Windows Weekly (Audio)

• What is the Windows Experience Feature Pack?
• If you get Windows 10 2004, you automatically get this thing. But MS officials won't talk about it... (insert shrug emoji here)
• Microsoft fixed a blocker issue for the May 2020 Update that brings Windows 10 version 2004 to Surface Pro 7 and Surface Laptop 3.
• Related: Another Windows 10 Fast Ring build is out today. It has nested virtualization for AMD processors. And a few fixes. That's it.
• We heard from Keivan Beigi, Mr. AppGet
• Amazon sues Google over our old buddy Brian Hall
• FU2, Microsoft! Slack and Amazon partnership is interesting
• Apple set to announce macOS on ARM - It will succeed where Microsoft and Qualcomm have failed repeatedly. Also, Apple should buy DuckDuckGo, not Microsoft.
• Using Brave requires trust. And they just blew it.
• Déjà vu: Now 50 U.S. states want to break up Google. This is a great idea.
• Hardware is hard. Google sold only 7.2 million handsets in 2019, and most of them were low-end devices. Remember when Microsoft used to sell many more than that?
• Huawei is at war because of U.S. actions against it. One strategy: Hoarding.

• Xbox
• Microsoft launches Digital Direct
• And whatever happened to that disc-to-digital thing?
• Sony's PS5 games event is rescheduled to this Thursday
• New Game Pass games for June
• Plus: There's a big Xbox sale right now

• Tip of the week: Consider powerline networking. Everyone knows about Wi-Fi and Ethernet, but powerline networking provides an interesting middle ground between the two and can work well in some circumstances.
• App pick of the week: Sumatra PDF. It ain't pretty, but Sumatra PDF is the lightweight and full-featured PDF reader we need. Plus, it works with EPUB as well.
• Enterprise pick of the week: WVD users: MSIX App Attach is ready for testing. Windows Virtual Desktop users can now test MSIX App Attach. If this ends up working as advertised, it should make using WVD even better.

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Mary Jo Foley, and Paul Thurrott

Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

Check out Mary Jo's blog at AllAboutMicrosoft.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Sponsors:

• Microsoft released Windows 10 version 2004 ... or did they? (if a tree falls...)
• Discontent is growing in the community. Two key issues:
• Why don't Surface PCs get new Windows versions on Day One?
• Why were their sudden over a dozen known issues that had never come up during testing?
• Microsoft essentially stole WinGet after courting the developer of AppGet and offering a job that never materialized.
• Microsoft's response is inadequate.
• Beigi says he's talking to MS and may have more to share soon (whatever that means)
• Microsoft reveals deprecated, removed features in Windows 10 version 2004
• HP reveals a new Windows Mixed Reality headset. Why?
• New Edge starts rolling out to Windows 10 users via Windows Update (starting w. 1803/1809)
• Google is sued for tracking users in Incognito move. Seriously, people use Brave. Or Edge.
• Microsoft enables Windows Spellcheck API for all Chromium browsers
• Samsung Access - a new subscription service that gets you an S20, premium support, and ... Microsoft 365 Personal. Interesting.
• Microsoft says Xbox Series X will be the most compatible console ever.
• Sony starts making the PS5
• Microsoft launches that simpler new Guide in latest Xbox System Update
• Tip of the week: Wait. I know you want Windows 10 version 2004. Just wait if your hardware isn't ready. Seriously.
• App pick of the week: Any browser not named Chrome. Edge, Brave, Opera, Vivaldi, Firefox, Safari are all better choices.
• Enterprise pick of the week: Microsoft bot tools you can use. Microsoft is adding more bot tools to its stable for developers and non-developers, including a tool for building Alexa stills using the MS Bot Framework
• Codename pick of the week: Bicep. Microsoft has started developing a new ARM desired-state language, codenamed as "Bicep." ARM as in Azure Resource Manager. Thanks to Aidan Finn for the link from the Build content about this
• Beer pick of the week: SlackTide Brewing Angry Osprey IPA. I haven't had this beer, but I chose it in honor of Slack's Stuart Butterfield, who continues to act like an angry osprey when it comes to Teams. It sounds like a good one – a west coast IPA with Citra and Centennial

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Mary Jo Foley, and Paul Thurrott

Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

Check out Mary Jo's blog at AllAboutMicrosoft.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Sponsors:

Windows 10 version 2004 is finally here

• Today's the day. And ... nothing is going to change, really.
• There is some new Cortana app info for the now standalone productivity aide
• And what about new features? Anything worth discussing?
• Meanwhile: What does Windows 10 usage share look like on the eve of 2004's launch?
• And it's almost time to ramp up the Windows 10 21H1 testing!
• Related: Windows 10 on ARM can now be installed virtually, but only on Windows 10 on ARM.
• Related: Source code for NT 3.5 and OG Xbox leaks
• Extension sync finally comes to Microsoft Edge. History sync is "this summer," and open tab sync is unclear.
• Why is Microsoft still pushing proprietary dev solutions for Windows apps?
• And on that note, This is what Microsoft said about PWAs at Build
• .NET MAUI is the future of Xamarin.Forms. But is it the real future for Windows dev?

