1+ hour, 33+ min ago (973+ words) At Ignite, Microsoft said software is 'evolving from being made for people to being made by people.' Attendees I spoke with were intrigued, but a little confused about how to make that work. "There's been no wave of technology ever in the history of the world that has ever been adopted faster than AI, but on balance, the success rates of AI projects are not where we'd like them to be," Judson Althoff Began, CEO of Microsoft's commercial business, acknowledged in his keynote. He listed four reasons for that'a lack of alignment between business and IT professionals; a lot of data quality issues; government requirements, including regulatory and compliance rules; and an overemphasis on experimentation or "random acts of innovation" rather than a focus on real business scenarios." The difficulty in getting value from AI is something I've been hearing…...

3+ hour, 35+ min ago (108+ words) Having trouble opening a PDF file? It might be corrupted or damaged. Here are 7 free online tools that can help you repair and recover your PDF files. PDF files can become corrupted due to: A popular online tool that offers PDF repair along with many other PDF utilities. Simply upload your damaged file and let it work its magic. Another reliable online option that can fix corrupted PDF files quickly and securely. Offers a dedicated PDF repair tool that works directly in your browser. A comprehensive PDF toolkit that includes repair functionality. Simple interface for repairing damaged PDF documents. Free desktop and online tools for PDF repair....

7+ hour, 18+ min ago (289+ words) Laptops & PC News: Attention Windows 11 users! A recent string of updates has caused an intriguing hiccup: the password sign-in icon is mysteriously missing from the loc Microsoft has issued a warning to Windows 11 users about its recent updates The software giant said that recent Windows 11 updates are causing the password sign-in icon to disappear from the lock screen, even when multiple sign-in options are enabled Typically, the password icon appears in Windows 11 only if other sign-in options (such as a PIN or fingerprint) are also available If a user only has a password, the system defaults to showing the password field directly The issue is affecting users who installed the August 2025 KB5064081 non-security preview update or later versions on Windows 11 24H2 and 25H2 systems While the icon is missing, Microsoft confirmed the function itself is still working Users can access the password option…...

13+ hour, 26+ min ago (421+ words) I tried a secure alternative identity tool, now it's got a huge Black Friday discount too VPNs now do far more than just encrypt your online traffic. Surfshark's Alternative ID tool, however, takes added security functionalities to a level unseen among all the best VPNs out there. Given the possibilities this feature offers, I spent a week using an alternative identity, becoming 64-year-old Brendan Lloyd Lewis, to see if it'd help me stay secure day-to-day, and frankly, I was impressed. Creating my pension-collecting alter ego took only a few clicks, and, once complete, I could copy and paste any details I needed straight from the app. It's also been built into Surfshark's web extension too, so it can auto-fill sign-up forms for you without needing to manually copy and paste. I took it for a spin with a few of…...

13+ hour, 35+ min ago (510+ words) AI in Notepad is not exactly new, as it's been around for several months at this point, but Microsoft is now putting effort into improving the integration. A new update for Notepad's Copilot integration will add support for "streaming," which means you can watch AI text type itself instead of directly seeing the final input. What is streaming in AI? When you use a large language model like ChatGPT, you might have noticed that texts start appearing almost immediately. Right now, you don't see the same experience when you use Copilot in Notepad. Microsoft wants that to change, and help Notepad behave a bit more like ChatGPT (yes, really). AI text streaming support is rolling out for Notepad, but it's limited to Copilot+ PCs at the moment. This doesn't mean you are going to escape the AI upgrade, as Microsoft…...

17+ hour, 20+ min ago (244+ words) Here we go again. Another update failure is plaguing Windows users, with Microsoft forced yet again to issue advice on user workarounds to bypass a failure. There's no fix available, and it affects a wide array of Windows PCs. The issue dates back to August " any update since then may trigger the failure on your PC. "Windows 11's recent updates have been nothing less than a disaster," Windows Latest says. The password failure follows the WinRE failures and multiple emergency updates. Microsoft admits that after updating your PC, "you might notice that the password icon is not visible in the sign-in options on the lock screen. If you hover over the space where the icon should appear, you'll see that the password button is still available." It's there " it's just hidden. Microsoft "is working to resolve this issue and will…...

18+ hour, 26+ min ago (421+ words) I tried a secure alternative identity tool, now it's got a huge Black Friday discount too VPNs now do far more than just encrypt your online traffic. Surfshark's Alternative ID tool, however, takes added security functionalities to a level unseen among all the best VPNs out there. Given the possibilities this feature offers, I spent a week using an alternative identity, becoming 64-year-old Brendan Lloyd Lewis, to see if it'd help me stay secure day-to-day, and frankly, I was impressed. Creating my pension-collecting alter ego took only a few clicks, and, once complete, I could copy and paste any details I needed straight from the app. It's also been built into Surfshark's web extension too, so it can auto-fill sign-up forms for you without needing to manually copy and paste. I took it for a spin with a few of…...

20+ hour, 33+ min ago (268+ words) Get over this AI fixation, Microsoft " that's what many are telling you, so listen and rejig your priorities However, Microsoft has, of late, likely lost all its mirth (one top executive in particular certainly seems to have done so), because there has been something of an explosion of unpopularity around Windows 11. This rather intense burst of hate " in some quarters, because yes, this isn't an all-pervading sentiment " is largely wrapped up in one issue: AI. Potential upgraders to Windows 10 didn't end up marvelling at the tricks they might be able to eventually avail themselves of if they went ahead and upgraded to Windows 11. Yes, they were likely astonished, true enough " not by the potential of AI, but rather the fiery outpouring of complaints about how Microsoft needs to fix the basics with Windows 11 before worrying about fancy AI trimmings. This…...

21+ hour, 11+ min ago (1543+ words) For the past few weeks, Microsoft has been associating AI agents with the future of Windows. But the company's own documentation openly admits that such agents can hallucinate, act unpredictably, and even fall for attacks that didn't exist a year ago. Yet, the fourth-largest organization is still pushing ahead with agentic features in Windows 11. If Microsoft believes these agents are risky enough to need separate accounts, isolated sessions, and tamper-evident audit logs, why is Windows 11 becoming the test bed for them? And why now, at a time when users are already exhausted by the AI-fication of the OS? In mid-October 2025, Microsoft said that they are "making every Windows 11 PC an AI PC." The company unveiled a wave of AI integrations meant to let you "talk" to your computer, show it what's on your screen, and then have it act on…...

1+ day ago (224+ words) For those looking to improve their clipboard management experience on the GNOME desktop, Copyous is a new GNOME Shell extension serving as a new clipboard manager... - Categories Computers Display Drivers Graphics Cards Linux Gaming Memory Motherboards Processors Software Storage Operating Systems Peripherals Happy Holidays: 21+ years in providing Linux hardware reviews with more than 5,500 original reviews / featured multi-page articles and more than 48,400 original news articles. 99% of the content written by one individual. If you enjoy Phoronix.com, consider joining Phoronix Premium. This week is the Cyber Week promotion to help support all of our Linux/open-source hardware and software operations. Thank you for your consideration and support this holiday season. GNOME Gains New Clipboard Manager Option With "Copyous" - Categories Computers Display Drivers Graphics Cards Linux Gaming Memory Motherboards Processors Software Storage Operating Systems Peripherals Happy Holidays: 21+ years in providing Linux hardware…...