If you have Windows 10 installed, 1st thing to do

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Spot the embedded Downloader ...
Windows 10 The Operating System That Is A Virus Loaded On You Without Permission
by  JayWill  Friday, June 3, 2016 10:35  (Written by JayWill7497)
http://beforeitsnews.com/science-and-technology/2016/06/windows-10-the-operating-system-that-is-a-virus-loaded-on-you-without-permission-2829437.html

  "The Windows 10 operation system is openly collecting more data than
   ever before and is modeled on what is already being done to Mac users.
   The Windows 10 down-loader was hidden in critical updates and followed
   by the operating system which is now downloading into computers without
   consent or permission from many users.
   
   This operating system skips OS #9 – there is a reason and OS 10 is a
   milestone in the complete decimation of our privacy and rights.
   
   pcworld.idg.com.au reports:
   
   I don't doubt that Windows 10 is a fast and stable Operating System
   when it comes from a clean install. It's probably better than the
   misguided Windows 8, which seems to have been all about forcing people
   to buy a new touch-screen computer. At least Windows 10 harks back to
   Windows 7 more. I'm using Windows 7 on my work PC right now and,
   frankly, I'd rather have that for everything. Having Microsoft make
   important decisions about my privacy, security and choice of software
   means that there's a big trust issue with this 'new' operating system
   (not helped with its online integration) that might not ever be
   overcome. And what other, sneaky privacy issues are being buried deep
   in the terms and conditions?
   
   

   010- Windows 10 the operating system that is a virus loaded on you without permission
   by Crrow777 , Published on Jun 3, 2016
   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKjv7yK_CGw
     "The Windows 10 operation system is openly collecting more data than
      ever before and is modeled on what is already being done to Mac users.
      The Windows 10 down-loader was hidden in critical updates and followed
      by the operating system which is now downloading into computers without
      consent or permission from many users. This operating system skips OS
      #9 – there is a reason and OS 10 is a milestone in the complete
      decimation of our privacy and rights.
      Jungle Surfer: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRPx...
      Spudgy Pang: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqgD...
      Crrow777 podcast website: https://www.crrow777radio.com
      Donate: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr... "

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Microsoft halts distribution of Windows 10 update amid reports it deletes files
Users reported that personal files disappeared after upgrading.
BY CNET NEWS STAFF / OCTOBER 8, 2018 9:35 AM PDT
https://www.cnet.com/news/microsoft-halts-distribution-of-windows-10-update-amid-reports-it-deletes-files/

   
   Screenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
   
   Microsoft pumped the brakes on the rollout of the latest version of its
   Windows 10 operating system, after users reported the recent update
   deleted files on their computers.
   
   On a support page, the software giant said it had "paused" distribution
   of the software while it investigated the reports of missing files. The
   notification appears to have been posted to Microsoft's site sometime
   on Friday.
   
   "We have paused the rollout of the Windows 10 October 2018 Update
   (version 1809) for all users as we investigate isolated reports of
   users missing some files after updating," the company wrote. Version
   1809 is the technical name for the update, which was launched to
   coincide with Microsoft's updated Surface devices.
   
   
   Lost files on the latest Window 10 update? Give Microsoft a call.
   Screenshot by Josh Goldman/CNET
   
   The support page currently says if you have an issue with missing files
   after the update, you should use the affected device as little as
   possible and contact Microsoft directly at 1-800-MICROSOFT, or find a
   local number in your area.
   
   Dona Sarkar, head of the Windows Insider Program at Microsoft, said in
   a tweet on Oct. 6 that those who've run into the "missing files after
   update" issue for 1809/October 2018 Fall update should call Microsoft
   support, which has "the tools to get you back to a good state."
   
   https://twitter.com/donasarkar/status/1048612272287834112
   backup: http://archive.li/yWag0
   https://web.archive.org/web/20181013101914/https:/twitter.com/donasarkar/status/1048612272287834112
   
   Microsoft didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the
   current situation.
   
