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Windows Threshold: Answers to the questions you have been a

Post by parkd1 »

For the past 5 weeks or so, we have been uncovering quite a bit about Microsoft's next update to Windows, internally called Threshold, and since then, we have received a couple a copious amounts of emails and pings on Twitter about the update, and as we have learned more, we want to help clarify some of the common items we keep getting asked.
Is the Charms bar really dead?

Do you have any whiskey handy? If you do, pour one out. On the desktop, in the current builds, the Charms bar is dead and it is moving inside the modern apps. Currently, the Charms functionality is moving inside modern apps to a button in the header bar. The location of the new 'charms' area is subject to change and for those apps that are dependent on the Charms bar, don't be surprised if you see Microsoft politely ask them to adjust their functionality to fit with the new style.
We haven't heard anything about Metro 2.0, are they not updating the modern UI?

Here's the thing with the updated modern UI. There will be changes and new features, Microsoft is still keeping it a bit close to the chest but we are starting to hear whispers about what all will be included on the touch-side of the OS. Know that there will be updates but we are not quite ready to crack open this nut, yet.
Is it really coming this fall?

The current builds of Windows Threshold have a new watermark that no longer refers to the build as Windows 8.1 and that it is now a 'preview' build. This aligns to how Windows 8 was released, and we fully believe that this is what Microsoft will do based on our own sources as well as what others are saying. The fact that builds are now referred to as a preview means that Microsoft is gearing up to let outsiders use the build.
I thought the Start menu was coming back to Windows 8, why has this changed?

If you go back and watch what was announced at BUILD 2014, Terry Myerson said that the Start menu would be an update for Windows 8 users, and while we believe that it was originally slated for update 2 and then pulled, technically, Windows Threshold will be an update to Windows 8. It also seems plausible that Windows Threshold could be a free update for Windows 8 users, so for those of you who have bought in to the Windows 8 ecosystem, you will very likely be able to get Windows Threshold
Is Windows Threshold going to be called Windows 9?

Most believe that Windows Threshold will be called Windows 9, but there is still a small fraction of the enthusiast community who thinks that this will be called Windows 8.2 or something along those lines. It is of our belief that this update will be called Windows 9. By the time that Windows 9 is ready for release for all consumers (RTM) Windows 8 will be about 3 years old, so it seems logical that a new name is warranted. We have also heard that Microsoft is doing everything it can to get away from Windows 8 as quickly as possible since it has not been well received with consumers.
Apple hasn't put Siri on the desktop, why should Microsoft put Cortana on its desktop?

Simple, Microsoft wants Cortana on all of its key platforms including Xbox. Cortana's ambitions go far beyond that of what Apple is doing with Siri and you can already see this with how quickly Microsoft is adding features to the mobile platform. By bringing Cortana to the desktop, they will also be adding millions of users to its data pool so that it can make the service even better. More so, Cortana will eventually be able to interact cross-platform as well and it could serve as the data-link, much like OneDrive to tie services together. Imagine being on your Xbox and saying "Cortana, set a reminder to call my wife at 10 A.M" and magically, the reminder shows up on your desktop, your phone and your tablets that are running Windows Threshold.

These are just a few of the questions that we have been receiving over the past few weeks about Threshold, and if you have any more let us know in the comments below, or you can reach out to us on Twitter or Facebook.

http://www.neowin.net/news/windows-thre ... een-asking
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Re: KB2976897, KB2982791, and KB2970228 Patches Causing BSOD

Post by Whatacrock »

How to Repair Windows 7 BSODs Caused by KB2982791, KB2970228, KB2975719, and KB2975331

KB2982791, KB2970228, KB2975719, and KB2975331 updates, which were all released last week as part of Patch Tuesday, are causing a number of issues on Windows 7 computers, including BSODs at first boot.

While Microsoft has already confirmed that it’s working on a fix, the company has also rolled out a workaround to help users deal with issues caused by the aforementioned updates.

This workaround is aimed at computers running Windows 7, Windows 8, and 8.1 and must be completed in the exact same ordered as mentioned below.

Step 1: Boot from a Windows installation disc or access the Recovery Mode if that’s possible.

Accessing Safe Mode also helps, but keep in mind that administrator privileges are needed.

Step 2: Delete the fntcache.dat file that’s included in the system32 folder in root Windows folder. Since it's located in the main Windows folder, administrator rights are mandatory. Otherwise, you won't be able to delete the file.

