If you ask yourself how to fix the most common WordPress hosting issues, you are in luck today. In this article, we will explore exactly that.
Even though using WordPress is very intuitive, from time to time, you will encounter different errors that can make you feel that you don’t understand how to use it properly.
The developer teams that deal with WordPress fix any issues you might encounter, so you shouldn’t worry too much.
In this article, we will discuss the solutions to some of the most common problems found in WordPress. Please read on to find out more about this subject.
What are the main WordPress hosting issues that can occur?
Unfortunately, even if WordPress grew a lot in security, tools, and features, the hosting service can turn things into the worst scenario in seconds.
Here are the main reasons for issues spawn from hosting problems that can occur:
➡ Low-quality server – Sharing services and resources with other clients can be a bad omen for everyone involved, so it’s better to find a decent deal for a dedicated web server.
➡ Slow loading pages – Even if you have a dedicated server, if it’s a low-end machine running on HDDs and not SSDs can affect the loading times a lot.
➡ Security breaches – Try to find a hosting service that focuses on security and backup. At least if your website gets hacked, you can put it back together with a fast response in no time.
Now that you know what you’re facing, let’s see how we can help you fix the most common WordPress hosting problems.
How can I fix common WordPress errors in no time?
1. The White Screen of Death error
Navigate to the Administration Screens and go to the Plugins section.
Deactivate each of the plugins and reactivate them one by one to see which of them is faulty.
Use an FTP client like FileZilla and locate the wp-content/plugins folder.
Rename the folder to plugins_old.
The WSOD error can be caused both by a database, and also a PHP error so disabling your plugins can sort this problem out.
This issue can also be caused by your database meeting its quota or if the server is down. To check this, you will need to contact your hosting provider.
If your database has the correct information and is not shut down, the issue might be caused by your site being compromised, so you should scan your site with Sucuri SiteCheck and if the results are bad, learn what to do if your site was hacked.
Seeing this error means that there is an issue with your site’s connection to the database. This may have a lot of causes, and the most unpleasant one is that your site was hacked.
If this actually happened, you should seriously consider a different hosting service like Bluehost that provides extensive security features.
3. Failed auto-upgrade
If your WordPress auto-upgrade features have failed, you might see a blank white screen, a warning telling you the update failed, or a PHP error message.
This error happens because of a glitch in the server connection with the main WordPress files, a problem with your Internet connection during an upgrade, or incorrect File Permissions.
Although this built-in OS feature is pretty good already, even though it has the occasional fail, as all software do, the tech giant decided its time for some improvements.
We all know that Windows 11’s flagship multitasking feature is support for Snap Groups which is based on the windows snap capability of the operating system.
Snap Groups is arguably the biggest change to Snap since Windows 8.1, and its a really trustworthy and useful feature.
New integration coming to the Windows 11 Snap Groups
Creating a snap layout is done by launching two or more apps on the desktop, and theb choosing the window you want to snap to one half of the screen, and then drag it to the edge.
Or you can also hover your mouse over the maximize button and snap your open windows. Pretty easy, right?
Microsoft really listened to the feedback it received and its working on a series of improvements based upon Snap groups.
Starting with Windows 11 Build 22494, Redmond developers are now testing snap groups integration in the Alt + Tab and Task View.
Its all going to get wasier and even more practical, as snap groups are simply displayed in the Alt + Tab UI, similar to how these apps appear when hovering over the taskbar.
Thanks to this new change, you can now directly switch to app groups instead of opening these apps one by one, which makes multitasking difficult.
But, of course, no one is forcing you to use it, it just comes activated by default. If you don’t want the Snap groups to appear in Alt + Tab or when hovering over taskbar icons, you can always turn off the integration from Settings.
It is worth noting that Microsoft is testing snap groups in ALT + TAB and Task View with some Windows Insiders.
This isn’t available to everyone and Microsoft could make more changes to the feature before pushing it out to everyone.
What’s your opinion on this new integration for snap groups in Windows 11? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.
Email still is one of the most frequently used mediums for businesses and consumers as well having more than one billion users throughout the whole world.
Because email is such a useful tool for communication, the demand for email hosting has constantly increased.
There are lots of email hosting services for Windows, and we chose five of the best along with their sets of features just to make your choice much more manageable.
Why do I need email hosting?
First of all, emails are the number one source of data leakage for businesses so you definitely make sure that your messages are properly encrypted and their contents are safe.
An email hosting service does just that. Even more, some of the offers include dedicated clients and extra security features.
It’s up to you and your needs on what features you go for but don’t treat this task lightly if you need to host the accounts of your customers or clients.
Bluehost is an excellent email hosting service that provides an email size of at least 100 MB per each account and at least five email accounts.
When you want to build a website, you can start at Bluehost because the shared service delivers quite a robust platform that will turn out to be ideal for hosting your websites.
Bluehost automatically creates daily, weekly, and monthly backups of the entire account so that you will be able to easily restore your complete data with the single click of a mouse.
Best of all, this service can be controlled from one cPannel that is extremely friendly to use without any training or prior knowledge.
It’s good to know that each server is custom-built and that allows you to upgrade performance over time if your requirements grow in time.
Bluehost offers three plans according to users’ needs: Basic, Plus, and Prime. All are very competitive and offer great benefits.
You can check out the whole set of features that are packed in Bluehost and start using the service from its official website.
Check out the best features provided by this service:
The Basic plan offers five email accounts with 100 MB per each account
Both the Plus plan and the Prime plan provide an unlimited number of email accounts with unlimited email storage
The domain manager makes it easy to track, update and transfer, purchase, and administer all of your domains in a single place
You will be able to create and manage unlimited email accounts, and the advanced features include forwarding rules and account filters
You can also benefit from third-party compatibility, spam protection, and unique user account controls.
Bluehost
Profession and affordable email hosting service, with domain registration, site builder, and security included.
SiteGround is an email hosting service for Windows that comes with a limited email size and unlimited email accounts. This web hosting service is crafted for a high-quality experience.
With SiteGround, the unique email hosting solution can be used to create and manage an unlimited number of personalized email accounts based on your website.
The service makes sure that both your website and email run smoothly on the servers and that your website will be safer than anywhere else.
SiteGround offers users three plans for their needs: StartUp which is created for a great web start, GrowBig that is ideal for users’ web growth, and GoGeek, a plan that is crafted for real web geeks.
The service also provides free website migration and the experts from SiteGround can migrate one existing website effortlessly and quickly at no cost.
Check out the best features of SiteGround:
This service has the fastest setup, and with just three clicks you can set up a new site
With the simple drag and drop website builder, you will be able to create the coolest website real quick
The StartUp Plan offers all the essential hosting features that you need to accommodate a beginner’s website, and this works great for smaller online shops
For more resources and premium features, besides the basic ones, the perfect choice is the GrowBig plan which is ideal for a heavily-trafficked website
The GoGeek Plan is best suited for an extremely heavily-trafficked website
SiteGround
All-in-one web, cloud, and WordPress hosting, with a built-in antispam efficient solution.
HostGator is a great email hosting service for Windows that offers a limited email size and unlimited email accounts. Using this service, you will be able to enjoy robust web hosting at affordable prices.
HostGator also provides cloud hosting, WordPress hosting, reseller hosting, VPS hosting, dedicated hosting, application hosting, and all its services come with their own plans.
You will have webmail access, not to mention that you will be able to receive your emails on your phone via IMAP Support.
HostGator provides three hosting plans: the Hatchling Plan, the Baby Plan, and the Business Plan.
Check out the best features the HostGator offers its users:
All HostGator’s plans include email marketing services
The email features included in Windows hosting provide unlimited POP3 email accounts with SMTP
You will be able to prevent spam with SpamAssassin
Access the emails directly on your phone
You will get unlimited autoresponders, email aliases, mail forwards, 25 mailing lists, and more
HostGator
Get one of the best webmail and WordPress hosting at competitive pricing with HostGator.
Hosting your website with iPage will go beyond unlimited disk space, unlimited email addresses, and a free domain name. The service’s tools and training help users launch the entire web presence above the competitors.
The advanced email solutions provided by iPage include email, calendar, contacts, and task management, virus and spam protection.
The recommended email services are the Premium Spam Filter with more control over the spam filters and the Larger Mailbox Storage with increased storage and mail count limits.
It also includes a security suite that comes with business verification, malware scanning, a highly secure data center, and network scanning.
The experts from iPage are available by chat and phone anytime you need them, and they will assist you with any questions or issues that you might have.
Check out the best features of iPage below:
Sturdy website builder and a large selection of templates
Marketing tools and dedicated support
Secure webmail access
Chat and phone assistance
The SiteLock security software will keep your website and your customers safe
iPage
Get unlimited email addresses at your own domain and many more with this great tool.
Verio provides Windows hosting with a few email features. For instance, using Verio, you will be able to create unlimited email accounts.
The hosting plans include website creation tools, Google Webmaster tools, disk space, bandwidth and email, and more.
Besides email, you will also get commerce features, marketing, and promotion, hosting utilities and settings, multimedia options, website reports and statistics, and more.
Customer support includes an extensive help center, tutorials, and 24/7 support. You can check out the complete set of features and plans of the Verio service on the official website.
Check out the best functionalities included in Verio below:
Forwarding accounts and Autoresponder
Spam email filtering and browser-based email or webmail
Email hosting provides a great way to create addresses that are connected to your own domain, and this will definitely add credibility to your services and communications.
Using email hosting services, you will also get additional resources and enhanced availability for your customers.
Having the ability to access your inbox and the related features anytime will offer users peace of mind.
These email hosting services for Windows come with great sets of features so make sure to check them all out and choose the ideal software for your needs.
We recommend that you visit these services’ official websites where you can also see their available plans and pricing.
Just Dance 2022 supports Xbox’s Smart Delivery feature which essentially means that the same version of the game will play the same across both current and last-gen Xbox consoles and that buying it on one platform will unlock it for free on the other.
All players on Xbox One and Xbox Series X consoles are able to use the free Just Dance smartphone app to turn their iPhone or Android smartphone into a motion tracking tool.
Just Dance 2022 supports local multiplayer for up to six players though appears to lack any form of online multiplayer which will likely disappoint fans of the various online modes introduced in previous releases.
Here’s the official game description:
Just Dance® 2022, the ultimate dance game, is back with new universes and 40 hot new tracks from chart-topping hits like “Believer” by Imagine Dragons, “Level Up” by Ciara, and more!
Looking for the perfect game to dance to the latest hits and share some fun with friends and family? Just Dance 2022 is for you!
Exercise while having fun and start your own routine with Sweat mode. Keep yourself motivated, track the calories burnt and your time spent dancing.
Team up with your friends and rule the dance floor in Co-op mode.
Join more than 138 million players around the world and Just Dance It Out!
This game leverages Smart Delivery allowing access to both the Xbox One title and the Xbox Series X|S title
Just Dance 2022 is available in both a Standard Edition that includes the base game and a Deluxe Edition that comes with the game and four free months of the Just Dance Unlimited subscription service which unlocks more songs and routines.
The Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint, Warhammer: Vermintide 2, and Street Power Soccer video games are now free to play on both Xbox One and Xbox Series X console generations for all players with an active Xbox Live Gold subscription.
The free play promotion will run until Sunday, November 7 at 11:59 p.m. PST and, like previous Free Play Days, will allow participants to download each game and play them fully as if they own them outright.
Also like previous Free Play Days, each title has also had their digital price reduced for several days to encourage Xbox console owners to pick them up after playing them for free.
The Sound Blaster Z soundcard from Creative is one of the most powerful and qualitative sound cards available on the market, and people appreciate it for a variety of reasons.
The fact that this soundcard can reach 116 dB when it comes to signal-to-noise ratio implies that it can reproduce sounds with a 99.99% clarity, making any normal cards sound faulty in comparison.
The Sound Blaster Z soundcard has some other amazing features which are worth mentioning:
SBX Pro Studio technologies – ensure amazing 3D sorround sound
CrystalVoice – perfect for online gaming and videocalls – optimizes your voice to be heard clearely
Microphone extension – using a beamforming technology, it captures your voice perfectly and cancels any other noises in your surroundings
Sound Core3D audio processor – built with a quad-core CPU capable of processing all features optimally
Even though this soundcard was not designed specifically with gaming in mind, pairing this with a powerful gaming PC will ensure an amazingly-immersive experience.
The features included in this amazing soundcard from Creative were tested in games like Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, and other similar shooters, and the results were impressive. Besides having a good gaming PC, it is also very important to invest in a great mousepad for FPS games.
You can easily and identify the direction of your opponents just by the sound of their steps, and this technology is helped even more by using high-quality headphones.
Even though this soundcard is an amazing option for both headphones and speaker systems, today we will focus on the best headphone options to explore immersive virtual worlds from the comfort of your PC.
How we chose the best headphones for a Sound Blaster Z card
Our team of expert testers, with a combined experience of 15 years, has tackled a variety of testing tasks for any device you could imagine.
Their experience comes into play as a very important element when choosing the products we described in this guide, and a large variety of factors have been taken into consideration.
The options that have been chosen offer great quality and cover the entire spectrum of price ranges, thus enabling everybody to find something that fits their needs both financially and otherwise.
The Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones are our top pick for the best headphones to match with the powerful Sound Blaster Z card from Creative.
This amazingly-comfortable device uses a powerful Dual Noise Sensor technology to reduce ambient sound no matter how intense it is, and the great built-in pads also physically isolate your ears from any exterior disturbances.
The combination of these two elements ensures that you won’t be distracted by any sounds while playing games or listening to your favorite music.
When it comes to music-related optimization, the Sony WH-1000XM4 uses Edge-AI, which is a feature developed with the help of Sony Music Studios Tokyo. This ensures that the full sound spectrum produced by your powerful soundcard will be hitting your eardrum in exactly the right way.
Being wireless headphones, the battery life is another important aspect, and these headphones pass the test with flying colors, enabling you to use to for up to 30 hours with one charge. To ensure that you can always use them, they also come with a feature that allows 5 hours of playback with just a 10-minute charge.
The Sony WH1000XM2 is the previous model of the first option in this list, making them some amazing headphones for the Sound Blaster Z soundcard as well.
Coming at a more affordable price than the previously-mentioned model, this device also uses digital noise-canceling which will protect your listening experience from any exterior disturbances, with some great customization options for atmospheric pressure.
These headphones are extremely portable, and allow freedom of movement with the use of a wireless connection through Bluetooth, and also NFC.
