Month: September 2019

Add Clocks from Multiple Timezones in Windows 10

If you reside on the West Coast, but do business around the East Coast, the mental math required to keep everything on target is sometimes overwhelming. It’s a three hour time difference, but a slight miscalculation can lead to some real problems. No worries, Windows 10 allows you to set up multiple clocks to show times from around the world.

To access them, you’ll click on the clock in the Taskbar, while you normally would. Instead of displaying the present time, it’ll now display might timezones using their company locations you’ve setup.

1. Open Settings by clicking the beginning menu deciding on it, or typing it into Cortana.

2. Click on Time & language.

3. Click on the Add clocks link to set up clocks in multiple timezones.

4. Click the option to Show this clock. This will show you the initial clock, the one you have set for your current location.

5. Next, click the second Show this clock option, and hang it to the timezone of your choice by selecting it in the drop-down menu.

6. Change the names for Clock 1 and Clock 2. (optional)

7. Click Apply at the end right.

8. Click OK.

How you can Block All Site Notifications in the search engines Chrome

Google Chrome comes with an overwhelming amount of configuration options, especially for beginners who don’t want anything more than the fundamental features to browse the web securely.

On the other hand, as the world’s number one browser, Chrome brings a rich feature package that helps you do a lot more than just basic browsing, including getting notifications from websites.

Many users inquired about why would someone ever wish to receive notifications from websites.

Initially, I understand their concerns, especially because websites can certainly abuse this selection. But, on the other hand, the purpose of website notifications is to help you stay up-to-date with fresh content without having to install a third-party monitoring app.

I, for one, use notifications on news websites (where they are offered) to always read the latest news as soon as they are published. This means I don’t need to install a dedicated RSS client, because the browser protects everything without me needing to do anything else. Google Chrome does this, as well as on Android, I use Samsung’s Web browser for the similar thing.

Users who’re afraid that sites could start spamming them with notifications have several controls in the search engines Chrome to manage settings at a moment, therefore if anything changes plus they wish to remove a particular page, you can do this with just several clicks.

Automatically, Google Chrome is configured to allow websites to “ask before sending” notifications, which means that when you load a webpage with notification support, you need to visit a message suggesting that you enable this selection for that site. Should you don’t agree, the page is automatically put into the blocked list in the search engines Chrome, while if you do agree, that site starts sending you notifications on the desktop.

Here is the recommended behavior in Google Chrome. While using options here, you can define per-site rules, which basically means that you can allow some websites to send notifications and block others if you don’t would like them to make use of this selection.

The road to notification settings in the search engines Chrome may be the following:

Google Chrome > Settings > Site Settings > Notifications

A shortcut to quickly reach this destination is copying and pasting the following link within the Google Chrome address bar:

chrome://settings/content/notifications

Users who wish to block all notifications have just a single option to disable here. It’s called:

Ask before sending (recommended)

When you click the toggle next to this option you should begin to see the feature changing its name to “Blocked.”

On the other hand, the very same menu permits you manage the rules per each website, letting users block and unblock websites when required by clicking the three-dot menu alongside their names.

Similar options are obtainable in all Chromium-based browsers on the desktop. You don’t have to reboot the browser after making these changes, because the new settings are applied immediately.

Google Chrome happens to be the world’s number 1 desktop browser, and third-party data indicate it operates on some 65 % of the world’s PCs. While things are unlikely to alter overnight, many think that the arrival of the Chromium-based Microsoft Edge version could generate a pretty much substantial drop in Chrome’s share, especially as Microsoft will offer this browser as the new default in Windows 10.

This really is projected to occur in the spring of 2020, when Microsoft could range from the Chromium Edge within the Windows 10 20H1 feature update, having a stable build to become finalized within the first months of the season.

How you can Add Custom Accent Colors to Windows 10

It’s not hard to change Windows 10‘s accent colors, the colors that appear in your taskbar, Start menu, settings menus and in some window title bars. However, automatically, the operating-system only enables you to select from a predefined palette of 48 colors. If you would like your taskbar to exactly match your company’s logo shade or, if your favorite hue of yellow isn’t among the default four dozen, there are a handful of methods to incorperate your own custom hue.