   The halt in distribution follows reports that people among the first
   wave of upgraders noticed files had disappeared from their Documents,
   Pictures and other folders. Microsoft users posted their concerns in
   r/Windows10 on Reddit and Microsoft's community page. The problems
   seemed to have involved files attached to personal profiles.
   
   In its notification, Microsoft advised users who had downloaded the
   update but hadn't installed it yet to avoid doing so. 
   
   First published Oct. 6, 4:07 p.m. PT.
   Update, Oct. 8 at 9:20 a.m. PT: Added details from Microsoft support
   page and tweet from head of the Windows Insider Program at Microsoft.
   "

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Software
Microsoft yanks the document-destroying Windows 10 October 2018 Update
Day four exceeds all expectations as Microsoft steps back from brink
By Richard Speed 8 Oct 2018 at 09:28 111  SHARE
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/10/08/microsoft_windows_10_pulled/

  "Microsoft has taken the unprecedented step of pulling a Windows 10
   release a mere four days after its arrival amid a clamour of users
   complaining about files not being where they had left them.
   
   Windows Insider supremo Dona Sarkar took to Twitter to announce that
   Windows fans would no longer be able to get their hands on the
   afflicted build. Redmond said the automatic rollout would also be
   paused until it works out just what in blue blazes is going on.
   
   https://twitter.com/donasarkar/status/1048612272287834112
   backup : http://archive.li/yWag0
   https://web.archive.org/web/20181013101914/https:/twitter.com/donasarkar/status/1048612272287834112
   
   Microsoft's advice to those who have downloaded the build is: for
   goodness' sake, don't install the thing. However, if you have gone
   ahead and allowed the update to do its stuff and been hit by the
   missing files issue, leave your PC alone and give Microsoft a telephone
   call for help.
   
   The update made an appearance on 2 October, having gone directly into
   the hands of users rather than spending some time in the Windows
   Insider Release Preview ring first. If you have installed it, and
   everything is hunky dory (as it is for us), then there is no need to
   worry.
   
   In her tweet, Sarkar said the person at the other end of the phone will
   have "the tools to get you back to a good state". Presumably either a
   file recovery application or a handy install of Linux. At this point we
   don't know. We contacted our local Microsoft support office and found
   it was closed. Because, hey, who installs this stuff outside of office
   hours, right?
   
   Users in Canada have reported being instructed to take their afflicted
   PCs to a Microsoft store in the hope that some of their files can be
   restored. How that will work in regions that lack a Microsoft retail
   presence is unclear. Perhaps Honest Bob's Backstreet Windows Wrangler?
   
   https://twitter.com/AbbyJaneHicks64/status/1048697452818259968
   
   It is not a good look for the Windows Insider programme. Its more
   light-hearted tone has come in for some flack over the last year or so.
   One Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) for the programme, Kari
   Finn, went public after being defrocked following criticism of the way
   things were going.
   
   In his July post, Finn reckoned the programme had "turned into a
   playground", commenting that: "Developing Windows and getting serious
   feedback is hidden under a coat of ninja cat and taco hat jokes."
   
   Finn, who described himself to The Register as a "Microsoft and Windows
   10 fan boy" expressed concern that feedback was going unanswered and
   "professionalism is now forgotten".
   
   https://twitter.com/StephenCWLL/status/1048653442422661120
   
   Some would say those concerns have come home to roost as the current
   woes had been reported in the Windows Insider hub, and yet the release
   proceeded regardless.
   
   The Reg has dropped Microsoft a line to find out what the recovery
   process is going to be and where Windows 10 goes from here. If you've
   had to pick up the phone to one of Redmond's support team, let us know
   how you got on in the comments below. ®
   
   Tips and corrections    111 Comments "

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Software
Microsoft's 2018, part 1: Open source, wobbly Windows and everyone's going to the cloud
The Vulture picks over the remnants of January to June
By Richard Speed 25 Dec 2018 at 11:00 21  SHARE ▼
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/25/microsoft_year_in_review_2018/

   It seems a lifetime (or two Windows 10 releases) ago, but 2018 started
   with Microsoft, and other software vendors, staring down the twin
   barrels of Spectre and Meltdown.
   
