Microsoft

To say that Windows 10 has been controversial for Microsoft would be something of an understatement. The most recent cause for complaint has been a deceptive upgrade popup, described by many as a "nasty trick", which fooled users into installing the upgrade.

The company has since said that it will change the behavior of the upgrade notification, but this is not enough to silence hundreds of thousands of users in China. Microsoft stands accused of abusing its market position to force unwanted upgrades on people.

When Windows 10 was first offered to users of Windows 7 and 8.1 it was via a pleasant upgrade tool that allowed users to 'reserve' their copy of the new OS. However, as time has gone by, Microsoft has employed more and more insidious methods to get people to upgrade, including tricking them into doing so.

The sneaky behavior has gotten so bad, that growing numbers of users of the older operating systems have taken to disabling critical updates in order to completely avoid Windows 10.

While there’s a lot of negativity surrounding Windows 10 at the moment, thanks mostly to Microsoft’s shady upgrade tactics, it is actually a very good operating system.

The upcoming Windows 10 Anniversary Update, out at the end of July, improves the OS significantly, introducing a wealth of new features, and one of the latest inclusions to be made available for Windows Insiders to try is Limited Periodic Scanning. This sets Windows Defender to scan your PC at intervals, even if you have another anti-virus program installed.

Microsoft has pushed Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 14352 to the Fast Ring. The latest build introduced a number of updates and bug fixes. One of the biggest changes is to Cortana which can now be used to control a Groove Music Catalog and set a timer.

The recently-introduced Windows Ink gains improved Sticky Notes, and the ruler now benefits from the inclusion of a compass. Gamers can now enjoy the Windows Game bar at full-screen in more games, including World of Warcraft, Counterstrike: Global Offensive, and Diablo III. Important changes have also been made to the Feedback Hub.

As the world's need for high-speed internet grows, there will be an increasing strain on existing infrastructure. While both the internet and the web can create a border-free exchange of data, something still needs to connect continents so that it can be shared. While you will likely never see it with your own eyes, there are actually data cables under the sea which connect large masses of land.

Today, Microsoft and Facebook announce a partnership to build a transatlantic subsea data cable. Called 'MAREA', it will connect the United States to Europe. More specifically, it will connect the State of Virginia to the country of Spain. The project will begin this August, with a targeted completion date of October 2017.

Despite negative sentiment towards Windows 10 because of Microsoft's shady upgrade tactics, it is actually a wonderful operating system. It is fast, secure, and compatible with many hardware configurations. Its Windows Store, which first debuted in Windows 8, allows users to easily download content -- both paid and free.

When it comes to apps and games, there is a lot of garbage in the Windows Store -- more crap than not. With that said, there are quite a few gems too. Today, Microsoft announces a special summer sale, delivering big discounts for shoppers in the store. Even the super-popular Minecraft gets a whopping 50 percent discount! However, not everything seems to be getting a reduction in price.

Having a good password can make the difference between your account being hacked and receiving a notification informing you of a failed login attempt. Even though this should be common knowledge, it seems that many folks are in the dark about this. You do not need to look hard to find evidence of this, as there are many reports that reveal passwords like "1234567890" to be very popular still.

Since it is clear that it cannot rely on its users to make the right decisions about their account security, Microsoft is taking a proactive approach by "dynamically banning commonly used passwords". So, if you think that "qwerty123" is good enough to keep all your emails private, luckily you will not have to find out whether you are right or not.

If you believe what comes out of Microsoft's figurative mouth, these days the company is all about listening to feedback. That's certainly the message that has been put forward with Windows 10, with the Feedback Hub app being made available to everyone with the operating system installed. Microsoft makes much of the fact that Windows 10 is installed on around 300 million computers, but the reality is that a portion of these installations relate to people who have been hoodwinked into upgrading from Windows 7 or Windows 8.

