Author: Martin Brinkmann

When I was young, I studied German, History and English at Essen University in Germany. I worked in computer support for several years at the time to help other computer users when they ran into issues. Writing started out as a passion project, as I wanted to help more users and not just the ones that I handled in support. This lead to the founding of Ghacks Technology News in 2005. First, as a side-project, but shortly thereafter as a full-time project as the site's popularity exploded. I sold Ghacks to Softonic some years ago, but stayed on as Editor. You can still read my articles on the site. I do publish on Betanews as well. In recent years, I started to write and publish technology books, including my latest book "Windows 11 From Beginner to Advanced", which is available on Amazon. I'm also a freelance writer for the German publisher Gamestar. Chipp.in is my newest project. I want to use it to talk about my book projects, sell my books directly, and write about technology, as this is what interests me.
Defender Teaser

ConfigureDefender: open source tool to manage Microsoft Defender settings

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Microsoft Defender is the default security solutions on all modern versions of Windows. Users have to become active to replace it with another security solution. It is probably a safe bet that Defender is the tool on most Windows 10 and 11 systems.

It is different from tools like SuperMSConfig, which provide broader tweaking options.

The operating system offers several options to configure Microsoft Defender. The most common for home users is to use Windows Security. It divides settings on multiple pages and subpages, and may leave out some settings depending on certain factors.

ConfigureDefender is a long-standing open source tool to improve this. Just launch the small app after you have downloaded it from its GitHub repository to get started.

The app displays all settings on a single page.

You have two main options now:

  • Change individual settings directly.
  • Use a preset to change the status of multiple settings at once.

Presets offer a quick way to change settings, but it is rather difficult to understand what each setting does. Max, for example, looks like it would set everything to the highest values, but you still do not know what that actually means.

ConfigureDefender supports four presets: default, high, interactive and max. Default is handy, as it resets all settings to their default values.

A click on the info-button opens a readme with the information. There you find information about each preset. It will take some time to go through the listing though.

The second option gives you full control over the settings. Some users may have difficulties understanding what some of the settings do. While experienced users may understand that PUA Protection refers to “potentially unwanted applications”, inexperienced users may not.

It may be necessary to search for specific terms on the Internet to find out what they do.

The program supports a large number of settings. These are divided into basic, admin and exploit guard settings. Each preference is modified through a simple menu. Click on the menu and ConfigureDefender displays the available options. Pick one and hit the refresh button. The program reminds you that a restart of the Windows PC is required to apply the change.

Closing Words

ConfigureDefender speeds up the configuration of Microsoft Defender on non-managed systems. It is easy to use, especially for users who know what each of the settings do. New users may need to spend time in the beginning researching some of the preferences to understand what they do.

All in all, it is a useful helper app for Windows users.

Which security solution(s) do you use? Is Microsoft Defender one of them? Feel free to write a comment about this.

PlayStation 30th anniversary

Sony is launching the PlayStation 30th Anniversary Collection

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

The first PlayStation launched on December 3, 1994. To celebrate that launch, Sony announced the PlayStation 30th Anniversary Collection today. It features two limited consoles and three peripherals, including a limited PlayStation 5 Pro console (without disc drive).

It will be “highly limited” according to Sony, more about that further down below.

Here is what Sony plans to release:

  • PlayStation 5 Pro Console – 30th Anniversary Limited Edition BundIe
  • PlayStation 5 Digital Edition – 30th Anniversary Limited Edition Bundle

Both consoles feature the classic gray color scheme of the original PlayStation. They come with a vertical stand, which is sold separately, if you buy regular versions of the PlayStation.

Both versions have no disc drive, but include a matching cover for a disc drive. Both consoles come with a limited PlayStation 5 controller, four PlayStation Shapes cable ties, a PlayStation sticker, one of 30 limited edition PlayStation posters, and a PlayStation paperclip.

So, no PS5 Pro or PS5 with disc drive. Sony says that there will be 12,300 PlayStation 5 Pro console units in the limited design. Each console has its limited number etched onto the unit. The number represents December 3, the day and month of the launch of the first PS console.