Even more, the headphones can automatically detect the level and pitch of the ambient sound, and then optimize the noise-canceling process to deal with the sounds effectively, giving you an immersive experience no matter if you’re listening to music or playing your favorite games.
Using some high-quality audio codecs like DSEE HX, S-Master HX, and LDAC ensures that the quality of the sound emitted by your Creative Sound Blaster Z soundcard can be appreciated in full effect.
No top 5 headphones list would be complete without having a Bose headphone set included, and in this case, we chose the QuietComfort 35 II model.
As the name suggests, this set of headphones is one of the most comfortable we tried for this list, and the number of features included makes it a very good fit for the Sound Blaster Z soundcard from Creative.
This amazing device comes with great noise cancellation features, allowing 3 different levels which will fit almost any environment you find yourself in. No matter if you’re listening to your favorite music next to a construction site, or you’re simply at home with family playing games, you will not be bothered by anything happening around you.
As these headphones are Alexa-enabled, you can use voice commands to control any other connected devices, and the dual-microphone system ensures that all the commands and even your voice during calls come in clear and crisp.
Even though it comes with a 12-inch USB cable for charging, these headphones work easily with Bluetooth pairing, and the settings for all these elements can be controlled by using the Bose Connect application.
The Sennheiser HD 280 Pro is another amazing headphone set that will be able to maximize the quality and crispness of the sound produced by the Sound Blaster Z, while also ensuring an acceptable price and great comfort.
With a constant sound pressure of 113 dB, and a nominal impedance of 64 Ohm, this model offers you an unbelievable sound reproduction capability, producing warm and natural sounds with great overall clarity.
As opposed to the other models we presented in this guide, this set of headphones has a cable, which, even though limits movement at some level, ensures enough space to move by being 3.3 to 9.8 feet, because of its coils.
The around the ear padded cups offer dynamic sounds and provide a reduction of outside noise of up to 32 dB. Even though it doesn’t use any sort of noise-canceling technology, the design is what makes it feel like it does.
Even more, the HD 280 Pro ear pads and headband, and the audio cord can be easily replaced, thus ensuring a long-lasting Sennheiser experience.
The WHCH710N from Sony is our top pick for an affordable set of headphones that work perfectly with the Sound Blaster Z, and besides the good price, they also come with a wide range of very useful features.
To start with, this wireless headphone model uses noise cancellation to remove any outside perturbance when listening to music or playing games, and uses a Dual Noise Sensor technology to identify what sort of environment you are in, and thus automatically adapt the features.
One charge can last up to 35 hours, and also supports quick charging, to ensure that no matter how much time you want to use them, they are ready to provide you with a qualitative sound experience.
Besides this, the WHCH710N also offers NFC streaming and offers the full hands-free capability to take calls or use your device’s voice assistant. To top it off, these headphones come with two 30 mm driver units, which will be more than enough volume power even for the most demanding users.
Bottom runners
Even though our top 5 list includes some of the best options on the market, during our tests some other products stood out from the crowd, which are worth mentioning:
As you can see, our list includes a variety of headphones with which make a good companion for the powerful Sound Blaster Z soundcard, as we included both wireless and wired devices with a variety of prices.
Choosing the right fit both when it comes to your feature preferences and the money you’re willing to spend just got much easier.
Feel free to share your thoughts with us by using the comment section below.
The tech giant is bringing a lot of new changes, besides the plethora already added, to their flagship communications app.
Even more, since the Redmond company decided to bundle Teams with their latest operating system. During this year’s Ignite conference, a new awesome, futuristic feature was announced.
Mesh for Microsoft Teams will create new options for digital meetups with personalized avatars and 3-D environments.
Mesh for Microsoft Teams introduces a new generation of 2D and 3D meeting experiences with personalized avatars and immersive spaces to bridge the gap between physical and digital worlds. With personalized avatars, you can feel presence in meetings without turning on cameras.
This is pretty exciting so let’s cut to the chase and see exactly what the future has in store for us.
Microsoft aims to enhance the Teams virtual meeting spaces
According to Microsoft, users will have more options to join meeting rooms and virtual collaboration spaces using redesigned avatars that will move and react based on your speech without needing a camera or virtual headset.
This latest announcement comes just days after Facebook unveiled its similar virtual avatar technology that will be available in its Meta social media platform relaunch.
The tech giant stated that users will not only be able to come together in new virtual reality rooms but will be able to collaborate and share documents stored in Microsoft 365.
Furthermore, users can join a Mesh room from their PC, smartphone, or mixed reality device, which is pretty accessible.
The new feature came about through a multiyear collaboration between Microsoft and mega-partner Accenture, an Ireland-based IT services firm that is known for virtual conference and meeting technologies.
Mesh for Microsoft Teams will start its rollout process in 2022, as a preview, and will initially launch with a set of prebuilt immersive spaces.
Organizations will have options to create their own custom spaces to be added as time goes on. Pretty neat, right?
Lots of other new features coming to Teams
Besides the Mesh announcement, the company unveiled a lot more features currently rolling out to its collaboration and communication platform.
The inclusion of a virtual green room to enhance webinars and large meetings is another feature worth mentioning.
This will allow organizers and guest speakers to interact in a second virtual space to collaborate on presentation content, monitor chat, and socialize. Redmond officials said this feature will be available in preview in early 2022.
Microsoft is also looking to help IT keep a handle on securing shared documents with a new feature planned for 2022 called Teams Connect.
It will allow for Teams channels to be shared with outside individuals and organizations, with IT retaining control on how and what documents can be shared.
Teams Chat is getting upgraded over the coming months. One new enhancement will permit individuals in a Teams organization to use their personal Teams account to chat and collaborate.
Another is the ability to chat with yourself, which Microsoft said will be useful for personal organization and keeping memos stored in one place.
Microsoft has updated its Authenticator app for iOS and Android today, and the new bits bring a refreshed icon and new account management features for enterprise users. The old app icon used a white lockpick over a blue background, and the new logo reverses the color palette with a blue lockpick over a white background.
The Microsoft Authenticator already lets users manage MSA accounts within the app, and with this latest update users with Azure AD school accounts will get the same capabilities. The account management options include changing passwords, updating your work or school account’s authentication methods, and reviewing your recent activity.
For users who have yet to add their work or school accounts in Microsoft Authenticator, this latest update also makes this experience more seamless. Now, users can sign in with their credentials in Microsoft Authenticator without needing to scan a QR Code from another screen.
If you’re not seeing the new app icon on your iOS and Android devices yet, Microsoft says that it will roll out gradually throughout the month. Microsoft Authenticator is a very useful app for consumers and enterprise users living in the Microsoft ecosystem, and you can get it from the download links below.
Microsoft has announced a new Script buttons feature that is coming soon to Excel on the web. This has been a top-requested feature from users, who will be able to create and add script buttons to a workbook and easily share their Office Scripts with colleagues.
For those unfamiliar, Office scripts allow users to automate their repetitive day-to-day tasks or workflows. Scripts lets Excel users record their actions within a workbook and save them to be used later or shared with others.
To add a new script button to a workbook, you will need to navigate to the Automate tab and choose your desired script. Click the More options (…) menu available in the All Scripts pane, and choose the Add button option. Once done, you will see a button in the workbook that runs the associated script.
Microsoft says the Script buttons feature is currently rolling out in preview to all Microsoft 365 commercial or educational subscribers on the web. To get started with Office scripts, we invite you to check out the samples and scenarios Microsoft shared on this support page.
Microsoft Teams is adding a new option to disable all in-app notifications during meetings. This new feature should help meeting participants pay attention to the speaker rather than being distracted by private messages and mentions.
Once the feature rolls out, users will be able to enable an option to turn off notifications before starting a meeting. Microsoft notes that those who find notifications distracting will also have the option to completely disable them for all meetings.
Currently, Microsoft Teams users who want to disable notifications can either turn them off in settings, change their status to “Do not Disturb,” or use system-level features such as Focus Assist on Windows. Microsoft Teams is about to finally simplify this, and the ability to mute notification during meetings is coming to the desktop and web apps later this month, according to the Microsoft 365 roadmap.
Encrypting PDF files enables you to keep them protected against unauthorized access. Electronic documents can be accessed by hackers when vital information is at risk.
Taking into consideration the fact that they can be easily hacked, you need to act fast. One of the ways to avoid this is by using PDF encryption software that better suits your needs.
There are plenty of options to choose from, so make sure to check out our recommendations.
How can PDF encryption help you?
Nowadays, most important documents are created, stored, and delivered in PDF format because they have many options to encrypt and limit access to their different options.
For instance, you can block the user from opening the file altogether with a password or you can restrict him from performing modifications on the file.
The document is protected with a password
Some of the tools in our list can prevent users from editing it in any way or even copying or printing it. So there is a lot of flexibility on the limitations.
That’s why, PDF encryption not only safeguards your documents but can also give you a range of options when it comes to file management.
That being said, let’s see what are the best PDF encryption software for your device and pick the one that suits your needs best:
Soda PDF is a full-featured PDF solution and among the most secure software that allows you to easily edit PDFs.
This software lets you encrypt files with password protection, thus preventing unauthorized access.
You just have to choose a PDF, enter the password to confirm the encryption, and make sure that this password is the one you want to be set.
It is as simple as that! Password protection prevents anyone without that key from opening your PDF file.
With Soda PDF you can have control of permissions that include editing, copying, and printing your files.
So, you can prevent people from making further modifications or any unwanted changes to your PDF with the advanced security tools of Soda PDF.
If you are unsure about using the password, you can only remove it by using the original password that was used the first time.
Soda PDF is the perfect alternative to Adobe Acrobat due to its easy-to-use PDF tools that help you create, convert, split, annotate, merge, fill forms, set file permissions, and even E-Sign your PDFs by adding your legally electronic signature.
Key features you are about to enjoy:
Create or convert multiple PDFs at once
Add page watermarks
Bates numbering & secure permissions to multiple folders
OCR Edit to search, recognize, and modify text
You may add page numbers
Soda PDF
That’s your chance to keep your information safe and secure and all with just a few clicks!
People who work with sensitive information can effectively use this software. This tool enables you to create and edit PDFs.
The software has an interface adapted for a desktop display as for a smartphone one, so reviewing, sharing, and adding comments to documents is easier than ever.
Adobe Acrobat Pro can restrict access to your documents, so another user won’t be able to print or edit the document.
The restrictions can be set at the opening of the document or when a person wants to copy, edit, scan or print the information from the PDF, so you have to be sure that your file is secured.
However, the PDF file can be copied to the laptop of another user or on an external drive without any problems.
Besides keeping the confidentiality of your information, Adobe Acrobat Pro DC has a lot more outstanding features to take into consideration.
Main Adobe Acrobat Pro DC key features you are about to enjoy:
Access to your data can be controlled by using passwords
Team protection which makes it suitable for personal use and organizations alike
Unmatched document security
Compatible with Windows 10
Adobe Acrobat Pro DC
Looking for the best PDF encryption software? Install Adobe Acrobat Pro DC and you won’t regret your decision.
Forget about passwords, certificates, JavaScript, or plugins. Protect PDF documents, and stop leakage, unauthorized sharing, and theft using Locklizard.
Locklizard Safeguard PDF Security software takes PDF file protection to the next level, stopping users from sharing or pirating PDF files.
Unlike passwords and restrictions that can be easily removed, Safeguard uses a transparent key licensing system with encryption and DRM controls for persistent protection.
In other words, after creating a secure PDF file, you issue users with a license that controls access to files. The DRM controls applied to the PDF restrict the user from copying, editing, printing, or sharing the file.
You can even set PDF files to expire automatically, or instantly revoke them so they can no longer be accessed.
Although it’s a comprehensive solution that perfectly safeguards your documents, Locklizard is simple to use and doesn’t require a complicated setup to work.
You can create secure PDFs manually or batch-protect them using command-line encryption.
Locklizard provides a web-based administration system where you create user accounts, change expiry dates, and revoke secure PDF documents.
Let’s see what are its best features:
Stops PDF editing and modifying (including form fields)
Prevents copy and paste
Stops screen grabbers
Locks PDF files to devices to prevent sharing
Locks PDF files to IP and country locations
Disables printing or you can limit prints
Expire PDF files on a set date, after a number of days, opens or prints
Revoke PDF access
Add dynamic watermarks that cannot be removed
Track PDF use – log views and prints
Locklizard
Seamlessly protect your documents with DRM and encryption and prevent any unauthorized intervention.
PDFelement is an ideal software for securing PDF files. All you need to do is click on the Protect tab and select the option that best suits your needs.
This software makes use of passwords in order to prevent unauthorized users from accessing or changing sensitive PDFs.
Another great feature is its PDF convertor to a lot of other possible formats like Word, Powerpoint, or Excel among others.
You will be able to create excellent documents using a pretty big library of free templates that will enhance your work.
PDFelement will be great for personal use but you can also create bulk tasks so it will fit for higher productivity office jobs.
Its familiar-looking interface will certainly help you get the hang out of all the features really easily if you’ve used other document processing software.
The tool allows you to easily edit, organize, and transform PDFs and it has a competitive price.
Take a look at its most important features:
It can convert PDF to Word/PowerPoint/Excel/HTML/RTF/EPUB
Edit and fill out PDF forms
Advanced annotation; Conversation bubbles, highlighters, shapes, Sticky notes, etc.
It has a lot of templates and many great features
You can add watermarks easily
PDFelement
Edit your PDF files and secure them with this reliable tool.
WinZip isn’t only one of the best compression software tools, but also one that allows password protecting your PDFs with ease.
Adding a password to your files in WinZip is extremely intuitive, and it takes mere seconds. And be sure of the fact that encrypting your Zip files isn’t the last thing that you can do.
All you need to do is to turn the Encrypt option on from the right pane and drag your PDF file in the center window.
You will be prompted to enter the desired password and repeat it for protection. Just remember to also communicate the password when you send the file to someone.
The file will be encrypted so without that key, the recipient won’t be able to access its contents.
Of course, another great feature is that you can manage or send your PDFs straight from WinZip right away.
Probably you already know that but we remind you that this tool can also be used for backing up your data securely and freeing some space on your drive in the process.
Great key features that WinZip brings to the table:
Easy to install
Intuitive interface
Advanced compression tools
Repair Zip File features
Banking-level encryption
WinZip
If you want advanced PDF encryption software, WinZip is clearly up for the task! Ready to enjoy it?
If you are looking for a tool that will make your life easier when it comes to editing, then we recommend that you try the Icecream PDF Editor.