The latest trick (tricking users in to installing Windows 10 by clicking a button that would suggest that the offer is being declined) generated such a backlash that Microsoft has been forced into an embarrassing 'u-turn'. Annoying people with Windows 10 is far from unprecedented, and these days it seems Microsoft just likes to see how much it can get away with -- with the possibility of then saving face by 'listening to feedback' and changing tack.

Windows 10 has been described as being like malware by a lot of people due to the way Microsoft forces it on to users’ computers without express permission. The software giant has engaged in all manner of sneaky and underhand tricks to fool users into agreeing to an upgrade they don’t want.

The latest, and possibly evillest move (to date) involves making closing an unwanted upgrade popup -- by clicking the x in the top right corner -- the same as agreeing to the upgrade.

After the sale of its feature phone business last week, Microsoft is making further structuring changes. Announcing the "additional step of streamlining our smartphone hardware business" Terry Myerson says that up to 1,850 jobs could be impacted, with the vast majority of these (1,350) being in Finland.

He also says that the company will continue "develop great new devices", no doubt fueling rumors of the highly-anticipated Surface Phone. Microsoft recognizes that its success with phones have been "limited", and Myerson's memo to employees reiterates the company’s commitment to the Windows platform, and Windows 10 in particular.

As I’ve said numerous times in the past, I actually like Windows 10. It’s still rough around the edges -- and the Anniversary Update, out in July, won’t fully change that -- but what I don’t like is Microsoft’s aggressive, relentless pushing of the OS on to people who not only don’t want it but have expressly rejected it.

It’s scummy behavior, totally unbefitting of a company of Microsoft’s size and reputation. The latest trick, making closing an unwanted upgrade popup the same as agreeing to the upgrade, should have people brandishing pitchforks and flaming torches and marching on Redmond, but it doesn’t. Why? Because Microsoft’s shitty tricks are now what we expect from the company which doesn’t care in the slightest about its customers.

Microsoft has quietly announced plans to reduce the number of updates that will be released each year for Windows 10. The company had previously said that there would be three 'feature updates' (like the Windows 10 Anniversary Update) per year, but this has now been scaled back to two.

Unsurprisingly, Microsoft has not made a great deal of noise about the change to the majority of Windows 10 users, choosing instead to make the announcement at the WinHEC conference in Taiwan. At the event, senior program manager Chris Riggs also revealed how the update scheduling will work for consumers and businesses.

When you think of the Raspberry Pi and other SoC-style boards, one word likely comes to mind -- Linux. Yeah, Linus Torvalds' adaptable kernel does scale well to these diminutive computers, but don't forget about trusty ol' Microsoft. Its Windows 10 IoT operating system can also work some magic on the Pi and others. While lesser known and used in this space, this special version of Windows certainly has a future.

Now, Microsoft is focusing on "makers" with a new app for Windows 10 IoT. You see, the app will run on a board such as the Raspberry Pi, enabling networked 3D printing. Essentially, it is turning your board into a 3D printer server -- very cool! Believe it or not, many popular such printers are already compatible. So what are you waiting for? Will you give it a go?

Ahead of the biggest update yet for Windows 10, Microsoft has published details of the minimum hardware requirements for Windows 10 Anniversary Update. Before you panic and start to worry that your current Windows 10 computer won't be able to run the update, the aim is actually to get the operating system on more devices.

The hardware requirement changes are aimed at developers, and open up both Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile to a wider range of screen sizes. The changes mean that Windows 10 Mobile can be run on devices with larger screens than before, while the desktop version of the operating system can be installed on smaller-screened devices. 32-bit devices with 1GB, however are being edged out.

Ever hungry for more user feedback, Microsoft has decided to make the Feedback Hub available for anyone to use. Previously only open to Windows Insiders, the tool gives Windows 10 users the opportunity to tell Microsoft exactly what they think about the company's latest operating system.

The Feedback Hub has been built into preview builds of Windows 10 for some time, but now the app is available to download from the Windows Store. With the launch of Windows 10 Anniversary Update just around the corner, it's clear that Microsoft is keen to gather as many comments and as much reaction as possible.