One of the most popular hardware events, “Made by Google” is already in the news for quite long. Recently, it is buzzing the IT community for all the wrong reasons. A chain of leaks has been reported about the to-be-launched Google Pixel 4 Android phones and Google Pixelbook laptops.
This post tells what to expect from it and how to attend the Made by Google event. The conference will take place in New York, USA on Tuesday, Oct. 15, at 10 a.m. EDT/7 a.m. PDT. To attend the event physically, first you need to be there in NYC and second, you need an invitation from Google. Hard luck, huh!
Well, here is the good news. Google is going to stream every bit of the Made by Google hardware event on YouTube. The starting time converts to 7:30 PM in India, that makes it easy to follow along from home. Hence, set a reminder beforehand to avoid missing anything out.
What is there in it for you?
The rumours are flying around that the new Pixel4 Android phone is on its way having 5G support and 90-Hx refresh rate, along with an updated version of Google’s premium Chromebook laptops, Pixelbook, that might come in a brand new less-expensive variation too, most likely named as Pixelbook Go.
Some distant rumours suggest that we are most likely to get a next generation of Nest, Google’s popular speakers. Not only this, experts are predicting a whole new category of Google/Nest products under the Google Nest Hub lineup. The launch of long-awaited Pixel Watch and new AR/VR devices is also under the radar of netizens.
Yes, that is too much to expect but Google could always surprise us with something that's least expected. Let us wait and watch what Google hold in its hands.
Automate your inbox and enhance your organization by taking full advantage of what Gmail filters have to offer.
mail's filled with hidden features and add-on possibilities, but one of the service's most powerful organizational tools is sitting right in the heart of its regular settings.
As you may have guessed by now (especially if you read this story's headline, you clever little cat), I'm talking about filters — Gmail's long-standing system for automating your inbox with a series of custom-crafted rules. At a glance, filters can seem complicated. They can seem overwhelming. They can even seem unnecessary.
But don't let yourself be fooled by the feature's curiously crusty exterior. Gmail filters have the potential to completely reshape your inbox and the way your incoming messages are handled. They can help you keep your email in order with no ongoing thought or effort. And all it takes is a little one-time planning to get them working for you.
Part 1: Figuring out your Gmail filters
Let's start by thinking through some Gmail filter possibilities to get an idea for the sorts of setups you might want to consider — then, we'll go step by step through the process of creating them.
With Gmail filters, you could:
Ensure messages from specific high-priority senders always go into your inbox's Primary tab, where you're certain to see them
Ensure specific sorts of lower-priority messages — like invoices, reports, or updates from different services you use — automatically get sorted into an out-of-the-way location and never even show up in your inbox
Keep messages from annoying people out of your hair (but still available in case you need to find them) by automatically archiving them as soon as they arrive
Forward messages from a specific address or with a specific phrase in their subjects to other members of your team or family
Instantly respond to messages to or from a specific address with a prewritten template
Mark specific types of messages from yourself as reminders by giving them a bright yellow "REMINDER" label that makes them stand out in your inbox
Label messages sent to a specific variation of your Gmail address (like youraddress+vip@gmail.com) or written with a specific word or phrase in the subject (like "urgent," "important," or "hey jerkwad, pay attention to this") as "VIP" and then receive notifications only for messages with that designation
Get a snickerdoodle delivered to your desk every time your boss emails you
All right, so that last one isn't really possible (not yet, anyway) — just wanted to make sure you were still paying attention. Everything else in that list, however, is absolutely doable and actually quite easy to set up with Gmail filters.
Part 2: Creating your Gmail filters
The simplest way to start a new Gmail filter is to click the search box at the top of the Gmail website and then type in whatever you want to use as the basis for filtering — a word or phase that might appear within an email's subject or body, an address from which a message could originate, or any other variable you choose.
Once you've started typing, you'll see a small downward-facing arrow appear at the far right of the search box. Click it, say "hocus-pocus," if you'd like — and just like that, your first filter-related form will appear.
JR Raphael/IDG
The form for creating a filter is filled with options for controlling email automation. (Click image to enlarge it.)
That form is where you can customize exactly what conditions will cause your filter to run. Fill in the fields as appropriate, using any combination of variables you want — even employing operators like "AND" and "OR" within fields, if you really want to get fancy — and then click "Create filter" at the bottom of the box.
