Starting with Azure Media Services, Microsoft has added the Video Indexer feature. This brings integration for Microsoft’s AI and cognitive software for video content on the cloud. Additionally, the company has added HEVC Encoding support, which brings higher resolution video to service operators. Azure Storage scores several important new abilities. Microsoft says the changes are specifically for media customers. The company has introduced the following capabilities: Azure Archive Blob Storage – Azure Archive Blob storage is designed to provide Media organizations with a low cost means of delivering durable, highly available, secure cloud storage for rarely accessed data with flexible latency requirements....

1 Highlights2 Bots and Add-ins3 Other Features and Abilities Indeed, update is probably too light a term considering this is a complete overhaul that leaves Skype looking and feeling like a different app. It is the most drastic change to the service in over a decade. It is also a clear message from Microsoft as the company attempts to combat growing rivals. Interestingly, it seems Microsoft has gone to those rivals for inspiration....

“It’s a wonderful opportunity to work at scale & to make a global impact, I can’t wait to get started! So many fab plans to share, more to come soon.” Annie Parker is a co-founder of Australian startup accelerator muru-D. The company has worked with over 44 startups. Parker left muru-D to become CEO of Lighthouse, a startup specializing in smart security cameras powered by AI. In July, Annie Parker took the interim CEO role at Fishburners....

Microsoft confirmed the cancellation to attending partners via email. According to Microsoft, the reason is people unable to attend because of the coronavirus outbreak. “After close consultation with our partners and community, we’ve made the difficult decision to cancel the IoT in Action Melbourne event this March 5, 2020,” Microsoft said “Microsoft regrets any inconvenience to IoT in Action sponsors and registrants. “We are canceling this event because many of our customer[s] and partners are no longer able to attend, and us continuing to hold the event would no longer meet our business goals....

Of course, this is hardly a major feature and most mobile browsers give users the option to use desktop sites. In fact, Microsoft Edge on Windows 10 Mobile has had the ability for a whole. However, Microsoft had yet to bring it to iOS. With the implementation now available on beta, it should be coming to iPhone and iPad users soon. Firstly, it will have to pass through testing on the beta app....

The Microsoft Edge vulnerability carries the code CVE-2018-8495. Through Edge, a bad actor could run malicious code from a remote location and take over a system. Al-Qabandi took to his blog to publish the PoC. After discovering the problem, the Kuwait security expert reported it through Trend Micro’s Zero-Day Initiative. With the proof-of-concept, researchers can now replicate the problem and study it. Indeed, the code is unusually simple in HTML and JavaScript....

In a blog post, Microsoft describes the new features, and that they will roll out during the remainder of this year. Leading the way is the new Remote Help tool, which is generally available immediately. Remote Help gives Microsoft Endpoint Manager a new premium add-on, which means customers must pay more to access it. Microsoft says the tool brings a “secure” help service for the platform. IT pros and admins to fix issues on the move....

The upcoming Nano Server configuration will boast an image footprint that has been reduced by 50 percent. Microsoft is shirking its Nano Server infrastructure to focus on container-based environments. In its latest announcement, Microsoft has confirmed that the new features are reserved for customers adopting the semi-annual Windows Server Channel. The overhaul of the Nano Server is important as it was only released a year ago. Indeed, Microsoft backed the server fully and marketed it as the minimal-footprint deployment of choice for Windows Server 2016....

The expansion of Flow comes after it debuted last year. At the time of announcement, the app was only available on iOS devices. A month later the company brought it to public beta on Android. Flow left preview and was fully launched in October. As is often the case with mobile these days, Microsoft left its own Windows phone platform until last. At least now users can get their hands on the app automation tool in testing....

Jon Peddle Research (JPR) suggests Microsoft Flight Simulator will be a monster success. Indeed, the company predicts 2.2 million copies over the next three years. Let’s be clear, that is much lower than normal triple A titles, but we must consider what Flight Sim is and what it is for. Certainly, the game is not meant to attract all types of gamers. Furthermore, those 2.2 million copies will be despite the game being available on Xbox Game Pass on PC....

