Latest Technology News

Windows 11 24H2 (or Windows 11 2024 Update) underwent an incredibly long period of testing with users before it was finally unleashed on the general public earlier this month. Despite the prolonged beta test, the update remains incredibly problematic -- to extent that Microsoft has blocked it from being installed on some systems.

While not all of the problems can be blamed on Microsoft, the company must bear some responsibility for failing to catch significant bugs that have gone on to affect larger numbers of people. Among those experiencing issues are owners of ASUS systems, people running the Voicemeeter app, users of Microsoft Office, and people with certain Western Digital SSDs.

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At its Snapdragon Summit, Qualcomm introduced its latest flagship chip, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Mobile Platform. This new system-on-a-chip brings Qualcomm’s Oryon CPU to mobile devices for the first time, promising notable improvements in AI capabilities, efficiency, and overall performance.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite is designed to handle advanced on-device generative AI tasks, including multi-modal applications, all while maintaining privacy. Qualcomm aims to power devices from several well-known manufacturers such as ASUS, Samsung, Xiaomi, and others, with launches expected in the coming weeks.

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With the increased popularity of artificial intelligence technology, many human workers have expressed concern that AI models will replace them or make their positions obsolete. This is particularly the case with occupations like coding and software design, where artificial intelligence has the opportunity to automate several essential processes. Although AI is a powerful tool that has the potential to revolutionize the coding process, the role of human workers is still invaluable, as this technology is still in its infancy.

Software development teams are among the ranks of workers most profoundly affected by the AI revolution. Some of the ways in which software development teams have begun to use artificial intelligence include:

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Unless you’re an Olympic athlete, you probably don’t want a stopwatch tracking your performance -- pushing you to work harder and move faster. But, according to Six Degrees’ newly published independent research, one in five IT decision-makers at SMEs feel that the clock is on them when implementing public cloud migration projects.

Six Degrees’ UK SME Cloud Intelligence Report 2024 found that the extent to which IT decision-makers feel rushed varies considerably between sectors. Finance and insurance (57 percent), blue light (55 percent) and education (42 percent) are impacted the most compared to those working in government (33 percent), healthcare (32 percent) and manufacturing (29 percent).

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As the 2024 U.S. general election approaches, many Americans are looking for straightforward ways to find reliable voting information. Fortunately, Google is offering helpful tools to make this process easier, allowing you to quickly locate key voting details, whether you’re voting in person or by mail.

With Google Search and Maps, you can now find the nearest voting locations and ballot dropboxes. By simply typing queries like “where to vote” or “ballot dropboxes,” Google will guide you to a prompt where you enter your registered address. From there, you’ll be able to see nearby voting locations tailored to your specific needs. Google Maps can even provide extra details, such as voting hours and the types of voting options available at each location.

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The manufacturing industry is the most affected by cyber attacks, accounting for over 25 percent of all incidents, across the top 10 industries, of which 45 percent are malware attacks.

According to a new report from security awareness training company KnowBe4 the industry has become increasingly attractive to cybercriminals in recent years due to its interconnected nature, having a low tolerance for downtime, and valuable intellectual property stored in its databases, which could save competitors millions if obtained.

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APIs are essential to the smooth running of the internet, allowing the seamless transfer of information between applications and services.

Of course all of this happens behind the scenes but that's not to say that APIs should be ‘out of sight out of mind'. We spoke to Mayur Upadhyaya, CEO at APIContext, to learn more about API Security and the importance of APIs in general.

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PorteuX 1.7 has been released, bringing various updates and optimizations to the lightweight Linux distribution. One of the key highlights of this release is the reduced size of the ISOs compared to previous versions, thanks to numerous optimizations that aim to enhance overall performance and stability.

Several fixes have been made, including addressing issues with the run-pipewire and gui-cheatcode-loader scripts, which previously ran indefinitely in the background. The release also resolves problems with LXDE freezing when dragging files from Engrampa over the file manager’s side panel and fixes a notification bug related to ‘sticky keys’ in Xfce 4.18.

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Western Digital has been helping people store their digital lives on the go for two decades. To mark the 20th anniversary of its popular My Passport drive, the company has released a special edition - the My Passport Ultra, 20th Emerald Anniversary Edition. First launched in 2004, the My Passport drive now boasts capacities as large as 6TB, a massive increase from the original 40GB model.

This special edition drive sports a beautiful emerald color, which Western Digital says symbolizes loyalty, peace, and security. It’s not just about looks, though. The My Passport Ultra continues the company’s tradition of durability and reliability, offering a sleek anodized metal enclosure for extra protection. It works right out of the box with Windows, Mac, and even mobile devices, making it a versatile choice for today’s tech-savvy users.

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A new survey of over 7,000 individuals suggests a growing wave of pessimism among workers regarding cybersecurity practices.

The study from CybSafe and the National Cybersecurity Alliance shows 53 percent believe staying safe online is possible, down by five percent from last year, while only 60 percent think online safety is worth the effort, marking a nine percent drop.

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Today, it’s not ‘if’ but ‘when’ any organization will be compromised. So, while it’s essential to strengthen cybersecurity across the entire organization, it’s also imperative to plan for a significant cyber-attack and the worst-case scenario. No business can be 100 percent secure but they can be resilient. Resilience is about continuing to thrive amidst adversity. This is why cyber resilience can be more important than cybersecurity. Every organization can take positive actions to improve their cyber resilience today, ensuring they can continue to win even if they are affected by an incident. They can start by having the right mindset and instilling a culture of cyber security and cyber resilience.   

Strong cyber resilience will enable an organization to continue to operate key business processes, even when they are under attack. This means keeping people safe, guaranteeing data security, and protecting their reputation with their customers, partners, suppliers, industry and government regulators and other key stakeholders. Having a strong cyber resilience will save stress, time and money -- it will give you a return on your investment -- and you’ll be better prepared for uncertainty in the future.  

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Microsoft recently reported that tens of thousands of working professionals are using Microsoft Copilot in their everyday operations. Experts expect this number to grow significantly as the tool integrates more seamlessly into workplace environments, driving productivity and efficiency. However, many companies may not realize that to get the most benefit from Copilot, they should consolidate tenants.

Let’s take a closer look at the benefits of tenant consolidation and how working professionals can leverage Microsoft Copilot to the fullest. With tenant consolidation, companies can transform operations and future-proof their organization amid remote workforces, economic pressures and security concerns, among other developing industry factors.

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Machine learning and neural networks are pillars on which you can build intelligent applications. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Fundamentals begins by introducing you to Python and discussing AI search algorithms.

The book covers in-depth mathematical topics, such as regression and classification, illustrated by Python examples. As you make your way through the book, you will progress to advanced AI techniques and concepts, and work on real-life datasets to form decision trees and clusters.

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Subscription-based software isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. Some of us would prefer to pay a one-off fee upfront for a software package we know will last us years without any significant changes. Thankfully, Microsoft caters to both types of user, both with the subscription-based Microsoft 365 range of products and now with a brand new version of its flagship product, Microsoft Office 2024.

Office 2024, which starts from $149.99 for its Home edition, replaces Microsoft Office 2021 and brings the feature set bang up to date. It’s also joined by a new Office LTSC 2024 release aimed firmly at larger organizations who want an on-premises edition for a disconnected or restricted environment.

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Six-hundred-seventeen in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 and 11 on the Microsoft Store and elsewhere in the past seven days.

Microsoft ended support for Windows 11 version 22H2 Home and Pro this month. No more updates for the version, but updates are available to newer versions. There are bypasses available for devices that do not meet the official system requirements.

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