Category: Microsoft Tools

Next Microsoft Edge Update Seeks To Drag Internet Explorer Users Into The Future

Computer Tech, Microsoft Tools, Tech News

People have been surfing the Web with Internet Explorer for a quarter of a century. Microsoft is ready for Windows users to leave it behind once and for all and embrace the much more modern Edge.

Microsoft Edge version 87 is slated for release on November 19. When it rolls out, Internet Explorer diehards are going to see a much more aggressive pitch from Microsoft to make the switch.

If you’re still using Internet Explorer and happen to visit a site that has known compatibility issues Edge will automatically intervene.

A new Edge window will appear with an overlay letting you know what’s happening. The same screen will encourage you to import your Internet Explorer favorites, history and saved passwords.

You can choose not to, naturally, and just view the incompatible site in Edge instead. Doing so will allow you to prolong the inevitable a bit longer. Internet Explorer will still continue to work in this reduced capacity until at least next August.

For end users at home, however, there’s no time like the present to make the switch. Edge is built in the same mature, stable code that powers Google Chrome. It’s fast, standards-compliant and highly customizable. It’s also front and center in the big Fall update that’s now rolling out to Windows 10 users.

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Winding Down

Microsoft will gradually wind down support for Internet Explorer across its many apps and services over the next year. Microsoft Teams will drop IE next month. Bleeping Computer also reports that corporate users will need to use a different browser when signing in to their Microsoft Accounts.

Even when you can no longer launch the actual Internet Explorer browser you’ll still be able to lean on its 25 years of service. This will be critical for many enterprise environments.

One big reason that Microsoft hasn’t been able to simply close the book on Internet Explorer is that many customers still use applications that were designed to work exclusively in IE. Try running them in another browser and you’re asking for trouble.

Internet Explorer mode in Microsoft Edge should allow enterprise users to make the jump once and for all.

Lee Mathews

Lee Mathews

Lee started writing about software, hardware, and geek culture around the time that the Red Wings last won the Stanley Cup. The two aren’t related in any way, however. When he’s not catching up on tech news or blogging about it, you can find him watching or playing baseball and doing his part to ensure the next generation of geeks is raised properly.

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TechGumbo 982K subscribers Microsoft has completely rebuilt their Edge browser using Chromium source code developed by Google. In this beginner’s guide, I’ll go over the key features and near the end of this video, I’ll give you my final thoughts to let you know if it’s any good. The primary questions I’ll answer are: Is it better than the previous iteration of Edge, and is it good enough to make the switch from your current browser? Subscribe! ▶ https://www.youtube.com/techgumbo Share This Video ▶ https://youtu.be/RVrkWQMo6Xo Top 5 Best Web Browsers https://youtu.be/zE1_4x-hwZs Microsoft Edge https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge Chrome Web Store https://chrome.google.com/webstore0:38 User Interface 1:32 Chrome Extensions 2:08 Immersive Reader 2:59 PDF Viewer 3:21 Tracking Prevention 4:08 Change Search Engine 4:29 Dark Theme 5:07 Is Microsoft Edge Any Good? —————————————————– WATCH MORE VIDEOS 10 Useful Websites You’ll Wish You Knew Earlier! https://youtu.be/Qt3gjpV71IE Top 10 Best Free Websites to Watch Movies Online! https://youtu.be/tUpDDBKrTmg How to Force Dark Mode in Google Chrome for Every Website https://youtu.be/-RK0iSTqLa4 How to Personalize Windows 10 (Beginners Guide) https://youtu.be/eNansTeVGHM Top 20 Best TV Shows of the Decade https://youtu.be/vhw8vS7aCcA Twitter – https://twitter.com/GumboNet Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/TechGumbo TechGumbo is a leading source for the technology that we use each day. Whether it’s discussing computer operating system tricks, the latest tips for your mobile phone, finding out about the newest gadgets, or letting you know about the best software including the best web browsers for your computer, TechGumbo has boundless topics on technology for the astute YouTube viewer.

What Caused The Massive Microsoft Teams, Office 365 Outage On Monday? Here’s What We Know

Microsoft Tools

Cloud-based Microsoft applications, including Microsoft Teams, went down across a swathe of the U.S. yesterday.

Users of Microsoft Office 365, Outlook, Exchange, Sharepoint, OneDrive and Azure also reported they were unable to login. Instead, they were presented with a “transient error” message informing them there was a problem signing them in.

These issues appear to have started at around 5 p.m. ET, with services not returning to normal for many until 10 p.m. ET.

Indicative of the times we live in, whenever such an outage impacts so many people, the question of whether it’s an ongoing cyber-attack is front and center.