   The Spectre of January's Meltdown

   Flaws in Intel's silicon meant that Microsoft had to scramble to
   mitigate the vulnerability at the operating system level (having
   quietly seeded the fixes to its hardy crew of Windows Insiders towards
   the end of 2017). The flaw potentially allowed miscreants to read data
   from the operating system's protected kernel memory area of machines
   equipped with the broken chips. Stuff like passwords, for example.
   
   The Intel bug could be found in a decade's worth of processors. And
   while the likes of AMD initially sat back smugly, they and other
   chipmakers were soon to find themselves joining Intel for a beating
   with the vulnerability stick.
   
   Microsoft's scramble to protect Windows users against Chipzilla's vulns
   soon had unexpected consequences, and changes to how the OS managed its
   memory made some antivirus products very poorly indeed, with some
   triggering classic Blue Screen of Deaths for affected users.
   
   And what of performance? At the time, slowdown figures of between 5 and
   30 per cent were mooted. But the desktop was the least of Microsoft's
   problems. What of its cloudy Azure platform?
   
   Getting the Intel bugs patched was critical since the nature of the
   flaw meant that users could potentially peer into the memory space of
   other customers on multi-tenant hardware. So Microsoft patched Azure.
   
   And Azure fell over.
   
   At the time, Microsoft insisted that the virtual machine issues were
   isolated incidents as it completed its security update. It would,
   however, not be the last time customers experienced an Azure outage in
   2018.
   
   Microsoft also attempted to buff up its privacy halo a little (and fend
   off another shoeing from the authorities) by introducing the Diagnostic
   Data Viewer app to show users exactly what was being slurped from their
   Windows 10 PCs and squirted back to HQ.
   
   The app was separate from the Windows Privacy Dashboard, an example of
   the confusing messaging that would return to bite the company in the
   behind towards the end of 2018.
   
   Further harbingers of things to come in 2018 arrived in the form of the
   open-source PowerShell Core 6 for macOS and Linux fans. With the
   original Windows PowerShell command line interface no longer seeing
   active development, PowerShell Core is very much the future.
   
   And as far as Redmond is concerned, it wants in on that future
   regardless of the platform you want to use. Even if it isn't Windows.
   
   February's fond farewell to Phone

   The bad news bus rolled into town for owners of Microsoft's premium
   fondleslabs as older Surface Pro 4 devices began exhibiting some
   distressing display characteristics. Users reported flickering or
   blurry screens, making the thing little more than an expensive bookend.
   
   Microsoft finally acknowledged the problem and admitted by May that no,
   a firmware fix was not going to deal with it. Sadly, 2018 was not done
   with the devices and further borkages followed later in the year.
   
   February was also the month that, as well as putting the boot into
   users stuck in the pre-Windows 10 days (no Office 2019 for you
   heathens), Microsoft stepped up efforts to stop the last two people on
   Earth still clinging to their elderly Windows Phone devices by killing
   off notification support for versions 7.5 and 8.0, effectively driving
   a stake into the heart of the long-dead platform.
   
   March(ing) out of the Microsoft campus

   There were ructions in the Windows world in March as Microsoft began
   the process of walking back the Windows 10 S experiment, starting with
   a debranding of the unloved take on a locked-down version of Windows
   that isn't RT.
   
   The plan for Windows 10 S was that it would be stripped and locked down
   to help fight off the rise of Chromebooks. Microsoft's Surface laptop
   shipped with the thing pre-installed, but Microsoft never revealed how
   many customers clicked the option to switch to full Windows in order to
   make the thing usable.
   
   In the absence of official figures, we'd suspect customers stayed away
   in droves.
   
   Microsoft opted to make Windows 10 S a "mode" of all versions of
   Windows 10. Joe Belfiore, corporate veep of Windows, insisted that the
   majority of customers would "enjoy" the benefits of S mode. Presumably
   until they found the switch to turn the thing off in order to install
   Chrome.
   
