Here’s how to recognize a PWA when you come across one

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Back in May, it was announced that Progresive Web Apps (PWAs) were coming to desktops and the Chrome OS.

More so, it was hinted that as far as Windows 10 users are concerned, PWAs will be designed to feel even “more native” to Microsoft’s OS.

What is a PWA anyway?

For those of you who don’t know, Progresive Web Apps are basically the desktop equivalent of an app, as they allow certain websites to be far more accessible through the use of what could be considered a “mini-client”.

The appearance of PWAs nowadays is partially due to websites becoming more and more complex to the point where Internet service providers can’t provide enough bandwidth to allow them to load fast enough.

How did PWAs first appear?

Since researches showed that users will generally never visit a website again if it takes more than 3 seconds to load, or if commands take too long to complete, it’s easy to see why websites opt to new solutions to combat this problem.

PWAs already have complete access to Windows 10 feature APIs and can be installed on pretty much any device from the UWP family without hindering compatibility across browsers or other devices at all.

Considered to be the successors of Hosted Web Apps, PWAs have the advantage of having standards-based support for offline scenarios, courtesy of Service Workers, Cache, and Push APIs.

Did you know that you can now uninstall PWAs from the Control Panel?

Microsoft is working on optimizing PWAs

Many Redditors wondered if the new PWA features are available to all Windows 10 users.

all this talk about pwa’s lately, and i’ve never seen one in the wild, am i just on the wrong websites? how do i even know if a website has it?

The answer came quickly from another Redditor:

Can confirm. This already seems to be in place with Windows 10 version 1903 release preview and Edge Insider Dev. At least on my systems–there’s always a chance they are still a:b testing this.

How can you recognize a PWA?

Imagine having a PWA powered by YouTube. It would allow you to have better connectivity and use less traffic. Since a lot of the data that usually loads each and every time would already be present in the form of a framework that just needs minor updates.

Just like the YouTube app on your phone, you’d first have to add it to the home screen of your desktop, which is pretty much the best giveaway that the website uses a PWA to run.

Those of you reading this may think that this sounds a lot like how many Windows Store Apps work, as most of them are nothing more than locally hosted frameworks that support the content of a website, and you couldn’t be more right.

With that in mind, since Microsoft has already been experimenting with their own versions of PWAs ever since they first started making Store Apps for the Windows 8, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they would somehow manage to make them feel as if they are native to the Windows 10 OS
altogether.

Interested in reading more about PWAs? Check out these posts:

Name your PC using emojis: Is this a recipe for connectivity issues?

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Back in October 2017, the Windows 10 and the Fall Creators Update introduced a new emoji keyboard which made adding emojis to services such as Twitter, Facebook and other similar apps extremely easy.

While this made non-verbal communication all the easier on social media, the recent Windows 10 May Update has made it so that you can now name your PC using emojis.

But wasn’t this one of the things you shouldn’t do?

A lot of the users who’ve discovered this feature started commenting on whether or not this may lead to connectivity problems with their networks, and for good reason.

Traditionally, there are a few rules when naming a computer, which include not using spaces, lowercase letter or using special characters.

The reasoning behind all this is that certain networks will only recognize your device as long as it has at least one uppercase character, and using percent signs, dots, commas and slashes are known to be common causes for network connectivity issues.

Of course this also depends on the hardware settings of your router, such as whether it does only frontend or backend checks to the data you are sending it.

For example, some users managed to successfully connect with an emoji-named PC by sending the emoji bytes directly via an HTTP request and not through the web UI, but this was only possible on a router that only checks the frontend content.

Are you experiencing connectivity issues? These quick tips will help you avoid them in the future.

What does this all mean?

Some users found the new feature to be rather amusing, and they consider that being a network administrator and seeing a PC named ❤??? would spur a few giggles.
However, other situations may not be all that funny, such as when you want to see who is using up all the bandwidth and you can’t figure out who ??? or ??? may be.

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Windows Media Player Cannot Burn Some of The Files [Fix]

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Windows Media Player allows users to burn CDs or DVDs directly through the app. However, a few users reported Windows Media Player cannot burn some of the files message.

This issue is somewhat similar to Windows Media Player cannot burn to disc because drive is in use as we covered earlier, but there are a few differences.

We came up with a series of solutions to help you fix this problem, listed below.

Why can’t Windows Media Player burn some files?

  • Incompatible files can cause this issue to occur.
  • Special characters in song details can interfere with the burning process.
  • Settings such as Enhanced Playback and Device Experience can sometimes cause issues.
  • Burning speed can also cause problems in some cases.

What can I do if Windows Media Player cannot burn some of the files?

1. Remove incompatible files

  1. After receiving the error message, click the Blank Disk in the left pane. The list of the files you want to burn will appear.burn files WMP Windows Media Player cannot burn some of the files
  2. An icon with a white X in a red circle will appear next to the files that are not compatible with the Windows Media Player burn.
  3. Click on the icon in order to remove the problematic files and try burning the CD without those files.
  4. Keep in mind that Windows Media Player can only burn audio files that are not longer than 80 minutes.

2. Edit file details

  1. Check the file details by right-clicking on each file and select Properties.Properties Windows Media Player cannot burn some of the files
  2. In the Details tab, make sure that the details containing the Artist Name, Song Name, Album, etc. don’t contain special characters.
  3. If you find different types of symbols, make sure to remove them and apply the changes.

3. Disable Enhanced Playback and Device Experience settings

  1. Click the Organize option in Windows Media Player and select Options.
  2. Open the Privacy tab and uncheck all the options under the Enhanced Playback and Device Experience section.windows media player privacy windows media player cannot burn some of the files
  3. Press OK and now try to attempt the burning process.

If Windows Media Player won’t burn CD, then be sure to try disabling these settings.

4. Change Windows Media Player’s burning speed

  1. Click the Organize option in Windows Media Player and select Options.Options WMP windows media player cannot burn some of the files
  2. Open the Burn tab and under the General tab, change the Burn speed to Medium/Low. Lastly click OK.
change burn speed windows media player cannot burn some of the files

5. Use a third-party app to burn files

  1. Select the New button located in the top left corner of the PowerISO window and click Audio CD.new audio CD windows media player cannot burn some of the files
  2. Press the Add button and then select Add Music Files…add music files to burn windows media player cannot burn some of the files
  3. Choose the files you want to add to the CD and press Open.
  4. Press the Burn button and follow through with the process.

In case you’re having more issues, check our Windows Media Player not working guide for more solutions.

We hope you could find at least one working solution from our guide. If you found this article helpful, comment in the comment section below.

When will Minecraft come to Steam? Here’s what we know so far

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

In a recent interview, Phil Spencer revealed more information about the plans to bring Xbox Game Pass titles to Steam.

When asked what were the steps that lead to this decision, Phil Spencer replied that was due to Xbox Game Pass’s success ever since its conception in 2017. The Xbox team wanted to see if they could replicate the formula for PC games as well.

Read on if you want to learn when Minecraft comes to Steam.

An open market for PC gaming

As you may already know, there are tons of platforms out there offering PC gamers the chance to download amazing titles, such as Steam, Epic Store or GOG.

All of these game distribution platforms have managed to make a name for themselves in one way or another, either through their exclusive titles, or their periodic rotation of deals, discounts, and bundles.

As such, Xbox’s approach of having a subscription-based service where you would have access to games at discount prices (and sometimes free games altogether) could be considered their very own unique touch to PC gaming.

Phil Spencer stated that he believed in the concept of an open market, and that gamers should have the power of choosing where they get all of their games.

However, he didn’t want to make it seem like Microsoft is trying to establish a foothold in the gaming market by eliminating the competition either.

Thus the idea of bringing Game Pass titles to other game distribution platforms came to be, as it also seemed to be a way of unifying the gaming community even more.

Why was Steam chosen over all the others?

While the best case scenario would dictate that all Microsoft titles should be available on all gaming platforms, this endeavour is limited by each platform’s distribution policy.

For example, some platforms have certain rules regarding the content you can put on them, while other stores have rules against sharing titles with other platforms.

Because of this, Steam was chosen for a potential partnership mainly due to it being the most non-restrictive of all major platforms.

Will all Xbox Game Pass titles be available on Steam?

Phil Spencer stated that, in theory, there should be no problem making all of their games available on Steam, regardless if they are singleplayer and multiplayer.

In fact, he added that besides the additional effort that needed to be put into preparing the servers for extra players, both Microsoft and Steam would greatly benefit from this “merger”.

Of course, ever since Microsoft acquired Mojang in late 2014 and the rights to Minecraft along with it, players have been wondering if the game will become even more accessible.

However, besides a handful of examples that have already been made available on both Steam and the Game Pass, no actual names were given as to what other games will be made available on both platforms.

So, when is Minecraft coming to Steam?

This means that the possibility of having Minecraft available on Steam is neither confirmed, nor is it disproved. Now with the recent announcement that Xbox Game Pass titles are coming to Steam it isn’t hard to see why players are starting to ask these questions again.

Besides, Minecraft’s extended history with the modding community through the Forge Mods, and Steam’s habit of supporting user-created content are both indicators that nothing wrong could happen if the two gaming giants would join forces.

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Microsoft maintains an internally ‘prohibited’ software list and Slack is on it

Posted on by Kareem Anderson

Back in the day, Microsoft seemingly kept a long list of enemies otherwise known as competitors, as the company’s product portfolio grew in ambition. However, the days of vindictive and arguably petty Microsoft seem to be behind the company as it’s enemies list shrinks and its collaboration roster expands, yet, there are still a few areas in where the company keeps a healthy competitive nature and to that end, some software, services, and companies remain on a figurative and literal blacklist.