JR Raphael/IDG
You can use any combination of variables, even employing operators within a single field, to control when your filter will run. (Click image to enlarge it.)
One quick warning: By default, your filter will apply to any and all incoming messages — hence the "All Mail" setting that shows up next to the "Search" option in the filter creation pop-up. If you change that option to "Inbox," you're likely to see an error message informing you that the parameters you chose are not recommended and may not work properly. Leave that "Search" option set to "All Mail" — which is probably what you want, anyway — and you'll steer clear of any errors and allow things to work the way they should.
Now it's time for the fun part — the part where you decide exactly what happens when a message meeting your conditions arrives. You can select any combination of actions from the list and then configure them as needed. You can even tell Gmail to apply your filter retroactively to messages already in your account (as opposed to using it only for new messages that arrive from that point forward) by checking the "Also apply filter to matching conversations" option at the bottom of the box.
JR Raphael/IDG
Gmail's filters include a variety of actions that can execute when your conditions are met. (Click image to enlarge it.)
Once you've got that finished, click the blue "Create filter" button — and that's it: Your new Gmail filter is officially in place and active. The next time any message comes in that meets the parameters you outlined, the actions you specified will automatically take place faster than you can say "sweet G Suite."
Part 3: Managing your Gmail filters
Last but not least, make yourself a mental note in case you ever need to adjust your filters in the future: If you want to edit, delete, or even just revisit a filter you created, just click the gear-shaped icon in the upper-right corner of the Gmail website, click "Settings," then click the "Filters and Blocked Addresses" tab at the top of the settings screen. You'll see every filter you've ever created there and can tweak or remove any of 'em with a couple quick clicks.
Ah...automation. Sweet G Suite, it's a spectacular power to wield.
Most file-sharing services have evolved into full-blown collaboration platforms. We look at 10 online services ranging from basic to enterprise-level.
File-sharing options
In 2004, if you tried to share a large file, you had two options. 1: Use a file-sharing service like YouSendIt, which was brand new at the time. Or 2: Copy the file to a disc and hand (or mail) it to the recipient, a practice known not so affectionately as ‘sneakernet.’
Today, as far as file sharing goes, we have nearly endless options. Dropbox, Box, Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive and Hightail — formerly YouSendIt — are among the services that enable you to share big files easily, as well as store them in the cloud, sync them across multiple devices, and collaborate on them with colleagues and clients. But there are plenty of others, ranging from basic services for consumers (Amazon Drive) to security-conscious, enterprise-level services (Tresorit).
The services we’ve chosen are listed here in alphabetical order and cover the range of options available. (This isn’t an exhaustive catalog of all services). To check file transfer times for each, I uploaded a 195MB ZIP file using an internet connection with an average 40.6 megabits/second upload speed.
Amazon Drive
Amazon Drive no longer offers an unlimited storage plan. Its pricing is attractive, however, at $12/year for 100GB and $60/year for 1TB. But upload speed was the slowest of all services tested except for ShareFile, which automatically scans files for malware. (Amazon Drive doesn’t.)
There are the requisite desktop and mobile apps for accessing and sharing files, but overall, Amazon Drive offers only basic functionality. You can sync your entire Documents folder from your computer, for instance, but you can’t choose specific folders within that folder to sync. Amazon Drive is probably best suited for photo backup for Prime members, who get unlimited photo storage. For everyone else, Amazon Drive feels like a neglected service offering from a company with the proverbial bigger fish to fry. Free account storage space: 5GB (for Amazon Prime customers) Free account max file size: 2GB (up to 48.82GB if uploaded through desktop app) Paid accounts: 100GB, $12/year; 1TB, $60/year. (See plan details.) Paid account max file size: 2GB (up to 48.82GB if uploaded through desktop app) Time to upload 195MB file: 4 min., 30 sec.
Box
It’s nearly impossible to talk aboutBoxwithout mentioningDropbox(and vice versa), as the two are frequently pitted against each other. Box has always been geared toward businesses and enterprises, while Dropbox was largely focused on consumers and SMBs. But in the past year, both services have upped their game while going full-throttle into enterprise collaboration and cloud content management via integrations with G Suite and other services.
If you’re looking to kick Box’s tires, there’s a free plan for individuals that offers 10GB of storage, a 250MB file upload limit, and not much else — but 10GB is generous as free plans go.