However, there is no evidence this was the case last night. So what did happen to take down access to Microsoft Teams, with work from home users taking to Twitter to complain of being unable to work, not to mention Office 365 and other cloud-based service disruption? Recommended For You

As was the case in June, when mobile calls and text messaging went down for many in the U.S. and August, when global internet traffic to major sites was disrupted, the cause could be much more mundane than a coordinated cyber-attack.

The first clue came when a Microsoft 365 Status message posted to Twitter revealed that Microsoft had “identified a recent change that appears to be the cause of the issue,” and said this was being rolled back to mitigate the impact.

However, soon after, another tweet poured cold water on that as it confirmed that Microsoft was “not observing an increase in successful connections” as a result of the rollback.

Two hours later, after rerouting traffic to “alternative infrastructure,” Microsoft reported improvements in multiple services.

Wait a moment, does that mean it could have been a massive, and somewhat audacious, distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack after all? Not according to a statement from a Microsoft spokesperson given to CNN Business: “we’ve seen no indication that this is the result of malicious activity.”

Another Microsoft status update message pointed to “a specific portion of our infrastructure” that was not processing authentication requests as expected.

According to some reports, this was a “code issue” that prevented the processing of those authentication requests “in a timely fashion.”

This remains a developing story as far as cause, rather than effect, is concerned. I reached out to Microsoft for a statement regarding what went wrong with the authentication process, but all a spokesperson said at this stage was: “We’ve fixed the service interruption that some customers may have experienced while performing authentication operations. At this time, we’ve seen no indication that this is the result of malicious activity.”

If things were bad at the start of the week, they got worse towards the end. On Thursday, October 1, Microsoft confirmed another outage. This time impacting Outlook users globally. MORE FROM FORBESNew Worldwide Microsoft Outage Confirmed-Here’s What We KnowBy Davey Winder

— Updated September 29 with a statement from Microsoft.

— Updated October 1 with news of another global outage Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn. Check out my website.

Davey Winder

 Davey Winder

I’m a three-decade veteran technology journalist and have been a contributing editor at PC Pro magazine since the first issue in 1994. A three-time winner of the BT Security Journalist of the Year award (2006, 2008, 2010) I was also fortunate enough to be named BT Technology Journalist of the Year in 1996 for a forward-looking feature in PC Pro called ‘Threats to the Internet.’ In 2011 I was honored with the Enigma Award for a lifetime contribution to IT security journalism. Contact me in confidence at davey@happygeek.com if you have a story to reveal or research to share

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The system was down for about four hours on Monday making it impossible for remote employees, businesses and schools who use the programs for remote learning to access. #wakeupcharlotte

Here Are 7 Companies Experts Think Microsoft Could Try To Acquire Aside From TikTok

Billionaires Strategy/Investment, Company Success, Content Marketing, Microsoft Tools

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As Microsoft attempts to acquire viral video app TikTok’s US operations, analysts speculated on a few other names that might be on the tech titan’s shopping list. The list of seven potential Microsoft acquisitions includes Dropbox, Slack, Twilio, Docusign and VMware, which Dell is considering spinning out, plus startups Mmhmm and Superhuman.

Keep in mind, Microsoft’s largest acquisition to date was its $26.2 billion LinkedIn deal, and while it appears Microsoft might be willing to pay more for TikTok, multibillion-dollar deals still are pretty uncommon for the company.

While Microsoft’s bid to acquire viral video app TikTok’s US operations may have come as a surprise, there are a few other big deals that industry-watchers think are a little more predictable.

Business Insider compiled a list of companies analysts say Microsoft could try to buy, based on which buys could bolster key Microsoft businesses such as its Microsoft 365 suite of business software applications, Azure cloud computing business, or Dynamics customer relationship management software.

Related: How to start a real estate business by investing of only 500$

It’s worth noting most of the companies on the list cost significantly more than Microsoft has ever paid to acquire any company. Microsoft’s largest acquisition to date was its LinkedIn deal worth $26.2 billion.

Morningstar analyst Dan Romanoff named big companies like Twilio and Docusign as potential targets, for example, but said he generally expects Microsoft to stick mostly to smaller deals.

“I would really expect [Microsoft] to continue to do deals at $1 [billion] or less that generally won’t mean much to casual observers,” he said, “but will serve to add important functionality to one of its existing product areas.”

Here are seven companies, aside from TikTok, that experts say Microsoft could acquire:

Mmhmmm

Valuation: Unknown

Mmhmm is building an app intended to allow people to virtually share their screen in a video call and remain in the picture at the same time, as Business Insider’s Katie Canales writes, and was founded by by ex-Evernote CEO Phil Libin.

