Tech News Weekly: Issue 23
News
I finished the second edition of by book in time. Will take about another week before I can publish it, as layout and design work is going on now. I plan to release the third edition closer to this year’s feature update, which will probably be released in October 2023.
Things will go back to normal from next week onward.
Operating Systems
Microsoft plans to introduce a handful of cosmetic features to its Windows 11 operating system. One of the is Depth Effects, which uses parallax technology to add depth to the static wallpapers on the system.
Another, discovered by Neowin writer Taras Buria, aims to improve weather icons on Windows 11’s taskbar to be theme-aware.
Windows 11 is getting an improved volume mixer, which is accessible directly from the System Tray area, and does not require users to be redirected to the Settings app anymore to change the volume of individual app on their Windows 11 devices.
Last but not least, Microsoft launched AI-powered Bing search on Windows 11.
For Windows 11 Insiders, Microsoft announced the launch of a new channel. The Canary Channel takes away some of the features of the Dev channel. Basically, what Microsoft is doing is moving development that is going to be released in the far-future to the Canary Channel, and keeping new features and improvements that will be released sooner in the Dev channel.
Canary sounds like it could have lots of issues, as Microsoft revealed that it won’t receive the same level of attention regarding bugs and checks than the other channel builds.
Mobile
Google published the Android security issues that it fixed in the March 2023 update. The update should become available soon to many devices, but release depends, as usual, on the manufacturer.
F-Droid, the open source Android repository launched version 1.16 of its client, and with it under the hood changes that bring faster and smaller updates with them.
Meta announced that it is testing a feature on Facebook that allows direct access to Messenger’s inbox. The company split the capabilities from Facebook years ago, and it has been a nuisance ever since. Also, the network reached 2 billion active users recently, according to the company.
Browser
Brave plans to introduce a change to how it handles SSO (Single Sign-Ons) by Google. Instead of handling exceptions globally, Brave 1.51 will introduce a site permission, which gives users more control over the feature.
Microsoft launched Super Video Resolution in the Edge browser this week. The feature has several requirements, but it aims to improve the quality of low resolution videos to make them more enjoyable to watch.
Privacy and Security
Quad9 has been taken to court by Sony Music. For those who do not know, Quad9 is a non-profit DNS resolver. You can read Quad9’s FAQ on the situation here.
Norway is the latest country that declared Google Analytics in violation with the GDPR.
Free Dropbox Passwords users do not have the 50 passwords restriction anymore. They may use the service now to save as many passwords as they require. The three-devices limit is still in place though.
Google plans to drop support for overlay ad banners on the site from April 6 onward, as the company has found out that it was viewed as disruptive by YouTube users. One has to wonder why it took Google so long to realize that.
Software Updates
Microsoft plans to hold a live streaming event on March 16. It is called The Future of Work with AI, and it is believed to focus on integration of AI capabilities into the company’s Office programs.
Microsoft PowerToys got two new features this week. The first brings a “place the mouse cursor here” feature, which works on multi-monitor systems, the second a global paste as text shortcut and feature.
Sony released a system update for the PlayStation 5 that is bringing Discord Voice Chat, VRR support for 1440p and “additional UX and social features”.
Start11 1.41 update is here in time for feature update that Microsoft released as a preview in February and for all stable systems in March 2023.
Gaming
Valve is apparently working on a new Counter-Strike game. Counter-Strike 2 will use Valve’s Source 2 engine. A leaker discovered that the latest NVIDIA drives had a new game profile called Counter-strike 2.
Speaking of new games. Paradox Interactive, maker of games like Stellaris, Europa Universalis, Cities Skyline and Crusader Kings, announced a bunch of new games and DLCs on Monday. Notable mentions are Cities Skyline 2, the company’s entry into the Life simulation genre, and a turn-based strategy game called The Lamplighters League.
Other
Brave Search has a new Summarizer feature, which is an AI powered feature that displays an answer to the user’s query on certain queries.
Microsoft increased Bing Chat’s daily limit to 120 turns (from 100).
Article(s)
HP at it again, blocking non-HP cartridges in printers
Self-centered weatherman Bill Murray finds himself in a time loop in Groundhog Day. Having to endure the festivities surrounding that day over and over again, is a feeling that many HP printer customers know too well.
Just today, news broke that HP has once again updated its drivers to block the use of non-HP ink cartridges. The printers display Non-HP Chip Detected and the following message:
The indicated cartridges have been blocked by the printer firmware because they contain a non-HP chip. This printer is intended to work only with new or reused cartridges that have a new or reused HP chip.
The printer does not print and customers are left with just a few options at the time: try to roll back the update, if possible at all, buy the more expensive HP printer ink, or wait and hope that updated third-party cartridges become available that overcome the restriction.
The majority of ink printer manufacturers have tried or use similar limitations. Most claim that this is done for quality reasons. It should be clear that it is also about money, as companies like HP make most of the money from printer ink sales and not from the sales of their printers.
Computer users and administrators who run into these annoying limitations regularly, may consider buying a new printer.
Two of the main options that come to mind include switching to a laser printer or Epson Eco-Tank printers.
If you want suggestions, I would pick a Brother laser printer, if that is an option. The company makes excellent printers and non-Brother toners are cheap and readily available on sites like eBay, Amazon and many other shopping sites.
Brother printers work. I switched to Brother laser printers many years ago and never had any issues with them. The software looks old fashioned, but it is not even needed, as the printers should work fine on most PCs without extra driver installation.
Epson’s Eco-Tank series may also be worth a closer look. It’s main advantage is that the ink printers do not use cartridges, and third-party sites such as Inkxpro offer cheap refills for the tanks. Since they use ink, they may dry up if they are not used regularly, which is the biggest disadvantage. Also, Eco-Tank printers are more expensive than regular ink-based printers.
Links
Lessons learned from 15 years of SumatraPDF, an open source Windows app
Malvertising on Google Ads: It's Hiding in Plain Site