Lara Croft explores Windows 10 alternatives -- Rise of the Tomb Raider coming to Linux and macOS
While Windows remains the dominant platform for PC gaming, Microsoft’s stranglehold is slowly eroding. True, Linux and macOS won’t overtake Windows 10 on the desktop anytime soon, but as developers are learning, you can make money by supporting alternative operating systems. With Linux in particular, users are very loyal -- many won’t dual boot with Windows for gaming. The only way to get their dollars is to embrace the penguin.
Developer Feral Interactive has seemingly gotten the message, as it is bringing one of its top-tier titles to both Linux and macOS. The game to which I’m referring is Rise of the Tomb Raider, featuring the iconic cave-explorer Lara Croft.
Microsoft Office 2016 for Mac gets major update with real-time collaborative editing, cloud saving
Since you can get Office on both Windows PCs and Macs, you may be lead to believe that the user experience is similar between the two suites. After all, they share the same name and major programs, like Word, Excel and PowerPoint. But, when you look past the similarities, you will find that there are quite a few differences between the two.
Microsoft has been working on closing the gap, with the latest update for Office for Mac 2016 adding quite some powerful features. Among the highlights are real-time collaborative editing and the option to save your work directly to the cloud.
Warning: A simple text message can crash iOS and macOS
Every few years or so, news breaks about a new bug that can cause iPhones and Macs to crash.
In 2013, it was discovered a string of Arabic characters could kill applications in OS X 10.8 and iOS 6, and then in 2015, the "Effective Power" bug allowed anyone to remotely reboot iPhones -- again by using a special sequence of characters.
Microsoft releases PowerShell Core 6.0 for Windows, macOS and Linux
Microsoft has released an updated version of PowerShell which adds support for macOS and Linux. PowerShell Core 6.0 uses .NET Core rather than the .NET framework, and this means it is able to break out of being a Windows-only tool.
The tool is described as a "new edition of PowerShell that is cross-platform (Windows, macOS, and Linux), open-source, and built for heterogeneous environments and the hybrid cloud." The arrival of the scripting tool on new platforms will be welcomed by those working in mixed environments.
Apple releases iOS 11.2.2 and macOS High Sierra 10.13.2 updates to protect against Spectre vulnerability
Following the Meltdown and Spectre revelations, let's just say that 2018 is off to a bad start for many tech companies. Apple is among the biggest players affected by the two security vulnerabilities, with all iOS and Mac users at risk.
The company was quick to patch Meltdown, however, with iOS 11.2, macOS 10.13.2 and tvOS 11.2 getting mitigations against the vulnerability. And, now, it's tackling Spectre too through new updates for its major operating systems.
Apple: all iOS and Mac devices are vulnerable to Meltdown and Spectre chip bugs
Apple has confirmed that all of its Macs, iPhones and iPads are affected by the recently revealed Meltdown and Spectre vulnerabilities. The company points out that while a huge number of devices are affected, there are "no known exploits impacting customers at this time."
Just as Microsoft has already pushed out an emergency patch for Windows 10 users -- with Windows 7 and 8 to follow soon -- Apple has already rolled out some patches for Meltdown with iOS 11.2, macOS 10.13.2, and tvOS 11.2. An update to Safari to protect against Spectre is promised in the coming days.
Intel chips have a huge security flaw, and the fix will slow down Windows and Linux machines
A design flaw has been discovered in Intel chips that will require major changes to be made to the Windows and Linux kernels. While patches are being worked on -- and in the case of Windows Insiders, have already rolled out -- users of both operating systems can expect to experience something of a performance hit. macOS machines running on Intel chips are also affected.
Intel is -- for the moment -- remaining tight-lipped about the specifics of the flaw that has been unearthed, but it is believed to affect processors produced in the past decade. Developers are currently estimating that systems could experience slow downs of between 5 and 30 percent.
Ancient unpatched IOHIDeous vulnerability allows root access to macOS
Apple has a tendency to pride itself on security, but a researcher has released details of a macOS vulnerability that allows for complete system control by an unprivileged user.