The company is still very young, and just raised $4.5 million from investors including Sequoia Capital and cofounders of Instagram, Twitter, and Eventbrite.

Creative Strategies analyst Carolina Milanesi thinks Mmhmm could be a good acquisition target for Microsoft to build out its popular Teams workplace chat app and “help with the huge number of kids who like to do videos while playing Minecraft.”

Superhuman

Valuation: $270 million as of June 2019, per PitchBook

Superhuman builds an app intended to help users empty their inboxes in what it bills as “the fastest email experience ever made.” Unlike most other email apps, it’s not free — rather, it requires a $30/month subscription to use. In return, users get access to all kinds of email decluttering tools, including a conversational view that makes email look like a text message, as well as powerful keyboard shortcuts.

Creative Strategies analyst Carolina Milanesi said Superhuman could help Microsoft “modernize” its Outlook email app…….

Read More: Business Insider

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Satya Nadella Bets Microsoft’s Future As A Consumer Products Company On TikTok

Content Marketing, Microsoft Tools, Tech News

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Days after Microsoft’s MSFT big-tech rivals faced lawmakers over their dominance in the online ad-business, among other subjects, CEO Satya Nadella phoned the White House to discuss a deal to acquire social media platform TikTok that could reshape Microsoft’s future as a consumer-facing business.

The potential acquisition — expected to be valued around $40 billion — would be Microsoft’s largest, and riskiest, in a string of deals by Nadella, who has rewritten the company’s reputation for unsuccessful buys and focused on the enterprise space through pick-ups including LinkedIn and GitHub. By making a bid for TikTok, the Chinese-owned, hugely popular social platform, Nadella is shifting his attention to the consumer-ad space where Microsoft could attract the regulatory spotlight currently facing its rivals.

“There’s a big pile of ad revenue out there basically captured by Google GOOGL , Amazon AMZN , and Facebook,” says Jai Das, a managing director and cofounder at venture capital firm Sapphire Ventures. “This would be a way for Microsoft to access that.”

Microsoft received the green light from the Trump administration on Monday to pursue an acquisition of TikTok’s U.S. operations from its China-based parent company ByteDance, which had faced threats from the White House of being banned over national security concerns. More than 100 million people use TikTok to post short, and sometimes viral, videos that generate revenue with ads.

In a blog post Sunday, Microsoft said it would complete the prospective deal — which would also include TikTok’s operations in Australia, Canada and New Zealand — by September 15, and would invite U.S.-based minority investors to participate. The company said it would address privacy concerns by committing to transferring all of TikTok’s data to U.S.-based servers, and delete data from servers outside the country.

The move has struck some observers as good business sense; it’s proven popular with investors, too, as Microsoft shares closed Monday up $11.49, or 5.6%, adding more market capitalization to Microsoft’s stock than the acquisition would cost the company.

But for TikTok to become a success story, Microsoft will need to pull off its largest, and most-scrutinized absorption of another business in its history — a history that, until Nadella, was spotty. Under then-CEO Steve Ballmer, Microsoft acquired Skype in 2011 for $8.5 billion, only to watch as the company lost attention to rival products from Apple AAPL , Facebook and more recent businesses like Zoom. And in 2013, it acquired the failing mobile phone-maker Nokia for $7.6 billion, an investment that was essentially written off. The company’s Bing platform also had minimal success competing against Google’s search engine.

Momentum changed when Nadella was appointed CEO in 2014, who focused first on buying up enterprise-facing assets. Microsoft paid $26 billion for LinkedIn in 2016, an acquisition considered successful, and GitHub, which was acquired in 2018 for $7.5 billion has served as a customer runway to Microsoft’s cloud services business, Azure.

TikTok represents a new challenge for Nadella as it potentially joins a consumer-facing portfolio that includes the Xbox gaming division, Surface tablets and Minecraft. Like the enterprise companies before it, TikTok would likely remain a siloed entity for a couple of years, says Soma Somasegar, a former vice president at Microsoft who is now a managing director at Madrona Venture Group. Such a period of separation would also provide time for Microsoft to navigate any regulatory issues linked to separating TikTok from its Chinese owner, Somasegar says.

Beyond that, Somasegar says the platform could have future integration with Microsoft’s other consumer-facing brands. For example, TikTok’s ad business could be cross-promoted on Bing. And in gaming TikTok could provide complementary streaming services to Xbox’s platform.

If TikTok is successfully integrated, Microsoft would become established as the fourth major player in the online ad revenue business. Forecasts on TikTok’s growth vary, but the company’s U.S. operations are expected to generate close to $500 million in revenue in 2020, and about $1 billion in 2021, according to Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush. With these metrics, Ives estimates that TikTok could become a $200 billion business in a couple of years. And Microsoft has the cash, Ives notes, with $136 billion in cash reserves today, and expectations of generating $39 billion in free cash flow for 2020.