According to a report from GeekWire, not only does Microsoft have a figurative blacklist, there is a literal blacklist of products that have been obtained and services from the following companies are frowned upon in internal use by the Redmond-based software company including obvious names such as Amazon Web Services and Kaspersky as well as a few head-scratchers in Grammarly and GitHub.

Perhaps, the most noteworthy exclusions comes from recent IPO darling Slack, to which Microsoft offers a competitor product in its Teams communication service. Unlike its more neutral stance on cross-platform usage and development, Microsoft seems to be taking an active roll in discouraging and even prohibiting the use of Slack by company employees.

Microsoft Teams 2

However, before the anti “M$” stans hit the internet, GeekWire does explain the full context of Slack’s addition to Microsoft’s blacklist. Microsoft does not appear to be arbitrarily picking and choosing software and services to keep its employees from using, but rather justifies the list primarily with security concerns.

According to Microsoft’s reasoning, Slack usage within the company to transmit and receive sensitive data puts could put projects and company divisions at risk.

“It’s not just the risk that Google will try to find trade secrets from data stored on their servers,” said Christopher Budd, who has worked in security technology for 20 years, including past roles in Microsoft security and privacy communications. “When you’re at Microsoft, you’re at risk of state sponsored industrial espionage. These days we generally think of hacking in criminal or traditional geopolitical espionage. But industrial espionage is still out there and brings the full force of nation-state hacking to bear.”

To that end, here is the reasoning Slack, GitHub, AWS, and Grammarly make the list.

Slack Free, Slack Standard and Slack Plus versions do not provide required controls to properly protect Microsoft Intellectual Property (IP). Existing users of these solutions should migrate chat history and files related to Microsoft business to Microsoft Teams, which offers the same features and integrated Office 365 apps, calling and meeting functionality. Learn more about the additional features that Teams can provide your workgroup. Slack Enterprise Grid version complies with Microsoft security requirements; however, we encourage use of Microsoft Teams rather than a competitive software.

GitHub is perhaps the most surprising inclusion on the “discouraged” list, given Microsoft’s ownership of the coding repository. However, it’s not an outright ban. Microsoft cautions employees not to use GitHub “for Highly Confidential types of information, specs or code.”

Amazon Web Services, which competes with Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform, and Google Docs, which competes with Office 365, are both “discouraged for use” and “will require a business justification” to be used, according to the internal Microsoft summary. “It is highly recommended to start a migration plan to Azure prior to engaging the Governance team for new request or renewals,” the summary reads.

Grammarly, the writing and grammar-checking technology, is on the “prohibited” list. “The Grammarly Office add-in and browser extensions should not be used on the Microsoft network because they are able to access Information Rights Management (IRM) protected content within emails and documents,” Microsoft said, cautioning that this could lead to the exposure of sensitive data, and noting that Microsoft security is evaluating what can be done to make the technology secure for use within the company.

While Microsoft may have a valid security concern to put competing software such as Slack on its ‘prohibited and discouraged’ blacklist both companies have publically admitted that they are active and direct competitors in a market. Microsoft finally acknowledges Slack as its main rival in chat communication in its annual 10-K report, despite Slack chipping away at both Outlook and Skype audiences for years. Slack also made note of Microsoft’s presence in chat with both a full-page ad in the New York Times two years ago as well as listing the company as its “primary competitor in IPO documentation last year.

Interestingly enough, there seems to have been a time when Microsoft employees weren’t so forcibly discouraged from using Slack as HoloLens developers had and maintained a pretty trafficked channel on Slack. Presumably, the use of Slack was allowed, if not simply just frowned upon, prior to the rollout of Microsoft’s own homebrewed Teams software and the recent IPO of its competitor.

For Microsoft, the days of petty feuds and industry squabbling seem to be behind mostly the company, but Slack’s recent IPO and Microsoft Teams recent traction with businesses have put the two offerings on a collision path of sorts, and we’ll see how long the two remain relatively civil and keep their rivalry to just internal blacklists.

BS Player cannot download codecs [EXPERT FIX]

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

BS Player is one of the best multimedia players on the market, but many users reported that BS Player can’t download codecs. This can be a problem, but in today’s article, we’ll show you o how to fix this issue once and for all.

Here’s how one user on the BS Player forum described the issue:

After I upgraded to Windows 10 from Windows 7 BSplayer worked fine. But I wanted to do a complete reinstall from Windows 10 and now I have a problem with the installation of BSplayer. During the installation it needs to download codecs but I get the following error message: “Codec list could not be downloaded. Please check your internet connection.” Of course my internet connection works and I still get the same message after rebooting the computer.

In order to fix this issue, we managed to come up with a few simple solutions that you should try.

What to do if BS Player won’t download codecs?

1. Run as administrator

  1. Locate BS Player shortcut.
  2. Right-click it and choose Run as administrator from the menu.
    run as administrator bs player cannot download codecs
  3. Now try to download the missing codecs.

2. Check your network connection

  1. Make sure that your Internet connection is working.
  2. Open your Internet browser and check to see if web pages load quickly and without interruption.
  3. If you notice your Internet speed is slower than usual, restart your modem/router.
  4. Try using a wired connection instead of WiFi as well. Wireless connections are usually less stable and Internet spikes could occur more often.
  5. Contact your ISP if the network issue is still there.

3. Disable your antivirus

  1. Open your antivirus software and turn it off temporarily.
  2. Check to see if disabling your antivirus had any effect on the issue.
  3. If the issue is still there, consider removing your antivirus.
  4. If removing the antivirus solves the problem, perhaps you should try out different antivirus.

If the file is not located in C:\Program Files, you should perform an antivirus scan with a suitable antivirus solution to remove the malware infection.

A suitable and compatible antivirus program can look for and detect the issue, and if the codec is corrupted, a thorough scan may simply remove the threat.

We also recommend that you remove or quarantine all infected files before completely reinstalling BS Player. The virus may have infected your entire system, and it is now replicating itself with each installation.

4. Turn off Windows Firewall

  1. Press the Start button and open the Control Panel.
  2. Click System and Security.system and security control panel bs player cannot download codecs
  3. Select Windows Defender Firewall.
    windows defender firewall control panel bs player cannot download codecs
  4. Choose Turn Windows Firewall on or off > Select Turn Windows Defender Firewall off (not recommended).
    turn off windows defender firewall bs player cannot download codecs
  5. Click OK to make sure the changes were saved.

5. Manually download the codecs

  1. Search for K-Lite Codec Pack online.
  2. Download any version of K-Lite Codec Pack and install it.

If you can’t play videos in BS Player due to missing codecs, check out our guide on how to download and install all required codecs for Windows 10.

We hope that our guide on how to fix the BS Player codecs download issue was of help to you. If you found this article helpful, leave a comment in the comment section below.

Where the heck is Windows 10 Insider 19H2? Some thoughts on this first day of summer

Posted on by Kip Kniskern

Earlier this week, Zac Bowden, who’s apparently been intently watching the calendar and lying in wait, posted his countdown to when Microsoft’s promise of more news about Windows 10 Insider version 19H2 coming “later this spring,” would be, well, late:

To recap, Microsoft has been in a cadence of twice per year updates to Windows 10, but recently has been coy about any discussion of the second release for 2019, known as 19H2.  Instead, Microsoft has been charging ahead with updates for 20H1, the first of two releases scheduled for 2020. In a post on Windows Central, Bowden contends that “Microsoft has fallen behind schedule with its plans for this (19H2) release.”

Bowden goes on to state the obvious, that “Windows 10 is not getting two major feature updates this year,” and contends that Windows 10 19H2 will be “a much smaller cumulative-type update that will essentially sit on top of 19H1.”

There are multiple reasons for that, including as Mary Jo Foley posted back in February, that Windows isn’t its own org anymore, it sits with Azure, and some adjustments in release cycles need to happen:

(T)he impact of last spring’s big Windows reorg which resulted in Windows engineering moving to the Azure team, is starting to manifest. Azure has been using a customized version of Windows 10 Server as the core of the Azure platform for quite some time. But the team behind the Windows core OS — which (confusingly) is not the same thing as WCOS — hasn’t really prioritized Azure up until now. Instead, it’s been prioritizing the needs of Windows client, Server and Xbox.

This is starting to change. Beginning with the next major update to Windows core, which is the guts of Windows (meaning the kernel, file system, networking stack and such), the Azure team at last will be using the most-up-to-date version of Windows core instead of a much older version, my sources say. Moving forward, the Windows core features the Azure team wants will get top billing.

In addition, enterprise clients have been clamoring for a revamping of Microsoft’s twice yearly update pattern, with many calling for a single release per year, at most. Microsoft has steadfastly refused to back off the twice yearly cadence, but did make changes to the licensing agreements, extending H2 updates to 30 month coverage while limiting H1 releases to 18 months. This, along with the lagging appearance of 19H2, strongly suggests that Microsoft is looking at a major/minor release cycle each year.

To say that 19H2 development is “delayed” suggests that there is some kind of technical issue or new feature not quite ready that’s slowing down an announcement of what’s happening with the next release of Windows. We’re not sure at all that’s correct.

Instead, with some 14 million Windows Insiders who are clamoring for new builds and new stuff every week, a new message, and perhaps even a new way of running the Windows Insider program needs to be crafted. What happens when, for half the year, almost nothing new is introduced? (What’s happening now, is that 20H1 testing is being stretched out over the whole year). Has Microsoft handled this messaging poorly, as Bowden says, or is this delay in communication both embarrassing or a disservice to customers, as Paul Thurrott says in his (premium) post this morning? Well, yes and yes.

Microsoft, it appears, is shifting to a cadence more closely aligned with Azure, more in line with a once per year major release, and that’s going to be good news for the enterprise and not so good news for Insiders. Why the company can’t just come out and say that is baffling, and leads to the kind of public hand-wringing we’re seeing coming out of the likes of Thurrott and Windows Central. But what’s delayed is not work on 19H2, only the messaging.