No word on the limits of the other items, including the new PS5 Slim edition.

The following hardware is also sold separately:

  • PlayStation Portal Remote Player – 30th Anniversary Limited Edition (standalone)
  • DualSense Edge Wireless Controller – 30th Anniversary Limited Edition (standalone)
  • DualSense Wireless Controller – 30th Anniversary Limited Edition (standalone)

Preorders begin on September 26 in regions where PlayStation Direct is available. In regions where Playstation Direct is not available, preorders may also begin on September 26, but only for some items.

Sony plans to release the anniversary collection on November 21, 2024. It has not revealed the price for any of the listed items.

You can read the full announcement here.

It seems likely that the limited edition will sell out quickly. 12,300 units across all regions means that there is a tiny number that is sold in each region. While some users may be interested in the non-Pro 30th anniversary edition as well, it is probably a good idea to try your luck directly on September 26th, if you want to grab one of the consoles.

Scrapers are probably licking their fingers already to resell the limited editions on sites like eBay for a small fortune.

Chrome for Android may move and delete Tabs automatically

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Google released Chrome 129 today for Android and desktop systems. The update fixes a few security issues and introduces new features and changes as well.

One change in particular affects users of Chrome on Android: the automatic handling of inactive tabs.

Once updated to Chrome 129 on Android, the browser will move inactive tabs to a new group automatically. There, the tabs remain for a period of 60 days before they are deleted automatically according to Google.

Tip: Switching from Chrome to Firefox is easier than ever before. If you worry about disabled or crippled extensions, Firefox is your best bet to avoid this.

Note: Whether the deleting is enabled by default is unclear. Google says that the tabs will get deleted automatically, but it was disabled in Chrome 129 Beta.

When is a tab considered inactive? Google moves tabs to the Inactive Tabs group after 14 days of inactivity. Inactivity means that the tab was not activated in that time in Chrome.

Chrome for Android's new Inactive menu.

Good news is that you may change the functionality in the settings. Here is how that is done:

  1. Open Google Chrome on the Android device.
  2. Select Menu > Settings to open the preference.
  3. Activate Tabs there to display tab-related settings.
  4. Tap on Inactive to customize the functionality.
  5. Set the period to 7 days, 14 days, 30 days, or never. The default is 14 days.
  6. Toggle “Close after 60 days” to enable or disable the auto-delete feature.

Google says that the feature is designed to reduce Chrome’s memory usage and to improve the accessibility of tabs in the browser.

Deleted tabs remain accessible through the browsing history, but only if it has not been deleted.

Chrome users who do not want inactive tabs to be moved to the new group should set the functionality to Never. This ensures that Chrome won’t move inactive tabs out of sight or delete them after the inactivity period.

How do you handle tabs in your browser? Keep everything open? Use bookmarks? Start afresh on every start? Feel free to leave a comment below.

Outlook Error Startup MSLS70.dll

Microsoft conveniently suggests to use the new Outlook if you encounter the msls70.dll error in classic Outlook

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Microsoft confirmed a new issue that is affected classic Outlook and also Word and other Office applications.

When you start an affected app, you may receive the error message “The required file msls70.dll cannot be found in your path. Install Microsoft Outlook again”.

A click on the OK button, the only available button, hides the error message only. Any attempt to launch Outlook on the system is met with the same error message.

Did you know? The new Outlook may transfer third-party logins when using the sync feature.

Microsoft says that it is working on a solution for the issue. In the meantime, it recommends accessing the emails using the new Outlook or the web-based version of Outlook.

Maybe it is just my cynical-self speaking, but the timing seems awfully convenient. When Microsoft launched the new Outlook client, it made it clear that this app would become the only client of Outlook one day.

It put an end to Mail and Calendar in Windows, but also announced that the classic version of Outlook would go away one day. While that day is years away, it is something that Outlook users need to be aware of.

