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Posts tagged "finally"

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Microsoft is finally changing this annoying Windows 11 behavior – but there’s a catch
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Windows 11 has a change in testing which will please anyone who is fed up with Edge popping up when opening certain links in the OS, despite it not being the default browser – but there’s a catch, sadly.

You’re surely familiar with the scenario where you open a link via a Windows system component – meaning in a Windows 11 menu somewhere, maybe a help link for example – and it fires up Edge, rather than your chosen favorite web browser.

There’s no way to modify that preference either, but in preview build 23531 which was released at the end of last week in the Dev testing channel, Microsoft has changed it so these system components use your default browser, as they should.

As the blog post for build 23531 makes clear: “In the European Economic Area (EEA), Windows system components use the default browser to open links.”

And in that sentence, you can spot the catch: for now this is just in European countries (specifically the EEA), so it’s not happening in the US or elsewhere.

Analysis: Come on Microsoft, push this out globally

Hopefully this feature will witness a wider regional rollout in time – it’s a small tweak to make, and one that’ll definitely lower the annoyance factor when using Windows 11.

Okay, so it isn’t that often that you click one of these system links, but when Edge pops up unannounced, it can be quite annoying. Especially as it inevitably also throws some kind of banner into the mix upon being opened for the first time in a while (“hey, don’t forget about me, make me your default browser, go on, you know you want to,” and so forth).

Is there a reason Microsoft may have been forced to do this in Europe, pertaining to regulations or compliance issues? We’re not sure, but the chatter on the rumor mill seems convinced enough this is something Microsoft is only doing to head off the danger of being penalized by the EU in some way. It does seem strange that the change is Europe-only, after all.

That said, if the feedback is positive enough, maybe the software giant will listen, and roll out this change more widely anyway, even if this somehow a forced move in Europe.

Elsewhere in build 23531, Microsoft has reinstated the search flyout when you mouse over the search box in the taskbar – not something everyone will appreciate. The good news is that you can turn off this function if you find it irritating.

As ever with test builds of Windows 11, there’s no guarantee that the features being tried out in earlier previews will make the cut for the final version of the OS.

Via Windows Central

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Finally, a good use for AI: Meta reveals bot that can translate almost 100 languages
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Meta might have arrived late to the AI party, but the Facebook owner is showing no signs of giving up. This week, the social media giant unveiled yet another AI tool: this time, it’s an ‘all-in-one’ translation model capable of understanding close to 100 different languages.

The new AI model, named SeamlessMT4, was detailed in a blog post from Meta, which referenced the famed ‘universal translator’ trope prevalent in a great deal of sci-fi media; in this case, the Babel Fish from Douglas Adams’ The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. It’s a snippet of technology that has long remained out of reach within the bounds of fiction, but Meta considers this to be a vital step in making universal translators a reality.

SeamlessM4T is differentiated from existing translation AI tools since it uses a single large language model, as opposed to multiple models working in conjunction. Meta claims this improves the “efficiency and quality of the translation process”.

The new AI can read, write, listen, and talk – capable of parsing and producing both speech and text. While text and speech recognition covers almost 100 languages, SeamlessM4T is currently only able to generate its own speech in 36 output languages (including English). It was built on SeamlessAlign, which Meta calls “the biggest open multimodal translation dataset to date”, containing a whopping 270,000 hours of speech and text training data.

Speaking to machines

Logo Meta

(Image credit: Artapixel / Pixabay)

Meta has been going pretty hard on AI recently, producing multiple new AI models and even committing to developing its own AI chip. SeamlessM4T is the latest step in a push for language-focused AI use, following on from speech-generating AI Voicebox, which Meta (probably wisely) judged was too dangerous to release to the public right now.

SeamlessM4T (and the SeamlessAlign metadata) will be made publicly available under a research license, as part of Meta’s ongoing commitment to transparency in AI development. It’s a canny move from the tech titan, allowing it to both claim openness and fairness within the AI arena while also ensuring that it can take partial credit for future work done using its tools.

Anyone who follows my work closely will be well aware that I’ve been pretty darn critical of AI since the rise of the seemingly omnipresent ChatGPT. But, as I’ve said before, my qualms are mostly focused on the human uses of AI; I personally struggle to see the value in cramming AI into every corner of Windows, but even an AI skeptic like myself has to acknowledge the huge potential of tools such as SeamlessM4T.

