Windows, Security & Privacy, Open Source and more
Hardwipe is a privacy software for Microsoft Windows operating systems. Its main purpose is to erase hard drive data permanently so that it can’t be recovered anymore with recovery software. You may remember my guide on making files unrecoverable on hard drives. I used the encryption software VeraCrypt for that, as it runs a full…
When Microsoft launched Windows 11 in late 2021, it did not only block millions of Windows PC owners from updating to the operating system, it also made the use of Microsoft Edge mandatory for certain operations. Want to open support articles? Edge is required. Web search results? Edge is required. Links to articles and other…
Upcoming versions of Windows will include a new repair feature that Microsoft calls Fix problems using Windows Update. The feature, which was first spotted in January 2023, uses the capabilities of Windows Update to reinstall Windows. Since it adds another repair option to Windows, you may wonder how it differs from existing options. In this…
UCheck is a software updates checker for Windows. It is a freemium product, which means that it is available as a free, limited version, and a commercial version. The price of the commercial version starts at $12 per year. Earlier this week, I reviewed WingetUI, an open source program to install, uninstall and update software…
This is a review of WingetUI, an open source program for Windows that many users will find useful. I wrote an article on the package manager winget for Windows yesterday on Ghacks. It is an integrated command line tool in newer versions of Windows to uninstall, install or update programs. WingetUI takes the capabilities of…
Microsoft is testing changes currently that give users from many European countries more control over Windows 11. There are workarounds already for users from other regions to uninstall Edge without tools or commands. Microsoft plans to introduce the change in the first quarter of 2024 in Windows 11. Two of the main improvements let users…
Appcopier is a new open source application by Built By Bel, known for apps such as CleanmgrPlus, ThisIsWin11 or Bloatynosy. The app, which is in an early development stage, lets Windows 11 users back up and restore system settings. Its developer designed the app to replicate functionality of Microsoft’s new Windows Backup app. You may…
The first official version of Thunderbird for Android will not be released in 2023. The Thunderbird team announced this week that it has postponed the release to 2024. To better understand why, it is necessary to look back at the initial plan. It all started with the separation of Thunderbird from core Mozilla. Eventually, the…
Windows Protected Print Mode (WPP) changes printing on Windows significantly. The main idea is to improve security and make printing convenient. Modern printers work automatically under WPP so that third-party printer drivers are no longer required. There are downsides, especially when it comes to printers that don’t support the functionality. Another downside is that printer…
The road towards a full extension ecosystem in Firefox for Android was long and difficult. Mozilla Firefox for Android supported the majority of desktop extensions for a long time. This changed when Mozilla switched from Firefox’s own native extensions system to the one used by Google Chrome and Chromium. Suddenly, users of Firefox for Android…