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Insiders are the millions who represent the billions – Dona Sarkar This is absolutely true. Each and every Windows Insider out there is an individual who represents not only themselves, but also – to varying degrees – countless others who don’t participate in this amazing program. One area where the Windows Insider Program excels is in gathering broad coverage on the holistic Windows experience. We receive feedback and insights on every aspect of the OS – from app usage and core OS functionality, to usability and accessibility, from each of the primary languages around the globe. Windows Insiders represent the world in a microcosm. One of the things we as a team h…

We hope you enjoyed today’s episode of This Week on Windows! Head over here to catch up on all the news out of Computex, check out our Windows 10 Tip on how to manage music playback on your favorite music apps with Cortana, learn more about the interactive live-streaming platform Mixer, or keep reading to catch up on this week’s news. In case you missed it: Here’s what’s new in the Windows Store this week: The 1.1 Discovery Update has arrived for Minecraft https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/645c9168a8559317a5368190debae204.png The 1.1 Discovery Update for “Minecraft” – the first big update of the year – has launched on Bedrock Engine …

At any point in time on any day of the week, Microsoft’s cloud computing operations are under attack: The company detects a whopping 1.5 million attempts a day to compromise its systems. Microsoft isn’t just fending off those attacks. It’s also learning from them. All those foiled attacks, along with data about the hundreds of billions of emails and other pieces of information that flow to and from Microsoft’s cloud computing data centers, are constantly being fed into the company’s intelligent security graph. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/81dba282605e7ca0262d75575c951bee.jpg Microsoft invests about $1 billion in cloud security each year. …

Despite the short week after Memorial Day, there was no shortage of inspiring news around Microsoft. We checked out new Windows 10 devices unveiled at Computex 2017 and learned about Microsoft facial recognition technology that’s helping to find missing children in China. We talked with two entrepreneurs who are reinventing wallpaper and learned how a nonprofit organization is using Microsoft’s Power BI service to bring aid to people in developing countries. And we met two amazing young women — one the 12-year-old CEO of her own company, the other an 8th-grade Amish student whose use of Skype in the Classroom prompted her to launch a book drive for children in Kenya. …

“Wallpaper, huh?” That’s the question many people asked Andi Kubacki and Josh Young at their first design trade show, in the spring of 2013. The reaction was understandable. Maligned for its frumpy patterns and agonizing adhesives, wallpaper was long relegated to the décor dustbin. But a new generation is discovering wallpaper, and Kubacki and Young are at the vanguard of its revival. The Detroit Wallpaper Company, which they co-founded, specializes in customizable wallpaper in a broad range of modern patterns and colors that are, as its former tagline attests, “not your mother’s wallpaper.” The company offers more than a dozen collections with designs ranging fr…

A major Microsoft event in Shanghai on Tuesday revealed the results of a joint venture between CETC and Microsoft: the development of Windows 10 China Government Edition, which Lenovo will be one of the first OEM partners to preinstall for China government customers. The new Surface Pro and the new Surface Pen also made their debuts at the event. Microsoft also announced improved inking capabilities in Office apps that will be brought to life on its new Surface devices, making digital pen use faster, more fluid and more personalized. Microsoft HoloLens also launched in China this week, and an announcement was made that Project Scorpio will launch in China later this ye…

A big evolution of Microsoft’s interactive livestreaming platform was announced Thursday, including a new name for the service: Mixer (formerly Beam). Users will also see several features they’ve been asking for that unlock a whole new world of possibilities for social streaming, and help viewers find the content they’re looking for across the service. “We chose Mixer as our new name because it represents what we love most about the service …. how it brings people together,” writes Matt Salsamendi, co-founder and engineering lead of the platform at Microsoft. Mixer brings people together “through the core experience and ‘special sauce’ that our fans already know and…

The European Union’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) takes effect one year from tomorrow. While some companies have started working towards GDPR compliance, Gartner believes that less than 50 percent of all organizations will fully comply with the GDPR when it goes into effect on May 25, 2018.* We know that the cloud can help dramatically increase that compliance rate, and we are dedicated to helping our customers on this journey. With roughly 160 GDPR requirements ranging from how you collect, store and use personal information, to mandating a 72-hour notification for personal data breaches, it’s clear that using cloud technology can help accelerate the …