Add a Custom Accent Color Using the Mixer

Without having an exact color to complement and just wish to fiddle with some controls until you get an accent shade you like, you should use Windows 10’s color mixer. If you possess the RGB or Hex code for a particular color, you’ll have to make use of the other method: adding custom colors towards the registry.

1. Open the run prompt by hitting Windows + R or typing “Run” in to the search engine.

2. Type “Control Color” into the run box striking Ok.

A window appears having a listing of colors.

3. Select the color block that is nearest what you would like. Your window title bar will change to match that color.

4. Open “Show color mixer.”

5. Adjust the Hue, Saturation and Brightness bars before you obtain a color you want. While sliders, you will notice a preview from the color within the window title bar.

6. Click Save Changes.

Give a Custom Accent Color Using the Registry

If you have a precise color you need to use as an accent color, you need to edit the Windows registry to add it. The “color mixer” method described above just isn’t precise enough.

1. Open the registry editor by typing “regedit” into run box or even the search engine and hitting Enter.

2. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_Machine\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Themes\ by opening the folders in the left pane.

3. Create the Accents key under Themes if it doesn’t exist by right-clicking on the party’s theme folder deciding on New -> Key then renaming the important thing to “Accents.”

4. Open the Accents key.

5. Create a subkey named “0” under Accents and the other named “Theme0” under that.

6. Produce a new DWORD (32-bit) value named “Color” under Theme0. You may create new DWORD values by right-clicking in the right pane deciding on New -> DWord (32-bit) and then renaming the entry it creates.

7. Open the colour DWORD value by double-clicking onto it.

8. Enter one value in ABGR (also known as KML) format and click OK. ABGR stands for Alpha Blue Green Red and is made up of hexadecimal numbers. It will convert regular hex or RGB colors you receive from an image editor into ABGR.

9. Close Regedit and restart your computer.

The brand new color will appear at the end of the list of hues in the Accent color menu.

You can include up to seven additional custom colors to the menu by creating additional theme folders under the Accents type in the Registry. You need to name these Accents\0\Theme1, Accents\1\Theme0, Accents\1\Theme1, Accents\2\Theme0, \Accents\2\Theme1, Accents\3\Theme0 and Accents\3\Theme1.

Microsoft Releases Windows 10 Cumulative Updates KB4516077, KB4516045, KB4516071

Microsoft has released a brand-new group of cumulative updates for Windows 10, only one day after it previously shipped another round of cumulative updates to repair a security vulnerability in Ie.

This time, however, the rollout includes many more improvements and bug fixes, and you may browse the full changelogs in the box at the end of the content.

All Windows 10 versions are becoming cumulative updates, aside from Windows 10 May 2019 Update, or Windows 10 version 1903. Most likely, Microsoft will push a cumulative update to this version after it completes the testing within the Release Preview ring.

Here’s the full list of cumulative updates one of them new set:
KB4516077 – Windows 10 version 1809
KB4516045 – Windows 10 version 1803
KB4516071 – Windows 10 version 1709
KB4516059 – Windows 10 version 1703
KB4516061 – Windows 10 version 1607

New updates on October 8

Very important to know is the fact that these cumulative updates are shipped to Windows 10 devices as optional, which means they aren’t automatically offered via Windows Update.

Instead, what users have to do is check out Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Check for updates to manually look for updates and be offered to new updates.

Additionally, the same cumulative updates are available around the Microsoft Update Catalog for manual downloading.

These cumulative updates should technically range from the Ie zero-day fix too – this is the reason for cumulative updates to begin with; the latest cumulative update comes with all the previously-released fixes, so installing the most recent version technically brings a device fully up to date.

New cumulative updates for Windows 10 is going to be shipped on October 8 as part of the next Patch Tuesday cycle. The main focus, however, is going to be on security fixes, as Microsoft will resolve vulnerabilities in Windows and the other OS components.

The Lack of Excitement for Windows 10 19H2

It’s almost no more September, and according to Microsoft’s typical Windows 10 release schedule, it’s time once the software giant should finalize the development of a new feature update because of its operating-system.

Unlike the case from the previous such feature updates, however, people barely talk about the so-called 19H2 release, and lots of people actually forgot that Microsoft should finalize its development this month.

