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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...

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 from Story Labs. Thomas Kohnstamm Microsoft News Center Staff The post Watch an easy guide to everything AI on ‘Explanimators,’ a new video series from Microsoft Story Labs appeared first on The Official Microsoft Blog. Continue reading...

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 with one other, and to have a little face-to-face time with some of the Microsoft employees they engage with frequently on social media. As with anything new, there were some growing pains. The webcast sessions were fun and engaging, but the broadcast itself was a bit rough around the edges. There were a few technical difficulties with the streaming software, the PC hosting the video stream was a bit underpowered, and Insiders reported the video quality as being sub-par. Although the general feedback about the webcasts was positive, we knew we could make some improvements and provide a better experience. What to do? Insider feedback in-hand, it was time to make a few changes, but where to start? The easy thing to tackle was the video quality. We used a small lower-resolution webcam for the original webcasts, so making a change here was straight-forward. To enhance this part of the webcast experience, we acquired a Logitech BRIO 4k webcam. It is the first 4k consumer webcam and during our internal testing with it, it provides a huge leap in video quality compared to our previous hardware. The Logitech Brio https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/7f1518b27ef7a0a59ab1f0804a96f0ee.png The Logitech Brio Next up for review was the broadcasting software. Our first broadcasts were run using OBS Studio with FTL. This software was simple to set up and configure and was easy to become familiar with for our webcasts. Knowing we wanted to get progressively “fancier” over the course of time, we posed some questions to the web community and to our partners on the Beam team as to what the best software out there is and were pointed to XSplit Broadcaster. While we haven’t hosted a webcast using this new software, it does look like it will allow us to achieve some of our future goals with providing higher quality webcasts. Having tackled two of the three important aspects of the webcast, it was time to overhaul the computer being used to host the broadcast. That brings us to the birth of the #BeamMachine. The #BeamMachine How do you start a new PC build? If you could pick out the parts and build to your own specifications, what hardware would you choose? The core of any new PC builds comes down to two key questions: what is your budget, and do you want an Intel or AMD based setup? Our focus for this build was video streaming, a function that is CPU intensive and is good to support with the proper RAM. We weren’t building a gaming rig, so we didn’t need the most cutting edge graphics card. The rest of the core components would fall into place as we compiled our parts list. Wanting to build a solid machine that would be somewhat future-proof, we chatted with some partner teams and set our build expectations. As much fun as it is to spend money on new computers, we have budgets too! Being the figurative core of the new build, the first part up for consideration was the CPU. Intel has a reputation for being the fastest and most cutting-edge, but that performance comes at a price. Comparatively, AMD recently released their new Ryzen series processor and the initial reviews on performance were promising. Keeping our budget in mind, the new Ryzen chipset was now the focal point of the build. The difference between the 1700x and the faster 1800x was $100, so we decided to splurge a bit and go for the faster version. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/384fcc0e0aa2bddbc85f34ad726eef04.jpg The AMD Ryzen 7 1800x Processor Having settled on a processor, the rest of the #BeamMachine build fell into place quickly. Being a first-generation processor, the list of compatible motherboards was somewhat limited, but thankfully some of the better-known OEMs have already been working on their supporting hardware. Given our timeline for the build, general availability, and MSI’s reputation for ease of setting over-clocking configurations, the new X370 Gaming Pro Carbon motherboard rose to the top of our build list. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/57c7bad199d352d1e5dc78825ad44e85.jpg MSI’s X370 Gaming Pro Carbon Next up was RAM and the choices were bountiful. Honestly there were more options than we could sort through. There’s a lot to take into consideration though. What speed RAM do you want? Are you going to over-clock it? What’s the performance vs. cost ratio? I personally have had great past experiences with G.Skill RAM and overclocking and quickly settled on a choice. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/5f4bbde78a66f288bf6654f874e2125e.jpg G.Skill Trident Z RGB RAM Next on the list was graphics. As mentioned before, we didn’t need the most powerful graphics card out there since it’s not vital to the streaming experience. Knowing this wouldn’t be a constraint, there were plenty of options to select from. Hard drive capability was another important factor if we were going to record the video streams, so we made sure to put a high-quality solid-state drive (SSD) on the build list. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/c7e3ea0a05f798a64cfe6d5bacb2b0df.jpg Samsung 960 EVO M.2 NVMe SSD At this point we were down to the finishing components. We needed to top off the build with a quality power supply, a case that would show off the internal components, and we made the decision to add a closed-loop liquid cooling system (because hey, why not!). With these final components selected, the #BeamMachine was ready to go! Well, on paper at least. Now it was time to order parts and wait for the boxes to arrive. Over the course of about two weeks, boxes arrived one-by-one until the full slate of components was ready to go and the new PC was ready to come to life. It was finally time to start building! Here’s a quick recap of the system components used in the build: AMD Ryzen 7 1800x CPU MSI x370 Gaming Pro Carbon motherboard 32GB (4x8GB) G.Skill Trident Z RGB DDR4 RAM Samsung EVO 960 M.2 NVME solid-state drive MSI GEFORCE GTX 1050 TI graphics card Corsair H110i liquid cooling system Corsair RM750x power supply Thermaltake X71 full-tower case Arctic Silver 5 thermal paste And of course, some awesome LEDs to make the build stand out Thankfully we took many photos throughout the build process as we wanted to document and share the build process for anyone who has never assembled their own PC, or for those who love watching new PCs come to life. Without further ado, let’s get to the photos! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/2cef675b9869731d40694c8b6ff4fd28.jpg The pile of internal components. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/183c0c763dd24255007e2bed5108bd55.jpg A freshly unboxed PC case. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/ef3b099ba6ed1ff0dead08dc9c2151ae.jpg The new MSI motherboard, complete with built-in M.2 SSD slots. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/5545c497122638fb84f1731d819ceac4.jpg Time to start building! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/f39249f5b048c115a0df15b8ead5bf98.jpg What’s a PC build without a little Mountain Dew? And a CPU! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/99fcc7e2db5921a7e691519ff0f3075f.jpg The new AMD Ryzen 7 1800x CPU taking its place. Dropping the new SSD into place https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/e030217f8b8ae8b6a72cd3ff6bf6348b.jpg Dropping the new SSD into place. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/31a86c46f2afb926b5b85ebeeb34ea80.jpg Next in: the Corsair RM 750X Power Supply. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/e05c3effcd47bc441d6368c5f4bbb10f.jpg A fully-modular power supply is a dream for cable management! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/532be59051ab6de7e2983910950e1f6e.jpg It’s starting to look a little like a PC! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/451d3d0f4587066f628ef73d3a638676.jpg Now for some cooling capability: Corsair H110i liquid cooling unit. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/a1abcfb60ced50b9145611d6773d760b.jpg Yours truly attaching the radiator to the top of the case. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/1c6994a18d338c4c4fc61e83ace541b3.jpg The Corsair H110i comes with the necessary AMD Ryzen bracket! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/78a74922f2881064dbc44b5ed1cd1daf.jpg Four quick snaps and our 32GB of RAM is quickly installed. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/e1484a97392359a3d15a29fd13ef6170.jpg Graphics anyone? Remove two accessory panels from the back of the case and the new MSI GeForce GTX 1050 Ti is a quick install. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/b6fbf3ddd0c9c255d511c5986e776a67.jpg Attaching up the case header pins, some fan plugs, and of course… the speaker! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/c82459b8595f210e167cb5180d98a1af.jpg Easy clean: the Thermaltake X71 case has a removable magnetic mesh top. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/f678d612106c66b0aaa59671c3d3f315.jpg A view from “the dark side”. Cable management is important! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/d469a6af31e4e41208e166b4b4eb8cc0.jpg The end is near! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/6f2e02972bda9f1e7f2e0447a0ae15bb.jpg A quick-power on to ensure all is well and that the BIOS posts as expected. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/eb7c296d258e00153a978fc0a24c469f.jpg Who is going to clean up this mess? https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/39a893510f148653e571c8fe300d2eec.jpg The #BeamMachine is alive and well. And in the words of the late Bob Ross, “we’ll put a happy little tree right here…” In total the build took a little over two hours. I’ll admit that I’m picky about cable management, a topic that many home PC builders tend to be very particular about (and rightfully so). If you’re going to take the time to build a beautiful new PC, it’s worth putting in the effort to do it properly. Overall the build went very smoothly; there were no hardware install problems and with the careful consideration put into the parts before purchase, all the hardware chosen was fully compatible and we did not encounter any inter-operability issues. It’s nice when a build comes together! There’s something special about putting in the time and effort to build it yourself, and while not all Windows Insiders out there build their own PCs, there are no doubt many of you who have gone through this same process and felt the wave of joy when it boots and posts after you press the power button for the first time. Any time you set out to create something, be it a piece of software, a new PC build, or something as altruistic as sharing feedback on a bug or new feature idea you have, you’re taking the time to invest yourself. You’re investing in your abilities, your ideas, and your desire to have an impact. Windows Insiders invest every day via participation in this program. Our efforts to build a new PC to better connect with you all via our monthly webcasts is another way of showing our appreciation for all you do day-in and day-out to make the Insider program the success it has become and will continue to be. I look forward to connecting with you and am excited about our new series of webcasts. Continue creating, and as Dona always says, “keep hustlin’”! – Jason The post The Beam Machine appeared first on Windows Experience 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 level and bring the people you care about most to the center of your experience. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/253363b93e71eee0443d850df0861c99.png You can now: Pin your people to the taskbar – we’ll suggest some to start with, or you can pick your own! (Note: you are currently limited to having 3 people pinned to your taskbar currently.) View multiple communication apps together and filtered to each person on your taskbar. Choose the app you want to use to chat and we’ll remember for next time. By now, you are wondering ‘but how do I host this party in my taskbar?’. To start with, go to the Store app and make sure you have all the latest updates for the Skype, Mail, and People apps. Then click on the People icon in the taskbar to activate the first run experience and get setup. Note: Contact syncing is enabled by default following system settings in versions 11.13+ of Skype. If you have an older version of Skype you will need to manually enable contact syncing via the Skype app settings. Have feedback you want to share with the team? We want to hear it! You can send us feedback by tapping the ellipsis in the People flyout and selecting “Send feedback”�, or by opening the Feedback Hub and sharing your thoughts in the Desktop Environment > My People section. We have some more work on its way for this that will soon be lighting up for Insiders, including our improved Share story for People, so stay tuned! New experience for Gmail accounts in Windows 10 Mail & Calendar apps: Last week, we announced we’re introducing a new experience for Gmail accounts in the Windows 10 Mail and Calendar apps that brings our latest features such as Focused Inbox and richer experiences for travel reservations and package deliveries that were previously only available to those with an Outlook.com or Office 365 email address. Windows Insiders will be the first to try out the new experience as the roll-out gradually happens over the next few weeks. You’ll know the new experience is available for your account when you are prompted to update your Gmail account settings. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/69fbc9728b89fbf840f8f468e7246d91.jpg Changes, improvements, and fixes for PC We fixed an issue where night light could get stuck in a disabled state. We’ve updated Start to use the improved XAML scrollbar style announced during Creators Update development. We fixed an issue from recent flights where dragging an app from Start’s All apps list into the tile grid would result in Start crashing. We fixed an issue for those using Windows in Japanese, where on first login after an upgrade certain apps would unexpectedly appear at the bottom of the Start’s All apps list for an hour or until being launched, instead of the normal sorted position. Since the preview picture in Start Settings only previewed background and theming changes, which are already available to be previewed on their corresponding Settings pages, we’ve made the decision to remove it. We’ve improved the loading performance of the Notification Settings page. Some audio drivers have an “encoding Audio Processing Object” feature; this is commonly known as “Dolby Digital Live”� or “DTS Connect”. This takes the output of the Windows audio engine mix, encodes it (as Dolby Digital, DTS, or some other format) and sends it out over a S/PDIF optical link for decoding by an external audio receiver. An issue was introduced which resulted in this feature no longer working, which is now fixed. We fixed an issue from recent flights resulting in Photos crashing if you opened a picture from the Collection page and then pressed the back button in the title back. We fixed an issue resulting in Counter Strike Global Offensive hanging or freezing during game play on the latest builds (16176+). We fixed the issue where pressing F12 to open the Developer Tools in Microsoft Edge while F12 is open and focused may not return focus to the tab F12 is opened against, and vice-versa. Known issues for PC Some Insiders have reported seeing this error “Some updates were cancelled. We’ll keep trying in case new updates become available.”� in Windows Update. See this forum post for more details. Double-clicking on the Windows Defender icon in the notification area does not open Windows Defender. Right-clicking on the icon and choosing open will open Windows Defender. Surface 3 devices fail to update to new builds if a SD memory card is inserted. The updated drivers for the Surface 3 that fix this issue have not yet been published to Windows Update. exe will crash and restart if you tap any of the apps listed in the Windows Ink Workspace’s Recent Apps section. Insiders who use Simplified Chinese IMEs or the Traditional Chinese Changjie or Quick IME to input text will find that the candidate window doesn’t appear when typing into certain apps. If you press space, the first candidate will be finalized. Using the number keys will not finalize any other candidate. If the candidate you need is not the first one, for now you will have to enter your text into an app where the candidate window appears, such as Notepad, and copy it into the desired text field. Navigating to Settings > Update & security > Windows Update may crash Settings app. You can simply re-open the Settings app again and it should work again. The “Save”� dialog appears to be broken in several desktop (Win32) apps. The team is investigating. This will break things such as Chinese IME, etc. Localized apps on localized x64 Windows 10 Insider Preview builds will not work. We’ve heard some reports that the Action Center isn’t opening as reliably in recent builds, and are investigating. Changes, improvements, and fixes for Mobile We’ve fixed the issue where some Insiders were unable to open both the Connect UX page and/or the “Add Bluetooth or other devices” setting on the Bluetooth Settings page. We fixed an issue resulting in an unexpected extra ~20 sec being added to the phone shutdown process due to a deadlock if you tried to shut down soon after switching from one network to another. Known issues for Mobile A small percentage of devices may experience text message backup loss related to backup and recovery of the messaging database. The copyright date is incorrect under Settings > System > About. It shows as 2016 when it should be 2017. Thanks to the Windows Insiders that reported this! Insiders may experience random shutdowns on some devices. In some cases, the WeChat app may crash on launch. Community Updates Many Windows Insiders have asked to be introduced to members of the team beyond the four of us they engage with daily on the Twitters/forums. This is something we’ll do in these blog posts and publish them on our SHINY new website that will debut in June. Today we’ll start with the Windows Insider team. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/f9c7ce1eccb53ee2175017cd5b7be035.jpg First a quick walkthrough of how our org works. Windows and Devices Group – thousands of people who build Windows, our apps, devices and services. Within WDG are a group of people called. Community Champs + FlightOps – Engineers throughout WDG who live and breathe customer data/feedback – these are all the lovely humans who help make flight/no flight decisions based on data and feedback from Windows Insiders. Each person is responsible for a specific area from Core UX to deployment and are the main evangelists for customer feedback for their area. Within this group are a bunch of folks you all probably know well. Windows Insider Team – a scrappy group of six who represent the Windows Insiders both internally and externally. Here we are below left to right with our Twitter handles. Please get in touch with us if you want to know about the things we’re working on! Dona Sarkar (@donasarkar) – Chief #NinjaCat wrangler Dona’s main responsibility is making sure the right bugs and features are being invested in by the engineering teams for this release and future releases and communicating back to Insiders. Another responsibility is engaging with all of the other community engagement programs in Microsoft and figure out how they can Insider like Windows does. A third area of investigation is figuring out how to empower Insiders to grow and use their technical superpowers to create a lasting impact in their world. Blair Glennon (@jbglennon) – Baseball loving Blair leads the Windows Insider Program for Business sub-program and owns Insider Insights. He is the one who partners with our AMAZING data science team to understand the happiness and health of our overall community. Through both quant and qual data (cluster/trend analysis, surveys, side convos at meet-ups), he helps us determine what we need to do to better co-create Windows and the Insider program with you all. Jason Howard (@northfacehiker) – #TeriyakiTuesday-loving Beam Master Jason leads social sentiment from Insiders to communicate to the overall WDG org. He also spends a ton of his time helping Insiders get unblocked on build issues and rolling up lists of top issues to the product teams. He is also the creator and owner of the monthly Insider Beam webcasts. Tyler Ahn (@skrelnick) – Chihuahua-mom Tyler leads the Global fan programs and the Insider MVP Program. She is partnering with Brandon on the website spec and launch and thinking about how to create Insider-in-a-box so you can run Insider programs within your own organizations! She has over a decade of experience doing business development in emerging markets and has the superpower of taking an activity and figuring out how to scale it globally eg CAT-in-a-box, forums, etc. She has been an INVALUABLE asset for our team as we think about building products and services to empower EVERY person and organization on the planet to do the thing. Brandon LeBlanc (@brandonleblanc) – Bat’leth wielding Brandon owns the main communication to Insiders. He works with the Community Champs to make sure the features and bugs are represented in our communication. Brandon is working on the Insider all-up social media strategy as well as content creation for our shiny new website. Jeremiah Marble (@jeremiahmarble) – Global negroni hunter Jeremiah is the architect of the Windows Insider Program. He drives projects for our core audiences and projects, deciding where and how to grow our community. This year, he’s focusing heavily on global entrepreneurs and creatives. He also leads our “Co-Creating with Sub-communities” initiative, which will launch its first pilots in June. As a third area, he’s looking at ways to better connect Insiders seeking to help others. Jeremiah was a founding member of the Windows Insider Program and our current “village elder”.� Keep hustling team, Dona <3 The post Announcing Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 16184 for PC + Build 15208 for Mobile appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

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 pioneer Tetra Pak is employing new, digital tools that enable its cloud-connected machines to predict exactly when equipment needs maintenance, averting many breakdowns. When repairs are needed, Tetra Pak service engineers use HoloLens headsets to more quickly diagnose and fix machine issues, as well as a system of connected machines, data analytics and mobility apps to drive customer value. The Swedish company, which works with food and beverage manufacturers in more than 175 countries, was among those at Hannover Messe 2017 demonstrating the technology. Also at Hannover Messe 2017 was thyssenkrupp, which, with its customized stair lifts, has long helped people with physical limitations live comfortably and independently in their homes. Until recently, the process of selling, designing, building and installing the lifts was time-consuming, with a laborious system of labels, cameras and manual data entry. But with Microsoft HoloLens, thyssenkrupp is revolutionizing its home mobility solutions business, making the process faster, easier and more helpful for customers. The digitization of the sales and manufacturing processes has reduced delivery times as much as four times. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/f59511c53d4c6057aae61ac96a8bf1ca.jpeg Turi Widsteen, general manager of Commercial Communications; Abbie Lundberg, contributing editor for Harvard Business Review Analytic Services; and Judson Althoff, executive vice president of Microsoft’s Worldwide Commercial Business, on stage at the April 26 Digital Difference event in New York. (Photo by Brian Smale) At Microsoft’s Digital Difference event Wednesday in New York City, more than a dozen forward-thinking companies showcased how they are driving digital transformation – and making a difference – for their businesses. Also, results of a new report, “Competing in 2020: Winners and Losers in the Digital Economy,” were shared, including this key finding: While 80 percent of business leaders think their industry will be positively disrupted by digital transformation within the next three years, fewer than half actually have a digital strategy in place. It’s not too late to get there, says Abbie Lundberg, author of the report and Harvard Business Review Analytic Services contributing editor. In an Q&A on the Transform blog, Lundberg says digital leaders are those “enabling their employees with data, training and the ability to leverage different tools and different kinds of information.” More importantly, she says, “their front-line employees have been empowered and given the information and tools that they need to be able to exploit information in a useful way.” At the National Association of Broadcasters Show (NAB 2017) this week in Las Vegas, Microsoft announced several new partners and customers who have chosen Microsoft’s cloud to power their digital transformation. “More and more organizations in the media and entertainment industry are turning to cloud providers to help manage their compute and storage needs and are recognizing the benefits of flexibility, security and scalability,” writes Steve Guggenheimer, corporate vice president for Developer Experience & Evangelism and Chief Evangelist. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/467cad8e83c8e9fd30b34fa50f9017e0.jpeg On Monday, Dynamics 365 and LinkedIn announced new integration coming in July that will help salespeople deliver better outcomes using insights from LinkedIn Sales Navigator and LinkedIn’s 500 million professionals. “Sales Navigator with Dynamics 365 will dramatically increase the effectiveness of salespeople by tapping into their professional networks and relationships, giving them the ability to improve their pipeline,” writes Scott Guthrie, Microsoft Cloud and Enterprise Group executive vice president. Many of the new Dynamics 365 applications and LinkedIn integrations will be demonstrated at the Microsoft Business Forward online event at 7 a.m. PT Wednesday, May 3. The internet is a fabulous place, but it also can be a dangerous and cruel one. A 13-year-old from Kentucky wrote, “There is no silver bullet solution to protect children and young people online. This is a global issue that requires a global response from all segments of society.” That teen was among the 15 selected from across the U.S. to be on Microsoft’s inaugural Council for Digital Good. The one-year pilot program for young people ages 13 to 17 will help lay the groundwork for a new approach to online interactions, and “further champion our work in digital civility,” writes Jacqueline Beauchere, Microsoft chief online safety officer. Wheels up, up, up! The second “Forza Horizon 3” expansion focused on Hot Wheels arrives May 9 exclusively on Xbox One and Windows 10 PCs through Xbox Play Anywhere, and is included in the Forza Horizon 3 Expansion Pass. Tune in at 1 p.m. PT, May 8 for the special world debut livestream of the “Forza Horizon 3” Hot Wheels experience from Hot Wheels’ headquarters in Los Angeles. Also, mark your calendar to test your sorcery skills and do some competitive conjuring at the “The Unspoken” VR Tournament, starting in Microsoft Stores in the U.S. and Canada on May 13. Oculus has teamed up with Microsoft, Insomniac Games, Intel, ASUS and ESL to host these in-store battles for magical dominance, which culminate in regional competitions and national finals June 3. And, if you play “Minecraft: Xbox One Edition,” no waiting needed for the newly available Glide Beast Track Pack for the “Glide” mini game, with Kraken, Yetis and dragons everywhere. That’s it for this edition of Weekend Reading! Rest up, relax and enjoy – we’ll see you back here next week! Posted by Suzanne Choney Microsoft News Center Staff The post Keeping the milk fresh, speeding delivery of home stair lifts and making a Digital Difference – Weekend Reading: April 28 edition appeared first on The Official Microsoft Blog. Continue reading...

