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Cast your mind back several years and you'll remember Windows 3.0 and earlier. This was when Microsoft started to bring home computing to the masses, and for anyone raised on modern Windows, the lack of Start menu, taskbar and other components makes the operating system seem antiquated and unusable.

But use it we did! Back then, there was no File Explorer, but File Manager instead -- and it's something that people sometimes feel nostalgic about. A couple of days ago, Microsoft open sourced the File Manager code, and a Windows 10 version has been released.

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The pro-cycling season is well underway. Things kicked off early with the Tour Down Under way back in January, but now it ramps up with the Spring Classics. The most well-known of those is Paris-Roubaix, better known as "The Hell of the North". The cobblestones that lead through the forests can be deadly, especially when wet.

That race commences April 8, and if you don't get TV coverage, fear not. There's a way you can watch the action and possibly a bit of carnage, although we hope there is none of that this time. NBC Sports Gold will be carrying the race online.

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It's not all that long since Facebook suspended data firm Cambridge Analytica for harvesting personal information from millions of users. Now the social network has suspended AggregateIQ -- another data firm, this time linked to the pro-Brexit Vote Leave campaign -- because of possible connections to Cambridge Analytica's parent company.

AggregateIQ is thought to be linked to Strategic Communication Laboratories (SCL), and there are concerns that the firm may therefore have improperly obtained data from Facebook users.

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No matter the product, a manufacturer should take pride in what it produces. In a world where technology is largely disposable, it is appreciated when a company creates something that is designed to last. If you go on Amazon these days, and you look to buy, say, a cable, you will be presented with countless unrecognizable brands with inexpensive low-quality offerings. And yeah, saving money is cool, but if you are buying crap, have you really saved anything?

I say all that because I have discovered a new USB-C cable from a company called Nomad that promises to be extremely rugged. Do you need a durable cable? Well, if you travel, absolutely. People that are constantly "on the go" will find themselves often pulling cables out of their bag and then shoving them back in. Not to mention, when you are in an airport or coffee shop, for instance, you may find yourself in awkward positions where the cable faces extra strain on its connectors while charging.

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When it came to light that messages sent by Mark Zuckerberg and other Facebook executives via Facebook Messenger had been deleted, there was widespread concern about not only the social network's use of a feature unavailable to anyone else, but also the lack of transparency about it.

Still reeling from the Cambridge Analytica debacle and other privacy scandals, Facebook has now announced that the feature will in fact be rolling out to everyone -- although not necessarily any time soon. The company insists that this is something that has been under consideration for some time, and also promises that no more of Zuckerberg's message will be retracted in the meantime.

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When moving VMware virtual machines to the cloud, the sure-fire way to migrate the VMs and their data completely is to simply stop the VMs, copy their components (OVF files) and assemble them into an Open Virtual Appliance (OVA). You transport the OVA package over the network or via a physical device to the cloud destination, unpack the files and restart the VMs. If you’ve done things right, the VMs pick up right where they left off.

Of course, it's not quite that easy. The physical resources and configurations in the cloud data center should be comparable to what you were running on in your on-premises data center. Network addresses and access permissions have to be properly set up in the cloud environment as well. Fortunately, VMware provides useful tools like vRealize to address that part of the cloud migration challenge.

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Ubuntu Linux 18.04 "Bionic Beaver" is almost here -- it is due on April 26. In the interim, today, the second -- and final -- beta becomes available. Bionic Beaver is very significant, as it is an LTS version, meaning "Long Term Support." This is important to those that prefer stability to bleeding edge and don't want to deal with the hassle of upgrades. In other words, you can install 18.04 and be confident that it will be supported for 5 years. In comparison, non-LTS Ubuntu versions get a mere 9 months.

There is plenty to be excited about with Ubuntu Linux 18.04 LTS 'Bionic Beaver' Beta 2, including the GNOME 3.28 desktop environment -- Beta 1 did not include GNOME at all. Of course, all the other DE flavors are available too, such as KDE and Xfce. The kernel is at 4.15, which while not the most current version, is still quite modern. Also included is LibreOffice 6.0 -- an essential tool that rivals Microsoft Office. Wayland is available as a technical preview, although X remains the default display server -- for now.

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As if trust in Facebook could not drop any further, it has come to light that the social network deleted messages sent by Mark Zuckerberg from the recipients' Messenger inboxes. The deletions only applied to Zuckerberg's messages, leaving the other side of the conversation intact -- a feature not available to the average Messenger user.

Facebook did not operate transparently in deleting the messages, as it made no announcement either publicly, or to those involved in the conversations. When confronted about the matter, Facebook said that the deletions were carried out because of "corporate security".

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It's less than a year since Google launched the Android Excellence program through which the company highlights the very best Android apps and games. The list is refreshed every three months, and Google has now published details of the winners of the accolade for April 2018.

The latest installment includes titles such as Adobe Photoshop Lightroom CC, SoloLearn: Learn to Code for Free, and MARVEL Contest of Champions.

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Intel has issued a security advisory about its remote keyboard app after discovering a bug that made it possible for a remote user to mimic keyboard and mouse input with elevated privileges.

Intel Remote Keyboard was available for both iOS and Android, but the critical vulnerability -- and two other bugs with a High rating -- means that it has now been pulled from Google Play and the App Store. Intel is also recommending that anyone using the app uninstalls it as soon as possible.

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Wireless charging is nothing new -- I first used it many years ago with a lowly Nokia Lumia running Windows Phone. For years, many Android phones have had this feature too. Apple's iPhone was very late to the Qi charging party, only launching in 2017, but I suppose late is better than never, right?

Today, Case-Mate launches a new wireless charger that is compatible with all Qi smartphones, including the Samsung Galaxy S9 and the latest iPhone devices -- 8, 8 Plus, and X. In fact, it supports fast wireless charging, so you can juice up your device more quickly (not as fast as using a wire, though). Best of all, it has a very unique design, where the charging pad itself can be inserted into a base. This allows the device to charge while laying flat or propped up in either portrait or landscape modes. In other words, you can decide how the phone is positioned, and you can change it whenever you want -- a very clever design.

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If you've been hoping for a new Mac Pro in the near future, you're going to be disappointed. Apple has said that a new model is not due to go on sale until 2019.

There is good news, however. The Mac Pro is undergoing a complete redesign, but it will remain a modular, customizable machine. The release date of 2019 also means that you'll have more time to save up -- and you'll probably need it.

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Verge may not be the biggest cryptocurrency out there, but it does have quite a following and has generated enough interest to attract hackers. The cryptocurrency came under attack for three hours yesterday, enabling a hacker to net 15.6 million Verge coins worth around $780,000.

There was initially speculation that Verge had fallen victim to a ">51% attack" -- in which an attacker is able to forge transactions by taking control of more than half of the network -- but this has been denied by developers. A hard fork is being prepared to patch the bug that allowed the attack to take place.

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Researchers at Recorded Future believe that a Mirai botnet variant, possibly linked to the IoTroop or Reaper botnet, was utilized in attacks on at least one company, and probably more, in the financial sector in late January of this year.

The botnet targeted one company using at least 13,000 devices, each with a unique IP address, and generated traffic volumes up to 30Gb/s.

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The need to protect sensitive data against cyber criminals, address complex compliance requirements, and guard against human error is driving enterprises to adopt encryption.

A new study by cyber security company Thales eSecurity, based on research by the Ponemon Institute, shows that 43 percent of respondents report that their organization has an encryption strategy applied consistently across their enterprise.

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