As Facebook, Google and Amazon joined Apple in testifying last week, Microsoft’s absence was notable to industry watchers. Should it bring in TikTok to fast-track its competition with their consumer products, the acquisition will signal a push into a new phase of ambitions under Nadella to compete on more fronts. As the venture capitalist Das puts it: “TikTok is a way to bring that DNA to the company.”

Source: http://forbes.com

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Microsoft Issues Bold Strike To Google Chrome With New Features You Need Now

Content Marketing, Google Apps, Google Business Tool, Google/Yahoo News, Microsoft Tools

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Microsoft’s revamped Edge browser has only been available for a few months, but it’s already putting pressure on Google’s market-leading Chrome. Now Microsoft has just issued a bold strike to Chrome with a set of cool and timely new features in Edge 83.

Launched on May 22 and rolling out gradually, Edge 83 will be available initially for a small number of users to evaluate their response so Microsoft can iron out any bugs and issues, according to tech site Bleeping Computer.

So what’s coming in this latest Microsoft Edge update?

Chrome-beating Microsoft Edge features you’ll want to try now

Even as countries exit lockdown during the COVID-19 crisis, many users are now working from home. This makes features such as the ability to separate your profiles between work and personal integral.

One of the new features in Edge 83, “Automatic Profile Switching” is able to detect when you are navigating to a site authenticated with a work account while in your personal profile and switch without you having to do anything.

Meanwhile, an update to a feature called SmartScreen makes you safer as you browse by stopping you from visiting insecure websites or downloading malicious files. Among the other cool updates, the Collections feature is improving—you can use it to drag and drop items to the collection without opening it—and the ability to Sync your extensions has been added.

How to get the new Microsoft Edge features now

If you can’t wait for the update, Bleeping Computer includes instructions for how to get Edge 83 now.

First, go to Microsoft Edge’s enterprise page and Select Stable 83 under Channel/version > Edge 83.0.478.37 > Select the platform > Download.Google Chrome v Edge

Microsoft Edge is certainly ramping up on the features front as it goes head-to-head with Chrome. In another move that brings its browser on a par with Chrome, Microsoft recently confirmed it would add a feature that will hide annoying notification pop ups that appear on some websites.

Privacy and security are a new battleground for browser-makers, and Google has just dropped a bunch of new features to try and starve off attempts to steal its market share.

In some ways, the two browsers are similar: If you are already an Edge user, you’ll know it’s based on the same Chromium browser engine as Google Chrome. Both Edge and Chrome releases have been delayed during COVID-19—and both skipped version 82 altogether to go straight to 83.

These new features are pretty cool—and they are what people need right now—so if you’re looking for a Google Chrome alternative, why not give Edge a try.

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Kate O'Flaherty

Kate O’Flaherty

I’m a freelance cybersecurity journalist with over a decade’s experience writing news, reviews and features. I report and analyze breaking cybersecurity and privacy stories with a particular interest in cyber warfare, application security and data misuse. Contact me at kate.oflaherty@techjournalist.co.uk

Source: https://www.forbes.com

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#MicrosoftEdge #GoogleChrome Microsoft has moved its web browser, Edge, over to Chromium, which means it now has many of the same perks and extensions as Google Chrome. But how does it compare to the world’s most popular browser? Find out in our Edge vs Chrome browser showdown. For more tech tips, how-tos, guides, app lists, game lists and all things tech, hit the ‘Subscribe’ button or check out our other videos: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5Hh… Or visit our website at: https://www.maketecheasier.com/

Microsoft Asks 400 Million People To Buy A New PC…And Other Small Business Tech News

Computer Tech, Microsoft Tools

Computer Stores Prepare For Release Of Microsoft Windows 7

Here are five things in technology that happened this past week and how they affect your business. Did you miss them?

1 — Microsoft is recommending that 400 million users buy new PCs by next month.

After recently announcing that they will be ending support for the Windows 7 Operating System, Microsoft released a statement this week suggesting that its nearly 400 million users still on Windows 7 switch entirely to Surface rather than upgrade their devices. The company detailed that—for most users who are using Windows 7—navigating over to a brand new PC that has Windows 10 Pro will be the most efficient move since—according to Microsoft—those devices are more secure, powerful, lightweight, and operate faster than the previous models. (Source: MS Power User)

Why this is important for your business:

OK, no one’s saying that you HAVE to buy a Surface. There are plenty of other great devices you can get for your business that also run Windows 10. But please…if your company still has computers running Windows 7 you have to do something. Upgrade. Switch to new devices. Turn them off. Computers running older operating systems like Windows 7 are very vulnerable to malware attacks which means that the cost of not upgrading could very well exceed the cost of replacing those older computers.