Given the public rollout should start next month or perhaps in November the most recent, it’s pretty clear that the excitement for this new feature update is at super-low levels. Also it all happens for a good reason.

First of all, it’s the objective of Windows 10 19H2 to begin with.

Unlike its predecessors, Windows 10 19H2 isn’t a considerable feature update, but only a little bit more than a service pack, as a lot of people called it. Which means that rather than focusing on new features, Windows 10 19H2 is much more about under-the-hood improvements and polishing that users don’t necessarily get to see after setting it up.

No additional features is what drives this insufficient excitement, especially among consumers who typically represent a considerable area of the Windows Insider enter in the first place.

In addition, it’s this Insider program for Windows 10 19H2 the main one to become blamed for this. The very first 19H2 preview build was shipped on July 1, and until today, Microsoft only presented 8 such builds to users within the Slow ring. This means the organization started public testing approximately 3 months before the 19H2 update was projected to become finalized.

To compare, work on the Windows 10 20H1 feature update, which based on the current schedule ought to be ready in March 2020, started on February 14 with the first build shipped to Skip Ahead insiders. In other words, this primary build landed more than a year before the update was due to get the go-ahead. Until then, Microsoft has released a total of 29 Windows 10 20H1 preview builds.

And last but not least, it’s Microsoft the one that didn’t want Windows 10 19H2 to help make the rounds all too often. Virtually because there’s not much to speak about with regards to 19H2 in the first place, as Microsoft has focused mostly on the refined updating system.

Windows 10 19H2 is shipped as a cumulative update, which is supposed to help Microsoft deliver a more refined updating experience overall.

“The next feature update for Windows 10 (known within the Windows Insider Program as 19H2) will be a scoped set of features for select performance improvements, enterprise features and quality enhancements. To provide these updates in a less disruptive fashion, we will deliver this feature update in a new way, using servicing technology (like the monthly update process) for purchasers running the May 2019 Update that like to update to the new release. Quite simply, anyone running the May 2019 Update and updating towards the new release will have a far faster update experience since the update will install just like a monthly update,” Microsoft explained captured.

Unfortunately, it’s pretty clear that users are more looking forward to Windows 10 20H1 rather than for 19H2, and if exactly the same approach is going to be utilized in the long term, the spring update will be the one everyone will be awaiting.

Microsoft has remained completely tight-lipped about how near to being ready Windows 10 19H2 actually is, so nobody knows for sure once the rollout should really start.

Are you excited about Windows 10 19H2? Do you plan to install it on the first day? Let us know what you believe within the box following the jump.

How to Create a New Folder in Windows 10

Do your files and documents need better organization? Group related files into distinct folders on your laptop or desktop and you will always easily find the thing you need. You can also alter the icon size to make it more visually pleasing. Here are some ways to quickly create a new folder in Windows 10, after you master this, learn to password protect a folder in Windows 10.

Method 1: Create a New Folder with a Keyboard Shortcut

The fastest way to create a new folder in Windows is by using the CTRL+Shift+N shortcut.

1. Navigate to the location where you are thinking about creating the folder. You may create a brand new folder at any location in your hard disk or within another folder (creating a subfolder) in File Explorer. You may also produce a new folder on your desktop with this method.

2. Hold down the Ctrl, Shift, and N keys at the same time. Windows will immediately produce the new folder with the not-very-imaginative suggested folder name of “New folder.”

3. Enter your desired folder name. It requires just seconds to create a new folder by doing this, but be sure to immediately begin typing your folder name once the folder first appears, if clicking on the folder or click away from File Explorer, the folder name will be “New folder” and you will have to rename it.

Method 2: Produce a New Folder by Right-Clicking

If you do not remember the keyboard shortcut or else you prefer using the mouse:

1. Visit the location where you are thinking about creating the folder.

2. Right-click on a blank space in the folder location. Take care with this particular: Should you right-click on an existing item within the folder, you will get the incorrect menu.

3. Select New then Folder in the contextual menu. Windows can create the new folder at the current location.

4. Enter your desired folder name to replace “New folder” and hit Enter.

You may create folders on the Desktop that way too. Right-click on a blank space around the Desktop, go to New > Folder.