This software can be installed on your Windows device easily, and it’s also compatible with Mac so you can pretty much use it on any machine.
If you want to create a PDF document from scratch or add a stamp, it can be easily done with the Icecream PDF Editor.
Splitting and merging PDF files is another great function this software comes with, and it will save you a lot of time searching for other ways to do that.
And yes, it also does a great job protecting your documents with a password or limiting the editing and copying rights of the users.
You can search for words in your PDF, make annotations, edit and rotate objects, or simply draw, all to personalize your work in style.
The interface is lighter, intuitive, and it has amazing features that you can use to get professional results.
Let’s review its best features:
Edit text and manage pages with ease
Password protects your documents and limits their editing and copying rights
Complete built-in forms within PDF documents
Search and annotation features
Combine or extract pages from a document
Icecream PDF Editor
Icecream PDF Editor is an all-in-one software that allows you to efficiently encrypt your PDFs. Ready to try it?
PDF Converter Pro for Windows by Wondershare allows you to use passwords to enable restrictions in functions.
This software is among the most advanced version of Wondershare products; it comes with improved security and features that suit every user’s needs.
It’s also great that the tool is fully compatible with Excel, Word, PowerPoint, HTML, and image formats so you can export your documents conveniently.
If you’ve scanned some important PDF documents, you can easily turn them back to their digital form by using the Wondershare PDF Converter Pro OCR feature.
With the latest technology, the solution will detect all elements from the image to create perfectly editable documents in a lot of possible formats.
Do you have any PDF forms to fill out? No problem, not only you can use this tool but you can also make your own forms in seconds.
Let’s go through its best features:
It uses password protection to generate encryption
Without the password, documents will not open which makes modifying your content impossible to achieve
Advanced file conversion features
Compatible with Windows 10/ Vista/ XP
It can successfully compete with any other software that supports bulk conversions
PDF Converter Pro for Windows
With this excellent app, your PDFs will not open without your password.
Foxit PDF Security Suite is very important; it integrates Microsoft Rights Management Services environments. With this software, you can reliably share confidential documents.
It enables you to do more than open and edit a document. It has a lot of mechanisms and security systems installed, which suits enterprise needs.
This tool is supported on Windows, macOS, Online, iOS, and Android so it basically works on every platform you want to use.
That means that you can edit and manage all your documents whenever and wherever you have an Internet connection on your device.
Not only that, but being based on a Cloud platform, you can also collaborate with your teammates on the documents and initiate shared reviews for feedback.
You can merge and split documents, drag and drop pages within a file or from a document to another, add stamps, watermarks, headers, footers, and a lot more content.
Let’s see some of its most important features:
It offers the necessary features users need to print, copy, view, and annotate PDF files
Audit logs, screenshot prevention, and printer restriction
For the encryption of PDF files, it makes use Foxit add-ins
It is very effective for businesses and corporate organizations
PDF Studio is a PDF editing application worthy of your attention. Not only because you can protect and encrypt your documents, but also because it’s great for filling forms.
This tool comes with a Free Trial version but there are also Standard and Pro versions that unlock many features. For instance, only the Pro version comes with OCR scanning.
Even so, the software comes with pretty competitive pricing compared to other software with the same features.
And it’s compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux so you can install it on pretty much any machine you’re working on.
Take a look at some of its most interesting features:
PDF Studio can be used for converting PDF files, editing PDF files, encrypting PDF files, decrypting PDF files and opening of DOC and DOCX files
It is very important to secure your PDF files; this will prevent hackers from accessing your files. Aside from that, you can create documents, edit them, organize your files, etc.
We hope that you found the best PDF encryption software for your needs and now you can keep your documents safe.
Individuals, small businesses, and organizations cannot do without this software. Do share with us your experience in using any of the programs we mentioned above.
Forza Horizon 5, one of the most anticipated games of the holiday season will be released next week on November 9, and it marks the comeback of one of Microsoft’s most popular game franchises. This is the first new Forza game since the release of the critically-acclaimed Forza Horizon 4 back in 2018, and it’s also the first Forza Horizon game to be released since Microsoft acquired UK-based developer PlayGround Games back in 2018.
Until the release of Forza Horizon 4 three years ago, Playground Games and Turn 10 Studios used to alternate with a new Forza Motorsport and a new Forza Horizon game every year. However, the transition to a new console generation has affected this well-oiled release cycle. As a result, Microsoft’s next-gen Xbox Series X and Series S consoles only had two “next-gen” racing games at launch, an updated version of Forza Horizon 4 and Codemasters’ Dirt 5, which I personally found quite disappointing.
Just like Forza Horizon 4, Forza Horizon 5 is a cross-gen game that is also being released on Xbox One consoles, but it’s still a big leap forward for the open-world racing franchise. It’s definitely one of the best-looking games you can play on Xbox Series X|S consoles today, featuring the largest open world ever seen in a Forza game. It’s also an excellent casual game for players who aren’t really into racing games, and it remains far more accessible than the pretty demanding Forza Motorsport series.
Every Forza Horizon game is set in a brand new location, and Forza Horizon 5 moves the action from Great Britain to sunny Mexico. This destination is a great choice and a nice homage to one of the rare markets outside of the US where the Xbox brand is very popular. Forza Horizon 5 will launch day one on Xbox Game Pass for Console and PC on November 9, and it will be the last blockbuster Xbox exclusive of 2021 until the release of Halo Infinite on December 8.
Welcome to Mexico
If Forza Horizon 4’s Great Britain was quite a departure from Forza Horizon 3’s sunny Australia, Forza Horizon 5 marks the return to a more exotic location. Playground Games’ fictional representation of Mexico features 11 different biomes including deserts, jungles, a mountain with a volcano, as well as beautifully-recreated historic cities. Once again, the Forza Horizon developer really deserves credit for its attention to detail, and the 3 years gap between Forza Horizon 4 and Horizon 5 clearly wasn’t for nothing.
The large open world in Forza Horizon 5 uses a dynamic weather system with a night and day cycle, and the different seasons introduced in Forza Horizon 4 are also coming back. I only got to see the Summer season during the review period, but seasons changes will once again kick off every Thursdays alongside some new limited-time challenges. Seasons will affect the different Mexican biomes in various ways, though again, I can’t wait to see what’s going to happen with the first season change happening later today.
Playground Games has already announced two DLCs for Forza Horizon 5, though there are no details yet. Forza Horizon 3 and 4 had excellent Hot Wheels and Lego-themed DLCs, and I hope that PlayGround Games will once again surprise us with new adventures all types of gamers can enjoy. In the meantime, the Forza Horizon 5 campaign already offers a lot of content, and I feel like I only scratched after playing the game for 20+ hours.
True next-gen graphics on Xbox Series X
Microsoft’s Xbox Series X and Series S consoles launched without killer exclusive games last year, and I feel like the company has finally started to deliver this year. The updated version of Forza Horizon 4 was a very nice upgrade with a 4K at 60FPS performance target on Xbox Series X, but Forza Horizon 5 has once again showcased PlayGround Games’ real talent for creating immersive and photorealistic open worlds.
I played Forza Horizon 5 on both my Xbox Series X and Series S consoles over the past week, and I’m happy to report that performance is excellent on both consoles. Players get to choose between Quality and Performance modes, and I think that Forza Horizon 5 is one of the rare racing games that don’t feel too uncomfortable playing at 30FPS.
On Xbox Series X, both the Quality and Performance modes target a 4K resolution, but you get 30FPS experience in Quality Mode and a smoother 60FPS in Performance mode. Xbox Series S offers the same performance targets choices at a reduced 1080p resolution, though Quality mode will bump the resolution to 1440p at launch on November 9.
I didn’t get the chance the play Forza Horizon 5 on Xbox One consoles, but the game targets 1080p at 30FPS on Xbox One S and 4K at 30FPS on Xbox One X. Unfortunately, there’s no 1080p/60FPS option on the latter even though Forza Horizon 4 had that. We’re probably going to see fewer and fewer games being truly optimized for the Xbox One X going forward, and this is probably going to make the Xbox Series S an increasingly interesting upgrade for gamers still on last-gen Xbox consoles.
So far, Forza Horizon 5 is one of the current-gen Xbox games that impressed me the most alongside Microsoft Flight Simulator. You do lose some details and clarity when moving from the Xbox Series X to the Series S, but the latter still impresses for a $300 machine. This is quite anecdotal, but both the Series X and the Series S also support ray-tracing in the game’s “Forzavista” vehicle viewer mode, which you can access at the different Festival sites or homes you can purchase in the game.
A refined open-world experience
If you’ve played previous Forza Horizon games before, Forza Horizon 5 will feel instantly familiar. Following a blockbuster introduction sequence, you’ll reach the first Horizon Festival site and you’ll be able to freely explore the game’s open-world soon after. The progression system in Forza Horizon 5 is based on Accolade points, which you can earn by doing literally everything in the game including discovering new locations, smashing objects in the environment, participating in races, and obtaining new cars.
Speaking of cars, Forza Horizon 5 offers over 500 cars at launch, and the game uses the Mercedes-AMG One and 2021 Ford Bronco Badlands as its cover cars. You can also earn exclusive vehicles such as the iconic DeLorean DMC-12 by completing weekly challenges, and you may also want to look for the 14 cars hidden in barns in the Mexican open world. Some of these “Barn finds” have a unique vintage charm such as the old Ford F-100 pickup truck from 1956, or the first-gen Chevrolet Corvette from 1953.
Every car in Forza Horizon 5 can be customized with body kits, wheels, paint options, and more. There’s some good fan service for Halo fans as well with the classic Warthog armored fighting vehicle being available for purchase in the game. By default, damage in Forza Horizon 5 is only cosmetic and it’s really fun to smash your vehicle into various things or jump off from massive cliffs without completely destroying your car. Driving in Forza Horizon 5 is pretty easy, and you can still hit the rewind button anytime when you want to avoid an obstacle or improve your trajectory.
On Xbox Series X and Series S consoles, loading times are almost instantaneous, which is really convenient when you want to use the map to teleport yourself to another location. Compared to Forza Horizon 4, the game’s menus have also been simplified and it’s now easier to browse your car collection or check your progression in the game. It’s also easier to see the other online players on your server, though you can still opt for the “Horizon Solo” experience and play the game offline.
As you’ll gain more Accolade points in Forza Horizon 5, you’ll unlock new Horizon outposts and activities, and I have yet to complete everything the game has to offer: Between all the different types of races, seasonal events, showcases, and expeditions, there’s really a lot to do in the open world, and you can also use the game’s Eventlab to create custom races, challenges, and stunts. The matchmaking mode also offers pretty much the same options as Forza Horizon 4, and the Battle Royale Eliminator mode has made its comeback. However, the competitive ranked races are gone, which will probably be disappointing for hardcore gamers.
A bigger focus on storytelling
Forza Horizon 5 is PlayGround Games’ most ambitious Forza game, and it’s pretty clear that the studio spent a lot of time crafting a faithful recreation of Mexico. In many ways, Forza Horizon 5 also puts a bigger emphasis on storytelling, with more dialogues and secondary characters. For the first time in the series, your character gets its own voice and dialogue lines, though I still find it hard to care about this fictional Horizon festival and what its participants have to say.
Some of the missions in Forza Horizon 5 do a pretty good job at showcasing the Mexican culture, giving players the opportunity to explore Mexican ruins and other landmarks. Just like on Forza Horizon 4, there are also some “Stories” missions with different chapters involving secondary characters. Some of them are really good, but I’ve often found the interactions with secondary characters quite forgettable, with the dialogues sometimes being not far from being cringeworthy.
If there’s one area where I think PlayGround Games still has some room for improvement, this is probably storytelling. You can safely ignore all the dialogues in Forza Horizon 5 if you want to, though I can’t help but think that this beautiful open-world is missing something that would make it feel more real. I definitely enjoyed my time with Forza Horizon 5 so far, but I’d like to see the studio take a bit more narrative risks in future episodes.
Another blockbuster release from Xbox Game Studios
Microsoft’s Xbox Game Studios division has been on a roll these past couple of months and the company’s game roadmap has never looked better. We recently had critically-acclaimed exclusives with Microsoft Flight Simulator and Psychonauts 2, and I expect Forza Horizon 5 to be in a lot of GOTY conversations this holiday season. Forza Horizon 5 is the best game in the series and another essential release from PlayGround Games, and it sets a pretty high bar for the upcoming Forza Motorsport 8 from Turn 10 Studios.
In many ways, Forza Horizon 5 can feel like more of the same, but the graphics are truly stunning on Xbox Series X and the gameplay is still just as addictive as ever. Playground Games has definitely cemented its place as one of the best studios Microsoft acquired in recent years, though I’d love to see the studio try something a bit different with its future games.
As you may know, the British studio is currently working on a reboot of Fable, the cult-classic RPG series created by the defunct Lionhead Studios. The reboot was announced last year with a short cinematic trailer, and it will be interesting to see what a studio with no prior RPG experience can do to revive this franchise. I haven’t been impressed by Playground Games’ attempts at storytelling in Forza Horizon 5, though the excellent gameplay ultimately makes that pretty easy to forgive.
Forza Horizon 5 will be released on November 9 on Xbox consoles, PC, and Xbox Game Pass, and the game is already available for pre-loading on the Microsoft Store. If you don’t want to wait, early access starts tomorrow for those of you who purchase the game’s Premium Add-ons bundle. The $49.99 package ($45 for Xbox Game Pass members) includes the Welcome Pack, Car Pass, VIP Membership, and access to the game’s two DLCs when they become available.
Microsoft has posted on its education blog about an upcoming event. Set for November 9 at 9:00 AM PST, and titled “Reimagine” Microsoft is planning to use this as a moment to discuss what’s next in education from the company.
Microsoft says this 45-minute event should “address gaps widened by the pandemic.” More interestingly, it also mentions that the event will talk about “ways to tackle challenges with innovative technology, and share best practices to support inclusive learning.” The webpage for the event suggests that IT, School leaders, and educators should attend.
According to the blog post, other topics Microsoft expects to discuss at this event include “new and existing solutions from Microsoft Education.” As usual with Microsoft events, there also will be industry influencers, educators, and special guests speaking. Even Grammy and Academy Award-winning artist, actor, author, and activist Common will be in attendance.
When it comes to Microsoft employees speaking at the event, you can expect to see Paige Johnson, VP of Education Marketing at Microsoft, as well as Deirdre Quarnstrom, Vice President, Education Experiences at Microsoft. Mike Tholfsen, Joe Cicero, Corey Lee, and Rachel Williams are other Microsoft employees mentioned as speakers for the event.