The error message suggests that Outlook cannot find a DLL that it needs to run. Microsoft’s support page offers no explanation for the issue. Did an update cause the error? If not, what caused it and why is the DLL missing?

A thread on Reddit suggests that you could fix the issue temporarily by using online repair.

Here are the required steps (you need an active Internet connection):

  1. Open the Start menu.
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Go to Apps > Installed Apps in the Settings window.
  4. Locate Microsoft 365 in the list.
  5. Select the three-dots menu.
  6. Activate the Modify option.
  7. Confirm the UAC prompt that appears.
  8. Switch to “Online Repair” and select the repair button.
  9. Confirm the action by selecting the repair button on the next screen as well.
  10. Wait for the process to complete.

This should fix the startup issue temporarily. Try starting Outlook on the affected device. It should work now.

The process is highlighted in a video on YouTube as well.

There you have it. Use online repair to fix the issue or wait for Microsoft to fix it. No ETA given though at this point.

Do you use Outlook? Or do you prefer a different email client on desktop PCs? Feel free to leave a comment down below!

Tools

Windows 11: PowerToys may soon change Settings on schedule

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Turning Bluetooth off for two hours, enabling Dark Mode at eight in the evening, or setting the volume to 0 percent in the morning. These are all examples what a new PowerToys tool might offer in the future.

The main idea is simple: let users create schedules for certain system settings. Besides what is been mentioned already, the new feature may support Wi-Fi or keeping the screen turned on for a specific amount of time.

Windows itself offers limited functionality when it comes to automating features. One of the very few options lets users activate Night mode on schedule so that Dark Mode is enabled at a specific time.

Administrators may use the Task Scheduler for certain jobs, but this is an advanced tool and not user friendly.

What is PowerToys? PowerToys is a collection of tools that expand Windows. It adds dozens of tools to Windows. The program is optional and while it does add a ton of tools to Windows, some dislike it because of its size.

Settings Scheduler Tool

Settings Scheduler PowerToys tool

Settings Scheduler is not yet available, but it has been announced as an idea on the PowerToys GitHub repository.

There, it has been described in the following way:

A simple utility for scheduling a setting for a set time or duration. The utility would have a few options for different settings then the option to change them based on a timer or based on a specific schedule.

While it seems likely that Settings Scheduler is going to be integrated into PowerToys, there is no guarantee for that at this stage.

Who is the tool for? The answer depends largely on the functionality that it will ship with initially. It could be an interesting tool for users who would like to automate certain processes.

The real question is, would you use it if it meant that you would likely have to run PowerToys on system start (assuming that the scheduled tasks are not added to the Task Scheduler)? Feel free to leave a comment down below. Also, whether you use PowerToys. (via Neowin)

Windows 11

DISM GUI: free admin app for checking and repairing Windows

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

DISM-GUI is a free app for Windows 10 and 11 that gives you access to various commands to check and repair Windows.

Good to know: DISM stands for Deployment Image Servicing and Management. It is a command line tool that, among other features, may be used to find and repair Windows issues related to missing or changed operating system files.

The free app makes the functionality more accessible. You still need to know the basics, as the program lacks documentation. The program interface consists of buttons that run the selected commands in a command prompt window.

DISM-GUI interface

It includes all popular options, including cleanup, which frees up storage space by removing overhead from the component store, and restore, which attempts to repair the Windows system.

Tip: check out Super God Mode as well. It creates shortcuts to more than a thousand admin tools and settings on Windows.

Here is a quick overview:

  • Check (CheckHealth) – The command checks for corruptions inside the Windows image.
  • Scan (ScanHealth) – The command runs a more thorough scan.
  • Restore (RestoreHealth) – Searches for errors and attempts to repair them.
    • Online – check using the local image.
    • Wim – use an ISO image or an unpacked ISO image for the repair.
    • ESD – use an ESD image.
  • Analyze ( AnalyzeComponentStore) – Checks the component store for overhead.
  • Cleanup (StartComponentCleanup) – Cleans up the component store to free up disk space.