Box has sometimes been criticized for being unintuitive. A recent refresh has helped, but with separate desktop clients for accessing files and creating shared notes, Box could use a bit more streamlining.
Free account storage space: 10GB
Free account max file size: 250MB
Paid accounts:Personal Pro, 100GB, $10/month. Business plans range from $5/user/month for 100GB to $25/user/month and up for unlimited storage. (Seeplan details.)
Paid account max file size: Personal Pro, 5GB; Starter Business, 2GB; Business, Business Plus and Enterprise, 5GB.
Additional features with business plans:Desktop sync; mobile app access; version history; SSL and at-rest encryption; two-factor authentication; Active Directory and Single Sign-On integration (Business, Business Plus, and Enterprise only).
Time to upload 195MB file: 44 sec.
Citrix ShareFile
ShareFile, which Citrix acquired in 2011, creates a custom file-sharing site for your business, so you can share files easily with clients, partners, co-workers and others. For example, your accountant might use ShareFile to securely share tax documents with you. The service offers lots of compelling features and tools for business users, including workflow management, document collaboration, e-signatures and integration with Microsoft Outlook and Gmail. Security is robust, too, with customizable permissions settings. The ShareFile dashboard makes it easy to add new users and toggle between personal and shared folders. Full-featured apps are available for Android, iOS, and Windows. But ShareFile offers no free plan. You can try it free for 30 days, however — no credit card required. Free account storage space: N/A Free account max file size: N/A Paid accounts: Standard, unlimited storage, $10/month; Advanced, unlimited storage, $77/month for 5 users; Premium, unlimited storage, $122/month for 5 users; Virtual Data Room, 5GB, $338/month for 5 users. (See plan details.) Paid account max file size: Standard, Advanced, and Premium, 100GB; Virtual Data Room, 5GB. Other paid options include: Unlimited client users; feedback and approvals workflow; activity logs; versioning; third-party integrations. Time to upload 195MB ZIP file: 5 min., 25 sec. (including automatic malware scanning)
Dropbox
As previously mentioned, Dropbox and Box are arch-competitors now, as both are courting the enterprise market. (Dropbox used to focus largely on individual and small- to midsize business accounts.) Both offer a healthy ecosystem of integrated third-party apps that make the services more robust. Both have continually evolved and improved to the point that, for most organizations, either one is a great option.
The choice may come down to money. Dropbox is less expensive for individuals — $10/month gets you 2TB of storage, while a personal Box plan for $10 only offers 100GB of storage. But Box can be less expensive for businesses. Its Business plan costs $15/user/month for unlimited storage, while Dropbox Advanced business plan offering unlimited storage costs $20/user/month.
Earlier this year, Dropbox overhauled its desktop client, making it more useful vs. something that just runs in the background. Using the Dropbox client, you can create and organize Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides files, with links to those documents embedded in the desired Dropbox folders; share files and send messages in Slack; write comments on files; and more. It’s a nice upgrade that boosts productivity, especially if you use Office and G Suite (which I do). Free account storage space: 2GB Free account max file size: None Paid accounts: For individuals: Plus, 2TB, $10/month; Professional, 3TB, $16.58/month; For businesses: Standard, 3TB, $12.50/user/month; Advanced, unlimited, $20/user/month; Enterprise, unlimited storage, rates not listed. (See plan details.) Paid account max file size: None Additional features with business plans: 120 days of file recovery; 256-bit AES and SSL/TLS encryption; admin console and audit log; remote device wipe; 24/7 phone support (Enterprise plan only). Time to upload 195MB file: 46 sec.
Google Drive
If you’re firmly ensconced in the Google ecosystem, Google Drive is a no-brainer, since it integrates with Google’s productivity and other apps. Even if you’re not locked into Google’s world, Google Drive is worth considering, particularly since Google gives users 15GB of free storage (shared with other Google services). And its rates are competitive — 200GB is just $30/year.
With the Backup and Sync desktop client, you can choose which of your Windows or macOS computer folders to continuously sync to Google Drive — you don’t have to keep files in a designated folder, as you do with some services. Google Drive’s file organization isn’t as intuitive as it could be. But collaborating on documents in real-time, via Google Drive and Google productivity apps, is as good as it gets. Free account storage space: 15GB Free account max file size: 5TB (with some exceptions) Paid accounts: For individuals: 200GB, $2.50/month; 2TB, $10/month; 10TB, $100/month; 20TB, $200/month; 30TB, $300/month. For businesses, with Drive Enterprise account: unlimited storage, $8/active user/month. For businesses, with G Suite account: $6/user/month for 30GB; $12 to $25/user/month plans include unlimited storage. (See plan details for individuals and businesses.) Paid account max file size: 5TB (with some exceptions) Additional features with business plans: 24/7 phone and email support; controls for security, privacy and compliance; centralized admin console; audit and reporting. Time to upload 195MB file: 45 sec.