   It wasn't only Windows 10 S that did a vanishing trick in March.
   Windows head honcho Terry Myerson made the surprise decision to depart
   Microsoft in favour of a bit of family time. Myerson was somewhat of a
   fixture, having joined the company in 1997. He took on the Windows
   Mobile team in 2008 and, proving that abject failure is no barrier to
   success, moved to the Operating Systems team in 2013.
   
   Airbus also slipped through Microsoft's fingers in 2018 and shifted
   130,000 employees off the venerable Office suite in favour of Google's
   G suite. The company's chief information officer pointed to the
   collaborative goodness in the Chocolate Factory's office vision as
   opposed Microsoft's Office 365 product line.
   
   With Windows 10, Myerson and Airbus on its mind, it is little wonder
   that Microsoft also urged users to cut out the swearing on its services
   with an updated services agreement threatening offenders with account
   closure.
   
   Springtime for Redmond and Windows 10. Winter for Azure logins

   With the naughty word ban not due to come into effect until May, April
   was an opportunity to get in some more swears. And goodness, there was
   plenty of material to get sweary about.
   
   Meltdown and Spectre continued to haunt the halls of Redmond as the
   Windows gang tried and tried again to patch the operating system. Third
   time lucky? "Not quite," said harassed administrators trying to update
   recalcitrant Windows 7 and Server 2008 R2 boxes. But the pain was
   nothing compared to what was coming down the line.
   
   To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Windows 98 blowing up live on
   stage, hints began to appear that all was not well in the Windows 10
   world. The 1803 update was expected to arrive in March because, well,
   that was what the numbering suggested. However, as April trundled on
   there was no sign  of the OS update.
   
   It transpired that a showstopping Blue Screen of Death bug had been
   caught late in the day and the Windows team had opted to delay things.
   A close call, but as we continued our Windows 10 Springwatch we
   wondered if there was something amiss with Microsoft's quality control,
   and perhaps too much emphasis had been placed on the testing done by
   its free army of Insiders. We'd have to wait until the second half of
   the year to learn just how bad things had become.
   
   As if to distract us all from the MIA Windows 10, Microsoft continued
   to flex its open-source muscles by first indulging our penchant for
   nostalgia with the code for the classic Windows File Manager (MS/DOS
   would follow soon after) before causing us to pass beer through our
   noses at the arrival of its own flavour of Linux. Azure Sphere, which
   also includes blueprints for Arm-based system-on-chips for
   manufacturers to follow, is part of Redmond's IoT pitch (where the
   company has splurged $5bn of R&D cash).
   
   But still – Microsoft's own flavour of Linux. How things change.
   
   While Microsoft announced some bumper financials, the cloud CEO Satya
   Nadella bet the company's future on developed a distinct wobble,
   despite revenues from the commercial cloud (Office 365, Azure and so
   on) hitting $6bn.
   
   In what became a depressingly regular occurrence, bits of Azure dropped
   from the sky in April. Azure Active Directory took the day off, causing
   problems for users logging into email. It caused problems for us too,
   as we found ourselves having to devise ever more creative backronyms
   for TITSUP while things went sideways.
   
   But still, the Windows 10 April 2018 Update squeaked in at the end of
   the month. What could possibly go wrong?
   
   May(hem)

   As it happened, so many things.
   
   While Microsoft would go on to insist that everything was hunky-dory
   and this was the least complained about version of Windows ever, the
   experience on the ground was quite different.
   
   The loudness of the shrieking may have had something to do with the
   velocity at which Microsoft unleashed the April 2018 Update. Half of
   users had received the thing by the end of the month, according to Ad
   Duplex (in the absence of any official statistics). After being delayed
   at the last minute, the pace seemed a little brave (or foolhardy), but
   there was no stopping the gang at Redmond.
   
   And my, how the issues rolled in. Some SSDs made by that obscure
   hardware outfit Intel turned out to be incompatible with the OS,
   problems were reported with that little-known browser Chrome, and if
   you were still clinging to the outdated SMB1 networking protocol, well,
   Windows 10 1803 probably wasn't for you. And, of course, the bogeyman
   of third-party antivirus incompatibility reared its ugly head, leaving
   some users having to reinstall the OS from scratch after their desktops
   went AWOL.
   
   But Microsoft pressed on regardless, eventually issuing fixes while
   patting itself on the back for the speed at which the April 2018 Update
   had been rolled out. That confidence would come back to haunt the
   Windows giant in the latter half of the year.
   
   While Windows 10 grabbed the headlines, Microsoft's Build conference
   looked forward to a future beyond the OS. The commitment to open source
   was again demonstrated as 2019's .NET Core 3.0 framework was trailed
   and Microsoft declared its most successful SQL Server product was
   (drumroll) the one that runs on Linux. At least in terms of downloads.
   
   Finally, Azure was green-lit for use by the US Intelligence agencies,
   indicating that while Windows might be wobbly, the gamble on cloud
   computing was starting to pay off. A run at the Pentagon's
   multibillion-dollar JEDI cloud computing contract would surely follow.
   
   June is a time for spending big

   As hacks at Vulture Central looked forward to a summer hiding from the
   Sun, Microsoft doubled down on its determination to get developers back
   on board by snapping up code behemoth GitHub. The $7.5bn deal raised
   more than a few eyebrows and had some developers running for cover at
   the likes of GitLab.
   
   Of course, some elements within Microsoft are well aware of the
   contempt in which the company is held by segments of the developer
   community and have taken open-source strides to assure devs that this
   it isn't the beast of old. Nadella was wheeled out and asked coders to
   "judge us by our actions".
   
   Judgmental? Devs? Surely not.
   
   Soon-to-be CEO of GitHub, former boss of mobile developer darling
   Xamarin Nat Friedman also chimed in, stating that the company was aware
   it would lose a generation of developers if it screwed up GitHub.
   Friedman's AMA session went over well, and was an indication of an
   openness at Microsoft that had been sorely lacking in previous eras.
   
   GitHub aside, Microsoft's cloudy ambitions took more knocks as Azure
   went down in Northern Europe for the best part of half a day. Things
   took a lurch to the surreal when the company fingered warm weather in
   Ireland as the culprit while Dublin basked in temperatures of, ooh,
   18°C. Oops.
   
   As the dust began to settle after the Windows 10 April 2018 Update,
   Microsoft announced it was stripping functionality from the upcoming
   Autumn release. The window grouping technology, Sets, was for the chop.
   At the time, we hoped that this was a sign of the Windows team focusing
   on quality rather than keynote-pleasing features.
   
   Alas, as the second half of 2018 was to show, our hopes were to be
   dashed. ®
   
   Tips and corrections 21 Comments

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Software
Microsoft's 2018, part 2: Azure data centres heat up and Windows 10? It burns! It burns!
Remains of the year laid bare as we flay July to December
By Richard Speed 28 Dec 2018 at 09:23 25  SHARE ▼
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/28/microsoft_2018_in_review_part_2/

   Where were we? Ah yes... it was the summer of GitHub committers'
   discontent – as many looked on in horror as Redmond swallowed it for
   $7.5bn in June. But things were about to heat up further...
   
   July brings joy, junior Surfaces and jiggly financials

   Hayfever season began well for Microsoft as the giant took another
   potshot at Google and Apple's device crown. Could the Surface Go take
   down Chromebooks and iPads? Or was another Surface RT disaster in the
   offing?
   
   For the latter question, no – the Go is a far more capable device than
   Microsoft's unloved Arm effort. The former is more of a wait-and-see,
   since the Go represents the worst of both worlds. It lacks an Arm CPU,
   meaning battery life could be better, and while the Intel silicon
   assures better compatibility, performance hardly set the world alight.
   
   We reckoned it was best to think of the £379 (excluding keyboard)
   device as more like a netbook – cheap, cheerful and categorically not
   upgradable. A hardware runtime for Office aimed at students, if you
   will.
   
   The Go, of course, runs Windows 10 (in S mode, if you wish) and the OS
   turned three in July, descended from a Windows NT codebase that itself
   celebrated its 25th anniversary this year. All that elderly code is one
   reason for the current woes of the OS. Not that it stopped sales of PCs
   running the thing rising for the first two quarters of 2018. With the
   end of Windows 7 support looming, the upgrade cycle gave PC makers some
   respite from the gloom surrounding the industry.
   
   For its part, Microsoft registered a colossal fiscal 2018, claiming
   more than $110bn in revenues. While Azure and the cloud were trumpeted,
   with $9.6bn being trousered, that bit of Microsoft that gets less
   attention these days, personal computing (including Windows), clocked
   up more, registering $10.8bn.
   
   How did Microsoft celebrate the bonanza? By handing out its Teams
   collaboration platform for free and, er, increasing adjusting prices
   for pretty much everything else.
   
   Oh dear.
   
   And as for jumping ship? Penguinistas were horrified to see the German
   state of Lower Saxony follow Munich's example and dump Linux in favour
   of Windows for a reported 13,000 users. Sometimes that Microsoft habit
   is hard to break.
   
   August is the sunniest month

   While Microsoft embarked on a summer vacation, reports rolled in from
   users of Surface Pro 4 fondleslabs that a July update had left the
   pricey devices struggling with power.
   
   Microsoft remained deaf to their pleas, with some users resorting to
   legal threats to have their precious gadgets restored to working order.
   
   While the Surface Pro 4 incident might have been accidental, Microsoft
   swung the axe once more at Windows Phone in a far more deliberate
   fashion. This time it was the Microsoft Store, with a warning that no
   more app submissions for version 8.x of the platform would be accepted
   after Halloween and, by July 2019, app updates would stop.
   
   Windows 10 Mobile lives on for now, but if you are still clinging to
   your beloved Lumia, the time really has come to bid farewell.
   
   Although the original vision of Windows on mobile devices is well and
   truly dead, Windows on Arm is alive and kicking.
   
   Performance on the first generation of devices wasn't great (barely
   draining the battery but fully draining the will to live while waiting
   for Word to load), but the next wave of kit, based on the snappier
   Snapdragon 850 processor, made an appearance at August's IFA. Intel
   could only look on nervously.
   
   September comes, but Windows 10 1809 doesn't

   Users hopeful of a fresh Windows 10 to soothe memories of the April
   2018 Update, and thinking that the '09' of 1809 might signify a
   September release, were disappointed to learn that the thing would be
   called the "October 2018 Update".
   
   In our naivety, we hoped the codebase had received more focus on
   quality. Certainly to the point where our suggestions for names such as
   "Crashy McCrashface" or "the one that won't set fire to the world"
   would be made redundant. Alas, in a few short weeks we would be
   referring to it as "the Update of the Damned", but that was still to
   come.
   
   At the risk of a link that would make even the hosts of the BBC's One
   Show wince, while it was very much the calm before the storm on the
   Windows 10 front, a storm of an entirely different sort was about to
   hit Microsoft's Azure cloud.
   
   The South Central US Facility in Texas dropped over after storms
   crippled the data centre's cooling systems. This should, in theory,
   have affected only a few unlucky users hosted out of the place, but
   showed up some flaws in the implementation of the Azure Active
   Directory service, which led to problems around the world.
   
   Microsoft's engineers carefully brought servers back online, although
   Skype and Outlook still suffered data throttling as Redmond tried to
   spread the load with a borked authentication update.
   
   It wasn't a good look, and an impressively open postmortem highlighted
   the issues, including the eye-opening admission that the Azure Service
   Manager did not support automatic failure and, er, used the affected
   data centre as its primary metadata storage site. Ouch.
   
   The incident came at an unfortunate time, as Microsoft attempted to
   persuade users that it could handle all that grungy IT admin stuff for
   enterprises courtesy of its Microsoft Managed Desktop service. You
   could even shift your Windows OS (including Windows 7) and Office apps
   into the cloud using Windows Virtual Desktop. Assuming, of course, the
   target cloud isn't having a rainy day.
   
   Some within Microsoft could learn from the open way in which the Azure
   team reported what happened. Yes, Windows, we are looking at you.
   
