Newsletter Archives

• MS-DEFCON 2: Microsoft and compliance

  Posted on February 8, 2024 at 02:45 CST by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 21.06.1 • 2024-02-08

  

  By Susan Bradley

  An international company must deal with the jurisdictions in which it operates. Microsoft is no different.

  February is always marked on my calendar as the month in which Microsoft is back in full force, holidays behind them. That means we’ll see a rash of updates. I’m raising the MS-DEFCON level to 2 as a result.

  Some of those updates will deal with the requirements of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) in the European Economic Area (EEA). Microsoft published a post in the Windows blog on this subject. The necessary changes to bring Windows into compliance will be dribbling out until the deadline — March 6, 2024 — and will be seen in updates to Windows 10 22H2 and Windows 11 23H2.

  Anyone can read the full MS-DEFCON Alert (21.06.1, 2024-02-08).

  AskWoody Plus Alert, MS-DEFCON Alerts, Digital Markets Act, KB5034441, MS-DEFCON, MS-DEFCON 2, Patch Lady Posts, Print Nightmare

• Microsoft removes Win10 File Explorer features without notice

  Posted on January 8, 2024 at 02:45 CST by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 21.02 • 2024-01-08

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  Microsoft’s updates for Windows 10 in November and December 2023 made significant changes to the File Explorer interface and its search functionality. But the Redmond software giant has posted no written information about the differences or how users can configure them.

  Some of the modifications revert File Explorer to the configuration it had in Windows 10 19H2, the version that existed way back in November 2019.

  Ironically, you may find that you actually prefer the old behaviors to the new ones.

  But that isn’t the point. The point is that changes of this magnitude cry out for written explanations from Microsoft.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.02.0, 2024-01-08).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Public Defender Digital Markets Act, EU, European Union, File Explorer, KB5032278, KB5033372, Newsletters, Regulation, Search, Windows 10