It will be interesting to see if Microsoft could use this event to reveal the rumored 11-inch low-cost laptop for education customers. A new Windows 11 SE version, as reported by Windows Central, could also be something Microsoft might possibly announce at the event, too.
We’ll be following the news closely next week so be sure to stay tuned to OnMSFT for more. In the meantime, you can add the event to your calendar.
The Lenovo Yoga line has grown into the consumer facing product offering that mirrors the company’s flagship ThinkPad computers in many ways but at more accessible price points generally.
Where a ThinkPad X1 Carbon could run at $1,500 for a base model the same feature for feature Yoga would normally start at $699, and the Yoga 6 continues that gracious trend this year.
With a starting price of $619 (or $949.99 for the review model), the folding 2-in-1 is the ideal computer for 90 percent of computer users.
Spoiler Alert: I have a lot of wonderful things to say about the Yoga 6, but it does suffer from a poorly lit screen, subpar speakers, 720 potato webcam and fan noise. If any of those are deal breakers, I hope I saved you some time.
Lenovo Yoga 6 Ryzen 7
Processor
AMD Ryzen™ 7 5700U Processor (1.80 GHz, up to 4.30 GHz Max Boost, 8 Cores, 16 Threads, 8 MB Cache)
AMD Ryzen™ 5 5500U Processor (2.10 GHz, up to 4.00 GHz Max Boost, 6 Cores, 12 Threads, 8 MB Cache)
AMD Ryzen™ 5 4500U Processor (2.30 GHz, up to 4.00 GHz Max Boost, 6 Cores, 6 Threads, 8 MB Cache)
Graphics
Integrated AMD Radeon™ Graphics
Operating System
Windows 10 Home
Windows 11 Home
Display
13.3″ FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS, touchscreen, 300 nits
Storage
Up to 1 TB SSD PCIe
Camera
720p HD
Memory
Up to 16 GB DDR4 3200MHz
Dimensions
Starting at 206.4mm x 308mm x 17 – 18.2mm / 8.12″ x 12.13″ x .67″ – 0.72 ”
Starting at 1.32 kg / 2.91lbs
Audio
Stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos®
Battery
Up to 18 hours*
60Wh Lithium-ion polymer
*All battery life claims are approximate and based on 1080p video playback on the latest update of Windows 10 (with 150 nits brightness and default volume level). Actual battery life will vary and depends on many factors such as product configuration and usage, software use, wireless functionality, power management settings, and screen brightness. The maximum capacity of the battery will decrease with time and use.
Color
Abyss Blue
Ports/Slots
2 x USB-A 3.2 Gen 11 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 1 (DisplayPort™ & power delivery)
1 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 1 (DisplayPort™)
Headphone / mic combo
** The actual transfer speed of the USB 3.2 [Gen 1] will vary and, depending on many factors, such as the processing capability of host and peripheral devices, file attributes and other factors related to system configuration and your operating environments, will be slower than a speed of [5 Gbit/s].
I won’t spend too much time on the look and feel of the Yoga 6 but to say that the model I tested came with a fabric incased lid. The feel of a woven 13.3-inch 16:9 lid is surprisingly nice and became preferred to the cold and seemingly lifeless touch of aluminum or even carbon fiber.
The touch of fabric on the lid is reminiscent of the Alcantar keyboard Microsoft tries to push with its Surface Laptops and 2-in-1’s. While I’ve gotten used to the feel under my palm rest, I may argue for durability purposes, incorporating the woven fabric on the lid of Surface device might be a new direction the company would want to follow.
Moving beyond the lid, the device itself feels and looks very much like its predecessors. The tapered bottom, 2.9lbs and polycarbonate bottom cover are all there and just as reassuring as they have been for this line of PCs over the past four years.
As for the screen, it’s a 13.3-inch FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS panel with touch and pen support, nothing too spectacular at this point in hardware offerings. Colors are punchy but the brightness leaves something to be desired at 320 nits and automatic diming can be frustrating when outdoors.
Lenovo has seemingly moved away from its jeweled watch hinge design and settled on the dual 360 metal hinge design for all of its convertible 2-in-1’s and the Yoga 6 is no different.
As for your flex peepers, there is little found in the lid or keyboard deck.
As for the more functional look of the Yoga 6, Lenovo is sticking with a remarkably familiar port layout that includes a headphone and mic combo, 2 USB-A, USB-C and USB-C enabled power connector.
The U-Shaped chicklet keys on the keyboard feel every bit as comfortable as any other Lenovo computer. The key travel is nice, and the press is clicky and centered, there is no wobble to the edges of the keys which can be found on other devices such as an Acer or Asus, and often lead to accidental brushed keystrokes for users with larger fingers or who slam the keys.
Performance
I was gifted the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U (1.8 Ghz) and AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 graphics paired with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD storage.
To put things in perspective, other devices in similar price and feature ranges include the Dell XPS 13, Acer Spin 3, IdeaPad Flex 5, and HP Envy x360.
The Yoga 6 isn’t a super powerful machine designed for creators but does offer some of the lower hanging fruit for novice looking to begin on their first machine in high school or college.
For Adobe Photoshop users, the screen will cover about 72 percent of the color gamut and 99 percent of the standard sRGB.
With that said, you’ll need a CPU and GPU combo equipped enough to handle performance for the suite of Adobe programs and the Yoga 6 with AMD can handle midrange projects such as limited layers of effects in Photoshop and moderate number of clips in Premiere with its 8-core Ryzen 7 5700U Zen 2 chipset.
However, it may be the Lenovo Vantage software or some other monitoring program that limits the Ryzen 7 performance on this laptop as it performs a few ticks behind a Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 or other laptops equipped with the same chip.
Even more disappointing is that despite the advances in GPU performance AMD has made this particular model still trails Intel’s Iris Xe supported devices which leaves the Dell XPS the better choice for more “creative” tasks.
When it comes to simple, real world use cases though the configured Western Digital SN730 SSD combined with the Realtek Wi-Fi 6 module made surfing and downloading content a breeze. I rarely had to wait to engage with documents, videos, or images from either the storage or from the web.
I should hope this is understood, that the Yoga 6 or most laptops that don’t specifically have gaming or NVIDIA listed in their spec sheets, are not gaming devices. While it can play some causal RPG’s, simulation and low-res FPS titles, the Yoga 6 does not perform well for the majority of gaming desires.
During a test of Far Cry 5 (it’s what I could afford at the time of this test), it managed to maintain about 30 fps which puts it in the 80th percentile of devices that can play the game at 1280×720 resolution. The fps drops again at the higher 1920×1080 resolution, to 11 fps.
Speaking of stressing the system with gaming, the Yoga 6 can get hot on occasion reaching temps of up to 89 C however, for the most part the system stayed within the 35-45 C during most operations.
Last up is the battery life. The Ryzen 7 version runs about an hour shorter than its 5-series cousin but still outputs about 7 hours of steady use and can get up to 12 hours in moderate use. I define moderate as triaging email, checking some websites and watching YouTube videos off and on for 30 mins to an hour at a time, anything beyond that will start to significantly eat into that number. Things like streaming music, watching videos from unoptimized media players, or even turning the brightness up beyond 60 percent will cut into about one-half of the power consumption per minute.
Summary
Since getting the Yoga 6 for review the number of satisfied customers on the Best Buy review page has only increased. It would seem the Yoga 6 offers a lot for its price point and sits comfortably at the new mid-range point for PCs.
While many of the readers here covet the $1,000 and up devices for their power, brand association and hard to get specs, there is a much larger market that sits just below.
Customers are mostly content with a vivid touchscreen, enough power to do averagely well in most categories and a piece of hardware light enough to carry from the class, office, or the coffee shop and back home.
The Lenovo Yoga 6 does all the above and with a unique style the blends premium with a novel design that stands out against the sea of aluminum clad casings.
In short, the Lenovo Yoga 6 isn’t a power device, it isn’t necessarily the cheapest, but the AMD model does offer customers a taste of both at a reasonable asking price.
Network problems are common in Windows 10, and in this article, we’re going to show you how to solve one strange network problem, a problem with a limited internet connection in Windows 10.
So, if you’re facing this issue, I hope these solutions will help you.
Limited Internet connection messages can cause problems and prevent you from accessing certain websites. Speaking of this message, users reported the following problems as well:
Limited access WiFi (Windows 10) – This message can occur if you’re using a wireless connection. If that happens, make sure that your drivers are up to date.
Limited internet connection on laptop, WiFi, unidentified network, getting disconnected frequently, keeps dropping – There are various problems that can occur due to this message, and if you’re having any of them, be sure to try some of our solutions.
Limited internet access Ethernet, VPN – Sometimes this problem can occur while using an Ethernet connection or VPN. If this happens, be sure to check your network settings.
Limited internet access yellow triangle, LAN – This is a relatively common problem on many PCs, but in order to fix it, you need to run a network troubleshooter.
How do I fix problems with limited connection in Windows 10?
1. Restart your modem or WiFi adapter
Press Windows Key + X and select Device Manager from the list.
Find your networking device, right-click on it, and click Disable.
Restart your computer.
Go to Device Manager again, and enable the networking device the same way you disabled it.
2. Update your drivers
If you’re getting Limited Internet connection message on your PC, the problem might be your drivers. Outdated drivers can cause this problem to appear, and in order to fix it, it’s advised to update your drivers.
There are several ways to do it, but the easiest possible way is to use a dedicated professional solution like Outbyte Driver Updater.
It’s so easy to update your drivers automatically using this awesome solution that it only takes 3 steps:
An antivirus is important, but sometimes certain issues can occur due to your antivirus. Many users reported that the Limited Internet connection message can be caused by your antivirus and in order to fix that you need to change your settings.
Several users reported that their antivirus was the cause, and after adjusting a couple of settings the issue was resolved. If you can’t find the settings causing this issue, we advise you to disable your antivirus and check if that helps temporarily.
If the issue still persists, you’ll need to uninstall your antivirus completely and check if that solves the issue. If removing the antivirus solves the problem, you should consider switching to a different antivirus solution.
Before starting to tweak your old antivirus, we recommend switching to a security solution that doesn’t interfere with your system, and it has a very low impact on its resources.
4. Reset the TCP connection
Right-click on the Start Menu button and open Command Prompt (Admin)
Enter the following lines and press Enter after entering each one:
netsh int tcp set heuristics disabled
netsh int tcp set global autotuninglevel=disabled
netsh int tcp set global rss=enabled
Now enter this command to verify that the previous functions were disabled:
netsh int tcp show global
Close the Command Prompt window.
5. Run the Windows Networking Troubleshooter
Go to Search and type troubleshoot.
Choose Troubleshoot from the menu.
Select Network Adapter and click Run the troubleshooter.
Click the network icon in your Taskba and choose your network from the menu.
Now click on Change adapter options.
Locate your network connection, right-click it and choose Properties from the menu.
Select Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and click on Properties.
Select Use the following IP address and set the following data:
IP address: 192.168.1.25
Subnet mask: 255.255.255.0
Default gateway: 192.168.1.1 ClickOK to save changes.
Note: Keep in mind that these numbers might not work for you, so you’ll need to change your IP address according to the format of your Default gateway.
To find out what is the Default gateway on your PC, just check the network properties on your PC or on any other device that has Internet access.
If your IP address is set manually, select the Obtain IP address automatically option and check if that solves your problem.
7. Change your DNS
Follow steps 1-4 from the previous solution.
Select Use the following DNS server addresses and set these values:
Preferred DNS server: 8.8.8.8
Alternate DNS server: 8.8.4.4
Click OK to save changes.
Note: If you prefer OpenDNS you can use it instead of Google DNS. After switching your DNS, check if the problem is resolved. Keep in mind that this solution might slow down your network connection a bit.
If you are already using a custom DNS, select Obtain DNS server automatically option and save changes.
8. Reset your router
According to some users, the Limited Internet connection message can sometimes appear due to your router’s configuration.
Several users reported that they fixed this problem simply by resetting their router to default, so you might want to try that.
To reset your router, you need to access your router’s configuration page and choose the reset options from there. However, you can also reset your router by pressing the hidden reset button on your router.
For detailed instructions on how to reset your router, we advise you to check your router’s instruction manual. Remember that resetting your router will make your Wi-Fi network disabled, so you’ll have to set it up again.
9. Reset BIOS to default
Few users claim that they fixed this problem simply by resetting their BIOS to default. If you have a built-in network adapter, you might be able to configure it from BIOS.
Sometimes your BIOS settings might interfere with your network configuration, and in order to fix the problem, you need to reset your BIOS to default.
This is rather simple, and to see how to do it properly on your PC, we advise you to check your motherboard manual for detailed instructions. This is an unlikely solution, but few users claim that it works, so be sure to try it out.
If you don’t know how to access your BIOS, here’s an excellent guide to help you with that.
10. Rollback your network driver
Open Device Manager, locate your network adapter, and double click it to open its properties.
Go to the Driver tab and click the Roll Back Driver button. If this button isn’t available, click on Uninstall Device to remove the driver.
Once you uninstall the network driver, restart your PC, and Windows will install the missing driver automatically.
That would be all, I hope some of these solutions helped you with the limited internet connection problem. And before you leave, do check some quick tips to get back the cellular option in Windows 11.
If you have any comments, suggestions, or maybe some other solutions for this problem, reach out in the comment section below.
The Redmond tech giant is actually warning its users that, while on Windows 11, they might experience issues opening or using some built-in apps and features due to an expired digital certificate.
As you can imagine, this is disconcerting news, since everyone was starting to think that the waters are calming down and the new OS is becoming increasingly stable.
Snipping Tool and Touch Keypad may not work for all of us
UPDATE: There is a cumulative update (KB4006746) that will fix the touch keyboard, voice typing, emoji panel, and issues with the getting started and tips sections of Windows 11.
You’ll be able to find this patch by checking for updates in the Windows Update section of Settings in Windows 11.
Microsoft explained that starting on November 1, 2021, some users might be unable to open or use certain built-in Windows apps or parts of some built-in apps that have not installed KB5006746, released October 21, 2021.
This is caused by an issue with a Microsoft digital certificate, which expired on October 31, 2021. Devices running in S mode are more likely to be affected.
The complete list of apps and features potentially impacted by this Windows 11, version 21H2 known issue includes:
Snipping Tool
Accounts page and landing page in the Settings app (S mode only)
Touch Keyboard, Voice Typing, and Emoji Panel
Input Method Editor user interface (IME UI)
Getting started and Tips
Redmond officials also stated that affected Windows 11 users can install the KB5006746 release preview update.
