Windows Weekly (Video)

Well, look at that. Microsoft does have a Cortana strategy. The partnership will put Alexa on Cortana, Cortana on Alexa was initiated by Jeff Bezos over a year ago. What does this mean to Cortana, really, given its also-ran status? Is Cortana just another Alexa skill? And is Cortana on Windows 10 just another way to access Alexa? Related thought: We often describe Cortana's failure as a byproduct of Microsoft's mobile failures, but Amazon failed in mobile too. And remember: Amazon and Microsoft are the weakest among the 4 voice assistant vendors, in terms of total reach. Controversy of the week: NYPD dumps "useless" Windows phones. First, NY Post writes a scathing and accurate article about NYPD's terrible Windows phone adoption decision. Next, the person responsible for this decision writes a rebuttal. But here's the thing. The real reason they adopted WP was that the phones were free, as were the replacement phones they would get after two years. Who subsidized that little deal? Build(s) of the week: Windows 10. Two Inside Preview builds since the last show, 16275 and 16278 (or, three in one week). No more new features. Focus on ship-quality quality, stability. Windows Mixed Reality comes into focus for the holidays. Here's a nice workaround for getting Photoshop Elements 15 to work on Windows 10 S. Creators Update hits two-thirds of all Windows 10 PCs, but it's still lagging behind the Anniversary Update. Awesomeness of the week: Xbox One X. Microsoft's 4K console is off to a fast start. Microsoft confirms that the Xbox One X is the "fastest ever" Xbox for preorders.

• Tip of the week: Save Big on Groove Music Pass
• App pick of the week: ReCore Definitive Edition for Windows 10/Xbox One
• Enterprise pick of the week: Microsoft Unified Support
• Codename pick of the week: How to think about feature updates and Windows Server
• Beer pick of the week: x

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

Thanks to CacheFly for the bandwidth for this show.

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Google Enterprise is all about bringing business-level management to Chromebooks. So maybe Microsoft wasn't so crazy thinking Windows 10 S might appeal to business users. New Windows 10 Fall Creators Insider build just released today - no new features. Related: Windows 10 S finally heads to Insiders. New Windows Server 2016 1709 build – the 3rd Insider preview for Server – also is out. No new features. Xbox One X pre-orders and other Gamescom news. New console bundles, including one for Minecraft fans and more. RIP GigJam: We hardly knew you, Microsoft's oddly named collaboration/productivity tool. Microsoft and Red Hat extend their 2-year-old partnership with container, SQL Server support. Microsoft shares more about Brainwave, its AI platform running on FPGAs.

• App pick of the week: Newton for Windows 10
• App pick of the week #2: Office Lens for Android
• App pick of the week #3: Skype's new UI comes to (older) Windows
• Enterprise pick of the week: Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Marketing
• Codename pick of the week: Volta
• Beer pick of the week: Desthil Brewery's Blueberry Gose

Hosts: Fr. Robert Ballecer, SJ, 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

Thanks to CacheFly for the bandwidth for this show.

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

What did Microsoft know about problems with its Surface devices and when did officials know it? PT has seen a leaked memo and has the scoop - And some follow-up context. Even if Consumer Reports' methodology is questionable and MS has turned the corner, can Microsoft recover from being dinged? What does this incident mean for next-generation Surface-branded devices? For MS' relationship with Intel? Microsoft adds Windows 10 S support to new Surface Pro. NFL expands usage of Surface (Pro 4). Microsoft is changing Windows 10 to meet all of Kaspersky's demands Windows 10 Pro for Workstations is a thing. So now there are almost ten (or more, depending on how you count) different editions of Win 10. Three new SKUs this year alone: Windows 10 S, Windows 10 Business and now this. Windows 10 S: Yea or Nay? Brad: It's almost ready. Paul: Almost ready means "not ready." Intel's 8th generation Core processor reveal is August 21. Devices coming this holiday. .NET Core 2.0 is out. What is this thing? And why is Microsoft taking a mulligan on .NET? Microsoft buys Cycle Computing, a cloud orchestration company (that's partnered with AWS, Google, too). Microsoft takes the wraps off Azure Event Grid service. Shields up: LinkedIn Messaging is adding a new online presence feature that's turned on by default. (boo!) Xbox Insider Program is a bit more open, a lot more complex. The first Xbox Live Creators Program games are here.