DISM-GUI supports several non-DISM commands next to that:

  • SFC Scan — Runs the command sfc /scannow.
  • CAB Install — Install a CAB update on the system.
  • ESD > WIM — Convert an ESD file to a WIM file.
  • Get State — Returns the state of Reserved Storage.
  • Enable / Disable — Enable or disable Reserved Storage.

Note: Windows reserves storage on the primary partition for “proper performance” and updates.

Commands are executed in a command prompt window in the background.

DISM commands

You can download DISM-Gui over at Deskmodder.

Verdict

DISM-Gui is a useful helper app for Windows 10 and 11. It is especially useful for admins who use the commands regularly and for inexperienced users who need to run the commands.

All in all, it is a useful free app for Windows administrators.

Fastfetch output

Fastfetch: nerdy tool that displays system information next to Ascii Art

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Fastfetch is an open source cross-platform application that is command line driven. It collects system information and displays the info in the terminal window next to an Ascii art image of the used operating system.

The information that it collects is useful, but the main purpose of the tool seems to be to share a screenshot of the info with others.

An alternative: Glow is an open source system analyzer for Windows that displays lots of hardware and software information.

All you need to do to get started is to download the latest version of the app from its GitHub repository. On Windows, you’d simply extract the archive, open a command prompt window at the location and run the executable without any parameters.

The output displays information about the operating system, processor, graphics unit, RAM, disk drives and other hardware or software components.

Here is where it gets interesting: Fastfetch comes with a billion parameters that add more information about the system to the output. On top of that, it supports dozens of parameters to change the output itself, e.g. by specifying colors.

To run it with all parameters, use fastfetch -c all.jsonc. This adds lots more to the output, including network information, cpu and gpu usage info, temperatures, and more.

Tip: run the –help parameter to get the full list of supported parameters. It is long, but thankfully grouped to improve accessibility.

Closing Words

Fastfetch may not be as easy to use as other system information tools, provided that you do not work with a Terminal window all the time.

It is a niche program, but it seems to have a loyal following. Plus, it is updated regularly, which is always a plus.

Have you used Fastfetch, or the grandmother of this type of programs Neofetch, before? If not, would you? Feel free to leave a comment down below.

Windows Surface PC

Microsoft is changing Windows Security to avoid another Crowdstrike disaster

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Will it disallow access to the Windows kernel by security products? Not right now, but the path could lead there.

Microsoft held a security conference earlier this week at its Redmond headquarters. It invited business partners, especially those in the security field, to participate.

The hot topic during the conference was the Crowdstrike disaster that took down more than 8.5 million PCs worldwide. More precisely, how to avoid a repeat of it in the years to come.

David Weston, Vice President Enterprise and OS Security at Microsoft, published a summary of the event on the Microsoft Windows blog.

The main short-term takeaways:

  • Microsoft and security vendors agree that choice is good when it comes to security products for Windows.
  • A list of best practices for developing and distributing security updates will be created based on discussing Safe Deployment Practices.
  • Other areas of improvement include testing, information sharing, and improved incident response effectiveness.

For the long-term, Microsoft plans to introduce new security capabilities to the Windows platform to add “security capabilities outside of kernel mode”.

Microsoft will design and develop the new platform in collaboration with “ecosystem partners”. The goal is “enhanced reliability without sacrificing security” according to Microsoft.

The blog post ends with several partner quotes and how everyone appreciated the opportunity to discuss security. Reading between the lines, several expressed concern that security could suffer, especially if kernel access would be revoked.

Closing Words

It will take some time before changes, even the discussed short-term changes, are applied. While Microsoft said nothing about pushing security products out of the kernel on Windows, some are worried already that Microsoft could create a solution that benefits its own products over everyone else’s.

It would not be the first time in the history of Windows.

What is your take on this development? It should be clear that something needed to be done to avoid another scenario that would cause millions of PCs to go down in flames. Are the proposed changes the right way?