This cumulative update was designed to resolve issues impacting the Touch Keyboard, the Voice Typing and Emoji Panel, the Input Method Editor user interface (IME UI), and the Getting Started and Tips feature.
Also, the company is currently working on a fix to address this new known issue which will be provided with a future update.
Roblox is a free online gaming platform and game creation system that allows users to create and publish games that can be played by others in the community.
The games are created by amateur game creators using simple tools, and although Roblox is targeted at children across different age groups, it is also played by teenagers and adults.
The platform is very popular and has seen a great surge in terms of usage, with more than 40 million daily active users worldwide.
In addition to positive reviews, Roblox has also received criticism for the nature of its content, chat filtration systems as well as microtransactions that make it easy for children to spend large sums of money without parents’ knowledge.
Roblox was banned in a few countries, including the UAE, so if you want to use the platform in the UAE, we’ll show you how to get around the ban. Just continue reading, and you’ll find how easy it is.
Why was Roblox banned in the UAE?
Roblox was banned in the UAE in 2018 by UAE’s attorney general Dr. Hamad Saif Al Shamsi. It wasn’t the only gaming platform banned, as others, including Blue Whale and Cloud Pets, were banned too.
Among the reasons invoked for the ban were the addictiveness that the gaming platform caused as well as alleged reports of parental control not working properly.
However, the Roblox developers ensured that the gaming platform had proper parental control established for children so that they would not be affected by the game in any manner.
Despite the clarification by Roblox officials, these reports resulted in the ban of the platform in the UAE, and questions like Is Roblox banned in the UAE in 2021? or Is Roblox still banned in the UAE? are lingering even today.
How can I play Roblox in the UAE?
1. Use a premium VPN service
If you want to play Roblox in the UAE without any limitations, then using a premium VPN service is a fool-proof solution that will allow you to enjoy the games on the platform carefree.
A VPN works by replacing your ISP-assigned IP address with another provided by the VPN provider. Anytime you connect to a different VPN server in a different location, you will get a new IP address.
Therefore, a VPN is a very effective solution for bypassing geo-blocking since you can easily access restricted content in your area by connecting to a VPN server in a region or country where that content is available.
Moreover, a VPN service also encrypts all of your traffic and data going in and out of your device by rerouting them through a secure VPN tunnel. This way, you can enjoy full protection and anonymity while surfing the web.
For example, you can do online banking transactions securely without worrying about hackers, and also you should no longer worry that another party – not even your ISP – will spy on you. In other words, no one will know where you’re going and what you’re doing online.
When choosing a VPN service, you need to make sure that you pick a well-reputed and reliable service, as not every service on the market will work 100% with Roblox in the UAE.
Private Internet Access (PIA) is our number one recommendation if you want to play Roblox in the UAE without worrying about any bans. We tested it and it works smoothly with Roblox, so you should confidently give it a shot.
PIA is based in the USA and is owned by Kape Technologies. With more than 15 million global users, this VPN is a household name on the VPN market. It is available on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Chrome, Firefox, and Opera.
Private Internet Access uses AES-128 or AES-256 military-grade encryption and the OpenVPN and WireGuard VPN protocols. These will ensure the maximum level of online protection and privacy.
It also comes bundled with other great features, such as VPN Killswitch, PIA MACE (ads and malware blocker), Split Tunnel, Port forwarding, Connection Automation, and Dedicated IP.
More about PIA:
32,000+ servers in 101 locations across 78 countries.
No traffic or request logs.
Up to 10 simultaneous connections.
Risk-free 30-day money-back guarantee.
24/7 live chat customer support.
Private Internet Access
Try PIA to unblock Roblox in the UAE and enjoy it without any restrictions.
Once you’ve chosen a VPN product and purchased a subscription, you can easily set up the VPN client on all of your devices. This way, you can play Roblox on your PC, phone, or tablet depending on your choice.
Follow these steps to quickly set up your VPN. In this example, we show you how it’s done with Private Internet Access (PIA).
Download the VPN app from the official website, Play Store or App Store.
Install the client on your device and launch it.
Go to the available countries and select one where Roblox isn’t banned.
Connect to a server in that country.
Launch Roblox if you already have it installed and start playing.
3. Install Roblox and start playing
Depending on the device you want to play Roblox from, you can get the app from the Microsoft Store, Xbox Store, Google Play, App Store, or Amazon Appstore.
Here, we’ll show you how can you get Roblox from the Microsoft Store and install it on your Windows PC.
Go to the Roblox website and click on Get if from Microsoft.
Click on Get.
Open your Microsoft store and click on My Library.
Go to the All owned tab, find Roblox and click Install.
Go to the Installed tab, find Roblox and click Launch.
Is Roblox still banned in the UAE?
Although it is a fact that Roblox was banned in the UAE in 2018, there are speculations that the ban has been lifted recently. However, even though this may be true, there’s always the chance that the platform will be banned again.
The information received by the Gulf News was confirmed by a spokesperson for the aforementioned authority.
There are other online sources as well that mention that Roblox was unbanned in the UAE, so apparently, this is true – at least for the time being – if we take into account all the information available, some of which is certified by credible sources.
Nonetheless, since its future availability in the UAE is uncertain, you need to be cautious and use a VPN all the time while playing Roblox, as you might face interruptions or a complete ban anytime.
In conclusion, if you want to play Roblox in the UAE without getting stuck with any current or future potential ban, using a VPN service is by far the best available option that is guaranteed to work hassle-free.
Besides helping you circumvent the Roblox ban, a VPN will also ensure your online protection and privacy when browsing the web for other purposes.
Last but not least, make sure – for the best experience – to get a powerful and stable premium VPN service like the one recommended above (Private Internet Access). Keep in mind that free plans very often come with limitations, and also other unpopular products might not work properly with Roblox.
Riders Republic is Ubisoft’s response to the huge gap of extreme downhill racing in the videogames industry. While indies like Descenders and Lonely Mountains: Downhill have covered the downhill biking, Ubisoft also adds in snowboarding, jetpacks and wingsuits for anyone seeking that extreme sports rush in a AAA game.
We’ve been excited about this game ever since the closed beta (as you could tell from our preview) and now it’s finally here and ready to be played by the masses. And we do mean that literally as the mass events seem like a huge draw to the game with 64 players racing to the finish line. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves and take this one slope at a time.
I wanted to go skiing, but things went downhill fast
Let’s first answer a simple question with a complicated response. What is Riders Republic? It’s what happens if Steep and The Crew 2 married and had a child with elements from both games showing up.
A massive open world to explore
While it has the large open-world Ubisoft games are known for, it’s not as massive as the entirety of the USA like what The Crew 2 tried to accomplish. Although it also tries to include elements from well-known biomes across the world, Riders Republic condenses them into a more manageable map.
You’ll have rocky mountains you can wingsuit through like threading a needle, snowy slopes to perform snowboard tricks on, and forest-like areas with tracks nearly as wide as your bike to race your BMX through.
What impresses the most is how smooth the transitioning from one type of gear to the next goes, allowing you to switch from a bike jump into a jet-pack on the fly and launch yourself to the next objective at blistering speeds.
— BloodyGoodReviews™ | Pirate PR ?☠️ (@BloodyGoodRev) October 28, 2021
Add into this the amazingly fast teleportation and you’ll never have to wait too long between events. It’s downright incredible how quickly you can get from one side of the map to the other by using the map and there is not a loading screen in sight on the Xbox Series X.
Next to an amazing amount of events, there is also a lot to explore. There are 23 stunts to perform, 45 landmarks to learn more about and 11 secrets to find which will each reward you with some brand new gear.
Cue the Lion King music
You also find up to 500 Riders Republic balloons that will reward you with some cash and a star for every five you find. Collecting them all will certainly take some time but the nice thing is that they are also visible during races. Because these do not appear on the map, however, you’ll need an external guide to locate them all.
There’s a story to tell?
Weirdly enough, Riders Republic decided to include a narrative element where you’re some kind of extreme sports prodigy who’s following into the footsteps of an older legend. The characters all try too hard to be cool, like a father trying to impress their kids, wanting to convince them that they are still young at heart.
I may not be much of a judge, as a 33-year-old father of two who often goes for the punny dad-jokes, but there were plenty of cringy moments that missed the mark for me. Experience may vary depending on what you find comical, but I just wanted the cutscenes to be over and get back to racing down dusty hills as soon as possible.
“How do you do, fellow kids?”
Luckily the deeper you get into the game, the less you’ll hear from them and the story elements take a backseat to the action, as it rightfully should be in games of this genre. You’ll only hear them check in every now and then through a phone call.
If you level each category enough by grinding for experience, you’ll unlock BOSS events. I was expecting these to have some kind of narrative pay-off at least but other than a short introduction over the phone about the brand that’s sponsoring the event, it doesn’t really lead to anything.
I feel conflicted about this because, on one hand, I didn’t like the characters all that much, but on the other hand, I was expecting some kind of closure that never happened. Perhaps when I’ve beaten ALL the boss events I’ll get a credits scene. If so, I’ll update it here.
Downhill thrills
No one is picking up a game like Riders Republic for the story. The only real questions here are how fun it is to play and how the sensation of speed will deliver us thrills. And boy, it does not disappoint in this department.
The game moves at breakneck speeds at all times and you can even switch to a first-person view whenever you want to increase the sensation. There’s nothing quite as exciting as biking down a narrow trail and dodging trees as your life depends on it.
This is especially impressive when you’re playing one of the mass events and you see 63 other players cannon-balling down the slopes, all looking to rank high in the triad of events.
Weeeeeeeeee!
Rider’s Republic is always focused on the fun factor, it leans into the silly things and comes out a better game because of it. There are wacky outfits like dinosaur costumes or giraffe masks, and special gear called Funkies that not only look awesome but can totally alter your playstyle.
This ranges from a plane wing replacing your jetpack, a cardboard plane instead of a wingsuit, or a pizza delivery bike that drops pizzas everywhere and has cringy Italian voice acting. But there are also some really cool ones, with my favorite being the rocket-powered skis that propel you up the slopes and make it very easy to get around.
— BloodyGoodReviews™ | Pirate PR ?☠️ (@BloodyGoodRev) October 28, 2021
Challenging but forgiving at the same time
Riders Republic isn’t an easy game if you’re playing on the pro difficulty or facing other players and it will constantly throw additional challenges at you that may seem impossible at first. But while all of these daunting options are available, they’re never enforced.
I often defaulted to the easiest difficulty (which results in just a bit less experience upon completing the event) and never bothered too much about falling or using the useful BACKTRACK feature.
Be Kind. Rewind.
Now, for players familiar with how Forza Horizon implements this, a fair warning: while the BACKTRACK feature can be activated at all times, it doesn’t affect other players, not even the offline versions. And if you’re playing an event where you have to beat the clock, it will not stop the clock while you are rewinding.
This wouldn’t be such an issue, but it IS very easy to miss certain checkpoints. Riders Republic always shows the next two checkpoints ahead, but if the second one is straight in front of you and the first one is just outside of your peripheral vision, you will have to backtrack and it will cost you time or even that optional challenge you were going for.
Flawless Victory!
Luckily Riders Republic is a big fan of playing the game is more important than winning with completing an event at any position will still reward you with plenty of experience to level up the current sports genre and you’ll get a gold star simply for trying. It goes without saying, however, that getting the secondary objectives will accelerate your progression by a large factor.
Impressive soundtrack
Before we dig into the visual aspect, I feel the need to bring up the excellent soundtrack. It’s not often that a licensed soundtrack makes me giddy with joy but Riders Republic managed to do just that on many occasions.
From perfectly matched serene music when skydiving between rocky canyons, to actually turning up the ROCK factor to eleven with The Offspring, one of my favorite bands ever.
— BloodyGoodReviews™ | Pirate PR ?☠️ (@BloodyGoodRev) October 31, 2021
While licensed music can play on the familiarity aspect and win players over, it also poses a risk. Youtubers will need to share in ad revenue on any content they provide and Twitch streamers could even risk getting banned if they get too many copyright strikes against them.
It’s a problem that has been rearing its ugly head more and more in the content creator world, but that’s a topic for a dedicated article I intend to write at a later point in time.
Pretty from afar, but far from pretty
Onwards to the visual feast. Other than what the header of this section may lead you to believe, Riders Republic can be a great-looking game, especially when you’re working with the built-in photo mode.
Pretty as a picture. Because it IS a picture.
But it’s still an online game with a massive amount of on-screen players from all over the world and some compensation was necessary to make that possible.
When you stop dead in your tracks, the world looks great. When you’re moving through it at 160 miles per hour, it will be too blurry to notice… But it’s between those two extremes that the game shows a few technical shortcomings, with textures loading in only a few meters ahead and foliage popping into existence a few times.
There is even some wildlife that populates the game and while it’s a step up from the cardboard cutouts used in The Crew 2, it’s still not something you’d like to catch in a close-up.
Plenty of things to customize
If you’re the creative type, you can design your own content in Riders Republic. Draw out paths down a mountain and set a time to beat or score to improve on and other people can participate in your custom events. It’s something that is always welcomed and provided infinite possibilities, but not something I’d dabble in myself.
What I do always appreciate are ways to express myself through my avatar’s design and clothing, and I’m glad to say there is some very cool gear to purchase and you don’t necessarily need to spend any additional real-life cash.
Just take a look at this awesome spider backpack that lights up in the dark. If you’ve got a good eye, you can even spot the Halloween-themed pumpkin helmet I have equipped.
When I see cool spider gear, I get arachneedy!
The variety is a bit lacking at the moment though, you have daily deals and weekly items to browse, but I was expecting a much larger choice of gear. Perhaps that will still improve as the game will be playable to the public for a longer period of time, but until then it’s at least good to know that the designs are as good-looking as this.
As for your gear itself, leveling up will reward you with new bikes and snowboards and such and if you complete certain optional elements like the sponsor contracts or the Shack Daddy Bandit quests, you can even earn time-limited unique stuff that looks mighty impressive.
Nanananana, Batman!
How long to beat and complete
There is not really a moment where you’ll see the credits roll and it will feel like you’ve beaten the main campaign of Riders Republic. But if you’re solely going for the five different Boss Events, I’d say it takes around 20 hours to beat the game.
If you’re looking to 100% the game or at least go for the 1000G worth of achievements, however, you can easily triple that amount of time. There are some very grindy achievements, like completing 50 Mass Events. And while you’d expect to get achievements for finding all landmarks and relics, you’ll need to find at least 150 of the 500 hidden RR balloons as well, which are hidden across the massive map.
