Microsoft plans to launch own SIM Card

The software giant Microsoft is soon going to launch its own SIM card. The SIM card can be used only on Microsoft devices that have a SIM slot, which will allow the user to connect to various mobile networks through the app from Microsoft store without any contract. The project is currently under testing. The app is being designed to work on operating system ‘Windows 10’ and requires a Microsoft SIM Card. The user should have a Microsoft account to enable this feature.

It is not known which market the company has focused on and the pricings are yet to be revealed. It is said that Microsoft is planning to launch its own virtual mobile network to allow its users to connect to partner carriers. Though the app is currently available in the store, it will be of no use without the upcoming ‘Microsoft SIM Card’. So the company will soon come up with the updates.

Read More

Windows 10 November Update build 10586

Microsoft has come clean about the action it recently took to pull the eagerly anticipated first major Windows 10 Update

According to Microsoft, the Windows 10 Update for November in its original form might have reset four important privacy settings back their original default settings, but without informing the user the changed had been applied

Concerns were raised when Microsoft initially de-listed the November update from the Media Creation Tool (MCT).

The MCT is one of the fastest and easiest ways to do perform a completely clean install of Windows 10 with the latest Windows 10 Updates already applied. Using the MCT to install Windows 10 also removed the sometime cumbersome and time consuming process of of having to download Windows 10 Updates after installing Windows 10.

Many Windows 10 users already circumspect of what Microsoft does and doesn’t in regards to user privacy, Microsoft are also keenly aware that any changes they make to privacy settings are being closely watched. Pulling the the Windows 10 November Update was probably a really smart move on their part.

The Windows 10 update has now been fully restored and users should now have had these particular privacy concerns firmly put to bed.

For those who are interested, the four settings in question were:

•     Let apps use my advertising ID,
•     Turn on SmartScreen Filter for web content,
•     Let apps run in the background and,
•     Sync with devices.

And for those people who may have already installed the November update (Version 1511),  before it got yanked, can check whether their privacy settings have been altered  by going to Settings, Privacy and then changing the following options:

•     Select General to adjust the advertising ID and SmartScreen Filter.
•     Select Other devices to adjust your Sync with devices settings.
•     Select Background apps to review the applications set to run in the background.

Read More

Project Astoria – A Windows Bridge for Android

 The latest Windows offering is designed with compatibility in mind, so the system links with a variety of devices. This cross-device functionality was first announced for Microsoft’s latest console, the Xbox One. Shortly after, news broke that Windows 10 was heading to the Windows Phone and to Windows’ tablet devices.

Read More

End Date For Windows 7 - Microsoft

This end date will affect the sale of computers with the operating system pre-installed, but the announcement also lists two further dates when support will be cancelled.

According to their Windows Lifecycle Fact Sheet page, the sale of new Windows 7 Professional machines from authorized retailers will end on October 31, 2016; the sale of Windows 7 Home machines ended last year in October. The end of the support for the OS was January of this year for the mainstream support, with the end of extended support coming around in January of 2020.

Interestingly, Windows 8 has a weird end of life schedule, too. Windows 8 pre-installed machines will leave the market before the end of the run for Windows 7 Pro, as retail sales of the devices will cease on June 30, 2016. Windows 8.1 machines get to hang on a little longer, ending on the same date as the sales of Windows 7 Pro machines, October 31. The end of mainstream support for 8.1 will be in January of 2018, with extended support ending in January of 2023.

Read More

System Updates are mandatory for Windows 10 Home Users

With the official release of Windows 10 , the company has announced that home users will have to agree to receive automatic updates with Windows 10 so if you plan to stick with Windows you’re going to be up to date whether you want to be or not.

Windows 10 will supposedly be the last version of Windows so Microsoft really wants everybody to upgrade. Once you’ve upgraded, you’ll be kept up to date forever through Microsoft’s new automatic upgrade system. Updates will just happen in the background but business users and IT departments will have the option to disable that if they wish.

Read More

What is Microsoft Edge, and when can you get it?

Microsoft has been talking for months about its next internet browser, codenamed Project Spartan, but it's only now given the product a name: Microsoft Edge.

At the company's annual Build conference held in San Francisco, Microsoft executives not only revealed the official name, but also demonstrated some new features in the upcoming Windows 10 browser.

Read More

Windows 10 Free! Why?

Microsoft’s system chief has said in an announcement that Windows 10 will come as a free upgrade for those who are using Windows 7 and Windows 8.1. This came as a surprise to many, particularly those who are accustomed to having to pay for new versions of Windows every time Microsoft releases a new one. What’s with this change? And is Microsoft really also including pirates among those who can upgrade for free? This sounds a bit generous, so I decided to explore the subject and find out everything humanly possible about it!

Why Make The Upgrade Free?

First off, the upgrade isn’t 100% free. Second of all, to qualify for it, you have to have a compatible device (we’re still not absolutely sure what that is), and you have to have Windows 7 SP1 or Windows 8.1 installed on it. If, for one year after Windows 10 is released, you do not upgrade, you will have to pay for a license. Also, should you be using an Enterprise version of Windows, you will have to pay for your upgrade to Windows 10.

I’m unable to find a comment from Microsoft as to why the upgrade was made free, but it’s very possible that this is an attempt to push people towards the new Windows architecture one way or another. Windows 8 did not see as many sales as its predecessor, hinting at a slow adoption rate. Many of the comments and reviews of the latest iteration of the operating system were neutral at best, negative at worst. Being a slow year for the company in the consumer market, my best guess is that Microsoft figured it could boost adoption by releasing Windows 10 as a free upgrade, hoping that people who were content with Windows 7 will make the switch once they understand that it costs them nothing but a few minutes of their time.

It is also probable that Microsoft may be hoping to gain revenue from selling additional software that runs exclusively on Windows 10, but this is pure speculation.

Is It Really Free for Pirates?

A spokesperson for Microsoft has told Ars Technica that “if a device was considered non-genuine or mislicensed [sic] prior to the upgrade, that device will continue to be considered non-genuine or mislicensed after the upgrade.”

 Perhaps what was meant in the “free for pirates” statement by Terry Myerson is that pirates will still be able to use Windows 10 without being locked out of any functionality, but they will not be able to download updates until they get a genuine license.

So, it’s still free, but only as a system that will be outdated by the time a new update rolls in. This particular scheme is something that Microsoft hopes will help it re-engage with potential customers in China; a large percentage of them are currently using unlicensed versions of the software.  However, there is a very clear possibility that this will not play out the way they had planned. Had they wanted updates from any other version (7 or 8, for example), they would have simply purchased the operating systems as well. Now they will have a version of Windows that doesn’t even need to be cracked.

Read More