Software & Apps - Page 30

Hardware and software go hand-in-hand, and the latter often gets overlooked. NVIDIA has been creating powerful software and tools for its GeForce RTX hardware and GPUs for years, from the first Control Panel to recent efforts like RTX Broadcast. Not to mention timely and robust driver support.

However, in recent years, it's all felt a little disjointed thanks to the GeForce Experience app used for updating drivers and optimizing games being completely separate from the NVIDIA Control Panel that offers deep drivel-level customization tools and the best display and color calibration suite currently available for Windows.

It doesn't help that Control Panel looks like an app for Windows XP and GeForce Experience, like an app from the mid-2000s. To say that we've been waiting for something like the NVIDIA App would be an understatement; something that would overhaul the GeForce Experience and expand its capabilities.

Signal has long been one of the more popular secure instant messaging platforms and it's the one that has also required that people use a phone number by way of identification. That also meant that people needed to share their number if they wanted to connect with anyone on the platform which is less than ideal. But now, that's all changing.

Signal has now confirmed via a blog post that it is going to start hiding phone numbers as default, making it easier than ever for people to protect their privacy. In its place will be a username, and that's also how people will be able to identify people in the future. The username isn't a permanent handle however, with Signal saying that it is simply a way to initiate contact on the network without sharing a phone number.

The announcement also comes as Signal confirms that it is launching a new, optional privacy setting that will allow people to stop themselves from being searchable using a phone number at all. The result is that unless someone knows an exact username, they won't be able to contact people who don't want to be.

There are plenty of instant messaging platforms to choose from right now and most phones have first-party options built in, including Apple's wildly popular iMessage. But WhatsApp is also a great option and it's free, encrypted, and available across every platform you're likely to think of. And now it has some new text formatting options that make it easier than ever to get the point across.

While WhatsApp already offered Markdown-like syntax for formatting text, it now has four new options to go with bold, italic, strikethrough, and monospace. The new options are bulleted lists, numbered lists, block quotes, and inline code.

The first of those is fairly obvious and users can create a bulleted list by placing a '-' before a line. Numbered lists are the same, but a number followed by a period replaces the hyphen. All simple stuff and great for sending things like shopping lists to your significant other.

Windows 11's big 23H2 update from 2023 has entered a new 'rollout phase,' one that will leverage machine learning (ML) to automatically update Windows 11 devices to the latest version of the operating system. Forcing major OS updates on users is never a good look, but this adds an extra layer thanks to AI being in charge of which devices will be 'force-updated.'

Of course, it comes down to older versions of Windows 11 reaching their end of servicing phase, so there's a definite reason to update. The devices in question are predicted to be those running Windows 11 21H2 or 22H2.

"This automatic update targets Windows 11 devices that have reached or are approaching end of servicing and it follows the machine learning-based (ML) training we have utilized so far," Microsoft writes. "We will continue to train our intelligent ML model to safely roll out this new Windows version in phases to deliver a smooth update experience."

If you're a big sports fan who also happens to have an iPhone, Apple has some good news for you. The company has released the Apple Sports app and it's now available for download in the App Store. It's completely free and is available in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

The new app brings live real-time scores and stats to people in those countries, with a number of sports and leagues from around the globe included at launch. The company also confirmed that additional leagues will be added in due course, specifically before their new seasons begin.

At launch, the following sports and leagues are all available and they include the biggest soccer leagues from across Europe.

2FA, or two-factor authentication, is how many of us log into our favorite sites and apps with the peace of mind that there's a second layer of security beyond a simple (or complex) password.

Twilio Authy is one of the most popular 2FA authentication apps and services; however, if you're using the Twilio Authy Desktop on Windows, macOS, or Linux, you definitely want to jump to the Android or iOS app as soon as possible. Like other 2FA services, the Twilio Authy app generates codes every 30 seconds for additional log-in authentication.

As of March 19, 2024, the Twilio Authy Desktop apps will reach their End-of-Life (EOL) - a date brought forward from the previously scheduled cut-off in August 2024. Once this date hits, the desktop apps will cease to function.

Windows XP is approaching 23 years old, but there are folks out there who still use the operating system - in very niche cases obviously - but those people should be aware that MSI Afterburner no longer supports the ancient Microsoft platform.