It’s pine, I can do this…
Lastly, there may just be a skill barrier to overcome, as one achievement requires you to complete 20 out of 23 possible stunt events and I had to chicken out of 4 of them already.
Add into this the user-generated content and any DLC that may arrive at a later time, and you’re looking at a typical Ubisoft experience that will get you 100 hours of fun or more.
Final thoughts on Riders Republic
Pros
It's fun, it's fast and it's got content to last
The licensed soundtrack is absolutely killer
There is hardly a loading screen in sight. Smooth sailing all-around
Cons
Not the prettiest next-gen game, but not bad-looking by any means
Secondary objectives are often too difficult
Checkpoints can be hard to spot in certain events, causing unnecessary restarts
FINAL SCORE: 4/5
Riders Republic satisfies any need for speed you may have and fills the extreme sports void that the AAA industry has left vacant for way too long. It’s fun, it’s not afraid to be an actual game, and leans into the silly things that keep the experience fresh and it has dozens of hours worth of content.
The speed at which you can chain one event into the next one is nothing short of impressive and it’s one of the fastest loading open worlds I’ve ever had the joy of exploring. Add a killer soundtrack into the mix and you’ve got a success formula that is a few steps up from Ubisoft’s previous attempt at a similar game with Steep.
There’s no denying that Age of Empires 4, created by Relic Entertainment and World’s Edge, has been an absolute smash.
It has captured the attention of not only die-hard series fans that have been waiting for it for a long time but also of players that never heard of the game before.
It has eight playable civilizations, each unique in its own way, and the overall experience is one that you should definitely try for yourself.
How can I rotate buildings in AoE 4?
Lately, a new question emerged and fans are more and more curious as to what the answer to this question is.
A lot of people have been asking if it is possible to actually rotate the buildings we have available in the game.
If we really think about it, quite a few base-building RTS games actually allow you to rotate buildings in whatever way you see fit.
For example, for management and city-building games, rotating buildings is somewhat essential for optimal planning and placement.
However, going back to Age of Empires 4, it is currently not possible to rotate a building. The only thing you can do, which is slightly related to this, is to rotate the camera perspective.
This way, you will be able to see all four sides of any given structure and then some, but after you place it down on the ground, there’s nothing you can do but accept the pre-set rotation.
And yes, one might think this is a major step back but in truth, there is no real need for the feature to exist in the first place.
Creators have built each AoE map in a way where the landscape moulds itself to what you build, so the whole building rotation thing becomes kind of redundant.
Also, each of the buildings has a square base meaning there’s no risk of overlapping and the game simply won’t allow it and rotation wouldn’t fix the issue.
So, unfortunately, no rotation for us in Age of Empires 4 for the time being, But who’s to say that someone won’t come up with a mod that would allow you to do just that, in the future?
Especially now that so many have actually asked if such a thing is possible in the game. We’ll just have to wait and see if this will become a reality.
What other features that aren’t present in the game so far would you like to see in the future? Share your opinion with us in the comments section below.
Microsoft has announced some important updates for Project and Planner, its popular work management tools in Microsoft 365. If Planner and Project currently serve a slightly different audience, the company also plans to introduce a more seamless experience between the two apps in 2022.
“Planner helps you manage and monitor team tasks in a shared plan while Project takes managing your tasks and projects to the next level with more flexibility and power. Over the next year, our plan is to simplify and bring the experiences of these two apps closer together so that moving from one to the other is effortless,” the company explained in a blog post.
In the meantime, Microsoft plans to introduce a new feature that will let users schedule their frequent Planner tasks to occur at a regular interval. Microsoft Planner is also getting support for rich text and images, allowing users to insert bold, italicized, or underlined text and images into task notes. Microsoft says that its task management tool is also getting some new integrations with other Microsoft 365 apps, though the company has yet to share the details.
Microsoft Project is set to add new project management features in the coming months: The Project app in Microsoft Teams will enable users to start conversations on specific tasks with their colleagues and mention them. Project for the web will also allow Microsoft 365 users to view the progress of their assigned tasks and provide status updates. With Guest Access support in the Project web app, team leaders will be able to add guest users and assign tasks to them.
Microsoft keeps adding new features regularly to its project management tools, and the company will keep listening to feedback to improve the collaboration experience for employees. If you’re interested to learn more about these updates, we invite you to check out yesterday’s “Coming soon to work management tools in Microsoft 365” Ignite session.
Microsoft has teamed up with Adidas to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Xbox, and Xbox fans in the US and Canada will be able to purchase the first-ever Xbox-themed Adidas sneakers tomorrow, November 4. The limited-edition Adidas sneakers are named the “Xbox 360 Forum Mid,” and their design includes a lot of cool Easter eggs for Xbox fans.
“On the strap, you’ll note the Xbox 360 disc tray, along with the classic 360-era Xbox button design on the shoe’s outer side and the console’s air vents on the inner side. Additionally, the heel features references to the Xbox 360’s distinctive removable hard drive and memory unit slots. There are a myriad of details to discover and enjoy, including some hidden secrets for fans,” the Xbox team explained today.
The Adidas Xbox 360 Forum Mid will be available to purchase on adidas.com in the U.S. and Canada starting tomorrow, November 4 at 7:00 a.m. PT, though pricing details are not yet available as of this writing. Anyway, the box will include four pairs of laces in red, yellow, green, and blue, as a nice homage to the color of the ABXY buttons of Xbox controllers.
The Xbox 360 Forum Mid is actually the second pair of Adidas sneakers inspired by the Xbox brand: Microsoft previously revealed the Adidas Xbox 20th Forum Tech sneakers earlier this month, but those aren’t available for purchase. Microsoft plans to reveal a third and final Adidas sneaker inspired by Xbox Series X on November 15 during a special broadcast celebrating the 20th anniversary of Xbox and Halo, so watch this space if you’re a sneaker fan.
The Microsoft Edge Insider Dev channel has jumped to version 97 yesterday, with the first build 97.0.1060.2 bringing new PDF and password management features. Microsoft Edge is the default PDF reader on Windows 10 and Windows 11, and this new build improves the viewing and markup experience even further.
Microsoft Edge has also become a great password manager, and this new build makes it possible to create new website accounts or apply coupons and check out on shopping sites in a single click. You can find the full list of new features in the Edge Insider Dev build 97.0.1060.2 below:
Added the ability to draw arbitrary highlighting on PDFs.
Added an option to print even or odd pages.
Combined autofill and password generation on account sign-up webpages to be able to create new website accounts in a single click.
Combined personal info and payment info autofill on certain shopping websites to be able to apply coupons and checkout in a single click.
Enabled by default one-click password updating by adding a button to the leaked passwords Settings page that goes directly to the website’s password update page and then using password generation to automatically fill in a new password.
Added the Downloads button to windows opened with the –app command line flag.
Management policies (updates to documentation and administrative templates may not have occurred yet):
Added a policy to control if the Internet Explorer Mode Toolbar Button is Enabled.
Added a policy to control if the ability for Edge to automatically Enhance Images is Enabled.
Added a policy to control if Accessibility Image Labels are Enabled, which controls if a service can be used to generate descriptions for images that don’t already have them.
Developer:
Added an experimental WebView2 API to handle basic website authentication (Issue 120).
Added an experimental API to WebView2 apps to send and receive post web messages to iframes (Issue 139).
Added an API to WebView2 apps to query the user data folder location.
As usual, this new build also brings a couple of bug fixes, and you can learn more details on this page. With Edge 97 landing on the Dev channel this week, Edge 96 has also made its way to the Beta channel and should reach the Stable channel at the end of the month. If you’re using Linux, Microsoft Edge finally came out of beta this week and it supports all the major Linux variants.
The Microsoft Teams desktop app will let users sign in with multiple work accounts next year. This has been a top-requested feature from users, but Microsoft explained yesterday it requires a lot of work and it won’t be ready until the second half of 2022.
“Thank you for your continued feedback, and patience. We are listening and hear loud and clear that you want support for multiple work accounts in the Teams desktop apps. We are continuing our work to support this, including updating our current application architecture to ensure solid performance and functionality. Given the complexity of this work, we are targeting the second half of calendar year 2022 to be able to support this. We will update you when we have a better sense of dates,” the company explained on its Teams Feedback forum.
As of today, the Teams desktop app only lets users add a personal Microsoft account in addition to a work account. If you want to use Teams with different work accounts, you either have to sign out and then sign back in with a different account or use a workaround like using Microsoft Teams on the web.
As Microsoft explained yesterday, the company is also working on bringing its new Teams 2.0 architecture to work accounts, which will provide better performance. We’ve already seen the promising results of this work on the built-in Teams for consumers app on Windows 11, which has ditched the Electron framework in favor of Edge Webview 2. Performance improvements have been an ongoing request from Teams users, and it’s good to see the company addressing that in addition to the multiple work accounts scenario.
You surely remember all the discussions that were sparked by the fact that the taskbar for the new operating system lacks a lot of functions that we’ve all grown accustomed to.
Until today, you couldn’t drag and drop anything to your Windows 11 taskbar, and you also couldn’t just move it to any part of the desktop you want.
Well, both options are still unavailable to us, but we are actually going to get the drag and drop feature next year.
Drag and drop will be available in 2022
One of the central innovations of Microsoft’s new operating system is the completely redesigned taskbar and the associated start menu.
To be honest, both elements look chic and also have functional improvements to offer, but users are still displeased with the fact that not all functionalities we had on Windows 10 are present now.
The taskbar is by far the most important element in the daily use of Windows and in the latest version of the operating system, the Redmond company has made some changes that sparked major backlash.
This includes forced grouping and the lack of the ability to drag programs or files and folders onto the taskbar.
The latter also means that apps cannot simply be linked there using drag and drop, and opening a file via an application in the taskbar does not work in this way either.
Indeed, this is a great start, but we’re pretty sure this won’t please users 100%. Yes, the drag and drop feature for the taskbar was a must, but it’s only a drop in the ocean.
So, now that the Redmond tech company decided to make one of the requested changes, the question is if they will stop here or actually listen to the community and go the extra mile.
There’s no official rollout date for this new functionality, but we’re certain it will come to us via an update, in the first half of 2022.
There aren’t many customization options available for the Windows 11 taskbar right now either, besides the fact that you can play with the transparency option a bit.
What other changes do you think Microsoft should definitely undergo when it comes to the taskbar? Share your opinion with us in the comments section below.
Besides FUT, Career Mode still remains one of the most popular game modes in FIFA, especially if we take into consideration the new player development and training options in this year’s game.
As a result, if you want to improve your chances of always being successful, finding the best young players in FIFA 22 and developing them at your club is more important than ever.
In order to help get you started on your Career Mode journey, we’ve put together a small list of the best young players in FIFA 22, ten for each section of the pitch.
All of these players are aged 20 or under and have the highest potential rating in the game, so picking them will prove to be a win-win situation.
Who are the best young players in FIFA 22?
Before we begin, know that all players are listed by their main position, but any other position they can also play is shown as well.
As you would have expected, all players need the right training and lots of game time to ensure they develop properly and reach their full potential.
Substitutes and reserve players will not improve as much if they do not get minutes on the pitch. Makes sense, right?
We are going to start from the bottom of the field and work our way up, listing the top ten candidates for each section, divided between goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders, and strikers.
Top 10 young goalkeepers
As many predicted, Gianluigi Donnarumma has been the best young goalkeeper in FIFA for the past few seasons. However, now he’s now 22 years old costs more than £100 million in Career Mode.
Yes, you guessed it. This actually means that you will have to look elsewhere for a long-term solution between the posts, even if you are a superclub that can compete with other top clubs for the world’s best players.
As of right now, Maarten Vandevoort, from Genk, is the best young goalkeeper in FIFA 22. He can reach an overall rating of 87 and can be bought for relatively cheap at the start of the game.
The second-listed young goalkeeper, Chatzigavriel is also a promising prospect and you can actually get him for free because his current team is not even in the game.
But even if he can be brought to the club free of charge, it will take a while for him to reach his full potential, because as you can see, his current rating is only 58.
#
Name
Age
Club
Position
Current Rating
Predicted Rating
Value
1
M Vandevoordt
19
Genk
GK
71
87
$5m
2
C Chatzigavriel
17
Free
GK
58
84
Free
3
G Mamardashvili
20
Valencia
GK
75
83
$12.2m
4
D Alemdar
18
Rennes
GK
68
83
$2.8m
5
Joan Garcia
20
Espanyol
GK
67
83
$2.8m
6
K Tzolakis
18
Olympiacos
GK
67
83
$2.7m
7
B Verbruggen
18
Anderlecht
GK
65
83
$1.9m
8
G Bazunu
19
Man City
GK
64
83
$1.4m
9
E Green
20
Saint-Etienne
GK
72
81
$5.1m
10
Ayesa
20
Real Sociedad B
GK
67
81
$2.4m
Top 10 young defenders
Here’s a fun fact you might like to know: Alphonso Davies is not only one of the fastest players in the game, he’s also the best young defender in the latest FIFA title.
The Bayern Munich left-back is extremely versatile and can also play in left midfield, helping you better exploit the wings with his awesome pace.
However, his price tag may put off a lot of teams, as some surely won’t be able to afford to buy him.
Luckily, there are a lot of good alternatives available, so all you really have to do is imagine what kind of team you want to grow, and purchase accordingly.
Just remember that this is an important choice you are making, as these players will be the last line of defense and you want someone who will go to whatever lengths to make sure the opposing team won’t score.
#
Name
Age
Club
Position
Current Rating
Predicted Rating
Value
1
A Davies
20
Bayern Munich
LB, LM
82
89
$66m
2
Nuno Mendes
19
PSG
LWB, LB, LM
78
88
$34m
3
J Gvardiol
19
RB Leipzig
CB, LB
75
87
$14.7m
4
W Fofana
20
Leicester
CB
78
86
$33.9m
5
Eric Garcia
20
Barcelona
CB
77
86
$25.2m
6
Goncalo Inacio
19
Sporting CP
CB
76
86
$17.5m
7
J Timber
20
Ajax
CB, RB
75
86
$13.4m
8
L Stergiou
19
St Gallen
CB
67
86
$2.9m
9
S Dest
20
Barcelona
RB, RM
76
85
$18.1m
10
J Bogle
20
Sheffield Utd
RWB, RB
74
85
$10.4m
Top 10 young midfielders
Barcelona has the best young midfielder in FIFA 22, which comes as no surprise to anyone, with Pedri already being a high-rated star even before he reaches his full potential.
