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The AI created by Microsoft Research predicts air patterns and automatically plans routes. This is achieved by seeking and understanding rising hot air and sending the glider to locations where it occurs. Hot air allows that aircraft to stay in the sky. It is a system that works in a comparable way to how a hawk soars when in flight. Researchers are continuing testing after a successful trial run in Nevada a week ago....

In its details, Microsoft Research says controlling VR is currently an expensive proposition. Solutions are bulky and not ready for mass use due to the power requirements they need. CapstanCrunch allows the problem to be fixed by a “capstan brake and clutched spring”. With this mechanism that allows a smaller motor to be overpowered through amplification 40 times more. This gives the ability to resist applied forces by users and reduce the energy that was previously possible....

As mentioned this is more significant than a normal Patch Tuesday for a number of reasons. The first is a positive. This is likely to be the last patch before Microsoft officially launches the Windows 10 Creators Update. The company is expected to roll out the new feature update on April 11. While Patch Tuesday covers released Windows 10 versions, it is still important that the Windows landscape will change shortly....

The feature is part of the 1811 Xbox One update and is available to Alpha Ring members. However, support for mouse and keyboard is currently limited. Microsoft is emphasizing that it will up to developers to decide, allowing them to split lobbies if they wish. The first title to support mouse and keyboard is Warframe. It’s a strange choice, as many PC players prefer a controller, but its free and co-op nature means it can be tested extensively at relatively low risk....

Windows 10 Build 15063 Changelog While there are a few fixes for PC, the bulk of this build is for Windows 10 Mobile. Here’s the changelog across both platforms: PC “We fixed a reliability issue from Build 15061 resulting in Microsoft Edge hanging and becoming completely unresponsive. We fixed an issue for Insiders where the localized files and registry keys associated with any additional language packs on the system would not be installed after enabling ....

Gordon believes that the advance of technology hasn’t led to the widespread productivity and economic growth that was expected. In fact, he argues that the United States is on a slow productivity decline. “The foundation issue for us since at least that dawn of the industrial economy has been that any activity better lead to broad economic growth,” Nadella responded. “Quite frankly, I am worried.” Having been at Microsoft since 1992, you’d expect Nadella to have a fairly firm grasp on the productivity industry....

It’s all about giving users more control over when they want to see Dark Mode. Currently, the mode is only available through Windows 10 Settings. This means once it is on, the whole system is turned dark. If users want Dark Mode for some apps and Light Mode for others, they can’t currently do that. A few months ago, we discussed Microsoft’s previewing of a Dark Mode toggle for File Explorer....

Well, today, Microsoft says Immersive Reader is now generally available for all Azure Cognitive Services customers. It is worth noting Microsoft originally sent out the first preview of the tool last year. At Build, the company discussed how it functions within Cognitive Services. If you’re unfamiliar with Immersive Reader, it is a tool available across several Microsoft services, including the old Edge, OneNote, and even Minecraft. It is a tool that helps users with dyslexia and other reading challenges....

Users will notice fairly quickly that Mixer now surfaces notifications for events on the platform or timed events for specific games. Users will be able to toggle this feature in their profile settings, while a new What’s New dialog will provide further information. Critically, Microsoft is also testing automatic quality on videos. It will be available to select users this update but will roll out to more users in the future....

Windows File Recovery is a command line tool that will retrieve various file types and documents. It can pull deleted content from hard drivers as well as expanded storage like USB drives and SD cards. However, those who use cloud storage are out of luck because they are not supported. As you might expect, there’s a limited amount of time between deleting a file and being able to recover it....

Before getting into what and why, let’s briefly look at both these situations. Firstly, while Microsoft does usually detail changes in Office patches, the changelog don’t always get published on Patch Tuesday. Sometimes the company sends out the details a day or two later. Yes, it’s a clumsy model, but explains why release notes did not accompany the 20 Office patches yesterday. However, there is still some confusion because Microsoft did send a link for the Office patches on the MSDN Developer blog....

As well as the earbuds, the app lets users customize their Surface Headphones. They can utilize it to update firmware, tune the equalizer, view battery and volume level, and more. It also serves as a way to set up Cortana and control which devices are connected. The Surface Headphones 2 will launch alongside the earbuds, offering better sound quality and battery life (20 hours) than their predecessor at a lower price point....

Essentially, users can now in the phone screen section of the app. For the unfamiliar, phone screen mirrors your android display to your PC so that you can interact with apps without disruption. It currently works only with select Samsung Galaxy devices. With the addition of Inking, users can draw on their laptop screen and have the results display on their phone. This could be useful if you want to utilize an Android painting app on PC or handwrite notes....

According to the company, the availability of Microsoft Scheduler will cease on Sept. 1, 2023. The closure was announced on the Office Message Center. Although, it does not seem Microsoft will abandon the feature set of Scheduler entirely. In fact, it seems Microsoft “may bundle some of these [Scheduler] features with another offering in the future.“ If you’re unfamiliar with Scheduler, it uses Cortana at the core of the service to schedule meetings....

Government agencies are increasingly trying to shift from their on-premises servers to cloud technology. This includes organizations like the Department of Defense and NSA, with cloud companies bidding for the controversial – but lucrative – contracts. Protest According to the report, Microsoft’s contestation is the NSA did not go through a proper process of evaluation on the WildandStormy project. In other words, Microsoft believes AWS was chosen without other vendors being given a fir chance....

In the images, we see a dual-pane system that allows users to search from within Cortana and view the Bing search results directly from their desktop. For example, users could search for currency conversions, as well as have access to different tabs like “Images” or “News”. Unfortunately for the Reddit user, he says in the thread that after a system restart, Cortana returned to its current UI. However, if the screenshots are original, they could suggest that Microsoft is working on a new user interface for its voice assistant on Windows 10....

1 Creators Update2 Anniversary Update Interestingly, this still includes build 1507. That is otherwise known as the first ever Windows 10 build. Microsoft said it would end support for this build in May, but the company has continued to keep it patched each month. Of course, since then Microsoft has rolled out the Anniversary Update and the most recent Creators Update. For the latter, users will be seeing build 15063.483 (KB4025342) this Patch Tuesday....

However, while Microsoft has been accused of being too secretive about its Windows 10 data collection, in mixed reality the company is more upfront. ONMSFT reports how the company uses a public booth to collect motion data for product improvement. One of the booths was located outside a physical Microsoft Store in San Francisco. Volunteers are asked to help Microsoft in its research and data collection for mixed reality. Inside the booth is a camera setup that maps motion data on the volunteer’s face....

Earlier in the month, we reported the launch of the Invoke would happen this week. While the smart speaker market is very niche, it is arguably important. For the Invoke, Microsoft decided not to create its own Surface product. Instead the company provided the software power to renowned audio company Harman Kardon. The result is a cylindric device that features premium sound from three 1.75-inch woofers and three 0.5-inch. Harmon Kardon promised true 360-drgree sound....

Both pages were found by Microsoft watcher WalkingCat. The question is, do these pages point to an imminent launch of the Surface Laptop 4? WalkingCat estimates the device will arrive soon, maybe as early as next week. The support page does not show any details about the laptop. However, we have previously reported Microsoft will provide an AMD variant of the device. A new AMD variant would continue Microsoft’s relationship with AMD following the launch of an AMD version of the Surface Laptop 3 two years ago....