Windows 10 S Will Be Microsoft’s Next Failure
Microsoft made two big announcements this week at an education-themed press event. They’re related in a couple of ways. One common element is that Microsoft will fail at both of the new ventures it announced. I think each one is deeply flawed.
The two announcements:
• Microsoft will soon release Windows 10 S, a new version of Windows 10. […] continued
Read moreYou’ll Discover The Best Windows 10 Feature When You Give Away Your Computer
With only a few clicks, you can reset your Windows 10 computer back to its brand-new condition when it was pulled out of the box. It will start up with the Microsoft license agreement, ready to be used by someone new. All your personal information and files will be erased. […] continued
Read moreWindows 10 Tip: How To Check The Health Of Your Laptop Battery
My much-loved Thinkpad X1 Yoga was shipped to Lenovo today. I’ll be a bit twitchy and irritable until it comes back. But I couldn’t ignore the signs of old age any longer.
There comes a time when a laptop needs a new battery.
Lithium ion batteries don’t have a “memory” like older batteries but they do have life spans. […] continued
Read moreWindows 10 Cloud & Device Independence
On May 2 Microsoft will announce a new generation of Windows for low-cost computers targeted at education. Information has leaked about some parts of that announcement and tech journalists are speculating about what it might mean. There is one thing that has not been discussed and it is crucial to the success or failure of the new venture. […] continued
Read moreTechnology Is Boring
Technology in 2017 is just a bit . . . dull. There’s not much going on. You hadn’t really thought about it but now that I mention it, you know it’s true, right?
Choose your metaphor. It’s a plateau. It’s the calm before the storm. We’re in a holding pattern. We’re almost – but not quite – at a couple of tipping points. […] continued
Read moreMicrosoft Comes Unstuck In Time
Microsoft can’t tell time.
On April 3, an odd glitch caused computers all over the world to show the wrong time. Three of my clients called me because all the computers in their offices were six minutes off. I researched it and fixed it and moved on. It was another example of Microsoft carelessness but appeared to have been fixed. […] continued
Read moreTwenty-Five Years Of Windows
Windows 3.1 was released on April 6, 1992. Happy 25th birthday!
Computers ran MS-DOS 5.0 in 1992. Windows 3.1 was a separate program that ran on MS-DOS by typing WIN at a command line. There was no taskbar or Start button. Real work was still done in DOS based programs like WordPerfect and Lotus 123. […] continued
Read moreHow To Close A Hijacked Web Browser
If your computer displays a message while you are browsing the Internet claiming that you have been hacked or infected with a virus, it is a lie by criminals.
Your computer is not infected with anything and you did nothing wrong.
Do not call the 800 number for “tech support.”
You are calling criminals who will lie to you. […] continued
Read moreWhat To Look For In The Next Major Windows 10 Update
Microsoft will release the next major update for Windows 10 – version 1703, nicknamed “Creators Update” – starting April 11. There’s something important that I want you to watch.
It’s not anything new in Windows 10. Nothing important is updated or changed by the April version 1703 update. It’s a collection of fit and finish improvements, nothing more. […] continued
Read moreGazing Into The Abyss: Republicans Are Selling Out Your Privacy
When you think about the future, you may start to suffer from “abyss gaze,” the depression that settles in when you realize that we’re all doomed. Warren Ellis coined the term in a novella named “Normal,” which tells the story of futurists who suffer nervous breakdowns after discovering that there is no hope for humanity as a result of the trends in whatever area they study. […] continued
Read moreWindows 10 And The Slow Devices And Printers Window
Here’s a problem without a solution.
On some Windows 10 computers, some of the time, opening the Devices and Printers window in Control Panel takes anywhere from 90 seconds to five minutes. The green bar creeps across the empty window, as you see in the screen shot above. Eventually it finishes. […] continued
Read moreSpecial! Windows 10! Now With More Ads! Unlimited Time Offer!
Desperation is not pretty.
Microsoft has successful cloud and enterprise divisions, but it is obviously true that some divisions of Microsoft are in a long-term decline.
• Windows is still the dominant computer operating system, but desktop PC sales are in a permanent downward spiral.
• There’s a real danger that Chromebooks will begin to steal volume laptop sales later this year. […] continued
Read moreStoring Business Files Online: Dropbox, Google & Box Are Sprinting While Microsoft Falls Behind
Microsoft is losing another race. This one should have been Microsoft’s race to win but it is falling behind for familiar reasons: an inability to keep up with the competition, and its self-inflicted injuries from making overly complex, confusing services with poorly chosen names.
Small businesses and law firms want to store shared files in the cloud instead of on a server in the closet. […] continued
Read moreWindows 10 Tip: Drag Icons Into The Notification Area On The Taskbar
Want to see an icon in the notification area on the taskbar? Drag it from the overflow area and drop it where you want it.
Want to keep an icon out of sight so it doesn’t take up any space? Drag it up from the notification area and drop it in the overflow area. […] continued
Read moreModern Kaiseki And The Joy Of Cooking
Let me tell you about my dinner last Saturday. It was pretty special. It might give you some ideas about food and passion and family.
A few months ago our son Andrew invited us to a kaiseki meal in San Francisco.
The twist: instead of taking us to a fancy restaurant, he was going to cook the meal in his apartment. […] continued
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