Flow is a service that allows users to create automated workflows across applications. It can be described as an enterprise-oriented IFTTT competitor. By creating automated chains, users can get data collection, file synchronization, and notifications. Starting today, Microsoft Flow now supports Azure File Storage, Azure Video Indexer, Elastic Forms, and Plivo connectors. In an announcement, the company explains what each connector offers: Azure File Storage – Microsoft Azure Storage provides a massively scalable, durable, and highly available storage for data on the cloud, and serves as the data storage solution for modern applications....

Microsoft said the Commercial Suite is still available and suggested it is now the only choice: “The HoloLens Commercial Suite remains available and is a great option for HoloLens industry solutions including the recently released Microsoft Dynamics 365 Remote Assist and Layout business applications.” While the Commercial Suite has continued to be available since then, it too is now out of stock, at least in the United States. This means at the moment, customers in the US are unable to buy any version of the first HoloLens model....

To do so, the company has partnered with a number of flight booking aggregate websites. Bing is now able to curate flights in search results, making it easier to find the cheapest options from one location. Bing taps into Global Distribution Systems to gain information from data in real time. Through access to major airlines and aggregate sites, the search engine can compare flights in a single place. If you enter a search “flights from New York to Los Angeles” Bing will now present a list of flights and the price....

Through the investment, Microsoft will open a new datacenter in the Polish Digital Valley, alongside providing help for startups and the Polish government to roll out cloud services. Microsoft’s investment will scale over the next seven years. In a blog post to confirm the investment, Microsoft says it will reach 150,000 people in Poland through the expansion. These people will come from education, enterprise, and other sectors. Microsoft says it will push innovative tech in Poland, including AI, machine learning, and the Internet of Things....

The reason Microsoft took features away is because the Windows 11 taskbar is built from the ground up as a completely new experience. Bringing the functionality users are used to. Now Microsoft is ready to add at least two classic features to the taskbar. Microsoft watcher Albacore spotted the development of the ability to view clock seconds in the system tray, while the “never combine” taskbar that made its debut on Windows 7 is also making a comeback....

In its release notes, Microsoft says the capability gives users a fast and efficient way to receive money and pay for goods without leaving the app. Users can make peer-to-peer payment or one-to-one transactions during individual or group chats. Kaizala is a business chat system, so the integration will power businesses towards integrated micro payments and manage organizational transactions. Speaking of the release, Rajiv Kumar, Corporate Vice President, Office Product Group, Microsoft, said: “When we launched Microsoft Kaizala for India in July 2017, we provided consumers as well as businesses with a secure chat platform to collaborate and be productive, on the go....

Dark Mode came to Outlook in August 2019 as part of Microsoft’s wider overhaul of the app. Later, the company brought it to iOS. With DarkModeKit, developers have an open source access to the method for implementing Dark Mode on iOS apps. In other words, the kit allows developers to introduce Dark Mode on their own apps. Microsoft says DarkModeKit was “designed and developed before Apple‘s official dark mode release”....

The idea lies in the huge and growing amount of water used for the production and delivery of goods. “Much of the world’s water is hard at work in the production and delivery of nearly all goods and services, from apples to zippers,” says Josh Henretig, Microsoft’s senior director of environmental sustainability. “And the amount of water needed to make products is only going to increase, with manufacturing expected to use 400 percent more water from 2000 to 2050....

“You think you know Chinese, but if you meet a Chinese person and you want to speak Chinese, there is no way you can do it if you have not practiced,” explained Yan Xia, senior develop lead at Microsoft Research Asia in Beijing. “Our application addresses this issue by leveraging our speech and natural language processing technology.” Microsoft is likening the app to a teacher’s assistant, stressing that it’s no replacement for a human teacher, but has the advantage of being available 24/7....

Launched in May, Windows Template Studio is a new service specifically for developers of Universal Windows Platform (UWP) apps. Dev’s can create new applications more easily thanks to a wizard that guides them. The open source tool highlights pages, frameworks, and features through a four-step process. UWP apps can be created more quickly and efficiently. Microsoft developed the Template Studio as an evolution of Windows App Studio. With version 1....