TweakHound

Computer stuff...

Thank You!

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I appreciate the positive response to the Win10 Tweak Guide, especially to those who have made a purchase. Although I never break even for the year it definitely helps keep this site going.
One of the cool things about this site is being able to reach so many both near and far. As I have said before, it is awesome and humbling. In the last 2 years, here are the localities of tweak guide buyers: (if I missed you or got something wrong please let me know)
*The list below wasn’t intended to offend anyone. Quite the opposite in fact. The data came from the Paypal invoices from the last 2 years (2019 – ). Some have no address. My security software has the ability to see “live traffic”. Sometimes I pop over there to see what bot is hammering away at the server or poking at a port but I can see all traffic. I’m always pleasantly surprised to see people from all over the globe reading articles here.

USA:
Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin

Rest of the world:
Zürich, Switzerland
Bromsgrove, Chippenham, Croydon, Hastings, Kinver, Leeds, Marshfield, Poole, Runcorn, Stoke-on-Trent, Ulverston, Weymouth: England
Calgary, Calixa-Lavallée, Chestermere, Cochrane, Helena Valley, L’ancienne-Lorette, Maple Ridge, Mont-Laurier: Canada
Bendigo, Botanic Ridge, Eudlo, Kattau, Leura, Roma, Somerset, Taperoo, The Rock: Australia
Čierna nad Tisou, Slovakia
Šiauliai, Lithuania
Ieper & Kortrijk: Belgium
Suva, Fiji
Balashikha, Russia
Milan, Italy
Lavra, Lisboa, Vila Nova de Gaia: Portugal
Edinburgh & Stewarton, Scotland
Hamburg & Langenfeld: Germany
Banbridge, Blanchardstown, Dublin: Ireland
Kattau, Austria
Tartu, Estonia
Annecy, France
Sarpsborg, Norway
Vibirg, Denmark
Florianópolis, Brazil
Pudong, China
Kista & Undersåker: Sweden
Granadilla, Costa Rica
Cairo, Egypt
Sandviken, Sweden
Den Haag, Netherlands

Patch Tuesday

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Win10 Updated
2004 & 20H2 – January 12, 2021—KB4598242 (OS Builds 19041.746 and 19042.746)
– Updates to improve security when using external devices, such as game controllers, printers, and web cameras.
– Updates to improve security when Windows performs basic operations.

1909 – January 12, 2021—KB4598229 (OS Build 18363.1316)
– Updates to improve security when using external devices, such as game controllers, printers, and web cameras.
– Updates to improve security when using Microsoft Office products.
– Updates to improve security when Windows performs basic operations.

Linux Mint 20.1 Released

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“Linux Mint 20.1 is a long term support release which will be supported until 2025. It comes with updated software and brings refinements and many new features to make your desktop even more comfortable to use.”
Desktops: Cinnamon, MATE, XFCE
Release Announcement on Main Page
What’s New: Cinnamon | MATE | XFCE
Download
I use Linux Mint Cinnamon in a Virtual Machine (VMware) for my daily internet activities. I’ll be installing this soon.

Thursday Morning Random Stuff…

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Chrome Updated
“The Stable channel has been updated to 87.0.4280.141 for Windows, Mac and Linux…This update includes 16 security fixes.”
Download | Release Info | Android

Firefox 84.0.2
“Security fix”
Download | Release Notes

January Microsoft Office Security Updates
Release info
How to Install Office Updates

Intel Graphics – Windows 10 DCH Drivers
Version: 27.20.100.9126 Date: 1/4/2021
“Patch driver”
Download | Release Notes

Windows 10’s taskbar is getting a big update with new weather and news widget
We’ve got that crap on our phone. It’s unneeded, annoying, and obtrusive. Why the hell does MS keep trying to put garbage on my computer?
Microsoft planning ‘sweeping visual rejuvenation of Windows’
bang your head metal health will drive you mad

Please remove your hat and bow your head in a moment of silence…

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Time to lay my Gigabyte GA-EP35C-DS3R system to rest. After over 12 years she has a fried capacitor and 2 of 4 memory sticks are bad.
She ran Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 10, and openSUSE. She RAIDed Raptors, displayed GeForce and Radeon, RAMed Corsair and G.Skill, rocked out to Audigy and X-FI, was powered by many, and lived in multiple cases.
She was beaten on in many a benchmark and frankly I’m amazed she lasted so long.
April 15, 2008 – My New System Is Up And Running