If you use the Recovery Mode console, here’s the command that you need to use:

Code: Select all

del %windir%\system32\fntcache.dat
Step 3: Reboot your computer and everything should be working just fine (but you’re not done yet)/

Step 4: Access the registry editor by typing “regedit” in the run dialog or on the Start screen and navigate to the following path:

Code: Select all

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Fonts\
Step 5: Right click the “Fonts” subkey and hit “Export.” Save the file on the desktop with any name you want.

Step 6: Search the registry and remove all values under the “Fonts” subkey that end in an .oft extension and contain a full file path.

Step 7: Delete the fntcache.dat one more time (you don’t need to boot to Safe Mode to do this and the location is the same as mentioned above). The same command can be used when launching a Command Prompt window with administrator privileges.

Step 8: Go over to Control Panel, open Programs and Features, and click on “View installed updates.” Find and uninstall the following entries: KB2982791, KB2970228, KB2975719, and KB2975331.

Step 9: Restore the registry key that you exported earlier to the desktop.

Step 10: Reboot your computer and you should be ready to go.

Remember that this is just a temporary workaround until Microsoft releases a fix, but at least it’s a way to get back into Windows when experiencing BSODs at first boot.

The company has already confirmed that a fix is being developed right now, but it could obviously take a while until it’s being released to users. Of course, if you’re getting BSODs at boot this is pretty much your only option, so give it a try and let us know if it works in the comment box after the jump.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/How-to-R ... 5455.shtml
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Users Blast Microsoft for Getting BSODs

Post by Whatacrock »

Users Blast Microsoft for Getting BSODs After Installing August Updates

Microsoft rolled out several botched updates last week, and plenty of users have already confirmed issues after installing them, including the infamous Blue Scree of Death that reportedly shows up after the first reboot.

Redmond itself confirmed the issues and said in an advisory rolled out a couple of days ago that the roots of the problem were four updates which should be uninstalled and hidden by those experiencing the same behavior on their Windows devices, including PCs and tablets: KB2982791, KB2970228, KB2975719, and KB2975331.

As expected, frustration has skyrocketed in the last couple of days, especially among users who couldn’t figure out a way to repair the issues and get back in Windows.

Posts published on Microsoft’s Community forums blast the company for not testing the rolled out updates long enough to spot the issues and thus avoid breaking down so many computers.

“I feel quite strongly that, despite all the legal jargon in the EULA, there is a liability issue here. If Ford, GM or Toyota released a fix for their vehicles that caused them to crash, they would be bankrupt in a heartbeat. It is unacceptable not to roll out these updates without comprehensive testing in the field. If a hospital's server farm has automatic updates set up, it could crash the entire system and put lives in danger,” one user wrote after his computer got stuck with a BSOD due to August updates.

“This isn't 1984 when coders didn't have comprehensive testing farms. I would very much like to hear a Microsoft representative respond to my concerns - and explain why it is acceptable to put out code that locks so many machines up.”

At this point, the thread where users are reporting issues after installing August updates counts no less than 45 pages, and it’s not surprising to see that many users are actually upset with Microsoft rolling out patches that break down their computers.

And still, it’s worth mentioning that while Microsoft does test the updates that it releases, it’s nearly impossible to install these patches on all hardware configurations that users might have, hence the issues that appear every once in a while.

Redmond is trying to compensate by rolling out fixes for botched updates much faster than before and this is the case right now as well. The company has told us in a mailed statement that it’s already working on a fix, so more information will most likely be provided in the coming days.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Users-Bl ... 5429.shtml
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Users Still Getting BSODs on Windows 7

Post by Whatacrock »

Users Still Getting BSODs on Windows 7 Despite Microsoft’s Workarounds

As you have most likely heard by now, some of the patches released by Microsoft as part of this month’s Update Tuesday cycle caused more harm than good and broke down a number of Windows 7 PCs, leading to BSODs that occurred at every first boot.

Microsoft was quick to confirm the issues and told us in a statement that a fix was under development, but until now no other specifics have been provided.

What’s worse, the workarounds that Microsoft provided don’t seem to make any difference in some cases, and a number of users whose computers were impacted by the BSOD say that following the steps that are supposed to correct the problems has basically no result and leaves the errors untouched.