In Shanghai on Tuesday we announced that with strong support of CETC and Microsoft, CMIT, our joint venture has now developed Windows 10 China Government Edition for China government customers and Lenovo will be one of the first OEM partners to preinstall Windows 10 China Government Edition; introduced the most versatile laptop — the new Surface Pro — with up to 13.5 hours of battery life; revealed the new Surface Pen, twice as accurate as the previous version with more fluid writing, drawing and tilt; celebrated the launch of Microsoft HoloLens in China; and shared that Project Scorpio will launch in China later this year. To learn more, visit our event site on Micros…

Yesterday, Microsoft received the 2016 Extraordinary Employer Support Award from the U.S. Department of Defense in recognition of its sustained support of National Guard and Reserve military members. It was an honor to attend an on-campus ceremony where Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood accepted the award on behalf of the company. Amy’s presence is testament to the fact that Microsoft’s support of the military extends up and down our chain of command. Amy puts it this way: “At Microsoft, we go to great lengths to recognize the contributions of the citizen soldiers in our midst. Rather than merely complying with the regulations, we go above and beyond as we strive to cre…

Welcome back for another edition of Weekend Reading. There is always a fair amount of news pouring out of Microsoft. This week, we’ve upped the game with a number of high-level stories that touch on big issues of our time, including accessibility, human rights, teaching technology in underserved schools, modernizing electrical grids and battling online scammers. Join us and get up to speed with what’s happening in the Microsoft universe. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/13589516b03e3fdab4ad0821ad450579.jpg In honor of Global Accessibility Awareness Day, Jenny Lay-Flurrie, Microsoft chief accessibility officer, highlighted the company’s commitme…

Few places in the world are as dynamic and diverse as Africa today. In this landscape, we see enormous opportunity for the cloud to accelerate innovation, support people across the continent who are working to transform their businesses, explore new entrepreneurship opportunities and help solve some of the world’s hardest problems. For these reasons, I’m very excited to share our plans to deliver the Microsoft Cloud from datacenters in Africa. We plan to deliver the Microsoft Cloud — including Microsoft Azure, Office 365 and Dynamics 365 — from datacenters located in Johannesburg and Cape Town, with initial availability in 2018. These new Microsoft Cloud regions will o…

Early Friday morning the world experienced the year’s latest cyberattack. Starting first in the United Kingdom and Spain, the malicious “WannaCrypt” software quickly spread globally, blocking customers from their data unless they paid a ransom using Bitcoin. The WannaCrypt exploits used in the attack were drawn from the exploits stolen from the National Security Agency, or NSA, in the United States. That theft was publicly reported earlier this year. A month prior, on March 14, Microsoft had released a security update to patch this vulnerability and protect our customers. While this protected newer Windows systems and computers that had enabled Windows Update to apply th…

Developers were in focus this week, as Microsoft welcomed thousands of them to Seattle for Build 2017, the company’s annual developer conference. “In a world of near infinite compute power and an exponential growth in data, we are focused on empowering every developer to build applications for this new era of intelligent cloud and intelligent edge,” said Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella, highlighting examples of innovations happening today. Harry Shum, executive vice president of Microsoft’s AI and Research group, expanded on that mission and shared the company’s vision to make the power of artificial intelligence available to everyone, “from developers and dat…

A few years ago, it was hard to think of a commonly used technology tool that used AI. In a few years, it will be hard to imagine any technology that doesn’t tap into the power of AI. Thanks to the convergence of three major forces — increased computing power in the cloud, powerful algorithms that run on deep neural networks and access to massive amounts of data — we’re finally able to realize the dream of AI. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/e45d5eba87072568788c735d46438879.jpg Harry Shum AI now has the potential to disrupt every single vertical industry, like banking or retail, and every single business process, from sales and marketing…

The ability of Microsoft technology to empower students, teachers, cities, industries and even safety-minded snake robots was on great display this week. Here are the highlights. Microsoft announced new innovations in education, including a Windows experience called Windows 10 S, modern classroom collaboration in Microsoft Teams, creativity features in “Minecraft” and mixed reality, and the Surface Laptop, a perfect Windows 10 S device for college students. “We believe technology can inspire creativity in today’s classrooms, where the makers of tomorrow reside,” wrote Terry Myerson, Microsoft executive vice president, Windows and Devices Group. Myerson introduc…

There is more. We will share what’s next on May 23 from Shanghai. Please check back here for more details as the date approaches. See you soon. #MicrosoftEvent The post Save the date to learn what’s next: May 23 in Shanghai appeared first on The Official Microsoft Blog. Continue reading...

