Newsletter Archives

• How to upgrade your Windows 10 PC to Windows 11

  Posted on September 11, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by Lance Whitney • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.37 • 2023-09-11

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Lance Whitney

  Can you switch your computer from Windows 10 to Windows 11 without any major hiccups? Here’s how the upgrade played out for me.

  I recently decided to move my Windows 10 Lenovo laptop to Windows 11. Lately, for both personal and professional reasons, I’ve been relying more on features that are exclusive to Windows 11 — including Phone Link support for the iPhone, the new Photos app, AI integration, support for Android apps, smarter voice dictation, and screen recording in the Snipping Tool.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.37.0, 2023-09-11).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Windows 11 Newsletters, upgrade, Windows 10, Windows 11

• MS-DEFCON 2: Last call for 22H2

  Posted on July 6, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.27.1 • 2023-07-06

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Starting next week, you will not receive security updates for any version of Windows 10 except 22H2.

  If your PC has not received 22H2 via Windows Update, chances are that your PC has a setting keeping Windows on the version you have installed — or corruption in the operating system is preventing the update from being accepted. But Patch Tuesday is just around the corner, so it’s time to become cautious again by raising the MS-DEFCON level to 2.

  Anyone can read the full MS-DEFCON Alert (20.27.1, 2023-07-06).

  AskWoody Plus Alert, MS-DEFCON Alerts, MS-DEFCON, MS-DEFCON 2, Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows Update

• What should you do about Windows 11?

  Posted on July 3, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by Will Fastie • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.27 • 2023-07-03

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Will Fastie

  Despite our warnings and hesitancy about moving to Windows 11, we’re at a point in time when more serious consideration is in order.

  To aid in setting the context, I prepared a timeline showing the lives of Windows 10 and 11. With that timeline in mind, I asked five of our regular contributors to offer their opinions.

  In this, our summer bonus issue, they hold forth. Opinions differ.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.27.0, 2023-07-03).

  Windows 11 lifecycle, Newsletters, Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows end of life

• Think security

  Posted on July 3, 2023 at 02:44 CDT by Mary Branscombe • Comment in the Forums

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Mary Branscombe

  My advice is to stick with Windows 10 — and turn on the same security features that are the best part of Windows 11.

  If your PC will run it, Microsoft would like you to switch to Windows 11. By now you’ve probably clicked through a full-screen prompt asking you at least once to upgrade. Now that Windows 10 isn’t getting any new features, you can expect to see that prompt more often.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.27.0, 2023-07-03).

  Windows 11 lifecycle, Newsletters, Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows end of life

• You have 11 options

  Posted on July 3, 2023 at 02:43 CDT by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Brian Livingston

  The introduction of Windows 11 has been the most confusing rollout of Redmond’s operating system ever.

  First of all, it’s unclear to users whether they really need Windows 11. Additionally, Microsoft required a security chip called the Trusted Platform Module 2.0 — but then confirmed that TPM 2.0 isn’t really necessary. Finally, upgrading Win10 to Win11 may be hard or impossible to undo if you change your mind.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.27.0, 2023-07-03).

  Windows 11 lifecycle, Newsletters, Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows end of life

• It depends

  Posted on July 3, 2023 at 02:42 CDT by Randy McElveen • Comment in the Forums

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Randy McElveen

  Windows 10 or 11? My answer is different for individuals and businesses.

  If you are running a business, switch now.

  Individuals? Hang on to Windows 10 as long as you can.

  And if you go to Windows 11 and decide it’s a mistake, you can go back.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.27.0, 2023-07-03).

  Windows 11 lifecycle, Newsletters, Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows end of life

• Why not?

  Posted on July 3, 2023 at 02:41 CDT by Simon Bisson • Comment in the Forums

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Simon Bisson

  Every Windows update has been contentious, and I’ve seen a lot of them over the years.

  The question of whether to update always gets asked, and my answer has been much the same: “Yes, if your PC meets the requirements, go ahead and update.”

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.27.0, 2023-07-03).

  Windows 11 lifecycle, Newsletters, Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows end of life

• The devil you know

  Posted on July 3, 2023 at 02:40 CDT by Peter Deegan • Comment in the Forums

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Peter Deegan

  So, you have a Windows 10 computer that’s working fine and is enough for your needs. Why bother switching to Windows 11 on the same PC?

  Leaving aside Microsoft’s hype, it’s hard to see anything truly compelling in Windows 11 that’s not already in Windows 10.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.27.0, 2023-07-03).

  Windows 11 lifecycle, Newsletters, Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows end of life

• Setting up Windows 11 — for businesses

  Posted on July 3, 2023 at 02:39 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  WINDOWS 11

  

  By Susan Bradley

  In April, I published setup guides for Windows 10 and 11 for consumers. Now it’s time to do the same for businesses.

  As with the consumer checklists, a significant aspect of setting up a new PC is migrating important materials from the old PC. This is even more important in the business environment, where loss of data may equate to loss of business. It’s worth taking the time to get it right.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.27.0, 2023-07-03).

  Windows 11 New PC setup, Newsletters, Patch Lady Posts, Win10 setup, Win11 setup, Windows 10, Windows 11

• MS-DEFCON 2: Are you still on Windows 10 21H2?

  Posted on June 8, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.23.1 • 2023-06-08

  

  By Susan Bradley

  We’re nearly halfway through the 2023 patching year, almost to the end of the road for Windows 10 21H2.

  But before we delve into that: Patch Tuesday is just around the corner, so it’s time to get conservative and defer patches. Accordingly, I’m raising the MS-DEFCON level to 2.

  Microsoft is indicating that it will “force” 21H2 machines to 22H2, but I have news for them — if you don’t have 22H2 and you are not using one of the methods to hold off on feature releases (Group Policy, registry key, etc.), chances are you have some sort of issue that is blocking the install. Some of the blocks may be driver-related, and some may be the result of underlying corruption in the code that handles patching.

  Anyone can read the full MS-DEFCON Alert (20.23.1, 2023-06-08).

  AskWoody Plus Alert, MS-DEFCON Alerts, MS-DEFCON, MS-DEFCON 2, SMB Signing, SMBv1, SMBv2, SMBv3, Windows 10

• May’s messy updates

  Posted on May 15, 2023 at 02:42 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  PATCH WATCH

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Although the May releases for both Windows and Apple have not introduced side effects or hiccups so far, they haven’t been as problem-free as they should have been.

  Apple released the first of its “rapid response” updates, announced last June and supposedly allowing the company to deploy important security-only software updates without demanding a reboot.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.20.0, 2023-05-15).

  Patch Watch Apple, Exchange Server, Newsletters, Patch Lady Posts, Rapid Security Responses, Secure Boot, Windows 10

• MS-DEFCON 2: Settling down for a stable Windows 10

  Posted on May 4, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.18.1 • 2023-05-04

  

  By Susan Bradley

  The order of the day is Windows 10 22H2.

  With Patch Tuesday just around the corner, it’s time to defer updates. Therefore, I’m raising the MS-DEFCON level to 2.

  However, there is one exception. If you are running Windows 10, update to release 22H2 as soon as possible. If you can’t get to it by Tuesday, defer — but be sure to get it done before the end of May.

  Anyone can read the full MS-DEFCON Alert (20.18.1, 2023-05-04).

  AskWoody Plus Alert, MS-DEFCON Alerts, MS-DEFCON, MS-DEFCON 2, Windows 10, Windows 10 22H2
• « Older Entries