Sofia Elizabella Wyciślik-Wilson

Microsoft is no stranger to using nag screens to annoy Windows 10 users, and now the company is back to its old tricks again. After installing the latest batch of update for the operating system, users are being confronted with a full-screen "Get even more out of Windows" message.

The nag screen encourages users to investigate other Microsoft products such as Your Phone, Windows Hello, Office 365 and OneDrive. It's part of what Microsoft describes as "post-upgrade setup".

We always knew that the Xbox Series X was going to be an impressive, powerful device, and now Microsoft has confirmed this. The company has revealed the full specifications for the upcoming game console... and it's a beast!

The console is more like a high-end gaming PC (it's not without good reason that Microsoft bills it as its fastest, most powerful console ever) and it offers hardware-accelerated raytracing, 4K output at 60 fps, and support for up to 120fps. All of this is driven by an 8 core AMD Zen 2 CPU and an RDNA 2-class GPU -- and you'll be able to buy it this year.

The worldwide coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is leading to many people self-isolating, and employers encouraging -- or requiring -- staff to work from home. Many schools also decided to turn to remote teaching solutions to keep pupils away from the risk of infection.

Just as millions of people settle into the idea of remote working or learning, many for the first time, Microsoft Teams is suffering with major problems. Users found that they were unable to send messages via Teams, and were met instead by a notification reading: "we're sorry -- we've run into an issue".

As coronavirus (COVID-19) makes it way around the world, governments are scrambling to contain the spread within their respective countries. Technology company are also reacting to the crisis, taking steps to clamp down on scams and misinformation.

Having already announced that all stores outside of Greater China will be closed for two weeks, Apple has now revealed strict limits on coronavirus-related apps in its App Store. The company say this is a move to try to ensure the credibility of health and safety information.

Microsoft has announced that not only is Windows Subsystem for Linux -- or WSL 2 as it's also known -- soon going to be generally available in Windows 10 version 2004, but also that the Linux kernel will be updated though Windows Update.

The new approach comes as Microsoft removes the Linux kernel from the Windows OS image. The change in update delivery will enable Microsoft to push out updates faster than before, and eliminates the need to user interaction.

Earlier this week, Microsoft inadvertently released details of a critical vulnerability in the SMBv3 protocol in Windows 10 and Windows Server. While there was no fix available at the time, the company did provide suggestions about how to mitigate against attacks.

With the information out in the wild, Microsoft was under pressure to get a patch released to customers -- and now it has managed to produce such a fix. KB4551762 is an emergency patch for the CVE-2020-0796 vulnerability, and users are advised to install it as soon as possible.

There are a huge number of streaming video services available these days. Netflix is the undoubted leader of the pack, but the likes of Hulu, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video are also vying for your attention... and subscription fee.

Paying for numerous streaming services can quickly add up, but a site that bills itself as "pirate radio for streaming" has something of a solution. It lets you watch Hulu, Disney+, Netflix, HBO Now, Amazon Prime Video and Showtime for free. But how long will it last?

Microsoft has released a new tool that will please anyone who has been frustrated by the behavior of Visual Studio and its tendency to leave behind old versions of .NET Core SDKs and runtimes after an upgrade.

The company has launched the .NET Core Uninstall Tool for Windows and macOS -- Linux users miss out for the time being -- which enables developers to free up disk space by tidying up the mess of leftover SDKs and runtimes.

It has been a few weeks since we first had the chance to play around with Windows 10X thanks to Microsoft's emulator and image for the operating system. Now the company has released Microsoft Emulator v1.1.54.0 and the Windows 10X Emulator Image 10.0.19578.0.

There is quite a bit to explore in the new Windows 10X image, including a beta version of the File Manager app. There are also early tastes of the ability to run Win32 software in the operating system on dual-screen devices.

Patch Tuesday is supposed to be the day Microsoft issues bug-fixing updates for Windows and other software, but this week things were a little different. In addition to the usual patches, the company also inadvertently revealed the existence of a critical vulnerability in the Microsoft Server Message Block 3.1.1 (SMBv3) protocol -- one for which there is currently no patch.

It seems that Microsoft had intended to issue a patch to the vulnerability (CVE-2020-0796) yesterday, and therefore referenced it in the introductory text for the Patch Tuesday release, but then changed its mind -- perhaps because the patch was not ready. Two cybersecurity firms also published brief details of the security flaw, and while Microsoft is still yet to issue a patch, the company has provided details of workarounds.

Both the NSA and a cybersecurity firm have reminded the tech world of the existence of a remote code execution vulnerability in Microsoft Exchange Server.

Although Microsoft issued a patch for CVE-2020-0688 last month, numerous state-sponsors hacking groups have been spotted exploiting the vulnerability. There was an uptick in exploitation after a technical report of the details of the vulnerability were published by a security researcher.

A setting within Windows 10 is blocking drivers from loading and causing issues with the associated hardware for some people.

Microsoft has acknowledged that the Memory integrity setting in Windows Security prevents the loading of some drivers. In some instances, the drivers cannot be installed, but even when installation is possible the problem can lead to issues with a range of hardware devices.

Version 5.7 of the Linux kernel is due to land later this spring, and when it does there is quite a lot to look forward to. Additions include a new exFAT file-system driver which is great news for users.

While Linux has supported exFAT for a little while, the version that is currently support is limited because it is based on an old driver. But Samsung has been working away on an update version which will land in Linux 5.7, making it possible to work with larger media formatted using the exFAT file system.

When Microsoft released the KB4535996 update for Windows 10, it was supposed to fix problems with search and printing. But, as has become something of a recurring theme, the update has been causing problems of its own for users.

Myriad reports have come in of issues with sleep, BSoD errors, and a reduction in system performance following the installation of the optional update.

Just last month, Twitter announced new rules as it tries to stem the flow of "synthetic and manipulated media" on the platform. The company only started using the "manipulated media" label on March 5, and it was White House social media director Dan Scavino who earned the questionable honor of being the first recipient.

Over the weekend, he shared a video clip of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden that was edited in such a way as to make it seem as though Biden was endorsing Trump. But the clip had been carefully edited to change the meaning of what was actually said.