These light up some of the best of Windows 10 – the touchscreens allow you to do everything from drawing on and highlighting webpages in Microsoft Edge, to drawing on your memories in the Photos app or adding notes to your map route with Windows Ink. With Windows 10, these PCs also have Cortana* – your digital personal assistant who can help you find things, complete tasks, set reminders, and more – as well as comprehensive protection including anti-virus, firewall, Windows Defender and anti-phishing technologies – all delivered built-in at no extra cost to you. Some also include facial recognition or built-in fingerprint readers to allow you to login quickly and securely with Windows Hello. Let’s take a look at these devices announced this week: Acer’s all-new Aspire notebooks provide powerhouse computing for everyday needs Acer revealed the all-new Aspire notebook line featuring Windows 10. The range of everyday notebooks cater to a wide range of consumer needs, spanning from the family-and-student friendly Aspire 1 and Aspire 3, the practical and mainstream Aspire 5, all the way to the top-of-the-line Aspire 7. Aspire 1 – Essentials for the Cloud Era Click to view slideshow. The Aspire 1 has been crafted to hit the sweet spot for users looking for a notebook for family sharing and web browsing or as a second device. 1-year subscription of Office 365 Personal, and 1 TB of OneDrive storage. 11ac wireless technology, one USB 3.0 port, two USB 2.0 ports, a HDMI port and Ethernet Powered by Intel Celeron or Pentium processors with 32 or 64 GB eMMC storage, 4 GB DDR3L memory and Intel HD Graphics supported by up to 9 hours of battery life Measures less than 18 mm in height and weighs in at just 1.65 kg. Pricing and Availability: The Acer Aspire 1 series will be available in North America in June starting at $219; and in EMEA in June starting at €249. Aspire 3 – Everyday Computing Click to view slideshow. Following the same design and creative inspirations of the Aspire 1, extras were added to the Aspire 3 to give it a power and performance boost for more intensive media consumption needs. The Aspire 3 comes with either a 14-inch HD, 15.6-inch HD or 15.6-inch Full HD display. Processor options for the Aspire 3 include Intel Core, Celeron and Pentium processors, with up to 12 GB of memory. It also includes Acer’s BlueLightShield technology to reduce the exposure of blue light. Pricing and Availability: The Acer Aspire 3 series will be available in North America in June starting at $299; in EMEA in June starting at €399; and in China in April starting at ¥2,799. Aspire 5 – A workhorse that stands out from the crowd Click to view slideshow. Stepping up the capabilities and design to match more demanding user requirements, the Aspire 5 looks to fit a media heavy lifestyle – it’s a dependable workhorse for anyone needing to create and share. Powered by up to 7th Gen Intel Core processors, the latest NVIDIA GeForce graphics, and a maximum of 20 GB DDR4 2400 MHz memory. Range of options to choose from with HDDs up to 2 TB and M.2 SSDs up to 256 GB. 6-inch HD or Full HD display with IPS technology provides consistent colors and viewing from wide angles. Acer TrueHarmony – which delivers bolder, more lifelike audio for a richer and immersive media enjoyment experience – ensures a great Cortana with Voice experience. Skype for Business Certification ensures crisp and lag-free communication. For additional peripherals, there’s a USB 3.1 Type-C Gen 1 port, USB 3.0 port that supports power-off charging, and another two USB 2.0 ports. Pricing and Availability: The Acer Aspire 5 series will be available in North America in June starting at $449; in EMEA in June starting at €549; and in China in April starting at ¥3,999. Aspire 7 – Powerhouse Performance for Creators Click to view slideshow. At the top of the Aspire line sits the Aspire 7, designed for professionals such as designers and anyone who needs power and performance to match their professional ambitions. The Aspire 7 comes with either a 15-inch or 17-inch display Powerful 7th Gen Intel Core standard-voltage processor and up to NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 graphics The Aspire 7 comes with up to 32 GB of DDR4 2400 MHz memory and ample storage (HDD up to 2 TB and M.2 SSD up to 512 GB) The Aspire 7 also packs a HD camera with HDR while Dolby Audio Premium provides a great entertainment experience. Speedy network connectivity is provided with 2×2 MIMO 802.11ac wireless technology and Gigabit Ethernet. Pricing and Availability: The Acer Aspire 7 series will be available in North America in June starting at $799; in EMEA in July starting at €899; and in China in May starting at ¥5,999. Acer unveils two new additions to its Swift series of ultraslim and stylish notebooks for on-the-go lifestyles The two newest additions to its Swift series notebook line up, the Acer Swift 3 and Swift 1, both feature Windows 10 and support Windows Hello through fingerprint readers for fast and secure login, while Skype for Business certification ensures crisp and lag-free communication and a great Cortana with Voice experience. These highlight some of the best of the recently released Windows 10 Creators Update, such as 3D in Windows 10, tab management features in Microsoft Edge, night light, dynamic lock, and more. Acer Swift 3 – Essential Features at a Compelling Price Click to view slideshow. Up to 10 hours of battery life Vivid 14-inch or 15.6-inch Full HD IPS anti-glare displays Measuring in at 0.71 inches (17.95 mm) in height and weighing 3.9 pounds (1.8 kg) 7th Generation Intel Core processors, Intel HD or NVIDIA GeForce graphics Up to 8GB of memory and 2×2 MIMO 802.11ac wireless technology for fast and reliable internet connectivity USB 3.1 Type-C port and an HD webcam with Super High Dynamic Range. Acer BluelightShield allows users to control how much blue light is emitted for reducing eye strain Acer TrueHarmony delivers bolder, more lifelike audio for a richer and immersive media enjoyment experience Optional backlit keyboard makes typing in dimly lit environment effortless and a spacious Precision Touchpad provides ample room for navigating, scrolling and zooming. Pricing and Availability: The Swift 3 series will be available in North America in June with prices starting at $599; in EMEA in June with prices starting at €649; and in China in April starting at ¥3,999. Acer Swift 1 – light and budget-friendly Click to view slideshow. Lightweight and priced right for a student or others on a budget, the Swift 1 is highly portable and includes essential features for productivity anywhere, making them great value. Measuring in at 0.7 inches (14.95 mm) in height and weighing 2.87 pounds (1.3 kg), the Swift 1’s all-metal chassis is available in three colors (Pure Silver, Luxury Gold, and Sakura Pink). Up to 10 hours of battery life A 13.3-inch Full HD IPS1 display, an Intel Pentium or Celeron processor, 4GB of memory and either 64GB, 128GB, or 256GB of SSD or eMMC storage. Like the Swift 3, the Swift 1 also includes ultra-fast 2×2 MIMO 802.11ac wireless technology, providing seamless connectivity. Pricing and Availability: The Swift 1 series will be available in North America in June with prices starting at $329; in EMEA in June with prices starting at €399; and in China in April starting at ¥3,499. Acer expands Switch 2-in-1 line with powerful yet silent models Acer expanded its popular Switch 2-in-1 notebook line with two new models – the Switch 5 and Switch 3 – featuring Windows 10 with the Creators Update, built with versatile, highly-mobile designs for work, school, and fun. Both new Acer Switch 2-in-1 notebooks can be used with an Acer Active Pen on the touch screen to sketch, take notes or annotate documents or photos with Windows Ink or draw on the web with Microsoft Edge. Tablet Mode in Windows 10 delivers a smooth, touch-first experience where apps scale smoothly and onscreen features adapt for easy navigation. They come with front and rear cameras for videoconferencing and capturing memories, with front webcams that provide 720p Full HD video recording. Both also have an attachable keyboard that snaps on with ultra-secure magnets and can be adjusted to your preference. The Switch 5 and Switch 3 are available with ample storage and memory options, with a MicroSDXC slot. and a thin and reversible USB 3.1 Type-C port for fast data transfers of up to 5Gbps from connected peripherals, to share video and power other devices. Both lines also have an additional USB 3.1 Type-A port and Bluetooth 4.0. Fanless Switch 5 is performance-minded, quiet, and reliable The Acer Switch 5 builds on the industry-leading innovations of its predecessor, the Acer Switch Alpha 12, providing a fanless, quiet experience through Acer LiquidLoop cooling, and excellent performance with up to 7th Generation Intel Core i7 processors. Acer’s patented auto-retracting kickstand allows for easy one-handed adjustments to the viewing angle. It also supports Windows Hello with a built-in fingerprint reader for fast and secure access. Click to view slideshow. Features of the Acer Switch 5 include: The Acer Switch 5 is thin and light, weighing 1.27 kg (2.8 pounds) when the tablet and keyboard are connected. The Switch 5 tablet alone measures just 9.6 mm (0.38 inches) in height, and weighs 0.92 kg (2.03 pounds). Acer TrueHarmony and Smart Amplifier provide enhanced audio performance for clarity and robust volume to complement the exceptional display. A vibrant 12-inch wide-view FHD+ touch display with IPS technology, an impressive 2160 x 1440 resolution and support from Intel HD Graphics 620 The Switch 5 supports a 256GB or 512GB PCIe SSD and up to 8GB of LPDDR3 SDRAM . For commercial customers, the Acer Switch 5 can be purchased with the Acer USB Type-C Dock that transforms the device into a powerful workstation. Pricing and Availability: The Acer Switch 5 will be available in North America in June starting at $799; in EMEA in June starting at €1,099; and in China in July starting at ¥7,499. Switch 3 delivers 2-in-1 flexibility on a budget Click to view slideshow. The Switch 3 brings excellent usability and performance to students, families and anyone looking for an excellent all-around value. The device runs on Intel Pentium and Celeron processors that deliver solid every day performance and up to 8 hours of battery life. The 12.2-inch display is designed to deliver incredible precision and a responsive 10-point touch experience. It has a wide 178-degree viewing angle and 1920×1200 FHD resolution with IPS technology. Features of the Acer Switch 3 include: The Switch 3 weighs 0.9 kg (1.98 pounds) when the tablet and keyboard are connected. The Switch 3 tablet alone measures just 9.95 mm (0.39 inches) in height, and weighs 0.9 kg (1.98 pounds). The Switch 3 supports 32GB, 64GB or 128GB eMMC memory and up to 4GB of LPDDR3 SDRAM4. The front-facing speakers complement the stunning visuals with enhanced volume and quality for rich, expressive tones. Pricing and Availability: The Acer Switch 3 will be available in North America in June starting at $399; in EMEA in June starting at €499; and in China in July starting at ¥4,999. Ultra-slim all-in-one Aspire desktops with Windows 10 Yesterday, Acer also announced two new sleek all-in-one desktops with Windows 10: the 27-inch Aspire U27 and 23.8-inch Aspire Z24. With 7th Gen Intel Core processors and optional Intel Optane Memory, both devices provide a powerful and responsive Windows 10 experience, while adding a touch of style to the home environment. Both have up to 32 GB of DDR4 2400 MHz memory and boast elegant, space-saving aluminum stands. With Windows Hello, members of the family can each log in to their accounts faster and more securely than before via facial recognition. Skype for Business certification ensures a crisp and lag-free communication experience during video conferences. The Aspire U27 with Windows 10: An impressive ultrathin 12 mm (0.5 inches) chassis with an elegant diamond-cut v-shaped metal stand, bringing a new dimension to home computing and entertainment. A 27-inch Full HD wide viewing angle display (1920 x 1080), and a specially designed subwoofer bringing powerfully deep bass Acer’s LiquidLoop fanless cooling system uses liquid evaporation and condensation to transport and dissipate heat, making it energy efficient and extending the product’s lifetime by doing away with detrimental dust buildup. Pricing and Availability: The Acer Aspire U27 will be available in North America in July starting at $1,099; and in EMEA in May starting at €1,299. The Aspire Z24 with Windows 10: Click to view slideshow. Extremely thin at 11 mm (0.4 inches) with a beautifully shaped rear cover, making it a handsome addition to any room in the house. Available with NVIDIA GeForce 940MX graphics, providing extra power for a wide range of activities. Pricing and Availability: The Acer Aspire Z24 will be available in North America in July starting at $899; in EMEA in June starting at €749; and in China in June starting at ¥4,999. To learn more about availability, product specifications and prices in specific markets, please contact your nearest Acer office via www.acer.com. These powerful new devices were unveiled at the next@acer press event held in New York, where the company announced a range of new devices and solutions for gamers, creators, families, students and professionals. For more information, visit www.acer.com/nextatacer. *Cortana available in select markets The post Acer announces new notebooks, desktops, and 2-in-1s powered by Windows 10 appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