Happy summer to the northern hemisphere!

 

Latest Microsoft Edge Insider builds now show media info in Windows 10 volume overlay

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

The latest Microsoft Edge Insider builds will now display media info from the top left volume pane in Windows 10 that can be accessed by hitting on of the physical volume key on the device or keyboard (via MSPU). This contrasts to just showing nothing at all, like the old version of Edge, or the less-than-useful “chrome.exe” that is show when playing media from Google Chrome.

This feature works best with YouTube and YouTube Music, showing the video title or song name at the at the larger top line, its uploader or artist in the smaller second line, as well as the video icon on the right. This is definitely useful to those who use YouTube as their primary music streaming application.

Comment from discussion Shipleaves’s comment from discussion "Edge Dev & Canary now show YouTube Thumbnails with Media Controls Overlay".

Every other website that also supports Windows 10’s media controls also work, although not to the same extent. From other sites, the volume pane will pull the name from the tab, displaying the song’s name and artist in the title in Spotify web player, but just the website’s name in most others. So just seeing “Netflix” while you multitask and watch the Stranger Things season 3 trailer might not be quite as useful, at least it’s there and something that could potentially be fully implemented later.

On the brighter side, this is definitely an important aspect to look at in the growing world of Progressive Web Apps. Multimedia PWAs, in particular, will feel a lot more like real apps once they are fully integrated into Windows 10’s media controls.

Hopefully, other websites will see the value of this new feature and swiftly add the capability into their own apps. Which web apps do you think could best take advantage of the media controls in Windows 10?

Hidden Cortana Beta app in Windows 10 build 18922 appears to be in UWP format and ready for other devices

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

Two days ago, Microsoft released a new Windows 10 20H1 preview build that contained a couple of hidden features, including a new Cortana Beta app. Once enabled, the app still appears next to Windows Search in the taskbar, but it comes with a revamped design and the same conversational UI that is already available on iOS and Android.

This hidden Cortana Beta app was first discovered by Twitter user Albacore, but Rudy Huyn, the former prolific Windows Phone developer has since revealed more secrets about the new client. According to Huyn, this new Cortana app is a full UWP app that could work on other platforms where UWP apps can already run. However, it appears that the app does rely on a separate Win32 process that can work in the background, as do other UWP apps such as Dropbox (Rudy Huyn had a big role in the development of the Dropbox UWP app, FYI).

In the same Twitter thread, Huyn also added that Cortana Beta is actually a Store app, which means that Microsoft will be able to update it at convenience, in a similar way to the Xbox Game Bar on Windows 10. The existing Cortana didn’t always require a full new Windows 10 build to get new features, as Microsoft has been able to do some server side changes over the years. However, this new Cortana Beta app, which the company has yet to officially announce, could be updated much more frequently.

The Windows 10 May 2019 Update (19H1) finally separated Cortana from Windows Search, it seems that Cortana could finally get some love with the 20H1 Update. The digital assistant has been pretty much stagnating in recent years, and Microsoft can’t really afford to rest on its laurels now that Alexa is available for everyone in the Microsoft Store.

How to report an unsafe or malicious website in Microsoft Edge Insider

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

This week’s Edge Insider update added the ability to report an unsafe website without leaving the browser. It’s a new menu item which makes it easier for you to help others out if you stumble upon some malicious content online.

First, you’ll need to be on the website which you want to report – Edge prefills the URL in the form and there’s currently no way to change it. Open a new tab to the site and then click the menu icon (“…”) in the top-right of the Edge interface. Hover over the “Help and feedback” sub-menu and click the “Report unsafe site” item.

Screenshot of reporting an unsafe site in Edge Insider

Microsoft’s site report form will open and automatically detect the URL of the site. Click the “I think this is an unsafe website” radio button to confirm your submission. Use the language dropdown menu to indicate the primary language on the website.

Finally, complete the captcha and press “Submit” to file your report.

The whole process should only take a few seconds. Your report will be ingested into Microsoft’s SmartScreen filter, which is used by products including Edge and Windows 10 to identify and block malicious websites. Once your submission has been verified, future visitors to the site may see a SmartScreen notice which warns it could be unsafe.

Screenshot of reporting an unsafe site in Edge Insider

It’s also worth noting you can report false positives using the same form. Although the menu item in Edge is labelled “Report unsafe site,” you can select the “I think this is a safe website” radio button on the reporting form to inform Microsoft that it may be falsely blocking a site. Generally, you should only do this if you have strong reason to believe a site has been incorrectly flagged as malicious.

An individual report won’t necessarily make a direct impact on SmartScreen’s filtering. Instead, each report hints to Microsoft that there may be a problem with a site. A combination of factors, including manual review and automatic AI-powered analysis, are employed alongside user reports when determining whether a site should be blocked.

BS Player won’t download subtitles [5 FIXES THAT REALLY WORK]

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

BS Player is a popular multimedia player, but many users reported that BS Player won’t download subtitles. The media player says that it checking for subtitles and then stops, saying that no subtitles were found.

Here’s how one user described this issue on BS Player forums:

I am not sure what happened, but BS.Player will no longer download online subtitles. It always says it is checking for subtitles and then immediately says there are none found.

In order to fix this issue, we managed to come up with a few solutions that you should try.

What to do if BS Player isn’t downloading subtitles?

1. Reinstall BS Player

  1. Uninstall BS Player and reinstall it again.
  2. Make sure to download the latest version and check if that solves your problem.

To ensure that BS Player is completely removed, we suggest using uninstaller software to remove all files associated with BS Player.

2. Check your Internet connection

check your network connection bs player can't download subtitles
  1. Open your Internet browser and check to see if web pages load quickly and without interruption.
  2. If you notice your Internet running slower than usual, perform a hard restart on your router/modem.
  3. Contact your Internet provider if hard resetting of the router/modem doesn’t work and let them know about the issue you’re having.
  4. Try using a wired connection instead of Wi-Fi as well. Wireless connections are usually slower and internet spikes could occur more often.

3. Run as administrator

  1. Make sure to run BS Player using a user account that has administrator privileges.
  2. Right-click the application and choose Run as administrator from the menu.
    bs player run as administrator bs player won't download subtitles

4. Update BS Player

  1. Click the Menu button in the BS Player window > select About – or simply press F1 on your keyboard.
    bs player about bs player won't download subtitles
  2. In the About window, press the Check for new version button, this will take to the official website from where you can download the newest BS Player version
check for new version bs player about

5. Try running VLC Player

VLC player bs player won't download subtitles
  1. Download VLC Player.
  2. Run the setup file and follow the instructions.
  3. Once the application is installed, check if the problem is still there.

We hope that you could find at least one of our solutions to fix the BS player subtitles issue. If you know any other working solutions, feel free to recommend them in the comment section below.

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Windows 10 Twitter app gets a revamped menu in new update

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

The official Twitter app for Windows 10 devices made a pretty significant change today when it completely revamped its main menu on the left side of the screen.

Previously, the Twitter app would feature the user’s avatar at the top of the menu which could be clicked at any time to navigate to their profile. This link has now been moved to the near-bottom of the menu and has been replaced with the Twitter bird icon which goes to the main timeline.

A new ellipsis icon has also been added to the menu. This opens up the app’s settings screen.

It’s unclear if anything else has been changed as no new release notes have been posted. It’s likely that this change was simply pushed out to the app and official release notes will be posted at a later date after more changes have been made.

Previous Twitter updates added support for multiple accounts and the new quote-tweet gif feature.

Do you like this change to the Windows 10 Twitter app? Let us know why or why not in the comments below and then follow us on Twitter for more Windows news.

This is How You Can Configure Windows Sandbox [Easy Steps]

Posted on by Matthew Adams

Since late May 2019, Microsoft has rolled out the Windows 10 version 1903 update to more and more users. That update includes a new Windows Sandbox for the Windows 10 Enterprise and Pro editions.

Windows Sandbox lets users open untrusted programs and files in a secure container. Then, dodgy programs can’t have any impact when opened within the sandbox.

Windows Sandbox doesn’t include any notable configuration options on its window. Thus, at first glance, there doesn’t seem to be any way users can configure the sandbox.

However, users can adjust a few Windows Sandbox settings by saving a WSB configuration file. Users can add a few configuration commands to the WSB file to adjust sandbox settings.

But first, you need to enable Windows Sandbox. Check out this step-by-step guide on how to enable Windows Sandbox.

Once you’ve turned Windows Sandbox on, you can configure it depending on your needs.

How can I configure Windows Sandbox?

  1. To set up WSB configuration file, users will need to open a text editor. Notepad is the default text editor in Windows 10 that users can open by pressing the Windows key + S and entering ‘notepad’ in the search box.
  2. Then click Notepad to open that text editor’s window. However, users can also set up a WSB file with alternative third-party text editors.
  3. Users need to add two configuration tags to the bottom and top of the WSB file. First, enter ‘<Configuration>’ at the top of the file.
  4. Then, a few lines below that, enter ‘</Configuration>’ in Notepad.
  5. Then your text file should look something like the one in the snapshot directly below. Users must enter all the commands between the two configuration tags.
  6. There are four alternative commands that users can configure Windows Sandbox with. Users can enable networking by entering ‘<Networking>Enable</Networking>’ in Notepad.
  7. To disable networking, input ‘<Networking>Disable</Networking>’ as shown directly below.

The virtual GPU is enabled by default, and users can turn that off with the VGpu command. To do that, enter ‘<VGpu>Disable</VGpu>’ in Notepad. Users can enable VGpu again by entering ‘<Gpu>Enable</VGpu>’ in the text editor.

Users can add a Logon command to the configuration file to open a programs when they launch Sandbox. For example, to launch Paint with Sandbox, users would enter ‘<LogonCommand>’ and ‘</LogonCommand>’ in the text editor.