• Tip of the week: You can finally edit contacts in Outlook for Android/iOS.
• App pick of the week: OneDrive for iOS
• Enterprise pick of the week: Coco Framework
• Codename pick of the week: Ice Lake
• Beer pick of the week: Victory Prima Pils Mark your calendars! Windows Weekly is coming to Microsoft Ignite in Orlando, and we're having a meetup the day before the show! Tuesday, Sept. 26 -- Starts 6 pm no RSVP at World of Beer/Dr. Phillips: https://worldofbeer.com/Locations/DrPhillips (Thanks to Gary Pretty for all the legwork for this one!)

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

Thanks to CacheFly for the bandwidth for this show.

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Xbox Fall Creators Update test builds start rolling out. Alpha Ring testers get a glimpse of what's coming. Interestingly, this build is 1710, which means it's target arrival date is October. Related: Microsoft revamps its stupid Xbox Insider Program rings. They're still stupid. In other Fall Creators Update news, new Windows Server 2016 Insider build adds support for WSL and Linux distributions. Latest Windows 10 Fall Creators Update build (from late last Wed.) adds eye tracking, new console colors, WDAG updates. New Outlook.com beta program kicks off. All Outlook.com users over the coming weeks will get option to try the beta. A look at some of the first potential features testers will see - plus a hands-on. If you really can't wait, you can get the beta now (but read the fine print.) Related: Microsoft's unified sign-in experience is live. Some hints about what's next for Skype for Business. Ignite session list reveals a few clues about what Microsoft may be planning for S4B. What else are we expecting at Ignite?

• App pick of the week: Spotify for Xbox One
• Enterprise pick of the week: If you're an Office 365 administrator, this site might be very interesting to you.
• Tweet of the week: Want to find a lot of cool women working at Microsoft to follow on Twitter? Check out this starter thread from SharePoint community blogger Tashas(E)v: https://twitter.com/TashasEv/status/894212192601374722
• Beer pick of the week: Dogfish Head SeaQuench
• Jamon of the week: Iberico - plus, try the Botifarra sausage, my god!

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

Thanks to CacheFly for the bandwidth for this show.

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Windows 10 Creators Update now "fully available," whatever that means. Windows 10 will get eye-tracking functionality. But is this for the Fall Creators Update? Later? Line up for your Mixed Reality Headset! (Some) Windows 10 S PCs for education are now available; and Windows 10 S is downloadable now for testing. Windows Subsystem for Linux is out of beta.

Surface Plus brings smartphone-like financing to people and businesses. You can now order new Surface Pen in the new colors.

Microsoft 365 Business goes live in preview. Azure will become an "AI cloud." Amazon may be ready to take on Microsoft in a new business.

Skype users on iPhone, Android phones now can send money directly via Skype using PayPal.

Microsoft delivers smaller Xbox wireless adapter for Windows, new controllers. Taco Bell renews its partnership with Xbox.

Microsoft's first Windows Hello peripheral is now available. Microsoft kills WordFlow, will focus on SwiftKey.

• Tip of the week: Games with Gold
• App pick of the week: Minecraft with cross-platform play
• Enterprise pick of the week: Dynamics 365 for Talent
• Codename pick of the week: Threshold
• Beer Pick of the Week: Kiwi's Playhouse

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

Thanks to CacheFly for the bandwidth for this show.

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

A rundown of some of the news from the Microsoft earnings announcement. The Great Paint Fiasco of 2017 and how many claimed that Microsoft said it was killing Paint. But it didn't. Actually, they're going to put it in the Store. It's where all apps go to die. New Insider build just out -- PC-phone linking, Cortana voice commands, etc. Windows Insiders can now skip ahead to Redstone 4 if they want. That means the Fall Creators Update is done. Surface Pro 4 got a massive set of firmware updates over the weekend. Plus, a Cortana-powered smart thermostat. And finally, Adobe kills Flash. Well, WILL kill Flash.

• Tip of the week: Buy a 1 TB Xbox One S Bundle, Get a Free Game
• App pick of the week: Kaspersky Free
• Enterprise pick of the week: Azure Container Instances
• Codename pick of the week: Project Rome
• Beer pick of the week: Gun Hill Citra Sour Soft Serve

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

Thanks to CacheFly for the bandwidth for this show.

