Tag: operating

Microsoft reduced Windows update sizes by 35 percent

Fans of Windows and snappy downloads will be relieved to learn that Microsoft’s Unified Update Platform, which has been rolling out to Windows Insiders since November, will be available to all retail users starting with the release of the Creators Update coming later this spring. In addition to those very handy snooze and schedule features , the UUP significantly shrinks the size of future updates by saving users the trouble of downloading an entire build of their operating system. That feature is called differential download packages , which is a technical term for “only downloads what you need.” A differential download looks at the files already on your system and uses them to rebuild the new OS version from there. It sounds simple, but as Microsoft’s Laura Butler points out , it’s no easy task given the decades of legacy code and patches. For a major release like the Creators Update, you’ll still need to download a full build, but the next feature update after that should be significantly smaller — about 35 percent smaller on average, according to Microsoft’s Director of Program Management Bill Karagounis. For Windows Insiders those downloads should be even smaller, but it’s a bit of a trade-off since those systems get hit with more frequent updates. Source: Windows Blog

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Microsoft reduced Windows update sizes by 35 percent

Raspberry Pi releases an OS to breathe new life into old PCs

The Raspberry Pi Foundation has released an experimental version of its Linux-based Pixel OS for Windows and Mac PCs. The OS, originally designed to run only on the Raspberry Pi hobby board, comes with the Chromium web browser and a suite of productivity and coding tools. “We asked ourselves one simple question: If we like Pixel so much, why ask people to buy Raspberry Pi hardware in order to run it?” founder Eben Upton wrote in a blog post . Built on top of Debian, the OS is light enough to run most old machines, provided you have at least 512MB of RAM. “Because we’re using the venerable i386 architecture variant it should run even on vintage machines like my ThinkPad X40 (above), ” Upton said. It’s easy to try out, but Upton urges you back up machines that may have valuable data. After downloading the image, you burn it either to a DVD or USB stick, then enable booting of those devices. You can normally do that by tweaking your PC’s BIOS or by holding the “C” key down when you boot up a Mac. From there, it’ll run the OS with no need to install anything. If you booted on a USB stick, you’ll get the option to run “with persistence, ” meaning any changes or files will stick for the next session. If you’d rather just play around and start fresh next time, you can run without persistence or reset it. As mentioned, you get a full suite of apps and a browser, but unlike with the Pi version, there’s no Minecraft or Wolfram Mathematica because of licensing issues. There are plenty of lightweight Linux distros for older PCs (including Debian itself), or you could use Neverware , which turns your old laptop into a Chromebook. However, the Pi Foundation supplies a lot of useful Linux apps with Pixel, and aims to make it as easy to use as possible. By porting it to desktop machines, Upton also feels “we can more easily see where [the operating system’s] weak points are and work to fix them [on the Pi].” The group thinks it could be a perfect for schools (where the Raspberry Pi already has a big foothold ) to help students learn programming and various apps. The idea is that they can learn at school, then using the persistent boot option, continue working at home with exactly the same setup. As mentioned, the Pixel OS is still in the experimental stages, and doesn’t run on all machines. On his own modern Mac, Upton said, “the machine fails to identify the image as bootable.” They’ll be releasing more updates going forward, but if you’re interested in giving it a try, you can hit announce post to find it. Source: Raspberry Pi

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Raspberry Pi releases an OS to breathe new life into old PCs

Microsoft has two big Windows 10 updates slated for 2017

While announcing the gradual rollout of its Anniversary update for Windows 10, Microsoft confirmed that there would be two feature updates coming in 2017. This means moving to a twice-a-year schedule the company had previously set up for its ” Threshold ” updates for Windows 8, which used the codename for that operating system. According to Windows Central , the first update for 10, called “Redstone 2” after this operating system’s nickname, will come in early 2017, followed by “Redstone 3” four to six months later in late summer or early fall. The latest internal builds are around the 14900 range, the site said, meaning testers should soon receive bits of Redstone 2 to try out and give feedback. Source: Windows Central

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Microsoft has two big Windows 10 updates slated for 2017

Windows 10 one year later: The Anniversary Update

Last year’s  Windows 10 release  was unlike any Windows release I’ve ever used before, and I’ve used most of them. Almost every Windows release to-date had a sort of unfinished vibe that reflects the product’s history. Parts of the operating system developed long ago have almost fossilized, being preserved verbatim in each subsequent release. It gives the entire operating system an overall incomplete feel. Take Control Panel as an example. The oldest parts of Control Panel use dialogs for each group of settings, as this mouse window exemplifies. Those tabs are extensible by third parties. That SetPoint Settings tab, for example, launches Logitech’s mouse app for configuring the various buttons on my Performance MX mouse. New systems to this very day continue to use this extensibility; most Windows laptops will have a tab to configure their touchpad. Read 92 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Windows 10 one year later: The Anniversary Update

What Really Happens When You Delete Something from Your PC

If you want to sell or get rid of your computer, it’s important to make sure there isn’t any leftover data that someone could get to. When it comes to NTFS-formatted hard drives, simply deleting your files isn’t enough—even if you empty your recycle bin—but there are still a few things you can do. Read more…

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What Really Happens When You Delete Something from Your PC

Watch Every Single Version of Windows Ever in One Exhaustive Video

A very patient soul spent hours and hours of his life installing each version of Windows from 1.0 to 8.0 Pro, then sped up the footage. The result? The entire history of the operating system condensed into just over an hour . Bonus points: Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories as the soundtrack. Read more…        

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Watch Every Single Version of Windows Ever in One Exhaustive Video

Watch Every Single Version of Windows Ever in One Exhaustive Video

A very patient soul spent hours and hours of his life installing each version of Windows from 1.0 to 8.0 Pro, then sped up the footage. The result? The entire history of the operating system condensed into just over an hour . Bonus points: Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories as the soundtrack. Read more…        

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Watch Every Single Version of Windows Ever in One Exhaustive Video