I’ll be honest: despite being a writer by trade, I’m rubbish at learning other languages. That wretched Duolingo owl haunts my dreams, taunting me for my inability to properly conjugate in Spanish. But with SeamlessM4T, I’m envisaging a beautiful utopian future where I can visit any country and speak to any local in any native tongue, with their words translated in real-time by a nifty little earpiece loaded with AI tech.

I’m not crazy about the idea of needing to buy that earpiece from Mark Zuckerberg, but hey – one step at a time.

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Cortana is finally getting the boot by Microsoft in favor of an actual AI
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If you recently updated Windows 11, you may have spotted the following message when trying to open the Cortana app: “Cortana in Windows as a standalone app is deprecated.”

Microsoft is finally cutting off support to Cortana, its Windows Phone-era assistant that first launched with Windows 10 back in 2014, in favor of AI features like Bing Search and Windows Copilot. Cortana was released in response to Apple’s Siri, which had been growing in popularity since its own debut. Microsoft even released a playful commercial poking fun at Siri’s more robotic voice while promoting how human-sounding Cortana was,

But thanks to this update, Siri has outlasted Microsoft’s robotic assistant. Here's the official post from Microsoft: “We are making some changes to Windows that will impact users of the Cortana app. Starting in August 2023, we will no longer support Cortana in Windows as a standalone app.” And for those asking for an assistance program, Microsoft is recommending Windows Copilot which is set to release with the Windows 11 23H2 update. The tech giant has already been testing out first-party and Bing third-party plugins for Copilot.

The app is still working on Windows 10 for now but, according to a source from Windows Latest, Microsoft plans to kill off the app on Windows 10 within a few weeks. For now, Cortana will remain with other apps like Outlook and Microsoft Teams, though it mostly likely won’t be permanent.

Should Microsoft have canned Cortana? 

It’s rather ironic that Cortana, which was made as a fake AI assistant of sorts based on the iconic one that aids Master Chief in the long-running video game franchise Halo series, is getting ousted by actual AI tools. But considering how AI has skyrocketed in popularity and in growth potential, it makes sense that Microsoft would completely drop app support that hasn’t received an update in two years.

But was this the right move for Microsoft? On one hand, it feels obvious to dump tools that haven’t been supported for so long. But maybe there could have been a way to integrate Cortana with AI technology to create a more personalized AI assistant experience. Imagine having Cortana combined with Bing search or Windows Copilot, giving you your results and aiding you.

Of course, this opens up a huge can of worms in regards to using the voice actress Jen Taylor's audio likeness in ways that were never covered by her original contract with Microsoft. Ethically she would need to give her consent and be paid royalties for that purpose.

But with Microsoft officially closing the chapter on Cortana, we’ll never know what could have been.

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Microsoft hasn’t forgotten about Windows 10, as a vital fix for game crashes finally arrives
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Windows 10 gamers have got a reason to celebrate with the latest preview update for the OS, which comes with an important fix for a nasty gaming-related crash, and other cures besides.

The problem with PC games is related to Timeout Detection and Recovery (TDR) errors popping up, either causing a crash, or even locking up the system in some more extreme cases.

As you may have seen, the fix for this was applied to Windows 11 in the Moment 3 update – it was first spotted in the preview of that patch which emerged late in June.

The good news for Windows 10 users is that the fix is in KB5028244 (build 19045.3271 for Windows 10 22H2), which again is a preview patch (an optional download). This means the full (polished) fix will be available in August’s cumulative update for Windows 10, and that’s only a couple of weeks away now.

In the release notes for the patch, Microsoft observes: “This update addresses an issue that might affect your computer when you are playing a game. Timeout Detection and Recovery (TDR) errors might occur.”

On top of this, there are fixes for a bug that prevents some VPN apps from making a successful connection, and a glitch that means when a PC comes back from sleep, certain display or audio devices go missing in action.

Furthermore, there’s the resolution of a problem with Windows 10 where a full-screen search can’t be closed (and prevents any further action from being taken with the Start menu), and a raft of other tweaks and fixes.

Analysis: A welcome fix, albeit slightly late

There are some important cures here, then, as those mentioned bugs are quite a pain for those affected.

PC gamers on Windows 10 – the vast majority still – were particularly miffed when Windows 11 got a solution for the TDR crashes in June, with Microsoft leaving them in the lurch. And with no mention of Windows 10 back at the time, some gamers were even talking about this being a reason to upgrade to Windows 11 – that’s how annoyed some folks are by this one.