Then they would enter ‘<Command>mspaint.exe</Command>’ inbetween the Logon tags as shown in the snapshot directly below.

There is also a command that enables users to share folders by mapping them. That command specifies the path of the folder to map and whether the folder is read only or not. Users enter ‘<MappedFolders>’ and ‘</MappedFolders>’ tags in the text file to map folders.

Then users enter the full command as shown directly below.

Thus, the ‘<HostFolder>’ tags specify the path of the folder to map. Then users specify whether the folder is read-only by entering ‘true’ or ‘false’ between the ‘<ReadOnly>’ tags.

When users have entered all the configuration tags, click File > Save as in Notepad. Select All Files on the Save as Type drop-down menu. Enter a title for the file in the text box, which must include .WSB at the end.

For example, users could enter something like ‘Sandbox config.WSB’ in the File name box. Then press the Save button.

Overall, the sandbox configuration commands are fairly straightforward. The commands are similar to HTML tags, with users entering page content between opening and closing tags.

So, this is the list of Windows Sandbox commands you can use right now.

With those commands, users can instruct Windows Sandbox in various ways.

If copy/paste is not working in Windows Sandbox, read the highlighted guide for tested fixes. Users who want an alternative tool for isolating untrusted apps can also learn how to use Sandboxie for secure testing on Windows.

Keep in mind that many users reported getting Windows Sandbox error 0x80070002. If you’re experiencing the same issue after configuring Sandbox, use this guide to fix it for good.

How to adjust subtitle speed in VLC media player [EASY GUIDE]

Posted on by Vlad Turiceanu

VLC is a free and open-source media player and streaming media server. It’s popularity rose mainly because it’s very easy to use, it’s portable, and more importantly, it works across multiple platforms.

The majority of VLC users resort to the media player to watch videos and movies, and some of them are using subtitles. In some cases, there could be some subtitle delay.

This means that the subtitle doesn’t match the sound. This is quite an annoying issue that can become really frustrating if it happens more than once. Learn how to adjust it with ease below.

How to adjust the subtitle delay in VLC

Method 1 – Adjust subtitle delay through Hotkeys

When you adjust the speed via the keyboard keys, the speed increments are 50 ms. This is a fixed value and cannot be changed.

During the video playback, to change the delay:

  • press g if the subtitle is ahead of the sound.
  • press h if the subtitle is behind the sound.VLC hotkeys subtitle delay adjust subtitle speed in VLC media player

Method 2 – Use the Extended Settings

The Extended setting of VLC offers a more advanced set of options that can be tweaked to best fit your needs. To adjust the subtitle delay from this menu, you just have to play a video and while in playback, go to Tools > Track Synchronization.

 VLC excels in playing the majority of video formats, but is it any good with MKV files? Find out now.

Here, under Subtitle Track Synchronization, you can modify the value by typing it yourself or by pressing the + and – buttons.

You can also adjust the Subtitle speed and the Subtitle duration factor in the same manner.

There is also an Advanced Synchronization option that can be used only when the subtitles are late compared to the audio. To use it, you just need to:

  • Detect the fact that the subtitles are out of sync.
  • Press shift + H whenever you hear a sentence easily recognizable.
  • Use shift + J when you read the same sentence in the subtitles.
  • Press shift + K for the syn correction to take place.advanced subtitle adjustement adjust subtitle speed in VLC media player

That’s it. As you can see, it’s fairly easy to increase the subtitle speed in VLC on Windows 10. Same can be said about the Advanced Synchronization.

What’s your go-to video player and how often do you use it? Leave the answer in the comments section below along with any other question you may have and we’ll be sure to take a look.

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Say what? AMD has 15 security vulnerabilities, Intel got 233?

Posted on by Milan Stanojevic

Recently, a security researcher compared the vulnerability listings of AMD and Intel hardware. The researcher created a Reddit thread to discuss the findings.

The post highlights the surprising fact that AMD has reported only 15 security vulnerabilities until now. However, we can see a total of 233 vulnerabilities on Intel’s listing.

The findings are quite strange because both these companies are currently leading the market. Still, there is a significant difference between the number of reported security flaws.

This issue sparked a detailed discussion on Reddit and people came up with their own explanations as to why this huge difference exists.

In case you want to be secure while surfing the internet, you will need to get a full-dedicated tool to secure your network.  Install now Cyberghost VPN and secure yourself. It protects your PC from attacks while browsing, masks your IP address and blocks all unwanted access.

So, why this huge difference?

Some people believe that hackers are focusing more on Intel. Indeed, Intel has a monopoly on the consumer market and hackers may want to launch more and more attacks on Intel systems.

Therefore, the increased number of attacks lead to more reported issues.

As others have said already, I think it’s because Intel has been dominating for a long time and thus there has been MUCH more research into Intel security flaws.

Some Reddit users suggested that the architecture of AMD is more secure as compared to Intel.

All systems are tested for these vulnerabilities. Please look into some AMD white papers on speculative execution, they actually built bit checkers into the CPU for this reason. They are taking security seriously.

We can not deny the fact that Intel has a popular bounty program that encourages security researchers to find vulnerabilities in its architecture.

Maybe that is the reason why security researchers are focusing more on Intel. However, Intel has been honest about all the security issues reported until now.

The company really wants to keep its consumers’ trust and decided to be transparent about the security vulnerabilities affecting its products.

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You can now download Microsoft To-Do for Mac, Planner coming soon

Posted on by Milan Stanojevic

Microsoft has recently released its To-Do app to Mac users. Mac users can now get this application from Apple’s Mac App Store free of cost. 

You will find all the major features of the application on the Mac version of the To-Do app. Users can utilize this application to create new to-do lists, share them with others, set up reminders about those tasks etc.

It is worth mentioning that Microsoft wants to integrate Planner as well in the coming months.

This app has all the necessary features that are currently available in the corresponding versions on other platforms. It will allow users to synchronize their Outlook tasks, import flagged emails and others.

Users can easily create a task and attach up to 25GB of files in the To-Do app.

Don’t really like Microsoft To-Do app? Here are some great alternatives that you can use in 2019.

Microsoft describes the functionality of the app as follows:

Got something on your mind? Get Microsoft To-Do. Whether you want to increase your productivity, decrease your stress levels or just clear up some mental space, Microsoft To-Do makes it easy to plan your day and manage your life.

According to Microsoft, the company used AppKit to develop the Mac version of the To-Do app. Microsoft To-Do was launched back in 2017. Initially, a preview version of the app was only available on three platforms including Windows 10, Android and iOS.

As a matter of fact, the team that developed Wunderlist is the one who developed Microsoft To-Do.

Microsoft decided to shut down Wunderlist in 2017. However, the company wanted to improve the feature list of its To-Do app before going ahead with this decision. 

Previously, Mac users were bound to use To-Do as a Web application. Microsoft’s To-Do app is currently available to the users of all major platforms.

You should check out the Mac App Store and download Microsoft To-Do app  on your devices.

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Required video codec is not installed Media Player error [EXPERT FIX]

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Sometimes you might encounter Windows Media Player cannot play the file because the required video codec is not installed error on your PC.

This specific error is usually caused by the absence of codecs needed in order to play media files. In order to properly run media files in Windows Media Player, we came up with a few solutions from which you can use.

How to fix missing codecs error in Windows Media Player?

1. Check if Media Player is enabled

  1. Open Control Panel > choose View by Large Icons.
    large icons control panel windows media player cannot play the file because the required video codec is not installed
  2. Access Programs & Features.
    programs and features control panel windows media player cannot play the file
  3. Click Turn Windows features on or off.

  4. Make sure to have Windows Media Player box checked > press OK and see if it fixed the issue
windows media player disable windows features the required video codec is not installed

2. Enable the Download codecs automatically setting

  1. In the Tools menu > choose Options.
    tools options windows media player the required video codec is not installed
  2. Open the Player tab > make sure to have the Download codecs automatically box ticked > click OK.
  3. Try playing the media file, if asked if you want to install the codec, choose Install.

3. Install K-Lite Codec Pack

  1. Visit the K-Lite Codec Pack’s website and go to the Download section.
  2. You can choose between Basic, Standard, Full, Mega.
  3. Getting the standard version should provide enough support for most users, but if you want to some get extra software, you can go for the Full version.
  4. Restart your computer after the install is complete and then try playing the problematic media file.

4. Try using professional media player software

CyberLink’s PowerDVD is an innovative Windows Media Player alternative, with HDR10 support, a wide range of functions, and codecs.

The program supports numerous video formats and codecs, such as MP4, AVCHD, AVI, MKV, 360, and more. Using the TrueTheatre HD option, users can improve the quality of any video, upscaling it to a higher resolution, artifact-free version. You can easily turn a 480p video into a 1080p, change the FPS, reduce the amount of video noise, or employ motion compensation technology.

CyberLink enables you to use 3D video playback and convert 2D movies into a 3D format with ease. To use this service:

  1. Download CyberLink PowerDVD
  2. During playback, click the 3D button on your playback toolbar
  3. Follow the instructions presented on the 3D configuration window that will pop up.

We hope that our guide on fixing the Windows Media Player error helped you fix the issue. If you found this article helpful, leave a comment in the comment section below.

Microsoft opens Immersive Reader to 3rd parties, brings Office 365 to Google Education customers in the US

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

Microsoft has made two important announcements on its Education blog this morning. First of all, Immersive Reader, the company’s tool to improve reading and writing comprehension in apps like OneNote is now available as an Azure Cognitive Service . This means that third-party developers can integrate Immersive Reader in their apps, and Microsoft shared a list of 15 new parters today.

