Category: News

I have to admit that I’m not a huge fan of Arc Browser, a Chromium-based browser by the Browser Company that has been making some waves lately in the influencer-sphere. While I like some features, I disliked others like the forced registration on start or the lack of customization options.

Some time ago, the makers of Arc announced that they started to work on yet another browser. This one less focused on experienced or professional browser users but on artificial intelligence.

Called Dia, it is currently only available with an invite. The Browser Company did publish a short video on YouTube that provides a quick tour of the browser though.

Here it is:

The main feature that the company highlights is the integrated AI. Search, for example, combines answers from the web using large language models and open browser tabs. While you can still search the web normally, you can also direct your questions to the baked in AI to get an answer generated.

This works similarly to how all other AI tools work today. You write something, the AI responds, and you may follow-up. The most interesting feature from my perspective is the ability to use the AI to interact with open tabs in the browser.

So, you could open up tabs during research that list different products. You could use the integrated AI to find out more about these exclusively.

There is also an “ask” button available on all webpages that you may activate to ask the AI questions about the current webpage.

The main question is whether this is enough to convince users to give it a try or even switch to it. My initial guess is that this is not sufficient for that. While Arc may convince some users to give it a try or even stick to Dia, it seems to lack the same features as Arc.

To be fair, Dia is still in active development and it may take a while before the browser is published publicly.

Now you: what is your opinion on baking AI into browsers? Good thing that is useful or rather something that you don’t want at all?

France and Germany have announced an open source collaboration tool called Docs. Its description says that Docs was designed to be a secure alternative to Notion, Outline or Confluence.

Well, that definitely applies to Microsoft 365, and Google Docs, because they are the big players on the field.

Docs was developed as a joint initiative by France’s Interministerial Digital Directorate (DINUM), and Germany’s Center for Digital Sovereignty (ZenDiS). Open source tools like Docs will allow users, and businesses to move away from paid services. This may just be the start of many such services. The EuroStack report highlighted the importance of building an independent digital ecosystem for Europe, to address dependencies on foreign technologies and fostering innovation.

Now, you may wonder, what’s with the generic name? Docs, surely they could have done better there. Well, that’s because Docs isn’t just a product, it is a collaborative text editor which is part of a suite which is called “La suite numérique”, you can check the website here to learn more about it. It also has its own GitHub page with repositories for each tool.

Docs will allow users to edit documents and export them into various formats including DOC, ODT, and PDF. It supports markdown, various block types, slash commands, etc. Editors can collaborate on a document in real time. The best part is that you can keep editing the document when you are offline, and your edits will be synced when you’re back online. You can also share documents that you have created using the platform.

And like many modern programs, Docs also has some AI-powered features, these are called AI Actions and allow you to generate content, sum up, correct or translate text.

Docs is built on top of Django Rest Framework, Next.js, BlockNote.js, HocusPocus and Yjs. As a matter of fact, they are also the sponsors of BlockNote and Yjs. The tool uses the MIT license.

You can sign in to Docs using your FranceConnect account. There is a demo page that you can test by signing in using your web browser. Just head over to the official GitHub, scroll down to the getting started section, and you will find the credentials you need to test the app. It has a fairly simple interface, and is quite user-friendly. You can also see the documents that were created by other users in this test environment.

While it is designed as an online collaboration tool, you can download Docs and self-host it if you want to, but keep in mind it’s still a work-in-progress. But, if an offline office suite is what you want, there is a better option, LibreOffice. It is also free, open source, and supports Windows, macOS and Linux.

Did you know that it is also used by Governments? As noted by HowToGeek, Schleswig-Holstein, a state in Germany, switched from Microsoft Office to LibreOffice last year. And they also migrated over 30,000 PCs from Windows to Linux. A lot of people will be doing that later this year, when Windows 10 reaches its end-of-life support date.

Microsoft plans to retire the communication software Skype in May 2025 and recommends that users switch to Microsoft Teams for all their communication needs.

You may ask yourself now how that works. How do you get data like your contacts migrated to Microsoft Teams? This guide walks describes what Microsoft has in store for you and how to export your Skype data manually as well.

First, the information that Microsoft provided so far:

• Skype users will be able to sign into Teams using their credentials.
• Chat and contacts will automatically appear, according to Microsoft.
• During a transition period, calls between Teams and Skype users will be supported.

This makes the migration to Microsoft Teams quite convenient, provided that you want to migrate to the new application.

Note that it may take days before you are able to sign in to Microsoft Teams with your Skype credentials. Microsoft says that this will happen “over the coming days”, but does not provide additional details.

Skype users may export their data. This can be useful if Microsoft Teams is not an option, or if you prefer to switch to a different communication platform altogether.

Important: Skype remains available until May 5, 2025. It is advised to export the Skype data before the date to avoid disruptions or issues.

Here is how you export your Skype data manually:

1. Sign-in on the web-based version of Skype.
2. Locate settings and preferences on the page that opens.
3. Click on “export contacts (.csv)” to export all contacts.
4. Click on “export files and chat history” to save it to the local system.
5. Click on “export caller ID numbers” to save the data locally.

Not all third-party communication services may support Skype imports, but you can also open the files manually to access the information whenever you require it.

Now it is your turn. Did you use Skype in the past or are you using it still? What is your take on Teams? Is it a good replacement? Let us know in the comments below.