Welcome to our twentieth year

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ISSUE 20.02 • 2023-01-09 FROM THE PUBLISHER By Susan Bradley Time flies. It seems like only yesterday. Out of the blue, I got an email from Brian Livi
[See the full post at: Welcome to our twentieth year]

Susan Bradley Patch Lady

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mledman, jonaw, mpw, WSGeo, fisher75, opti1, Steve S., pmbinc, ibe98765, Captain Al, abbodi86, jburk07, SueW, Seff, DLivesInTexas, rc primak, wdburt1, oldfry, Wayne, Alex5723

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“I prefer email, because it comes to me and I don’t need to search for it, so I’d like to continue that way. It just works.”

Exactly correct. No more unnecessary links.

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opti1

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As a long-term reader at 78, I consistently delay updates until your all clear signal at the end of each month, and so far so good.

Thank you Susan, again, for taking over when you did and keeping it all going.

My only question is how come the KB number of the cumulative download in the basic sequence of Resume downloads, the download of CU and .Net and monthly anti-Malicious Crap files, and the installation never seems to appear in the Patch Lady articles? I assume that during the month many (most even?) readers do not download KB files or any of the individual updates normally described and like me may have no idea what to do with the information offered. Is it correct that the end-of-month CU allowed the Defcon 4 rating includes all the updates previously described?

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I’m not sure I follow you?  Depending on the version of the software you are using you should see the cumulative update.  These days windows doesn’t offer up individual updates, it’s just one.  .NET updates are the funky ones where there is a parent KB but depending on the .NET you have you’ll actually install one of the “child” patches.  But when you go to windows update it shows you the Parent number, when you view installed updates, it will show one of the child numbers.  Is that what you are asking about?

Susan Bradley Patch Lady

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Wayne

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From Patch Watch December 19:

Microsoft has re-released KB5012170, the security update for Secure Boot DBX, so that it will be offered to PCs running Windows 10 22H2 or Windows 11 22H2. I do not recommend that consumers and home users install KB5012170; if BitLocker encryption is enabled, installing the fix may trigger the request for a BitLocker recovery key.

There have also been some reports (Reddit) of Blue Screens of Death in Windows 10 22H2. This may be related to KB5012170.

————–

However, on January 5, I resumed updates and installed KB5021233, an update number I don’t recall seeing before. Since I install updates according to the Defcon advice, it usually happens between the first of the month and the second Tuesday, after which I Pause Updates for five weeks. Unless you specifically tell us to install an emergency patch earlier, I would never consider installing one like the KB5012170 discussed on December 19.

Even when the final “Do it now!” advice has been given, I don’t recall seeing the installed KB number cited. Hence my puzzlement . . .

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I have the boot patch as defer on the top of the list since it pertains to many OSs

I have the December update as tentative

Susan Bradley Patch Lady

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Wayne

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I took “Tentative” at the end of December to mean “Probably OK for most of you, go for it with fingers crossed” given the improved Defcon status so I did as described above in early January and all was well with my desktop and both laptops. I was again puzzled that the CU number ultimately installed didn’t match any of in-between patches previously discussed, but hey, all’s well that ends well.

Thank you for taking the time to respond (as always).

 

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These snippets serve as bookends for today’s AskWoody Plus Newsletter:

Susan Bradley:
“These days, the big vendors are pushing stuff to us whether we want it or not — and at their pace, not ours. So few of these new Apple and Microsoft ‘features’ are exciting. They’re either tiny, incremental changes or radical UI alterations.”

Will Fastie:
“At every turn, it seems we are losing control of the personal technology that has been an important part of our lives and businesses since the birth of the IBM PC. We’ve made billionaires out of the people who drove forward with innovation and brought us all this tech, with which we’ve been able to do great things of our own.

But we’ve become trapped as a result. Microsoft, Apple, Google, and — sadly — Dymo are setting the rules for us, not catering to our needs or even our whims. Software quality is dropping; to replace that, we’ve become a permanent beta-tester class. Our feedback is rarely heard, much less acted upon. We are struggling to tame our tech… What are we going to do about that? Will the Borg prevail?”