Hightail
Formerly YouSendIt, Hightail features an interface built around shared Spaces, making it well-suited for group collaboration. When you create a new Space, you name and define the project’s goal. You can request approvals on video, photo, and other files in your Space from others; track all recent activity; and keep drafts private but still share them with access codes.
Hightail plays well with other file sharing services, too. You can drag and drop files into a Space from your computer, Dropbox, Google Drive, and OneDrive. Hightail is versatile, with third-party app integration, apps for iOS and Android, and macOS and Windows apps, with automatic desktop folder syncing.
There are two different types of plans: file sharing (meant for individuals) and creative collaboration, which includes file sharing and additional features meant for teams. Hightail recently downgraded the file-size send limit from 250MB to 100MB for its free ‘Lite’ plan, unfortunately, and increased its pricing. Free account storage space: 2GB Free account max file size: 100MB Paid accounts: Pro, unlimited storage, $12/month; Teams, unlimited storage, $24/user/month; Business, $36/user/month. (See plan details.) Paid account max file size: Pro, 25GB; Teams, 50GB; Business, 100GB. Additional features with paid plans: Expiration date control; delivery notifications; tracking for sent files; password protection; phone support. Time to upload 195MB file: 49 sec.
MediaFire
MediaFire is a lesser-known file sharing/storage service. But with competitive rates and a free plan offering 10GB of storage (comparable to Box’s free plan), it may be worth a test drive for the budget-minded. The ad-supported free service lets you upload files up to 4GB in size, which is also generous, and automatically scans files for viruses, a feature not every file syncing service offers.
You can share file links on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, and Blogger and generate a one-time download link. MediaFire is easy to use, too, with an intuitive interface. But heads up: While there are capable mobile apps for Android and iOS, MediaFire doesn’t offer a Windows or macOS client. Free account storage space: 10GB Free account max file size: 4GB Paid accounts: Pro,1TB, $3.75/month; Business: up to 100TB, $40/month for up to 100 users. (See plan details.) Paid account max file size: Pro and Business plans:20GB Additional features with business plan: Ad-free downloads and sharing; download entire folders; upload from any website; customizable branding; detailed security log. Time to upload 195MB ZIP file: 1 min., 39 sec. (including virus scan)
Microsoft OneDrive
Microsoft’s OneDrive had an awkward youth, stumbling from name to name: Windows Live Folders, Windows Live SkyDrive, SkyDrive, and now OneDrive. And as is often the case with Microsoft, OneDrive features and capabilities can vary from one version (such as personal and business accounts) to another.
Nonetheless, OneDrive integrates nicely (no surprise) with Microsoft Office 365 and Microsoft’s mobile apps and offers real-time collaboration in Office documents. A free plan gives you 5GB of storage — more than Dropbox but considerably less than Google Drive. Office 365 Personal subscribers get 1TB of included OneDrive storage, a nice bonus, while Office 365 Home subscribers get 6TB of storage — a healthy boost from the 1TB this plan used to offer. OneDrive recently began offering ransomware detection and recovery to paid plans as well. Free account storage space: 5GB Free account max file size: Not disclosed. Paid accounts: For individuals: Storage only, 100GB, $2/month; Office 365 Personal, 1TB, $70/year; Office 365 Home, 6TB (1TB each for 6 users), $100/year; additional storage available for Office 365 Personal and Home users, ranging from 200GB for $2/month to 1TB for $10/month. For businesses: Storage only, 1TB per user, $5/user/month or unlimited, $10/user/month; Office 365 Business Premium, 1TB per user, $12.50/user/month. Enterprise Office 365 plans are also available. (See plan details for individuals, small business, and the enterprise.) Paid account max file size: 15GB Other paid options include: Ransomware detection and recovery; 24/7 phone support; advanced data-loss protection; preservation of deleted and edited documents for eDiscovery. Time to upload 195MB file: 52 sec. [ Related: Microsoft OneDrive cheat sheet ]
SugarSync
SugarSync has a slightly confusing usage model. You can designate any file folders on your hard drive to be synced to the cloud — you don’t need to keep everything in a designated folder, a la Dropbox. To sync folders, you right-click them (after installing the SugarSync desktop client). But just in case you want a designated folder, the service automatically creates a syncing folder on your computer called My SugarSync (formerly Magic Briefcase).