Immersive is also coming to several Microsoft apps including Forms, Whiteboard, and even Minecraft: Education Edition. “We want to allow all students to engage in Minecraft: EE, and this includes reading signs, boards, in any form or any language,” explained Mike Tholfsen, Product Manager on the Microsoft Education team.

Minecraft EE Immersive Reader.gif

In addition to expanding Immersive Reader to many more apps, Microsoft also announced major news for students and teachers with Google EDU accounts. Starting in the US, Microsoft will allow G Suite for Education users to sign in to Office 365 for free with their Google accounts, and access apps and experiences such as OneNote, Immersive Reader, and Microsoft Teams.

The Customer preview of what Microsoft calls “simpler sign-on” will work with Chromebooks that have already been set up by IT admins, qs the solution will require a new version of Microsoft’s Office Online extension for Google Chrome. “With simpler sign-on, once you sign in to your school’s Chromebook, you can be automatically signed in to Office 365 in just two clicks, without retyping a username or password,” the blog post reads.

Microsoft is acknowledging that Google Education tools are already popular in US classrooms, but the software will make it easy for teachers and students to transition to Microsoft apps. As an example, Microsoft has built a tool to import content from Google Classroom to a OneNote Class Notebook. “You’ll be able to create and distribute assignments in OneNote and push the grades back to Classroom, so you can view all your assignments and grades in one place,” the company explained.

To join the Customer Preview of Office 365 for Google Education customers, Microsoft is inviting school districts and their IT admins to sign up on this page. Microsoft will provide free guidance to school districts and even help IT admins do all the configuration for free.

Windows Media Player Cannot Burn to Disc Because Drive is in Use [FIXED]

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Many Windows 10 users reported encountering an issue when trying to burn a CD through Windows Media Player. Error message Windows Media Player cannot burn to the disc because the drive is in use. Wait a few minutes for other burning tasks to complete and then try again pops up when users try to start the burning process, leaving them frustrated.

Users made sure to explain the nature of their problem on the Microsoft Answers forum:

When I try to burn an audio CD, I get the error message “Windows Media Player cannot burn to the disc because the drive is in use. Wait a few minutes for other burning tasks to complete and then try again”. There is no other burning application running and this issue has only started since I upgraded…

After extensive research, we managed to come up with a few solutions that can help you fix this issue, and we’re presenting them to you in order from the simplest one to the most complex one. Be sure to follow our instructions carefully in order to avoid any future problems.

Why Windows Media Player won’t burn a CD?

1. Update/reinstall the driver

  1. Press the Windows logo key + R on your keyboard > type devmgmt.msc in the Run box and hit enter to open the Device Manager.dvmgmt.msc run Windows Media Player cannot burn to the disc because the drive is in use
  2. Expand the CD-DVD ROM drives section in the Device Manager > right-click on your CD/DVD device and select Update.cd/dvd rom driver Windows Media Player cannot burn to the disc because the drive is in use
  3. Wait for the update process to occur > Restart your PC and see if it fixed the issue.
  4. Alternatively, you can right-click on the CD/DVD device and select Uninstall.
  5. Restarting your PC should automatically attempt re-installing the drivers.
  6. If this isn’t the case, download the device drivers from the official manufacturer website.

You can also update your drivers automatically with dedicated driver updating software. Just install the software and let it scan your drivers. It will automatically detect whether your drivers are damaged or outdated and install the best version available. 

2.  Change the burn speed

  1. Click the Organize option in Windows Media Player > select Options. Options WMP Windows Media Player cannot burn to the disc because the drive is in use” style=”width: 366px”>
  2. Open the Burn tab > under the General tab, change the Burn speed to Medium/Low > click OK.
burn speed Windows Media Player cannot burn to the disc because the drive is in use

3. Fix the problematic registry entries

  1. Press the Windows logo key + R on your keyboard > type regedit in the Run box to open the Registry Editor.regedit run Windows Media Player cannot burn to the disc because the drive is in use
  2. Access the following location from the left pane and select the registry:

    HKEY    _LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\{4D36E965-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}    .Registry editor Windows Media Player cannot burn to the disc because the drive is in use
  3. Right-click UpperFilters in the right pane > select Delete > click Yes
  4. Close the Registry Editor and reboot your computer to see if it fixed the issue

We hope that you could find our solutions on fixing the Windows Media Player burn error useful. In most cases, you can fix the problem simply by reinstalling your DVD driver from the Device Manager. If that doesn’t work, modifying the registry might help.

There you go, three simple solutions that should help you fix this problem. If you found our solutions helpful, feel free to let us know in the comments section below.

Download Windows 10 KB4503288, KB4503281 to fix UI issues

Posted on by Milan Stanojevic

Microsoft is back with another round of cumulative updates for Windows 10. These patches are rolled out for various versions of Windows 10, including the October 2018 Update and the April 2018 Update.

Microsoft releases new cumulative updates every month as a part of its Patch Tuesday cycle. These updates address existing issues in the operating system. Additionally, they also bring some feature and performance improvements.

More specifically, KB4503281 addresses Windows 10 version 1709 bugs and KB4503288 resolves issues in Windows 10 version 1803. 

In this article, we are going to discuss the major changes and improvements that came along with KB4503288 and KB4503281.

KB4503288 and KB4503281 major changes

Icon leading bug fix

Microsoft addressed an issue with Windows 10 that restricted users from loading new icon files. This issue was caused by those icons that had a bad image file.

Microsoft Edge bug fix

Both of these updates resolve a bug with Microsoft Edge. According to some user reports, the browser didn’t open correctly when they clicked on links within an application.

Calculator application issue fixed

KB4469068 introduced a bug that affected the Calculator application. This issue prevented the app from following the Gannen setting.

Office 365 fix

Microsoft addressed an issue that caused Office 365 applications to stop working when launched. The issue occured when the apps were deployed in App-V packages. 

Data encryption issues resolved

Previously, users experienced some issues related to data encryption. Microsoft says that the issue has been resolved and you can not decrypt data on Windows 10 v1607 and Windows Server 2016 or earlier if it’s protected.

Unresponsive UI bug fixed

Kb4503288 resolves unresponsive UI issues in Windows. The issue was experienced when users scrolled in some windows with many child windows.

Known issues

Microsoft is currently investigating an issue that is caused after the installation of KB4503288. Some users reported getting black screen issues after the first logon. 

Microsoft promised to release a fix with the upcoming updates. Meanwhile, you can get rid of this issue by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Delete. Now click the Power button and select Restart. The problem should be gone now.

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KB4501371 fixes a nasty bug breaking audio on Windows 10

Posted on by Milan Stanojevic

Microsoft released a new cumulative update to Windows 10 v1809 PCs. Update KB4501371 bumps the existing version of the operating system to build 17763.592.

This patch addresses a long list of existing issues in Windows 10 version 1809, Windows Server version 1809 and Windows Server 2019.

Most importantly, KB4501371 fixes some annoying bugs affecting Your Phone app, Media Player and improves isolated browsing in Microsoft Edge. Additionally, it resolves some audio issues in Windows devices. 

Let’s take a quick look at the official changelog.

KB4501371 major improvements and fixes

App launch issues resolved

Microsoft fixed the issue that prevented users from launching some applications using cmd.exe.

Your Phone application bug fix

Some users experienced issues while connecting Your Phone application to the internet. Users can now use their apps via a web proxy server.

GDI+ issues fixed

KB4501371 resolved an issue related to the Windows graphics device interface. Microsoft confirmed that GDI+ previously caused issues for various versions of Windows 10.

Media Player bug fix

Some Windows 10 users reported that they were unable to play media files in a loop. Therefore, Microsoft released KB4501371 to fix this bug.

Isolated browsing improved

There were some reports regarding isolated browsing issues when some people used Windows Defender Application Guard in Microsoft Edge. Microsoft released KB4501371 to improve isolated browsing in the browser.

Realtek Bluetooth radio drivers issues

Windows 10 May 2019 Update introduced quite a few bugs of its own. One of those bugs affected Realtek Bluetooth drivers. Microsoft confirmed this issue has been fixed now.

Audio bugs fixed

Microsoft says that Windows 10 users experienced audio issues in some cases. This issue affects when users have not restarted their systems for more than 50 days.

IE11 scrolling issue

There were some user reports about a bug that affected Internet Explorer 11. KB4501371 resolved an issue with scrolling feature in the browser.

KB4501371 known issues

Microsoft acknowledged three known issues in Windows 10 Update KB4501371.

The first issue is related to error code 0x800f0982. Microsoft warns its users that this error is triggered on those devices that have installed some Asian language packs. 

Microsoft is working on fixing the bug. The tech giant recommends its users to uninstall the language packs that have been recently installed on their systems.

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Microsoft Edge Insider Canary channel is now officially available on Windows 7, 8, and 8.1

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

Following the release of Microsoft Edge Insider on macOS, Microsoft has made its new Chromium-based web browser officially available on Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 today. For now, only the Canary channel is available on these older versions of Windows, though Microsoft said today that the Dev channel which gets less frequent updates will be available “soon.”

“Delivering the next version of Microsoft Edge to all supported versions of Windows is part of our goal to improve the web browsing experience for our customers on every device, and to empower developers to build great experiences with less fragmentation,” Microsoft explained today. “Microsoft Edge will have the same always up-to-date platform and the same developer tools on all supported versions of Windows and macOS. This will reduce developer pain on the web, while ensuring all Windows customers have the latest browsing options,” the company commented.

Microsoft also highlighted today that the first Edge Insider Canary builds on Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 have a couple of known issues: Among highlights, dark theme and signing with an Azure AD accounts are currently not supported. The software giant is committed to improve its Edge Insider browser by listening to user feedback, and you can share your thoughts about the new Chromium-based Edge by clicking the smiley face next to the Menu button.

You can download Microsoft Edge preview builds from the new Edge Insider website, where Microsoft also publishes a detailed roadmap with upcoming new features.

