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Intel Graphics Driver for Windows 10
Version: 25.20.100.6471  Date: 12/20/2018
Performance improvements, quality improvements, bugfixes.
Download | Release Notes

Macrium Reflect v7.2.3957
Download | Release Notes

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

Apple confirms some iPad Pros ship slightly bent, but says it’s normal
according to the company, this is a side effect of the device’s manufacturing process and shouldn’t worsen over time or negatively affect the flagship iPad’s performance in any practical way. Apple does not consider it to be a defect.
LOL. Apple fanboys will just accept this lame ass statement.

Friday’s winter solstice 2018 features a full moon and meteor shower
This astronomical event officially arrives Friday at 5:23 p.m. EST. At this time of year, each day is about 24 hours, 30 seconds long. It’s because Earth is nearing its closest point to the sun in its elliptical orbit.
Why winter solstice 2018 is unique: December full moon, Ursid meteor shower, Mercury/Jupiter conjunction.

Millennials Strike Again: This Time We Are Killing Cash And ‘Merry Christmas’
A new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll found that adults under 30 — so, mostly millennials — are the only age group among holiday shoppers with a clear preference for paying with plastic rather than cash. They’re also the only group to strongly prefer the non-Christmas-specific greeting “Happy Holidays.”

Stuff I Don’t Understand…
Dudes who wear hats or hoodies in the gym.
BTW. Show some class and take your hat off when indoors.
Manners & Civility – Should You Remove Your Hat When Indoors?

Thursday Morning Random Stuff…

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Those patches from yesterday are under active exploit. If you are one of the three people that actually use Internet Explorer then get patched.
The article about Facebook I linked to yesterday made its way to the major news outlets. CNN & Fox & NPR.
Seriously, #DeleteFacebook : How to Delete Facebook

Linux Mint 19.1 Is Out
Mint has become my distro of choice. I conduct the majority of my web activities in a Mint virtual machine.
19.1 brings many changes and is an LTS release supported until 2023.
I’m not real thrilled with the default kernel of 4.15. The current LTS is 4.19 and it has been out since October. 19.1 is said to have support for installing “mainline kernels“. I’ve not seen a decent guide on this.
Download Linux Mint 19.1 Tessa
New features in Linux Mint 19.1 Cinnamon

AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin 2019 Edition 18.12.3 Drivers
Bugfixes
Release Notes
Windows 10 64-bit
Windows 7 64-bit

Other Software Releases
EMDB 3.29
FinalCrypt 2.8.0
HWiNFO 6 (I use portable.) (Use the green button to download)
VirtualBox 6

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

Least-Educated State: California
California ranks No. 1 among the 50 states for the percentage of its residents 25 and older who have never completed ninth grade and 50th for the percentage who have graduated from high school, according to new data from the Census Bureau.
“No surprise”, says the residents of the other 49 states.

The Runaways’ Jackie Fox Locks Up Her First Week on Jeopardy!
A former bassist with The Runaways — the late-1970s all-female, teenage proto-punk/hard-rock band that inspired countless women to take up music — Fox has stirred interest in the rock world and beyond with her success on the syndicated game show. After a Wednesday-morning taping at Jeopardy!’s studio in Culver City, she had earned enough money to win again, for her fourth day as champion.
She is one smart lady: Fuchs earned her B.A. summa cum laude from UCLA in Linguistics and Italian, with a specialization in computing, and her J.D. from Harvard, where Barack Obama was one of her classmates. Fox speaks Italian and French, as well as conversational Greek and Spanish.
The Runaways – Cherry Bomb – Official music video

Wednesday Morning Random Stuff…

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It is Wednesday right?

Intel PROSet/Wireless Software and Drivers for Windows 10
Version: 20.100.0 Date: 12/18/2018

Microsoft Blog – Windows Sandbox
Most of the Windows sites are talking about this. In a future Win10 build, Microsoft is going to introduce a TEMPORARY sandbox feature. It isn’t intended to be a replacement for Virtual Machines. Something most writers on this subject seem to be missing.
“an isolated, temporary, desktop environment where you can run untrusted software without the fear of lasting impact to your PC. Any software installed in Windows Sandbox stays only in the sandbox and cannot affect your host. Once Windows Sandbox is closed, all the software with all its files and state are permanently deleted.”
Sounds like a neat feature. x64, Win10 Pro and Enterprise only.

