TweakHound

Computer stuff...

Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

Tuesday Random Stuff…

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Nvidia Geforce Game Ready 391.35 WHQL Drivers
“Provides the optimal gaming experience for Far Cry 5”
Download | Release Notes

Win10 SCU RTM? ETA???
Diggin’ this military sounding acronym stuff!
Another report saying the latest build (17133) of Win10 is RTM. As of this writing BuildFeed has the last Win10 build released as Build 17133.1 so they may be right.
This build has been released to the fast ring. Downloading and installing now.

BranchScope
New attacks from the same vulnerability that bought us Spectre.
“It’s likely to be years before researchers have determined all the various ways in which the speculative execution hardware can be used to leak information this way, and it will be longer still before robust, universal defenses are available to stop the attacks.”

GET OFF OF FACEBOOK
Facebook Acknowledges It Has Been Keeping Records of Android Users’ Calls and Texts
LOL. Wow. Just…Wow.

It Gets Funnier
“Nearly half of the popular apps from the Google Play Store are sending information about private individuals to Facebook, regardless of whether or not they have an account with the social networking site”

Facebook Container
“Prevent Facebook from tracking you around the web. The Facebook Container extension for Firefox helps you take control and isolate your web activity from Facebook.”
Facebook Container by Mozilla

Monday Random Stuff…

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AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition 18.3.4 Optional
Download | Release Notes

Firefox 59.0.2
All downloads | Release Notes

Win10 For Gamers?
PCWorld thinks Win10 needs a “Gaming Edition“. I can’t argue with that.

GET OFF OF FACEBOOK
Elon Musk hopped on the #DeleteFacebook train. With all the anti-Facebook ranting I have done I should feel vindicated. I don’t. I don’t think that many people will leave it.

Off Topic
Sunken USS Juneau Famous for the Sullivan Brothers Discovered on St. Patrick’s Day
Drivers being blinded by ‘too-bright’ LED headlights on posh new cars, warns RAC

Win10 Updated

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“This update includes quality improvements. No new operating system features are being introduced in this update.”
Remember, updates are cumulative.

For 1709 (Latest Build) – March 22, 2018—KB4089848 (OS Build 16299.334)

For 1703 – March 22, 2018—KB4088891 (OS Build 15063.994)

For 1607 – March 22, 2018—KB4088889 (OS Build 14393.2155)
*1607 is getting EoS next month.

1709 (Fall Creators Update)
1703 (Creators Update)
1607 (Anniversary Update)

See also:
Windows lifecycle fact sheet
Windows 10 release information

Wednesday Random Stuff…

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Woody – When should you move to the next version of Windows 10?
As we approach the release of the Win10 SCU, the Overlord of Updates aka the Master of Anti-Disaster has the advice you need to protect you and your loved ones against the menace that disguises itself as a “feature update”:
“If you want to stick with your current version of Win10, whatever it may be, and wait for 1803 to prove its mettle, you need to block the upgrade with all your might. Given Microsoft’s abysmal record with the 1709 forced upgrade, it won’t be easy.”

Stuff I Bookmarked Today:
If You’re Pissed About Facebook’s Privacy Abuses, You Should Be Four Times As Angry At The Broadband Industry
‘Utterly horrifying’: ex-Facebook insider says covert data harvesting was routine
Amnesty International says Twitter’s toxic culture is failing women
This is the moment when we decide that human lives matter more than cars
NFL sets new definition for controversial catch rule
NHL Wildcard Standings

Springtime In Virginia
Crazy weather. Exactly one month ago it was 80 degrees(F). Here is a pic from this morning out my back door:

Wednesday Morning News

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Google Chrome Updated
“The stable channel has been updated to 65.0.3325.181 for Windows, Mac and Linux.”
Various bug fixes and a security fix.
Download

Got Patches?
KB4090007: Intel microcode updates
“Intel recently announced that they have completed their validations and started to release microcode for newer CPU platforms around Spectre Variant 2 (CVE 2017-5715 (“Branch Target Injection”)). This update includes microcode updates from Intel for the following CPUs:” Skylake, Kaby Lake, Coffee Lake.
You have to download and install this manually: https://www.catalog.update.microsoft.com/Search.aspx?q=KB4090007

Wise Disk Cleaner 9.7.2
Improved the feature of Common Cleaner. Minor GUI improvements. Updated various translations.
Download (I use the portable version)

AMD / CTS Labs
AMD will patch the security issues found by CTS labs. They will do this via a BIOS update. AMD and others continue to insist the vulnerability is next to impossible to exploit.

