The unexpected situation with COVID 19 pandemic forced businesses to shift to remote work that may bring certain inconveniences both to business owners and to regular staff workers. Accessing the work environment remotely may result in system slowness, and lack of productivity especially when there are a lot of connections, and the system is not adapted for remote requests. The idea of permanent work from home is not appealing to everyone, still, we have to face the fact that it’s our reality for the nearest future....

Security firm McAfee says a flaw in Cortana, specifically the ability to use the assistant from the lock screen. This situation can be exploited to execute code from the locked screen to access the machine. In its report, McAfee says this works even on patched PCs up to Redstone 3, the Fall Creators Update. It is worth noting that Microsoft used yesterday’s (June 12) Patch Tuesday to fix this problem....

It displayed dates and times in ‘minutes ago’ and ‘hours ago’ if documents were modified recently. It also introduced ‘Yesterday at ___’, the day of the week with time, and month and day if in the current year. Microsoft confirmed that friendly dates will not ship with the May 2019 update and gave no indication if it would return. Why it cut the feature is also unclear, as it was possible to toggle and many considered it an improvement....

As the update rolls out slowly to more PCs, we’re seeing additional problems, and the latest involves Intel SSDs. The SSD 600p and SSD Pro 6000p are incompatible with the latest version. “When attempting to upgrade to the Windows 10 April 2018 Update, select devices with Intel SSD 600p Series or Intel SSD Pro 6000p Series may crash and enter a UEFI screen after reboot,” explained a spokesperson. “Microsoft is working with OEM partners and Intel to identify and block devices with Intel SSD 600p Series or Intel SSD Pro 6000p Series from installing the April 2018 Update due to a known incompatibility that may cause performance and stability issues....

Over the last seven months, Microsoft has been building up the Creators Update through previews. Windows Insiders have helped ensure numerous bugs have been found and fixed ahead of launch. Naturally, for an OS as all-encompassing as Windows 10, some niggles will creep through to the final build. While Microsoft will be working to patch those over the next weeks, it is inevitable there will be some growing pains. By the way, inevitable does not mean acceptable, but it is just the way it is....

So, another Spectre Variant 2 mitigation has failed. Furthermore, KB4100347 is reported to be automatically disabling overclocking on Windows 10 PCs. Plenty of Redditors (1, 2, and 3) have posted proof this is happening. The problem affects numerous Intel-based PC, including those running Haswell-E and Broadwell-E CPUs. It is worth noting the problem has only been observed in machines running the Windows 10 April 2018 Update (version 1803). Microsoft has yet to comment on this problem, but the company has already fixed the issue....

Microsoft is now changing that by testing Microsoft Edge integration with Windows Search. This is in testing for Windows 10 versions 20H2 or newer. Essentially, the brings the Chromium Edge browser experience into the Windows taskbar. The upshot here is you won’t need to open the Edge app to start some basic tasks such as access bookmarks, your browsing history, recent tabs, top sites, and so on. Previously, searches would open in Edge but that was about the extent of the integration....

Save Windows 10 Spotlight Images Unfortunately, though, it’s not without its issues, and many users find that their Windows spotlight is not working or gets stuck. In the latter scenario, users will notice that their Windows 10 spotlight images are not changing. You can be stuck with the same lock screen image for eternity unless you take action. Others run into more serious issues like a Windows spotlight blue screen or a “Windows spotlight is not available” error....

If you have been following Timeline, you will know it is an important Windows 10 tool. Delayed several times, the feature finally arrived with the Windows 10 April 2018 Update (Redstone 4). Microsoft has openly said it wishes to bring the feature to other platforms. Indeed, the company confirmed development on an Android integration is underway, while Timeline has arrived on Edge for iOS already. However, wider development has been a little slower....

The Xbox app for Windows is updating to version 2203.1000.21.0, adding a new navigation system. Specifically, a new non-collapsible sidebar covering main Xbox sections: Game Pass, Cloud Gaming, My Library, Community, and Store. The current app that all Windows 11 and 10 users see has these menu items next to the search bar at the top of the app screen. In the new system, the main sections have available installed games and a Game Pass (another) button below the main items....