2 — Google is planning to kill support for third-party cookies that track you all over the internet. 

Google announced this past week that—within the next two years—it is planning to cease support for third-party cookies in its Chrome browser. Ad networks and advertisers are typically the ones who add third-party cookies in an effort to track users through various sites in order to help target advertisements and monitor performance. Before Google begins to dial back support for third-party cookies within Chrome, they first plan to navigate meeting the needs of advertisers, publishers, and users who will be impacted by the change. (Source: CNBC)

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Why this is important for your business:

This is a potentially big deal. Cookies from third parties are at the core of many brands’ efforts to track visitors and drive ads to their attention. If your business does online ad campaigns or use re-targeting services to drive traffic to your website, then Google’s potential change could impact your marketing plans. Stay tuned.

3 — Apple’s new privacy features have further rattled the location based ad market. 

The deliberate steps that Apple took this past September to help users stay more informed regarding their data and what they share seems to be working. With their new privacy protection approach, background location data that was available for advertisers to target in the past, is now data that those advertisers need to do without. With the new privacy feature, users are able to decide whether or not they want the apps they are using to share their data with companies who—in the past—would have had access to it. Currently, typically less than 50% of users opt-in to allow their data to be shared with apps when they are not being used. (Source: DigiDay)

Why this is important for your business:

Man, between Apple and Google this is a bad week for advertisers. Does your business use location based advertising to attract customers? If so, then Apple’s new privacy features may have an impact on your marketing spend. The best thing to do is to play close attention to what apps are generating business and make sure that these trends continue over the upcoming months. If you see a drop off, it could be because of Apple’s new privacy protections and may make you change some of your marketing investments.

4 — After years of decline, the PC market saw rare growth in 2019.

Research released this past week indicated that the PC market had seen growth for the first time in 8 years. According to Gartner and IDC—the firms conducting the research—annual PC shipments over the last year went up. Although the numbers released by both firms differed—with IDC estimating the increase at 2.7% year over year and Gartner finding the figure to be only 0.6%— any growth is a move in the right direction for the industry, with smartphones having taken precedence over desktop and laptop purchases. (Source: PCMag)

Why this is important for your business:

Maybe this is understated. If Microsoft had their way, the company (per above) would say another 400 million PCs to buyers too! Two thoughts on this: because PC sales have dropped so dramatically over the past decade, growth was inevitable because things can only drop so far. Secondly, it’s good news. As things have shaken out in the hardware market, it’s clear from what I see at most clients that businesses do need PCs and laptops and that tablets and phones can’t do it all. So go ahead: get that new PC.

5— TurboTax, H&R block, TaxSlayer, and more were described as the best tax software for 2020. 

Editors at CNET—a tech news website—revealed their picks this past week for the best tax software companies for 2020. TurboTax was highlighted as being the best tax software for live personal support, offering several options regardless of how complicated one’s tax scenario is. (Source: CNET)

Why this is important for your business:

Looking for tax software? CNET’s piece above is a great resource for you. According to the editors there, for the best multiplatform option, H&R Block was highlighted for their features helping with taxes such as unlimited technical support, as well as chat and phone support for customers who are on a higher tier. TaxSlayer was deemed as having the best overall pricing for the services it provides, while Credit Karma Tax, Tax Act, and FreeTax USA were also highlighted for their features and offerings.

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Gene Marks

I was a former senior manager at KPMG and since 1994 the owner of the Marks Group PC, a 10-person customer relationship management consulting firm based outside Philadelphia. I’ve written six small-business management books, most recently “The Manufacturer’s Book of Lists” and “In God We Trust, Everyone Else Pays Cash: Simple Lessons From Smart Business People.” Besides Forbes, I formerly wrote for The Washington Post and the New York Times and now write regularly for The Guardian, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Inc., Magazine, Entrepreneur Magazine and Fox Business. I make no compensation from the number of people who read what I write.

Source: Microsoft Asks 400 Million People To Buy A New PC…And Other Small Business Tech News

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Amazon Alexa application is authoritatively accessible in the Windows 10 Store. Amazon Alexa can enable you to complete numerous things on Windows 10 with s

Microsoft Faces Immense Pressure After CES Success

Microsoft Tools

Microsoft Event

With this year’s CES now at an end, we have a good idea where manufacturers and designers see the future. Success will be found in all things that fold. All across the Las Vegas Convention Center were the concept laptops which flexed and folded like Optimus Prime in Transformers.