   Microsoft also took an axe to its messaging platform, Skype, in
   September. The unloved interface of the latest version of the chatty
   client received a clearing of cruft, which was to be applauded. Less
   good news was that, having received a stay of execution, the old
   "Classic" version of Skype was really for the chop. The axe was due to
   fall in November, much to the distress of users.
   
   October. The cruellest month

   It all began so well. Microsoft cheerfully announced during its Ignite
   event that Windows 10 had hit 700 million devices and followed it by
   reminding us of simpler, happier times with an upload of early MS-DOS
   source code to GitHub.
   
   The warm glow of command line nostalgia could not, however, be
   sustained as Panos Panay took to a New York stage before a select
   audience (no, oddly we weren't invited) to unveil updates to the
   company's Surface line.
   
   So far, so unsurprising. What took us aback was the arrival of the
   Windows 10 October 2018 Update. The code had bypassed the Windows
   Insider Release Preview ring entirely, going directly to general
   availability. In a tweet that has aged particularly well, one of the
   Windows managers, Brandon LeBlanc, insisted that everything would be
   fine.
   
   https://twitter.com/brandonleblanc/status/1047229684679725056
   
   A day later, it became clear that things were not OK. Not at all.
   Issues with Intel drivers left CPUs thrashed and batteries drained. The
   unloved Edge browser struggled with connections.
   
   By day two, things took a lurch for the sinister, as reports rolled in
   of the update actually wiping user documents during installation,
   something that had been picked up by Windows Insiders but, er, ignored.
   
   By day four, the humiliation was complete, and Microsoft pulled the
   update  with a (now deleted) tweet from Insider supremo Dona Sarkar
   announcing the build was no longer available. The tweet was light on
   detail and light on the word "sorry".
   
   While we experienced few problems ourselves (other than a broken
   brightness control that left our laptop illuminating a darkened
   conference hall like a miniature sun) others who had managed to get the
   update installed complained of Blue Screens of Death thanks to broken
   keyboard drivers  and problems with Intel audio drivers.
   
   Microsoft issued a statement on the technical details of the data
   deletion bug but stopped short of explaining how it had been allowed to
   get to production. As for making sure it won't happen again? The gang
   will add a severity flag so it wouldn't miss the feedback next time.
   
   Suffice to say, we weren't impressed and called the situation a QA
   crisis of the Windows giant's own making. As for the Update of the
   Damned, it would remain MIA.
   
   The Windows 10 incident took the shine off another bumper set of
   financials, which set Microsoft on a course that would see it snatch
   Apple's crown of the World's Most Valuable Company (depending how you
   measure it). More significant for the tech world was Microsoft joining
   the Open Innovation Network and bringing with it 60,000 or so of its
   patents.
   
   Corporate veep Erich Andersen reckoned the move would mean "Microsoft
   will be able to do more than ever to help protect Linux" from patent
   assertions. Crikey.
   
   A far cry from yesteryear.
   
   Putting the woes of Windows 10 and the October tottering of Office 365
   into perspective, however, was the passing of Microsoft's co-founder
   Paul Allen  at 65 following another bout of cancer.
   
   Remember, remember the re-release of November

   The Windows 10 October 2018 Update remained missing until mid November,
   when a gun-shy Microsoft gingerly released the thing once again.
   
   There were no excitable emissions from the Insider team this time
   around as the update was made available to a very, very select number
   of devices. By the end of the month, Ad Duplex barely registered the
   update's presence in its metrics.
   
   Quite a change from the excitement of April, or even a few short weeks
   before in October.
   
   Sadly, while Microsoft lavished attention on its flagship operating
   system, other product lines continued to wobble. Windows 10 Pro users
   saw themselves downgraded to mere Home users as the Windows Activation
   service suffered a memory lapse, while OneDrive took the morning off
   (for EU users at least).
   
   UK users also got a wave of the fuck-up fairy's wand as an Exchange
   online failure left their Outlook apps unable to connect on a Monday
   morning, an issue that continued into the next day.
   