These devices are built to take advantage of everything that’s new for PC gamers in the Windows 10 Creators Update. With the Creators Update, you have access to built-in game streaming with Beam and a better gaming experience on Windows 10 with Game Mode, which dedicates more system resources to your game. With Windows 10, these devices also have your personal digital assistant, Cortana*, built-in, are equipped with the Xbox app and Direct X12 and can take advantage of Xbox Play Anywhere. Head over here for tips on getting started using the Xbox app on your Windows 10 PC. Let’s take a look at these devices: The Predator Triton 700: a Thin yet Powerful Gaming Notebook without Compromise Powered by Windows 10, the Predator Triton 700’s svelte 18.9 mm (.74 inch), 2.6kg (5.7 pound) aluminum chassis houses a 15.6-inch FHD IPS display and best-in-class computing technologies, striking just the right balance of size and performance without sacrificing thermals, features or rigidity. Must-have gaming tech and features include standard-voltage 7th Gen Intel Core processors, the latest NVIDIA GeForce GTX 10-Series graphics, speedy NVMe PCIe SSDs and lightning-fast Thunderbolt 3. two NVMe PCIe SSDs in RAID 0 configuration and up to 32GB of DDR4 2400MHz memory. As the first of the new ultrathin Predator Triton gaming notebook series, its understated black chassis features a minimalist design. A large glass plate above the keyboard serves as a window into the notebook’s cooling system, showcasing the AeroBlade 3D Fan and five heat pipes, and also functions as a touchpad. Click to view slideshow. Other features include: Killer DoubleShot Pro networking and Thunderbolt 3 connectivity, which provides speeds up to 40 Gbps and supports dual 4K video output Bright, vibrant visuals on a 15.6-inch FHD IPS display with NVIDIA G-SYNC support for connecting to an external monitor Acer TrueHarmony delivers immersive audio with crisp, rich acoustics. Skype for Business Certification ensures conversations are clear and lag-free. PredatorSense software enables you to control and customize the Predator Triton 700’s vitals from one central interface, including lighting, hotkeys, fan control and general system monitoring. Dual Acer AeroBlade 3D Fans provides advanced thermal performance allowing for its ultrathin form factor Two USB 3.0 ports (featuring power-off USB charging), one USB 2.0 port, an HDMI 2.0 port, one DisplayPort connector and a Gigabit Ethernet port for those preferring a hard-wired connection. Price and Availability: The Predator Triton 700 gaming notebook will be available in North America in August starting at $2,999; and in EMEA in August starting at €3,399. The new powerful Predator Helios 300 gaming notebook line offers strong performance at midrange prices Click to view slideshow. The new Predator Helios 300 line is powered by Windows 10, 7th Gen Intel Core i7 or i5 standard-voltage processors, overclockable NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 or 1050Ti graphics, fast wireless connectivity and solid state drives. At the heart of the Predator Helios 300 is an overclockable NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 or 1050Ti GPU combined with a 7th Gen Intel Core i7 (7700HQ) or i5 processor (7300HQ) for outstanding performance. All of this processing power is supported with up to 16GB of DDR4 memory (upgradable to 32GB), a speedy SATA SSD and a 1TB HDD. Bright 15.6-inch or 17.3-inch FHD IPS displays provide vibrant, vivid imagery, while Acer TrueHarmony delivers immersive audio with crisp, rich acoustics. Skype for Business Certification ensures conversations are clear and lag-free while providing a great Cortana with Voice experience. For smooth game play, a dual fan system featuring AeroBlade 3D Fans with ultra-thin metal blades keeps the notebook running at optimal temperatures. Preloaded PredatorSense software provides real time system information and overclocking, so gamers can monitor and control the system’s vitals from one central interface. Other features include: A classic but tasteful gaming chassis with an iron red backlit keyboard, selected models include a metal top cover and keyboard area for added strength and rigidity Available with 15.6-inch or 17.3-inch FHD IPS displays. Shipping with Windows 10, it offers powerful features and technologies at mid-range price points, making gaming notebooks more accessible than ever. Includes a USB 3.1 Type-C port, a USB 3.0 port (featuring power-off USB charging), two USB 2.0 ports, and an HDMI 2.0 connection Connects wirelessly through fast 2×2 802.11ac technology, and also includes a Gigabit Ethernet port for those preferring a hard-wired connection. An access compartment doors on the bottom of the notebooks makes it easy to upgrade memory and storage components. Price and Availability: The Predator Helios 300 gaming notebooks with a 15.6-inch display will be available in North America in July starting at $1,299; in EMEA in August starting at €1,199; and in China in June starting at ¥9,999; models with a 17.3-inch display will be available in North America in July starting at ,399; in EMEA in August starting at €1,199; and in China in July starting at ¥9,999. Exact specifications, prices, and availability will vary by region. To learn more about availability, product specifications and prices in specific markets, please contact your nearest Acer office via www.acer.com. These new devices were unveiled this week at the next@acer press event held in New York, where the company announced a range of new devices and solutions for gamers, creators, families, students and professionals. For more information, visit acer.com/nextatacer. *Cortana available in select markets. The post Acer announces powerful new gaming notebooks with Windows 10 appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

We hope you enjoyed today’s episode of This Week on Windows! Head over here for this week’s Windows 10 Tip on keeping track of your tabs in Microsoft Edge, check out the big savings at Microsoft Store through June 18, with up to $200 off great devices – or, keep reading to catch up on all of this week’s news. In case you missed it: Here’s what’s new in the Windows Store: Forza Horizon 3 Hot Wheels Expansion arrives May 9 The second Forza Horizon 3 expansion – Forza Horizon 3 Hot Wheels – arrives on May 9 exclusively on both Xbox One and Windows 10 PCs with Xbox Play Anywhere, and is included in the Forza Horizon 3 Expansion Pass. This expansion lets players travel to a brand-new location in Australia, a place where lazy Sunday drives are replaced by insane high-speed stunts on miles of looping, banking, giant iconic orange Hot Wheels tracks. Starring famous Hot Wheels vehicles like the Twin Mill, the Rip Rod, and the Bone Shaker, Forza Horizon 3 Hot Wheels promises an automotive adventure unlike anything in Forza history. Read more over at Xbox Wire! The Unspoken VR Tournament is coming to Microsoft Store! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/ccbaa7a071ccef088ffad97fd578c845.jpg Microsoft Store is excited to team up with Oculus, Insomniac Games, Intel, ASUS and ESL to host an in-store battle for magical dominance! The Unspoken VR Tournament is coming soon to select Microsoft Stores in the U.S. and Canada.* Oculus Rift works natively with Windows 10, which makes it easy to set up, jump in and have an incredible VR gaming experience. On May 13, you can slip into a hidden world of bare-handed spellcasting and magicians’ duels at your local Microsoft Store. Local winners will then return to the store to battle it out in a series of regional competitions on May 20. Finalists will be flown out to New York City for the national finals at the flagship Microsoft Store in New York on June 3 to compete for the grand prize: Rift and Touch, plus an Oculus Ready PC and $1,250 in cash! The Walking Dead: A New Frontier https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/75a2bc3bb82a61eb73f0e6642064d6b8.jpg The Walking Dead: A New Frontier, Episode 4 ($4.99; Season Pass $19.99), the latest installment in the critically acclaimed horror series, opens with the discovery of the true nature of the New Frontier’s leadership, bringing relationships within the Garcia family to a head. Playing as Javier, you decide the shape and nature of your chosen family – but all the while, a herd of walkers moves ever closer to Richmond, putting pressure on allies and enemies alike. Fifty Shades Darker https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/562ef625438dfbb23d9737d4ec757ec8.jpg In the second installment of the Fifty Shades trilogy, Anastasia reignites her passionate affair with mysterious billionaire Christian Grey and is forced to face the wrath of the women who came before her. Get the racy unrated edition of Fifty Shades Darker ($14.99 HD/SD) in the Movies & TV section of the Windows Store two weeks before Blu-ray. Have a great weekend! *NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Open only to legal residents of the United States and Canada excluding Quebec. Open to players 13+, some restrictions apply. Round 1 ends 5/13/17. For details, see www.oculus.com/unspoken-tournament or your local Microsoft Store. Rules: www.oculus.com/unspoken-tournament/legal/rules. The post This Week on Windows: Surface Dial, Forza Horizon 3 Hot Wheels, and more appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

I am in New York City today, where we are hosting “Digital Difference.” More than a dozen forward-thinking companies joined us to showcase how they are driving digital transformation – and making a difference – for their businesses. It was exciting to share how UBS, the world’s largest wealth manager, is driving its digital strategy with us, powering its risk management on Azure. Maersk, the largest shipping company in the world, is reshaping global logistics and supply chains with the Microsoft cloud. The Hershey Company has created the “Internet of Twizzlers” to more efficiently produce some of the most iconic confectionaries in the world. Industry has always been transformed by technology. From the steam revolution to electricity and now digital business, human invention continually revolutionizes how companies can better serve their customers, create entirely new products and markets, overhaul operations or empower their workforce. Today, businesses are looking to the cloud, AI, IoT, mixed reality and other new technologies to reinvent their organizations and capabilities. Digital transformation is more than industry buzz. It is not a question of if, but when. We just published a research report by Harvard Business Review Analytics Services that says more than 80 percent of business leaders believe their industry will be disrupted by digital in the next three years. Interestingly, 86 percent view it as an opportunity more than a threat, with the ability to deliver better customer experiences cited as the top benefit. However, almost half of those surveyed do not think their companies are fully prepared. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/cfaa52f8efb5ef1150dce262249f0a64.jpg How should leaders help their companies create and execute a digital strategy? Here are some suggestions, based on the research data and my observations from many of our customers’ experiences: Going digital starts at the top: Grass-roots efforts and skunkworks projects are great, but company employees need to know digital is a priority for senior leadership. The research indicates that after the CEO, the CIO is the most likely agent of change. As I have said before, the modern CIO partners closely with business leaders. Begin with the end in mind: Take the time to dream about your digital business outcome. Get inspired with a group of people you trust, and envision your digital future together. With a clear vision of where you want to go, you can create a compelling plan for change for your organization. Data matters: The role that systems of intelligence play in providing insights that can be converted into intelligent action is critical to the digital business. However, the system can only be as intelligent as the data over which it reasons. Have a thoughtful strategy for managing your data estate. Create a digital culture: Change can be daunting, especially for large, established companies. At Microsoft, we have learned how critical it is to foster a culture of growth mindset, where failure is a tolerated learning opportunity. Key to this is giving employees the right tools to collaborate and unlock creativity. Start now or risk getting left behind: We are in an era when first to market matters more than ever. Identify where you can begin quickly and grow digital capabilities from there, potentially building on existing systems or infrastructure. I look forward to sharing more insights about how our customers are making their digital difference. Until next time, Judson The post Making your digital difference appeared first on The Official Microsoft Blog. Continue reading...

