Microsoft ended Clippy’s life with the release of Office XP just a few years later in 2001. Office was getting smarter and more focused, using takes panes and help windows. Interestingly, Microsoft has never officially killed off Clippy. To prove the point, Microsoft reinstated the tool on Tuesday, although it was no longer a paperclip but was instead a pack of stickers on Microsoft Teams. Microsoft later released the stickers on the Office developer GitHub page for Teams users to use in chat windows....

“Your browser is not supported,” it reads. “Try it with the latest version of Chrome”. Strangely, new YouTube works in every other browser, including EdgeHTML. The message appears target Chromium Edge directly and runs without a hitch when users switch their user agent. It isn’t the first time this has happened. Google Meet previously stopped working on the browser, and the message is suspiciously familiar to the YouTube one Google employee used to kill IE all those years ago....

1 Features2 Security ElectionGuard makes voting systems auditable and verifiable. Voters can track their decisions on a web portal through a unique code that is given just to them. Furthermore, users have the option of confirming their vote was correctly handled and not tampered with or wrongly counted. Announced at Build 2019, ElectionGuard was demoed in July. The core abilities of the SDK are as follows: Verifiable: Allowing voters and third-party organizations to verify election results....

Windows Latest reports on a hint towards new volume controls in Windows 10 Preview Build 19577. Specifically, the codebase for the new Insider update there is code referring to the upcoming change. If you’re on a Windows 10 PC, you can see the current volume flyout when you press the volume or mute keys on your keyboard. The controls appear in the top left of the screen when playing audio on a browser or third-party services like Spotify....

A Microsoft employee posted on Twitter a new feature the Notepad app update could receive. Specifically, Microsoft is working on adding tabs to the app. Joe Lurie, Senior Product Manager Microsoft in Endpoint Former and Windows 10/Windows 11 and Endpoint Manager confirmed the development of the feature. Tabs in Notepad on Windows 11 will work just like they do on a web browser: Multiple windows will be possible and you can switch between them by moving from tab to tab....

Since May 17, the new app is available to customers with Microsoft 365 or Office 365 business and education accounts on the Beta Channel. Microsoft says current testers are paying customers. Other requirements include having their default email sending account as classic Outlook on Windows and are part of the Beta channel. Alongside the preview release, Microsoft is announcing a new feature known as Microsoft Loop: “With Microsoft Loop components everyone can edit and share their thoughts while staying in the flow of their work and the app they are using, Outlook or Teams – Loop components can be copied and pasted across Outlook emails and Teams chats and they always stay in sync so everyone can stay up to date wherever and whenever they work....

Among the new tools coming to Windows Calculator is an always-on-top functionality. As the name suggests, this ability will place the Calculator on top of other apps and keep it there. Of course, this is a useful capability for users who are switching between apps but need the calculator on their workspace. Let’s be honest, considering how people use calculators, always-on-top is a feature that should be on the Calculator app already....

The good news here is Microsoft was doing absolute zero with PureView and has sold it to perhaps the best possible receiver. HMD Global has bought the brand. Yes, that’s the company that currently makes Nokia Android smartphones under license. Sure, the Nokia of 2018 is not the company of the halcyon days of 10-15 years ago. Still, HMD Global has done a solid job at resurrecting the Nokia name in a competitive Android market....

This means introducing specific Android 12L features designed for folding and dual-screen devices like the Surface Duo. You may remember the first signs of Android 12L coming to the Duo appeared a year ago. Since then, we have been waiting for the update to arrive. Microsoft has also been working with Android 12L to add its custom tweaks to the OS. Specifically, Microsoft has made changes to the System Settings and Quick Settings menus, while the Surface Slim Pen 2 menu has also been improved....

It is worth noting that the Raspberry Robin worm is not new. It has already been seen deploying Lockbit ransomware, and malware such as Truebot and Bumblebee.In fact, I reported in May how it was being used to attack Windows systems. Microsoft’s warning suggests the worm is now being leveraged in Clop ransomware attacks. According to Microsoft Security, it is tracking a group known as DEV-0950 as the perpetrator of the latest attacks....