My last updates to Windows 7 were in 2017. I have continued to use Win7 without incident, following strategies discussed here:

https://www.askwoody.com/forums/topic/keep-running-windows-7-safely-for-years-to-come/

Now that Chrome (and Brave) are ending support for Win7, and Firefox reportedly is studying doing so in the months ahead, our hands are being forced. Many users have adopted Windows 10 or 11, perhaps with third-party programs to make it more like Win7. I find it hard to work up much excitement about that approach.

After long hours of plowing through “Internet knowledge” about Linux Mint, I came across a review that concisely summarized what it offers:

“Ironically, one of the things that make Linux Mint unique is that it’s not trying to be [unique]. By mimicking the last beloved version of Windows rather than coming up with something different, Mint has been leading the charge when it comes to converting users from Windows to Linux. A gateway drug, if you will.

The current iteration of Cinnamon is reminiscent of Windows 7, with absolutely no trace of Microsoft’s tiled missteps in Windows 8 and 10. Linux newcomers, older users, and folks who miss the elegant simplicity of 95 through 7 era Windows will all love Linux Mint.”

(Adam Overa, “Everything You Need to Know About Linux Mint,” https://www.makeuseof.com/what-is-linux-mint/)

I have said before that I would pay for a version of Windows 7 that received security updates and perhaps even other updates, especially if they are optional. If Overa is right, Linux Mint is becoming that alternative.

To the point made by Will Fastie, in free trade both sides benefit from the transaction. They are better off that they would have been without it. That does not mean both sides got all they wanted. It is always a struggle between producer and consumer. Both want “more.” Producers like Microsoft get the upper hand when competitors fail (or are bought out, which often follows a decline in company valuation), and very often that is because the original business model is broken.

Microsoft and other tech companies found that they could not make enough money being paid once for a software package. They kept improving Windows until many users found that they would rather continue using the version they have than upgrade. It didn’t help that Microsoft more or less ran out of marketable ideas at the same time. Its attempts to pitch what Susan calls “radical UI changes” as positive and worthwhile innovation fell flat and were quickly seen as a case of changing something because you need something to sell. So Microsoft, like Adobe and other purveyors of software, resorted to pushing unwilling consumers into subscription plans and making their software increasingly a platform for selling stuff.

All this is old news here, of course.

At this point I have one foot out the door. I will continue to use Win7 on my offline computer. The Internet computer is likely to be converted to Linux Mint.

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wavy, guthrie, Steve S., jburk07, SueW

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Remember back in the late 90s joining Langalist and when Fred Joined WindowsSecrets, then, of course, all merging with Ask Woody, Susan.   Hard to believe it’s been 20 years now.   Keep up the great work.    🙂

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guthrie, opti1, Will Fastie

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In the Windows Secrets Timeline, I would have added the date when Fred Langa retired. He is still missed. Of course, there have been other comings and goings, so I guess we can’t list them all.

 

-- rc primak

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opti1, jburk07, Will Fastie

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Susan,
Your contributions to the Microsoft technology landscape have been enormously valuable. Many, many years ago, when our office adopted Small Business Server 4.5 and I, the only tech on site, needed advice, I soon discovered your “voice” emerging from the fray. Your sound, practical and grounded advice rang clear. I have been a follower of your work ever since those days of the SBS Diva. There are many “experts”, but very few professionals like yourself. A big Thank You!
John

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opti1

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I am an 80-year-old who has been using computers since the mid 60’s. You hit the nail on the head with your article and i applaud you for it. I built my first computer in the early 70’s and as I look back and realize what little I had but how much I could do with it still amazes me.

Thank you so much for the Newsletter and keep up the good work.

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I’d like to second Daniel’s comment… love AskWoody for the helpful content and the personable style!

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opti1, Will Fastie

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Congratulations, Susan, on achieving your 20th year of providing knowledgeable sage advice to all of us via Windows Secrets and now Ask Woody Newsletter Plus!  We are all well served by you and your expert writers.  Hoping you are still at the helm for the next 20 years.

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rc primak wrote:

I guess we can’t list them all

For the notable cases, we keep our About page suitably updated.

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dvhirst865

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Grateful for your contributions to this forum!!! And for guiding it!

