Wednesday 10^th April 2019

Windows 10 1903 Update

Microsoft continues to issue 2 major feature updates each year, and the first for this year is due for release in late May.  It will be called the “Windows 10 2019 May Update”

The most obvious change is the separation of Cortana and Search which has introduced a new Search icon on the Taskbar and a new Search category in Settings. For a full list of new features see:-

https://pureinfotech.com/windows-10-1903-19h1-april-2019-update-features/

As I mentioned at last month's Club, even with the Search box hidden, you can still just click the start button and begin typing and a search box will appear - this is a very useful way to find an app without having to look for it's icon. This will remain the case.

Cortana is the talking assistant and is similar to Siri on Apple devices and the Google Assistant on Android devices. I am not sure why Microsoft have chosen to separate Search and Cortana in this way.

Also, users will have more control about when this update, and future big feature updates get installed. See this blog by Microsoft issued on 4^th April 2019:-

https://blogs.windows.com/windowsexperience/2019/04/04/improving-the-windows-10-update-experience-with-control-quality-and-transparency/

Under this new system, all updates can be delayed for up to 35 days. There will be a separate “Download and Install Now” button for feature updates (e.g. 1903) allowing a user to do this at a convenient time. If the current version of Windows is nearing the end of its supported life (usually about 18 months after it is released), the new feature update will be initiated automatically.

An updated version of my Windows 10 - Introductory Guide based on the 1903 version can be found at:-

bit.ly/CE-Windows10

I will be producing a revised Windows 10 - In-Depth Guide which you will find using the above link when I finalise it in the near future.

Windows 10 - Snap Assist

In answer to a query, I demonstrated the Snap feature in Windows 10. This allows you to easily position 2 windows side-by-side on your screen, or 4 windows, each occupying a quarter of the screen.

I have since found this very short video on YouTube which demonstrates Snap:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bk8yTBLEj3c

Browser Tabs

Following on from the Snap feature, I also demonstrated that a tab in a browser can be dragged off to form a separate window. It can then be dragged back as an additional tab.

Exclusions In Windows Defender

Tony had received a message following a Windows Defender virus scan which said:-

The Windows Defender antivirus scan skip an item due to exclusion or network scanning settings

This is most likely due to files being listed for exclusion. You can check this by clicking Start and typing Windows Defender and pressing Enter. This should take you to Windows Security settings where you should click on Virus & threat protection. Click on Manage settings under Virus & threat protection settings. Scroll down until you find the heading Exclusions. Click on Add or remove exclusions to see which files are excluded. You can then edit this list.

Learn More About IT

I handed out a document which explains some ways of learning more about IT using online and other resources. You can find the document at:-

bit.ly/CE-LearnIT
We looked through this document and the sites it refers to.

Windows Updates Problem
Margaret had an issue on a W10 laptop where Checking For Updates failed to find any new updates. One solution to this sort of issue is to remove the Software Distribution folder. This web site explains how to do this:-
https://www.thewindowsclub.com/software-distribution-folder-in-windows
We attempted this on Margaret's machine at the Club but were unable to remove the Software Distribution folder for reasons we could not determine in the time available.

Next Session

Wed 8^th May 2019 1:30 to 3:30pm.