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Mary Jo Foley, and Paul Thurrott

Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

Check out Mary Jo's blog at AllAboutMicrosoft.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Sponsor:

• Microsoft Build 2020!
• Microsoft is holding its first-ever virtual version of Build this week and there is a TON of news.
• And ScottGu is alive! And collecting stamps!
• Microsoft is finally unifying Win32/UWP development and decoupling it from specific Windows versions. Here's how it will work for new apps---let's call them Windows apps---and for existing apps that devs want to upgrade.
• Windows Subsystem for Linux 2, with GUI apps coming soon.
• Windows Terminal 1.0
• Windows Package Manager - Microsoft Store will eventually just be a front-end to this
• Microsoft Lists
• Microsoft Teams - new automations, plus template support
• Fluid Framework - open-source, end-user UX
• Project Cortex
• New consumer and work features coming...
• Collections is getting Pinterest and OneNote integration
• More new features: Sidebar search, new add-on store, automatic profile switching
• Microsoft now has the 5th-fastest supercomputer in the world.
• HoloLens 2 was quiet at Build, but it's getting 5G and is heading to more markets
• Microsoft is adding the ability to share running apps in Visual Studio Live Share, and it's also adding built-in chat and calling functionality to the IDEs.
• Tip of the week: Get the Build 2020 (virtual) swag! Can't go to Build this year? Neither can anyone else. But be sure to get the swag!
• App pick of the week: Microsoft PowerToys 0.81. PowerToys is turning into a cool collection of utilities, with one gotta-have-it: PowerToys Run.
• Enterprise pick of the week: Learn TV. If you like geeky Microsoft developer and engineering content, you may want to check out Learn TV, its newest video content channel: https://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-adds-new-learn-tv-video-channel-for-daily-technical-content/
• Codename pick of the week: Odyssey. That new massive supercomputer work seems to be codenamed Odyssey (at least based on a job posting or two).

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Mary Jo Foley, and Paul Thurrott

Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

Check out Mary Jo's blog at AllAboutMicrosoft.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Sponsors:

• Windows 10 version 2004 creeps towards completion
• No word yet on final release date, but we have new "final" build
• And Microsoft has released the Windows 10 version 2004 SDK
• Microsoft will fix cracked Surface Laptop 3 displays for free
• What really happened here?
• Surface Go 2, Surface Earbuds, and Surface Headphones 2 are now available for purchase
• A few more observations about Surface Go 2
• The rest of the new hardware arrives later this month
• Surface Duo emulator is updated again
• Microsoft finally takes on Reply-All storms, but only in Office 365 Commercial
• Outlook is getting a Smart Reply feature. Outlook on the Web, that is. Meaning Office/MS365 Commercial
• Microsoft Family Safety app arrives on Android, iOS in limited preview
• Build is next week - here's the agenda.
• Microsoft (Godzilla) takes on Amazon (King Kong)
• Microsoft accuses Amazon of secretly continuing its fight for the JEDI contract
• And then Amazon lashed out at Microsoft in a deliciously unprofessional post
• Sony says PS5 is on track for holiday 2020, PS4 has sold 110 million units.
• Tip of the week: 555-5555 (Jenny) I think I've figured out how to bypass the Microsoft account requirement in any recent version of Windows 10.
• App pick of the week: Halo 2 Anniversary for PC. 4K/UHD graphics/60+ fps for just $9.99!
• Enterprise pick of the week: Windows Autopilot program comes to ... HoloLens (?) Microsoft is testing a Windows Autopilot program for HoloLens 2, which implies it either is getting bulk orders from businesses for HoloLens or it thinks it can and will in the foreseeable future.
• Enterprise pick of the week 2: New branding (madness) for Microsoft 365 Apps. The artist formerly known as Office 365 ProPlus is getting a bunch of branding and ring changes. Hold onto your M365s, folks!
• Beer pick of the week: Night Shift Brewing Night Lite.

