Windows 10

Last month Microsoft gave us a glimpse of its upcoming Whiteboard app -- now the app has leaked online. This means that we have the opportunity to not only see what Microsoft has in store for inking in Windows 10, but we can also get hands on with it.

The tool is part of Microsoft's recent education focus, and it gives students and tutors the chance to collaborate on an interactive whiteboard. Features include automatic shape completion (draw a square freehand, and it will be converted into a geometric square), equation support, and angle calculation.

On Wednesday, Microsoft rolled out Build 16226 for Windows Insiders on the Fast ring. While this Windows 10 Fall Creators Update build is a little buggier than most, it’s also jam-packed full of new features and improvements, including Edge tweaks, new Emoji, OneDrive Files On-Demand, a new Currency Converter function in Calculator, and updates to Storage Sense and Touch Keyboard.

It turns out there are also some other big improvements that we weren’t initially aware of, and more known issues to watch out for, including one that prevents the new build from installing correctly.

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

Microsoft released another Windows 10 Fall Creators Update build this week. It introduced a lot of new features, but also has been causing major issues for some users.

If you’re a Windows Insider, you know that the test versions of Windows 10 that Microsoft rolls out to you on a regular basis aren’t going to be entirely stable and problem free. Especially if you’re on the Fast ring.

But the latest release, Build 16226, which Microsoft pushed out yesterday, seems buggier than most (albeit not as problematic as Build 16212 which got released by accident three weeks ago).

Two weeks ago, Microsoft released Build 16215 to Windows 10 Insiders on the Fast ring. This introduced a wealth of new features including major UI improvements to Start and Action Center, and updates to the Edge browser, Cortana, My People, Night Light, and more.

Today, the software giant rolls out Build 16226 and this one is similarly jam-packed with new features and improvements.

While Windows users have long had the ability to use an official client for Spotify, there is a big dilemma -- Windows 10 S. The most recent version of Microsoft's operating system is limited to apps from the Windows Store. In other words, the official "Win32" Spotify client will not be compatible.

Luckily, Microsoft announced that both Spotify and iTunes were coming to the Windows Store. When they were coming, however, was unknown. While Apple's program is still missing, Spotify is finally here. As of today, Windows 10 users can get the official client from the Store.

Two weeks ago, Kaspersky Labs filed antitrust complaints against Microsoft in Europe, alleging that the software giant disabled third-party antivirus software in Windows 10 in order to benefit Windows Defender.

In a long blog post today, Rob Lefferts, director of program management for Windows enterprise and security, admits (without mentioning Kaspersky specifically) that Microsoft "temporarily" disabled some parts of AV software it considered incompatible with Windows 10 Creators Update.

Windows laptops are certainly getting more beautiful with every passing year. Elegance used to largely be an Apple-only affair, but that has been changing. Quite frankly, there are countless such notebooks on the market, making choosing one a bit difficult -- a good problem for consumers.

Today, ASUS unveils one of the most beautiful such Windows laptops. Called "ZenBook 3 Deluxe," it is insanely thin at a mere 12.9mm. It is quite light too, at only 2.42 pounds. Despite its svelte body, it is packed with plenty of excellent specs, such as a Kaby Lake Core i7 processor, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB PCIe SSD. It has three USB-C ports, one of which is USB 3.0 speed, while the others are 3.1 Gen 2/ Thunderbolt 3. It even leverages biometrics for logging in, with a Windows Hello compatible fingerprint reader on the trackpad.

From the fall, Microsoft is disabling SMBv1 in Windows 10. With the release of Windows 10 Fall Creators Update (or Redstone 3 if you prefer), the protocol that was exploited by the WannaCry ransomware will be no more.

The file sharing protocol was developed by Microsoft over two decades ago, and the company recognizes that the time has come for it to be retired. Internal builds of Windows 10 being tested by Microsoft already have SMBv1 disabled, and similar builds will make their way to Windows Insiders and the wider public in due course.

With the Surface Laptop, Microsoft is testing the water with Windows 10 S, its cut-down version of Windows 10. For those who find they can't live with the restrictions the operating system imposes on them, there is the possibility of upgrading to Windows 10 Pro -- but Microsoft warns that this is a one-way, irreversible process.

Except it's not, of course. While it's not possible to "uninstall" Windows 10 Pro and downgrade to Windows 10 S, there's nothing to stop you from restoring your computer to its factory state -- something that Microsoft has just made a great deal easier by releasing the recovery images for Windows 10 S version 1703.

The Surface Pro only just went on sale, but you might want to reconsider that purchase. Don't get me wrong, Microsoft's hybrid tablet looks great, but ASUS has a very similar new Windows 10 PC that might be better. Called "Transformer Pro T304," it features the ports that are missing from the Surface Pro, such as HDMI and USB-C -- no dongles needed. Don't worry, there is a USB Type-A port too.

Not only does the Transformer Pro T304 have plenty of ports, but plenty of horsepower too. Regardless of configuration, you get a 7th-generation Core i7-7500U and 12.6-inch display with a 2160x1440 resolution. While the display is slightly larger than Surface Pro, the resolution on the ASUS machine is less -- something to consider. For memory, 8GB is standard, but you can opt for 16GB. The increase in RAM also gets you a storage bump, going from 256GB to 512GB. The superior model also gets Windows 10 Pro rather than Home.

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

Microsoft released a new Windows Insider build recently, and it brought back one of the most requested features: OneDrive placeholders.

Earlier today, Microsoft quietly unveiled a cool new product. Called "Microsoft Modern Keyboard with Fingerprint ID," it is designed for Windows Hello -- the biometic login feature found in Windows 10. It features Bluetooth 4.0/4.1 and a wireless range of up to 50 feet.

The weird thing about the product is that it has what Microsoft calls a "hidden" fingerprint scanner. I call this odd because the scanner is literally in a key with a fingerprint label on it! In other words, it is hiding in plain sight. It seems Microsoft is proud that the reader itself is "hidden" underneath the key, but since it is labeled as such, I don't know why that matters.

Microsoft's latest anti-Google ad campaign has more than a slight whiff of Scroogled from a few years back. A pair of advertisements lay into Chromebooks, and suggest that Windows 10 devices are far better for both business and education.

Google has made much of the benefits that Chromebooks can bring to the classroom, but Microsoft disagrees -- and says Windows 10 Pro is far better for businesses too. In the two ads, the company highlights the security and features of Windows, painting Google's software as insecure and underpowered.

Microsoft announced a new Files On-Demand feature for OneDrive at Build last month. This lets you access all of your files in the cloud without having to download them first.

The files you have stored in OneDrive can be viewed in File Explorer and interacted with just like every other file on your device. If you used OneDrive on Windows 8.1 previously, you’ll be familiar with idea as it’s essentially an improved version of the old placeholders feature.