Speaking during Microsoft’s Extra Life Livestream, Phil Spencer discussed the company’s ongoing commitment to E3 and the continuation its own XO conference. Microsoft typically announces new Xbox consoles at E3, the biggest gaming even. Over the years, the annual trade show has provided an ideal mid-year platform for Microsoft to announce a console before launching it later. However, this year, the Xbox team hosted its own E3-esque event called XO18 in Mexico City....

Looking specifically at Xbox Scarlett, Microsoft is familiar with launching a console loaded with specs only for its to struggle. That was the Xbox One, a device that ultimately recovered but was still vastly outsold by the PlayStation 4. In an interview with The Verge, Microsoft’s Xbox chief, Phil Spencer, suggested the company has learned from the mistakes it made with the Xbox One. “I would say a learning from the Xbox One generation is we will not be out of position on power or price,” Spencer told The Verge....

“You can now see traffic camera icons along a short to moderate-length route,” explains Microsoft in a blog post. “By clicking on a traffic camera icon, you can view the latest image from the traffic camera at that location.” The feature should help users confirm congestion or weather conditions before they set off. In the case of a passenger, it could also enable adjustments on the fly. In the case of an unfamiliar route, users could also for check things like road conditions or steep inclines....

Further action includes YouTube disabling comments of tens of millions of videos that feature predatory content. The Google-owned video streaming service has often taken pedophilic content down, but this represents the widest culling of such creators. In a statement, YouTube said: “All of us at YouTube are working incredibly hard to root out horrible behavior on our platform…There is more to be done and we are continuing to grow our team in order to keep people safe....

The tidbit was discovered by Business Insider, who did a deep dive on the Facebook CEO’s security plans. By speaking to current and former employees, it was able to build a picture of his level of protection. Those sources say Zuckerberg has 24/7 protection officer outside his Bay Area home, which contains a panic room. His team sweeps bars, vets doctors, and assesses any instructors. They drive him to every location and blend in with employees at company events to stop any would-be assassins....

In most cases, imaging and design tools will use software and design concepts that mimic real artists tools, such as brushes, shapes, etc. It is an effortless way to give users something familiar. However, Adobe Research teamed with the University of Toronto to create something more fluid for software users. The company developed a skeuomorphic palette that it says delivers more intuitive control. Additionally, the new Color Picker brings greater color choice and allows smoother color transitions and mixes....

Researchers are starting to see the same problem with AI. It began when University of Virginia computer science professor Vicente Ordóñez saw a disturbing pattern in his image recognition software. If it saw a picture of a kitchen, it would be much more likely to associate it with women. Concerned, he created a team to investigate two sets of AI training photos supported by Facebook and Microsoft. He found that both show gender bias, with activities like shopping and cooking linked to women, and sports to men....

1 Cloud Rivals2 Other Console Makers Cloud Rivals At the moment, the idea of a cloud game streaming platform remains in development. Working under the codename Project Tempo, the service will enter directly alongside Project xCloud and Google Stadia. Other Console Makers Indeed, xCloud feels much more like a play anywhere Xbox One. The one outlier is Sony, and to an extent Nintendo. The two Japanese companies are dominant in the console market, but neither has explored cloud gaming in-depth....

The basis of Moore’s Law is simple: the number of transistors in a dense integrated circuit doubles about every two years. Basically, this states that every two years chips will get smaller, have improved power consumption and performance. However, the time period detailed by Moore’s Law is lengthening as chipmakers struggle to make innovations at the same pace. CPUs have become so small that significantly reducing them further is becoming challenging....

We are not talking about smartphones, so Qualcomm can rest easy. Instead, it is Intel that is in the crosshairs once again. The Ryzen mobile processors are designed for premium 2-in-1, ultrathin laptops, and convertibles. At the moment, this market is tied up by Intel, which produces for devices such as Microsoft’s Surface devices. AMD’s Ryzen mobile chips are comprised of “Zen” x86 cores and Radeon “Vega” graphics in a System-on-Chip design....