The Week: Windows is doomed

Navneet Alang, writing in The Week, hit the nail on the head:

[W]ith its emphasis on the cloud, artificial intelligence, and more, Microsoft may well continue to thrive. But Windows — once the core of the company and seemingly central to so many of our lives — is likely beyond saving.

Last one out, be sure to close the door.

August Browser and Operating System share numbers mixed

Browsers:

NetMarketShare has pegged Chrome at or near 59% since February, with an imperceptible downtick July-to-August. Edge has been around 5.6% since February. The only gainer? “Other.”

StatCounter puts Chrome at 54%, basically unchanged since April. Edge has been at 1.7% since January. IE continues to decline.

Operating Systems:

NetMarketShare pegs Win7 share as down about half a point from 48.91% in July to 48.43% in August. Win10 is up about a third of a point from 27.63 to 27.99%.

StatCounter says Win7 slightly dropped a percentage point to 45%, down from the 46% since April. Win10 is up almost a point, from 36.93% in July to 37.87% in August.

You can draw your own conclusions, but the bottom line is that almost half of all Windows users are on Win7, Chrome is declining a little bit, depending on whose numbers you trust, and Edge has gone nowhere fast.

Gregg Keizer should have a full report in Computerworld shortly.

Microsoft re-issues year-old Server 2008 security patch, KB 4019206

I have no idea why, but KB 4019206 was re-issued overnight. You can see the Windows Update Catalog entry here.

Of course, the KB article doesn’t contain information. Nor does the Windows 7.1 and 2008 update history page.

It’s described as a “Security update for the Windows GDI Information Disclosure Vulnerability in Windows Server 2008: May 9, 2017”

Thx to Michael Studte for the heads-up!

Microsoft Security Essentials definition 1.249.211.0 appears over and over again

Got an email from @twbartender:

Since 8/19 I’ve been having almost daily issues with Microsoft Security Essentials Definition Updates that keep reintroducing definition 1.249.211.0 It was originally offered and installed on 7/26/17. As of 8/19 when a newer definition update is offered in Windows Update, definition 1.249.211.0 is offered again at the same time. At certain times 1.249.211.0 is installed again, and the new definition update fails. At other times both of the definitions install successfully.

Yesterday 8/26 Born wrote an article about this issue that can be found here:
http://borncity.com/win/2017/08/26/microsoft-security-essentials-double-definition-updates-error-0x80070650/

He also posted his findings at Microsoft Answers forum within the thread Microsoft Security Essentials Update Definition Number 1.249.211.0 Keeps On Coming Back, located here: https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/protect/forum/mse-protect_updating-windows_7/microsoft-security-essentials-update-definition/e6374bbc-cc98-4567-b7da-7e2e32908d46

In my case 1.249.211.0 has thus far been installed 9 separate times since 8/19.

Yesterday 8/27 the 1.249.211.0 MSE definition reappeared in Windows Update once again, but rather than install it I hid it. This morning a new definition, 1.251.140.0 was offered and installed without the presence of 1.249.211.0 .

Anybody else having problems with 1.249.211.0? If so, and you hide it, does the problem disappear?

Between Windows and Office, Microsoft dropped patches on 14 different days this month

Some of them actually worked the first time. Or so I’m told.

Computerworld Woody on Windows

Don’t use Windows 10 to move data on your Android phone or tablet

German blog site heise.de is running down a problem that may irreversibly destroy data on the Android device.

Computerworld Woody on Windows.

Do you have a Windows PC and Android device (phone, tablet)? Want to participate in a bug hunt? Follow the directions in the article, then post here what you found. Remember to include the Windows version, Android version, and the name of your phone or tablet. Thanks!

New PATCH ALERT

There’s a new Patch Alert, updated with info about KB 4033637 and 4033631.

I still recommend that you hold off on the August patches. We’re still at MS-DEFCON 2.

Microsoft finally, finally documents the Win10 1607 patch KB 4033637

It only took them six days.

Hint: @abbodi86 was right. But then again, you already knew that.

Computerworld Woody on Windows