Microsoft’s plan is to cover some of the crazy demand for the Series X by selling certified refurbishments on the Microsoft Store. A brand new Xbox Series X costs $499 at list price, although with demand from official channels low, resellers are offloading devices for as much as $1,000. According the Store listing, a refurbished model costs $469.99. Yes, that is not much a saving from the list price, but it means you may be able to get your hands on a Series X now without waiting or paying over the odds....

Windows 7 is still the most used Windows version, especially in enterprise. Half a billion users will need to upgrade to Windows 10 this year before Microsoft shutters Windows 7 in 2020. When that happens, anyone left on Win7 will be unsupported and vulnerable. Microsoft wants a mass migration to get underway, but updating Windows across an organization is not always a smooth process. Indeed, sometimes Microsoft’s own cryptic error messages are the problem....

Yes, that’s still a lot to take in for people who have charted Microsoft’s history with mobile hardware. However, it makes sense for the Surface Duo to be Android for a multitude of reasons that would take this article off course. Microsoft has already said the Surface Duo will run Android 10 out of the box. That’s the latest version of Google’s mobile platform. Still, the Android world moves fast, and Android 11 is currently in beta and will launch this fall....

A new report from WindowsUnited.de suggests Microsoft is moving Skype away from UWP. Instead, the communications platform will be based on Facebook’s React Native framework. Indeed, Microsoft will apparently be rolling out a beta very soon. By switching to React Native, Skype for Windows 7, 8, Linux, and Mac will no be based on Electron anymore, and will lose UWP on Windows 10. The question is whether this represents Microsoft beginning a wider shift to React Native, or whether this is just for Skype?...

Last year, Microsoft and a coalition of security firms took down TrickBot. On a global mission, the companies removed one of the largest malware botnets. Microsoft said at the time it was unlikely to be the last we heard from Trickbot. To that end, the company Microsoft Defender continued to hunt for traces of the malware. “Trickbot [is] one of the world’s most infamous botnets and prolific distributors of ransomware,” Microsoft has previously said....

In a blog post, Microsoft discusses how Teams has become more powerful over the last year. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the app has gained an array of new features. “Over the last year, we have found new ways to create engaging virtual experiences at work,” Microsoft’s Nicole Herskowitz writes. “We’ve transformed spaces in our homes to offices, developed new skillsets for remote collaboration, and in some cases, adopted new technology to get work done....

Microsoft thinks it can help customers manage the cost with a new Device as a Service (DaaS) solution. With the new initiative, smaller organizations can spread the cost of Microsoft Teams Rooms devices. Microsoft’s Teams Device as a Service gives customers a way to purchase Rooms hardware through monthly plans. Payments come from trusted partners and Microsoft says the DaaS comes with the following benefits: “Reduced up-front costs Free up your budget for additional IT investments with monthly payments instead of a large initial purchase....

By working with Microsoft, Gemalto has ensured its new technology is compliant with regulatory standards for remote SIM provisioning. These specifications are controlled by the GSM Association (GSMA), which is an association of mobile network operators and hardware manufacturers. With the new connectivity and eSIM, Gemalto and Microsoft can bring more security and connectivity to customers. Windows 10 native eSIM support allows users to manage their connectivity on a device....

Through the campaign trail and voting, the Elections Hub will provide a level of engagement never seen before. POLITICO is Europe’s largest political publication and wants to give “unprecedented” access to the elections. Microsoft will provide interactive data visualizations through its Power BI platform. Users will get dynamic, updated, and detailed visualization of the often-complicated European Parliamentary elections. “Visualizing the election will make it a more meaningful event for our readers, showing them during nine months where the election is headed, and how they compare to their neighbors,” said Ryan Heath, Political Editor at POLITICO, leading this project for the newsroom....

It is unlikely these smaller downloads will be available in time for the Creators Update next month. However, UUP tests are progressing and users across Windows 10 devices can expect lighter downloads soon, likely with Redstone 3. The company debuted the Unified Update Platform (UUP) in November. Microsoft developed the platform to reduce the size of updates and to make finding new updates more efficient. This is particularly important for feature updates....