Windows Safe Mode – BitLocker/Device Encryption
When we talked about Safe Mode at the August Club, I omitted to mention that you will need to have the Encryption Key for your drive, if it is encrypted, although I did include this in the blog. Refer to the July blog for details:-
https://computerclub100.blogspot.com/2024/08/
BitLocker is only available on the Pro versions of Windows 10 or 11. Device Encryption is a simplified version of BitLocker found on Windows 11 Home. Provided you signed in with a Microsoft Account when you set up your Windows 11 Home PC (and it’s difficult not to!), Device Encryption will encrypt the system drive (and any other internal drives) and store the Key on your OneDrive. I would recommend you print it out and keep it in a safe place in case you ever need it. BitLocker has more granular controls allowing you to select which drives and partitions are encrypted. Device Encryption is just ON or OFF – go to Settings, Privacy & Security, Device Encryption to find the switch.
A quick way to check if your drive is encrypted is to open File Explorer (Windows Key + E is a keyboard shortcut to do this) and click on “This PC”. If you see a padlock symbol on one of your drives then it is encrypted. This screenshot from my PC (running 11 Pro) shows that the external Y drive is encrypted but the other drives are not:-
See this article from M3 Software for more:-
https://www.m3datarecovery.com/news/device-encryption-vs-bitlocker-on-windows.html
Dave asked if encryption and antivirus could happily co-exist. Once you have signed into Windows, the process on encryption/decryption is transparent so it should not limit the antivirus checking process, as far as I know.
Remarkable Alexa
According to this Reuter’s report, an enhanced version of the Alexa voice assistant will be released later this year, possibly this month:-
https://www.reuters.com/technology/artificial-intelligence/amazon-turns-anthropics-claude-alexa-ai-revamp-2024-08-30/
Code-named “Remarkable”, this new version will be based on modern generative AI. We have been talking about AI for a couple of years, since the introduction of Open AI’s ChatGPT at the end of 2022 – see the blog from December 2022:-
https://computerclub100.blogspot.com/2022/12/
Since then, Microsoft built AI into its Bing search which it has now rebranded as Copilot, and Google added AI to its search, branding it as Gemini. Amazon is, arguably, a bit behind the curve on AI. Also, Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant division is reported to be losing billions of dollars – see this Tom’s Guide article:-
https://www.tomsguide.com/home/smart-home/amazon-is-losing-billions-of-dollars-on-alexa-and-echo-heres-3-ways-it-can-turn-things-around
They had hoped that people would use Echo devices to order stuff from Amazon, but it turns out we all just use them as a timer and to tell us the weather. Maybe the new Remarkable Alexa will change that.
Amazon have been developing their own AI, but it seems the new Alexa will use an AI product called “Claude” from a start-up company founded in 2021 called “Anthropic”, in which Amazon has invested around $4 billion.
While the existing ‘dumb’ Alexa will remain free, the Remarkable version will cost an estimated $5 to $10 a month to use. I’m sure we will return to this in a month or two after it has been released.
iPhone 16 Announced
On Monday 9th September, Apple held a big event at its HQ in Cupertino, California to announce the iPhone 16 range, the latest Apple Watch 10 and new Airpods 4 wireless earbuds.
The phones will feature an Action Button (instead of a mute switch) and a new Camera Control button. There will be new AI features (AI means “Apple Intelligence” of course!), but some features may not be available until updates to iOS18 are released later this month and beyond.
