Thursday, March 30, 2017

Windows Vista Reaching End of Live (EoL)




Windows Vista, the operating system so many people learned to dislike. 

Personally, I enjoyed using Windows Vista during its prime but quickly learned to appreciate the many improvements in Windows 7 and, in particular, Windows 10.

The official RTM (Release to Manufacture) of Windows Vista was November 8, 2006.  Now, over ten years later, on Tuesday, April 11, 2017, the operating system is reaching EoL (End of Life).

Although there may be updates included for Windows Vista with the April 11 security updates, reaching EoL means that after that date the operating system will receive no additional
  • Security updates,
  • Non-security hot-fixes,
  • Free or paid assisted support options, or
  • Online technical content updates from Microsoft.
    Although computers running the Windows Vista will continue to work, without future security updates, there may well be an increase in risk of viruses and other security threats.  In addition, signature updates for Microsoft Security Essentials are only expected to be available for a limited time.



    References:
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    Tuesday, March 28, 2017

    Coming Soon: Windows 10 Creators Update (Information and Suggestions)

    Windows 10 Creators Update


    The date that has been rumored for the global release of the Windows 10 Creators Update is April 11, 2017, just two weeks away.  Although no official announcement has been made or is expected from Microsoft, with the news today that ISO files are available for Build 15063 for both PCs and phones in the Fast Ring, PCs in the Slow Ring and those on the Xbox Insider Program, it appears the rumored date may indeed be correct.

    Update:   Windows 10 Creators Update coming April 11, Surface expands to more markets

    As with the Anniversary Update last year, it is expected that the initial roll-out of the Creators Update will be slow, gradually picking up over several months.  As Gregg Keizer wrote in Microsoft paces delivery of Windows 10 upgrades,
    "According to advertising network AdDuplex, 60 days after the Aug. 2, 2016, introduction of Windows 10 1607 -- aka Anniversary Update -- just 35% of measured Windows 10 PCs were running the upgrade. By the 90-day mark, however, that number had soared to 80%, showing that Microsoft, after a purposefully slow start, had stomped on the update accelerator."
    This was confirmed by John Cable, Microsoft Director of Program Management within the Windows Servicing and Delivery (WSD) team in Providing customers with more choice and control in the Creators Update.

    Important

    💥 Having installed each of the Insider Builds, I really like the improvements in that have been made along the way.  Although I have not had any failures installing the numerous Insider Builds on my 2008 device, hardware and drivers vary from device to device.  Thus, before proceeding with the installation of the Creators Update, be sure that, minimally, all important documents, irreplaceable pictures and other files are backed up prior to installing the new version.  Ideally, create a system image before installing the update.

    💥 In the event you have Windows 10 Pro and need to delay the update, it can be deferred for up to four months.  From Settings, navigate to Update & Security.  In Windows Update, select the link for "Advanced options" and check the box for "Defer feature updates".

    💥 The installation of the Creators Update is essentially replacing the entire operating system.  As a result, all previously created System Restore points are gone since they no longer apply.  It is important after the update has completed to enable System Restore.  To do this
    1. Navigate to Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\System
    2. Select "System protection"
    3. Click your system disk and note that it is shown as "off" 
    4. Click "Configure" and select "Turn on System Protection" 
    5. Ok the change and close the windows. 

    Windows 10
    Following is a small collection of articles by various journalists providing different perspectives of what to expect in the Creators Update.  Additional articles of interest are included below in the "References".

    References:


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    Remember - "A day without laughter is a day wasted."
    May the wind sing to you and the sun rise in your heart...

    Mozilla Firefox Version 52.0.2 Released


    FirefoxMozilla sent Firefox Version 52.0.2 to the release channel. The update includes the fixes listed below.

    Fixes:

    • Use Nirmala UI as fallback font for additional Indic languages
    • Fix loading tab icons on session restore
    • Fix a crash on startup on Linux
    • Fix new installs erroneously not prompting to change the default browser setting

    Update

    To get the update now, select "Help" from the Firefox menu, then pick "About Firefox."  Mac users need to select "About Firefox" from the Firefox menu. If you do not use the English language version, Fully Localized Versions are available for download.

      References




      Remember - "A day without laughter is a day wasted."
      May the wind sing to you and the sun rise in your heart...