#DeleteFacebook
Yep. That’s a thing right now. Here is an article that shows you how to delete your Facebook account.

[H]ard On Nvdia 2
Last Tuesday I linked to an article at [H]ardOCP that took Nvidia to task for the questionable tactics it uses in it’s GeForce Partner Program. A reporter from Forbes saw the article and started asking questions too. Interesting stuff:
“Since publishing the story, all of Bennett’s contacts have gone silent including Nvidia. My own follow-up to his investigation is stalled. I’d secured a commitment from a few companies to speak off the record, but they have also gone dark. Prior to that happening I had two brief conversations that made it obvious the program was troublesome, to put it mildly.”

Google News Initiative
IMHO we are an era where almost every news outlet picks a side rather than reporting facts. It seems most people get their news from sites that agree with them politically rather than being accurate.
Google says they aim to fix this. I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting on it.
“There are three specific goals of the Google News Initiative: highlight accurate journalism while fighting misinformation, particularly during breaking news events; help news sites continue to grow from a business perspective; and create new tools to help journalists do their jobs.“

Tuesday Morning News

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AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition 18.3.3
Download | Release Notes

Nvidia Geforce Game Ready 391.24 WHQL Drivers
Download | Release Notes

Win10 Feature Update Offline Time Cut
Microsoft claims to have cut the amount of time in takes to install the bi-annual updates. They state they knocked the update time from CU to FCU from 82 to 51 minutes and then 30 minutes for those currently running the Insider builds. They are just doing more of the install process while you are trying to use your computer instead of offline.

What’s In The Win10 SCU
Neowin has the best and most concise article on this topic. There is almost nothing I’m interested except maybe the new Diagnostics Data Viewer.

The Ultimate Computer
An autonomous Uber car killed a pedestrian.
The idea of self-driving cars creeps me the hell out. I know this kinda “Hey kids, get off my lawn” of me but it is the way I feel. I’ve always felt this way. I blame Star Trek: The Ultimate Computer.

GET OFF OF FACEBOOK
Cambridge Analytica got access to 50 million Facebook users data. They did this by lying to 270,000 people and getting them to install an app. The app accessed “data about where they lived, their friends lists, and their likes.” Then the app scraped “data not just from 270,000 people who downloaded it, but from their friend networks as well, resulting in the harvesting of data from more than 50 million accounts.”
The issue is bad enough that this morning Facebook will hold an emergency meeting to let employees ask questions about Cambridge Analytica and Alex Stamos, Facebook Data Security Chief, To Leave Amid Outcry.
Related:
Facebook may have violated FTC privacy deal, say former federal officials, triggering risk of massive fines
Is your data safe on Facebook? Not really
Our mission to buy a fake Rolex on Facebook reveals how the company is playing host to countless criminal enterprises
Reminder: You can’t escape Facebook even if you delete your account

More Net Neutrality News

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ARSTechnica – Entire broadband industry will help FCC defend net neutrality repeal
“NCTA represents cable companies such as Comcast, Charter, Cox, and Altice. CTIA represents the biggest mobile carriers, such as AT&T, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile, and Sprint. USTelecom represents wireline telcos with copper and fiber networks, such as AT&T and Verizon. All three groups also represent a range of smaller ISPs.”
Opposing FCC Net Neutrality repeal:
Google
Microsoft
Amazon
Apple
Facebook
Dropbox
Mozilla
EFF
Twitter
Netflix
Snapchat
Spotify
AdBlock
AdBlock Plus
many more…

see also: iVerge – All 535 members of Congress, and how much money they got from ISPs