As one Reddit user put it: “Windows 10 TDR errors have been the bane on [sic] my life.”

At any rate, the fix is now here, and hopefully it’ll prove effective on Windows 10. Of course, right now it’s still testing as an optional update, so you’ll have to manually grab the patch via Windows Update, and there may still be problems with it. That said, those affected by TDR crashes might be so keen to get rid of them that any risk of side effects elsewhere may seem a small price to pay.

Whatever the case, as mentioned, the full fix should be coming in the cumulative update for Windows 10 next month (assuming no problems are encountered in this final testing phase).

Clearly, Windows 11 has priority as Microsoft develops and tinkers with its desktop operating systems, but it feels an odd situation where two-thirds of gamers are still on Windows 10, and are getting the short end of the stick with fixes like this.

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Windows 11 finally gets 3D-style emoji (about 2 years too late for some folks)
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Windows 11 has a new preview build and it introduces 3D emoji, plus it takes an important first step for change on the security front.

You may recall that 3D emoji were promised by Microsoft in the past – the distant past, in fact, since this was something that was supposed to launch with Windows 11 – but they’re finally here. Putting paid to what was quite the controversy almost two years ago (we’ll come back to ‘emojigate’ shortly).

Build 25905 for the Canary channel gives us some smart-looking emoji that are nicely fleshed out with a 3D-like appearance.

As Microsoft notes: “These emoji use gradients to bring the design style that our customers have been asking for.”

Windows 11 3D Emoji

(Image credit: Microsoft)

Elsewhere in this preview build, security has been tightened thanks to the introduction of Rust in the Windows Kernel. Not rust as in metal-gone-bad, but Rust as in the coding language which offers advantages over C++ (the currently used programming language), notably in terms of memory safety (and defending against exploits that take this route).

At the moment, the initial steps with Rust are just a “small trial” as Microsoft describes it, but expect the Windows 11 kernel to get rustier as time goes on.

It’s also worth noting that the Microsoft Store now has an AI Hub, and not just for the Canary channel, but all testers who are running version 22306.1401.x.x or better of the store.

We discussed this in detail yesterday, but the idea is for Microsoft to highlight some top apps that make good use of AI (and more besides, eventually).

Check out the full details of everything going on in this new preview build by reading through Microsoft’s blog post on the release.

Analysis: Fiery feelings over emoji

What’s all this about ‘emojigate’ then? Well, as mentioned, Microsoft did tease 3D-like emoji before the release of Windows 11, promising that they’d arrive with the OS. However, when Windows 11 launched in October 2021, the redesigned emoji looked nothing like the promised 3D-style affairs, and were simply flat icons.

That caused quite an outpouring of rage on social media. While emoji may seem like a relatively unimportant facet of an operating system to some folks, to others, they’re a key part of the experience and communicating with friends. More to the point, people don’t like feeling duped, and indeed at the time, some threw accusations at Microsoft of ‘scamming’ them.

Over the top, yes, but that’s how folks can react when they feel they’ve been lied to in some way. Microsoft explained that the wrong graphics had been used for teasing the feature, and there had been some kind of a mix-up, but that didn’t sit well with some Windows 11 users back at the time, either.

At any rate, Brandon LeBlanc, Senior Program manager at Microsoft, told the disgruntled users that the 3D emoji could arrive in Windows 11 at a later date – and they finally have. At least in testing, anyway, and they should be in the release version of Windows 11 later this year.

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Windows 11 just got a huge new feature for the stylus, finally catching up with Apple’s iPad
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Windows 11 has implemented a major change for those who use a stylus, allowing for writing directly in the operating system’s interface and menus – though this is still in testing right now.

The move comes in preview build 23481 in the Dev Channel, where Windows Ink has been bolstered to allow for writing with a pen directly into, say, the search box in Windows 11.

The eventual goal, Microsoft notes in its blog post introducing the preview build, is to make it so you can write anywhere in Windows 11 with your pen. A further change has been applied to increase the accuracy of handwriting recognition, and also to bring in a ‘scratch out’ gesture to allow you to quickly edit (delete) text.

The catch is that so far this feature only supports English (US), but Microsoft assures us more languages are in the pipeline.

On top of this, build 23481 tweaks File Explorer to remove a bunch of outdated folder options. This is part of cleaning up this section of the interface ahead of a major revamp which is inbound for File Explorer, as you may have seen.