Beyond Microsoft Outlook, there are no integrated third-party tools or even two-factor authentication, either of which could be a deal breaker for business users. Also worth noting: There’s no free plan, but there is a free 5GB trial plan. Bottom line: SugarSync is intuitive to use and checks most file sharing/storage/syncing service boxes but misses some big ones. Free account storage space: N/A Free account max file size: N/A Paid accounts: For individuals, 100GB, $7.50/month; 250GB, $10/month; and 500GB, $19/month. For businesses: 1TB for 1 to 3 users, $55/month; up to $133/month for 9 users; ‘custom’ for 10 or more users (price not available on website). (See plan details.) Paid account max file size: No maximum. Other paid options include: Outlook integration; 256-bit AES encryption; user management. Time to upload 195MB file: 57 sec.
Tresorit
European cloud storage company Tresorit gained recognition with its hacking contest a few years back, offering $50,000 to anyone who could hack into its servers. Tresorit claims no one succeeded. Clearly, the company is going after the security-conscious, promising end-to-end encrypted file sharing and syncing, HIPAA and GDPR compliance, the protection of Swiss privacy laws, non-convergent cryptography, and other security measures. Most recently, Tresorit added data residency options available upon request to customers in the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Canada, Virginia and California.
Tresorit offers a variety of personal, business and enterprise plans. It’s fairly easy to use, and you can designate any folder (called a ‘Tresor’) on your hard drive for syncing. Tresorit offers a free plan but it only lets you send files up to 5GB; you can’t store documents. The free trial is for only 14 days and you’re required to input a credit card number. Free account storage space: N/A Free account max file size: N/A Paid accounts: For individuals, 200GB ($10.42/month); 2TB ($24/month). For businesses: Small business, 1TB per user, $20/user/month, for up to 9 users; Business, 1TB per user, $24 user/month (currently discounted to $12); Enterprise, “custom encrypted storage space” for $24/user/month. (See plan details.) Paid account max file size: 10GB Other paid options include: Outlook integration; admin console; branding; zero-knowledge protection. Time to upload 195MB file: 1 min., 3 sec.
Conclusions (and a recommendation)
Chances are that by now, you’re already ensconced in a file-sharing/syncing service. If so, there may be no need to switch, especially given how similar many of these services have become in terms of features.
However, if you’re dissatisfied and ready for change, Dropbox is my top choice. I’ve been a user since 2008 and never had an issue. The service is supported by a large ecosystem of apps, it’s easy to use and share files with others, and it continues to evolve in positive ways. Though some dislike its revamped Dropbox desktop app, I appreciate the extra features it puts within reach, such as the ability to quickly create G Suite files. That said, Box, Google Drive, and Microsoft OneDrive are all great choices for most users, depending upon your needs and budget.
Of the 10 services I checked out, I’m not impressed with Amazon Drive at all and only marginally impressed with SugarSync. Amazon Drive feels like a sorely neglected, slow, overpriced offering from a company too busy trying to rule the world to bother. SugarSync is fine; I like the fact you don’t have to use a dedicated folder for syncing, as you do with Dropbox. But there doesn’t appear to be much feature development going on with SugarSync, either.
Remember the problematic rollout of last year's fall update to Windows 10? Microsoft would just as soon forget it happened, and hopes users do, too.
As expected, Microsoft never put Windows 10 1809 on a majority of users' PCs, instead sidestepping the problem-hounded upgrade that was delayed by months earlier this year.
According to AdDuplex, a Lithuanian company whose metrics technology is embedded in thousands of Windows Store apps, Windows 10 1809 powered 26% of surveyed Windows 10 systems as of Sept. 25. The decline from August was small, only 3 percentage points, yet it was the largest since the version peaked in May.
Windows 10 1809, unlike its predecessors, never powered even a third of all Windows 10 systems: It peaked at 31% in May. That was at odds with its immediate precursor, Windows 10 1803, which hit 90% for a high, and the upgrade before that, version 1709, which pegged 92% before falling.
