Microsoft previously shared how the average Windows user can protect themselves from the Spectre and Meltdown security flaws, but today the company explained how IT Pros can do the same with all Windows PCs across their enterprise. Indeed, the Redmond giant is now adding more capabilities to the free Windows Analytics service to give professionals detailed insights on the Windows 7, 8.1 and 10 PCs they manage.

There are now new Anti-Virus Status, Windows Operating System Security Update Status, and Firmware Status sections in Windows Analytics: Anti-virus Status will help indicate if a device’s anti-virus software is compatible with the latest Windows Updates. Windows Operating System Security Update Status will help display which Windows updates are running on any device and if any of these updates have been disabled.

Finally, Firmware Status shows more information about the specific firmware running on any given device. Moreover, it lists if the firmware includes specific protections required by CPU manufacturers. This feature is currently limited to security updates from Intel, but Microsoft says more CPU partner data will be added soon. IT Professionals can get started with these new capabilities today by visiting this website.

Microsoft today is highlighting a new partnership with Virgin Galactic which is helping the spaceflight company showcase the newest age of space exploration. The two companies developed a mobile-friendly and touch-optimized Virgin Galactic website which is accessible to all, highlighting the journey ahead for aspiring astronauts.

According to Microsoft, the website is meant to help the public connect with space travel by showing off how “space exploration, research, and transportation has the potential to improve life for everyone.” Anyone on a mobile device or a PC can visit the website (obviously best viewed in Edge) by clicking here, and experiencing modern spaceflight discoveries firsthand for themselves.

The Virgin Galactic website uses the latest web technology and supports WebVR for those with Windows Mixed Reality devices. There is even a 3D tour for those who aren’t lucky enough to experience Mixed Reality. Other features of the website are listed below.

• With immersive browser WebVR, and anyone can tour the space fleet using Windows Mixed Reality devices. Hotspots provide key details about the WhiteKnightTwo mothership, spaceship VSS Unity and the Virgin Galactic team
• Enjoy a fluid site experience by interacting with a variety of VSS Unity features, the sensation of views in parallax, and animations that enhance your discovery.
• Mobile-friendly and touch-optimized – In keeping with the goal of a captivating venture, the site is mobile-friendly and touch-optimized for intuitive use.

This is definitely a cool experience, and we’re hoping it may inspire many more to sign up with Virgin Galactic, become an astronaut, or explore the wonders of our universe. Feel free to check out the website for yourself and let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

After gathering feedback from beta testers over the past couple of months, Rare’s pirate game Sea of Thieves will be released on March 20 on both Xbox One and Windows 10 PC. This will be Rare’s first PC release, and because the game will be a Microsoft Store exclusive, the game studio has a lot of pressure on its hands to meet the expectations of hardcore PC gamers. Today, Rare expounded a bit on just what that PC experience will be like.

“We know that as PC gamers, having the ability to change the field of view, unlock or lock the frame-rate, rebind keys, change video settings, resolution, and graphics options, as well as offering extra functionality like full ultra-wide support and a dedicated FPS Counter, is all part of the expectation,” explained Rare’s PC Design Lead Ted Timmins. “It’s with great pleasure then for us to announce that after all of the above, and more than a year of working with our partners at AMD, Intel and NVIDIA, it’s time to smash a bottle of rum against our PC specifications so that you can see how your rig will fare.”

First of all, you should know that Sea of Thieves on Windows 10 will ship with an auto-detect experience that will give PC gamers “the Rare-certified spec based on your hardware.” The game studio detailed six different sets of specs, going from the “Cursed” 540p at 30FPS to the “Mythical” 4K at 60FPS.

“The game is perfectly playable at 540p,” explained Timmins, which means that PCs with Intel Integrated GPUs (Intel Iris Pro Graphics 6200 or Intel Iris 540) and 4G of RAM should have a pretty good experience. Sea of Thieves isn’t the most photorealistic game to be released this year (except for the gorgeous water effects), but playing the game in 4K at 60 FPS will require a high-end Intel Core i7 or AMD Ryzen processor, 16GB of RAM and an Nvidia Geforce GTX 1080 or AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 GPU.