Which puts a huge amount of pressure on Microsoft. It needs to deliver a version of Windows that will allow the hardware to live up to all the gambles made in Vegas by the end of 2020.

Let’s take a look at the CES successes powered by Microsoft’s Windows 10.

Intel produced a concept device, obviously to show what its chips can do with new laptop forms, but the fact that it was showing off the new form as a foldable laptop with a single screen taking up the screen, bending round the inside hinge, and then down over the space normally associated with the keyboard is a clear indication that this is a route it is comfortable with.

How about two of Dell’s examples; the ‘Concept Duet’ which shows a twin screen no physical keyboard design, and the ‘Concept Ori’ which is closer to a tablet design that can hinge upwards into a laptop style angle.

While Asus didn’t go for a flexing screen, the Asus ZenBook Duo also works on two screens, although here the second screen shares the bottom half of the laptop design with a physical keyboard.

The there’s Lenovo’s Thinkpad X1 Fold, which does go with the full screen that curves into thing when closed just as a normal laptop.

But there’s a literal twist to all of these innovative laptops. At CES they were all running Windows 10 Pro, a workmanlike solution at this early stage but not refined to make a seamless foldable or dual screen device feel like magic.

Luckily Microsoft has an answer in Windows 10X.

Windows 10X was announced in October 2019 alongside the dual screened Surface Neo as the operating system that would power this device – and it would allow for an ecosystem of devices from Microsoft’s partners. I suspect this is one of the key reasons that the announcement of Windows 10X happened in Q4 2019… it placed Microsoft publicly in the driving seat of foldable laptops it used the Surface brand to continue pushing innovative form factors and software, and its announcement created a tacit agreement to its partners that it would be ready by the end of 2020,.

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All this amounts to pressure. The early announcement of Windows 10X, coupled with the Surface Neo release window of Q4 2020 has created a hard deadline for the OS team to deliver not just to the Surface team at the Redmond Campus, but to Microsoft’s key hardware partners who have shown their hand at CES.

Microsoft has always looked forwards into the future but it usually remains behind closed doors until everything is cooked. With multi- and folding-screen technology, it has decided to share that future vision today. Let’s hope that Microsoft has thought carefully about delivering to that timetable.

Now read how the Surface team have beaten Apple’s iPad team in one key area…

Check out my website.

Ewan Spence

I am known for my strong views on mobile technology, online media, and the effect this has on the public conscious and existing businesses. I’ve been following this space for over ten years, working with a number of publishers, publications and media companies, some for long periods of time, others for commissions, one-off pieces or a series of articles or shows. As Scotland’s first podcaster, I continue to be a prominent voice in the rise of podcasting and new media online, and picked up a British Academy (BAFTA) nomination for my annual coverage of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, alongside contributions to Radio 5 Live, the BBC World Service, presenting Edinburgh local radio’s coverage of the General Election. You’ll find me on Twitter (@Ewan), Facebook, and Google Plus.

Source: Microsoft Faces Immense Pressure After CES Success

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Microsoft Just Released An Antivirus App For Macs

AntiVirus/AntiHack Tools, Microsoft Tools, Protection Tools, System Protection

Microsoft Defender for Mac finds a malicious file during a scan (Microsoft)

Microsoft’s Iaan D’Souza-Wiltshire penned an announcement heralding the debut of Microsoft Defender for Mac. It’s essentially the same app as Windows Defender on Windows 10. The name needed a tweak, of course, since it’s built for machines that aren’t running Microsoft’s own operating system.

Microsoft Defender offers Mac users the same kind of protection that its Windows counterpart offers Windows users. It provides real-time detection of threats, performs on-demand scans of USB drives, and automatically keeps malware definitions and detection logic up-to-date.

For now, Microsoft Defender is only available as a limited preview. It’s the first step in bringing a whole new group of users under Microsoft’s Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) umbrella.

Surprised to see Microsoft releasing an app like this for Mac computers? Don’t be.

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Just a few months ago we saw a similarly unexpected announcement from Microsoft. The browser that had been purpose-built for Windows 10, Edge, was being torn down and rebuilt and would use the same code that powers Google Chrome for a foundation.

Then Microsoft doubled down on the surprise factor. Not only would the new Edge browser use Google code, but it was also going to run on Macs. Microsoft last released a web browser that ran on Macs way back in 2003.

The two companies have been fierce competitors on numerous fronts over the years, but there have also been some surprising collaborations. The most famous was when Microsoft saved Apple from possible bankruptcy in 1997 with a $150 million investment.

