November 2020
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We recommend installing (or having us install) the Windows 10 May 2020 update (Version 2004, released May 2020) and waiting to install the just released October 2020 update.
Windows 10 version 1903 (and earlier) will reach end of support next month on December 8, 2020.
Windows 10 October 2020 Update is now available
Microsoft starts the rollout of the Windows 10 October 2020 Update
Changes are minor: PC World review ZD Net review Known issues Download it here
Windows 10 now blocks some third-party drivers from installing. Call us if you can’t get a device to update drivers.
New Server products coming from Microsoft in the second half of 2021, namely “Exchange Server, SharePoint Server, Skype for Business Server and Project Server,” will be offered only on a subscription basis. This seems to be the trend.
Microsoft’s Open License program will be phased out in just over a year. This will affect the way you can purchase volume licensed products.
Disposable emails now available for Microsoft Exchange online.
Gmail has provided it for a while now and it explained back in 2008. Use a one-time email address to avoid getting unwanted spam when signing up online.
Netflix discontinued its offer for a free 30-day trial. Disney+ also ended free trials.
Xbox Series X review. Launching November 10.
The PlayStation 5 review. Launching Nov 12, $500.
Both are faster, better looking on screen, bigger, and don’t have many compatible games yet.
Apple iPhone 12 Review. Available now.
Black Friday is going to be different this year. Mashable article
Many stores will be closed on Thanksgiving. Online Sales are starting early.
Track black Friday deals at blackfriday.com .
IBM will become two companies. One will be focused on hybrid cloud and AI, and the other on its managed infrastructure business.
Economic impact of COVID from the Brookings Institute:
World economic forum – impact of Covid
“We’re looking at what we call a bounce and fade pattern of growth throughout the world. But the bounce is because it went so far it had to come up – but it won’t continue at that strong rate. Just to give you a sense of the US, GDP was down 32% in the second quarter, we think it’s going to be up 30% in the third quarter, but by the fourth quarter back down to 2.5%.”
Harvard Business Review: Why The Global Economy Is Recovering Faster Than Expected “the initial bounce back was far stronger and sooner than expected, and some sectors of the U.S. and other economies have seen complete recoveries to pre-crisis levels of activity.”
McKinsey on technology changes and Covid
… companies acted 20 to 25 times faster than expected. In the case of remote working, respondents say their companies moved 40 times more quickly than they thought possible before the pandemic. …remote working and cloud migration are the two that respondents say have been more cost effective than previous norms and practices.
Working from home 101 from zdnet. A good list of useful software.
SECURITY
You may be violating the law by paying ransomware demands (PDF)
Companies that facilitate ransomware payments to cyber actors on behalf of victims… also may risk violating OFAC regulations…
Google Calls Out Windows Zero-Day Vulnerability That Remains Unpatched
Barnes & Noble hit by cyberattack that exposed customer data including email addresses, billing addresses, shipping addresses, and purchase history. CC data was not exposed.
Hackers are exploiting unpatched VoIP flaws to compromise business accounts.
23,600 hacked databases have leaked from a defunct ‘data breach index’ site
TORIAN GROUP
Annette Leon has joined our staff, primarily answering phone calls and helping with office work. She is completing her IT degree from COS
HUMOR
By Tim Torian