Computer News

Win10 AnniUpdate Woes
I gotta tell ya, I’m not a fan of the Win10 AnniUpdate. Less so by the day.
For many (including myself) the entire Win10 AnniUpdate experience seems to be a PITA…
– “Rolling Out”. You’ll get in when you get it. Maybe. This is a Win10 thing. That never happened previously. When a Service Pack was released, everyone got it. Also, ever since the AnniUpdate when updates do appear they have often been slow to download. So slow it often appears that Windows Update is frozen.
– It reinstalled apps you had uninstalled.
– Group policy settings removed.
– Power Shell broken.
– It has major hardware issues that still are not fixed as of this writing. Folks reporting broken webcams, mice acting strangely, “broken” or unbootable computers, and “freezing”. On my main rig (7/10 dual-boot) I get sporadic mini-freezes resulting in Win10 being utterly unusable. And no, I’m not going to try fixing it. Microsoft broke it, they can fix it. I’m happily using Windows 7 and doing my internet stuff in an openSUSE VM.

Win10 has more Alpha and Beta testers than ever and Microsoft just can’t seem to get things right. What is the point of the Insider Program if it doesn’t help detect problems before release?

DarkAudacity
There is now a dark version of Audacity. Windows only unfortunately. Check out the DarkAudacity website to get all the info and differences.

Bleachbit
The program I use as a “CCleaner like” app in Linux is in the news. Apparently a certain Presidential candidate’s IT staff used it to wipe info.
The folks at Bleachbit are rather proud of the attention they are getting.
(NOTE – As the “About Comments” note states, “NO POLITICS”. I will delete any political comments. Take it somewhere else.)

Other Computer News
Anandtech – Intel Launches 3D NAND SSDs For Client And Enterprise
CNN – MIT scientists think they can make your WiFi 10x faster

Off Topic
One more reason not to eat vegetables
The Macaroni in ‘Yankee Doodle’ is Not What You Think

Ultimate Windows Tweaker 4.2
Download & Info (This version is for Win10 only)

Change log for v 4.2. 18.08.2016
1. “Apply Tweaks” button now applies tweaks only to the currently viewing section.
2. Support for Windows 10 Anniversary Update: Modified incompatible tweaks and added new tweaks.
3. When tweaks use sliders to change values, you can now directly change the values from box present in front of sliders.
4. New Tweaks:
– Use Increased Taskbar Transparency
– Change Inactive Title Bar Color
– Disable Quick Action Buttons In Action Center
– Change Microsoft Edge Download Location
– Disable Edge Tab Preview
– Adjust Edge Tab Preview Show/Hide Delay Time
– Disable App Access To Location
– Disable App Access To Calendar
– Disable App Access To Messages
– Disable App Access To Microphone
– Disable App Access To Camera
– Disable App Access To User Account Info
5. Several bug fixes and improvements

Firefox 48.0.1
Bunch of fixes.
Download 32-bit(en-US)
Download 64-bit(en-US)
Download other systems and languages
Release Notes

VeraCrypt 1.18
VeraCrypt is a free disk encryption software based on TrueCrypt 7.1a.
Download & Info

This one will be quick. Work has been rough.

Nvidia Geforce Game Ready 372.54 WHQL Drivers
AMD Crimson Edition 16.8.2 Hotfix Drivers

CCleaner 5.21

O&O ShutUp10 1.4.1383

O&O ShutUp10 Updated
“Compatibility with Windows 10 Anniversary…various bug fixes…”
Download & Info
“O&O ShutUp10 means you have full control over which comfort functions under Windows 10 you wish to use, and you decide when the passing on of your data goes too far…O&O ShutUp10 is entirely free and does not have to be installed – it can be simply run directly and immediately on your PC. And it will not install or download retrospectively unwanted or unnecessary software, like so many other programs do these days!”

Skylake Support Extended
“We listened to this feedback and today are sharing an update to our 6th Gen Intel Core (Skylake) support policy.* We have extended the support period from July 17, 2018 to the end of support dates for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1; and we will provide all applicable security updates.”
More info here: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/11675/windows-7-windows-8-1-skylake-systems-supported
Headlines are saying “Microsoft backs down”, or “Microsoft caves in” like it’s a bad thing.
They did the right thing for a change y’all. Cut’em some slack.