Windows 10 20H1 build 18922 is out with improvements for Language Settings and Feedback Hub

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

Microsoft has just released another minor update for Windows Insiders on the Fast Ring. The 20H1 preview build 18922 brings a revamped Language Settings page that should be easier to navigate, and Microsoft has also reorganized the language installation page to add some useful descriptions.

Starting with this build, Microsoft is also rolling out a new Find Similar Feedback feature in Feedback Hub: After logging any new feedback, Windows Insiders will be able to browse similar items and even link their feedback to existing contributions from other Insiders.

This new 20H1 build also brings several bug fixes, and it addresses two specific Windows Update issues preventing some Insiders to install recent builds. You can check out everything that’s fixed and still broken in this build below:

General changes, improvements, and fixes for PC

  • We fixed an issue resulting in some Insiders getting Windows Update error 0x80010105 when updating to recent builds.
  • We fixed an issue resulting in some Insiders getting Windows Update error 0xc0000005 when updating to recent builds.
  • We fixed an issue where the Action Center background was unexpectedly opaque in the quick action section.
  • We fixed an issue where if you used the spacebar to switch to a different Focus assist state in Settings, keyboard focus would unexpectedly jump to the Have a Question? Section.
  • We fixed an issue with the Bopomofo IME where the character width would suddenly change to Full width from Half width.
  • We’ve added a tip to the Bopomofo IME settings that Ctrl + Space can be used for toggling conversation mode.
  • We fixed an issue where, when using the Japanese IME with Excel, if you’d turned off Japanese input-mode by clicking the input-mode indicator, the input-mode would revert back to “Hiragana” every time focus moved to another cell.
  • Based on feedback, we’ve updated the Chinese Pinyin IME settings to now refer to Default mode, rather than Input mode.
  • We fixed an issue for some of the Insiders with the updated File Explorer search experience, resulting in suggested results in the search dropdown not responding when clicked. Thanks for reporting this!
  • We’ve made a few small design tweaks to the updated Windows Ink Workspace, including changing the overflow menu button to new use an ellipsis icon. Note – this feature update is still in the process of rolling out.
  • We’re now starting to roll out the updated Settings header again after addressing an issue with the OneDrive entry – appreciate your patience!

Known Issues

  • This update might fail the first time you try to download it with a 0xc0000409 error code.
  • For Home editions, some devices might not be able to see the “download progress %” change on the Windows Update page.
  • There has been an issue with older versions of anti-cheat software used with games where after updating to the latest 19H1 Insider Preview builds may cause PCs to experience crashes. We are working with partners on getting their software updated with a fix, and most games have released patches to prevent PCs from experiencing this issue. To minimize the chance of running into this issue, please make sure you are running the latest version of your games before attempting to update the operating system. We are also working with anti-cheat and game developers to resolve similar issues that may arise with the 20H1 Insider Preview builds and will work to minimize the likelihood of these issues in the future.
  • Some Realtek SD card readers are not functioning properly. We are investigating the issue.
  • Tamper Protection may be turned off in Windows Security after updating to this build. You can turn it back on. In August, Tamper Protection will return to being on by default for all Insiders.
  • We’re investigating an issue where some users are reporting that File Explorer search is rendering in an unexpectedly small area and clicking it results in a crash.

Known issues for Developers

  • If you install builds from the Fast ring and switch to either the Slow ring or the Release Preview ring, optional content such as enabling developer mode will fail. You will have to remain in the Fast ring to add/install/enable optional content. This is because optional content will only install on builds approved for specific rings.

As a little sidenote, the Windows Insider team previously said in February that it would release the first 19H2 to Windows Insiders “later this Spring,” but it looks like this won’t be happening after all. Spring is ending in just two days, and Brandon Leblanc from the Windows Insider team shared on Twitter that there won’t be any news about 19H2 builds this week.

19H2 is expected to be a minor Windows 10 update ahead of the release of 20H1 in the first half of 2020, but 19H2 may well have a much shorter testing process compared to previous releases. We hope the Windows Insider team will soon share more details, but for now you probably shouldn’t get too excited about the upcoming 19H2 update.

Microsoft wants to bring ability to uninstall PWAs from Windows 10 Settings to all Chromium-based browsers

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

Microsoft remains committed to make Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) first-class citizens on Windows 10 PCs, and the recent switch to a Chromium base for Microsoft Edge already appears to help a lot in that area. Indeed, the new Edge Insider browser makes it possible to “install” PWAs and have them showing up at the top level of the Windows 10 Start Menu.

The point of “installing” PWAs is to have a web app that can be pinned to your taskbar, and this app will open in its own windows without all the “chrome,” by removing all unnecessary UI elements from your web browser. As a result, these PWAs just look like regular apps, as seen below with OnMSFT PWA created with Microsoft’s Edge Insider browser.

You can create a PWA with Edge Insider just by clicking on the ellipsis at the top right of the browser, and then select Apps>Install this site as an app:

Install website as PWA on Edge Insider

 

As spotted by Windows Latest, PWAs installed via Microsoft Edge now show up in the Apps section of the Windows 10 Settings, right alongside regular UWP and Win32 apps. Edge PWAs also appear in the legacy Control Panel, and they can be uninstalled from both locations. Again, these PWAs behave just like regular apps, and it’s pretty handy to be able to remove them from these familiar places.

It’s now possible to uninstall Edge PWAs from the Settings app or the legacy Control Panel.

PWAs installed via Google Chrome currently don’t have the same hooks to the Windows 10 Settings app and Control Panel, and they currently have to be uninstalled from the PWA’s ellipsis menu. This is something that Microsoft is wanting to change for all PWAs installed via a Chromium browser, as the company explained in a recent Chromium commit discovered by Windows Latest. The bug report is currently labeled as “active,” which means that the changes Microsoft suggested could soon end up in the Chromium open source project and eventually other Chromium-based browsers.

There are no plans for an Xbox Project Scarlett version of the Cyberpunk 2077 video game

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

With Cyberpunk 2077 due for release during the same calendar year as the next Xbox console (which is currently going by the temporary codename of Xbox Project Scarlett), some had been wondering if the game would also be getting a release on Microsoft’s new console in addition to the current gen Xbox One.

With Project Scarlett apparently being capable of playing games in 8K resolution, it would make sense that the devs behind a title as visually impressive as Cyberpunk 2077 would want it to release on such a device so that their creation could look its absolute best.

Unfortunately, according to an interview with the game’s quest director, Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz, over on GamingBolt, it seems that Cyberpunk 2077 is only currently being developed for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.

While disappointing, it is important to note that Project Scarlet will be able to play a large number of video games from the Xbox, Xbox 360, and Xbox One libraries which will likely include Cyberpunk 2077. There’s always the possibility too that an enhanced version of the game could get a next-gen release further down the line.

Tomb Raider, for example, launched on the Xbox 360 but was given a major re-release on the Xbox One in a Definitive Edition that included significant graphical upgrades and all of the previously released DLC. The same could happen with Cyberpunk 2077 though probably not in time with the console launch in 2020.

Would you buy Cyberpunk 2077 on the next-gen Xbox console or are you happy to play it on your Xbox One? Share your thoughts with the community in the comments below and then follow us on Pinterest for more Xbox gaming content.

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Need a browser to play Travian Legends? Here are our top picks

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Travian Legends is an online real-time strategy game that had been released in 2004 by software developer Travian Games. The game is played online, directly through the user’s browser, so no download is required.

Since this is a browser-based game, we are going to present you with the browsers to run Travian.

 

What are the best browsers for playing Travian?

Opera GX

Opera was launched in 1995 as a direct competitor to Internet Explorer. Opera Software, a Norwegian software company, developed Opera – which eventually became a multi-award winning web browser.

The web browser offers its users Opera Turbo mode, allowing web pages to load and run much quicker than usual. Although Opera does have the multiple tabs option, it’s not as efficient as UR Browser in Travian Legends.

Opera’s main asset seems to be the Bookmarks section though. Bookmarks are very well organized in the left side of the screen, allowing users to have their favorite links right at their fingertips.

Overall, Opera might not be as popular as other browsers on the list, but it still offers decent features that you should definitely check out.

Opera GX

Get the best out of online gaming with especially tailored features that take care of your privacy and create the perfect environment with CPU, RAM and Network limiters.
Free download Download now

UR Browser

UR Browser best browsers for playing travian

The first entry on our list is UR Browser, and what separates this browser from the rest is its focus on privacy and user security. The browser has a built-in ad blocker and anti-tracking protection, so you’ll remain safe from any harmful tracking cookies.

In addition, the browser has built-in virus protection so it will warn you if you download a malicious file or visit a malicious website. The browser also has an advanced Private Browsing mode, so it won’t store or send any of your information to Google.

There are also various features that will reduce your digital fingerprint and protect your privacy even more. Lastly, there’s also a built-in VPN, so you can rest assured that your information is safe at all times.

It’s worth mentioning that UR browser is built on Chromium, so it has the support for same features and extensions that Chrome uses. If you want to play browser games with extra security and privacy, UR Browser is the best choice.

UR Browser

UR Browser

Play web games securely and keep your privacy with UR browser’s built-in ad-blocker and anti tracking protection.
Free downloadDownload now

Mozilla Firefox

firefox best browsers for playing travian

Firefox was first released in 2002 by the Mozilla Corporation, currently being the 2nd most popular web browser on the market.

Mozilla Firefox supports many web standards, including HTML5, XML, XHTML, MathML, SVG 2 (partial), CSS , ECMAScript (JavaScript), DOM, XSLT, XPath, and APNG (Animated PNG) images with alpha transparency.

Regarding the memory usage, Firefox uses a bit less memory than Chrome, which makes it perfect if you’re on a low-end PC or if you want to reduce the memory usage on your PC.

