Santa brought you an iPhone 7? Here's what to do first
Despite planning to stick with my iPhone 6s for another year, I ended up upgrading to the iPhone 7, and I’m pleased that I did. If you were lucky enough to get an iPhone 7 for Christmas, or an iPhone 7 Plus for that matter, you’re no doubt going to be as happy with the latest Apple smartphone as I am.
Getting started is straightforward, as once the phone is turned on you’ll be walked through the set up process, how to configure the Touch ID fingerprint scanner, and set up a PIN. Once you've set up the basics, it's time to explore what you can do with your new device.
Santa brought you an Apple Watch (first or second gen)? Here's what to do first
If you were lucky enough to receive an Apple Watch as a present this year, you’ll no doubt be keen to see what it offers, and what you can do with it.
To start you’ll need to pair it with an iPhone 5 or later, running the latest version of iOS. To do this, go to Settings > Bluetooth on your phone and make sure the feature is enabled.
Santa brought you an Amazon Fire TV with 4K Ultra HD? Here's what to do first
The Grand Tour, The Man in the High Castle, Transparent… just three good reasons why you might have opted for Amazon’s powerful, yet diminutive TV box. Plus of course, it’s also the gateway to loads more TV, movies, apps and games.
If you have a 4K TV, it’s great source of UHD content (Amazon’s original shows are available in that format) -- although you may want to skip paying $25.99 to watch a scaled-up Groundhog Day! Once you’ve excitedly opened the gift of a new Amazon Fire TV, here’s what to do next.
Microsoft admits its aggressive Windows 10 push was a low point for the company
In its quest to get people to upgrade to Windows 10 while the new operating system was still free, Microsoft took a surprisingly aggressive approach, which got uglier, and uglier as the year went on.
The company’s dirty tricks included downloading Windows 10 files onto users computers without permission, making Windows 10 a "Recommend update", removing the "no thanks" button from the Get Windows 10 box, changing the behavior of the red corner x, and sneaking an advert for Windows 10 into a Windows 7 security patch. Now the company admits it did cross the line, but only at one point -- can you guess which?
How to install Windows 10 Creators Update Build 14986 on Oracle VirtualBox
Microsoft has released ISO image files for Windows 10 Build 14986, giving anyone a chance to try out the forthcoming Creators Update.
While you can install it on a PC, it’s not wise to have it as your daily driver. One of the best ways of trying it out risk free, is to run it in a virtualized environment, using VirtualBox.
Windows 10 Creators Update Build 14986 ISO images available now
If you’re thinking of joining the Windows 10 Insider program, or you just want to do a clean install with the very latest version of Windows 10, the good news is Microsoft has released an up-to-date ISO image.
The image, for Build 14986, is available to all, and you can download it now, although there is a catch.
Raspberry Pi's Linux-based PIXEL desktop now available for PC and Mac
If you own a Raspberry Pi, you’re probably familiar with PIXEL. The desktop environment is included in the Raspbian OS.
The Raspberry Pi Foundation describes PIXEL as the "GNU/Linux we would want to use" and understandably so. It offers a smart, clean interface, a decent selection of software, the Chromium web browser with plug-ins, and more -- and from today it’s available for PC and Mac.
Get Wiley's 'Windows 10 Simplified' (worth $17) FREE for a limited time
Whether you’re new to Windows 10, know someone who might need a little help mastering the new OS, or just want to get more from it yourself, Windows 10 Simplified is a great read.
The book usually retails for $17, but you can download a PDF version for free now. The offer is only good until December 29, 2016, so act quickly.
Fool Windows 10 into disabling automatic updates
Microsoft made Windows 10 updates mandatory in order to make sure all users are always on the latest version of the new OS, but if you’d rather choose if and when updates are installed -- perhaps to avoid falling foul of problem ones -- there are several options available to you.
We’ve previously looked at ways you can disable the update mechanism in Windows 10, including using the Windows 10 Updater Disabler, but Windows 10 Update Switch uses an interesting method to stop updates for as long as you’d like.
Fix update errors in Windows 10 with this new tool from Microsoft
If you’re having problems installing updates in Windows 7 onwards, there’s a troubleshooting page you can try.
The guided walkthrough lets you fix problems in Windows 7, 8.1 or 10. Just choose your operating system, and follow the on-screen instructions. If you’re running Windows 10, you’ll be prompted to download a new Windows Update Troubleshooter.
Facebook introduces Group Video Chat in Messenger
Facebook has been adding all sorts of features to its chat app recently, including classic arcade games, and a new camera with art and 3D effects.
Today, the social networking giant introduces the ability to video chat in groups, which it describes as the most requested Messenger feature ever.
Windows 10 Creators Update gains a secret new System Reset option
Over time, Windows can become sluggish, and beset with problems. A good system clean might be enough to keep you going a while longer, but not always. Worse, if you get hit with malware -- ransomware in particular -- or encounter major hardware problems, your only option might be to reinstall Windows.
Windows 10 offers users two choices here -- go into Settings > Update & recovery > Recovery. Click the Get started button under Reset this PC and you’ll have the option to keep your files (removes apps and settings only) or remove everything (a total fresh start). However, in the Creators Update there’s going to be a new option.
No more Windows 10 Insider Preview builds until next year, but there is some good news
Microsoft has been rolling out new Insider Preview builds of Windows 10 on a weekly basis, with just one or two exceptions.
A new build was anticipated for this week, but the software giant isn’t happy with the choice of options, and didn’t want to risk pushing out an unstable release this side of Christmas.
Facebook Messenger gains a powerful new camera with art and 3D effects
Facebook Messenger doesn’t just let you chat with friends, you can also use it to play games.
Today, the chat app introduces a faster, and easier to use camera that will let you spice up your conversations, and capture and share moments as they happen. There’s more to it than just that, though.
Microsoft Edge will start blocking Flash by default
The Windows 10 Anniversary Update introduced a very welcome change to Microsoft Edge, the operating system’s default browser. In a smart move, Microsoft gave users the ability to selectively pause non-essential "peripheral” Flash content, such as animations and ads.
That was always just going to be the start of things however, as John Hazen, Principal Program Manager Lead, Microsoft Edge, had previously promised "We are planning for and look forward to a future where Flash is no longer necessary as a default experience in Microsoft Edge". And today, that future got a little bit closer.
Wayne's Bio
Wayne Williams has been writing about computers, technology, and the web for over 30 years now. He’s written for most of the UK’s PC magazines, and launched, edited and published a fair few of them in his time also. If you like what you read, you can Buy Me a Coffee!
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