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Windows 10 Fall Creators Update: It's almost soup. Meanwhile, the first Creators Update release is now on 50% of Win 10 PCs. Microsoft quietly issues a fix for Surface Pro hibernation problems Some have made a Surface Pro "light bleed" an issue. It's not. Related: More Surface Laptop color choices coming (for I7 models). Microsoft has now delivered 2 of the 8 LinkedIn top-priority integrations it set last December. People really hate the new Skype client app (and MS knows it). But at least Skype is coming to BMW 5-series cars. July update for Xbox One brings custom gamerpics, more.

• Tip of the week: You can (sort-of) backup your PC with Google Backup and Sync
• App pick of the week: Office Mobile for Windows 10 Insider Preview
• Enterprise pick of the week: SQL Server 2017 RC1
• Codename pick of the week: ReasoNet
• Beer pick of the week: Cloudwater Bergamot Sour

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

Thanks to CacheFly for the bandwidth for this show.

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Paul and Mary Jo are live at Microsoft's Inspire conference! Microsoft wraps cloud services into a single offering called Microsoft 365. Microsoft Azure Stack is ready to order from Dell EMC, HPE, and Lenovo. Microsoft adds three more apps to Office 365. Some changes in MS partner strategy/program after last week's layoff of 'several thousand' -- new channel manager role, focus on 6 key verticals and 4 'solution' buckets. Yes, Microsoft has big plans for its consumer customers. Do we see a Microsoft 365 for consumers in the future? Microsoft's latest Windows 10 Fall Creators Update test build adds DPI improvements. But where are all those major new features Microsoft promised at Build? Ubuntu is available on the Windows 10 Insider Preview now too. Paint.NET is coming to the Windows Store! Some new Surface Pro users reporting hibernation problems. Is this Surfacegate 2.0? Can Microsoft even make reliable PCs? Microsoft is closing a Surface Hub manufacturing plant. What's up? Surface Pro 4 updated to support new Type Covers.

• Tip of the week: Read, reply to, and send text notifications via your Android Handset
• App pick of the week: PlayStation Now - Play PlayStation 4 (and PS3) games on Windows 10!
• Enterprise pick of the week: Giant free MSFT ebook giveaway
• Rumor of the week (dispelled): Windows 10 Business
• Beer pick of the week: DC Brau El Hefe Speaks

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

Guest: Dona Sarkar

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

Thanks to CacheFly for the bandwidth for this show.

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

A new fiscal year is here. And it is bringing more changes to Microsoft's corporate structure. Windows 10: Microsoft pushes Timeline feature back to March 2018. Windows 10 Autopilot is another attempt to make Windows 10 deployment simpler. Microsoft is bringing its "privacy theater" interface to older Windows 10 versions. Windows App Studio is heading to the big Zune in the sky. Yes, Surface Mini was always real. We knew this. Microsoft buys Cloudyn.

• Tip of the week: Games with Gold and a great games sale
• App pick of the week: Stamp
• Enterprise pick of the week: Free Azure training courses
• Codename pick of the week: Brainwave
• Beer of the Week: Westbrook Gose

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

Thanks to CacheFly for the bandwidth for this show.

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Haarlem recap. A brief but direct word about the Petya ransomware attack. Windows 10 source code leaks - why this is not a big deal. Windows 10 Insider Preview build 16226 - Big changes to Microsoft Edge, emoji, OneDrive, and more. MS testing out a staged rollout to Insiders with Slow Ring. The Windows 10 Paradox. If Windows 10 is so secure, reliable, and fast, why do we need Windows 10 S? The future of Windows, UWP, and Windows Store is not UWP apps. Not exactly. New Surface devices are off to a strong start. Microsoft delays guest access in Teams. Big changes to Windows 10 (and Server) security in the Fall Creators Update. Nano Server is changing with a fall release. Xbox One/S and Xbox One X will download different game assets. COD: Modern Warfare Remastered goes standalone, finally. The bad news? It's way too expensive

• Tip of the week: Amazon Prime member? You can get the Nokia 6 for just $180
• App pick of the week: Instant Translate for Microsoft Edge
• Enterprise pick of the week: Dynamics 365 sales and marketing apps for SMBs
• Codename pick of the week: Potassium
• Beer pick of the week: Troeg's Nimble Giant

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

Thanks to CacheFly for the bandwidth for this show.

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.