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1 Skype for iOS Menu Changes2 Chat and Messaging Changes Microsoft soon acknowledged the issues with its update, and now the fruits of its efforts have come to bear. A new user experience update is rolling for the Skype for iPhone preview, and first impressions are positive. “It was a big change and we received a lot of great feedback from the Skype community,” said support engineer Ellen Kilbourne. “We want you to know we’ve been listening....

In a blog post, Microsoft Research says its divide-and-conquer technique could have wider implications. For example, it could be used to teach AI to do more complex tasks. The research team worked out of Maluuba, a Canadian-based start-up acquired by Microsoft this year. Using an AI called reinforcement learning, the team pitted its system against the Atari 2600 version of Ms. Pac-Man. Not only did the system complete the game, but it achieved the perfect score of 999,990....

In an accompanying blog post, Microsoft describes the heterostructure device as a composition of a ferromagnet, a superconductor, and a semiconductor. These three components where created using an ultra-high-vacuum molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) machine. Microsoft explains a heterostructure is a device created from solid materials: “When the interfaces between the different materials are clean, the device can have properties that would be difficult, if not impossible to obtain in any single material....

Microsoft Research has been working on several solutions to this issue. Haptic Links looked to improve the consistency of controls while adding bimanual haptics. Its bulky CLAW controller let users feel objects in VR. Its latest invention is perhaps the most exciting, giving users the ability to squish objects and manipulate them with fingertips. Named TORC, or Touch Rigid Controller, it consists of a palm-sized block users can apply pressure to....

AccountGuard was a service Microsoft debuted to “monitor accounts of campaigns and other associated organizations related to election processes in democracies around the world, publishing this information should help others be more vigilant and take steps to protect themselves.” Microsoft says AccountGuard was able to detect 2,700 attacks associated with the Phosphorus groups, which is linked to the government of Iran. Attackers targeted 241 accounts linked to the “U.S. presidential campaign, current, and former U....

Summaries of the bug were posted by Cisco Talos and Fortinet, who were given early access to the information and published it after a miscommunication. Attackers can exploit the bug by sending a specially crafted packet to a target SMBv3 server, allowing them to take complete control of vulnerable systems. According to Microsoft, the issue exists int he way SMBv3 handles certain requests and is classed as a buffer overflow....

Whether this means Microsoft will issue cumulative patches twice per month consistently or this is a one off remains to be seen. Either way, at least this month users are being taken care of. As always, these updates to not include any new features or abilities for Windows 10. Instead, their focused on shoring up the platform from problems. There’s a lot to get through, so we will start with the Creators Update....

You could be forgiven for not even knowing what the Global Incident Response and Recovery team is. It is a relatively secretive group known as the GIRR team. Berk Veral, Senior Marketing Communication Manager, Enterprise Cybersecurity Group, admits that the team is mostly unknown amongst consumers. However, GIRR is a vital cog in Microsoft’s enterprise-based security features. Comprised of elite cybersecurity experts, the team handles critical incidents and helps customers navigate them....

Specifically, users of the May 2019 Update and November 2019 Update are facing some critical issues. Users have taken to Microsoft’s official Forums to discuss these problems. The first issue involves desktop files randomly disappearing, while the Start Menu layout and desktop wallpapers are randomly reverting to default. On the forum, the first post describes how the problem is affecting users. “Hello. Sorry to post a random question here, but a bit new at this....

There is a lot to like about the Earbuds, and some things to be wary of, like price and design. However, one of the best features is that the Surface Earbuds works across a variety of voice assistants. Specifically, this means the device will tap into whatever assistant is being used on the connected phone. For example, if you have an Android device and use Google Assistant the buds will leverage it....

To access the insides of the Surface Hub 2, users just need to undo a single screw and side out the whole component rack, featuring the CPU, motherboard, RAM, and other important hardware. Users can easily upgrade the device, while Microsoft can deliver new parts without needing to actually develop a new Surface Hub. Windows Central reports that Microsoft’s new cartridge is being developed under the codename “Upward”. It features 11th Gen Intel CPUs to offer a more powerful experience....

Microsoft has been quite on what Windows Feature Experience Pack is since it was found earlier this year. Most predictions focused on this being a collection of Windows 10 features that can be updated independtly. In other words, Windows apps that don’t update as part of wider automatic platform updates. This means Microsoft can update then in-between twice annual feature updates. With the first test update, Microsoft is confirming this is exactly the purpose of the Feature Experience Pack....

Now, Microsoft is contending with another faulty Windows Update. Namely a buggy audio driver that was sent out by Intel. The issue with the driver is it is overriding existing compatible drivers. Microsoft says the update was unintentionally sent out by the processor giant. Speaking on its Microsoft Answers forum, the company explains: “Earlier this week, Intel unintentionally released version 9.21.00.3755 of the Intel Smart Sound Technology (ISST) Driver through Windows Update, and inadvertently offered it to a range of devices running Window 10 version 1803 or 1809....

In its latest discovery, Microsoft Security Intelligence has described a new phishing campaign targeting the aerospace and travel industries. Both those markets are reeling from the impact of COVID-19 and threat actors are preying on vulnerabilities. According to Microsoft’s security team, attackers are using emails loaded with malicious content to expose users to remote access Trojans (RATs). This method deviates almost nothing from the classic phishing method. In other words, the attacker is using an email that looks like it comes from a legitimate sender to trick victims into interacting with a link or attachment that is malicious....

Intel microcode updates will reach all Windows 10 versions Microsoft currently supports. Versions out of support no longer receive security updates. That means users still on older Windows 10 versions will need to update to a supported build, such as version 2004. Microsoft says some users will receive the updates automatically through Windows Update. However, some Intel users will need to head to the Update Catalog and manually patch their machine....

Earlier this week, Microsoft confirmed multilingual publishing was getting a global release for SharePoint Online customers. Specifically, the tool is for Communication Sites. The name of the tool is slightly misleading because it suggests SharePoint will translate site content. That’s not the case and site builders will need to manually translate their content. What multilingual publishing does is provide a workflow template so users can more easily plan translations across multiple pages....

If this is the case, it would make less than a year that the revenue model has been in place. Interestingly, Microsoft seemed reluctant to roll out the pricing structure despite promising it. Developer Rob took to Twitter to say Microsoft has informed him the revenue split program is ending. He develops apps such as Easy Writer and says Microsoft has now updated its App Developer Agreement. It now states the share program has been removed....

Fast forward more than a year after Microsoft killed its Lumia hardware division, the 950 handsets are still causing problems. A company called Lemaire Illumination Technologies LLC is suing Microsoft over a patent infringement on the handsets. The company describes itself as a patent licensing firm. It is taking Microsoft to the U.S. District Court in Marshall Texas. Lemaire says the Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL infringed on LED related patents....

This addition is possible because Google now allows dual screen devices to work with Jetpack Windows Manager. It is worth noting developers can code the APIs for the Surface Duo and other dual/folding screen products like the Galaxy Z Flip. Specifically, dev’s can tap into two API elements, device state and display features. Looking at the display feature API, this will give developers tools to manage disruptions across the screen surface....

Hilariously, that frankly poor score is high for a Surface product, which usually gets 0 or 1 out of 10. In an accompanying video showing its findings, iFixit points out some information about fixing the Surface Go 2. Before proceeding with some of the highlights, a score of 3 out of 10 means the device will be a challenge if you want to repair it yourself. Of course, the best thing to do is send it to Microsoft if there is an issue....