A self-described "hobbyist hacker," Siguza, has published details of the exploit which is thought to have existed, undetected and unpatched for at least a decade. As well as details of the security flaw, Suguza has also published proof-of-concept code for the IOHIDeous vulnerability on GitHub.
Apple SNAFU means updating to macOS 10.13.1 could reactivate root access bug
A few days ago, a serious security flaw with macOS High Sierra came to light. It was discovered that it was possible to log into the "root" account without entering a password, and -- although the company seemed to have been alerted to the issue a couple of weeks back -- praise was heaped on Apple for pushing a fix out of the door quickly.
But calm those celebrations. It now transpires that the bug fix has a bug of its own. Upgrade to macOS 10.13.1 and you could well find that the patch is undone. Slow hand clap.
Want to switch from Apple macOS to Linux because of the 'root' security bug? Give deepin 15.5 a try!
Apple's macOS is a great operating system. Not only is it stable and beautifully designed, but it is very secure too. Well, usually it is. Unless you live under a rock, you definitely heard about the macOS High Sierra security bug that made the news over the last couple of days. In case you somehow are unaware, the bug essentially made it so anyone could log into any Mac running the latest version of the operating system.
Luckily, Apple has already patched the bug, and some people -- like me -- have forgiven the company. Understandably, not everyone will be as forgiving as me. Undoubtedly, there are Mac users that are ready to jump ship as a result of the embarrassing bug. While that is probably an overreaction, if you are set on trying an alternative operating system, you should not go with Windows 10. Instead, you should embrace Linux. In fact, rather serendipitously, a Linux distribution with a UI reminiscent of macOS gets a new version today. Called "deepin," version 15.5 of the distro is now ready to download.
Security: macOS High Sierra bug lets you log in as 'root'... without a password
If you thought that you needed a password to access a password-protected Mac, think again. A massive security hole has been discovered in macOS High Sierra that makes it possible to log in with admin rights without the need to provide a password.
The problem appears to be specific to High Sierra, and the ease with which it is possible to gain unfettered access to a system has many people -- understandably -- concerned.
Voice-activated Siri could be coming to iMac Pro thanks to A10 Fusion chip
It seems as though Apple's upcoming iMac Pro will feature an A10 Fusion chip as a co-processor. The inclusion of the chip -- the same one used in the iPhone 7 -- has led to speculation that "Hey, Siri" support could be making its way to macOS.
A couple of developers cracked open Apple's BridgeOS 2.0 software package, and the code shows that the chip appears to be used to handle security and the boot process. But it's the prospect of always-on "Hey, Siri" support that will interest many people.
Microsoft brings Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection to macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android
Microsoft has announced that it is teaming up with Bitdefender, Lookout, and Ziften to expand the reach of Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP). By partnering with the three major security firms, Microsoft is set to bring ATP to macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android devices.
Bitdefender, Lookout, and Ziften will all feed threat detection information into one central resource, and this can then be used by security teams to keep an eye on all threats in a single location.
Apple releases macOS 10.13.1 and iOS 11.1 to add new emoji and patch KRACK... for some
Apple has pushed out the latest updates to macOS High Sierra and iOS. macOS 10.13.1 and iOS 11.1 include a range of bug fixes, and also herald the arrival of a new batch of emoji.
The two relatively minor updates also address the recently-discovered KRACK security vulnerability. But while the WPA2 patch will be welcomed by many people, it is not available for all iPhones and iPads, meaning that large numbers of people will be left exposed.
Apple releases source code for ARM-optimized iOS and macOS kernel
For some time now, Apple has regularly released the source code for the shared iOS and macOS kernel. That the company has done so again might not be news, but Apple has, for the first time, released the source code for the ARM versions of the kernel.
Pushed to GitHub, the source code gives anyone who likes the idea of seeing exactly what makes iOS and macOS tick the opportunity to do just that.
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