hub, you can download it from the Windows Store: Source: Windows 10’s Defender Hub app shows up on the Windows Store – MSPoweruser...