Sea of Thieves will also require the Windows 10 Anniversary Update or higher, and it will be a 60GB download. The game is already available to pre-order from the Microsoft Store, though we remind you that it will also be available for free with Xbox Games Pass on launch day. It remains to be seen if Sea of Thieves will be the smash it that Microsoft’s Xbox division desperately needs, but at least the company will be making the Xbox Play Anywhere game more accessible than ever.

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Microsoft today announced Chalkup co-founder Justin Chando has joined Microsoft Education. The move is part of the company’s plans continued investment to “help save teachers time, build collaborative classrooms and drive better learning outcomes for students.”

After spending time with Chando, the Redmond giant is planning on working with Chalkup, educators, and students to bring elements of Chalkup into Microsoft Teams, including a rubric system. According to Microsoft, Chalkup customers will have continued support through the end of June and can then transition into Microsoft Teams.

Justin Chando originally founded Chalkup back in 2013, and it has since grown in popularity. In a note on the company’s website, Chando mentions educators & students from 1 in 3 universities and 1 in 5 high schools in the United States have used the Chalkup Class Collaboration Platform. He also issued the following statement to Microsoft.

“In spending time with the amazing people at Microsoft, it was clear that we were completely aligned in our mission for connecting classrooms, sparking student collaboration, and finding new and innovative ways to work together. We knew Microsoft would be a great fit and we’re thrilled for what the future holds for our customers,”

Existing users should keep in mind that Chalkup will shut down on June 30, 2018, so the company can shift focus to building Microsoft Education products. New signups are also closed, and Chalkup users are being urged to sign up for Microsoft Teams, free and included with Office 365 for Education.

Update: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that Microsoft acquired Chalkup. We’ve since updated to clarify Chalkup CEO Justin Chando has joined Microsoft.

A new video tweeted out by notorious Microsoft Leaker WalkingCat suggests Xbox Live Free Play Days is coming this weekend.

https://twitter.com/h0x0d/status/963414577961553922

The video shows that Free Play Days will run from February 15-18th. It also highlights the several benefits of Free Play Days, including playing Rainbow Six Seige, NBA 2K18, and enjoying multiplayer for free on any game you already own (that is if you’re not already a paid Xbox Live member.)

Microsoft has yet to announce Xbox Live Free Play Days for this month, but we’re assuming an announcement may be coming soon. As always, be sure to stay tuned for more information, as we will update this post with more information once things become more official.

We’d also like to remind you that this week’s Deals with Gold is now live, including big savings on Call of Duty WWII and Destiny 2. These titles are Xbox One X enhanced, so sure to check it out if you’re looking to enjoy new games this week.

Microsoft has been working on a better Windows clipboard for quite a long time now. Back in 2015, we first heard about an internal Microsoft Garage experiment called OneClip, which reappeared a year later as “Cache.” If this previous attempt at creating a universal clipboard never materialized, Microsoft did unveil a new Cloud Clipboard feature back at Build 2017, which will leverage the Microsoft Graph, the Project Rome APIs as well as Microsoft’s Swiftkey keyboard on mobile devices.

In case you don’t remember it very well, you can watch Microsoft’s Joe Belfiore discuss this new Cloud Clipboard feature in the video below (starting around 45’45):

A Cloud Clipboard prototype was recently discovered in the Windows 10 Insider build 17004, but it wasn’t connected to the Microsoft Graph. It’s been quite some time now since Microsoft publicly discussed the feature, but a recently published patent titled “Interacting with a Clipboard Store” seems to reveal more details about this Cloud Clipboard.

The patent was originally filed in August 2016, and it explains how “a multi-item clipboard store” would work. The various drawings show a UI that looks similar to what Microsoft showed during Build 2017, with a pop-up window displaying the latest content items recently added to the clipboard.

