Microsoft

Two years ago, Microsoft unveiled its subscription-based Windows 365 service which allowed users to stream Windows 10 and Windows 11 from the cloud to any device.

Today, it announces Windows 365 Frontline is available to preview, aimed at workers who only need a Cloud PC for a limited amount of time during a working day.

Since its inception, Microsoft Defender Antivirus (FKA Windows Defender) was considered somewhat of a joke by power users. They would assert that it provided you with the protection of an umbrella in a hurricane. While its deficiencies were often exaggerated, indeed, it didn’t give you the same depth and scope as high-quality third-party solutions. 

When Bitdefender retired its free antivirus solution in 2021 (only to release a new free antivirus in 2022), many turned back to Microsoft Defender. After all, Microsoft should ultimately know the best ways to secure its software. It's surprising it took so long for the company to expand the coverage of its Microsoft Defender line, especially, with the largest share of its revenue being made from intelligent cloud computing.

Having announced its plans to do so last year, Microsoft has added support for Gmail accounts to the new Outlook for Windows preview for Windows 10 and Windows 11.

Gmail support is something that has been available to Office Insiders for a little while, but now the company is opening it up to anyone who is running the preview of the new Outlook for Windows. Microsoft says that it also plans to add IMAP support as well as support for Yahoo and iCloud, but for now it is Gmail users the company is treating -- but there is something you need to do first.

Change is often good, but not when it comes to changing the way Windows works -- particularly the fundamental features that people have become used to. But this is precisely what Microsoft is looking to do by introducing a controversial new limitation on Alt-Tab in Windows 11.

As anyone who has used Windows for any length of time will know, the Alt-Tab keyboard shortcut provides an easy way to switch between open apps and windows. In recent years, Microsoft has added functionality by making it possible to Alt-Tab through Edge tabs, but now the company is testing a new implementation that reduces its usefulness.

OpenAI's ChatGPT can be used for all sorts of things, from answering questions and translating text, to generating original content like stories, poetry and code.

Given the right prompts, it can even be tricked into producing valid license keys for software. YouTuber Enderman managed to overcome ChatGPT’s initial reluctance to do this and got it to provide him with a selection of working keys for Windows 95.

Adaptive screen brightness is a familiar function of smartphones, with both iOS and Android boosting brightness in lighter conditions to improve screen visibility, and dimming it when it is darker so you're not blinded during nocturnal social media sessions. Now Microsoft is bringing a similar -- but better -- feature to Windows 11.

Microsoft's take on the feature is called Content Adaptive Brightness Control (CABC). There is a clue in the name about how it works, and it is about more than just ambient lighting conditions. [UPDATE: Microsoft has had something of a change of heart, as detailed here.]

Users of Microsoft Teams have a new option to experiment with that can make meetings both more interesting and more private -- green screen.

The ability to change backgrounds in video chats is something that has been available in numerous apps for quite some time, but the results are patchy at best. With the arrival of support for cinema-style green screen though, Microsoft is upping the ante.

New Insider builds of Windows 11 are usually about Microsoft testing out new features of the operating system, but sometimes the company tries something a little different. This is something that is true of the latest Canary release, build 25330, and Dev release, build 23424.

In both of these new releases, there are important changes to the Microsoft Store. The latest version of the app gives Insiders a new way to install free apps and games faster than ever.

Microsoft has addressed a serious flaw in Azure Active Directory which was dubbed BingBang by the security researchers that discovered it.

The vulnerability not only made it possible to manipulate Bing search results, but also to access private data from Outlook, Office 365 and Teams. The issue stemmed from an Azure misconfiguration; it dates back to January this year, but Microsoft has only just plugged the hole.

As well as releasing a new Windows 11 build for Insiders in the Dev Channel, Microsoft today also introduces a new flight to its experimental Canary Channel.

Build 25330 won’t be offered to Insiders with Arm64 devices, and it comes with a selection of changes and improvements.

Last week, Microsoft rolled out a Windows 11 test build to the new Canary Channel, which (among other things) introduced an evolved widget board that sports a larger canvas (up to three columns), with dedicated sections for widgets and feed content.

Testing for this clearly went well, as today as the software giant makes it available to Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel.

In a nostalgic trip down memory lane, YouTube channel Nobel Tech has created a video showcasing the evolution of the infamous "This Program is Not Responding" Windows error message over the years.

The video starts with the prompt in Windows 2000 and takes viewers on a journey through time, ending with the message that shows up in the latest version of Microsoft’s operating system, Windows 11.

This year has seen the addition of a veritable smorgasbord of tools to the PowerToys utility collection -- and the pace shows no sign of slowing. Recent arrivals include Mouse Jump and Paste As Plain Text, and next in line is a handy registry utility.

PowerToys developers are currently working on a new tool called Registry Preview. Designed with power users in mind, this upcoming module will make it possible to preview the effects of importing a .reg file into the registry as well as providing registry editing options.

In a move that will come as a surprise to just about no one, Microsoft has announced that it is "exploring" the idea of adding advertising to its GPT-4-based Bing Chat.

The company is framing the addition of ads to the AI-powered chat bot as a means of "driving more traffic and value to publishers from the new Bing". Microsoft says that it is seeking to do this by, among other things, "pioneering the future of advertising".

Microsoft has confirmed an issue with Defender which resulted in users being shown warnings about URLs that were entirely safe. The emails advised admins that "a potentially malicious URL click was detected", with affected users complaining that legitimate URLs, such as Zoom meeting links, were being flagged up as dangerous.

In addition to the false positives, the "View alerts" link included in the warning emails sent out to admins failed to provide any further information that could prove useful.