Newsletter Archives

• Browsers with the best security and privacy in 2021

  Posted on November 29, 2021 at 02:45 CST by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  ISSUE 18.46 • 2021-11-29

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  Most of us use a Web browser on our personal computers or smartphones every day, but few of us truly know what those browsers are really doing for us — or to us.

  Too many browsers “leak” information about us and our everyday activities to backend servers, which are run by ad-tracking firms, search-engine giants, or the browser makers themselves.

  It’s extremely difficult to guess which browser is the “most secure” for surfing the Web. There are, to be sure, many respectable review sites that rank browsers. But most of the reviews weigh a browser’s security against unrelated features — ease of use, speed of throughput, memory usage, etc. — producing only a composite score.

  In this article, I focus solely on how well browsers deliver security against malware and protect the privacy of your personal identity.

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.46.0 (2021-11-29).
  This story also appears in the AskWoody Free Newsletter 18.46.F (2021-11-29).

  AskWoody FREE Newsletter, AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Public Defender AskWoody Plus Newsletter, browsers, Public Defender

• Windows 11: Not quite ready for prime time

  Posted on November 22, 2021 at 02:44 CST by Fred Langa • Comment in the Forums

  LANGALIST

  

  By Fred Langa

  These early days of Win11 are looking a bit rough. Driver issues remain the leading cause of serious upgrade problems, and some solutions are out of end-users’ hands until Microsoft and various OEMs and software publishers catch up.

  To make matters worse, Win11’s Device Encryption may stumble when upgrading a Win10 BitLocker drive, and the Win11 interface repeats some of the same mistakes Microsoft made in Windows 8!

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.45.0 (2021-11-22).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, LangaList AskWoody Plus Newsletter, LangaList, Windows, Windows 11, Windows upgrades

• Take a selfie – NOW!

  Posted on November 22, 2021 at 02:43 CST by Max Stul Oppenheimer • Comment in the Forums

  LEGAL BRIEF

  

  By Max Stul Oppenheimer, Esq.

  Deepfakes are a growing problem. Could taking a selfie be your best defense?

  In the last column, we saw why law must lag technology. It must, because legislators have no better crystal ball than the rest of us — and judges, faced with the task of extrapolating existing statutes to situations that were not foreseen, reach different conclusions as to how to draw the curve. Therefore, a period of uncertainty — until a legislature reacts or a judicial consensus is reached or imposed by the Supreme Court — is inevitable.

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.45.0 (2021-11-22).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Legal AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Copyright, Deepfakes, Legal Brief

• Understanding Office 2021 and Office LTSC

  Posted on November 22, 2021 at 02:42 CST by Peter Deegan • Comment in the Forums

  MICROSOFT 365

  

  By Peter Deegan

  What are Office 2021 and Office LTSC, and should you care?

  Office 2021 and Office LTSC are the latest nonsubscription versions of Microsoft Office. Microsoft calls each a “perpetual license,” but historically we might have called them the “boxed” editions of Office. These two Office versions are very similar and deliberately limited in new features, licensing, and even support.

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.45.0 (2021-11-22).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Microsoft 365 AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Microsoft 365, Office, Office 2021, Office LTSC

• Win11 Home never completely lets go

  Posted on November 15, 2021 at 02:45 CST by Fred Langa • Comment in the Forums

  ISSUE 18.44 • 2021-11-15

  LANGALIST

  

  By Fred Langa

  Even after upgrading to Pro, PCs that start with Windows Home can retain several critical Home limitations that royally foul up future from-scratch reinstalls and upgrades.

  Win11 (both Home and Pro) also continues to show other serious rough spots and omissions — with drivers, especially — that can turn a simple upgrade into a multi-day nightmare.

  Read on before you attempt an upgrade, especially if you’re using a Home edition!

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.44.0 (2021-11-15).
  This story also appears in the AskWoody Free Newsletter 18.44.F (2021-11-15).

  AskWoody FREE Newsletter, AskWoody Plus Newsletter, LangaList AskWoody Plus Newsletter, LangaList, Windows, Windows 11

• Bulging batteries in Surface laptops are a growing issue

  Posted on November 15, 2021 at 02:44 CST by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  More and more users of Microsoft Surface 2-in-1 laptop computers are reporting a bent and battered screen that’s been curved by a dangerously bulging battery that protrudes from its frame.

  This was first covered in an AskWoody post on December 5, 2019. At that time, the post linked to 10 forum threads at Microsoft Answers, Reddit, and elsewhere. The forums contained dozens of stories describing similar-sounding problems.

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.44.0 (2021-11-15).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Public Defender AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Batteries, bulging battery, Microsoft, Public Defender, Surface

• Freeware Spotlight – CrystalDiskInfo

  Posted on November 15, 2021 at 02:43 CST by Deanna McElveen • Comment in the Forums

  BEST UTILITIES

  

  By Deanna McElveen

  YOUR HARD DRIVE IS GOING TO DIE!

  German-born theologian Georg Hermes once said, “Death is like an arrow that is already in flight, and your life lasts only until it reaches you.” This also applies to the hard drives in our computers. But sometimes we get some subtle hints that the end is near … well, at least for our hard drives.

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.44.0 (2021-11-15).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Best Utilities, Freeware Spotlight AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Deanna's Freeware Spotlight, HDD, SMART, SSD

• November cleans up October’s mess

  Posted on November 15, 2021 at 02:42 CST by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  PATCH WATCH

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Could we still see printing issues?

  Even though the 55 vulnerabilities fixed in November do not include any new Print Spooler updates, we are still to some extent in clean-up mode. Microsoft is at least acknowledging that issues remain that it is trying to fix.

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.44.0 (2021-11-15).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Patch Watch AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Exchange, Patch Lady Posts, Patch Watch, Print Spooler
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