Microsoft announced new innovations on Tuesday to empower students and teachers worldwide, including Windows 10 S, the new Surface Laptop and Microsoft Teams for modern classroom collaboration. Introduced at the #MicrosoftEDU Event in New York City, the new educational products and services also include Code Builder for “Minecraft: Education Edition” to teach and inspire students and new experiences in 3D and Windows Mixed Reality to spark creativity. Get details on all of Tuesday’s announcements on the #MicrosoftEDU Event site. Vanessa Ho Microsoft News Center Staff The post Microsoft introduces new technologies for education, including Windows 10 S, new Sur…

We believe technology can inspire creativity in today’s classrooms, where the makers of tomorrow reside. This next generation of creators embrace technology as their first language; learn by collaborating and communicating with anyone in the world; and create with touch, command with voice, and conceptualize in 3D. Preparing each of these creators for the jobs of tomorrow is one of our biggest societal challenges and greatest opportunities. Today, only 3% of college degrees in the US are in computer science and 65% of today’s students will have jobs that do not yet exist. At Microsoft, our mission is to empower every person and organization on the planet to achie…

With the Windows 10 Creators Update, we’re introducing a new feature called Game Mode. Game Mode provides a better and more consistent gaming experience on Windows 10, by dedicating more system resources to your game. Game Mode’s performance gain is found in providing, on average, more sustainable framerates for gamers, particularly when your hardware is experiencing resource contention. Game Mode can be activated from the Game bar. To use Game Mode, make sure it’s turned on for each game you play. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/0bb45390cd9c668f7cb39058fbfcc049.gif To turn on Game Mode: Press Windows + G to pull up the Game bar Click …

Who says that cartoons are for kids? Artificial intelligence (AI) kicks off the Microsoft Story Labs animated “Explanimators” series about big, important, cutting-edge areas of technology that remain mysterious (if not just plain confusing) to people who don’t have an engineering or computer science degree. While artificial intelligence is increasingly all around us, helping people do more, save time and work smarter – let’s be honest – it’s tricky to wrap your head around how it works and where it’s headed. For a simple-to-understand guide to the world of AI, check out the first episode above and stay tuned for more animated adventures in technology coming soon …

https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/568b60026c9ba5984c0a20f71a297167.gif Our #MicrosoftEDU event is taking place tomorrow, May 2, in New York City. We invite you to learn what’s next by watching the livestream of the event here. The event will begin at 6:30 a.m. Pacific Time / 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time. If you’re a member of the press, you can watch the livestream here. The post How to follow along with our #MicrosoftEDU event appeared first on The Official Microsoft Blog. Continue reading...

Hello Windows Insiders! Today we are excited to be a) hosting our very first Insider webcast from the brand new #BeamMachine AND b) doing our first ever build release during a webcast. We are releasing Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 16184 for PC to Windows Insiders in the Fast ring. We are also releasing Windows 10 Mobile Insider Preview Build 15208 to Insiders in the Fast ring. What’s New in Build 16184 For PC My People: Technology is all about making it easier for you to connect with your most important people. Whether you want to share a photo, make plans for dinner, or get an answer from a friend or coworker – My People is here to take it to the next leve…

A Retrospective In late 2016, the Windows Insider team did something new. We hosted a real-time Webcast. While the concept of a webcast is not new, this was the first one for us. We hosted it during the development cycle for the Creator’s update and we timed it with the first Bug Bash. It was a small but fun session and we immediately knew it was something we’d want to do again. When the second Bug Bash for the Windows 10 Creators Update occurred in February of this year, we hosted two more webcast sessions. Each session was a success and brought in more Insiders from around the world. The webcasts provided an opportunity to chat directly with, for Insiders to chat w…

Whether it’s keeping perishable foods from going bad, or designing customized home stair lifts, companies are using Microsoft’s technology to make their products better and their customers happier. Those were among the success stories we learned about this week at Hannover Messe 2017, the world’s biggest industrial fair, at Microsoft’s “Digital Difference” event in New York City, and at the National Association of Broadcasters Show in Las Vegas. When one part fails on a milk-packaging line, it can take an entire operation offline for days, leaving a plant unable to store thousands of soon-to-spoil gallons. To prevent such disruptions across the food industry, packaging…