Ninety-third in a series. Welcome to this week's selection of the best new applications and games for the Windows 8.x operating system.

This week has not seen many new releases which is why the list of apps below is rather short when compared to other weeks.

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Windows Phone boasts more than 300,000 apps in Store. Now that the news is out of the bag, let's move on to something that actually matters.

I'm skipping the obvious comparisons because that number is meaningless to the average consumer making up the bulk of smartphone buyers today (and who is unlikely to take advantage of even 1 percent of those titles). It doesn't tell prospective buyers how many great apps are available in Store, or how many great apps are missing. It's just a figure that serves only one true purpose, and that is telling fans, enthusiasts, pundits and other tekkies how much progress was made since the last serving. But that doesn't make you feel all warm and fuzzy, does it? Here's what should.

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If Windows won’t start then there are plenty of standard options you can try: Safe Mode, system restore, "last known good", and now Windows 8′s refresh options.

These technologies have their limits, though, and so it’s wise to prepare a few other bootable environments of your own. An antivirus rescue disc, a partition manager, maybe a backup tool or system recovery suite.

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One of the problems with relying on technology for so many things is that you end up with a whole raft of user IDs, for work, banking, shopping, social media and more.

A new study by the Ponemon Institute and IT management specialist CA Technologies looks at the idea of simplifying things through the use of Bring Your Own Identity (BYOID) initiatives, where social networking or digital IDs are used for application login.

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Regardless of what your views are on 'alternative' methods for getting TV and movie content for viewing, Popcorn Time continues to exist, much to the dismay of the MPAA. The service utilizes BitTorrent technology to get content and streams it to the viewer as it downloads, making for almost instant viewing.

Now the service is taking a step to help its users become more secure, adding a free Virtual Private Network (VPN) service, provided by Kebrum. This means users should be safe from being tracked or intercepted (NSA not included in this statement).

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As all Windows users will know, the second Tuesday in each month means it's patch time. So that system admins don’t get caught out Microsoft has published its advanced notification ahead of August's Patch Tuesday.

So what can we expect to see in this round of updates? There are nine bulletins in total for software including Internet Explorer, Windows and Office. Two are rated "critical" as they allow for remote code execution.

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At dawn on June 27th Greenpeace and the Tenth Amendment Center launched an airship to fly above the NSA data center in Utah. The message on the sides was not subtle -- "Illegal spying below", with an arrow pointing down. It was meant as an alert to action for citizens, and the stunt did have an effect.

Now the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has released behind the scenes footage of the event, filmed by documentary director Brian Knappenberger, who recently released "The Internet's Own Boy", a story of Aaron Swartz.

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According to new research, Britons are now spending more time using technology devices than sleeping.

Ofcom has released a fresh report detailing our daily habits, and the results are relatively scary.

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So you've flogged both your kidneys and sold your Apple shares to invest in Bitcoin -- congratulations on a worthy investment.

But how do you know when to cut and run? Bitcoin is still a young and fickle currency, so at what point do you bow out with your profits in tow?

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Nerds and exercise are like oil and water. This is why it is fairly comical that Google is planning a fitness platform. Even though Android enthusiasts will probably line up to take advantage of Google Fit compatible apps and devices, I doubt they will actually use them for anything other than a tech demo. I can picture sloth-like teenagers laying on the couch watching TV and tweeting about how awesome Google Fit is, as they suckle on a Gogurt.

Today, Google announces that a preview of the Google Fit SDK is available. No, this does not mean that users can start utilizing the platform. What it does mean though, is that developers can finally get started at developing for the platform. For the sake of the world, I hope I am wrong and that this actually gets people in shape (including me).

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The world is not a perfect place. Unfortunately, there are many bad guys in the world leveraging technology in nefarious ways. This is a shame, because many technological advances are created with good intentions. As an example, cell phones are used to keep friends and family in touch, but terrorists use them to detonate bombs. Tiny cameras can assist doctors in surgical procedures, but perverts hide them in bathrooms.

In other words, no matter how positive something is, it can usually be used in a negative way. Today, Google announces that it is bringing Street View to 36 new college campuses. In theory, this makes it easier for prospective parents and students to check out a school that they are interested in. The reverse of the coin, however, is that creeps can use it to familiarize themselves with the campus and plan attacks.

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The NFL pre-season in now underway, with the Hall of Fame game behind us, and several games apiece awaiting every team. But the NFL is also about videos -- both highlights and interviews, even fans can get in on some of the action.

That is arriving on multiple platforms beginning now -- as in NFL Now. The league today rolls out the new app and it took the smart path of making it available on many different platforms. Regardless if you are on a PC, Roku or Amazon Fire TV, you can get in on the action.

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It seems that allowing employees to use their own devices is an inevitable trend for most businesses. Yet a new survey by Software Advice finds that only 39 percent of workplaces have policies in place to cope with BYOD.

Businesses need to deal with the risks that BYOD brings. This includes the loss of visibility once company data is transferred to a personal device, privacy and legal concerns and the threat that devices could be compromised.

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The enfant terrible of the tech world, and the thorn in the side of the NSA, Edward Snowden has been granted permission to stay in Russia for a further three years. The former NSA analyst turned whistle-blower sought exile in the country a year ago and on August 1st he was granted an extension. The three-year residency permit was approved a week ago, but has only just been made public by Snowden's lawyer. Anatoly Kucherena explained that Snowden himself would hold a press conference as soon as possible, reported Russia Today.

The US has tried to force Russia to hand over Snowden so he can face charges in his home country, but for the time being, he will be able to stay where he is. If he feels inclined, the permits allows for him to travel abroad for up to three months, and he is free to travel wherever he wants within Russia. Although he has not expressed an interest in doing so, Snowden would be eligible to apply for permanent residence in Russia in five years' time.

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Windows Phone handsets don't get more advanced than the Nokia Lumia 930. Its large screen and top-notch features make it a leading light, and it is the current flagship Nokia Lumia smartphone.

The Lumia 930 comes pre-loaded with Windows Phone 8.1, the latest version of Microsoft's mobile OS, and so there is plenty of good stuff for new owners to get their teeth into. I've teased out some of the key features here, so read on to learn more.

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