“I'm having the blue screen issue as well, except that for a day now my screen won't work, stays black, so I can't reset, remove the update or enter BIOS (I have an ASUS K55V series notebook). I tried everything that was suggested on the internet but nothing seems to work. Has anyone faced a problem like this?” one user explains on the Microsoft Community forums.

And unexpectedly, frustration among users is growing, and some of them are complaining that Microsoft doesn’t care enough about its consumers to correct these problems fast.

Of course, a number of posts pointed to Google and Apple as two important names that wouldn’t roll out botched updates which could cause so many problems to users.

“These kinds of issues make me nervous and I don't believe Microsoft takes them seriously enough... There should be a more official response and tools to help people deal with these issues,” another affected user wrote.

“An overly verbose Security bulletin where 90% of it is not applicable to any one individual is a pathetic communication medium.. So are user communities. I'm willing to bet Apple or Google wouldn't publish such bulletins. It needs to be as easy to identify and remove the broken updates as it is to install them to begin with.”

As mentioned, Microsoft is already working on a fix, and the company will most likely roll it out before the next Patch Tuesday, just to make sure that issues are repaired and everyone can use their computers flawlessly.

In the meantime, if you’re among these users who are experiencing a BSOD, you could give a shot to this workaround and see if it makes any difference on your computer. Just create a backup (if you can get into Windows in the first place) before everything else in order to make sure that you’re on the safe side.

link to workaround: http://news.softpedia.com/news/How-to-R ... 5455.shtml

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Users-St ... 5668.shtml
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Adobe Flash Player 15.0.0.130 Beta Released

Post by Whatacrock »

Adobe Flash Player 15.0.0.130 Beta Released with New Features

Adobe has just introduced a new beta version of its Flash Player software which now includes several Windows specific options that are supposed to improve the experience on a touch-capable device.

Adobe Flash Player 15.0.0.130 Beta includes improved support for browser zoom levels, an enhancement that’s specifically designed for Windows 8 devices with a touch-capable display.

Adobe says that this particular improvement has been specifically developed to solve issues experienced in the past when trying to change the zoom level of playing Flash content, with browsers on Windows 8 sometimes causing playback speed problems.

“With our new implementation, we can now scale the content and 3D buffers to keep everything aligned. In addition, Flash Player introduces an option to render to an increased Stage3D back buffer, rather than scaling, on browser zoom to keep the resolution of the rendered content high. This option allows to the stage3D buffer to change in size in synch with the change in the browser zoom factor,” Adobe said.

At the same time, the new beta build includes a fullscreen orientation change that clearly comes in handy when playing Flash content on a tablet.

More and more Windows tablets are hitting the shelves these days, and since all support Flash content, it’s mandatory to improve the experience buyers get on these devices as well. Adobe claims that resizing is automatically performed now when running Flash content in full screen and device orientation changes.

“Flash Player will now detect and appropriately scale your content to fit best in a fullscreen display when your device orientation is changed. This change is specific to Windows and is implemented across all browsers. Developers, if your content does not resize, you will need to handle the resize event appropriately. Additional details will be made available in a separate blog post,” Adobe announced.

Last but not least, the new preview build brings a number of improvements for Chrome users on Windows, making hardware video decoding enabled by default in this browser.

Adobe says that this particular option will “drastically” reduce the CPU usage and improve performance on supported video players. The same feature should also be introduced on Mac OS X computers in the coming months, as the company is now working with Google to make it available in more Chrome builds.

In the meantime, Windows users can download Adobe Flash Player 15.0.0.130 Beta right now to see what’s new, but keep in mind that this build is still part of the development channel, so a number of bugs and errors could still be spotted.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Adobe-Fl ... 5774.shtml

download link: http://www.softpedia.com/get/Internet/W ... ayer.shtml
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This Month’s Updates Can Lead to a “Horrible User Experience

Post by Whatacrock »

Microsoft: This Month’s Updates Can Lead to a “Horrible User Experience”

The Windows updates released by Microsoft this month as part of the Patch Tuesday cycle caused quite a lot of trouble for those running the company’s operating system, with many revealing that in some cases they’re getting a BSOD every time they reboot their PCs.

Microsoft hasn’t talked too much about this issue, but the company has said that a fix is on its way, although no timing has been provided as to when this eagerly awaited patch could be shipped.

A Microsoft employee has however taken to the Community forums to provide more information about the botched updates, explaining that if something goes wrong with this month’s patches, it would all lead to a “horrible user experience.” That’s the reason Microsoft decided to pull the updates, Kurt Phillips says, but the company is working hard to provide a fix.