Method 3: Produce a New Folder from the Ribbon Menu

Another simple way to produce a new folder is to use the New folder button in the File Explorer menu.

Just visit the place you want the folder and click on or tap “New folder” within the Home tab

As well as the methods above, you may create a brand new folder in Windows 10 using the Command Prompt (visit the location you want your folder in and type mkdir foldername, replacing “foldername” with your folder name). These three methods, however, are the simplest and quickest ways to create a new folder, to get to organizing your files.

Microsoft Launches New Font Called Cascadia Code

Microsoft has released a brand new font called Cascadia Code after previously announcing it at the Build developer conference in May.

Cascadia Code is mostly targeted at developers and is specifically optimized for command line applications and code editors. Microsoft says it developed the font for use the brand new Windows Terminal application, but simultaneously, it’s also recommended with other apps like Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code.

The brand new font will be contained in Windows Terminal automatically, and users will receive it once they install the next form of the app.

Targeted at command-line apps

As numerous other activities released by Microsoft lately, Cascadia Code is open source and is on GitHub.

“The name Cascadia Code originated in the Windows Terminal project. Prior to being released, the codename for Windows Terminal was Cascadia. Actually, a few of the source files within the Terminal still use this name! Being an homage to the Terminal, we liked the thought of naming the font after its codename,” Kayla Cinnamon, Program Manager, Windows Terminal, Console, & Command-Line, explains.

“We added Code towards the end of the font name to help indicate this font was meant for programming. Specifically, it helps identify that it offers programming ligatures.”

Users can install the brand new font in the GitHub page, and developers should bring about the project for more improvements within the coming months.

Microsoft says it’ll use the Windows versioning syntax for the font, so the current version is 1909.16 – the next form of Windows 10 due in the fall is codenamed Windows 10 19H2 and it is likely to land as version 1909.

Windows Terminal is also available for download as a preview, and it requires Windows 10 build 18392 and newer.

The Nightmare Windows 10 Cumulative Update KB4515384 Is becoming

Microsoft released Windows 10 cumulative update KB4515384 on September 10 included in this month’s Patch Tuesday cycle.

According to the official KB page, this update comprises just three major changes, namely the typical security updates rolling out on Patch Tuesday, further mitigations against speculative execution side-channel vulnerabilities, and a treatment for an insect causing high CPU usage from the SearchUI.exe process.

At first glance, this isn’t this type of heavy cumulative update, albeit because it is the case of each and every other such release, more improvements are generally made underneath the hood as well and Microsoft just decides it’s not worth sharing all of them with the remainder of users.

Microsoft originally said hello wasn’t conscious of any issues in the update, which was somehow surprising, especially given that a lot of people previously complained of various errors experienced when or after installing cumulative updates.

Unfortunately for Windows 10 version 1903 users, cumulative update KB4515384 has a continuously-increasing list of issues, by the looks of things, users continue to come across new problems on a daily basis.

Microsoft hasn’t acknowledged these, but the more we wait, the greater we discover out about things that not work correctly after installing this update.

As some users told us in comments to my article on KB4515384 issues here, this cumulative updates sometimes fails to install on their Windows 10 devices, albeit for now, this doesn’t appear to be a widespread issue.

On the other hand, Microsoft has confirmed three different errors that you could encounter after setting it up.

First of all, the Input Method Editor (IME) could become unresponsive and cause high CPU usage, while on some devices, the Start menu and also the Windows Desktop Search might neglect to launch. This latter problem is actually the one hitting the biggest quantity of devices, as I’m seeing increasingly more users complaining of the extremely same bug every single day.

Microsoft says it’s investigating the beginning menu problem, but a fix isn’t readily available for now.

Then, audio in games is quiet or diverse from expected, Microsoft says, and this is all because the cumulative update comes with a change requested by Microsoft partners. The software giant has reverted this change and says a full fix obtained care of.

Unfortunately, each one of these problems, together with others that are yet to be acknowledged by Microsoft, such as this PIN login error, reveal that installing cumulative updates on a Windows 10 devices continues to be a Russian roulette than can certainly go wrong at any moment.

