Software

They may sound delicious but when it comes to the Web, cookies are almost like poison. Sure, they technically serve an important purpose but, like the real-world treats, they can be abused to harm people. That's why web browser makers are taking up arms against cookie abuse, each in their own way, and Mozilla's latest attempt is to completely confine those cookies in their own jars starting with Firefox 86.

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This week the folks behind HITMAN released the first major patch for Hitman 3. This patch delivers "tweaks" for every single level in Hitman 3, as well as stability and connectivity fixes aplenty. This update delivers new HUD tweaks and additions, and a whopping TWO new Deluxe Escalations. And a turtleneck - don't forget the turtleneck.

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There's a new sort of clock coming to Google Pixel devices, if what today's leak suggested is entirely accurate. Data arrived in the latest developer version of Android 12, or Android S, ready for Google Pixel devices right out the gate. It's possible this clock system won't be delivered to devices beyond the Google Pixel, but we shall see!

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In 2020, Microsoft announced it would be bringing text predictions to Word with the feature using Machine Learning to make suggestions based on the text being typed by the user. Shortly after that initial announcement, the feature was rolled out to about half of the Beta Channel users. Microsoft is now set to make the feature available to everyone according to the Microsoft 365 roadmap.

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Google Creative Lab this week revealed a project called Alto. Alto by Google Creative Lab is a "teachable object using the Coral USB Accelerator." It's made to allow users to get a very basic handle on machine learning in a way that's adaptable to hardware projects of all sorts. The code and template for this project are all free for access.

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A system for Android devices was created by user W1nst0n to crack down on bloatware with relative ease. This isn't a one-stop-shop for every single Android user - you still need to be able to use ADB. It IS far easier to use than most solutions that've been conjured over the past decade for this one purpose. This solution works without needing root, which means you're not going to need to mess with anything that'll void your smartphone's warranty - and again: easy.

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The next version of the Android operating system, codenamed internally as ‘Snow Cone’ has taken its maiden steps into the realm of inception with Google recently announcing the Developer Preview of the Android 12 OS, which is still around six months from the final release. After the excitement of Android 11 on flagship devices and newly released phones, the next thing for geeks to look forward to is the Android 12 operating system on their devices. The OS will go through eight release cycles in its evolution over this year - with a public beta expected in a few months before finally coming to the users in a stable release version in the latter half of 2021.

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Office 2021 for PC and Mac is coming later this year, Microsoft has confirmed, but despite what many believe you won't need an Microsoft 365 subscription in order to use it. Although Microsoft has shifted its focus in recent years to subscription-based software and services, particularly as it weaves in cloud functionality and storage from OneDrive, there's still a subset of users that would prefer the familiarity of an upfront purchase instead.

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There was a time when Microsoft's supremacy in the productivity suite market was challenged by the likes of Google Docs and even open source office suites like OpenOffice and LibreOffice. That phase, however, has come and gone and Microsoft Office still remains the household name in that arena. Unfortunately, it also remains one of Microsoft's more complicated and confusing products, offered in a dizzying array of options. There's always room for more, of course, and Microsoft just what's coming for its "perpetual" release of its Office suite.

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With the launch of the Android 12 developer preview this week, we're getting our first look at what the software will bring later this year. Android 12, also known as Android S, adds a system called HapticGenerator. This new bit of code is an audio post-processor "which generates haptic data based on the audio channels." This could change the way you experience sound on your smartphone in the very near future.

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Google is kicking off the Android 12 Developer Preview today, giving those with a Pixel a very early taste of the upcoming OS update, while setting out the roadmap for when everybody else could look forward to seeing it. It's a chance to see the new features and APIs coming in the new OS, though for the moment it's targeted - as the name suggests - at developers wanting to make sure their code works as intended, rather than regular users.

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Depending on who you ask, Windows feature updates are either exciting or stress-inducing, maybe even both. While they bring a fair number of new features and improvements, Microsoft's track record in quality and bugs make each bi-annual release sometimes frightening. Microsoft has been working on improving its process and has even adopted a "tick-tock" cadence but, due to global conditions related to the pandemic, it is delaying making big changes until later this year, making Windows 10 21H1 a smaller "scoped" release.

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