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Like Grinder, I am Organgrinder and happy to tell you why. My job was Grinding table knives and other implements and I also played the organ and entertained in pubs etc. I have used computers since the 80's when I had a Speccy and then a beautiful Commodore Amiga, and now use an Acer all in one so I am reasonably knowledgeable but don't claim to be an expert. Have now made an aquaintance with Windows 10 (not by choice) and I am always happy to carry on learning so hence my joining this Forum.

Today the world recognizes and celebrates the rights of individuals with autism. World Autism Awareness Day, established in 2008 by the United Nations, is an international observance to make us mindful of this complex, lifelong developmental disability, which typically appears in early childhood. We also join organizations like the Autism Society of America and Autism Speaks to celebrate our differences throughout April’s Autism Acceptance Month, a formal shift from Autism Awareness Month, announced in early March. With autism identified as our country’s fastest-growing developmental disorder, affecting one in 54 children according to the Centers for Disease Control an…

The Microsoft Store Spring Sale, which runs through April 15, kicked off a few days ago with major savings on Xbox accessories and gaming PCs (such as select Surface Pro 7 (i7/16/256) + Type Cover, starting at $599.99). Now, the savings continue with the addition of PC games, discounts on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate membership, movies, apps and more. Save up to 75% on PC games such as Ark: Survival Evolved, Age of Empires III and Forza Horizon 4 Ultimate Edition. You’ll find in-game deals on favorites like March of Empires and Asphalt 9. Also, get your first month of Xbox Game Pass for PC for $1. Find out more over at Xbox Wire. Continue reading...

Earlier today, the United States Army announced that it will work with Microsoft on the production phase of the Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) program as it moves from rapid prototyping to production and rapid fielding. The IVAS headset, based on HoloLens and augmented by Microsoft Azure cloud services, delivers a platform that will keep Soldiers safer and make them more effective. The program delivers enhanced situational awareness, enabling information sharing and decision-making in a variety of scenarios. Microsoft has worked closely with the U.S. Army over the past two years, and together we pioneered Soldier Centered Design to enable rapid prototypin…

How can we work together to protect individuals, organizations and governments from increasingly sophisticated cyberthreats while expanding opportunity and access to technology in a sustainable way? I look forward to discussing these topics and more during Episode 3 of Envision, our digital series for business leaders, presented by Accenture, Avanade and Microsoft. The episode will air live in the Americas on Tuesday, April 20, and re-air in Asia Pacific and then Europe, the Middle East and Africa on Wednesday, April 21. Along with the main Envision program, attendees will have an opportunity to hear regional perspectives on skilling and sustainability from local bu…

https://blogs.microsoft.com/wp-content/uploads/prod/2021/03/Re_WHM-hero-final-01.png Chief Accessibility Officer Jenny Lay-Flurrie and Microsoft U.S. Chief Digital Officer Jacky Wright talk about finding and nurturing supportive relationships built on advocacy and trust. in April 2020 as part of the Women at Microsoft ERG Meet our Leaders series, or download the transcript to the conversation. Jenny Lay-Flurrie and Jacky Wright first met in 2012 while both were on a panel sponsored by the Women at Microsoft employee resource group (ERG). The connection was instant. Both Brits had moved to the U.S. to work with Microsoft – Jacky had just joined Microsoft as the vice …

If you’re in search of new maps, skins and textures, now is the time to get them on Minecraft Marketplace, as you can save up to 33%. The Spring Sale will run through 10 a.m. PDT April 6. Each day three items will be marked down to 75% and the skin pack by Tetrascape is marked down 100% for the duration of the sale (yes, free)! Head over to Minecraft.net to find out more. Continue reading...

Last summer, we launched a global skills initiative to reach 25 million worldwide. Nine months later, we have helped more than 30 million people, learned from our projects and are ready to launch the next phase in our work. Today, I’m excited to join my colleague and LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky to share the details. As you’ll see below, this extends our work, expands our vision and commits Microsoft and LinkedIn to a new promise to help 250,000 companies make a skills-based hire in 2021. Our plans are grounded in a vision of what is needed for a more inclusive post-pandemic recovery. COVID-19 has led to record unemployment numbers, disrupting livelihoods of people arou…