Really, if you wanted to put a social networking label on the relationship between Microsoft and Apple, you’d have to go with “it’s complicated.” Battling the threat of global malware is complicated, too, and it’s great to see that Microsoft isn’t going to let a little rivalry get in the way of that mission.

Lee Mathews

Lee started writing about software, hardware, and geek culture around the time that the Red Wings last won the Stanley Cup. The two aren’t related in any way, however. When he’s not catching up on tech news or blogging about it, you can find him watching or playing baseball and doing his part to ensure the next generation of geeks is raised properly.

Source: Microsoft Just Released An Antivirus App For Macs

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For three decades we’ve been helping people to protect their digital worlds. From a small, dynamic company we’ve grown into a global brand with over 110 million users in 202 countries and territories. Many things have changed, but our core aspirations, philosophy and values remain the same – to help build a more secure digital world where everyone can truly Enjoy Safer Technology.

Richard Marko, Chief Executive Officer, ESET

ESET began life as a pioneer of antivirus protection, creating award-winning threat detection software. Now, ESET’s goal is to make sure that everybody can enjoy the breathtaking opportunities that technology offers.Today, our security solutions allow businesses and consumers in more than 200 countries and territories to make the most of the digital world.

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What Microsoft Japan’s Successful 4-Day Week Suggests About Work-Life Balance

Content Marketing, Microsoft Tools, Workflows/Team/Project, Working Facts, Working Tips, Workplace/Strategy

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Topline: Microsoft’s Japan office experimented with a four day workweek in August, resulting in a 40% productivity boost, with over 90% of employees reporting they preferred the shorter week⁠—which aligns with previous studies that show greater work-life balance makes for more productive employees.

  • In addition to a burst of productivity, Microsoft Japan reported it used about 23% less electricity and printed around 59% fewer pages during the experiment.
  • Microsoft Japan will conduct a second experiment over the winter and will encourage more flexible working, but it won’t include the shorter work week.
  • But previous studies show that giving employees more flexibility increases productivity; a New Zealand company permanently adopted the four day workweek in 2018, after a trial resulted in a 24% productivity increase.
  • The Harvard Business Review reported that a Chinese travel agency experienced a 13% productivity boost when it allowed call center employees to work from home.
  • In the U.S., a 2017 Stanford University study found the average worker is willing to give up 20% of their pay to avoid their schedule being set with short notice, and 8% of their pay in exchange for the option to work from home.
  • A work-from-anywhere program for patent examiners at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office showed productivity gains of 4.4%, according to a 2019 working paper by the Harvard Business School.

Big number: 80 hours.That was the length of a required workweek for 25% of Japanese companies in 2016, according to CNBC.

Key background: Japan’s culture of overwork first made headlines in 2015, when a Dentsu employee died by suicide on Christmas Day after working excessive overtime, and again in 2017, when a Japanese reporter died after clocking 159 hours of overtime the month before her death. Since then, prime minister Shinzo Abe has introduced “workstyle reform” to Japan, including an annual cap of 720 overtime hours per person. Although workstyle reform’s intent is to get big companies to improve their productivity internally, the Japanese government acknowledged the burden of overwork might be passed onto small and medium businesses as a result.

Today In: Business

Surprising fact: As a result of their brutal working culture, the Japanese coined the term “karoshi,” meaning “death by overwork.”

Tangent: Despite studies that show benefits to the four day workweek, it’s not universally favored by executives. Some owners have employees work on Friday when there’s a holiday the following Monday. Others have reduced vacation time to make up for the extra weekly day off. And one Portland, Oregon tech firm experimented with a four day workweek before returning to a five day schedule, because the owner realized a shorter week meant its competitors had a leg up.

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Lisette Voytko

I’m a New York-based journalist covering breaking news at Forbes. I hold a master’s degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. Previous bylines: Gotham Gazette, Bklyner, Thrillist, Task & Purpose, and xoJane.

Source: What Microsoft Japan’s Successful 4-Day Week Suggests About Work-Life Balance