As we previously announced, the first phase of the rollout targets newer devices. Based on testing work done with our OEM hardware and ISV app partners, we believe these devices will have the best possible update experience and help us decide when it’s time to begin the next phase of the rollout. The millions of customers now running the Creators Update have provided us valuable feedback on the update experience as well as the product itself. We’re also seeing many customers use the Feedback Hub app to search for issues they are having and “upvote” the issue, which in turn helps us quickly spot issues others may be experiencing. By choosing to enable the diagnostic settings at the “full” level in your privacy settings, the Feedback Hub app is also able to provide the associated diagnostic data based on the specific issue you are reporting – this data helps us diagnose and address issues faster. While it is fantastic to see all the positive feedback on the new features and update experience in the Creators Update, we actually focus more on the issues users are reporting so we can improve the overall experience over time. Depending on the individual issue, we do one or more of the following: Document the issue and provide users more information on the issue, potential user impact, and (in some cases) specific guidance including troubleshooting or workaround/remediation guidance. You can find more information via our support channels, including the Windows community forum. Update Windows itself, or work with a PC, accessory, or ISV app partner to post a driver or compatibility update. Deploy a “block” to prevent further rollout of the Creators Update to impacted devices until an issue is resolved. Blocking availability of the update to devices we know will experience issues is a key aspect of our controlled rollout approach. We decide what to block based on user impact, and blocking issues are a high priority for us to address as quickly as possible. During the time it takes to address an issue, we want to limit the number of customers exposed to that issue. For example, our feedback process identified a Bluetooth accessory connectivity issue with PCs that use a specific series of Broadcom radios, ultimately resulting in devices not reconnecting as expected. Once identified, we posted this issue to our Windows community forum, provided user guidance on troubleshooting, and blocked additional devices with these specific Bluetooth radios from updating. Once a solution is available, we will update our forum post and remove the block. It’s important to note that when customers use the Software Download Site to manually install the Creators Update they bypass many of these blocks. Therefore, we continue to recommend (unless you’re an advanced user who is prepared to work through some issues) that you wait until the Windows 10 Creators Update is automatically offered to you. When your device becomes eligible for the Creators Update rollout, you’ll be prompted to make some important choices on your privacy settings before the Creators Update can install. Please continue to give us feedback about your experience via the Feedback Hub app. We hope you enjoy the Creators Update, and I’ll be providing more updates on the rollout soon. The post Windows 10 Creators Update rollout: First phase update appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

The digitization of content has completely changed how media companies think about the creation, production, marketing, distribution and monetization of content. As their audiences find new ways to consume entertainment, whether it’s through tablets, smartphones, connected TVs, PCs, gaming or mixed reality devices, the competition for attention has never been greater. This evolution has disrupted traditional business models and is driving organizations across the industry to identify new ways in which they can quickly and securely produce and deliver the right content, at the right time to any device – all backed by business insights and projections which can be used to drive future decision making. More and more organizations in the media and entertainment industry are turning to cloud providers to help manage their compute and storage needs and are recognizing the benefits of flexibility, security and scalability. For these organizations, having the ability to quickly scale up and down processing capacity when needed changes the cost curve for producing content. Once the content is ready, advanced search and smart content recommendations lead to increased consumption. Advances in computer vision and natural language processing (NLP) will drive these changes even further. From working with NBC Sports to power the 2016 Rio Summer Olympic games livestream across devices, including Connected TVs for the first time, to delivering content storage, media encoding, rendering, advanced analytics and more, Microsoft is partnering with companies across the media and entertainment industry to help enable digital transformation. At the National Association of Broadcasters Show (NAB 2017), we are excited to announce several new partners and customers who have chosen Microsoft’s cloud to power their digital transformation: Avid selects Microsoft Azure as preferred partner to power their business: Avid is a leading technology and multimedia company that specializes in audio and video; specifically, digital non-linear editing systems, management and distribution services. With this strategic partnership, Microsoft Azure will power Avid and all new joint customers’ content, globally, and we will co-develop cloud-based solutions and services for the media and entertainment industry, powered by the Avid MediaCentral Platform, the industry’s most open, tightly integrated and efficient platform designed for media. With a cloud-based offering built on Avid’s portfolio of the industry’s best and most comprehensive creative tools and media workflow solutions, the partnership will enable media organizations and creative professionals to quickly and easily leverage the efficiencies, flexibility and agility that the cloud enables. Verizon Digital Media Services offers integrated Microsoft Azure Storage: We also recently announced with Verizon Digital Media Services that it will make cloud-based storage from Microsoft Azure available to all Verizon Digital Media Services Edgecast Content Delivery Network (CDN) customers. Azure Storage will now power Verizon STORE, the cloud-based origin storage offering on the Edgecast CDN, providing an even more convenient option for resilient, infinitely scalable object storage that is ideal for media and metadata. Crackle, a unit of Sony Pictures Television Networks, selects Microsoft Azure as a streaming service partner: Crackle programs Hollywood movies, popular TV shows, original series and feature films for the world’s connected audience. Azure helps power the streaming network’s services and allows consumers to view content at anytime, anywhere on every connected device. Availability of Skype TX for Radio; new Skype TX hardware integrations with Newtek: Earlier this month we announced the availability of Skype TX for Radio with partner Broadcast Bionics – an industry first enabling delivery of high-quality audio enabling producers to bring on guests from Skype’s network of hundreds of millions of users across the globe – a significant improvement for radio broadcasters and podcasters worldwide. Additionally, one of our innovative partners, Newtek, released the TriCaster® TC1, the first affordable end-to-end 4K IP video production system that offers multiple studio-grade Skype TX channels for adding remote video guests to live broadcast. The next wave of digital transformation With a diverse and growing set of ways in which audiences can consume media and entertainment, it is not only important to ease the creation of content but also ensure that data is serving up smart insights about what content resonates with audiences. In 2016, global internet advertising revenue surpassed global TV ad revenue for the first time. As our world becomes more digital, advertisers, content creators and distributors will move past general demographic information and increasingly require more granular customer details for TV like they do for the internet. Over-the-top (OTT) solutions will help here but it is also important that there are end-to-end monetization strategies that go with it. At NAB some of our customers and partners are showing off how they are evolving their businesses to take advantage of intelligence to create more meaningful connections with their customers. Ooyala, a Microsoft partner and leader in premium video platforms, media logistics and advertising, demonstrated how Ooyala Flex, their media logistics platform, integrates with Microsoft Cognitive Services to simplify metadata capture by extracting transcripts, detecting faces within videos, and analyzing text to detect key topics. Ooyala then uses that rich metadata to recommend relevant videos to viewers and to deliver targeted advertising. UFA GmbH (UFA), one of Germany’s oldest and most distinguished entertainment brands, is a highly efficient creator of entertainment content. UFA already had this long-term vision pioneering a cloud-based production workflow. They now have – with the aid of the Microsoft partner Interlake and nexx.tv. Using Microsoft’s Cognitive Services, UFA is able to make its video content actionable and accessible in completely new ways, such as automatically translating and tagging the content, to see inside the video. The vision is to bring the entire production process into the cloud, from recording to play out. Join us today At this year’s show, I will have an opportunity to meet many of our partners, customers and attendees in the media and entertainment industry and discuss how we can help empower their digital transformation. If you’re attending NAB Show 2017, I would encourage you to tune into my keynote presentation on digital transformation in media in the Las Vegas Convention Center in rooms N262/N264 followed by a panel discussion. We are investing in new innovations and improvements across our media services, which you can learn more about in Sudheer Sirivara’s blog. You can also stop by our booth SL6710 to learn more about Microsoft’s cloud media services and see demos from several of our partners. If you are not attending the conference but would like to learn more about our media services, check out: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/services/media-services/ Source: Global Entertainment and media outlook 2016-2020, PWC, Ovum The post Digital transformation in the media and entertainment industry appeared first on The Official Microsoft Blog. Continue reading...

It’s easy to lose track of what’s in your tabs, especially if you have many tabs open from the same site that all look alike. The new tab preview bar and “Set these tabs aside” features in Microsoft Edge with the Windows 10 Creators Update allow you to easily manage and navigate your tabs. Keep track of your tabs with the new tab preview bar: https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/91ea46de78a3f0b80c95b5339008a5aa.gif The new tab preview bar gives you a visual preview of every tab you have open without leaving your page. Quickly manage your tabs using the preview bar without waiting for the pages to load by clicking on this https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/5bb8d88cccca1e7b1478b86524356145.png icon next to the open tabs. You can also scroll through the previews with touch, mouse wheel, or a touchpad. Set tabs aside for later: https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/cb0b2a5098ba0eedc165f147a5983db4.gif Microsoft Edge makes it easy to sweep aside all the tabs you have open into a collection that you can restore at any time. Just click the “Set these tabs aside” button on the upper left-hand corner of your browser. Click the button next to that to see tabs you’ve set aside, then click “Restore tabs” to jump back in. Head over here to learn more about getting the best out of Microsoft Edge, and have a great week! The post Windows 10 Tip: Keep track of your tabs with Microsoft Edge appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/ccbaa7a071ccef088ffad97fd578c845.jpg The Unspoken VR Tournament is coming soon to select Microsoft Stores in the U.S. and Canada.* Oculus Rift works natively with Windows 10, which makes it easy to set up, jump in and have an incredible VR gaming experience. On May 13, you can slip into a hidden world of bare-handed spellcasting and magicians’ duels at your local Microsoft Store. Local winners will then return to the store to battle it out in a series of regional competitions on May 20. Finalists will be flown out to New York City for the national finals at the flagship Microsoft Store in New York on June 3 to compete for the grand prize: Rift and Touch, plus an Oculus Ready PC and $1,250 in cash! Follow Microsoft Store on Facebook for more updates. *NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Open only to legal residents of the United States and Canada excluding Quebec. Open to players 13+, some restrictions apply. Round 1 ends 5/13/17. For details, see www.oculus.com/unspoken-tournament or your local Microsoft Store. Rules: www.oculus.com/unspoken-tournament/legal/rules. The post The Unspoken VR Tournament is coming to Microsoft Store! appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

Hello Windows Insiders! Today we are excited to be releasing Windows 10 Mobile Insider Preview Build 15207 to Insiders in the Fast ring. This build is exactly the same as Build 15205 released last week but with one additional fix we would like extra coverage on from Insiders: We have added a privacy page to the Windows 10 Mobile OOBE and upgrade experiences that allows you to quickly and effectively make common privacy changes while setting up the device. However, Insiders have reported that their device would crash or reboot shortly after unlocking their device for the first time after the upgrade if their device did not have a password configured to unlock the device. After updating to Build 15207, you will see this privacy page one more time – but should no longer experience a crash or reboot. Thanks to the Insiders who reported this issue and helping us fix issues quickly like this one! Keep hustling, Dona <3 The post Announcing Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 15207 for Mobile appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

Graduation is a milestone in one’s life. It signals the end of an era – and the beginning of something new. Starting April 24 through June 18, Microsoft Store is offering great savings on Surface devices, select Windows 10 PCs, VR headset, headphones and more to help the grad in your life celebrate with a gift that can help them tackle everything that lies ahead. We’ve rounded up some of the top deals available today to prepare your graduate for next stage in life: https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/5ff7775e89af3e2f733c0092fc28b6b1.jpg Save up to $150 on Surface Pro 4*: These well-crafted, beautiful devices empower the creator in all of us. Surface Pro 4 , a device that offers the balance of portability and performance of a laptop when you’re on the go, perfect for anyone taking a device to class. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/5507a1f1c1b5e4a7ddc1d712a5ca44e3.jpg Save up to $200 on the Dell Inspiron 13: Boasting an innovative 360-degree hinge, Dell Inspiron 13 comes with a 13.3-inch Full HD wide-angle display featuring more screen and less bezel, so you have plenty of room to spread out—be it work or entertainment or both. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/e4b2062bf5d9671574c834161ae1b6aa.jpg Save up to $170 on the Dell Inspiron 15: Be inspired with Dell Inspiron 15 with the power and speed to get the job done. With 12GB of memory, and huge 1TB hard drive, these are great for heavy-duty multitasking. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/85508ca43e0805b36fd6752e886a34b5.jpg Save $200 on HTC Vive with purchase of select VR-Ready PCs: The HTC Vive allows true-to-life immersion in the virtual world thanks to a high-resolution headset display, stunning graphics, two wireless controllers with haptic feedback and room-scale motion tracking. Want to test it before you buy? You can try HTC Vive for yourself at select Microsoft Store locations. Get 20 percent off on Hyper X Headphones with Xbox One console or PC purchase**: A feast for ears, sharpen your competitive edge with Hyper X Headphones and hear every detail of your favorite game without sacrificing comfort.Find something to celebrate the accomplishments for anyone on your list at your local Microsoft Store and microsoftstore.com. Don’t know what to gift? No problem, Microsoft Store’s knowledgeable and friendly associates are on hand to help, support, and make recommendations so your loved one can make the most of their technology. Happy shopping! ### Deals begin from April 24 through June 18, and are available at local Microsoft Store and microsoftstore.com, while supplies last. Unit limit per customer will also vary. *Surface Pro 4 offer runs April 23 through May 13. **Discount for Hyper X Headphones with purchase of Xbox One console or PC purchase is currently running until September 3. Valid in the U.S. only at Microsoft retail and microsoftstore.com For local store hours, visit microsoftstore.com/locations The post Save up to $200 off new devices with Microsoft Store graduation deals appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