Lenovo has announced a new generation of Windows 10 laptops that help students and educators transition between classroom and remote learning, supported by a wide range of software and services. [caption id=attachment_175489" align="aligncenter" width="1024]https://blogs.windows.com/wp-content/uploads/prod/sites/2/2021/03/06_300w_Hero_Tent_Front_Facing_Left-1024x1024.jpg Lenovo 300w[/caption] The 3rd generation Lenovo 100w clamshell laptop and the 300w and 500w convertible models show off blue finishes, with the 500w powered by Intel Pentium N6000 processors. These new laptops have been built to withstand the rigours of remote learning. Devices need to be more mobile than…

In the midst of numerous and difficult circumstances brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve made important observations about the future of work, and how and where our employees know they work best. What we’re learning and understanding has led us to use this period in time to grow and evolve our hybrid workplace, building additional capabilities to help our employees, customers and businesses continue to thrive. In March last year, I sent an email to our employees worldwide, indicating we were instituting a mandatory work-from-home policy for our global work sites, excepting essential on-site workers. As of today, after over a year in which most Microsoft employee…

If you’re serious about dominating virtual battle arenas, check out the addition of the CHERRY MX mechanical keyboards on the new thin and powerful Alienware m15 and m17 R4 laptops. Gaming is better than ever on Windows 10, with games in 4K, DirectX 12 and gameplay streaming. https://blogs.windows.com/wp-content/uploads/prod/sites/2/2021/03/MX_Comparsion_v2-1024x482.jpg Inspired by the upward-opening gull-wing doors of a DeLorean sports car, the goal was to provide PC gamers with the capabilities of a mechanical keyboard within a gaming laptop. About six times smaller than the Original Cherry MX switch, the ultra-low profile design incorporates stainless-steel mechanical …

In March 2018, Sea of Thieves made its maiden voyage on Xbox One and Windows 10. Since then, 20 million pirates have charted their own tales of high seas adventure. To thank everyone for their support, Rare has a chest full of goodies and bonuses that includes the Prosperous Captain’s Sails, the Sea of Thieves Ocean Crawler Bundle and a 50% off sale in the Microsoft Store between March 18 and 21. Find out more at Xbox Wire. Continue reading...

Today Microsoft kicks off Include 2021, a global diversity and inclusion event unlike anything we’ve ever done before. This free digital event is open to all and brings together global experts in academia, social change, law, behavioral science and diversity and inclusion — experts like Kimberlé Crenshaw, co-founder and executive director of the African American Policy Forum, who will lead a discussion on understanding the social and political impacts of intersecting identities. In addition to these thought leaders, Microsoft employees and leadership will share stories and perspectives, and partners will offer insights into how they’re driving organizational change. If…

Today, we are excited to announce that Microsoft has acquired The Marsden Group, a leader in industrial technology innovation and rapid prototyping. The first chapter of digital transformation was heavily oriented toward consumer-focused industries. The newer opportunity in infrastructure, manufacturing and resources is enormous. We continue to see an increased pace of digital change across many industries, and we believe that velocity is here to stay, as more and more companies recognize they must commit to continuous innovation to compete over the long-term. This acquisition will further enhance Microsoft’s ability to create new customer value through experimentation…

We all know the feeling of password fatigue. Like when you go to make an online bill payment and can’t remember which combination of your childhood pets, random letters and special characters you chose. This fatigue can lead to some bad decisions. The more passwords you have to remember, the more likely you are to choose bad ones, like p@ssword and 123456. Head over to the Windows Resource Center to learn some ways to better manage your passwords. You’ll find out about stronger passwords, password generators like the one in Microsoft Edge and even using your face – yes your face – as a password. Continue reading...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z41PFI6KVKk View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z41PFI6KVKk Earlier this week, Microsoft officially welcomed ZeniMax Media and Bethesda to the Xbox family. What does that mean to you as a gamer? For starters, it means an awesome slate of great games has arrived on Xbox Game Pass for you to discover and play with your friends. Today, 20 of Bethesda’s most iconic and award-winning games – from franchises like Dishonored, Doom, The Elder Scrolls, Fallout and Wolfenstein – are available to Xbox Game Pass members. Additionally, 16 of those titles will be available everywhere you play, whether it’s PC, console or mobile devices through the c…

The new Minecraft x Uniqlo Collaboration will start rolling out on March 15 (March 12 in China). To celebrate the new collection, the Minecraft team is releasing Minecraft x UNIQLO Skins Vol. 2. Wear your favorite Uniqlo x Minecraft apparel as you mine, craft, explore or virtually hang out with friends. There are 15 skins in the free pack, so you can avoid the chagrin of finding yourself wearing the same outfit as someone else in your group. Head over to Minecraft.net to find out about it all. Continue reading...