Although it is not as fast as Google Chrome, Firefox will provide you with solid performance while playing browser-based games.

Get Firefox

Find out how UR Browser protects your privacy in this id-depth review

Google Chrome

chrome best browsers for playing travian

Chrome is probably one of the best-known web browsers today. This browser has been developed by Google, and it’s currently the most used browser in the world. Google’s browser has the best JavaScript/ECMA Script support available and was ranked first at the HTML5 web standard test.

Due to these features, Chrome‘s quickness seems best fitted to run games like Travian. If you have a decent PC, you can easily switch between multiple tabs while playing your favorite games.

Other than that, Chrome is fast, reliable and secure, but not as private with user data as our previous entry on the list. Nevertheless, it’s a great browser, and you should definitely try it out.

Get Google Chrome

Install these privacy extensions for Chrome to keep your data private.

We hope that our list of best fitting Travian Legends browsers could help you decide which web browser you’d prefer using. If this article helped you, leave a comment in the comment section below.

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Windows 10 KB4503327 brings black screen issues for many

Posted on by Milan Stanojevic

Microsoft recently updated its support page that shows the current status of active issues affecting Windows 10 versions.

The Redmond giant released Windows 10 cumulative update KB4503327 on this month’s Patchday. Now, the tech giant confirmed that the update introduced a bug that may lead to black screen issues on startup.

Microsoft confirmed that this bug targetted various versions of Windows such as Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2019, Windows 10 version 1809, and Windows Server 2019. 

You can visit the official web page to read more details regarding the issue.

Here’s a quick workaround

Thankfully, Microsoft suggested a quick workaround to resolve the black screen issues. The company suggested users should wait until their systems gets stuck on the black screen.

Then, they can force restart their machines. This time, the systems areexpected to boot correctly.

You can perform the force restart by following these steps:

  1. Once you see the black screen, press Ctrl+Alt+Delete.
  2. Now you will see a Power button at the lower right corner of the screen. Click on the Power button and then click Restart to reboot your system. Click Power button
  3. Now your machines will complete the reboot process without any issues.

Microsoft is investigating the issue

Microsoft is currently investigating the issue and promised to release a patch in the upcoming release. Meanwhile, you can try this temporary fix to solve the problem.

Microsoft is all set to roll out a new batch of cumulative updates in late June.

We can not deny the fact that the infamous Windows 10 October 2018 Update still gets affected by various issues every now and then.

However, it is not always necessary that all problems are related to Windows. Some issues are caused by outdated drivers, custom configurations, and hardware issues.

As far as the Windows bugs are concerned, you can use the defer update feature introduced in the Windows 10 May 2019 Update.

This feature saves your system from early issues that come along with each update. Additionally, you should create a restore point before updating your system. This can help you to avoid potential issues.

For additional information on how to fix black screen issues on Windows 10, do check out the guides below:

Your browser or operating system does not support this yubikey [FIX]

Posted on by Tashreef Shareef

YubiKey is a popular two-factor authentication security key offered by the industry leader Yubico. This service works with all the major systems including Windows 10. Microsoft had announced the support of Yubikey for the Windows 10 device in the past.

However, some users have experienced an error while trying to install a Yubi security key. The full error reads Your browser or operating system does not support this yubikey. This error can occur due to several reasons.

In this post, we listed a couple of fixes to resolve this error on your Windows system.

Why Windows won’t install Yubikey?

1. Use Microsoft Edge or Opera Browser

  1. Click on Start and select Settings.
  2. Click on Updates and Security.
  3. Select Windows Updates.
    Check for Windows Update your browser or operating system does not support this yubikey
  4. Click on the Check updates button.
  5. If you have metered connection option turned on for the network, click on Download over the metered connection to download the updates.
  6. After installing the updates, restart the system and check of any improvements.

If you ask us about the browser that works without issues with both system and third-party integrations, we have a clear answer. Opera is the right choice for a security-oriented, third-party available, and effective browser.

And, after a few months of everyday use, we at WindowsReport can say that Opera won’t disappoint.

It comes with a built-in VPN and a plethora of integrated apps on your homepage, pinboards, or separate workspaces for improved productivity.

If you want the safest of the safe when it comes to the browsing experience, look no further.

Opera can offer valuable browsing results that will sure fix compatibility issues with other applications or programs, so give it a try.

⇒ Get Opera

2.  Use YubiKey Manager

  1. Download and install the Yubikey manager on your computer from here.
  2. Next, open the YubiKey manager app,
  3. Now insert your YubiKey into the USB port.
  4. Click on Application tab and select “FIDO2”. yubico your browser or operating system does not support this yubikey
  5. Now click on Set PIN button under FIDO2 PIN.
  6. Enter the security key pin number you want to use, confirm the password and click on OK button again to save the changes.
  7. Your YubiKey is now ready to be used. Try to access it via the Edge browser and check if the error is resolved.

3. Use Other Browser

  1. Launch Chrome or Firefox browser.
  2. Go to the Microsoft Account Security page.
  3. Sign in to your Microsoft Account if asked to do so.
  4. Now scroll down to the Windows Hello and Security Key section.
    windows hello and security keys Fix YubiKey not support error
  5. Choose “Set up a security key” option if you want to use FIDO2 security key or select “Set up Windows Hello” if you want to use Windows Hello.
  6. Sign in your Microsoft account again and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the setup.
  7. Connect your Security to finish the setup.

IE mode won’t be available on Chromium Edge for macOS

Posted on by Milan Stanojevic

Chromium-based Edge is bringing some amazing new features. The new Microsoft Edge browser features Fluent Design UI elements, extended privacy controls, as well as an IE mode.

These features seem to impress macOS users as well. For example, one users asked Microsoft if IE Mode will be offered to Mac users as well.

Is the IE tab going to exist on the macOS version or will that be Windows specific?

Microsoft told the Redditor that IE mode on Chromium-Edge is a Windows specific feature. That means it won’t be available on macOS.

IE mode will be supported where IE11 is currently supported so yes, it is Windows specific. Thanks!

So, if you’re a Mac user and you want to test all the new features that Edge brings to the table, the only solution is to switch to Windows 10. Or simply ask a friend to let you test Chromium Edge on his/her Windows 10 PC.

Microsoft is getting ready to revamp Edge

Microsoft is currently testing the new Edge browser and a stable release is expected to be available later this year.

The company does not want to go for a sudden release. Indeed, Microsoft needs to work on polishing the key features and then fix the issues reported by Windows Insiders.

The big M recently announced that it is bringing new autoplay media settings in Chromium Edge. This will allow users to block the video advertisements they see on different webpages.

Well, we need to wait for a few more months until the official Edge version is rolled out. Meanwhile, you can try the Preview builds.

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How to fix Bluetooth issues after June Patch Tuesday updates

Posted on by Milan Stanojevic

Have you noticed any Bluetooth connectivity issues after installing the June Patch Tuesday updates on your system? If you have, don’t worry, you are not alone.

Microsoft already acknowledged this bug that affects various versions of Windows 10, Windows 8.1 and Windows Server. For more information about the OS versions affected by this isssue, go to Microsoft’s support page.

Microsoft released a patch to fix Bluetooth issues as a part of security updates released on this Patchday. As mentioned before, the bug is affecting only certain Bluetooth devices.

Therefore, you need to check if your device is on the list of the affected devices. You need to launch Event Viewer and look at the Event Log to determine the bug. Navigate to Start menu >> type Event Viewer >> Run as administrator and check event details.

Your device is affected if your Event Log displays the following Event Message:

Your Bluetooth device attempted to establish a debug connection.  The Windows Bluetooth stack does not allow debug connection while it is not in the debug mode. 

Check Windows 10 Event log

How to fix Bluetooth issues after update

So, now it’s confirmed that your PC can’t pair with Bluetooth devices. You can try one of the following solutions to fix the issue.

1. Check for updates

Most of the times, this issue is caused by outdated software installed on your system. Therefore, you should check for software updates by visiting the website of your device manufacturer.

2. Uninstall security updates

Microsoft confirmed that the recent security updates released on June 11 cause this issue. The tech giant says you may fail to connect, pair or use some Bluetooth devices. 

Therefore, if your Bluetooth device was previously working fine, you can remove these update to resolve these issues. However, as Microsoft explains:

These security updates address a security vulnerability by intentionally preventing connections from Windows to unsecure Bluetooth devices. Any device using well-known keys to encrypt connections may be affected, including certain security fobs.

This solution is not officially recommended and you should avoid it– if possible.

3. Wait for the patch

Microsoft is aware of the issue and we expect the hotfix to land in the coming days. A temporary solution is to stop pairing your Bluetooth devices until a patch is available.

If you have not installed the June security updates for Windows 10, you can avoid the Bluetooth issues by delaying the installation of updates.

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Steps to enable DNS Query Logging on Windows systems

Posted on by Milan Stanojevic

Microsoft released a new version of the Sysmon tool. The company confirmed that Windows system monitor now supports DNS query logging.

This tool is developed by the CTO of Microsoft Azure Mark Russinovich, who announced the new feature on his official Twitter account. Russinovich attached a screenshot showing how the tool logs DNS queries and information.

Let’s discuss how Sysmon works. It basically monitors specific events currently on the system and then maintains their record in the event log.

But from now onwards, the new Sysmon version brings DNS query logging support. Interestingly, you can also spot which query initiated the program by looking at the “Image” value.

How to enable DNS logging on Windows

  1. Open the run dialogue box by hitting Windows+R keys.

Open Run

  1. Now type eventvwr.msc in the dialogue box and hit Enter. It will open the Event Viewer Window.
  2. At this step, navigate to Applications and Service Logs >> Microsoft >> Windows >> DNS Client Events >> Operational.DNS Client Events
  3. You will see Operational option, right click on it and click Enable Log.