You don’t have to look far to find companies that are disrupting their industries by applying software and technology to transform customer experiences, improve operations and create new opportunities. As the rate of disruption increases, customers are looking to transform the very nucleus of their companies – the business processes and systems used to run operations, connect with customers and manage teams – to drive better business outcomes. But many of those systems, particularly the CRM and ERP systems of the past, are siloed, complicated and outdated. The result: Customers are slowed down by fragmented, disconnected and unintelligent business applications that don’t give them a holistic view of their business. We believe there is a better way. Last July we introduced Dynamics 365, powered by Microsoft Azure, turning what was rigid and disconnected into a set of intelligent cloud services that allow any business to start small with just what it needs, scale on demand as its needs grow and add additional solutions as its needs change. With Dynamics 365 we deliver modern, intelligent experiences and services that connect all the data across your enterprise to help you make better, faster decisions and achieve optimal outcomes. Since then we’ve seen customers like HP, AccuWeather, Ecolab, Helsana and the Renault Sports Formula One Team transform their businesses using Dynamics 365. Today we’re excited to share the new capabilities our teams have been working on and how they can help you transform your business. Improving sales with Dynamics 365 + LinkedIn Sales Navigator Dynamics 365 for Sales is already helping salespeople with improved experiences. For instance, they can already work on sales data and surface actions directly within Office 365 to more quickly close a deal. Quotes can be created using customer insights, accurate pricing and inventory data, and then recorded in the appropriate system, including any custom discounts offered, and sent to the customer – without ever having to leave Outlook. Today we’re announcing with LinkedIn new integration that will help salespeople deliver better outcomes using insights from LinkedIn Sales Navigator and LinkedIn’s 500 million professionals. Sales Navigator with Dynamics 365 will dramatically increase the effectiveness of salespeople by tapping into their professional networks and relationships, giving them the ability to improve their pipeline by: Leveraging signals across email, CRM and LinkedIn to get contextual recommendations for the next best action within Dynamics 365 for Sales, facilitating introductions directly through the company’s network, and sending InMail, messages and customized connection requests Engaging buyers with tailored content throughout the account lifecycle, and getting account and lead updates including news mentions and job changes Building strong relationships with existing contacts through access to LinkedIn profile details including photos, current roles and work history. We’re making it easier for customers to take advantage of this solution by introducing a single offer that brings together LinkedIn Sales Navigator and Dynamics 365 for Sales at about half the cost of competitive solutions in the market, available in July. Details about the offer can be found here. Modern talent solutions for a modern workforce Employees are the heart of every company, and talent is without question the most scarce and expensive resource. To help companies better manage and nurture that precious resource, we’re introducing a new application for HR organizations called Dynamics 365 for Talent. From sourcing and recruiting, to onboarding and retention, Dynamics 365 for Talent provides a 360-degree view of your workforce with modules that empower an organization to: Access the best talent, more quickly, with LinkedIn Recruiter integrations that enable dynamic candidate profiles to give managers and interviewers the most up-to-date information Deliver personalized onboarding experiences that accelerate employees’ ability to deliver impact with targeted activities and learning resources, along with access to relevant contacts Maintain an up-to-date view of employee experiences through a consolidated HR profile spanning Office 365, Dynamics 365 and LinkedIn profile information Drive operational excellence, measure business impact and improve program effectiveness with integrated intelligence that lets you maximize your human resources. The new Dynamics 365 for Talent with LinkedIn integration will bring together the place companies find talent and the world of work in Office 365 in a new, modern HR experience designed to make companies and employees more successful, available starting in July. Customer-centric retail experiences designed for an omni-channel world Modern retailers face many challenges, from managing daily operations at their stores to transforming their businesses for future growth. Dynamics 365 for Retail, a new intelligent cloud service we are announcing today, provides retailers with an Integrated end-to-end view of their operations with centralized management and clear visibility across stores, employees, customers, inventory and financials. In today’s competitive environment, we’re helping retailers get ahead and improve their bottom line with: Modern, mobile-optimized, point of sale experiences that empower front line employees to deliver exceptional customer service and improve sales Powerful omni-channel capabilities that allow shoppers to engage with retailers on their terms and to buy, fulfill and return anywhere Data driven retail experiences that enable customer engagement at every touch point Additional updates across Dynamics 365 include: Empowering small to mid-size organizations with Dynamics 365 Business Edition apps for Sales and Marketing, available in preview July 1 New industry-specific solutions available in Microsoft AppSource – the place you can discover, trial and evaluate finished SaaS solutions. Learn more here. Plans to deliver Dynamics 365 from local datacenters in the U.K. and Germany. These new Dynamics 365 regions adhere to our Trusted Cloud principles – including security, privacy, compliance and transparency. They also help customers meet the unique data and regulatory needs of their country and geographic area along with the needs of their business, industry and customers. Learn More On Wednesday, May 3, at 10 a.m. Eastern Time (UTC-4), we invite you to join Microsoft Business Forward to learn more about Dynamics 365, these new solutions and how they can help you and your employees from Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Corporate Vice President James Phillips and Executive Vice President Judson Althoff. You’ll also hear from leaders in a variety of industries about the steps they’re taking to reimagine how they operate, innovate and compete. Visit the virtual event site here to receive event updates and attend this live web event. The post New ways to drive your business forward in today’s digital landscape appeared first on The Official Microsoft Blog. 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Manufacturers are embracing what’s recognized as ‘Industry 4.0’ to redefine their businesses, even company cultures. They’re creating higher-quality products at lower costs. They’re building entirely new business models and service offerings. And most importantly, they’re conserving limited resources to bring their customers a more sustainable future. According to IDC, the intelligent factory is already a reality as 40 percent of operational processes will be self-healing and self-learning by 2022[1]. At Hannover Messe 2017, the world’s biggest industrial fair, we’re proud to showcase, alongside our customers and partners, new innovations and results that are transforming the way manufacturing customers approach their work, reduce costs and increase revenues. Customers are living Industry 4.0 and seeing impact today By IDC’s estimates, manufacturing companies that take advantage of their data have the potential to generate nearly $400 billion in revenue in comparison to their peers who don’t capitalize on their data[2]. It’s creating a virtuous cycle with savings being reinvested on innovation. However, while leading manufacturers are reaping the results disrupting technologies bring, the gap is widening between those who have started down this path and those who have not. My advice is simple: if a business hasn’t developed a digital strategy, start now so your business can lead the transformation and maintain or gain a competitive advantage. Customers and partners, who are with us at Hannover Messe, will be sharing their results and showcasing innovations that are having real impact, not just proof of concepts. For example, technology has empowered Ecolab and its water management division Nalco Water to provide added value to its customers. Nalco Water helps customers reduce, reuse and recycle up to 100 percent of their water while protecting systems and equipment. Together our technologies have saved the San Antonio Water System more than $140,000 in water costs per year, totaling more than $1.2 million over nine years. They’re also saving 58.3 million gallons of potable water per year. By connecting its food and beverage packaging to the Microsoft Azure cloud, Tetra Pak, a world leader in food and beverage processing and packaging is taking its Conditioning Monitoring to the next level. Tetra Pak started a six-month trial in early 2016, supporting 11 customer lines with the new service. Results show that during this period, down-time was eliminated by up to 48 hours for each packaging line saving up to 30,000 Euros for customers. Leading commercial vehicle manufacturer, Daimler is consistently working on innovative cloud-based solutions to increase its customers’ efficiencies and create future services. In contrast to a server-based infrastructure which is still commonplace, cloud solutions offer permanent availability, higher levels of flexibility and economic efficiency. In the future, Daimler FleetBoard GmbH and Mercedes-Benz Vans will use Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform to support the infrastructure for new digital products relating to commercial vehicles. Another great example of an industry leader in truck manufacturing, is Daimler Trucks North America. They’ve collaborated with Microsoft to establish a new cloud-based back office for all Detroit Connect services using Microsoft’s cloud to help process immense amounts of data across connected vehicles worldwide. Human Insight + Machine Intelligence Over the past several years, partners like OSIsoft and Rockwell Automation and customers have re-imagined their approach to manufacturing and are already seeing benefits from the complementary strengths of humans and machines. In fact, 75 percent of organizations believe their future success depends on collaboration between human and machine intelligence, according to a study from Harvard Business Review. Simulating real-world conditions with digital twins With Mixed Reality, Microsoft is redefining what a digital twin is in manufacturing, the ability to blend physical and digital into 3D. Using HoloLens, factory technicians have an entirely new way to visualize a piece of machinery, and solve complex tasks that were previously impractical or even impossible, not to mention saving them costs and downtime in their factories or plants. For example, thyssenkrupp’s mission in providing mobility solutions is to help people overcome physical limitations. Prior to using HoloLens, thyssenkrupp had used the same process for almost 20 years, which involved multiple customer visits, a complex system of labels and cameras and manual data entry to ensure highly customized mobility solutions were measured precisely. Now, the salesperson is able to measure the staircase using the mobile HoloLens solution during their first visit. The measurement data is automatically shared with the manufacturing team via Microsoft Azure, which allows for quicker decision making and near real-time approval of the design without redundant data entry. The digitization of the sales and manufacturing processes has reduced delivery times as much as 4x. Global electronics manufacturing services leader, Jabil, and its consulting arm, Radius Innovation & Development, will demonstrate the potential of Windows 10 devices for product innovation and development. The interactive demo at Hannover will show how the future of IoT-enabled product design is already improving the healthcare industry by giving providers a better way to design infusion devices, which doctors rely on to administer dosages of vital fluids like nutrients and medications to patients. Using design software on Microsoft Surface Studio and the visualization capabilities of Microsoft HoloLens, the companies are armed with tools that improve collaboration and innovation in the manufacturing process. Holograms and 3D capabilities allow for product manipulation and accelerate group collaboration and design refinement prior to a product’s introduction on the factory floor. Improving safety and efficiency with collaborative robots When people and robots collaborate, they can operate more safely and efficiently, particularly in repetitive or challenging environments. For instance, Comau is working with Microsoft and ICONICS to bring an innovative digital solution to manufacturing plants in order to improve production processes and efficiencies, using Microsoft HoloLens and ICONICS Holographic Machine Interface to remotely control a Comau Racer3 robot that assembles small components in a variety of manufacturing environments. It is also using HoloLens to remotely monitor factory machines, giving manufacturers a new way to interact with data on the factory floor via natural gestures and hands-free operation. With more than 8 million people injured or killed on the job each year in the U.S., there’s a demand for technology to help us accomplish tasks that are too dangerous or difficult for humans. Sarcos Robotics is collaborating with Microsoft to offer customers a ‘robot-as-a-service’ to improve the safety and efficiency of many industrial tasks. The company’s Sarcos Guardian S can be tele-operated from miles away as it crawls through narrow culverts, pipes and storage tanks or traverses other difficult terrain. Equipped with a full suite of sensors, it uses Microsoft Azure Machine Learning and Windows 10 IoT technology to decipher patterns and detect anomalies over time. Imagine possibilities in disaster scenarios and how robots can help save lives and make rescue operations much safer. Gaining advanced insights through AI and machine learning Deschutes Brewery with OSIsoft are turning to AI and machine learning to optimize their operations and be more efficient. Yes, brewmasters at Deschutes are using machine learning technology from Microsoft and OSIsoft PI Integrator for Microsoft Azure to transform beer making with data science. Beer fermentation typically takes 12 days. They’ve found if they can trim two days from each cycle they can get six more fermentations from their 50 vessels per year. The 20 percent increase in production capacity from existing equipment is expected to add $6 million in profits annually. Sandvik Coromant, a leading supplier of cutting tools, is using technology from Microsoft to develop solutions for monitoring machine processes and performance in order to reduce waste and improve production efficiencies. Once the domain of only the most skilled technical engineers, the testing processes have been digitally replicated. This has given Sandvik Coromant an entirely new service offering that it can provide to manufacturers and machine builders like DMG MORI, who builds industrial cnc-milling and turning machines for high volume production and high-quality made components. Using the new monitoring solutions, DMG MORI can now predict when a blade may need servicing or repair. Why our customers and partners work with Microsoft There are four major distinctions that set Microsoft apart from others: our commitment to security, global cloud scale, our partner ecosystem and our investments in continuous innovation and industry standards. For the manufacturing industry, we continue to evolve our support of OPC UA, the machine-to-machine communications standard for industrial automation. Building on the OPC UA announcements from Hannover last year, Microsoft announced last week it’s making it even easier for manufacturers to use OPC UA to preconfigure factory devices from the cloud with our latest Azure IoT ‘Connected Factory solution. Microsoft also announced Microsoft IoT Central, a new software-as-a-service (SaaS) offering that has the potential to dramatically increase the speed manufacturers can innovate and bring new products to market and lower the barriers to creating IoT solutions that generate new revenue opportunities and better experiences for customers. In addition to our own solutions, Microsoft Azure cloud is compatible with major IoT platforms including ABB Ability, Rockwell Automation and Siemens Mindsphere, giving manufacturers complete choice over the platforms they use. Most importantly, Microsoft is investing billions of dollars in security to help manufacturers to safeguard their intellectual property and protect themselves from cyberattacks. It’s incredible and humbling to be on this transformational journey with so many ambitious, digital leaders. Come visit us in Hall 7 if you’re in Hannover or follow our stories at our press site. Toni [1] Source: IDC, FutureScape: Worldwide Digital Transformation 2017 Predictions, Bob Parker, Michael Versace,# US40526216 [2] Source: IDC, Enterprise Applications, iERP, and the Manufacturing Industry, Kimberly Knickle, #US41838416 The post Microsoft’s customers and partners demonstrate digital impact and leadership at Hannover Messe 2017 appeared first on The Official Microsoft Blog. Continue reading...