Don’t be afraid to use him constantly, because FIFA 22 will not punish you for pushing him every single game, and more minutes on the pitch will actually help him reach his predicted rating of 91 even quicker.
Before deciding what midfielder you want in your starting 11, or as a substitute, you must know that a lot of the best young midfielders in FIFA 22 are quite expensive, as they already have high ratings.
However, there are some players available for less than £10m, but they haven’t made our lists because they are not among the top 10 ones.
This doesn’t mean that you are going to have a hard time finding them in the game, you just have to know what you are looking for.
#
Name
Age
Club
Position
Current Rating
Predicted Rating
Value
1
Pedri
18
Barcelona
CM
81
91
$63.2m
2
R Gravenberch
19
Ajax
CM, CDM
78
90
$38.7m
3
J Bellingham
18
Borussia Dortmund
CM, LM
79
89
$43.3m
4
F Wirtz
18
Bayer Leverkusen
CAM, CM
78
89
$34.6m
5
M Greenwood
19
Man Utd
RM, ST
78
89
$35.7m
6
E Camavinga
18
Real Madrid
CM, CDM
78
89
$34.6m
7
B Saka
19
Arsenal
RM, LM, LB
80
88
$53.3m
8
N Madueke
19
PSV
RM, ST
77
88
$26.9m
9
J Musiala
18
Bayern Munich
LM, CAM
76
88
$20.5m
10
Gabriel Martinelli
20
Arsenal
LM, LW
76
88
$21.1m
Top 10 young attackers
Again, it comes as no surprise to anyone that first place in this ranking is held by Erling Haaland. The young Borussia Dortmund player has been an absolute sensation and he is still twenty years old.
Not only is he the best young forward in FIFA 22, but he can also become the best player in the game if you train him accordingly.
His potential rating of 93 is Lionel Messi’s current rating in the game, meaning Haaland can become one of the game’s greatest ever.
The catch is that he’s valued at over £161m, so it might not be the best choice in Career Mode unless you’re managing a club with a lot of available capital.
However, the second player listed in our top 10, which is Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr. is not a bad choice at all, and he’s over $100m cheaper than Haaland.
It doesn’t really matter who you pick, as long as your choice fits perfectly into the puzzle that is your team’s game style and pace.
#
Name
Age
Club
PO.
CR
PR
VA.
1
E Haaland
20
Borussia Dortmund
ST
88
93
$161.3m
2
Vinicius Jr
20
Real Madrid
LW
80
90
$54.5m
3
A Fati
18
Barcelona
LW
76
90
$20.5m
4
Rodrygo
20
Real Madrid
RW
79
88
$45.1m
5
J Doku
19
Rennes
RW, RM
77
88
$26.9m
6
R Cherki
17
Lyon
RW, LW
73
88
$8.1m
7
C Hudson-Odoi
20
Chelsea
RW, LW
77
87
$26.9m
8
A Hlozek
18
Sparta Praha
ST, LM, RM
74
87
$11.7m
9
H Elliott
18
Liverpool
RW, CM
73
87
$8.1m
10
Kayky
18
Man City
RW
66
87
$3.1m
These aren’t the only youth players that are worth looking at, we just listed the top 10 out of every area of the pitch.
There are a lot of other choices so make sure you are thorough in your search before you have one of these young players sign a contract with your team.
You can even make good use of your scouts and they too can come back with some unexpected results, costing you a lot less than these well-known players.
As we mentioned before, it all comes down to your personal choice, so don’t be afraid to experiment and build the best team ever.
Out of all the choices we listed in this article, which player is your absolute favorite? Let us know in the comments section below.
Most users would prefer to have access to the same functionality when watching TV as when using a PC keyboard and mouse combo because it is a lot easier to navigate menus and choose your favorite shows without having to slowly move a cursor on the screen with 2 buttons.
No matter if you’re using your TV to play DVDs, or simply have it connected to your PC, quick and easy access could make a difference between a successful family movie night and one that causes more stress.
This is where a mini wireless keyboard and mouse combination would come in extremely handy, offering you quick and precise control over how your movie night evolves.
Even though with an item like this you get the full capability of a normal PC setup, it wouldn’t be recommended for professional-level gaming. That doesn’t mean that you can still have some fun by using it with more common games.
Besides, the items we will discuss in this guide are compatible with other devices based on Android OS, macOS, Windows, and even Linux. Most of these options also work seamlessly with Xbox and PS systems as well.
The compact size and good functionality offered by a combo of this type will surely improve your interaction level with any devices you might use it with.
How we chose the best mini wireless keyboard-mouse combos
Our team of expert testers, with a combined experience of 15 years, has tackled a variety of testing tasks for any device you could imagine.
Their experience comes into play as a very important element when choosing the products we described in this guide, and a large variety of factors have been taken into consideration.
The options that have been chosen offer great quality and cover the entire spectrum of price ranges, thus enabling everybody to find something that fits their needs both financially and otherwise.
The Rii RT518S is our top pick when it comes to keyboard-mouse combos, which can be used perfectly for any sort of multimedia control, connecting seamlessly with Android TV, tablets, smart TVs, Android devices, HTPC, IPTV, and Windows devices. Beyond this, it works with macOS as well, but with limited capabilities.
This compact multimedia keyboard has two modes of operation, including both Bluetooth and RF 2.4Ghz, which can be switched with ease by the use of one button.
To ensure visibility no matter how dark the environment is, this keyboard-mouse combo has 2 color backlights including green and blue light.
The full-sized trackpad allows you to use this feature even better than on a laptop, and easily control the mouse pointer on almost any device you connect it with.
The Rii X1-BT is another very good keyboard-mouse combo that is extremely portable and easy to use.
This device uses a QWERTY keyboard which will be extremely useful when searching for items or typing on your TV, and supports both Bluetooth and a 2.4Ghz connection.
As an added feature, this device also has a built-in laser pointer and uses backlit keys to ensure that you can use it in complete darkness without needing to search for buttons.
The built-in laser pointer makes it a suitable device for office work and offers you full wireless control over any project presentation.
The ultra-sensitive touchpad can be used as a normal mouse by enabling the device to recognize a 90-degree flip and allows multi-finger usage for zooming in and other tasks.
You can control devices like iPads, notebooks, Android TV Box, Google TV Box, Xbox 360, PS3, HTPC, IPTV, Amazon Fire TV, and Fire TV Stick from a distance of up to 15 meters.
The Rii i4 BT keyboard-mouse combo is another very useful portable keyboard that offers amazing functionality in a compact and portable design.
What makes it stand out from the crowd is the fact that it doesn’t use any dongle, so this eliminates the possibility to lose it. It connects directly to the device with Bluetooth 4.0 and 2.4Ghz RF.
The rechargeable built-in lithium-ion battery allows you long-lasting power and provides you with all the keys you need to surf the internet, control media, gaming, and typing.
You can use the 2.4G dongle for a variety of services and devices, including iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and Fire TV.
This pocket-size device also offers you touch controls with the built-in touchpad which can be used either as a mouse or as a controller when playing various games.
The iPazzPort Mini Bluetooth keyboard offers amazing capabilities at an accessible price and comes with a dual-mode connection. You can choose to connect your device through the Bluetooth 4.0 built-in feature, or by using the 2.4Ghz RF connection which is enabled by the use of a USB dongle.
As the connection features are variable, you can use this device with ease on almost any device. including Android TV Box, Smart TV, PC, Pad, Fire TV Stick, Fire TV Stick 4K/ Lite, Raspberry pi, Xbox 360, PS3, HTPC/IPTV, etc.
The touchpad built into the device covers the requirement of a mouse when dealing with searching for information, browsing the internet, gaming, and the compact keyboard allows you to type text.
What’s very important is that this keyboard combo works without issues for up to 1om/33ft from the connected device, allowing you to remove any distance limitations.
Amaminibox 2.4GHz keyboard and mouse combo is another useful device that ensures that you will be able to type and control devices without using any cables.
This useful keyboard uses a 2.4Ghz USB dongle to connect to Android TV Box, Smart TVs, and also PCs using Windows, macOS, Linux, Xbox, etc.
The interface features a wide range of hotkeys, a normal QWERTY keyboard, and a multi-touch touchpad which allows you to right and left click with ease, and also completes the experience whenever you’re writing text or copy-pasting information from one document to another.
The 8 hotkeys are built into the device as shortcuts for your browsing experience, thus significantly reducing the need to use the trackpad.
To ensure that you can use this device no matter how much light there is in your environment, this device comes with backlit keys that can be set with 7 colors, depending on your preference.
To power this item, you get a rechargeable Li-Ion battery that allows your device to automatically sleep and wake up depending on your usage.
Bottom runners
Even though we already covered some of the best mouse + keyboard mini multimedia controllers, some other products caught our attention.
These items didn’t make the main list, but they are still worthy of a mention, especially because they round up the list perfectly for users who might prefer another design.
As you already noticed by exploring our carefully-crafted list, we included a wide range of wireless mini keybord+mouse alternatives which vary both in specifications but also in design and shape.
Depending on the exact environment in which you plan on using it, or for what task, you will have plenty of very good options to choose from.
Don’t hesitate to share with us what device you chose to buy from this list. You can do so by simply using the comment section found below this article.
Microsoft’s vision for a metaverse differs in distinct ways from Facebooks, but also includes perhaps the most accessible form of public acceptance by incorporating gaming.
With Microsoft Teams metaverse now becoming a thing, CEO Satya Nadella is spinning off separate metaverse concepts the company plans to back soon and among them is “gaming for the metaverse with Xbox.”
In a post Ignite 2021 keynote interview with Bloomberg TV, Nadella confirms something he hinted at during the opening of the company’s cloud-based developers conference earlier today.
You can absolutely expect us to do things in gaming. If you take Halo as a game, it is a metaverse. Minecraft is a metaverse, and so is Flight Sim. In some sense, they’re 2D today, and the question is can you now take that to a full 3D world, and we absolutely plan to do so.
Turning the Xbox platform into a conduit into Microsoft’s ultimate metaverse vision may be among one of the simpler undertakings in its entire effort. Properties such as Minecraft and Flight Sim are already built-out and robust worlds teeming with detail and communities ripe for a metaverse migration.
Nadella also hinted at somehow turning its famed Halo franchise into a metaverse destination, where again, the company could leverage decades of community engagement and vast environments to expand the concept of a parallel online world.
Perhaps, the most complicated issue with Microsoft’s proposed Xbox-related metaverse comes in the practical application. While many connect to properties such as Flight Sim, Minecraft and Halo through keyboards and controllers, they don’t necessarily make use of synthetic avatar bridges most iconic in both Facebook and Microsoft’s metaverse vision.
Microsoft highlighted its partner AltspaceVR and its work with social networking 3D avatars, as well as its own Teams mesh avatars, but the Xbox 3d avatars are not tied to the physical movement of a user like the other two are through AR and VR hardware.
The seemingly easiest solution is to bring down the price of its own HoloLens hardware while building more consumer-friendly accessibility features that tie into the platforms recently refreshed 3D avatars, but we’ll have to wait and see how Nadella and company implement their gaming metaverse vision.
Microsoft’s OneDrive sync client for Windows and macOS is soon getting native support for ARM-based devices. At its Ignite conference this morning, the company announced that Office Insiders with ARM-based Windows devices will be able to opt in for the ARM preview of OneDrive “by end of this year.”
For Mac users, the OneDrive sync client is also getting native M1 support later this year. A first preview will be available for Office Insiders in December, and the new M1 version is expected to be generally available early next year. These new native versions of OneDrive for Windows on ARM PCs and M1 Macs should perform better than the existing clients for Intel-based devices.
With Apple expecting to transition its whole Mac line to Apple Silicon by 2022, app developers have a good incentive to recompile their apps for M1-powered Macs. The Office for Mac apps have been natively compiled for M1 Macs since last year, and a native version of the OneDrive sync client had been announced back in June.
It seems like things are moving a bit slower on the Windows on ARM side, though. Microsoft released a 64-bit preview version of Office for Windows 11 on ARM testers back in July, which offers significant performance improvements compared to the emulated version that’s still available for Windows 10 on ARM users. That’s thanks to Windows 11’s ARM64EC technology, which makes it possible for developers to build apps for Windows 11 on ARM that still rely on x64 code.
Thanks in large part to Facebook taking the preverbal industry leap to invoke the phrase metaverse for its vision of a connected social online construct, other companies are now free to offer their own conceptualizations and Microsoft’s metaverse contains a whole lot of Teams.
While Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg sees the metaverse as an interconnected sprawl of various social media experiences via new augmented and virtual reality hardware, Microsoft just tossed out its own vision that puts Teams at the center of its hybrid vision. In addition to Teams utilizing the vast array of cloud hybrid solutions, Microsoft also talked at length during Ignite 2021 about how it plans to make hybrid work environments more accessible through its communication, cross-functional fusion teams support, data visualization and deeper developer APIs for cloud management.
Meta might be trying to extract the links between its Big Blue app and its metaverse, Microsoft seems more than content to allow Teams and Azure to anchor its own productivity metaverse.
Leveraging solutions such as Mesh for Microsoft Teams to advance 2D and 3D meeting experiences, new collaborative apps, and platform tools such as Power Virtual Agents to embed in new virtual experiences for customers and linking Microsoft Cloud for Health with virtual waiting rooms for patients to offer a customized virtual experience similar to in-person, are just a handful of announcements Microsoft and partners discussed today at Ignite.
Similar to Meta, Microsoft’s metaverse does incorporate a hardware element to tie its vision together and the company not only looks to leverage its own HoloLens AR headset but team up with industry leaders such as AltSpaceVR to expand the accessibility of a future of meeting and device advancements for both developers and customers. AltSpaceVR has been in the Microsoft Store for a quick minute now, but the two are using Ignite 2021 to help expand the technologies towards training and improving developer platforms for the various collaboration apps and tools that take advantage of the cloud.
At the end of the day, Microsoft’s metaverse vision is distinctly divergent from Zuckerberg and Meta, but share the same core principles, bringing people and experiences closer online. As usual, Microsoft is leaning heavily on its investments in the cloud and the industry shift toward hybrid or full cloud migration of data, sensor information and automation. Facebook on the other hand appears poised to bring forth the second coming of 2nd Life for those ready to go on that ride.