Interestingly, this patent also mentions a “cross-device transfer operation” to transfer content from one device to other devices specifically targeted by the user. This specific feature is also described in the drawing below:

The patent actually describes nine different copy modes, including ones where the cloud clipboard would tag the selected content item as being private, favorites, or temporary items that disappear after a certain amount of time. There are really a lot of good ideas in this patent, but as with all patents, it’s not clear if those smart features will eventually make their way to Windows 10. Anyway, Cloud Clipboard likely won’t make it to the Redstone 4 release, so we may have to wait until Build 2018 to learn more about the feature.

For the eighth year in a row, Microsoft has been chosen as one of the world’s most ethical companies by the Ethisphere Institute. To create its annual ranking, the organization uses its Ethics Quotient framework, which takes different variables into account such as corporate citizenship and responsibility, culture of ethics and more.

This year, 135 companies spanning 23 countries have been honoured by the Ethisphere Institute. In the technology sector, other honorees include Dell, Intel, Adobe, Nokia and LinkedIn, now a Microsoft subsidiary. The full list of honorees can be seen on this page.

“Over the last 12 years, we have repeatedly seen that those companies who focus on transparency and authenticity are rewarded with the trust of their employees, their customers and their investors,” explained Ethisphere CEO, Timothy Erblich. “While negative headlines might grab attention, the companies who support the rule of law and operate with decency and fair play around the globe will always succeed in the long term.”

Microsoft President Brad Smith echoed this sentiment in a statement published by the Ethisphere Institute. “At Microsoft, trust and integrity are core to our values and critical to our success. We’re passionate about applying the power of technology to improve our world, and that starts with doing business in a way that builds and maintains trust with our customers,” Smith said.

Welcome back to our Windows 10 news recap, where we go over the top stories of the past week in the world of Microsoft’s flagship operating system.

Microsoft and Fujitsu partner to let you log in with the veins in your palm

As Microsoft continues its work on Windows Hello, the company has partnered with Fujitsu to work on developing vein authentication, by using the veins in your palm to authenticate you.

Preview Program on a per-app basis is being tested for Windows 10 by Microsoft

To separate early access to app updates from the Windows 10 Insider Program, Microsoft is testing per-app preview programs that allows users to test app updates early without having to be a Windows 10 Insider.

Windows 10 Mobile’s Microsoft Photos app receives major update

The Microsoft Photos app on Windows 10 Mobile has received a major new update that brings it more inline with its PC counterpart, although for some users it brings reduced performance.

Wileyfox, who brought a Windows Phone to market late last year, is now in financial trouble

Windows Phone manufacturer, Wileyfox, who brought a new Windows Phone device to market last year, is now in financial trouble. This may not come as a surprise to many, particularly with how Windows 10 Mobile is abandoned by Microsoft.

That’s it for this week. We’ll be back next week with more Windows 10 news!

Microsoft news recap is a weekly feature highlighting the top Microsoft news stories of the past week. Sit back, grab some coffee, and enjoy the read!

Cortana picks up brand new design on iPad, launches 20% faster

iPad users are receiving a new update for Cortana. While bringing a new design to Microsoft’s virtual assistant, Cortana will now also launch 20% faster compared to previous versions.

Users of Bing’s Webmaster Tools can now login with their accounts on Google and Facebook

In an unexpected update, Bing Webmaster Tools has gained a new feature. Microsoft has added third-party account login for Google and Facebook, as well as the current login system with Microsoft Accounts. The new login options are only available in the United States for now, but are expected to roll out to other regions in the near future.

Microsoft to open registration soon for May 7-9 Build 2018 in Seattle

Microsoft’s annual Build event is fast approaching. The company is to open registration for the event, that takes place in Seattle between May 7-9, on February 15th.

Microsoft Build returns to Seattle May 7-9, 2018. Developers, join us as we explore the future of technology. #MSBuild https://t.co/e6X6Vejr77 pic.twitter.com/zf660MM3cI

— Microsoft (@Microsoft) February 8, 2018

Bing highlights new “multi-perspective” Instant Answers

Bing has been working on improving its Instant Answers feature. When users search and Bing believes it can show an Instant Answer, it uses neural networks to find the best answer from multiple sources, and then provides it to the user. In an update to this, Bing can now show multiple different answers that show different points of view, so that the user can make a more informed decision.