Perhaps the biggest surprise here, though, is that the overclocking utility from MSI did still support Windows XP until its latest release.

MSI Afterburner version 4.6.6, which is in beta, made the change due to switching over to the VC++ 2022 compiler.

Windows 11 has a new preview build out which introduces some useful changes for the widget board and elsewhere in the interface.

This is Windows 11 preview build 26058 which has just been deployed to testers in the Canary and Dev channels.

In the usual lengthy blog post, Microsoft explains that the headline change comes on the accessibility front with a new Pointer Indicator to help those with low vision. As you might expect, this highlights where the cursor is, using a red crosshair to make that as clear as possible (check out the above screenshot).

Microsoft is still trying to talk Windows 10 users into upgrading to Windows 11 - you may have noticed the recent return of the dreaded post-update triple-nag panel - but the company is now taking a new tack with a YouTube video.

Yes, this is the kind of video clip you would have expected to see when Windows 11 launched, to explain what it's about, and to encourage those on Windows 10 to migrate.

But here we are, nearly two and a half years after the release of Windows 11, and we're seeing this kind of ad on YouTube. (First noticed by The Register - and part of a series of clips, apparently).

The latest version of FurMark has just been released, with v1.3.8 adding support for NVIDIA's new GeForce RTX 40 SUPER series graphics cards and more.

FurMark's new v1.38 release supports NVIDIA's new GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER, GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER, and GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER graphics cards. AMD doesn't miss out with its new Radeon RX 7600 XT, also supported by FurMark, thanks to the update.

If you're unaware of what FurMark is, it's a stress-testing tool that's not aimed at gamers... but rather helps you push your graphics card to the max when you're overclocking it. You might want to see its stress point -- the maximum GPU boost clock or maximum VRAM frequency -- using FurMark to run in the background. This is a great thing for GeForce RTX 40 SUPER series graphics card owners.

Ryzen Master Tuning Utility now supports AMD's new Ryzen 8000G "Hawk Point" APUs, thanks to its new update that you can download here (206MB download).

AMD's internal Ryzen Master software has been updated to v2.13.0.2908 and supports the just-released Ryzen 8000G "Hawk Point" series APUs, which can also be overclocked (even though they're APUs and not pure CPUs).

The new Ryzen Software update doesn't just support the new Hawk Point APUs but also has a new feature that makes using the software easier for consumers. AMD's Curve Optimizer is a utility inside of Ryzen Master that lets consumers play around with performance by tuning the exact amount of power being fed into the chip.

Reports indicate that Microsoft has rolled out a new requirement for Outlook users on Windows 10 and Windows 11, and some users may not be very happy about the change.

According to MSPowerUser, Outlook users on the aforementioned operating system versions will now be required to download and install Microsoft Edge to access Outlook emails. The move is certainly a strange one, with some users expressing concerns that Microsoft is forcing adoption of its internet browser in an attempt to increase Edge's dwindling market share. However, it remains unclear if the requirement was intentional or simply a technical requirement to run the updated version of Outlook.

The requirement was first noticed by Reddit users who were shown the above error message, which reads, "The new Outlook for Windows needs Microsoft Edge to be installed". Reports indicate that the culprit of the problem can be traced back to Outlook using Microsoft Edge Webview 2 for specific web functions. While the majority of Outlook users will already have Edge installed on their device, a portion of users who decided to uninstall the browser due to deeming it bloatware will have to reinstall it to access their emails via Outlook.

The Nintendo Entertainment System or NES was arguably the system that kickstarted the videogame industry as we know it today - with many of Nintendo's iconic franchises like Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, and many more making their debut on this 8-bit system. As a piece of hardware, though, the NES is pretty ancient compared to the devices we have today - with only 2KB of RAM and an additional 2KB of VRAM.

So, "Can it run Linux?" is an interesting question because the answer is no. However, that hasn't stopped the YouTube channel DeCrAzYo from trying to find a way. Relying purely on the aging Nintendo hardware without slapping a Raspberry Pi into a cartridge led him to a Linux-adjacent operating system called LUnix, or 'Little Unix,' created for the Commodore 64.

As the Commodore 64 has 64KB of RAM compared to the NES's 2KB, a lot of work was required to get it up and running natively on an NES console.