“Everyone else - please be aware that the reason we pulled this patch was that IF you ran into the problem specified, it's a horrible user experience,” the Microsoft employee explains.

“We made a fairly invasive change in font handling as part of a security patch and thought we had it tested properly, but there are definitely problems in our test coverage and design process that we need to address. We definitely have lessons to learn from this and we will.”

As compared to what people think, only 1 in 10,000 computers are affected by the botched updates, Phillips says, but Microsoft is taking the issues seriously anyway. And still, he adds, in case you haven’t received a BSOD until now, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re perfectly secure.

“If you installed and haven't seen a Stop 0x50, there's no guarantee you won't see one before we fix it, but look at the odds. I think it would be irresponsible to say in the security bulletin to not uninstall due to the severity of the problem IF you hit it, but I'm not uninstalling. You need to make your own decision on that of course,” he explains.

Everyone experiencing this issue should contact Microsoft support as soon as possible, as no details regarding the release date of the fix are available right now.

As far as Kurt Phillips’ job at Microsoft is concerned, he says that he’s “not the official Microsoft spokesperson on this, just an engineer on a very busy graphics team trying to fix our problem.”

You can read his message in full after the jump, and in case you’re experiencing these issues already, you can have a look at this workaround to try fix them.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Microsof ... 5821.shtml
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Windows 9 to Be Unveiled on September 30

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Windows 9 to Be Unveiled on September 30

A preview version of Windows 9 is expected to be unveiled sometime next month and, thanks to a new report, we also have a date for a public debut.

The Verge is reporting that Microsoft is preparing a press event for September 30, which is very likely to be the first time when the company will talk about the new operating system.

While the report claims that Microsoft doesn’t plan to disclose the new name of the operating system, which will almost for sure be Windows 9, according to sources, the company is however expected to present some of the features that could be part of this release.

The September 30 event is yet to be confirmed, so it could change if Microsoft decides to push back the unveiling for a few days, but it’s just another sign that a preview version of Windows 9 is on the horizon.

If the company indeed breaks the news on Windows 9 on September 30, the public beta could be launched soon after that or during the same day. Microsoft is expected to allow virtually everyone to get the preview build of Windows 9, but only a few features would actually be part of the release.

Instead of releasing new Windows 9 Preview builds every time they’re ready, Microsoft wants to update the original testing version when development of new features is completed and thus keep all users up to date.

Windows 9 is expected to come with lots of new features, including a Start menu, a desktop version of Cortana, options to run Metro apps on the desktop and Internet Explorer 12. A full list of all rumored features is available http://news.softpedia.com/news/Windows- ... 4613.shtml

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Windows- ... 5868.shtml
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Re: Adobe Flash Player 15.0.0.130 Beta Released

Post by DesertJerry »

You also should have mentioned that AdobeAIR15_0_0_233_beta has also been released along with the Flash 130 beta versions.
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Re: Windows 9 to Be Unveiled on September 30

Post by parkd1 »

Details of Microsoft's next major Windows version, codenamed Threshold, have been steadily emerging over the last few weeks - and, as our regular readers will know, many of the biggest and most interesting details have been exclusively revealed by us here on Neowin. But one detail that has remained a little ambiguous is when we might actually get our first official look at the new OS.

Last week, it emerged that Microsoft is planning to release a preview version of the OS around the end of September, and today, The Verge revealed that that information - originally revealed by Microsoft-watcher Mary Jo Foley - is accurate. According to its sources, Microsoft is "tentatively planning" a press event for September 30, at which the new Windows will be officially unveiled, with a pre-release version of the OS being made available on or shortly after that date.

While we have not yet been able to confirm this date with our own sources, we understand that the release is currently called the 'Windows Technical Preview' internally. It is not yet clear if Microsoft plans to use the widely-rumored 'Windows 9' name, or if it intends to go with something different. The current builds that are making their way around Redmond are in the 982x variety.

The preview will not be feature-complete by any means, with certain UI elements not necessarily being available in the first release, although it is likely that Microsoft will roll out more features to the preview in later builds.

http://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-ex ... ptember-30
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Re: Windows 9 to Be Unveiled on September 30

Post by TheAPGuy »

I hope it has an actual desktop mode instead of a taped on desktop app.
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