Finally, DNS logging is now enabled on your system. 

Users are excited about this feature

Windows users are really excited about this new feature. Many users started commenting on the post about how the feature would be beneficial.

It looks like you get more data in one event with this vs the dns client log. If you are already using sysmon this is a big win. Don’t have to ask the windows team to turn on DNS client logs.

Another Windows user stated:

Yep so many times I had to fire up message analyzer to grab the process making the DNS request. Really exciting!

What do you think about DNS query logging feature in Windows system monitor? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Patch Tuesday updates bricked Event Viewer? Use this fix

Posted on by Milan Stanojevic

Microsoft confirmed that the June 2019 Patch Tuesday updates introduced a new issue for Windows users. The Redmond giant says that these updates trigger a bug in the Event Viewer app when you use Customer Views.

This issue affects all those users who updated their devices with the security-only updates, monthly rollups, and cumulative updates released on this Patch Tuesday edition.

According to the official support note, this problem affected almost all versions of Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 7 and Windows Server.

Event Viewer bug

Microsoft explained the issue in the following manner:

When trying to expand, view or create Custom Views in Event Viewer, you may receive the error, “MMC has detected an error in a snap-in and will unload it.” and the app may stop responding or close. You may also receive the same error using Filter Current Log in the Action menu with built-in views or logs. Built-in views and other features of Event Viewer should work as expected.

How to fix Event Viewer bugs after update

The good news is Microsoft suggested a temporary workaround to fix the issue. The tech giant says that you should launch PowerShell with administrator privileges. 

  1. Press Windows key + X, you will see a list of options.
  2. Click Windows PowerShell (Admin) to open PowerShell. 
  3. Copy the code mentioned below and paste it in the new Window opened in front of you.
function get-EventViewer {
                Write-Output "List of custom views on the machine"
                Write-Output ""
                Get-ChildItem "C:ProgramDataMicrosoftEvent ViewerViews" -Filter *.xml | % { select-xml -Path $_.FullName -xpath "//Name" } | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Node | Select-Object -ExpandProperty InnerXml
                Write-Output ""
                $view_name = Read-Host "Enter the name of custom view to execute"
                # Get the file name of the view
                $ViewFile = Get-ChildItem "C:ProgramDataMicrosoftEvent ViewerViews" -Filter *.xml | where-object { (Select-Xml -Path $_.FullName -xpath "//Name").Node.InnerXml -eq $view_name }
                Get-WinEvent -FilterXml ([xml]((Select-Xml -Path $ViewFile.FullName -XPath "//QueryList").node.OuterXml))
}

Microsoft promised to release a permanent solution in late June. However, you can use this method to create new views and see custom views that already exist.

Microsoft will release a new batch of cumulative updates in two weeks’ time. Meanwhile, you can develop custom scripts to fix the issue on a temporary basis. 

Alternatively, you can also use one of these event viewer software solutions.

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Microsoft releases Windows Server vNext Preview Build 18917 and Windows Admin Center Preview 1906

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

Microsoft has just announced the release of Windows Server vNext Preview Build 18917, along with Windows Admin Center Preview 1906. The release notes for the new Windows Server build only mention four minor fixes and a couple of known issues, and we invite you to check the Windows Insider blog for more details.

The wording on the official blog post is actually a bit confusing, as the “Windows Server vNext Semi-Annual Preview” that Microsoft refers to should be the 19H2 release of the server OS coming later this year. However, if you’ve been following Windows Insider news recently, you should probably now that 18917 is the build number for the latest Windows 10 Insider build from the 20H1 development branch. Microsoft has yet to release a first 19H2 build for Windows 10, and this new Windows Server build is apparently from the 20H1 branch, not 19H2.

As for Windows Admin Center Preview 1906, this new build brings Import/Export buttons to the Virtual Machines tool, the ability to tag VMs on a Hyper-V server, and improvements to Azure integration functionality. IT admins can also select individual Windows updates to install, which was a top user request. You can download Windows Server vNext Preview Build 18917 and Windows Admin Center Preview 1906 from the Windows Server Insider Preview download page.

Microsoft Research brings four new accessibility games than can be played with your eyes

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

Microsoft Research has published four games to the Microsoft Store for Windows 10 devices, each of which aim to introduce eye control to those with speech or mobility disabilities thanks to the use of the Windows 10 Eye Control assistive technology. The four games—Tile Slide, Match Two, Double Up, and Maze, all can be played with either an eye tracker device or with a traditional mouse and keyboard, and additionally exercises areas such as memory, math, and strategic thinking that they can apply to other eye gaze assistive technologies. According to the Microsoft Accessibility Blog:

Challenge yourself to complete the Tile Slide puzzle in the fewest number of moves; exercise your memory playing Match Two; sharpen your math and strategic thinking playing Double Up; and see how fast you can get your lost puppy home, without getting lost yourself, in the Maze. Compete with friends and family for high score honors. And the twist? Play by using your eyes!

If you’re interested in giving the games a try, or know a friend who could benefit from them, they are available for free from the Microsoft Store. If you want to take advantage of the eye tracker technology, you’ll also need a PC that is updated to the Windows 10 April 2018 Update or newer.

These games are just an example of Microsoft’s focus on providing games and other services to those with mobility impairments. The company also has the Xbox Adaptive Controller, which takes advantage of custom setups with external buttons, switches, and joysticks to allow those with disabilities, including injured veterans seeking reliability, to play their favorite games to nearly the same level (pun intended) as everyone else.

Microsoft also has an entire document online about using eye control, in case you or someone else could find them useful. You can download the games using the links below, and feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section.

Eyes First - Tile Slide
Eyes First - Tile Slide
Download
QR-Code

Eyes First – Tile Slide
Developer:
Microsoft Research
Price:
Free


Eyes First - Match Two
Eyes First - Match Two
Download
QR-Code

Eyes First – Match Two
Developer:
Microsoft Research
Price:
Free


Eyes First - Double Up
Eyes First - Double Up
Download
QR-Code

Eyes First – Double Up
Developer:
Microsoft Research
Price:
Free


Eyes First - Maze
Eyes First - Maze
Download
QR-Code

Eyes First – Maze
Developer:
Microsoft Research
Price:
Free

PowerPoint gets more AI features and new Presenter Coach rehearsing tool

Posted on by Radu Tyrsina

Microsoft has just announced some big updates for PowerPoint Designer, the AI-powered feature that can suggest you design ideas for your slides. More than one billion slides have been created with PowerPoint Designer since launch, the company revealed today, adding that Designer is getting three new features to ease the process of creating compelling slides.

The first addition is Designer for branded templates, which make the AI-powered recommendations much more relevant when using an organization’s template. For PowerPoint users who won’t start with a branded template, the new theme ideas in Designer will also make it easier to kick things off. Lastly, PowerPoint will be leveraging Microsoft Research’s Perspective Engine to add some context to numerical slides. “For example: The size of Afghanistan, which is 652,232 km², is hard to interpret, but adding that it’s “about equal to the size of Texas” makes it easily understandable,” the company explained.

In addition to these Designer updates, the most interesting announcement Microsoft made today is Presenter Coach, a new rehearsing tool that’s coming first to the PowerPoint web app. “This feature allows you to enter rehearsal mode and while speaking you receive on-screen guidance about pacing, inclusive language, use of filler words, and culturally insensitive phrases. It even lets you know when you’re just reading off the slide,” the company explained. This sounds like a great feature to improve your presentation skills, and you can see how it works in the video below.

Presenter Coach will go live in the PowerPoint web app later this summer, and Microsoft didn’t say today if it would also be coming to the desktop apps on Windows and Mac.

How to install Windows 10 on a second drive [QUICK GUIDE]

Posted on by Madalina Dinita

Some users wonder how they can install Windows 10 on a second drive, without damaging the system. Setting up Windows 10 on the new drive is not a hard task, but requires attention. Therefore we made a guide for you to follow.

One user on Microsoft Answers forum asked a similar question:

I have a desktop computer that is running windows 10 home edition with a 1tb hard drive. I’m installing a solid state drive as a second hard drive. I want to install windows 10 home edition on this drive and make it the boot drive

Quick guide on installing Windows 10 on the second drive

1. Download the Windows ISO files

download windows 10 iso how to install windows 10 on second drive
  1. In order to set Windows up, you first need to download the Windows ISO file that will help you create a bootable drive.
  2. To get a clean version of the Windows image you need to download it from the official Microsoft website.
  3. Alternatively, you can download the Media Creation Tool and use it to download the ISO file.

2. Create a bootable Install Media

  1. Now you need to use a disk burning software. We would recommend that you use Rufus for creating the bootable disc.select ISO file rufus how to install windows 10 on second drive
  2. In order to create the bootable drive using Rufus, you’d have to load the image file into the software.
    windows 10 iso select install windows 10 on second drive
  3. Select the file system to FAT32.
  4. Afterward, you simply have to press the Start button.
    start rufus how to install windows 10 on second drive
  5. If you still have files on your USB flash drive, you will be asked to delete them in order to proceed with the burning process.

3. Install Windows

  1. After having the bootable drive ready, you need to set your PC to boot from this drive.
  2. Booting your PC from the Windows drive takes you to the Windows Setup.
  3. Here you will need to press the Install now button. Then you will be asked to choose Language, enter the product key and select Windows version.
    install now windows 10 install windows 10 on second drive
  4. When you reach the point of being asked to choose between Windows Upgrade and Custom install, choose the second option.
  5. Now you can choose to install Windows on the second drive. Click the second drive and then click Next.
  6. This will start the Windows install process.
  7. Wait for Windows to install and set up on its own. Be aware that the installer will restart the computer a few times on its own.

We hope that you found our quick guide on how to install Windows 10 on a second drive useful. If you liked this article, leave a comment in the comment section below.