Newsletter Archives

• Patch testing isn’t easy

  Posted on July 17, 2023 at 02:42 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  PATCH WATCH

  

  By Susan Bradley

  No matter who the vendor is, bugs occur.

  By the time you read this, Apple will have already re-released its rapid security patches for iOS, iPadOS (16.5.1), and MacOS Ventura (13.4.1). The patches dealt with side effects impacting Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Zoom, and various other websites.

  The bug release fixed a WebKit vulnerability that was being exploited in the wild. If you don’t use Safari as your default browser, or if you don’t use the impacted apps, I hope you just did the “sit tight and wait for a re-release” thing.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.29.0, 2023-07-17).

  Patch Watch drivers, Newsletters, Patch Lady Posts, security, Testing, Zero Day

• Firmware and drivers

  Posted on April 3, 2023 at 02:41 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  PATCH WATCH

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Why are drivers and firmware so important?

  Once upon a time, you would set up a computer and any display adapter driver or firmware would be automatically installed to match the hardware. More than likely, you would not install new drivers for a long, long time.

  But now with both Windows 10 and 11, I annually review drivers and firmware as the Windows feature releases come out. I go through certain steps and processes to rule out issues that might have been triggered by out-of-date drivers, especially if I’ve encountered side effects that I can’t otherwise explain.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.14.0, 2023-04-03).

  Patch Watch drivers, firmware, Graphics Cards, Intune, Motherboards, Newsletters, Patch Lady Posts, Patch Watch, WSUS

• Does an old personal computer become useless?

  Posted on November 14, 2022 at 02:45 CST by Ben Myers • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 19.46 • 2022-11-14

  HARDWARE

  

  By Ben Myers

  Come take a ride in my souped-up DeLorean for an adventure in the days before Windows.

  You see an old computer and ask, “Why hasn’t it been scrapped?” But don’t look at just the PC — look at what it does within some total system. That’s what this story is about.

  The ride takes many twists and turns on the path to where we are today. Progress over the last 20-plus years is hard to believe.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (19.46.0, 2022-11-14).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Hardware drivers, Hardware Upgrades, Industrial Control, MS-DOS, Newsletters, Repair

• Check the health of your systems

  Posted on September 5, 2022 at 02:45 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 19.36 • 2022-09-05

  ON SECURITY

  

  By Susan Bradley

  It’s time to ensure your computer is sound, the operating system is healthy, and your system is backed up.

  Why? Because a feature release is right around the corner: 22H2 for both Windows 10 and Windows 11 is due shortly. It’s not that I recommend that you move to those versions, at least not right away. But if you do decide to move ahead, it’s critical to be sure to do so safely, with your ability to retreat secured.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (19.36.0, 2022-09-05).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  AskWoody FREE Newsletter, AskWoody Plus Newsletter, On Security antivirus, AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Backup, browsers, drivers, Operating Systems, Patch Lady Posts, security, SSDs

• Watch out for non-MS Surface Pro 7 (and Surface Laptop 3?) drivers

  Posted on October 27, 2019 at 09:27 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  .@surface Pro 7 (&maybe Intel Surface Laptop 3) is using customized Intel WiFi drivers. Installing the generic Intel wifi driver is not blocked, but it does not fix wifi issues AND once installed, may cause other issues including inability to go back to Surface customized driver.

  — Barb Bowman 🌷 (@barbbowman) October 27, 2019

  Hardware, Windows News drivers, Surface Laptop 3, Surface Pro 7

• Microsoft confirms – and pulls – botched WPD driver

  Posted on March 10, 2017 at 07:31 CST by woody • Comment in the Forums

  If you checked the box to install the Optional driver update, rolling back isn’t too difficult.

  If you’re using Windows 10, you may well be shafted. Welcome to my world.

  InfoWorld Woody on Windows

  UPDATE: Günter Born has published more details about Microsoft’s proposed solutions. Take particular note of the “Method 2 Part 2” discussion, which I mention briefly in the InfoWorld article.

  Windows Patches/Security drivers, forced updates, Restore Point, WPD