Focus by Firefox is a content blocker for Safari users on iOS 9

Focus by Firefox

Ever since Apple allowed adblockers on iOS 9, we’ve seen a steady influx of these types of apps appearing in the App Store. Today, yet another one arrives, but this new release has an interesting pedigree, coming as it does from Mozilla.

Focus by Firefox is a free content blocker for Safari users on iOS 9 that gives users greater control over their privacy by allowing them to block categories of trackers such as those used for ads, analytics and social media.

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IDC: Forget tablets, the PC could be set for a comeback in 2016

Surprise

It used to be that a new version of Windows would be a major shot in the arm for PC sales, but that’s no longer the case. According to IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Tracker, shipments are expected to fall 10 percent in the fourth quarter of 2015, bringing the overall decline for the year down by 10.3 percent.

As a result, IDC has revised its forecast for next year, but it does see things stabilizing by the end of 2016, and even predicts some growth.

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Microsoft continues to force Windows 10 on people who don’t want it

Angry PC user

This might come as a surprise to Microsoft, but not everyone wants to upgrade to Windows 10. As the slowing pace of the updates shows, there are plenty of people who are more than happy with Windows 7 or 8.1, and who don’t want to switch to the new OS.

While some people are simply delaying the upgrade, plenty of other users have no interest at all in Windows 10, and are actively taking steps to avoid it. But "no" doesn’t mean "no" to Microsoft. It apparently means "Yes, I want to upgrade"!

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Microsoft releases new Windows 10 Mobile Insider Preview Build 10586.29

Windows-10-Range-Lumia-950-950XL-jpg

Microsoft is continuing to refine and polish its new mobile operating system, and is working to address feedback and issues reported by Windows Insiders.

The latest Windows 10 Mobile build doesn’t contain any exciting new features but rather is a cumulative update, which explains the new build number -- 10586.29. Microsoft is also planning to make this build available to additional devices early next week.

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Microsoft makes upgrading to Windows 10 a smoother experience for Windows 7 and 8.1 users

windows update

Microsoft really, really wants people to upgrade to Windows 10. Even though the new OS is free, users of Windows 7 and 8.1 are proving a bit reluctant to switch, so the software giant has rolled out some new updates for the older operating systems which promise to make the upgrade much smoother for those who do decide to take the plunge.

There are two updates available now, one for Windows 7 and one for Windows 8.1, both of which make improvements to the Windows Update Client.

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Windows 10's growth continues to slow as Windows 7 and 8.x gain share

Disappointed

NetMarketShare has released its usage share figures for November, and they make for interesting reading. As you would expect, Windows 10 grew its share again, but the growth rate is clearly tailing off, continuing the trend we’ve seen over the past few months.

Windows 7 and 8.x users show no great rush to migrate to the new OS, with only Windows XP shedding users.

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The tech item I'm most thankful for in 2015 [Wayne]

Giving thanks

I’m lucky I get to try out a lot of tech and, like my colleagues here at BetaNews, I buy a fair amount of shiny new products too. 2015 has been a good year for new hardware and I have a long list of items that have become essential to my daily life.

I picked up a trio of new Apple products this year -- an iPhone 6s, an iPad Air 2, and an Apple Watch -- but as much as I love them all, not one of those is the product I’m most thankful for in 2015.

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Raspberry Pi Zero is a $5 computer -- seriously -- buy it today!

Pi zero featured

The various existing models of the Raspberry Pi aren’t exactly expensive. The top of the line device -- the Raspberry Pi 2 Model B -- costs just $35. But if that’s a little too rich for you, how about a model that costs just $5?

If it was the beginning of April, you might expect this to be an April Fool, but the Pi Zero is real, and available now, although it may well have sold out by the time you read this because, at just five bucks (the cost of an over-priced flavored large latte), demand is bound to be high.

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Microsoft confirms the Windows 10 November Update WAS pulled -- and this is why

Secret Tell Surprise Shock

Over the weekend we spotted that the Windows 10 November Update (aka Threshold 2) had been removed from the Media Creation Tool (MCT), and had seemingly disappeared from Windows Update too. We asked Microsoft why this was, and the software giant responded by saying it had decided to remove the November Update from the MCT (giving no actual reason for the decision) but that the update was still available through Windows Update.

This didn’t ring entirely true -- the November Update seemed more like Schrödinger's Update: both simultaneously mandatory, and not available -- but Microsoft had no further comment to make. Today, however, the company admitted to us that there was a problem with the update, and that was the real reason for its disappearance.

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Windows 10 uninstalling user programs without permission

Angry PC user

Windows 10 is a decent operating system, but it’s very much a work in progress, and one that’s definitely not without problems. It has some very rough edges (which are slowly being addressed), various annoying bugs (ditto), and of course, it spies on users.

The November Update (aka Threshold 2) fixed some issues (if you were able to get it) but also caused some new problems too. We reported previously how it had reset privacy settings and default apps for some users, but worse than that it appears the update has been uninstalling some third party desktop programs without asking.

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Volvo now lets you have Christmas shopping delivered directly to your car

Volvo In-Car Delivery

Shopping for presents for the holidays, or for bargains for yourself during Black Friday and Cyber Monday can be a nightmare. A lot of people opt to shop purely online in order to avoid the hassle of fighting their way through crowded stores.

You can get the items you buy on the web delivered to various locations, including home and work, but if that’s still not convenient enough for you, how about having the deliveries made directly to your car instead?

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Windows 10 set to be the most widely installed version of Windows ever

Surprised girl with Windows 10

Windows 10’s growth might have slowed quite dramatically in recent months, but never underestimate the power of free.

According to the latest prediction from Gartner, the new operating system is set to enjoy not only the fastest growth of any version of Windows, but is poised to become the most widely installed Microsoft OS ever, quickly overtaking both XP and Windows 7.

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Microsoft pulls the Windows 10 November Update [Updated]

Shock horror

Here’s an interesting story for the weekend -- it seems as if Microsoft has pulled the recently released November Update (aka Threshold 2) from both the Media Creation Tool and Windows Update.

That means if you don’t currently have the update on your Windows 10 device, you won’t be able to download it directly now.

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Speed up Windows 10 boot up with this simple tweak

Speedometer

Because I have a super-fast PC with a large SSD as the system drive, Windows 10 boots up really quickly for me. The days of waiting 5 minutes or so for Windows to get to a usable state -- as was sometimes the case in the past -- are long gone, thankfully.

But if you find Windows 10 is taking too long to boot up for you, there’s a setting you can apply which can speed things up significantly. Even if you have no complaints with how quickly Windows 10 loads, it’s still worth applying this (if it isn't on already) because it will make a difference.

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Happy 30th birthday Windows! What's your earliest memory of Microsoft's revolutionary operating system?

Windows 1

I first started using Windows back in 1992, shortly after the release of Windows 3.1, and I’ve used every iteration since, including both the good (Windows XP, Windows 7) and the bad (Vista, Windows 8). Every time a new version was released, I upgraded pretty much immediately. I might own various Apple devices, and dip into Linux products from time to time, but for me there will only ever be one desktop operating system of worth, and that’s Windows.

Today is a huge milestone for the operating system that popularized home computing, and changed the world in so many ways. Microsoft Windows 1.0 was released on 20th November 1985, two years after it was first announced, and for the first time PC owners were able to control things using a mouse, rather than just typing in commands in DOS.

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