87K subscribers
After spending August experimenting with a four-day work week in a country notorious for overwork, Microsoft Japan said sales per employee rose 40% compared with the same month last year. The “Work-Life Choice Challenge Summer 2019” saw full-time employees take off five consecutive Fridays in August with pay, as well as shortening meetings to a maximum of 30 minutes and encouraging online chats over face-to-face ones. Among workers responding to a survey about the program, 92% said they were pleased with the four-day week, the software maker’s Japan affiliate said in a report on its website on Oct. 31. Japan has been struggling to bring down some of the world’s longest working hours as it confronts a labor shortage and rapidly aging population. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s push to make workplaces more flexible and reduce overtime has drawn mixed reviews. The summer trial also cut costs at Microsoft Japan, with 23% less electricity consumed and 59% fewer pages printed compared with August 2018, according to the report. Some Microsoft Japan managers still didn’t understand the changes in working styles and some employees expressed concern that shorter workweeks would bother clients. Microsoft Japan plans to hold another work-life challenge in winter. Employees won’t get special paid days off, but will be encouraged to take time off on their own initiative “in a more flexible and smarter way.” Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2TwO8Gm TICTOC ON SOCIAL: Follow TicToc on Twitter: https://twitter.com/tictoc Like TicToc on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tictoc Follow TicToc on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tictoc Subscribe to our newsletter: https://bit.ly/2FJ0oQZ TicToc by Bloomberg is global news for the life you lead. We are a 24/7 news network that covers breaking news, politics, technology, business and entertainment stories from around the globe, supported by a network of Bloomberg’s 2,700 journalists across 120 countries.

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The First 5 Minutes of Microsoft’s Surface Presentation Included 4 Expert Public Speaking Skills

Content Marketing, Microsoft Tools

Microsoft Chief Product Officer, Panos Panay, unveiled new products on Wednesday that generated a lot of buzz. The products including Surface tablets, laptops and the company’s new smartphone, the Surface Duo. But it was the first five minutes of the presentation that caught my attention.

Last year Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella put Panay in charge of all the company’s hardware devices. Panay’s also one of the best presenters I’ve seen in years–in any company. Panay used four advanced storytelling, presentation and speaking techniques that will make you a more effective communicator. Here, I’ll take a deeper look at what he did.

1. Don’t start with products.

People don’t buy products; they buy feelings. The best presenters establish a feeling before explaining a product’s features and demos. Panay established the theme of his presentation in the first two minutes. He showed a video of his daughter, Sophia, playing the piano. He said,

“In order for Sophia to play her best, that piano has to be ready. It has to be tuned perfectly. The bench has to be the right height, her sheet music at eye level.”

Panay was making the point that when the instrument–the technology– is right, it allows Sophia to unleash her creative talent. “When all the pieces line up, you can stop thinking. You’re just inspired to play better.” Panay has just made an emotional connection with the audience and framed the products as much more than new hardware–they’re instruments to help them unleash their inspired creativity.

2. Tell customer stories.

Panay’s first slides showed photos of several people–real customers with inspiring stories. For example, he showed a picture of Steve Gleason, a former professional football player diagnosed with ALS. Gleason is an advocate for Microsoft’s products that help people living with disabilities. Another photo showed Collete Davis, a race-car driver who runs her career like a startup–using Microsoft hardware, of course.

As humans, we’re wired for stories. We think in story, talk about stories, and enjoy information delivered in narrative form. Tell more stories to win people over.

3. Use multimedia to engage the audience.

Stories are engaging, as are photos and videos. We are not wired to engage with text and bullet points on slide. And that’s why there were no bullet points in Panay’s presentation. In fact, the first slide with text appeared ten minutes into the presentation–and even then, it was only one sentence.

Most presenters don’t use video, but they should. People love video. Research shows that videos and images are far more engaging than text alone. But communicators are often reluctant to insert videos into their presentations as Panay did when she showed his daughter playing piano.

Neuroscientists have found that visual and verbal information are encoded in different parts of our brain. University of Washington molecular biologist, John Medina, has addressed the phenomenon in his research. Simply put, Information that’s presented in text, pictures and video for is more richly encoded. Adding a video is more likely to stamp your idea on another person’s brain.

4. Connect with the audience.

Panay uses a speaking style that requires confidence and practice. You can see him in action in the video of the event. From time to time, Panay steps off the stage and walks among the audience members as he delivers information about the products. He’s not relying on notes or a prompter as he does so. Panay hits his marks and makes it look effortless because he’s put in the practice time to make the presentation great.

Delivering a great presentation doesn’t come naturally to most people. Presentations that leave a strong impression on the audience requires creativity and practice. When you get access to an expert like Panos Panay, it’s worth investing the time to watch his performance.

By: Carmine Gallo Keynote speaker and author, ‘Five Stars: The Communication Secrets to Get From Good to Great

Source: The First 5 Minutes of Microsoft’s Surface Presentation Included 4 Expert Public Speaking Skills

391K subscribers
Watch as Microsoft Chief Product Officer Panos Panay talks about the importance of technology fading to the background and how these products can help you achieve more. Microsoft products, a symphony of technology between Windows, Surface, Office and AI, are designed to amplify your ideas, get you into your flow and let you build what’s in your mind and heart. Like an instrument, our products, our technology fades to the background so you can focus on your craft. Learn more at http://msft.social/PPTech

 

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