Finally, Microsoft has introduced a new Focus Session widget which allows users to quickly trigger (or halt) a session from the widget panel. And naturally, there’s the usual raft of minor tweaks, fixes, and known issues with this preview build as detailed in the full blog post.

Analysis: Playing catchup with Apple

The ability to write directly in the interface throughout Windows 11 is obviously going to be a major boon, but it’s a feature that is very much playing catchup with Apple. You may recall that Apple brought in its similar Scribble functionality with the Apple Pencil in iPadOS 14, which was released three years ago – so Microsoft has been slow to come to parity in this respect.

Not every Windows 11 tester will see the new Windows Ink capability either, as it’s a limited rollout to begin with, as Microsoft gauges early feedback. There are a number of known issues with the feature right now. (If you want to turn it on, you’ll find it in Settings > Bluetooth and devices > Pen and Windows Ink, where there’s a ‘Shell Handwriting’ option – though not for everyone yet, as noted).

Speaking of phased feature rollouts, preview build 23481 witnesses the completion of a few of these. That includes ‘never combined’ mode for the taskbar, and the ability to tear out (or merge) File Explorer tabs, both of which are now available to all Windows Insiders in the Dev channel.

For us it’s great to see ‘never combined’ making good progress in testing, so surely that’ll be in the mix for the release version of Windows 11 later this year (and there’s every chance the same will be true for the new Windows Ink feature).

Via XDA Developers

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Google Docs is finally fixing one of its most annoying pain points
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Google has revealed it is adding a new update for its office software that will make customizing and moving tables in Google Docs much more intuitive and easier to do.

A new post in the Google Workspace update blog outlines how the software is introducing “improved table positioning options” for documents.

Google says the update will add more flexibility and control over the layout of text with tables in Docs, letting you craft your documents just how you like.

Google Docs tables

While Google Workspace includes its own spreadsheet software in Sheets, many people prefer to use Docs to add inline tables to their documents.

The new changes will primarily allow users to drag tables in a document and place them exactly where you want, giving much improved customization.

Google Docs table moving

(Image credit: Google Workspace)

The update will automatically wrap the contents of your document around the table, but you can also customize this by choosing the wrap direction (left, right or even both sides) as well as the specifying margin from the surrounding text.

Users will also be able to set a fixed position for a table on a page , and Google Docs will also now provide quick layouts to instantly move a table to a preset position on a page.

In a bid to improve cross-platform usability, Google Docs has also improved how it works when importing and exporting Microsoft Word documents with tables, so your documents remain consistent.

This new update is rolling out now and will be available to all Google Workspace customers and users with personal Google Accounts.

Analysis – solving a huge pain point

Tables have long been a bane for many office software users, with Microsoft Office and Google Workspace having issues for some time.

Fortunately, today's news should help solve the problem for many users, finally making it easier to add in and move tables around.

The update follows Google's earlier change, where it added a sidebar to Docs to make it easier for users to manage a table's rows, columns, alignment and other properties. The company also added an intuitive button for creating new rows or columns in a table that will appear as an overlay as you hover over a table in Docs.

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Windows 11 Subsystem for Android is finally getting a much-needed update
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Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA), which has been around since 2022, will finally be able to access Windows 11 folders like Documents and Pictures in an upcoming update.

The concept behind WSA is that you can run Android apps in Windows natively but, in practice, it’s rather counterintuitive thanks to the fact that you can’t easily download picture or video files from the PC to an Android social media app, or vice versa. But now, thanks to a new update coming first to the Windows Insider preview program, before rolling out to all users in a future Windows 11 update, WSA will be able to access Documents and Pictures through file sharing with the OS.

File Sharing, according to Liliputing, will be enabled by default once the update drops, but you can turn it off via the WSA Settings app. Access to those folders is limited, as apps will need to request permission before accessing folders for security reasons. 

There’s also the fact that the feature doesn’t have full access to every folder in your PC, only the ones tied to a user profile like Documents, Pictures, Videos, and Downloads. That means the new File Sharing feature for WSA doesn’t have access to these files:

  • Windows system folders like Program Files
  • External drives
  • Other users’ folders
  • Hidden files or folders
  • Executable files (like .exe files)

Why use Windows 11 Subsystem for Android? 

Before Windows 11 Subsystem for Android, there was Windows Subsystem for Linux, which became publicly available in November 2022. According to Microsoft, this allowed for developers to use “their favorite laptop for programming to run a GNU/Linux environment without the overheads of a traditional virtual machine or dualboot setup.”

