updates

Microsoft is switching to a "security updates only" model for Windows from May until further notice. The idea is to limit the risk of creating bugs while many people are working from home without IT support staff. The change affects what are known ... internally at Microsoft as C and D updates. Those roll out on the third and fourth week of the month and contain previews and testing of new features that are planned for a main release the following month. Microsoft will continue with the B update on the second Tuesday of each month, unofficially known as Patch Tuesday. However, this will now only ... (view more)

Google says it won't be adding any new features to the Chrome browser and operating system for the moment. It's switching to security updates only, a move prompted by changing work patterns. Announcing the move, Google wrote: Due to adjusted work ... schedules at this time, we are pausing upcoming Chrome and Chrome OS releases. Our primary objectives are to ensure Chrome continues to be stable, secure, and work reliably for anyone who depends on them. We'll continue to prioritize any updates related to security, which will be included in Chrome 80. (Source: chromium.org ) Chromebook Use May Rise ... (view more)

Microsoft has issued one extra fix for Windows 7 after it passed the deadline for security updates to the system. In an all-too-familiar move, the extra update fixed a problem caused by the final scheduled update. January 14, 2020 officially marked ... the end of Windows 7's Extended Support period . During the Extended Support period, Microsoft no longer added new features or offered free support, but did issue security patches, fixed major bugs and offered chargeable support for consumers. That's now over and the official position is that there will be no further updates of any kind for Windows ... (view more)

Microsoft will officially ditch support for Windows 7 in just a couple of weeks, a decade after the system debuted. It means Microsoft may face a difficult choice over security issues. January 14 will mark the end of Extended Support for Windows 7 - ... the second period of a Windows edition's lifespan. Mainstream support, which is the period when Windows 7 received new features and Microsoft deals with tech queries free of charge, already ended in 2015. (Source: bt.com ) Extended Support is where Microsoft charges for help and where the only updates are to fix security problems and major ... (view more)

Microsoft may be planning to change the way it issues updates for Windows 10. It could help break the cycle of updates fixing previous problems and introducing new ones. Windows 10 represents a shift in the way that Windows Updates are applied. In ... addition to frequent updates to fix bugs and add features, the biggest changes are saved for two major updates each year. The idea is that Windows 10 will be updated indefinitely, rather than introducing a totally new edition. This replaced the previous model of each edition of Windows getting a "Service Pack" of updates every year or two and then ... (view more)

Microsoft has blocked users of some security software from updating Windows 10. It's also spotted some problems with specific WiFi drivers. The good news is that although the Windows 10 problems are with the well-known Avast and AVG security tools, ... it only affects older versions. Specifically the problem comes if the software is from version 19.5.4444.567 or earlier. (Source: techradar.com ) Since Avast! also owns AVG, the version number is the same for both engines. Automatic Updates On Hold Microsoft hasn't said exactly what the compatibility problems are, but has put a block on automatic ... (view more)

The latest Windows 10 update is designed to fix problems with printers. Instead it seems to be causing more problems. The update in question is Microsoft patch KB4524147 , which is marked as a "critical" update for those users running Windows 10 ... version 1903. It addresses an Internet Explorer scripting engine security vulnerability (CVE-2019-1367) . Another highlight of this update is a fix for "an intermittent issue with the print spooler service that may cause print jobs to fail." Unfortunately some users report quite the opposite has happened with regard to their printers. Since ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Steve T. writes: " Dear Dennis, I am running Centos 6 32-bit (i386) on a virtual machine and recently I started having 'PYCURL ERROR 22' every time I use 'yum list updates' or 'yum -y update' to list and download updates. The ... error message says ' [Errno 14] PYCURL ERROR 22 - The requested URL returned error: 404 Not Found '. I have gone to the wiki.centos.org/yum-errors as the error message suggests, but have not been able to find a solution to this problem. Can you help? " My response: I asked Steve if he would like me to connect to his virtual machine using my remote ... (view more)

It's becoming something of a pattern that Microsoft issues a Windows 10 Update that causes a problem , then issues a follow-up that fixes it, but then introduces new problems. And it's happened again. Just last week Microsoft issued an update ( ... KB4512941 ) that fixed problems in the Windows 10 May 2019 Update (version 1903), but introduced new bugs with some users finding the Windows search tool didn't work at all, or their processors were under constant strain. Microsoft has since release a new bug fix (KB4515384) for the previous bug fix, but users are reporting new problems. At the time of ... (view more)

Google has stopped working with Chinese manufacturer Huawei, following a US government supply ban. It will have limited effect on Huawei smartphones and tablets that use the Google Android operating system, but will be a huge long-term problem for ... Huawei. The move comes after an executive order from the US President that restricts the way American companies can supply the Chinese-based firm. While attributed to security concerns involving the Chinese government, the order was made under economic emergency powers. (Source: theguardian.com ) Android-based Huawei handsets will continue to work ... (view more)