That’s it for this week. We’ll be back next week with more Microsoft news.

Welcome to our weekly Xbox news recap series, where we go over the top stories of the past week in the world of Xbox. Let’s get started.

DayZ coming out to Xbox this year

DayZ made a huge impact when it first came out. It was one of the most streamed games on Twitch for quite a while, only losing its popularity when newer, shinier copycats like H1Z1 came along to try and get a piece of the pie. The game will be coming out on Xbox at some point this year via the Xbox Game Preview program, giving it a chance to come back to popularity among a chunk of gamers.

OG Xbox One controller opens for pre-order

Pre-orders have opened up for “Duke,” the replication of the original Xbox controller that will be hitting the market. The controller is going to cost $70, and will have a few new bells and whistles to keep it up to date with the quality of hardware we’ve come to expect. One of the nicer novelties of the new Duke is the fact that the Xbox button in the middle has a LED screen under it which will play the original Xbox starting video when pressed.

Limited Edition Sea of Thieves controller is now available

The limited edition Sea of Thieves controller that was revealed not too long ago is finally available for those who are interested in snagging it. The controller has a beautiful purple paint job, along with a few visual effects that really give it the “pirate” fantasy that Sea of Thieves is meant to convey. The controller will cost you $75, but it’s worth it if you’re a collector.

PUBG bans 2.5 million cheaters, 1 million in January

PUBG has a lot of cheaters. 2.5 million cheaters have so far been banned in the game’s lifetime, with 1 million of them being caught in January alone. While the problem isn’t lending itself to Xbox nearl as much as in the PC community, it has certainly been demoralizing for PUBG fans across the board to be seeing people trying to break the game like this. PUBG is working on ways to prevent cheating like this to happen, but until then, we’ll be seeing a ton of bans coming out.

Thanks for joining us. To keep up to date with all the latest Xbox news, keep a close eye on our Xbox One tag.

Those who use Windows 10 are most likely aware of the Windows 10 Preview Program which allows users to test our new updates for Windows 10 before they’re released to the public. Once part of the Preview Program, users also receive early updates to apps, however, Microsoft looks to be wanting to take this a step further.

As of this week, the company has begun inviting users to join individual Preview Programs (via Thurrott) for some of the stock apps on Windows 10, including Windows Camera, Microsoft Photos, Alarms & Clock and more.

There’s been no mention of the Windows App Previews from Microsoft so far, however, it signals a more user-centric process, as it will allow users to gain access to early updates of their favourite apps, without having to sacrifice their Windows 10 device to potentially buggy early builds of Windows 10.

Positions regarding the US political climate is contentious, to say the least. The past two years of partisan rhetoric has created a visible rift among citizens and continued tribalistic devotion looks to widen that divide for some.

However, there seems to be one area were men and women can venture across the political aisle and come to a common consensus that they want to finally build out a set of agreements to adequately address cross-border data investigation.

For Microsoft, this is a good thing.

Earlier this week, US senators Hatch, Coons, Graham, and Whitehouse introduced a bipartisan legislature called the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data (CLOUD) Act which looks facilitate cross-border access to data as it pertains to the investigation of serious crimes.

Specifically, the on-the-nose titled act attempts to clarify whether or not companies such as Microsoft could be compelled to turn over internationally stored data being a US-based enterprise with caveats but ultimately validating the Stored Communications Act (SCA). The CLOUD Act would also amend blocking provisions in the SCA that currently prohibit US-based data providers from disclosing data to international law enforcement. Instead, CLOUD would enable the United States executive branch to enter into agreements authorizing international governments to make a direct request for data from US-based companies, after meeting a set of stringent requirements based on human rights laws and procedural protections in maintaining confidential data.

How does all of this help Microsoft?

On the face of it, it would seem Microsoft’s accumulated court victories would be wiped out as the US would uphold the SCA which would compel Microsoft to hand over any overseas held data during warranted investigations. However, CLOUD builds in two very important structural astricts that should help prevent abuse of SCA.