This Tech Radar article has more details:-
https://www.techradar.com/phones/iphone/apple-iphone-16-event-everything-apple-announced
Apple ID Apple Account
With the launch of iOS18, Apple are renaming “Apple ID” to “Apple Account”. You still use the same username and password to log in – it’s just been rebranded. This makes it more consistent with other services such a Microsoft, Google, etc. This article in from The Standard has more:-
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/tech/apple-id-replacing-changes-account-b1177765.html
Apple AirPods as Hearing Aids
John pointed out that Apple's Airpods can work as hearing aids. They can offer a very cost-effective solution for some people compared to very expensive conventional hearing aids. I don't know a lot about this, but this CNet article explains more:-
https://www.cnet.com/health/medical/why-airpods-may-be-the-hearing-aid-people-actully-use/
Windows 24H2
The annual update to Windows 11 is being released this month (October 2024), but it is a phased roll-out, so it may take a while to reach your PC. Nothing major in it for the average user, although adding labels to the icons in File Explorer’s right-click menu could be very helpful. However, the 24H2 update does remove WordPad, the free, simple word-processor, so if you are a WordPad fan, that will be disappointing. For more details, have a look at this article from ZDNet:-
https://www.zdnet.com/article/whats-new-in-windows-11-24h2-and-when-will-your-pc-get-it/
Office 2024
Microsoft have released a new non-subscription version of Office. If you want Word, Excel, PowerPoint or OneNote and you do not want to pay the regular subscription for Microsoft 365, you might be interested in Office 2024 which includes all four of those apps for a one-off price of $149.99. It will be supported with bug-fixes and security updates until October 2029. See this Ghacks article for more:-
https://www.ghacks.net/2024/10/03/what-you-need-to-know-about-microsoft-office-2024/
Quick Access to Camera
George pointed out that you can launch the camera app on some Android phones by double pressing the power button, even if the phone is locked.
A similar function on an iPhone is achieved by placing a finger on the screen and swiping off the left side of the display.
Malwarebytes
We have spoken a number of times about this anti-malware software which is available for free from:-
https://www.malwarebytes.com/
I don’t generally recommend using any additional anti-virus software on Windows PCs as the in-built Windows Defender is totally adequate for the average home user. If you want to replace Windows Defender with Malwarebytes on an on-going basis, there is a monthly fee starting from $3.75 per month. However, some people like to use Malwarebytes to run an additional scan from time to time.
Once downloaded and installed, you have a 14-day trial of the full Malwarebytes which includes real-time virus detection/protection. As such, it will replace (deactivate) Windows Defender. At the end of the 14-day trial, Malwarebytes will deactivate its real-time checking and Defender should re-activate.
If you only want to use Malwarebytes for the occasional scan, you have a couple of options:-
1) Go to the Windows security settings. On Windows 10, that’s Settings, Update and Security, Windows Security, Open Windows Security. On Windows 11, it’s Settings, Privacy and Security, Windows Security. Click on Virus & Threat Protection, then click on Microsoft Defender Antivirus Options. Here, you can select the option to have Defender do a periodic scan, even though Malwarebytes is doing the real-time protection.
2) Alternatively, in the Malwarebytes Dashboard, click the 3-dot in the Real-Time Protection box and select Settings. The, turn of all the switches under the Real-Time Protection heading. Defender will then resume real-time protection.
The main function of the free Malwarebytes is for running a virus scan whenever you want. Just click Scan from the Dashboard.
iTunes
Apple has been gradually killing iTunes for some time. It is still available on Windows, but maybe not for much longer. Instead of one app that tries to do everything, there are now separate apps:-
Apple Music for all your music
Apple TV for movies and TV shows, and
Apple Devices for backup and restore and syncing between your PC and iPhone/iPad.
You can read more in this Tom's Guide article:-
https://www.tomsguide.com/computing/software/itunes-for-windows-is-officially-splitting-off-into-3-separate-apps
Charges for MMS
Some SIM plans may charge for sending a MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service). Linda found that she incurred some charges when sending pictures using Messages from her iPhone. When sending to another iPhone, this would use iMessage which is included in your data package. However, if the recipient is an Android phone, this will be converted to an MMS and could incur a charge. It is probably better to use a cross-platform service such as WhatsApp to send pictures in this situation. Alternatively, as Dave suggested, store the picture online and just send a link to it.
Next Session
Wed 13th November 2024 at 2pm by Zoom