Weekend Random Stuff…

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BleachBit 4.2
Download (I use Portable) | Release Notes

FinalCrypt 6.6.0
Download | Changelog

Notepad++ 7.9.2
Download & Info

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

As Understanding of Russian Hacking Grows, So Does Alarm
“it now appears Russia exploited multiple layers of the supply chain to gain access to as many as 250 networks…The hackers managed their intrusion from servers inside the United States…“Early warning” sensors placed by Cyber Command and the National Security Agency deep inside foreign networks to detect brewing attacks clearly failed…SolarWinds, the company that the hackers used as a conduit for their attacks, had a history of lackluster security for its products, making it an easy target…Some of the compromised SolarWinds software was engineered in Eastern Europe, and American investigators are now examining whether the incursion originated there, where Russian intelligence operatives are deeply rooted.”

Drug reverses age-related cognitive decline in a matter of days by erasing ‘blockages
“The drug, ISRIB, has already proven effective at restoring brain functions of patients dealing with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and Down Syndrome…“ISRIB’s extremely rapid effects show for the first time that a significant component of age-related cognitive losses may be caused by a kind of reversible physiological ‘blockage’ rather than more permanent degradation,”

Random Favorite Songs Video
The band Black ‘N Blue was formed in 1981 by Jamie St. James and Tommy Thayer (yes, the dude from KISS). This was at the beginning of the Hair Metal era.
If you are interested in the beginning of that era, there are a few shows on Amazon Prime you can check out:
Inside Metal: Pioneers Of L.A. Hard Rock And Metal
Inside Metal: The LA Metal Scene Explodes 2
The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years
My favorite song from Black ‘N Blue is Chains Around Heaven from their self titled album:

Thursday Random Stuff…

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Goodbye 2020
I’ve never understood the preoccupation with the rollover of the calendar. I mean, I get the “any excuse to party” thing but beyond that I’m at a loss.
Anyhow, I do hope the next 365 days are better for all of us.

Updated – Bad Tweaks
My Bad Tweaks article is somewhere around 15 years old. Links to sources have disappeared. I updated the links today, mostly to the Internet Wayback Machine archive. I’ve also backed up these sources to PDF and have linked to those where appropriate.

Updated – UAC – Quick notes on why I disable it
As of today my original article is over eleven years old. Links to sources have disappeared. I updated the links today, mostly to the Internet Wayback Machine archive. I’ve also backed up these sources to PDF and have linked to those where appropriate.
UAC – Quick notes on why I disable it

WinAmp Community Update Project (WACUP)
Updated to build #6840. This is the second release in 8 days.
I’m a beta tester for WACUP. I’ll have a related article in the next week or so.
Download & Info

PowerToys v0.29.3
bugfixes
Download & Info

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

Windows 7: A year after the end-of-support deadline, millions choose not to upgrade
“Microsoft officially ended support for its one-time flagship operating system, Windows 7, at the start of 2020. As the year draws to a close, I ran the numbers to see how many PCs are still running this unsupported OS. Spoiler: It’s a big number,”
Go Ed Go!

“Psychological Flexibility” May Be Key To Good Relationships Between Couples And Within Families
“What makes for a happy family? The answer — whether you’re talking about a couple or a family with kids — is psychological “flexibility”, according to a new paper in the Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science. Based on a meta-analysis of 174 separate studies, Jennifer S. Daks and Ronald Rogge at the University of Rochester conclude that flexibility helps — and inflexibility hinders — our most important relationships.”
The paper cited even goes beyond that
“Within romantic relationships, higher levels of various forms of psychological inflexibility were linked to: (1) lower relationship satisfaction for themselves and (2) their partners, (3) lower sexual satisfaction and (4) emotional supportiveness, as well as (5) higher negative conflict, (6) physical aggression, (7) attachment anxiety, and (8) attachment avoidance. Taken as a set, these results suggest that psychological flexibility and inflexibility may play key roles both in couples and families to shape how individuals interact with the people closest to them.”
My takeaway: Don’t be a hard-ass. It’ll only make you miserable.