Things don't look to good for a company that's supposedly cleaning up its update act. Microsoft has stated that it's taking a break from making big feature changes this year to give way to fixing bugs and polishing features. But if these two successive cumulative updates are any indication, the company might be a long way from regaining users' trust in updates that won't break things as much as they fix them.
Many of the popular streaming services were born from and thrived primarily on mobile. Some have even taken an exclusive stance on having a mobile-only presence. that may make some sense with audio streaming, where users are most likely to use their phones to interact with the app and service. But in a day and age of multi-device ownership, some would also like to listen to their tunes when they're on their desktops or laptops. Following its release on the macOS, Pandora is finally giving Windows users their turn with a standalone app for Microsoft's OS.
Ever since Huawei was put on the US' blacklist, the future of its products has been put into question. The company has more or less bragged about its self-sufficiency in terms of hardware components but software, especially mobile, is a different story. The company has been reportedly looking for alternative operating systems to put on its devices and it seems it may have settled on Linux for some of its laptops being sold in China.
If you're looking for new Windows 10 features to get excited about, you might want to look past this year's second major update. Currently dubbed the 19H2 update based on when it's expected to roll out, the next Windows 10 feature release will be a more somber affair, focusing on polish and stability to address the growing number of complaints users have about the OS. That does also means that next year's first major release, a.k.a. Windows 10 20H1, might have more exciting news, including a new Cortana that isn't just more conversational but also more available to users.
Earlier this year, Mozilla formally retired its Test Pilot program and graduated some of those tests into features for the Firefox browser. At that time, it seemed that Mozilla had learned all that it could from the program. Surprisingly, the nonprofit organization has suddenly come out with a new test pilot that ties into Mozilla's thrust in protecting users' privacy.
Google Docs is finally getting a feature that is already available in just about every other word processing application ever: real-time word counts. Yes, Google Docs already features a word count tool; it requires users to manually click through the menu every time they want to see it, however. The new addition brings the word counter to the main editor screen, enabling users to see it at a glance.
Over the past 24 hours (or so) Google's released Android 10 in multiple formats for download. Users can access this system the standard way, downloading a software update to their phone through their Settings screen. That'll work so long as they've got one of the few phones that work with the update thus far. Otherwise, there are a couple other options - not necessarily ideal for the average user, but certainly a set of possibilities nonetheless.
Mozilla previously put third-party and cross-site tracking on notice and now it is finally flipping the switch. Starting with today's release, Firefox will have its Enhanced Tracking Protection turned on by default. Additionally, it will also be blocking cryptominers by default so that hackers won't be able to make money off your CPU cycles and battery life. Ironically, it won't yet do the same for sites that try to track your computer based on certain "fingerprints".
Nokia may not be the first name you think of for Android smartphones, but it leads the rankings for timely Android OS updates new research reveals. The company - now owned by HMD Global - has made Android Pie available to nearly 96-percent of its smartphones sold since Q3 2018.
Microsoft's plan to oust Adobe Flash from its browsers is on track, the company has reconfirmed today, detailing just what users of Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge can expect next. Announced back in 2017, the plan to divorce the two browsers from Adobe's little-loved product is expected to see Flash removed completely by 2020.
This week the folks at Google responsible for destroying bugs in software have expanded their bug bounty program. Adam Bacchus, Sebastian Porst, and Patrick Mutchler of Android Security and Privacy released a statement on the subject, suggesting that they are "increasing the scope of GPSRP to include all apps in Google Play with 100 million or more installs." GPSRP stands for Google Play Security Reward Program. Google also launched a new program along similar lines called the Developer Data Protection Reward Program (DDPRP).
Skype has been updated on desktop and mobile with a variety of new features, the most notable improvements involving messaging. Starting now, Skype users on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS can bookmark any Skype message, making it easier to find in the future. As well, the updated software now also supports saving message drafts, split windows on desktop, and more.