The release of Windows 10 spelled the end for Media Center. It wasn't unexpected, users have known it was coming for a while, as Microsoft had ceased developing the service. That didn't make the loss any easier for the loyal following of HTPC users.

From Microsoft's abandonment, other businesses grow. MediaPortal, which has been a solid solution for quite some time now is one. Though, other options for Media Center refugees also exist.

MediBang Paint Pro markets itself as "the world’s best free comic creation tool", which is a big claim, and -- if you're not interested in comics -- might put you off trying it at all.

Look past the headlines, though, and you’ll find a very capable free digital painting and illustration app. It has a lot of comic-friendly features -- templates, backgrounds, fonts, even speech-to-text for adding dialog -- but there’s plenty to like for the rest of us, too.

Joaquim Vergès, the man behind Twitter app Falcon Pro, is joining Twitter. His much loved app will live on, but Vergès will soon be starting work as part of the official Twitter team, helping with the development of the UI.

The announcement came -- of course -- via a tweet. Vergès said that he was going to use Falcon Pro as a testing ground for new features, but explained that he had become frustrated by the limitations of being a third party developer.

If you upgrade your computer from Windows 7 or Windows 8 to Windows 10, you probably have no idea what your product key is for the latest version of the operating system. The time may come when you want to perform a clean installation of Windows 10, and this is when you'll need that key.

It is not possible to use your product key for your old version of Windows to activate Windows 10, but during the initial upgrade process this key is converted into a new one. Using a special tool, you can find out the key that has been generated for you so you can make a note of it for future reference.

I am a strong believer that all mobile data plans should be unlimited and not throttled. The smartphone revolution was dealt a serious blow when cell phone carriers started limiting the data a customer could use -- developers shouldn't have to be concerned with how much data their apps use.

Today, Verizon announces that new data plans will roll out on August 13th. While they are still not unlimited, they look pretty reasonable. More importantly, however, the company is doing away with contracts altogether. In other words, it might be a great time to make the jump to the carrier that many people -- myself included -- consider to be the best in the USA.

There have been numerous stories in recent days about the threat posed by Stagefright to Android users. A more serious threat has been revealed at Black Hat USA 2015, however -- one that affects hundreds of millions of Android devices. Known as Certifi-gate, a vulnerability has been found in Remote Support Tools which could allow for hackers to take full control of phones.

The security issue was discovered by Check Point, who has notified handset manufacturers of the vulnerability, and launched an app that you can use to see if your handset is affected. Stagefright led to many handset manufacturers announcing a switch to monthly security updates, and some have already issued a fix for Certifi-gate. However, it seems that HTC is a little slow off the mark this time around, particularly when it comes to patching newer phones.

Firefox users are being encouraged to upgrade to the latest version of the browser as soon as possible after the discovery of a serious security flaw in the software. Mozilla was quick to patch the security hole which could result in users' personal files being uploaded to a remote server.

Affecting the Windows and Linux versions of Firefox, the security vulnerability stems from the browser's PDF viewer. It allows for the injection of JavaScript that could be used to locate sensitive files and transfer them to a remote server.

Over the past week and a half many thousands of people worldwide will have taken the plunge into Windows 10. But, as we've previously pointed out the free upgrade comes at a price in terms of privacy.

So what can you do to enjoy the advantages of Windows 10 without giving away too much of your information? Here are some tips to help you protect your details.

Stagefright took the Android world rather by surprise. As well as catching the industry with its pants down, it highlights a problem of mobile security: it's just not taken seriously enough. In response to the Stagefright vulnerability, both Samsung and Google announced new monthly security update cycles.

Not to be outdone, LG has now followed suit, and it would be surprising if we didn’t see more manufacturers of Android handsets doing exactly the same in the coming weeks. But in announcing its own monthly security update schedule, LG has highlighted another stumbling block for mobile security. Carriers.

Smartphones have evolved a great deal over the years. We now get insanely-fast processors, lots of RAM, high-quality cameras, and amazing displays, not to mention high Internet speeds. But one thing has mostly remained the same, and that is battery life.

With its new ZenFone Max, however, ASUS might have removed this concern for prospective owners by designing the smartphone with a huge, 5,000 mAh battery. Coupled with energy-efficient hardware, it should deliver amazing battery life.

Some Windows 10 users have been upset by the fact that updates to the operating system are no longer optional -- without using extra software, at least. Microsoft has now made it clear that the same applies to app updates. Updates to apps will be delivered automatically with no option to skip them.

This is not the first time updates in Windows 10 have caused unrest. As well as the mandatory updates debacle, the fact that updates are shared with other people to speed up delivery also concerned some users. But what has riled Windows 10 Home users about apps updates is the lack of choice and transparency.

Smaller businesses often have a limited budget for securing their IT systems which can leave them uniquely vulnerable. Antivirus company Avast launched its free Avast for Business cloud offering aimed at SMBs earlier this year and has been surveying users to find out how they handle their security.

Among the findings are that almost three-quarters of respondents say that all of their employees use the internet. Yet despite the high number of data breaches 57 percent of SMBs in the UK invest only between zero and two percent of their IT budget on security.

You might think you have the best programmers in the world, but chances are there’s a kid in his parents’ basement somewhere who’s smarter than all your engineers combined.

That’s why bounty hunting for bugs has become hugely popular among software makers, employing pretty much every hacker worldwide in their search for overlooked bugs. Microsoft is one of such companies, and it’s using the Black Hat conference to promote its new bug bounty program, which sees the bounty doubled.

Stagefright detectors seem to be flavor of the month at the moment, not surprising when the vulnerability could affect around 95 percent of Android devices. We reported yesterday on Zimperium's version and now mobile security specialist Lookout has launched its own detector.

The app will tell users whether or not their Android device is vulnerable to Stagefright. If it is affected, it provide a run-down on how to reduce the risk of being attacked. Uses will also be able to check back in after receiving a security patch to confirm it contained the fix for Stagefright.

Hackers can steal fingerprint data on a large scale through insecure Android phones, researchers claim, saying that vendors that ship with fingerprint sensors don’t lock them down well enough.

FireEye researchers Tao Wei and Yulong Zhang are singling out Samsung Galaxy S5 and HTC One Max as the most vulnerable examples, and are set to announce new research during the Black Hat conference in Las Vegas on Wednesday.