Color management in Windows is one of those things most people didn't know was available, as it's buried in the Control Panel and uses a UI design and interface that hearkens back to the days of Windows '95. As much as we love that classic OS for bringing us footage of Windows execs and Bill Gates dancing on stage, something as critical as color management deserves a modern makeover.

And that's what's happening, with Color Management getting a dedicated page under Display settings in Windows 11. Spotted in the latest Windows Insiders build for Canary and Dev (Build 26052), the new page will allow users to add and customize different color profiles, calibrate a display, and define what apps use what profile.

More detailed and in-depth Color Management is excellent news for games and creators as, over the years, we've all gotten used to simply using our display or monitor calibration tools and settings to adjust color profiles for games and apps.

One tech giant is working on a new AI-based operating system that might give Microsoft Windows a run for its money, and it's coming from a company that you might not expect.

It was at CES 2024 that Lenovo's Executive Vice President Liu Jun revealed that the company is currently working on a new AI-based operating system that is expected to be rolled out sometime this year. The decision for Lenovo to develop its own operating system is clearly a part of the company's overall push into AI, which, when looking at the tech market as a whole, AI is seemingly making its way into almost every facet of the technology space and is being adopted by any tech company that can work it into its product.

As for Lenovo specifically, the company is planning on rolling out a batch of AI PCs that are scheduled to hit shelves sometime during the first half of 2024. These PCs will have in-built AI capabilities that are designed to learn how the user interacts with the device while also creating a more seamless and intuitive experience between the product and the user.

Here's a warning for those who are running Windows 11 on an ancient PC with a processor that isn't officially supported by Microsoft's operating system - you'll soon be unable to use the OS.

It won't boot up, or at least that's the case according to digging in a preview build of the next big update from Microsoft, Windows 11 24H2, set to debut later this year.

As shared on X (formerly Twitter), Bob Pony unearthed a new stipulation in the preview builds of Windows 11 24H2, first introduced in version 25905 - the requirement for a CPU with the 'POPCNT' instruction.

One of the biggest features of the gaming industry was the introduction of super-resolution upscaling, and now that feature appears to be coming to all Windows applications.

Windows 11 insiders have discovered an option for Super Resolution within the Windows settings, which is an indication that Microsoft, at the very least, is exploring the possibility of implementing upscaling technologies for applications. The new feature was found in the Windows 11 insider build of 24H2, the update that is pegged to be the company's big annual feature update slated to release in the second half of 2024. The update has been described as being so big it could even be called Windows 12.

As for Super Resolution within Windows, users discovered the options to enable "automatic super-resolution" that will "use AI to make supported games play more smoothly with enhanced details" or the option of enabling this setting per application. Reports indicate this new feature will run on NPU/AI-cores, which should include GPU tensor cores. What does super-resolution at an operating system level mean for Windows users?

If you were in any doubt, Microsoft has confirmed that this year's major update for its desktop operating system will be Windows 11 24H2.

An official announcement puts paid to any belief that the software giant might instead bring out Windows 12 - or some other all-new Windows incarnation with a different name - later this year.

Rumors had already pretty firmly indicated that Microsoft was set to run with a 24H2 update, but now with the blog post for Windows 11 preview build 26052 (for the Canary and Dev channels), this has been confirmed.

Windows 11 has a new 'Moment' update inbound, which will be the fifth such package of new features for the desktop operating system, and it'll be arriving later this month.

That's the skinny from Zac Bowden over at Windows Central, one of the more reliable leakers when it comes to Microsoft gossip.

Bowden believes that Moment 5 will debut late in February, but it'll be a much more modest set of extra features compared to previous Moments.

Interoperability with other encrypted messaging apps is what it will be called when the popular messaging app WhatsApp adds the ability for users to send and receive messages from people using a completely different communication app like Messenger, iMessage, or Signal.

WhatsApp boasts around 2 billion users globally, and this notable update arrives courtesy of compliance with new EU Digital Markets Act (DMA) legislation. According to the new law, companies like Google, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Meta must open up their core services to others - with a DMA compliance date of March 2024.

According to a new report at Wired, the WhatsApp team has been working on adding this feature for years - letting people chat across apps without impacting end-to-end encryption. So, it will be interesting to see how it pans out.