According to JustSecurity.org,

Together, the explicit statutory provision establishing a motion to quash based on comity grounds, plus the explicit recognition of other possible motions to quash based on common law comity, ensure that the legitimate interests of foreign governments are taken into account if and when the application of the US’s warrant authority generates a conflict of laws. It thus sets the kind of precedent the United States would want other nations to follow if seeking access to US citizens and residents – helping to ensure that US citizen and resident data is adequately protected as well.

Secondly, the blocking provisions are more clearly examined and laid out for international governments seeking data for investigation of domestic or local crimes.

The foreign government must make a diplomatic request to the United States for this data, via the mutual legal assistance process, even if the only US tie to the case is that relevant data happens to be US-held. This is a time-consuming process which ultimately requires a US attorney’s office to issue a warrant on behalf of the foreign government.

These data requests are also subject to numerous limitations designed to protect the interests of US citizens and residents and to ensure the application of baseline substantive and procedural protections.

In the end, this is a good thing that could help get Microsoft out of court regarding its high profile Ireland case and make the entire proceedings a non-starter going forward for many companies such as Google, Apple, IBM, Samsung and more. The CLOUD Act is a substantive first step at legitimately establishing norms for both domestic and international request for data companies with globally residing customers. CLOUD helps establish a set of procedures for accessing data of citizens using services domestic and abroad while also enabling increasing transparency in how government obtains data.

Hopefully, we’ll continue to see a growing understanding of how data, communications, and investigations are evolving and an effort by US law to accommodate international business.

The Deluxe Edition of EA Sports UFC 3 is now playable on Microsoft’s family of Xbox One consoles. This Deluxe Edition bundle features the main game (which has been out for a week now) plus the legendary Bruce Lee as a playable character and 3,000 UFC Points to spend in-game. Here’s the official game description.

EA SPORTS UFC 3 revolutionizes authentic fighting movement with Real Player Motion Tech, a new animation technology that delivers the most responsive and authentic athletic motion in sports gaming. In G.O.A.T. Career Mode, players must build fight hype to gain fans, earn cash to train at new gyms, and create heated rivalries with other fighters to capture the world’s attention.

EA Sports UFC 3 is the latest in the EA Sports UFC fighting video game franchise. Unlike rival fighting series such as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, the UFC games feature more realistic action and many real-world fighters.

Have you had a chance to play EA Sports UFC 3 yet on your Xbox One? Share your impressions with the community in the comments below.

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Electronic Arts

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The official Xbox One Plex app has finally added support for live TV with its latest update. Plex users who pay for the monthly Plex Pass membership and have an antennae attached to their console will now be able to watch broadcast television from within the Plex app and also pause, rewind, fast forward, and record it.

Here’s the official list of other features added with this update.

• Updated the sources selector UI
• Added sources modal
• Added ability to reorder sources from sources modal
• Added ability to hide sources from sources list
• Added support for inline collections
• Added automatic fallback to transcode if direct stream audio fails
• Playing an item from the play queue will automatically close the play queue

Are you a Plex fan and have you been waiting for this added functionality to come to the Xbox One? Let us know in the comments below.

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Microsoft is pushing Windows Hello a step further by partnering with Fujitsu to allow you to login to your Windows 10 PC using the veins in your palm. The seemingly grotesque feature is definitely interesting to say the least. Here’s a video look at what the new login experience might look like.

In a Windows Blog post, Microsoft noted that the new login option is available to verify employees in a remote workplace.

“The business world is quickly evolving to a place where many employees work remotely. The benefits of working remote are numerous, yet with this transition comes potential security risks. To better protect and secure a mobile workforce, Fujitsu has teamed with Microsoft to build devices with Windows 10 Pro and industry-leading biometric options including Windows Hello and palm vein authentication to prevent security attacks in the modern workplace.”

PalmSecure is the name of the technology behind the palm vein authentication and maps the veins under your skin to verify your identity in order to work. The tech was designed to provide an extra layer of access protection for devices and prevent the company’s network from being compromised.