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

This free online tool uses AI to quickly remove the background from images

Google’s Secret China Project “Effectively Ended” After Fight
Google has been forced to shut down a data analysis system it was using to develop a censored search engine for China after members of the company’s privacy team raised internal complaints that it had been kept secret from them, The Intercept has learned.
C’mon man. Does anyone seriously believe that?

As Facebook Raised a Privacy Wall, It Carved an Opening for Tech Giants
Facebook insisted that it had instituted stricter privacy protections long ago. Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive, assured lawmakers in April that people “have complete control” over everything they share on Facebook.
But the documents, as well as interviews with about 50 former employees of Facebook and its corporate partners, reveal that Facebook allowed certain companies access to data despite those protections.
#DeleteFacebook

New thing I’m gonna do:

Stuff I Don’t Understand…
Having another mans name on your underwear.

Tuesday Morning Random Stuff…

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Rollout Status as of December 17, 2018:
Windows 10, version 1809, is now fully available for advanced users who manually select “Check for updates” via Windows Update.

O&O ShutUp10 v1.6.1400
Download | Changelog

Wise Disk Cleaner v10.1.4.760
Download (I use portable) | Release Announcement

Macrium Reflect v7.2.3954
Download | Release Notes

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

Google CEO Sundar Pichai: Fears about artificial intelligence are ‘very legitimate,’ he says in Post interview
“but the tech industry should be trusted to responsibly regulate its use.”
The fox in charge of the hen house analogy was never more apt than here.

Apple Warns iPhones Have A Serious Problem
What Apple is changing is how users will be able to resize pictures and manage applications on their iPhones. How will these functions be altered? Apple hasn’t said, other than to confirm the update and describe this functionality as “minor” when it is clearly anything but.
So what is going on? In short: Apple is trying to win favour with judges and iPhone users are the test subjects for this.
Those “judges” are in China.

Google isn’t the company that we should have handed the Web over to
Microsoft adopting Chromium puts the Web in a perilous place.
Agreed but it may be too late.

Former Edge intern says Google sabotaged Microsoft’s browser
LOL at a Microsoftie whining about web standards.

Social media is turning a generation of children into liars, leading headmistress warns
teenagers tend to “curate” a certain image of themselves on their social media accounts, such as the photograph sharing platforms, Instagram and Snapchat.
They become used to covering up any perceived imperfections, and there is a danger is when this attitude trespasses into other aspects of their life too.
“If you get used to showing one image of yourself on social media, you may begin to believe that is completely aligned to reality,”
Just how is this different than adult social media users? #DeleteFacebook

Polar vortex could unleash winter wallop by January
“Confidence is growing in a significant #PolarVortex disruption in the coming weeks. This could be the single most important determinant of the weather this #winter across the Northern Hemisphere.”
I’m gonna need thicker socks.

Best Christmas Yard Display Ever (Image credit Instagram via Brobible)

Friday Random Stuff…

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Not much going on out there. I reckon it’s the holidays.

Watch Out: Clicking “Check for Updates” Still Installs Unstable Updates on Windows 10
Microsoft hasn’t learned its lesson. If you click the “Check for Updates” button in the Settings app, Microsoft still considers you a “seeker” and will give you “preview” updates that haven’t gone through the normal testing process.
I’m curious, do all the Microsoft execs have to go to clown school before they work there? Do they all have a Masters in Arrogance and Dismissiveness? Is the Microsoft campus in Redmond really just a giant echo chamber? The level of stupidity, incompetence, and condescension under the current leadership is a marvel to behold.

Weekend viewing:
Pabst Blue Ribbon Presents: The Greatest Beer Run Ever
At a time when the Vietnam War was at its height, one man, John “Chickie” Donohue, snuck back into the war zone to find his 3 closest friends and buy them a beer.

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Kershaw Leek Pocket Knife, 3″ blade, Made in U.S.A. TODAY ONLY
Was: $44.97
Deal of the Day: $23.99
You Save: $20.98 (47%)
Arrives before Christmas.