Google

You will see Ads now when you pause YouTube on TV

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

If you use the official YouTube TV app without a premium subscription, then you are in for another ad-treat.

Google has been testing Pause-Ads on YouTube since April of this year. These ads show up when you hit the pause button, e.g., to get something to drink or go to the bathroom.

Now, pausing will show an ad on the screen for more users. The following happens when you pause the video while using the official YouTube TV app.

  • YouTube pauses and shrinks the video that is playing so that it occupies roughly two-thirds of the screen.
  • An ad is loaded and shown to the right of it.
  • YouTube displays a dismiss button and an info button next to the ad.

YouTube user RoÆther posted a screenshot of the experience on X:

There is also a report on 9to5 Google that shows another photo and a different ad.

There are other reasons for hitting that pause button. Maybe you would like to share your thoughts with someone else in the room, answer a phone call, or think about what you just saw.

Whenever you do, you will see an advertisement on the screen. Is it a disruptive experience? I’d say it is, as it changes the interface and displays new buttons on the screen. The ads do look static for now, though.

Reports suggest that Google is rolling out the change to more users.

YouTube is not the only platform that pause ads are making an appearance on. More and more ad-financed services may introduce pause ads to increase revenue generation.

As always, users have a few options to deal with ads on the platform:

  • Subscribe to YouTube Premium, which offers an ad-free experience.
  • Use a third-party YouTube app.
  • Stream content from a PC with a content-blocker.
  • Use a VPN connection to a country that does not have ads on YouTube.

Note: another interesting option is to search for the video on Bing Video. You may watch the video there without ads.

All in all, it is clear that ad-powered services are going to push ads harder and harder on YouTube. Google has been testing unskippable ads for instance, which make the experience even worse.

What is your take on pause ads? Would you mind, or is this something that you do not care about at all? Feel free to leave a comment down below.

Metager

MetaGer Search Engine drops free version because of Yahoo

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

MetaGer is a privacy-focused search engine that is run by a German non-profit organization. One of its appeals, apart from its focus on privacy, was that you could run searches across multiple search engines.

It also included an interesting feature to search within search results, and to maintain a personal blacklist.

Up until now, you could use an advertisement-powered version or a paid version of the search engine. This changed this week when the maintainers of MetaGer announced that they cannot offer the free version anymore.

The organization claims that Yahoo has terminated contracts that allowed them to run a free version of the search engine with ads.

The version contributed the most to the revenue of the organization. Most expenses were paid from that revenue. With that revenue dropping to zero, MetaGer says that it cannot afford to offer the free version of the search engine anymore.

While that is not the end of MetaGer, as the paid version remains available, it will push the search engine even more into a niche.

About the paid version: The paid version works with tokens. A search requires one token and one hundred token cost $1. In other words, you pay $1 for every 100 searches on the MetaGer platform.

Plans were underway to reduce the dependency on Yahoo

The maintainers admit that they were aware of the Yahoo dependency. Yahoo could make the business collapse like a house of cards if it would terminate the contract.

First steps to reduce the dependency on Yahoo were undertaken. The introduction of a paid ad-free option added a new revenue source.

Next, the organization had plans to introduce its own advertising platform on the site. This would have allowed MetaGer to broker deals with partners directly and earn direct advertising revenue. It would have cut the middlemen out of the equation as well.

Paid memberships increased, but it would have taken several years before full independence according to the organization.

The future of MetaGer

MetaGer continues to be available, albeit only as a paid search engine. Users who want to use the search engine need to buy tokens to do so.

Development and maintenance is reduced, and operation will be reduced to a “very small scale” to make sure the search engine can survive.

Users of MetaGer can help the project through donations or by becoming paid members. Payment options include sending cash per letter or through one of the many available online payment options.

Closing Words

Whether MetaGer can manage with donations and the paid version alone remains to be seen. It is unclear if an agreement with another search engine, Microsoft’s Bing comes to mind, could change the situation for the organization.

Have you heard of MetaGer or even used the search engine? What is your take on the development? Feel free to leave a comment down below.