Instead, Microsoft pushed Windows 10 1809 into the background, for all intents skipping past it to instead offer Windows 10 1903 to most users after it was released. That upgrade, also known as "Windows 10 May 2019 Update" (Microsoft abandoned descriptive naming at the end of 2017), got a slow start but by August was on 33% of all Windows 10 machines. A 13-percentage point increase in September pushed that number to 46%, making 1903 the most-installed version of Windows 10.
The switcheroo from the usual meant that Microsoft never aggressively delivered Windows 10 1809 to its forerunner, 1803 - last year's spring upgrade - as it should have by former practice. Windows 10 1803 has plunged in its share of all Windows 10 PCs - last month it was on just 24% of the total. But the beneficiary of that decline was not the next in line (1809) but the one after that (1903).
Microsoft is responsible for the shunning of 1809; it isn't something that happened organically. Why? Because through 1809's release - originally slated for October 2018 but effectively delayed until early 2019 because of problems, including data loss experienced by customers who upgraded before the company shut off the spigot - Microsoft was the sole determiner of how quickly a feature upgrade was adopted by unmanaged PCs.
Because it declined to follow its own up-to-then rules, millions of Windows 10 users were left running 1803 rather than upgraded to 1809. That was a problem because the former was scheduled to fall off the support list on Nov. 12, 2019, at least for Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro users. And if they weren't running 1809 they were soon going to be forced to upgrade to something else. Like 1903.
Normally, that wouldn't be a problem: There was plenty of time between May 21 - when 1903 debuted - and Nov. 12 to push that version to everyone, including the people running 1803. (Remember, the six-month interval between those two dates was exactly the same as the usual six-month stretch between feature upgrades.) But Microsoft had monkeyed up the cadence by, in April, suddenly handing to users a considerable amount of control over upgrade timing with the "Download and install now" option in Windows 10 Home (and Windows 10 Pro users who relied on Windows Update). The option let them decide when to download and install a feature upgrade, a responsibility Microsoft had jealously guarded.
Ironically, by giving users upgrade oversight, Microsoft threatened to completely upset the release schedule. Could Microsoft assume that users would upgrade in time so that they stayed in support? No. Why not? Because users had never voluntarily migrated from one version of Windows to another version in such a short amount of time. Instead, they took years to affect a voluntary change. (Don't believe it? Just look at the time it's taken to reduce Windows 7 from its 2015 peak of 61%.)
Faced with the choice between a) giving Windows 10 users, all of them, including Home and Pro, freedom to choose their upgrade moment and b) total chaos, with huge portions of Windows 10's consumer base unsupported, unprotected and under attack from hackers, Microsoft did the right thing and picked the former. But it needed a mechanism to keep the chaos at bay.
That's why the company reserved for itself an exception to "Download and install now." It would intervene and initiate an auto-install when the version on the machine neared end of support. Microsoft announced the start of 1803-to-1903 forced upgrades on July 16 or four months before 1803's slated retirement. The AdDuplex data reflected that, with 1903 climbing 5 points in July (while 1803 declined just over 4 points) but exploding with gains in August (up almost 22 points, as 1803 fell by almost 21 percentage points).
Notice the nearly tit-for-tat gain/loss when comparing Windows 10 1903 and 1803, another sign of Microsoft's "interference" in the upgrade of the former.
With less than two months before Windows 10 1803 leaves support, Microsoft still has work to do, although that work looks manageable. Undoubtedly, there will be some running 1803 after the support deadline, including PCs that cannot be upgraded because of unresolvable issues or those Microsoft doesn't address in time. (Check here for the most-current list of blocking problems.)
Interestingly, the biggest takeaways from the entire skip-1809-and-go-directly-to-1903 muddle was Microsoft showing customers that it is possible to blow by one of the every-six-months feature upgrades. And that the idea that every feature upgrade needed to be accepted and installed to serve the Windows-as-a-Service (WaaS) model was on a shaky foundation. And that customers would first tolerate, then embrace, the rapid release tempo.
And finally, it showed that Microsoft can be a master in making lemonade from lemons, or at least convincing customers that what they had in hand was lemonade.
IDG/Gregg Keizer
Data from analytics vendor AdDuplex shows that Microsoft's forced upgrades from Windows 10 1803 to 1903 has been successful so far and that skipping the intervening 1809 worked. (Data: AdDuplex.)