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Mary Jo Foley, and Paul Thurrott

Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

Check out Mary Jo's blog at AllAboutMicrosoft.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Sponsor:

Windows 10X Delayed "Because COVID"

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Mary Jo Foley, and Paul Thurrott

For full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/671

Sponsors:

Microsoft earnings are later today. A few predictions. Google's are in, and they are surprisingly good.
Cloud outlook: cloudy

• Microsoft outlines more steps it's taking to try to keep its cloud services up and running
• But constraint issues are still happening and no real details are available on how it's increasing capacity
• Related: Samsung's memory business is going gangbusters because of cloud providers like Amazon and Microsoft
• But ... will it last? And won't consumer demand for "stuff" overtake this again at some point?
• GitHub has back-to-back outages

Windows 10

• Windows 10 version 1909 now on 1/3rd of Windows 10 PCs
• OneDrive differential sync is finally rolled out to all users
• Intel unlocks graphics drivers

Microsoft 365

• Microsoft posts that Microsoft 365 consumer briefing -- and I checked, they communicated Teams consumer features properly
• Microsoft details new M365 features released/announced in April
• Interesting tidbit: You can open two Word or PPT documents now on iPad
• GSuite users can now directly manage Windows 10 devices
• Google Meet now free. Take that, Skype and Teams! Hm.
• Zoom chooses Oracle to expand its cloud infrastructure (over Azure, AWS, GWC).
• Microsoft patches GIF vulnerability in Teams
• Speaking of Teams, Planner in Teams is being rebranded as Tasks starting in May

Xbox

• Games with Gold for May is announced

Tips and picks

• Tip of the week: Turn your Microsoft Rewards into Mixer subscriptions. Mixer now lets you redeem your Microsoft Rewards points for channel subscriptions so you can use your Rewards to directly support your favorite streamer.
• App pick of the week: Stardock Curtains. Thanks to Windows 10's support for Dark Mode, it's now possible to skin this thing in an elegant way.
• Enterprise pick of the week: Windows Server containers now GA on Azure Kubernetes Service. Move over Linux. Windows Server container support is now available in AKS after a year in preview.
• Codename pick of the week: Santos. Microsoft has been dabbling with the idea of holoportation (telepresence) for a while. It may be getting more serious. Walking Cat found links to a couple of apps: Mirage and Santos, that could be related to this work. Mirage allows users to add a virtual monitor and Santos is some kind of teleconferencing client.
• Beer pick of the week: All Cats are Grey in the Dark. A "white" stout! It's a thing. There's a very good example of the style from Fat Orange Cat Brewing. Clocks in at a modest 7.2%. Tastes of coffee, vanilla, and a little chocolate. Definitely sweet and syrupy. It's worth trying: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/45814/332966/

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Mary Jo Foley, and Paul Thurrott

Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

Check out Mary Jo's blog at AllAboutMicrosoft.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Sponsor:

Microsoft 365 for consumers is here

• Microsoft has made the shift from Office 365 Personal/Home to Microsoft 365 Personal/Family
• What's changed? (Just the brand)
• What about all those new features that Microsoft promised?
• What about Teams? There's a lot of confusion about this one.

Mo' Microsoft 365

• Microsoft integrates Yammer into Teams. Is this the beginning of the end of Yammer?
• Skype gets custom background images

Surface

• It looks like a virtual launch for Surface Go 2 and Surface Book 3. And probably a new Dock and those Earbuds we all forgot about. Latest rumor: A bigger screen for Surface Go 2.

Windows 10

• Microsoft finally moves Windows 10 version 2004 into Release Preview. No tea leaves are needed: This is the beginning of the end. Or the end of the beginning.
• New Fast and Slow ring builds today too

Xbox

• New Xbox dashboard launches quietly, with no announcement
• Microsoft trademark application reveals the new X Series logo

Tips and picks

• Tip of the week: You don't necessarily have to pay for Microsoft 365. Here's what you get for free.
• App pick of the week: New web browsers. Vivaldi gets serious about tracking and ads. Opera adds Instagram integration
• Plus: Curtains for Windows 10 brings back the XP look and feel, more
• Plus: Fornite is finally in the Google Play Store
• Enterprise pick of the week: Microsoft Research podcast. One of the best podcast series at Microsoft these days is the Microsoft Research podcast. The breadth of the topics covered is fantastic. They also offer some excellent explanations of existing cutting-edge tech. (And they have full transcripts online, too.) Check it out: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/category/podcast/
• Codename pick of the week: Project Moca. Remember that Outlook Spaces feature that the Walking Cat unearthed a while back. Turns out, it's still under development and now goes by the "Project Moca" codename. (Thanks to one of our fans from Portland, Oregon, for the codename tipoff.)
• Beer pick of the week: Other Half All Together IPA. Other Half Brewing in Brooklyn has open-sourced a beer recipe, hoping other brewers will make versions of their own. This solid New England IPA called All Together, is meant as a benefit project for the hospitality industry workers who've been affected by COVID-19. All the proceeds are going to the Restaurant Workers Community Foundation. Keep an eye out for your local breweries' All Together releases.

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Mary Jo Foley, and Paul Thurrott

Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

Check out Mary Jo's blog at AllAboutMicrosoft.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Sponsors:

Neo, Duo, Windows 10X Delayed

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Mary Jo Foley, and Paul Thurrott

For full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/668

Sponsor:

Edge is #2!!!, MS Cancels all Live Events Until July, 2021

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Mary Jo Foley, and Paul Thurrott

For full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/667

Sponsor: