Search results

There are two ways of getting the newest version of Windows 10: clean installing from bootable media, or upgrading the existing Windows 10 system. The best way to upgrade is to clean install each new version of Windows 10 from bootable media. This gives you a clean and stable system, free of...

I've no news on exactly when the May upgrade of Windows 10 will be released to the public. I do know that it's essentially been in a bug fix status since last November and that I will clean install it - as I do with all upgrades. I've been keeping an eye on what's going to be new in the May...

My current keyboard is an Asus Cerberus, and whilst it's generally pretty good the keys are kind of wobbly, enough so that if I only press the edge of the key rather than the centre, it sort of jams instead of going down and the letter is skipped (the left shift and the keys on the left suffer...

With everyone stuck at home at this time I know that good Internet access is essential. I also know from past experience myself that getting a good WiFi signal from any distance can be a bit hit and miss, and that's really down to your antenna. Hopefully my long experience in networking can help...

AMD CPU's level 1 cache predictor feature on chips from 2011 to 2019 have a memory leak vulnerability it would seem, known as Take-A-Way. See https://www.engadget.com/2020/03/08/amd-cpu-take-a-way-data-leak-security-flaw/ Whitepaper at https://mlq.me/download/takeaway.pdf

Partly tongue-in-cheek and with a nod to Jethro Gibbs of NCIS, my rules of troubleshooting. Has anyone got any better ones? 🤓 1. If it's not broken then don't fix it 2. It won't get better on it's own 3. RTFM 4. Backup NOW! 5. Always suspect software until proven otherwise 6. If it's software...

When I lived in Bournemouth several decades ago there was a constant problem of dead crows on the fast dual-carriageway into Bournemouth from the A23. There's a lot of road-kill on that road of course and it's lined by tall fir trees so it's no surprise that it attracts a sizeable crow...

The IRS decided to audit Grandpa, and summoned him to the IRS office. The IRS auditor was not surprised when Grandpa showed up with his attorney. The auditor said, “Well, sir, you have an extravagant lifestyle and no full-time employment, which you explain by saying that you win money gambling...

A little bit of Aussie culture..... LOG ON: Adding wood to make the BBQ hotter. LOG OFF: Not adding any more wood to the barbie. MONITOR: Keeping an eye on the barbie. DOWNLOAD: Getting the firewood off the Ute. HARD DRIVE: Making the trip back home without any beer. KEYBOARD: Where you...

We're in the habit when writing dates on forms, contracts, payment slips, etc. etc. of abbreviating the date into the last two digits; 25/12/19 for Christmas Day last year for example. This might be a dangerous thing to do with 2020. If you make a contract with someone who is less than...

I've spent the last couple of days chasing a really strange problem and for the life of me I've no idea why it's happening. The problem is that Windows will turn off the display, the screen goes blank and the backlight turns off, but the monitor (Asus ProArt) doesn't go into standby (the light...

We all remember that SMBv1 contained the vulnerability which the WannaCrypt ransomware malware from a year or so ago exploited. At the time Microsoft issued several patches and recommended that SMBv1 be disabled since it's only now used by legacy applications. A Microsoft advisory explained in...

Hardware is not my forte, as you know, hence this question. :) I have an Asus Z170-E motherboard which has two USB3.0 Gen1 Type-A ports on the board. I also had PCS install an additional PCIe card with two USB3.0 Gen1 Type-A ports. Since I've had the PC my 3TB external HDD (USB3.0) has been...

When I installed Windows 10 1903 back in May I setup all my regular tasks (mostly related to auto backup) in the Task Scheduler. For reasons that I can't explain (or just because I'm stupid) when I set the time trigger for my tasks I checked the 'Synchronise across time zones' box. All my tasks...

It would seem from what I'm reading that Microsoft are making some significant changes to the way Windows 10 upgrades are delivered. The September 1909 update (and I use the word update deliberately) is effectively what we used to call a service pack. It delivers updated functionality to some...

I came across this on the BBC news website this morning https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-49096991 and for anyone who has been infected the related website (https://www.nomoreransom.org/) looks like it might be useful. It's backed by the Europol Cybercrime Agency and the Dutch police...

Does anyone by any chance ever visit the National Archives at Kew? I have a real need to establish the actual movements of a Royal Navy survey ship called HMS Spitfire between May 1851 and May 1853 by checking the ship's log books. I have the reference numbers of all the relevant log books and...

Intel is apparently talking to the IOC about making 'esports' an event (or events) at a future Olympic Games. I assume this means gaming(?) and as a non-gamer I'm intrugued to know how this would work. So asume you're in charge of 'esports' at the Olympics, how would you implement and organise...

http://news.sky.com/story/laptop-infected-with-worlds-most-dangerous-malware-sells-for-1631m-11730084 Surely you could just pick up a Win XP laptop for a few quid and leave it connected to the Internet for a few weeks. You'd get pretty much the same result and save well over 900 thousand pounds....