   The star of the show, however, was Azure Multi-Factor Authentication
   (MFA), which dropped over at the start of a working week (demonstrating
   that Microsoft's cloud dislikes Monday as much as the rest of us).
   Users around the world found their accounts secured to the point where
   they were unable to log in.
   
   Oops.
   
   The issue was resolved by applying a hotfix and, er, turning everything
   off and on again. Azure had struggled back to its feet by the following
   day, although Office 365 needed a little more attention from
   Microsoft's engineers.
   
   We've become accustomed to a full and frank account of such incidents
   from the Azure team, and the MFA fiasco was no exception. Microsoft
   assured customers it wouldn't happen again. Within hours, the service
   fell over again and engineers were forced into "cycling the relevant
   back-end services".
   
   Oops.
   
   A dark December Christmas wish. The death of Edge

   While more ill-advised updates to Windows 10 broke Microsoft's premium
   Surface Book 2, the year was rounded out with more open-source goodness
   and some tough love.
   
   At its annual Connect(); event, Microsoft announced the open-sourcing
   of key frameworks needed for the development of Windows desktop
   applications, including Windows Forms and the Windows Presentation
   Foundation (WPF).
   
   Or rather, as far as WPF was concerned, the beginning of an open-source
   journey.
   
   While the move raised eyebrows, it was nothing compared to Microsoft
   deciding to pull the plug on the unloved Edge browser.
   
   Although Edge was rarely used for more than downloading Chrome and had
   remained resolutely in single digits in terms of market share, the move
   was surprising.
   
   Microsoft went further, and said the layout engine used in Edge,
   EdgeHTML, would be replaced by the open-source Chromium (also used by
   Google's rival browser Chrome).
   
   It was quite a dramatic flourish to end a year that has seen Windows 10
   stumble and CEO Satya Nadella's gamble on the cloud begin paying off,
   in spite of the tottering of Azure. With the purchase of GitHub and the
   ramping up of the company's commitment to open source, Microsoft has
   continued to surprise those who remember the Beast of old.
   
   For 2019 we'd just like to see some of those billions of revenue head
   into the QA department, OK? ®
   
   Tips and corrections                                     25 Comments "

[rmstock]

This Week in Enterprise Tech 397
rmstock • Jun 16, 2020
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZba19qJG0I
  "Jun 12th 2020
   THIS WEEK IN ENTERPRISE TECH 397
   MIND YOUR DEVICES WITH MDM
   Hosted by Louis Maresca, Brian Chee, Curt Franklin
   https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-en...
   
   Lamphone Technique Can Spy On Your Lightbulbs
   TWiT Tech Podcast Network, Jun 12, 2020
   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqGUY...
   "According to researchers, the Lamphone technique can allow a spy to
   eavesdrop on your conversations by looking at the vibrations of your
   lightbulbs. For the full episode, visit https://twit.tv/twiet/397 Host:
   Louis Maresca "
   
   TECHNOLOGY Published 2 days ago
   'Lamphone' technique allows spies to target victims using lightbulbs
   for real-time eavesdropping
   Researchers turn lightbulbs into microphones
   Published: 2020-06-12 20:33:17-04:00, Modified: 2020-06-12
   21:01:29-04:00
   By Brittany De Lea | Fox News
   https://www.foxnews.com/tech/lamphone...
   
   ANDY GREENBERG SECURITY 06.12.2020 07:00 AM
   Spies Can Eavesdrop by Watching a Light Bulb's Vibrations
   https://www.wired.com/story/lamphone-...
   
   l+f: Verräterische Glühlampen
   Licht flackert im Rhythmus von Schallwellen und ermöglicht eine
   skurrile Abhörtechnik.
   17:28 Uhr Security Von Jürgen Schmidt
   https://www.heise.de/news/l-f-Verraet...
   
   Lamphone: Real-Time Passive Sound Recovery from Light Bulb Vibrations
   Ben Nassi et.al. Fri Jun  5 00:21:14 2020
   https://ad447342-c927-414a-bbae-d287b... "