Best Windows apps this week
One-hundred and sixty in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps and games released for Windows 8.x and Windows 10 in the past seven days.
Game of the week is the great looking fighting game Gods of Rome in which you fight as gods, demigods and mythical heroes both against the computer and other human opponents.
Santa brought you a Windows 10 PC or tablet? Here’s what to do first
If you were fortunate enough to unwrap a new Windows device this Christmas the chances are it will be running Windows 10.
The new operating system has much to recommend it, as well as a few features that you might not be so keen on (the spying aspect for example). Getting Windows 10 set up exactly how you want it will -- like all versions of Windows -- take a while, but follow this guide and you’ll soon be sorted.
Get Serif PagePlus X4, worth $99.99, for FREE this Christmas Day at Downloadcrew Giveaway!
If you thought Christmas Eve’s giveaway was a slam dunk, then how about this? For 24 hours from midday December 25, we’re giving you Serif PagePlus X4, a full-blown DTP package worth $99.99, for free!
Serif PagePlus manages to combine a collection of powerful features -- including an excellent in-app photo editing tool -- with wizards, templates and a user-friendly interface that make it suitable for novices and DTP magicians alike.
Uncover your PCs speed issues with WhySoSlow
Resplendence Software has unveiled the first public beta of WhySoSlow, a smart Windows tool which analyses CPU and memory usage, power settings, devices, drivers, BIOS responsiveness and more for performance issues.
The program opens as a system monitor, displaying CPU usage, RAM load, hard page faults and other low-level indicators in real time.
Bitcoin set to boom in 2016
The price of Bitcoin may surge in 2016 due to the slower growth in the cryptocurrency’s supply, according to new predictions.
Daniel Masters, co-founder of Jersey-based Global Advisors’ multi-million dollar bitcoin hedge fund, said that the price of bitcoin could make it above $1,100 next year and then pick up speed to rise to $4,400 by the end of 2017.
Rootkit detector SanityCheck adds Windows 10 support
While there used to be a wide range of specialist rootkit detectors available, most of the projects have been abandoned in recent years, with even apps like Bitdefender’s Rootkit Remover quietly forgotten.
But if you need some extra help in detecting stealthy malware, don’t give up -- Resplendence Software’s SanityCheck is still alive, and last week added support for Windows 10.
Santa Claus pulls Manjaro Linux 15.12 'Capella' out of his sack
Santa Claus is a cool dude. Not only does he live at the North Pole with a bunch of elves, but he has a magically massive sack too. Santa's sack can hold an infinite number of toys and presents. It's kind of like Dr. Who's Tardis -- it looks like a normal sack, but the inside is much bigger than the outside.
Today, Santa is emptying his sack all over the Linux community, by delivering Manjaro Linux 15.12. Sure, Christmas is not for a couple of more days, but if you are a fan of the Arch-based operating system, you can begin celebrating early.
Hyatt Hotels computer system breached by malware -- monitor your credit card ASAP
When I go to a hotel, there are plenty of things I worry about. Are there bed bugs? Was the prior guest disgusting? Dear God, is there room service? For the most part, I have satisfying hotel stays, as I check online reviews beforehand. Any mention of cigarette smells, high noise levels, or yellow stains on the sheets, and I move along.
Sadly, there is yet another thing to worry about -- malware. Yes, today, Hyatt Hotels announces that its payment processing was breached by malware. Sigh. This type of news is becoming too commonplace nowadays, and quite frankly, I am getting fed up.
ASUS users will see fewer ads in 2016 thanks to Adblock Plus
Ad blocking is something of a contentious issue, but it's one that has been brought to prominence in 2015. The adblockalypse arrived this year as the debate about whether disabling ad blockers was preferable to paying for content.
Adblock Plus -- one of the best known ad blockers out there -- recently updated its acceptable ads policy which gives people the option of permitting certain ads to appear in their browser. But a new deal struck with ASUS means that anyone buying a phone or tablet from the Taiwanese company in 2016 will find that ad blocking is baked in and enabled by default.
Software bug leads to early release for thousands of prisoners
More than 3,000 prisoners in the state of Washington have been released early from prison as a result of a software bug. The formula used to calculate sentence reductions was found to be inaccurate, and while the average early release prisoner mistakenly had 49 days shaved from their sentence, one was set free almost two years early.
The software bug stems from a software update way back in 2002. The update introduced a new way to apply good behaviour credits, and governors are astonished that the problem has been on-going for 13 years. The Washington Department of Corrections says that it has been aware of the issue since 2012.
UK government working with eBay and Amazon to catch tax-evading sellers
When it comes to tax avoidance, it's usually big companies that come under the spotlight. Of course, there is nothing -- legally speaking -- wrong with tax avoidance, but it's a very different story with tax evasion. With eBay and Amazon providing a platform for vendors around the world, it is perhaps little surprise that the retail sites are home to a large number of tax evaders.
An investigation by the Guardian found that there are a huge number of overseas sellers who fail to pay VAT in the UK. HM Revenue & Customs is currently looking into whether eBay and Amazon could be held responsible for the tax bills, or what could be done to track down offenders.
Google+ is too much ghost town for me
As the New Year approaches, and I contemplate 2016, my online social space surely will change; my like-affair with Google+ draws close to an end. Nearly six weeks ago, the service "reimagined", as a "fully redesigned Google+ that puts Communities and Collections front and center".
Since then, my Google+ engagement has dropped by more than 90 percent. I don't find as many posts to Plus-one, to share with others, or on which to comment. Similarly, I see shocking decline in the number of responses to my posts—not something I actively seek so much as by which to judge interest in what I write and also to interact with other Plusers. After years of misguided critics calling Google+ a ghost town, the tumbleweeds roll.
Generate passwords you can actually remember with WordCreator
It’s important to use strong passwords to secure web accounts, and there are plenty of free generators around to help.
But most produce random results, and although cryptic garbage like "gKlephjjDe" will be hard to guess, it’s also not what we’d call memorable.
Oracle agrees to warn Java users of malware risk
Oracle is about to issue a warning that Java users could be exposed to malware, the media have reported on Tuesday.
The exposure is the result of a flaw that existed in Java’s software update tool. After an investigation conducted by the US Federal Trade Commission, Oracle (Java’s distributor) has agreed to issue a warning over its social media channels and on its website, otherwise it would have been fined.
Expect faster adoption and more localization in a cloudy 2016
The growing maturity of the cloud has been one of the major trends of the past year and this is something that looks set to continue into next year.
There will be new challenges, however, and we've looked at what some of the industry's experts think the cloud will have in store for 2016.
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