Windows 10: Windows 10 version 1903: list of known issues growth, and growth, and growth

If you have followed the development of the Windows 10 version 1809 and 1903, you know that both versions were plagued by lots of bugs. Microsoft had to pull version 1809 even shortly after release and spend six weeks fixing issues before it released an updated version again to the public.

With Windows 10 1903, it appears that every update that Microsoft releases adds to the growing list of known issues. We keep track of those issues here and Microsoft does the same on its Docs website; the latter is an improvement over previous releases as it is now easier to keep track of all the bugs.

Microsoft released the September 2019 security updates for all supported versions of Windows last week. The update for Windows 10 version 1903 fixed a high CPU usage issue caused by Search/Cortana that some users experienced on their devices. The fix resolved the issue but it did introduce a number of new issues at the same time.



We talked about the Start Menu and Desktop Search issues that some users experienced after update installation; turns out, that is just one of the issues that the new update introduced.

Microsoft lists three additional issues that users may experience when they install the latest update for Windows 10 version 1903:

Issue 1: Audio volume may be quiet in games or different than expected

Microsoft notes that it has received reports from customers that audio is quieter than expected in certain computer games. The company implemented an audio related change in the new update for the operating system that "enabled certain games to query support and render multi-channel audio".

Microsoft plans to revert the change because "some games and some devices are not rendering multi-channel audio as expected" which causes them to sound different and may have missing channels.

Workaround: Microsoft suggests to disable multi-channel audio in the game settings of affected games if the option is available. Alternatively, customers may open the Windows Control Panel and disable multi-channel audio or virtual surround sound for these games if the options are available (means if the manufacturer added a Control Panel item).

Issue 2: Wi-Fi connections become unavailable for certain hardware configurations

The issue affects NEC devices with Intel Centrino 6205/6235 and Broadcom 802.11ac Wi-Fi card hardware. Wi-Fi connectivity is unavailable when these devices are upgraded to Windows 10 version 1903.

Microsoft notes that the Wi-Fi driver may have a yellow exclamation point in the Device Manager (open using Windows-X menu), the network icon in the System Tray area may show the "No Internet" icon, and the Network & Internet settings may show no available WiFi networks.

Workaround: Microsoft blocks updates to Windows 10 version 1903 on affected devices. Microsoft notes that customers who run affected NEC devices on Windows 10 version 1903 already may mitigate the issue by disabling and re-enabling the Wi-Fi adapter in the device manager. Wi-Fi connectivity is restored for the session in that case.

Issue 3: Chinese IME (Input Method Editor) may cause high CPU usage

Chinese IME (maybe other IME as well) may become unresponsive or cause high CPU usage on systems running Windows 10 version 1903. Microsoft notes that the issue affects CHS (Chinese Simplified) and CHT (Chinese Traditional) with Changjie/Quick keyboard.

Workaround: The following steps mitigate the issue according to Microsoft:

1. Select Start
2. Type services.msc and hit the Enter-key.
3. Locate the service Touch Keyboard and Handwriting Panel Service and double-click on it or long-press on it and select Properties.
4. Locate startup type and change it to manual.
5. Selet ok.

Closing Words


What is going on at Microsoft? The list of known issues increases and release quality seems to deteriorate with every update the company puts out.

Now You: What is your take on the whole situation?

Ghacks needs you. You can find out how to support us here (https://www.ghacks.net/support/) or support the site directly by becoming a Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/ghacks/). Thank you for being a Ghacks reader. The post Windows 10 version 1903: list of known issues growth, and growth, and growth appeared first on gHacks Technology News.

read more...

 

Win 7 and XP are the biggest losers with Windows 10's rapid growth


Windows 7 and XP are the biggest losers with Windows 10's rapid growth - US Government

Read more: http://www.neowin.net/news/windows-7...-us-government

ZDNet: http://www.zdnet.com/article/us-gove...tag=RSSbaffb68

 

Microsoft & Nintendo, necessary for Windows' mobile growth.

Okay, before you dismiss this post as wishful thinking please hear me out as I believe this is important if Microsoft wants to maintain growth in the mobile sector.

So we all know that Nintendo and DeNA formed a business/capital alliance. DeNA News

Now from what I gather DeNA only develops gaming apps for iOS and Android, and their games are "ok" to "excellent" for said systems.

But now that DeNA will be using Nintendo's Intellectual Property and game designers to create games, they have the ability to create
great fun games with very well known characters.