Thursday Afternoon News

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*Important – Win10 Privacy Issue article updated.

Intel Rapid Storage Technology (Intel RST) v16.8.0.1000
Win10 only – Download & Info

Intel Ethernet Drivers v23.5
Win 7 | Win 8.1 | Win10 | Complete Driver Pack

CCleaner v5.51
Download (I use portable.) | Release Announcement
See also: Blocking A Programs Internet Access Via The Windows Firewall
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
 
Amazon’s Disturbing Plan to Add Face Surveillance to Your Front Door
Recently, a patent application from Amazon became public that would pair face surveillance — like Rekognition, the product that the company is aggressively marketing to police and Immigration and Customs Enforcement — with Ring, a doorbell camera company that Amazon bought earlier this year.
While the details are sketchy, the application describes a system that the police can use to match the faces of people walking by a doorbell camera with a photo database of persons they deem “suspicious.” Likewise, homeowners can also add photos of “suspicious” people into the system and then the doorbell’s facial recognition program will scan anyone passing their home. In either case, if a match occurs, the person’s face can be automatically sent to law enforcement, and the police could arrive in minutes…Amazon is dreaming of a dangerous future, with its technology at the center of a massive decentralized surveillance network, running real-time facial recognition on members of the public using cameras installed in people’s doorbells.
I was actually considering buying a Ring doorbell. Should’ve known they would f*** it up.

Patch Tuesday Morning

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Backup if you have the time.

Firefox 64
Download (all) | Download 32-bit EN-US | Download 64-bit EN-US | Release Notes

Sysinternals Freeware Updates
Autoruns v13.93, Handle v4.21, Process Explorer v16.22, SDelete v2.02, Sigcheck v2.71, Sysmon v8.02 and VMMap v3.25

Adobe Reader Updated
Download (en-US) | Download (all) | Security Bulletin

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

Digital Divide Is Wider Than We Think, Study Says
A new study by Microsoft researchers casts a light on the actual use of high-speed internet across the country, and the picture it presents is very different from the F.C.C. numbers. Their analysis, presented at a Microsoft event on Tuesday in Washington, D.C., suggests that the speedy access is much more limited than the F.C.C. data shows.
Over all, Microsoft concluded that 162.8 million people do not use the internet at broadband speeds, while the F.C.C. says broadband is not available to 24.7 million Americans…Fast internet service is crucial to the modern economy, and closing the digital divide is seen as a step toward shrinking the persistent gaps in economic opportunity, educational achievement and health outcomes in America.
It is a problem in the county I live in and across this country. There are teachers in my county that have to drive to their school parking lots to use broadband for school related activities during their off hours.

Facial recognition: It’s time for action
We believe it’s important for governments in 2019 to start adopting laws to regulate this technology…We also believe that while it’s better to address these issues broadly, we should not wait for governments to act. We and other tech companies need to start creating safeguards to address facial recognition technology.
A good blog post with sound ideas. IMHO it will be largely ignored.

Facebook’s fall: From the friendliest face of tech to perceived enemy of democracy
Today, Zuckerberg is seen by many as a wincing megalomaniacal multibillionaire, and the personal data-mining company he created is viewed by some as an existential threat to democracy itself.
#DeleteFacebook

NIH Study Probes Impact of Heavy Screen Time on Young Brains
Brain scans of adolescents who are heavy users of smartphones, tablets and video games look different from those of less active screen users, preliminary results from an ongoing study funded by the National Institutes of Health show, according to a report on Sunday by “60 Minutes.”
I dislike seeing kids in public on phones and tablets. These devices have become babysitters, a way to shut kids up. Sad.

Thursday Morning Random Stuff…

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Windows 10 Updates
1809 – December 5, 2018—KB4469342 (OS Build 17763.168)
1803 – November 27, 2018—KB4467682 (OS Build 17134.441
1709 – November 27, 2018—KB4467681 (OS Build 16299.820)

Graphics Drivers
AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition Optional 18.12.1.1 (05DEC2018)
Nvidia GeForce Game Ready Driver 417.22 WHQL (03DEC2018)

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

VCU knocks off Texas, Shaka Smart 54-53 in Austin
Facing former VCU coach Shaka Smart and Texas on Wednesday night at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas, the Rams kept the game close and took some slight leads.
Then, with 4:38 to play, a 3-pointer by Sean Mobley gave the Rams a 3-point advantage. They never relinquished the lead.
Hook’em indeed!