From users’ perspective, however, there’s not much to complete other than delaying the installation of these botched cumulative updates. The only problem is the fact that Patch Tuesday releases are available with security improvements and not installing the updates means a tool remains unprotected.

So far as Microsoft is worried, there’s a lot room for improvements when it comes to the caliber of cumulative updates. And it all starts with the standard testing the company should run before striking the go-ahead button for production devices.

Most cumulative updates for that latest stable form of Windows 10 are tested with the help of users within the Windows Insider program. But recently, the Insider program itself has become rather confusing for a lot of, as users here are currently running three different versions of Windows 10, namely version 1903, 19H2, and 20H1.

Installing cumulative updates has been a risky thing to do from the first day, and by the looks of things, Microsoft continues to have a hard time providing them with right. While I always recommended people to update their devices as soon as patches emerge, all these errors appear to suggest this is no more the proper way to go.

What’s your experience with the most recent cumulative updates? Is updating on the first day something that continues to be worth doing? Tell me what you believe within the box following the jump.

Microsoft Confirms Windows 10 Cumulative Update KB4515384 Causes Audio Issues

Microsoft has confirmed that the company’s latest cumulative update for Windows 10 version 1903 causes audio issues in games.

Inside a support document, Microsoft says that after installing cumulative update KB4515384 on some devices running Windows 10 version 1903, or Windows 10 May 2019 Update, users might experience quieter or exactly what the company calls different audio than expected.

The bug was as the saying goes shortly after KB4515384 was launched towards the first devices included in the September 10 Patch Tuesday cycle.

Microsoft explains this cumulative update indeed brings changes requested by partners, which would be the culprit from the audio issues hitting Windows 10 version 1903 devices.

“At the request of a lot of our audio partners, we implemented a compatibility change that enabled certain games to query support and render multi-channel audio. Due to customer feedback, we are reverting this change as some games plus some products are not rendering multi-channel audio not surprisingly. This might result in games sounding diverse from customers are used to and may have missing channels,” Microsoft explains.

Fix coming later this month

The organization adds it has already started the job on the fix, also it ought to be finalized at the end of September. Probably, the bug would be resolved within the next non-security cumulative update rollout due later this month.

Meanwhile, users can look to a manual workaround that involves disabling multi-channel audio or Virtual Multichannel audio on their own devices.

“To mitigate the problem, open settings within the impacted game and disable multi-channel audio, if this choice is available. You can also search within the Windows Control Panel for Third party audio device control panels and disable Multi-channel audio or Virtual Multichannel audio, if these options are available,” Microsoft recommends.

Windows 10 version 1903 is the only version affected by this bug.

Windows 10 Cumulative Update KB4515384 Fixes High CPU Usage Bug

The latest cumulative update for Windows 10 version 1903 fixes an issue that causes high CPU usage for a service owned by digital assistant Cortana.

Windows 10 cumulative update KB4512941, that was published on August 30 for version 1903, or Windows 10 May 2019 Update, devices introduced an insect that caused the SearchUI.exe tactic to experience random spikes in CPU usage on certain computers.

Microsoft acknowledged the issue soon after users started reporting it online, explaining it’s only encountered on machines where the web search feature was once disabled.

“Microsoft gets reports that the small number of users may not receive results when utilizing Windows Desktop Search and may see high CPU usage from SearchUI.exe when searching after installing KB4512941. This problem is only encountered on devices in which searching the web from Windows Desktop Search has been disabled,” the software giant explained.

Fix available these days on Windows Update

The newest cumulative update for Windows 10 version 1903, however, resolves this issue, with Microsoft adding that just “a small number of users” were actually impacted. The update under consideration is KB4515384 and it is currently available from Windows Update as part of the monthly Patch Tuesday cycle.

Microsoft explains the next the state release notes:

“Addresses an issue that causes high CPU usage from SearchUI.exe for a few users. This problem only occurs on devices that have disabled searching the net using Windows Desktop Search.”

This new cumulative update comes without any known issues, so users should basically expect flawless performance after setting it up. Of course, history has shown that it’s sometimes better to wait, albeit in the case of KB4515384, it’s worth bearing in mind that security patches for known vulnerabilities will also be included and you are recommended to install it as being soon as possible.