You may argue all you want how Xbox games are better but there is no denying Nintendo's popularity.

If someone at Microsoft hasn't already called DeNA to offer assistance on making a Nintendo gaming app portal for Windows Phone then drop what you are doing and call them
now!

Please don't think that I am advocating for Microsoft to promote Nintendo games more than their own Xbox games. I'm not. I know that if Microsoft wanted to they could blow away all the competition when it comes to gaming.

What I'd like for Microsoft to do is to grow in the consumer mobile arena, and I believe
having a popular brand like Nintendo, developing for Microsoft, would be a major benefit to Windows Mobile popularity and growth.

Who knows how DeNA is going to approach bringing Nintendo's games to mobile devices. Perhaps, due to the low amount of "disk" space on smartphones, they'll end up making a controller dock 'a-la'

iCade or MOGA with a game cartridge slot. Maybe there will be a minimum specs requirement making it necessary for a completely new device to made to play games. Because of this uncertainty,
it is imperative that Microsoft speak with DeNA and assist them in figuring out a way for Nintendo to also be included in the Microsoft store.

I enjoy using my Windows phone, and if gamers like me are given the opportunity to enjoy Nintendo and Xbox games on one device, we would buy that device in a heartbeat.

Please Microsoft, don't miss out on this opportunity.

 

Microsoft Cloud Growth Fuels Second quarter Results

Microsoft Corp. today announced the following results for the quarter ended December 31, 2017:

• Revenue was $28.9 billion and increased 12%
• Operating income was $8.7 billion and increased 10%
• GAAP net loss was $(6.3) billion and non-GAAP net income was $7.5 billion
• GAAP diluted loss per share was $(0.82) and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share was $0.96
• GAAP results include a $13.8 billion net charge related to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA)

"This quarter's results speak to the differentiated value we are delivering to customers across our productivity solutions and as the hybrid cloud provider of choice," said Satya Nadella, chief executive officer of Microsoft. "Our investments in IoT, data, and AI services across cloud and the edge position us to further accelerate growth."





The following table reconciles our financial results reported in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) to non-GAAP financial results. Additional information regarding our non-GAAP definition is provided below. All growth comparisons relate to the corresponding period in the last fiscal year.

GAAP results include a net charge of $13.8 billion related to TCJA, which is excluded from our non-GAAP results.

Microsoft returned $5.0 billion to shareholders in the form of share repurchases and dividends in the second quarter of fiscal year 2018.

"We delivered another strong quarter with commercial cloud revenue growing 56% year-over-year to $5.3 billion," said Amy Hood, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Microsoft. "Strong execution from our sales teams and partners is driving growth across our businesses."

Revenue in Productivity and Business Processes was $9.0 billion and increased 25% (up 24% in constant currency), with the following business highlights:

• Office commercial products and cloud services revenue increased 10% (up 10% in constant currency) driven by Office 365 commercial revenue growth of 41% (up 41% in constant currency)
• Office consumer products and cloud services revenue increased 12% (up 11% in constant currency) and Office 365 consumer subscribers increased to 29.2 million
• Dynamics products and cloud services revenue increased 10% (up 9% in constant currency) driven by Dynamics 365 revenue growth of 67% (up 68% in constant currency)
• LinkedIn contributed revenue of $1.3 billion during the quarter with sessions growth of over 20% for the fifth consecutive quarter

Revenue in Intelligent Cloud was $7.8 billion and increased 15% (up 15% in constant currency), with the following business highlights:

• Server products and cloud services revenue increased 18% (up 18% in constant currency) driven by Azure revenue growth of 98% (up 98% in constant currency)
• Enterprise Services revenue increased 5% (up 3% in constant currency) driven by Premier Support Services

Revenue in More Personal Computing was $12.2 billion and increased 2% (up 2% in constant currency), with the following business highlights:

• Windows OEM revenue increased 4% (up 4% in constant currency) driven by OEM Pro revenue growth of 11%
• Windows commercial products and cloud services revenue decreased 4% (down 5% in constant currency) due to the impact of a prior year large deal
• Gaming revenue increased 8% (up 8% in constant currency) driven by Xbox hardware revenue growth from the Xbox One X launch
• Search advertising revenue excluding traffic acquisition costs increased 15% (up 15% in constant currency) driven by higher revenue per search and search volume
• Surface revenue increased 1% (relatively unchanged in constant currency)

Microsoft will provide forward-looking guidance in connection with this quarterly earnings announcement on its earnings conference call and webcast.