- Thinkpad P15s Gen1 20T4-002KUS, i7-10510U, UEFI/GPT, 16GB, Sammy 500GB M.2.
others...
- Mint Cinnamon 21 current, Win 10 22H2. WuMgr. HP laserjets M254dw & P1606dn, Epson 2480 scanner.

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My thanks not just to Susan and the assorted writers for their sterling (and often motivating/inspiring) articles over the years, but also to the entrepreneurial ones who have got things started and/or kept them going all these years, as well as all the “backroom” staff/volunteers whose work has largely been behind the scenes. The dedication of all of them is greatly appreciated, not least by those lay home users like myself who learn and benefit so much from all their efforts to guide us through the computing minefields.

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opti1

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I have to echo Daniel, as well.  I am of the same age, and now have to consider rebuilding my home pc (last rebuilt about 10 years ago, and still working fine, just not able to move up to Win 11).

Thanks for all the fine work you and the team are accomplishing.  And thank you, particularly, for taking on the management of the AskWoody team.  The group is performing in top notch fashion; we are all the very much better for all your contributions and continued strong work ethic.  Salute!

 

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Thanks for keeping this going Susan and congratulations.  I started following Fred back in the old Win Mag days and then on to his email newsletter all the way up to now with you guys. I’ve learned so much and have been able to use that knowledge to help others. I really appreciate all of you! Awesome!

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Wayne wrote:

There have also been some reports (Reddit) of Blue Screens of Death in Windows 10 22H2. This may be related to KB5012170.

I have installed KB…170 back in August on Windows 10 Pro 21H2 and KB…233 in Dec. on Windows 10 Pro 22H2. No problems at all.

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Please note that I took the lines quoted from Patch Watch December 19 to illustrate my question regarding which KB update numbers appear in the weekly Patch Watch column compared to the KB update number that gets installed when Defcon is raised at the end of the month.

My impression is that very few non-business/home/pro users had problems with the KB…170 update if they installed it. Glad you were among the lucky majority!

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I think it’s been more gamers.  I haven’t seen reports on the business patching venues, but Reddit folks were hitting it.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady

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Thank you!, WinSecret Legends

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I’ve been a follower/subscriber to Windows Secrets Newsletter since back in the early 2000’s, then moved here to AskWoody when things began to change due to ownership changes at WSN. I have many, many thanks to give over the years, especially when Microsoft began transitioning Windows 10 – a, shall I say, “frustating” time to say the least…

All the contibutors – both past and present staff, plus members of this community – have provided a wellspring of technical knowledge, guidance, accessibility and civility that is very hard to find these days on other tech sites.

So a huge hat’s off to everyone who makes this my go-to Windows tech site! Hard to believe it’s been 20 years — until I remember I’m 76!  😉

Win10 Pro x64 22H2, Win10 Home 22H2, Linux Mint + a cat with 'tortitude'.

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opti1

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I suppose it would be an invasion of privacy or something like that, but it’s interesting how many of us are older folks who’ve enjoyed the full lifetime of Windows Secrets and AskWoody, so is there a way to design a forum survey to see what percentages of our membership fall into what age ranges? Maybe a section on self-rated skill level, use, or professional status as well.

I, for example, am late 78, use Brave, Skype, and email regularly but not much else beyond running CC Cleaner and Malwarebytes (both free versions) scans occasionally, and the Avira (free) firewall. Prior to retiring I made a decent living as a translator and copy editor or translations using Word and then WPS Writer when Word appeared to get more complicated and entered the cloud, which I never bothered to figure out how to do.

My main technical achievement in the last year was getting my first smart phone and I’m still enjoying the thrill of reading QR squares with my bank app to pay bills instead of the tedious web site form filling process (which got rather more complicated when a two-part password system was introduced) and using the camera to take an occasional photo to share to the Skype app before returning to the desktop version.

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Fred

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Congrats on 20 years, Susan, and thank you. No small achievement in this industry.

I appreciate the timeline, especially the honest inclusion of the unfortunate sidetrack around 2010 (without going negative). I’ve seen the progression since 2004 or so, and it’s been a great education.

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