Is NOTHING private any more? Shocking extent of how big firms harvest your data
Examples include:
– Pregnant women’s due dates being farmed out by Asda to mystery third-party companies for marketing;
– Children’s voices recorded on the YouTube Kids app being used by Google to promote other apps;
– Passport copies given to PayPal for account verification purposes being shared with Microsoft for facial recognition products;
– Health details, ethnic origin and political views of Facebook users being used by the social network for targeted advertising;
– Viewers of BT television being profiled for advertisers according toprofiles of their television watching and telephone call records.
Actually not shocking but definitely reinforcing.

Paul Thurrott – Tip: Download Windows 7 and 8.1 ISOs
“I’m not sure when this happened, but Microsoft now has ISO downloads available for Windows 7 and 8.1, and not just Windows 10.”
It happened over 3 years ago.

Saturday Morning News

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Macrium Reflect 7.2.3906
Download | Release Notes

Mp3tag v2.91
Download | Release Notes

BlackArch Linux 2018.12.01
BlackArch Linux is an Arch Linux-based penetration testing distribution for penetration testers and security researchers. The repository contains 2081 tools. You can install tools individually or in groups. BlackArch Linux is compatible with existing Arch installs.
Download
This is a Kali-like distro. Has anyone used it?

About Those Amazon Links
I want to thank you guys that use the Amazon links I post manually. I try to keep them relevant and they are often something I own (or want to). I get a tiny commission on those and that goes to help keep this site going. The costs for running this site includes hosting and software among other things.
As to the other ads…They help too but I hope you regulars are smart enough not to see them. I block all 3rd party ads on all sites, including my own.
uBlock Origin – Chrome | Privacy Badger – Chrome
uBlock Origin – Firefox | Privacy Badger – Firefox

Deal expired
Speaking of which…
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Save on Star Trek collections on DVD and Blu-ray

Friday Morning Dump

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AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition Optional 18.12.1
“Support for Just Cause 4”
Download | Release Notes

GeForce Hotfix Driver Version 417.21
This is GeForce Hot Fix driver version 417.21 that addresses the following:
– Memory Data Rate reporting incorrect value in NVIDIA Control Panel
– Microsoft Edge does not respond after playing back video
– Can’t apply color format after updating to driver 417.01
Click the appropriate link to download the driver:
NVIDIA GeForce Hotfix Driver 417.21 for Windows 10 x64 – DCH
NVIDIA GeForce Hotfix Driver 417.21 for Windows 10 x64 – Standard

CCleaner 5.50
Download (I use portable) | Release Announcement
This version has “control and transparency over when updates are performed.”
LOL. I control that with the Windows Firewall, article to follow.

Google Shut Out Privacy and Security Teams From Secret China Project
“people’s search records would be easily accessible to China’s authoritarian government, which has broad surveillance powers that it routinely deploys to target activists, journalists, and political opponents…

Beaumont and other executives then shut out members of the company’s security and privacy team from key meetings about the search engine, the four people said, and tried to sideline a privacy review of the plan that sought to address potential human rights abuses…

“Their biggest fear was that internal opposition would slow our operations.”…

Google employees who had worked on Dragonfly watched the furor unfold and were not surprised by the backlash. Many of the concerns raised by the human rights groups, they noted, had already been voiced inside the company prior to the public exposure of the plans, though they had been brushed aside by management…

Zunger and his colleagues produced a privacy report that highlighted problematic scenarios that could arise once the censored search engine launched in China. The report, which contained more than a dozen pages, concluded that Google would be expected to function in China as part of the ruling Communist Party’s authoritarian system of policing and surveillance…

“What Pichai said [about Dragonfly being an experiment] was ultimately horse shit,” said one Google source with knowledge of the project. “This was run with 100 percent intention of launch from day one. He was just trying to walk back a delicate political situation.”

Deal expired
Star Trek: Stardate Collection Blu-ray
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