While the Facebook metaverse may have more impact in our consumption of social media from day to day, Microsoft’s vision of a meshed interconnected hybrid work environment led by virtual assistants, 3D conferencing technologies and data visualizations may have more practical effects on lives, touching everything from coordinating global supply chains to hosting new ways to experience virtual sporting events.
When you think of Microsoft Teams, you probably think of something that you use at school or work. Even with the new “Teams for Consumers” chat app in Windows 11, though, Teams isn’t quite as mainstream in the personal space compared to chat apps like WhatsApp or Telegram. Well, Microsoft is taking the raw power of Teams for consumers and just crossed the lines a bit with Teams for business and enterprise.
At Ignite 2021, Microsoft announced that by the end of 2021 it will be allowing Teams users to chat with team members outside their work network with a Teams personal account. This means teams enterprise users will be able to invite any Teams users to chat using an email address or phone number, while still reaching the security compliances of their organization.
Such a move might seem small in the long run, but for organizations, it’s an important one. Seeing as though not all of a business’ clients might be using Teams, this lets Microsoft and organizations spread Teams to external users without creating security risks or the hassle of guest accounts. After all, Microsoft did find that employees already connect with customers and vendors, during work, leading to using different collaboration or even personal apps.
For the popularity of Teams, it’s even more important. Seeing as though Skype for Business is already in use by many organizations, it’s huge to see that Microsoft picked Teams for Consumer, instead of Skype for this interoperability. In the long run, this also shows how much of a platform Teams has become since it was first introduced.
Much like what it did with its Windows operating system, Microsoft has created the Teams platform and is able to tap into it to solve common problems. Using Teams for the consumer in enterprise to chat with external users is one of those, and Microsoft Mesh is another. We covered it in a separate post, but Mesh combines the work Microsoft has done in Mixed Reality with the work done with collaboration on Teams to let users communicate, collaborate and share with a personal virtual presence.
Microsoft is kicking off its Inspire November 2021 conference this morning, and the Redmond giant has announced some exciting updates for Microsoft Teams. The popular collaboration service is getting a slew of new features and capabilities focused on improving chat, meetings, webinars, and other experiences.
New Chat features
In early 2022, Microsoft plans to launch some new chat features to support asynchronous collaboration within organizations. Just like Outlook, Microsoft Teams will let users schedule a message in a chat, something that wasn’t possible before. The app will soon support new search results UI and over 800 3D emoji chat reactions. Meanwhile, a new Chat density feature will let users customize the number of messages displayed in the chat window.
New Webinar features and broadcasting capabilities
For meeting organizers, Microsoft Teams has released new webinar and broadcasting capabilities to help deliver more professional and engaging live events. A new Q&A experience is now in public preview, and it will allow presenters and organizers to moderate and dismiss questions, pin posts, filter responses, and more.
A new Co-organizer role is also coming to Teams later this year and will provide an option to assign up to 10 organizers to meetings and webinars. Additionally, Microsoft Teams is getting a new integration with Cvent, a popular third-party events & hospitality management platform that should make it easier for organizers to manage registration and agendas.
New Meetings features and Shared channels
The software giant is also announcing some enhancements coming to the Teams meeting experience: Meeting organizers will now be able to assign roles while scheduling the meeting as well as track the order in which virtual hands were raised by the participants. The Teams mobile app will also get an updated overflow menu that will help users to access the most frequently used actions.
For other customers using Microsoft Teams Room devices, the direct guest join feature will support joining BlueJeans and GoToMeeting meetings in the first half of 2022. Microsoft also announced today new Teams-certified devices including Yealink deskVision AIO24 and Logitech Tap Scheduler.
Another important update coming to Microsoft Teams is support for Shared channels, which will allow Teams users to collaborate with external partners and clients across multiple organizations. In Shared channels, employees will be able to use apps, meetings, chat, 1:1 calls, share content, and co-author documents with external users in real-time. Microsoft plans to release this feature in public preview in early 2021.
Microsoft Viva and other updates
Microsoft Viva, the company’s new employee experience platform within Teams is now generally available. That includes the four Viva modules (Viva Connections, Viva Insights, Viva Topics, and Viva Learning), which can now be purchased with just one plan, the Microsoft Viva Suite available at a promotional price of $9 per user per month. Early adopters will also get access next year to Ally.io, a new module that should make it easier for employees to manage their goals management.
This integration will be in addition to the existing Insights, Learning, and Topics modules. Microsoft has also announced the general availability of Viva Learning as well as 21 new partner integrations in Viva, including SAP SuccessFactors and ServiceNow. Microsoft’s Ignite 2021 conference is just getting started, and the Redmond giant also announced big updates for its Microsoft 365 apps and Azure this morning.
The November edition of Microsoft Ignite is here and Ignite has always been about IT professionals, so Azure is front and center. Topics include Azure AI, Data, Dev & Ecosystem, Hybrid, Infra, IoT, MIgration, Mixed Reality, Networking, and Resilience. We got you covered with a recap of everything Microsoft announced for Azure.
Azure AI
We start with Azure AI. On this front, Microsoft announced two major things. The first is that Azure Cognitive Search now supports more languages, for a total of more than 50. Microsoft says that advanced machine learning techniques help understand user intent and contextually rank the most relevant search results.
Azure Data saw five major announcements at Ignite 2021. First up, Azure Cosmos DV got a set of new features that make it easier for developers to build and maintain cost-effective application databases. Secondly, Azure Synapse got updated features. These include new database templates, real-time analytics for telemetry, and Event Hubs Premium hitting GA.
Third up, there was the news that the Flexible Server deployment option for Azure Database for MySQL and Azure Database for PostgreSQL hit generally available this month. Also included was the news that Azure SQL Managed Instance now has significant new investments and feature updates to enhance performance and security for apps modernizing on Azure
SQL.
The final Azure Data story is SQL Server 2022 hitting preview. Microsoft is calling this the most cloud-connected release of SQL Server yet. This release should enable customers to drive deeper insights, predictions, and governance from their data at scale.
We’ll end by mentioning that Azure APU management has also been updated. There are three new features in the update and you can learn more here and here.
Microsoft shared some news around Azure IoT at Ignite. It says that IoT is seeing 90% adoption globally. Microsoft hopes its IoT Signals product can help boost IoT adoption. It put our a report about it here.
When it comes to Azure Resilience, there’s a new Azure Chaos Studio. This should give Azure customers more ways to find gaps in their apps, and help plan mitigations to avoid end-user disruption.
While most normal people may equate the cloud to the vast void of store family photos and tax documents, Microsoft is busy hosting keynotes at its Ignite 2021 conference that speak to verticals that include Health, Finance, Manufacturing, and even non-profits and new extensibilities that can help automated a slew of processes.
First up is Microsoft’s Cloud for Financial Services which is now generally available for use and brings a set of extension meant to seamlessly integrate with Azure, Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and Power Platform. The new features will help extend the core functions of Cloud for Financial Services which includes Risk Analytics, Remote Sales and Services, Unified Customer Profiles, Loan Management software, security, Fraud protection and other automated processes.
Not to be outdone, Microsoft also has updates for its first ever Microsoft Cloud for Manufacturing that will expand its end-to-end manufacturing solutions that rolled out in February of this year as preview but is now generally available.
Supply chain and manufacturing disruptions are here to stay, bringing with them an intensified need for innovation and evolution. Manufacturers across industries are asking for help accelerating the transformation of all aspects of their end-to-end business. These are areas where Microsoft can help connect experiences across customer operations, workforce, design and engineering processes, customer engagements and the end-to-end value chain with Microsoft Cloud for Manufacturing.
As previously mentioned, Microsoft Cloud for Manufacturing marks the first time the company is offering an end-to-end, manufacturing industry-specific cloud tool. As with most Microsoft effort, customers can rely on a robust 3rd party partner stable to tie into this manufacturing cloud solution that includes PTC, Rockwell Automation, Siemens, ABB, Annata 365, Ansys, and many more.
Non-profits can also benefit from Microsoft’s push into expanding Industry Cloud solutions. Organizations already making use of Microsoft 365, Azure or Dynamics 365 can now gain additional collaboration tools for fundraising, volunteer, and program management, as well engagement accelerant through Microsoft Cloud for Nonprofit.
At the core of the experience is you guessed it, Teams, which helps both communication and collaboration among volunteers and program managers. With many non-profits handling delicate information, Microsoft for Nonprofit also relies heavily on AccountGuard which the company launched back in 2018 and subsequently expanded to include AccountGuard for Healthcare, AccountGuard for Human Rights Organization and AccountGuard for Journalists.
Speaking of Healthcare, Microsoft also talked up its Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare which is now general available. As the name would imply, it’s a pretty straightforward solution for the healthcare industry that offers
Enhanced patient engagement: Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare offers
an enhanced patient view that allows providers to associate one patient
record with other patient records and easily navigate between them for
faster access (in preview). The new Waiting Room in Microsoft Teams
helps patients know they’ve taken the right steps to connect to their
appointment (in preview). Integration of Microsoft
Forms with Microsoft Bookings helps with data collection from a
patient’s prior visit to a virtual visit (in preview). A new mobile browser
join function allows a patient to join a virtual visit from a mobile device
(generally available).
Improved clinical and operational insights: Microsoft Cloud for
Healthcare offers better modeling of healthcare data in dataverse,
allowing partners to define the process and experience for their
customers (generally available). Improved ingestion of healthcare data
allows customers to select how much data is copied between systems,
minimizing duplication and saving space (in preview).
Increased health team collaboration: Microsoft Teams Electronic
Health Record (EHR) Connector – Cerner allows visits to be launched
from within EHR system patient or provider portals (in preview). A
scheduled queue for virtual visits in Microsoft Bookings offers a
dashboard-like view of the day and real-time appointment updates (in
preview). Virtual Visits Manager, a standalone Teams app, simplifies the
data analytics process through reporting and actionable insights about
virtual consults (in preview).
Lastly, Microsoft’s future leaning Cloud sector solution Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability just moved into preview for select customers. As more businesses look to reduce their carbon footprint and optimize their use of servers, Microsoft is now testing its cloud solution which should help efforts to measure sustainability goals, better record and report carbon emissions reduction paths, and meet regulatory and reporting requirements.
Once again, Microsoft’s cloud investments are paying dividends for the company as it spins up specific Industry Cloud Solutions that already tie into other sustained efforts by the company that include its decades long involvement in government, healthcare, manufacturing, finance, science, and research.
Microsoft’s fall version of the Ignite conference for IT Pros kicks off this morning at 8am Pacific Time, and is once again an all-virtual, free event. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella will kick off the event with a keynote focused on the emerging trends and the Microsoft Cloud, and we’ll be hearing a lot about Azure, Office, and Teams. We’ll have a full slate of coverage beginning at 8 am, and you can watch the keynotes here:
Stay tuned to OnMSFT for all the news coming out of Ignite, and enjoy the show!
On November 15th, six titles will exit Xbox Game Pass which means that those looking to continue playing one of these video games on their Xbox One or Xbox Series X console and Windows PC will need to purchase it outright.
These titles are Final Fantasy VIII HD, The Gardens Between, Planet Coaster, River City Girls, Star Renegades, and Streets of Rogue.
With the exception of Final Fantasy VIII HD, all of the above games are currently playable via Xbox Cloud Gaming. When they leave Xbox Game Pass, however, they will also be removed as playable titles from Xbox Cloud Gaming.
The Snipping Tool received a facelift sometime back, but users are now complaining that in Windows 11, the Snipping Tool is slow.
The app had had huge improvements, such as dark mode and other key features for Windows 11, but it lacks agility, and sometimes it’s missing altogether.
Why is the Snipping Tool slow in Windows 11?
The problem appears to be widespread, given the number of users who have complained about the issue, and here are some of the reasons behind this problem:
Corrupt app – Like any app, and especially with Windows apps, Snipping Tool can get buggy after a Windows 11 update.
Old or corrupted graphics card driver – Since the app uses video captioning, an incompatible or corrupted graphics driver may be the culprit for a slow Snipping Tool.
Software conflict – If you installed any other captioning tool running in the background, it may compete for the same resources, causing the Snipping Tool to be slow or unresponsive.
Now that we know the reason for this problem, let’s fix it using the solutions below.
How can I fix the Snipping Tool if it is slow on Windows 11?
Before getting into the more complicated solutions, let’s try some quick methods to fix it:
Restart the Snipping Tool and Windows 11. Sometimes, this workaround is all it takes.
Make sure to install all the Windows 11 updates on your PC.
Close any apps that use intensive graphics, such as games or photo & video editors.
If these quick solutions didn’t fix the Windows 11 slow Snipping Tool problem, let’s apply the following fixes.
1. Run the Windows Store Apps troubleshooter
Right-click the Start button and select Settings.
Now, in the System tab, select Troubleshoot from the right pane.
Click on Other troubleshooters.
Look for Windows Store Apps troubleshooter and click on Run.
The system will attempt to fix any problems with the Windows apps, including Snipping Tool.
2. Repair & reset Snipping Tool
Click the Start button and select Settings from the menu.
Choose Apps from the left pane, then select Installed apps from the right.
Look for Snipping Tool in the list of apps, click on the three dots from its right, and select Advanced options.
Scroll down and under the Reset menu, click on Repair.
After the process is done, check if there are any changes. If not, repeat the steps above and hit the Reset button instead.
Repairing and resetting the Snipping Tool app should fix the problem, and the tool will work faster. This also helps with the Snipping Tool Recording stopped error.
Right-click the Windows button and select Device Manager from the list.
Expand the Display adapters section, right-click your adapter, and select Update driver.
Choose Search automatically for drivers.
The system will find and install the update if it finds any.
If Snipping Tool is still slow on Windows 11, in step 2, choose Uninstall device instead and restart your PC. The system will install a new driver.
Alternatively, you may visit the graphics card or the motherboard manufacturer’s website and manually download the right driver for your device and OS.
If that is not suitable either, you could better manage any drivers on your PC with optimized support for proper driver performance. It will entirely diagnose your Windows 11 and find outdated drivers that you can update at once.
4. Reinstall Snipping Tool
Click the Windows Start button and select Settings.
From there click on Apps from the left and then choose Installed apps from the right pane.
Scroll down to find Snipping Tool, click the three dots from its right side, and select Uninstall.
The Microsoft app is free and already built-in, but if the Snipping Tool is slow on Windows 11 even after performing the above solutions, it’s time to think of a better tool.
We have prepared a list of Snipping Tool alternatives for you. Although the selection is for Windows 10, they all work for Windows 11, so try them out.
That’s it! After performing our solutions, we hope the Windows 11 slow Snipping Tool problem is gone.
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