This week, we’ve shared a new video and blog post every day to introduce you to the best of Microsoft Edge, and, in our final post today, we’re talking all about entertainment. Did you know Microsoft Edge is the only browser that enables you to stream 4k Ultra HD Netflix movies and TV shows*, and the only browser on Windows 10 to support Dolby Digital Plus audio format natively? We also designed Microsoft Edge to deliver more battery life when unplugged – without any special battery saving mode or changes to default settings – so you can stream content longer than on other browsers, giving you more time to binge-watch your favorite show without hunting for an outlet. Here are some tips for getting the most out of entertainment with Microsoft Edge: You can catch up on other blog posts in this week’s series below. Thanks for tuning in this week to learn more about Microsoft Edge! *4K Ultra HD exclusivity is limited to PC’s. 4K Ultra HD works in both Microsoft Edge and Netflix app. Only 7th Gen Intel Core processor devices can decrypt 4K DRM. Netflix Ultra HD plan required. The post A Week with Microsoft Edge: The only browser to stream Netflix content in 4K appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

Over the past year we’ve introduced many new features in Windows 10 Mail & Calendar apps for users with Outlook.com accounts—such as easily tracking travel and shipping deliveries, making emails more actionable, helping you easily track your favorite sports events, faster search, and more. We’re now excited to bring these features to our users with Gmail accounts, so you can enjoy the best of what Windows 10 Mail & Calendar have to offer. We’ll roll out the improved experience gradually to users with Gmail accounts in the Windows Insiders program over the next several weeks. We’d love for you to provide feedback on the experience in this phase. After we’ve incorporated your feedback, we’ll proceed to roll out the updates to all Windows 10 users. Bringing new features to your Gmail account Mail & Calendar apps have long supported connecting to and managing your Gmail account. But up until now, some capabilities were only available to those with an Outlook.com or Office 365 email address. With these updates, our latest features will be available for your Gmail account, including Focused Inbox and richer experiences for travel reservations and package deliveries. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/9638405248f1b72f745392b027d573cc.jpg To power these new features, we’ll ask your permission to sync a copy of your email, calendar and contacts to the Microsoft Cloud. This will allow new features to light up, and changes to update back and forth with Gmail–such as creation, edit or deletion of emails, calendar events and contacts. But your experience in Gmail.com or apps from Google will not change in any way. How to get started The new experience will first be made available to Mail & Calendar users who are part of the Windows Insider program – though not all Insiders will see the new experience on their Gmail account right away. We will expand the rollout gradually over the next few weeks. You’ll know the new experience is available for your account when you are prompted to update your Gmail account settings. If you miss the first prompt, we will remind you again in a few weeks. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/69fbc9728b89fbf840f8f468e7246d91.jpg We’re excited for bring an improved Mail & Calendar experience to your Gmail account, and welcome your feedback as we fine tune the new experience in the coming weeks. You can provide feedback on this and other Mail & Calendar features at any time by going to Settings> Feedback in the app. — Windows 10 Mail & Calendar team The post Introducing a new experience for Gmail accounts in Windows 10 Mail & Calendar apps appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

Sustainability is on our collective minds this week as we celebrate Earth Day and recognize a few of the people and technologies that are helping to preserve and protect our planet’s vital resources. Meet four Microsoft employees who work as environmental stewards, learn about a Microsoft partnership aimed at tackling water scarcity, and find out why our chief environmental strategist is hopeful that the world’s resource challenges can be addressed through innovation and technological advances. Additionally, we look at how a nonprofit in Utah is using Microsoft Edge to provide a web-based, free learning tool aimed at boosting economic empowerment in impoverished countries. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/d2f608a232ce898c937d30d9bcdb563c.jpg In India, where a multiyear drought has impacted more than 300 million people, Prashant Gupta is using technology to help farmers determine the best times to sow crops. In Spain, Karen Chalk — struck by the number of discarded computers and tablets that could be reused — worked to create a global e-waste sustainability program. In rainy Ireland, Conor Kelly uses solar panels on his home and works on smart energy proposals for datacenters. And in Seattle, beekeeper Krista Conner is striving to improve bee population resiliency and enable beekeepers to maintain more hives. These four inspiring Microsoft employees, whose efforts are detailed in a feature story, embody Microsoft’s commitment to sustainability by leveraging technology and innovation to tackle environmental challenges for the benefit of the company, their communities and the planet. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/ed6b1f480ab45b3fd3ae3114973610e0.jpg The United Nations predicts that in less than 15 years, demand for water will outpace supply by almost 40 percent. To address that challenge, Microsoft is partnering with Ecolab, a global provider of water, hygiene and energy technologies and services, to help industries around the world address water scarcity. In partnership with Microsoft and Trucost, Ecolab recently launched its enhanced Water Risk Monetizer tool. Built on the Azure Cloud, it is the first no-cost, publicly available water risk analysis and financial modeling tool that translates water scarcity risks into financial terms. Microsoft is using the enhanced Water Risk Monetizer to optimize water management projects like its datacenter near San Antonio, Texas. The insights gleaned will allow Microsoft to save more than $140,000 in water costs annually and avoid the use of 58.3 million gallons of potable water per year. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/e6d58ec4665696ee2a7a4f2568454af7.png Though the world faces daunting resource challenges, Microsoft Chief Environmental Strategist Rob Bernard sees reason to be hopeful. Innovation is allowing many industries to be more efficient and reduce their environmental impact, he says. Cloud computing and artificial intelligence are enabling companies, researchers, consumers and others to better understand and mitigate their impact on the planet. Digital transformation is helping to deploy renewable and off-grid technologies that bring clean, affordable power to more people. Advances in agricultural management are being used to feed a growing population, and new tools are enabling us to better preserve and protect clean water resources. “By working together, and continuing to develop and deploy revolutionary technological solutions, we can change the story of our planet’s future for the better,” Bernard writes in a blog post. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/76f8890d79cea72200c918d3ed0d9a28.png Leveraging intelligence out of the dizzying amount of data available can make the difference between being the next market disruptor and being left behind. At the Microsoft Data Amp online event on Wednesday, several new products and innovations were announced that merge data and artificial intelligence (AI) to transform applications and businesses. Those include the first relational database management system with built-in AI that offers support for a rich library of machine learning functions, the ability to infuse apps with cognitive intelligence in the cloud through Microsoft Cognitive Services, and the release of Microsoft R Server 9.1, which brings intelligence to more places that data lives and introduces several advanced machine learning algorithms from Microsoft. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/307df1cdee39117a84ec48c1362eafd7.jpg It might seem like a stretch to think a web browser could help lift people out of poverty, but a nonprofit group is using Microsoft Edge to achieve that goal. CHOICE Humanitarian, a Utah-based organization focused on eradicating extreme poverty, announced on Tuesday that it has created a new literacy tool in partnership with the Microsoft Edge team. Called Accent, the easy-to-use, browser-based learning solution will initially be used to help women in Chulac, Guatemala, learn Spanish as a step toward economic development. The program is customized for individual learning, and students will work with a local mentor fluent in Spanish as they progress in their learning. “Because of Microsoft’s history and dedication to increasing access to technology, the opportunity to partner with Microsoft Edge in developing browser-based technology to benefit women in rural Guatemala is very exciting and promises great outcomes,” writes Francesca Perkins, economic development coordinator for CHOICE Humanitarian. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/50de386501c6d9794d96edf7ba3acf40.jpg As the work week winds down, why not kick back with some music? If you’re not already using Groove Music, sign up for a 30-day free trial and get a code for an additional three free months. That’s 120 days of ad-free music with millions of songs and no Wi-Fi required — just download and play music offline, anywhere. For Xbox fans, “Halo Wars: Definitive Edition” is now available, bringing improved graphics, additional Achievements and all downloadable content into one convenient package. “Voodoo Vince: Remastered” is available with Xbox Play Anywhere support — which means buying it once digitally gives players ownership on both Xbox One and Windows 10 — and several new fan-inspired feature updates for Xbox Insiders were also announced this week. “This Week on Windows” highlights new apps for Surface Dial to help you take advantage of the Windows 10 Creators Update, the new Porsche Car Pack for “Forza Horizon 3,” tips and tricks for Microsoft Edge and new items in the Windows Store. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/ec2571ff97fc36432ff93e0cecbe5c84.jpg This week on the Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages, we highlighted Heather Dowdy, a program manager on our Web Accessibility team. Both of Heather’s parents lost their hearing as toddlers, so she learned at an early age the importance of inclusive design. Today, Heather has dedicated her career to building products for people of all abilities to make the internet accessible for everyone. That’s it for this week. Have a great weekend, and check back next Friday for another edition of Weekend Reading. Posted by Deborah Bach Microsoft News Center Staff The post 4 employees who make every day Earth Day, a partnership to tackle water scarcity and using Microsoft Edge to combat poverty — Weekend Reading: April 21 edition appeared first on The Official Microsoft Blog. Continue reading...