Popular collaboration tools are helping Accenture, Autodesk and others save money, increase efficiency, drive innovation and improve communication throughout their organizations.
Throughout enterprises large and small, collaboration apps and services are breaking down silos, connecting colleagues in more effective ways and resulting in stronger employee engagement. These tools are enabling companies to transition to a purely digital world and transform business operations with relative ease.
The collaboration category is of increasingly keen interest today as enterprises seek out every competitive advantage and method to cut costs, improve communications and reduce points of friction throughout their organizations. There are many flavors of collaboration tools in the enterprise today, including group-chat apps, shared work areas, videoconferencing services, web meeting platforms, group task-management apps, and more.
While interest in this space grows, so too does the number of vendors that hope to become leading collaboration providers in the modern workforce, but there’s room for many to succeed. “Collaboration is many things to many people, and since needs can be very different, there’s no one leading product, no silver bullet to improve collaboration in every scenario,” says Adam Preset, senior director analyst of digital workplace engagement at Gartner.
Text-chat-based apps like Slack and Microsoft Teams are receiving much of the attention in the collaboration space, but they are also among the most rudimentary or limited tools on the market today. “The immediacy of chat-based apps is compelling because workers want to share information and make decisions faster,” Preset says. While instant messaging has been around for decades, consumer messaging services like SMS, iMessage and WhatsApp have made people more comfortable with using chat everywhere, including their place of work, according to Preset.
What makes collaboration apps such a critical component of the enterprise today? “The conversation element is the glue that holds together other collaborative elements, such as shared files, meetings, or tasks and processes,” Preset says. “We can’t overstate the importance of persistence, of always being able to go back to reread a message thread, of being able to spin up a quick meeting with the same teammates easily, and to have all our files for one team or one project in one place.”
To gain a deeper understanding of the collaboration space, Computerworld spoke with IT leaders at four organizations that have achieved varying degrees of digital transformation by embracing these tools. No two companies are the same, and neither are the experiences that businesses have with these tools.
Have you ever wanted to connect an external microphone to your smartphone for better audio recording? If so, let me clarify it won’t work straight away and you need to keep some things in mind.
So it all started when I decided to upgrade my Windows 8 laptop to Windows 10. The installation failed and what I was left with was a laptop that had no OS, since Win 8 was removed and Win 10 wasn’t installed.
I decided to do a clean installation of Windows 10 now, but for that I had to delete and format my hard disk which means losing my factory default Windows recovery partition. Well, whatever be the case, using the below freeware you can also create your own dedicated Recovery Partition in Windows 7, 8 or 10 (both 32 and 64 bits).
The software is called as AOMEI OneKey Recovery. Although it is more of a paid software but it also comes in a free version with limited features but enough for us to create a recovery partition. Do note here that by recovery partition I mean, a dedicated drive on your hard disk that can come useful in case of system crash or issues (I don’t mean any bootable CD or USB recovery drive).
Important Points to note before proceeding
• You won’t see any new drive in your My Computer section but your primary drive will show something around 20GB less of memory space. This is because this software keeps the current state of the Windows in it’s own memory and uses its own recovery feature to recover the system.
• You will see a prompt every time you boot up your computer that will ask you if you want to recover your system or not, by pressing F11 or A (the key that you setup). This prompt will stay for 3 seconds and if you are using the free edition of the software then you won’t be able to reduce the time or hide the prompt.
Click on OneKey System Backup option to backup the current state of the system as a new partition. Do note here that this software doesn’t affect your files/data but I would advise you to have your own backup created just in case.
OneKey System recovery is for recovering from the backups already created.
Step 3:
Proceed with the selected (Recommended) option that is to backup system to AOMEI OneKey Recovery Partition.
This is required to provide the backup location, which is going to be a dedicated partition in our case.
Step 4:
Now as a part of the process you will need to select the drive. Since I had only one drive in the laptop, I selected that and clicked the “Start Backup” button.
Step 5:
Partition creation and backup process will start and your computer will reboot as a part of the process.
Step 6:
Just wait for the process to complete and the confirmation box to show “System Backup is completed successfully”.
The whole process took me around 15-16 minutes but it will vary depending on your system speed and data to be backed up.
Below is the screenshot of my disk partitions (you can see yours by going in Disk Management) and as you can see AOMEI has reserved something around 19 GB of memory for creation of the recovery partition.