But while it makes sense for there to be a subsystem for one computer operating system to run on a different one, running Android on PC seems a bit pointless. Why would a user want to run an Android app on their Windows PC, when they can simply use the more fleshed-out desktop version instead?

File sharing will probably be the only reason for regular users to actually make use of WSA, as being able to share picture and video files between phone and PC is an incredibly useful feature. Otherwise, there isn’t a real purpose for anyone but developers to need this program.

Maybe more updates like File Sharing will convince me otherwise but for now, WSA feels like a feature with only a narrow focus — for devs to test out Android apps in Windows without having to use an emulator.

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Spotify is finally ready to save you when you forget to download a playlist
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Spotify is currently working on a new playlist that will automatically download recently played songs to your device for when the internet connection is spotty.

This information comes from the platform’s own CEO, Daniel Ek, who posted a screenshot of the upcoming feature called Offline Mix to his Twitter account. Details are slim as Ek doesn’t mention any other specifics about the playlist, but there are a couple of clues. First, one of the intended use cases of Offline Mix seems to be on flights where phone signals are basically nonexistent. Secondly, you'll be able to download hours of music onto smartphones. The image Ek provided shows the service can store up to three and a half hours of offline content.

It is already possible to download songs from Spotify for offline listening. The main difference between the two is the current method requires you to manually get tracks one by one whereas this new method removes all the busy work. Basically, Offline Mix is Spotify’s version of smart downloads on YouTube Music. That tool allows the YouTube Music app to “automatically download up to 500 songs” that can then be listened to anywhere with or without a connection.  

Speculation

Much of Offline Mix’s capabilities remain a mystery. We don’t know how many songs people will be able to download and whether or not a Spotify Premium subscription is required. It is worth noting that a couple of Twitter users claim to have received the feature. One person even complains Spotify failed to download most of the songs on their playlist. Although it’s possible the platform is rolling out Offline Mix to a select few as part of its tests, we urge you to take these claims with several grains of salt. There hasn't been any official confirmation of any public tests.

We reached out to Spotify to see if the company was willing to make a statement or perhaps share some details about the feature like its launch date. Hopefully, it's soon as the playlist has been in the works for some time now. Notable industry insider Jane Manchun Wong on Twitter was among the first to mention Offline Mix to the public in 2020, back when it was called Offline User Mix. This story will be updated if we hear back from Spotify.

In the meantime, be sure to check out TechRadar’s list of the best music streaming services for 2023.  

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Microsoft is finally making Edge a much more secure place to surf the web
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Keeping safe online is about to get a lot easier for Edge users thanks to a major security update from Microsoft.

The software giant has revealed it is working on an upgrade for its web browser that will bring “enhanced security” as a default for users everywhere.

This includes adding additional operating system and hardware protections for Edge that the company says, when combined, will help provide “defense in depth”, making it more difficult than ever before for a malicious site to use an unpatched vulnerability to write to executable memory and attack an end user.

Edge enhanced security

Going forward, users will now see an additional banner with the words “added security” in the URL navigation bar in Edge, instantly letting you know you have extra protection for that specific site.

“Microsoft Edge is adding enhanced security protections to provide an extra layer of protection when browsing the web and visiting unfamiliar sites,” the company wrote in a blog post announcing the news.

“The web platform is designed to give you a rich browsing experience using powerful technologies like JavaScript. On the other hand, that power can translate to more exposure when you visit a malicious site. With enhanced security mode, Microsoft Edge helps reduce the risk of an attack by automatically applying more conservative security settings on unfamiliar sites and adapts over time as you continue to browse.”

More security for Edge

Users will be able to create exceptions for certain trusted websites, where enhanced security can either be disabled or enabled permanently. Enterprise admins can also configure for certain websites to be blocked or allowed, 

In its entry on the official Microsoft 365 roadmap, the company noted enhanced security mode is being turned on by default to “Balanced” mode for x64 Windows, x64 macOS, x64 Linux, and ARM64 systems.

The update is still listed as being “in development” for the time being, but has a scheduled rollout start date of July 2023, when users across the globe will be able to access it.

Recent Statcounter figures show that Microsoft's ongoing efforts to push users towards Edge may not be having the desired effect. Its most recent report found that Edge had lost its second place in the global browser market to Apple's Safari offering, which now claims 11.87% of users, compared to Edge's 11% – although both trail far behind runaway leader Google Chrome (66.13%).

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