We hope you enjoyed today’s episode of This Week on Windows! Head over here to see our series, “A Week with Microsoft Edge,” all about the browser designed for Windows 10. Check out five ways to get started with the Paint 3D app, learn more about the new creativity apps with unique capabilities for Surface Dial, or, keep reading to catch up on all of this week’s news. In case you missed it: HP announces new Pavilion convertible PCs powered by Windows 10 at Coachella Click to view slideshow. HP revealed a new lineup of Pavilion laptops powered by Windows 10 with sophisticated designs, innovative technologies. and original features built to take advantage of the Windows 10 Creators Update. These devices include dual storage options, USB type-C, and the best of Windows 10: 3D in Windows 10, your digital personal assistant – Cortana* – a more secure browser with Microsoft Edge, and more. Other features include: Up to 10 hours of battery life and HP Fast Charge (90% in 90 minutes) on select models Latest 7th Gen Intel Core i3-i7 processors Storage options: Dual storage up to 256 GB SSD+1TB HDD or single storage up to 512GB SSD or up to 2TB HDD on select models Choice of AMD Radeon & NVIDIA GeForce Discrete Graphics Enhanced 2x2ac WiFi option HP Wide Vision camera or optional IR camera which supports Windows Hello Exceptional audio with dual speakers, HP Audio Boost, and tuning by the experts at B&O Play – perfect for calls with Skype These new PCs are available now beginning at $399 USD. Head over to HP.com to learn more! Here’s what’s new in the Windows Store: ‘Fallout’ Mash-Up Pack now available for ‘Minecraft: Pocket Edition’ and ‘Minecraft: Windows 10 Edition’ https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/a05a32d81f4664b7656cd2b41f72db0c.jpg Explore a post-apocalyptic “Minecraft” wasteland as Vault Boy, Nick Valentine, Fawkes the philosophical supermutant and others made famous through a retro-sci-fi series with the “Fallout” Mash-Up Pack. While console gamers have enjoyed the pack since December, it’s now available on “Minecraft: Pocket Edition” and “Minecraft: Windows 10 Edition,” bringing with it 44 skins, as well as appropriately dystopian textures and music. Forza Horizon 3 Porsche Car Pack Down Under’s premiere road race just got a lot more thrilling. In Forza Horizon 3, home to Australia’s Horizon Festival, the back roads are filled with legendary and amazing vehicles from all over the world. Now, a new Porsche Car Pack ($6.99) joins the excitement, letting players experience prime examples of the breadth and depth of Porsche automotive history. Head over to ForzaMotorsport.net for more details on each of the cars featured in the pack, or Xbox Wire for more! Buy Voodoo Vince: Remastered for $14.99 https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/7c435f53a4a97a376117b58c7065aeb8.jpg Vince the voodoo doll is back after a 13-year absence in Voodoo Vince: Remastered ($14.99), now in high definition and headed to the bayous of Louisiana and the streets of New Orleans. He’s searching for his keeper, Madam Charmaine, and as usual he’s ready to take on whatever monsters or villains get in his way. Read more over at Xbox Wire! TV Spotlight – Better Call Saul https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/bde3bff184e9414ba69f8597121adcb7.jpg In search of a new TV obsession? This month’s TV Spotlight is on Better Call Saul, the critically acclaimed Breaking Bad spinoff which chronicles the backstory of slippery criminal lawyer Saul Goodman. Binge watch and save on seasons 1 and 2 now, then dive into season 3 in the Movies & TV section of the Windows Store. The Fate of the Furious – Preorder + Soundtrack https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/35ef06989e85530e62a7ea7a3fb083f6.jpg Preorder The Fate of the Furious from the Movies & TV section of the Windows Store while the film is still in theaters and get the soundtrack now. Learn more on The Fire Hose. Have a great weekend! The post This Week on Windows: New Windows 10 PCs, Forza Horizon 3, and more appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

Next up in our series, A Week with Microsoft Edge we’re talking about how the browser is built for books and reading. With the Windows 10 Creators Update, we’ve worked to make reading in Microsoft Edge a great experience and have expanded the type of content you can read right within the browser. You can read PDF files, the e-book file format EPUB and books you’ve downloaded from the Windows Store right within Microsoft Edge. You can also simplify the layout of web pages with Reading view, save pages to read later in your reading list, and more. Here are some tips for a great reading experience in Microsoft Edge. You can catch up on other blog posts in this week’s series below. Stay tuned this week for more on Microsoft Edge! The post A Week with Microsoft Edge: The browser built for books and reading appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

Hello Windows Insiders! Today we are excited to be releasing Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 16179 for PC to Windows Insiders in the Fast ring. We are also releasing Windows 10 Mobile Insider Preview Build 15204 to Insiders in the Fast ring. What’s New in Build 16179 For PC Revert VM: Continuing our theme of simplifying Hyper-V for developers on Windows 10 (see What’s New), we’re introducing automatic checkpoints so that you’ll always be able to undo a mistake in your virtual machine – you can now always revert to the last time you started a virtual machine. Introducing Power Throttling*: You may remember some of the power experiments we did back in January with Build 15002. Power Throttling was one of those experiments, and showed to have up to 11% savings in CPU power consumption for some of the most strenuous use cases. So, we’re turning this on for everyone starting with last week’s build. Check out our complete blog post on this for more details! *Power throttling is a temporary working name for this feature and may change before the release of the next Windows 10 update. Changes, improvements, and fixes for PC We fixed the issue causing apps that use the Desktop Bridge (“Centennial”) from the Store such as Slack and Evernote will cause your PC to bugcheck (GSOD) when launched with a “kmode exception not handled” in ntfs.sys error. We fixed an issue where adding Hindi to your language list and downloading the on-demand language resources would result in Microsoft Edge crashing on launch and file search returning no results via Cortana or Windows Explorer. We fixed an issue where desktop icons would sometimes move around unexpectedly when “Auto arrange icons” was set to On and “Align icons to grid” was set to Off. The existing Group Policy to disable the lock screen is now available for those on the Pro edition of Windows 10. Appreciate all who shared feedback on the subject. Note, the Group Policy text has not yet been updated to incorporate this change, that will happen with a later flight. We fixed a rendering issue from previous flights where specific multi-monitor and projection configurations could fail depending on the hardware used. This could have impacted all Surface (Surface Book, Surface Pro, etc.) devices as well as other devices using similar chipsets. Another symptom may have been to see screen flickering and potentially being logged out when any screen mode change occurred. We fixed an issue resulting in the location icon being continually on in the taskbar after the first time the Action Center was opened if the night light quick action was visible. Known issues for PC Some Insiders have reported seeing this error “Some updates were cancelled. We’ll keep trying in case new updates become available”� in Windows Update. See this forum post for more details. Double-clicking on the Windows Defender icon in the notification area does not open Windows Defender. Right-clicking on the icon and choosing open will open Windows Defender. Surface 3 devices fail to update to new builds if a SD memory card is inserted. The updated drivers for the Surface 3 that fix this issue have not yet been published to Windows Update. Pressing F12 to open the Developer Tools in Microsoft Edge while F12 is open and focused may not return focus to the tab F12 is opened against, and vice-versa. exe will crash and restart if you tap any of the apps listed in the Windows Ink Workspace’s Recent Apps section. Insiders who use Simplified Chinese IMEs or the Traditional Chinese Changjie or Quick IME to input text will find that the candidate window doesn’t appear when typing into certain apps. If you press space, the first candidate will be finalized. Using the number keys will not finalize any other candidate. If the candidate you need is not the first one, for now you will have to enter your text into an app where the candidate window appears, such as Notepad, and copy it into the desired text field. Navigating to Settings > Update & security > Windows Update may crash Settings app. You can simply re-open the Settings app again and it should work again. The “Save”� dialog appears to be broken in several desktop (Win32) apps. The team is investigating. Changes, improvements, and fixes for Mobile We fixed the targeting issue that caused some variants of the Alcatel IDOL 4S to not receive Build 15204 last week. All variants of the Alcatel IDOL 4S should receive Build 15205. FYI: We fixed the issue where supported Windows 10 Mobile devices were showing the update to the Windows 10 Anniversary Update as “not yet available” in the Upgrade Advisor app. We fixed an issue where Continuum would stop working when HP Elite X3 case is closed. We fixed an issue where Continuum would hang or render incorrectly after disconnecting on devices like the Lumia 950. We fixed an issue with Microsoft Edge where you might get into a bad state after opening a new Microsoft Edge windows and screen off with the JIT process suspended. We fixed an issue with where the device screen might stay black when disconnecting from a Continuum dock after screen has timed out normally. We fixed an issue with backup and restore which impacts users with slower network connection. We fixed an issue around Microsoft Edge reliability. Known issues for Mobile A small percentage of devices may experience text message backup loss related to backup and recovery of the messaging database. For Insiders who have upgraded from a prior 150xx build to this build, the “Add Bluetooth or other devices” Settings page and the Connect UX page may fail to open. The copyright date is incorrect under Settings > System > About. It shows as 2016 when it should be 2017. Thanks to the Windows Insiders that reported this! Insiders may experience random shutdowns on some devices. Community Updates Many of you have been asking for our team to share more about our future plans about the overall Windows Insider community. We want to be inclusive of all consumption styles, so we thought we would experiment with an audio podcast. Check out episode 1! Keep hustling team, Dona <3 The post Announcing Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 16179 for PC + Build 15205 for Mobile appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

Next up in our series, A Week with Microsoft Edge we’re sharing tips for personalizing the web. With so much time spent browsing the web, we all want an experience that feels personal and custom, and with Microsoft Edge it’s easy to do just that. Here are some tips on how to personalize the web in Microsoft Edge. In case you missed our previous blog posts, we kicked off a blog post series, A Week with Microsoft Edge earlier this week all about introducing you to the best of Microsoft Edge. Here are some additional resources for personalizing the web in Microsoft Edge. Stay tuned this week for more on Microsoft Edge! The post A Week with Microsoft Edge: Personalizing the web appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...

Most people running Windows like having multiple apps running at the same time – and often, what’s running in the background can drain your battery. In this latest Insider Preview build (Build 16176), we leveraged modern silicon capabilities to run background work in a power-efficient manner, thereby enhancing battery life significantly while still giving users access to powerful multitasking capabilities of Windows. With “Power Throttling”�, when background work is running, Windows places the CPU in its most energy efficient operating modes – work gets done, but the minimal possible battery is spent on that work. You may remember some of our January power experiments we mentioned in Build 15002’s release notes. Power Throttling was one of those experiments, and showed up to 11% savings in CPU power consumption for some of the most strenuous use cases. We’ve been hard at work making improvements and listening to Windows Insider feedback since then, so this capability should help many of you see a nice boost in battery life! https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/9ca5d1f0fcc77587180baa2b81b4397d.png Figure 1 – Task Manager shows which processes are Power throttled Note: Power Throttling is currently available only for processors with Intel’s Speed Shift technology, available in Intel’s 6th-gen (and beyond) Core processors – we’re working on expanding support to other processors as well over the next few months. How does it work? To give great performance to the apps you’re using, while at the same time power throttling background work, we built a sophisticated detection system into Windows. The OS identifies work that is important to you (apps in the foreground, apps playing music, as well as other categories of important work we infer from the demands of running apps and the apps the user interacts with). While this detection works well for most apps, if you happen to notice an app that is negatively impacted by Power Throttling, we really want to know!! You can do 3 things: 1. Provide feedback! Please run the Feedback Hub and file feedback under the Power and Battery > Throttled Applications category 2. Control power throttling system-wide, using the Power Slider. Windows works hardest to keep the processor in its efficient ranges when you’ve selected “Battery Saver” or “Recommended”�, and turns off completely when you’ve selected “Best Performance”�. https://extremetechsupport.com/data/MetaMirrorCache/cbabbcd6586bd39046b57c173d7f1eb1.png 3. Opt individual apps out from Power Throttling: Go to Battery Settings (Settings > System > Battery). Click on “Battery Usage by App”.� Select your app. Toggle “Managed by Windows”� to “Off”.� Uncheck the “Reduce work app does when in background”� checkbox. Note that benchmark results may vary with power throttling turned on. While most benchmarks run fine and produce great performance results, some benchmark processes may be affected by throttling. Our general recommendation is to always run performance benchmarks while plugged in, as power throttling does not apply in that case. Developer note: Power throttling is designed to work well with applications out of the box, but we recognize that in some cases, application developers may be able to provide additional power savings by having more fine-grained control over Power Throttling. We will have APIs to provide more fine grained control in upcoming flights. Please make sure to watch out for API updates on MSDN. *Power throttling is a temporary working name for this capability and may change during the course of the development cycle for the next release of Windows. Thanks, Bill @billkar44 The post Introducing Power Throttling appeared first on Windows Experience Blog. Continue reading...