Linux News
4 alternatives to Ghost for disk cloning
18-Way GPU Linux Benchmarks, Including The Radeon RX 460 & RX 470 On Open-Source

Off Topic
AdBlock Plus blocks Facebook’s ad-blocker buster: It’s a block party! – I don’t understand why anyone uses F-book but this should be good news for ya.
In A New Bid To Push H-1B Program, Microsoft Manufactures Claim U.S. Students Can’t Hack It In Tech

Sensational?
Win10 AnniUpdate may not be sensational but some of the headlines about it are:
Windows 10 Anniversary Update is borking boxen everywhere ( I love these guys old-school reporter writing style. )
Windows 10 Anniversary Update causing big problems for many users
Windows 10 Anniversary Update woes continue
and by the same guy
The case against Windows 10 Anniversary Update grows
Have your say on the Win10 AnniUpdate by voting in the poll in the right sidebar and spouting off here.

dBpoweramp Updated
My long time favorite CD ripper / music converter has been updated. I’ve been using this program for at least a dozen years.

“I think you have to be 8 different kinds of stupid to put your house or car on a network.” – TweakHound
Hackers Make the First-Ever Ransomware for Smart Thermostats
75 Percent of Bluetooth Smart Locks Can Be Hacked

QuadRooter
Some reporters are trying to act like the sky is falling over the latest reported Android vulnerability. Android Central seems to be the only outlet to report this matter accurately: QuadRooter vulnerability: 5 things to know about this Android security scare

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I haven’t watched any of this seasons Mr. Robot and they are stacking up in the DVR. Time for some binge watching. Speaking of which, if you Netflix and you haven’t caught it yet, Stranger Things is awesome.

Win10 AnniUpdate Observations
I am 0-3 in having the AnniUpdate show up in Windows Update. This is across 3 different machines. One 1 machine I have done 3 installs.
1 – I have used the Media Creation Tool to download ISO, extracted, and install from that.
2 – I have used the Media Creation Tool and the “used install on this PC” option. (FAILED)
3 – I have used the link here to install the update too.
Every install was completely different. I later found out that I had to remove and reinstall my Creative Sound Blaster drivers on the 2 successful installs. None of the installs kept all my settings but option 1 kept more of them. The whole thing was just bizarre. Every install should have been exactly the same.

Google Chrome Updated
“The stable channel has been updated to 52.0.2743.116 for Windows, Mac, and Linux. This will roll out over the coming days/weeks.”
I’m really getting tired of “roll outs”.
Download

Classic Shell Hacked
See their forum post: The Classic Shell software got hacked [Aug 2 2016]
Thanks to reader Phil for letting me know!

Off Topic
iVerge: The Best Turntable You Can Buy

Back from vacation.

Google Chrome 52
Version 52.0.2743.82 is out.
Download

CCleaner Updated
“Improved…Optimized…bug fixes…”
Download v5.20

Star Trek Beyond
This gets released this week. Am I pumped for this? I’ve already got my tickets to the Thursday, 7:00 P.M. IMAX show. I didn’t know you could actually pick your seats now?! When did that happen?
Critic reviews seem to be good with Rotten Tomatoes having it at 94% as of this writing.

Got Windows? Got Updates!
Microsoft Security Bulletin Summary for July 2016

New Nvidia Drivers
Nvidia GeForce Game Ready 368.69 WHQL Drivers. Available for XP-Win10.
Download

Autoruns Updated
Autoruns has been updated several times in a short while. The webpage states 13.52 but this is wrong. The current downloadable version is 13.61.
There is now a 64-bit version but it is broken (see forums). Just use the 32-bit version.
“This utility, which has the most comprehensive knowledge of auto-starting locations of any startup monitor, shows you what programs are configured to run during system bootup or login, and when you start various built-in Windows applications like Internet Explorer, Explorer and media players. These programs and drivers include ones in your startup folder, Run, RunOnce, and other Registry keys. Autoruns reports Explorer shell extensions, toolbars, browser helper objects, Winlogon notifications, auto-start services, and much more. Autoruns goes way beyond other autostart utilities.”

Introducing Windows Information Protection
“Windows Information Protection (WIP) – formerly referred to as enterprise data protection (EDP) – will ship in the upcoming Windows 10 Anniversary Update.”