It should be noted that PalmSecure is still not completely foolproof and is still in its early stages of implementation with Windows 10. You can see devices with this technology enabled via Fujitsu here.

Xbox’s Major Nelson today announced the addition of Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction to the Xbox One Backward Compatible catalog. This title also happens to be 50% off (at $9.99) today as part of the Ubisoft publisher sale, so it is sure to pack plenty of fun for new players and those who already own it.

Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Conviction is coming to Xbox One Backward Compatibility today (it is also on sale for 50% off in this week's @Ubisoft publisher sale) https://t.co/qPMRNrLoTQ pic.twitter.com/mDtB6INELk

— Larry Hryb ????????☁ (@majornelson) February 8, 2018

The action-adventure stealth video game was originally released back in April of 2010 and was followed up by Splinter Cell Blacklist. Players of the game are in control of Sam Fisher and need to recover weapons of mass destruction before they are sold on the black market. New gameplay features in this title include: “Mark & Execute,” the ability to interrogate characters in real-time, and also use objects in the surrounding environment against them.

The addition of this title comes one week after Microsoft added The Darkness II, Spec Ops: The Line, and The Misadventures of PB Winterbottom to the Backward Compatible catalog. As always, if you own this title digitally it should now automatically appear in the ready to download section on your Xbox One. If you own the disc, all you need to do is pop it into your Xbox One and enjoy.

Earlier this week the notorious Microsoft leaker WalkingCat revealed the company’s annual Build developer conference could be scheduled for early May in Seattle, just before Google I/O. Turns out that things are now more formal as Microsoft has confirmed the leaked dates and will soon open registration for the conference.

Microsoft Build returns to Seattle May 7-9, 2018. Developers, join us as we explore the future of technology. #MSBuild https://t.co/e6X6Vejr77 pic.twitter.com/zf660MM3cI

— Microsoft (@Microsoft) February 8, 2018

Registration will kick off on February 15, 2018, and potential attendees are being urged to visit this website and save the date. Microsoft is also tagging this year’s conference as “exploring the future of technology” with opportunities to “create tomorrow,” “imagine tomorrow,” and “code tomorrow.”

Registration hours will be Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Pacific Time. Full conference passes will cost $2,495, providing access to all sessions, content, and the Expo hall plus all conference meals. Coincidently, Build 2018 runs the same week as Google’s I/O conference, so it will be interesting to see if attendance is impacted. Those interested in attending can keep updated by signing up for email alerts here.

As we’re getting closer to the release of Windows 10 version 1803, the Windows Developer Day will come back for another edition on March 7. Kevin Gallo, Vice President of the Windows Developer Platform will explain what’s new for developers in the next Windows 10 update during a live stream starting at 9 AM PST.

Progressive Web Apps may well be a big topic during the keynote: Microsoft confirmed earlier this week that full PWA functionally will be enabled in Windows 10 version 1803, and the company will soon start listing PWAs in the Microsoft Store. We also hope to hear more about Windows 10 on ARM, as developers can now submit UWP apps that target Windows 10 on ARM devices.

If you’re looking forward to seeing what’s coming next for developers in the next Windows 10 release, you can already RSVP for the Windows Developer Day live stream on this page. By doing so, you’ll also be notified when the next Windows SDK is available.

The first half of the first season of the popular Attack on Titan anime series is now available to claim for free in the Microsoft Store for users in the United States and other select regions.

Being in the Microsoft Store, these episodes will be available to watch on Windows 10 PCs and tablets, Windows phones, Xbox 360 and Xbox One consoles, and HoloLens (if you happen to have one of those lying around). Interested anime fans can claim the episodes here.

Attack on Titan is set in a European country which has been overtaken by giant beings named titans and features a large cast of characters and an even larger amount of death and destruction. The title, Attack on Titan, is actually the Japanese-English name used to promote the anime and manga in Japan and it was bizarrely kept when the franchise was released in the West. A proper translation of the Japanese name would be something along the lines of “The Attacking Giants” or “The Advancing Giants.”

Are you a fan of Attack on Titan? Let us know in the comments below.

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