Latest Technology News

The KB4515384 update for Windows 10 1903 is causing sound problems in games

Broken headphones

Microsoft recently released the KB4515384 update for Windows 10 version 1903, and this was supposed -- among other things -- address the high CPU usage problem caused by the earlier KB4512941 update. Unfortunately, this cumulative update was found to cause issues with the Start menu and searching for some users, and Microsoft is currently looking into addressing these problems.

But these are not the only issues with KB4515384. Complaints are also mounting about problems with audio in games after installing this particular update. [UPDATE: Microsoft has acknowledged the issue and suggested a workaround]

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Apple disputes Goldman Sachs' negative analysis of Apple TV+

Rainbow Apple logo

Despite the launch of the iPhone 11 range, new iPads, and other hardware, Apple is increasingly embracing services to attract customers. One of the latest ventures in this area is Apple TV+, and Goldman Sachs -- the company backing the Apple Card credit card -- has warned that the streaming video service could negatively impact on Apple's profits.

Apple, however, disputes this. The company dismisses Goldman Sachs' analysis, marking an interesting twist in the relationship between Apple and its client.

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Time to fire up Netflix -- MoviePass has closed down

MoviePass

Movie tickets subscription service MoviePass is no more. In an announcement on Friday, the company behind the service, Helios and Matheson Analytics, advised customers that as of today, September 14, subscriptions would no longer work.

MoviePass underwent numerous changes and restructurings through the course of its existence, but it seems that, ultimately, financial troubles, competition from streaming services, and other factors were too much for it to weather.

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GNOME 3.34 'Thessaloniki' Linux desktop environment is finally here

There are many Linux desktop environments from which to choose -- some are good, others are bad, but only one can be best -- GNOME. Whether you choose Ubuntu, Fedora, Manjaro, or some other different Linux distribution, GNOME will provide you with a superior user experience. Not only is it ideal for productivity, but GNOME is quite pretty too. And yes, there are plenty of customization options. Not to mention, the excellent stock GNOME apps create a very cohesive experience overall.

Today, GNOME 3.34 is finally released. Code-named "Thessaloniki," the newest version of the desktop environment is chock full of new features, bug fixes, visual improvements, and updated apps. One of the most apparent changes to users will be the ability to group icons into folders using drag-and-drop within the application overview -- very cool.

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Embracing our deepfake future

"Is it live? Or is it Memorex?" Those of us who’ve been around a while will recall those iconic TV commercials where the announcer challenged the audience to tell the difference between a recorded performance and a live one (or as "live" as a pre-recorded TV spot can be). The idea was that the recording medium -- in this case, Memorex brand audio cassette tapes -- reproduced the full fidelity of the original so faithfully that, in one case, a singer’s high note recorded on one of their tapes literally shattered a nearby wine glass.

I like to think of the above as the first, crude precursor to what today we call "deepfake" technology. But whereas faithfully reproducing audio content has been a net positive for humanity (you wouldn’t be enjoying your MP3s or Spotify streams without those pioneering first steps), deepfake -- or the ability to recreate and/or completely simulate (using AI) both the audio and video representations of a live person -- has been universally panned because of its potential for abuse. After all, in a world full of fake news, it’s not hard to imagine some bad actor deciding to put out bogus recordings (or recreations) of high-profile individuals for personal or political gain.

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Malwarebytes launches free safe browsing extension for Chrome and Firefox

Malwarebytes Browser Guard

People are spending more of their time and managing more of their lives on the internet, so it's little wonder that the web is a rich hunting ground for cybercriminals and scammers.

In order to make using the internet safer, Malwarebytes is launching Browser Guard, a free browser extension aimed at safeguarding consumers from scammers, and allowing them to browse up to four times faster.

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Software isolation utility Sandboxie is now free; soon it will be open source too

Free

Sandboxie -- the sandboxing tool with the tagline "Trust no program" -- has been made into a free utility. But more than this, Sophos also plans to make the software open source in the near future.

The company says that it was a difficult decision to make, pointing out that Sandboxie has never been a significant component of its business. While simply shutting down the app would have been the easiest and cheapest thing to do, Sophos says: "we love the technology too much to see it fade away".

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Best Windows 10 apps this week

Three-hundred-and-fifty-two in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 on the Microsoft Store in the past seven days.

Microsoft fixed the high CPU usage caused by the search process in the September cumulative update for Windows 10 version 1903; it turns out that this particular version introduced new search and Start menu issues that the company acknowledged yesterday.

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You can watch a live stream of Microsoft's Surface event

Surface live stream

Next month, Microsoft has a Surface event coming up, and it's looking as though it could be a big one.

At the moment there are no hints about what we can expect to see at the event, but Microsoft has decided to live-stream it for the first time ever. We also know that head of Surface, Panos Panay, will be there, along with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.

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How a 0G network can make smart cities using IoT that much smarter

smart city

The IoT has the power to unleash the smart city, providing data-backed insights that can be used to inform sustainability initiatives, enhance operations and influence municipal planning and budgeting. However, the potential of this technology is currently capped by a few critical barriers -- namely, security and cost.

To capitalize on insights derived from the IoT and truly become "smart," resource-strapped cities need a solution that 1) requires lower upfront investment than traditional options, and 2) ensures top-notch security. What is that solution? It could be a 0G network.

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Chipotle plans to implement AI ordering system before year's end

Chipotle's recent experiments with allowing artificial intelligence (AI) to handle some elements of phone orders seem to have met the chain's expectations.

After initially launching the option at 10 locations, it rolled out the technology to 1,800 restaurants. Now, Chipotle intends to bring the high-tech system to all its branches by the end of 2019.

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Microsoft acknowledges that KB4515384 update breaks the Start menu and Search in Windows 10

Microsoft building logo

Updates for Windows 10 have proved to be more problematic than usual recently. The KB4512941 update was found to cause high CPU usage, and then some users started to experience weird orange screenshots.

Now the KB4515384​​​​​ cumulative update that was supposed to address the high CPU usage issue is breaking the SearchUI.exe associated with Windows Desktop Search. On top of this, some users are complaining about problems with the Start menu.

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How can IT departments improve their employee experience? [Q&A]

happy workers

We're all aware that there is a skills shortage and that it’s particularly acute in some areas -- such as cybersecurity. One of the ways companies can help retain the employees they have -- while making it more attractive to work there -- is by improving the employee work experience.

But what exactly does improving an employee’s work experience actually involve? We spoke to Pedro Bados, CEO of digital experience specialist Nexthink to find out.

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Microsoft addresses orange screenshot bug in Windows 10... kinda

Oranges

Windows 10 users are accustomed to putting up with the occasional bug here and there, and people who installed the KB4512941 update found they were plagued with an issue that gave screenshots an orange hue.

Now Microsoft says that the issue has been addressed. Well... sort of. In fact, the company has shifted the blame to Lenovo, saying that the Eye Care mode feature of Lenovo Vantage is to blame. Here's what you need to know.

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There's a new Pandora desktop app for Windows 10 in the Microsoft Store

Pandora is a popular music streaming service that aims to function as sort of a personalized radio station for the listener. There are different tiers of service, including a free option -- a big reason for its popularity. There are also paid tiers, starting at just $4.99.

Today, Pandora releases a new desktop app for Windows 10. This follows the release of the app for Apple macOS, which has been available since May of 2019. This new app for Windows is being offered exclusively from the Microsoft Store, so Windows 7 users, for example, cannot experience it fully. Pandora specifically says it is a Windows 10-only affair. Of course, all platforms can access Pandora thanks to the web player -- something Apple Music is currently beta testing.

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