Forza Horizon 4 is available now for Steam starting at $59.99. With cross-play, Steam players join millions of monthly Forza Horizon 4 players driving across Britain on Windows 10 PCs, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and cloud gaming with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. There are three ways to customize your Horizon Festival experience and car collection, with the Standard, Deluxe and Ultimate Editions offering players options in kick starting their garages. Head over to Xbox Wire to find out more. Continue reading...

The new Minecraft x Uniqlo Collaboration will start rolling out on March 15 (March 12 in China). To celebrate the new collection, the Minecraft team is releasing Minecraft x UNIQLO Skins Vol. 2. Wear your favorite Uniqlo x Minecraft apparel as you mine, craft, explore or virtually hang out with friends. There are 15 skins in the free pack, so you can avoid the chagrin of finding yourself wearing the same outfit as someone else in your group. Plus there’s a new UT collection coming out for kids, and new adult T-shirts, hoodies and tote bags. Head over to Minecraft.net to find out about it all. Continue reading...

Growing up in a rural village in India, was expected to follow the example of the women before her: stay close, get married and have children. She defied her community’s expectations to forge her own path. She learned how to use a mobile phone and access online maps, which made her confident when traveling by herself. And she quickly picked up on how search engines could help her find other answers. “I no longer feel any fear with so much direct access to knowledge,” she says. Now she works full-time educating teachers – more than 300 so far – using technology to help them be more effective in class. [caption id=attachment_175446" align="aligncenter" width="1024]https:…

I’m excited that you’re here to learn about what we’ve been doing to further improve Microsoft Edge and Bing! In my last post we announced our new sleeping tabs feature and I’m happy to share initial findings from our latest Beta build that a sleeping tab increases battery life by using 26% less CPU on average compared to a non-sleeping tab, and also reduces memory usage by 16% on average. This is great news for all you gamers and tab-hoarders out there! More exciting things are in the works for you later this year. Last month we also announced beautiful new themes for Microsoft Edge and I love to hear that Halo, Satin Stacks and Wandering Fields are the top fan favorites…

In Max Brooks’ first Minecraft book, “The Island,” readers follow the inner thoughts of Guy, a man who wakes up and finds himself having to survive in a weird world of blocks. Now, in the sequel, “The Mountain,” Guy strikes out across the sea to see what else the world holds, and he lands on a frozen taiga coast. There, he encounters another person, Summer. Now Guy is going to learn how to survive with someone else. If you enjoy the audiobook versions of stories like this, you’ll hear familiar voices on both: Jack Black and Sean Astin, who both went to high school with Brooks. Explore Summer’s mountain base in a free adventure map, available now. Get Minecraft for Windows…

In Operation 6, the latest update to Gears 5, you’ll meet new characters, such as Colonel Victor Hoffman, and find a new map of a pre-Locust-war district. You’ll also see a new Horde event to kick it off: Escape from Kadar. Find out more at Gears 5. Continue reading...

We all have moments when we realize the world got smaller and our imagination got bigger. I remember the first time I travelled internationally. I got on a plane in Cherry Point, North Carolina, fell asleep and woke up in Rota, Spain. The sense of age and time for the city, the food, the culture – it was something I’d never experienced before, and my perspective changed all at once. The flight had been a portal to a completely new world. When I got my first cellphone, I went outside during lunch and called one of my friends from the car. “Guess where I’m calling from?” I said, not realizing how transformational that invention would become, that I could be present for s…

On Tuesday at Microsoft Ignite, the company announced that Power Automate Desktop is now available at no additional cost, allowing Windows 10 users to harness the power of low-code robotic process automation (RPA). The technology is available as a download and will be included in Windows Insider Preview builds in the coming weeks. This user-friendly, low-code application empowers coders and non-coders alike to optimize personal and professional workflows by automating repetitive and time-consuming manual tasks in Windows 10. Since RPA in Power Automate was introduced in 2019, the Microsoft Power Automate team has seen tremendous growth, with hundreds of thousands of organ…