Looking back at 2019, was it a good year for Microsoft? It certainly wasn’t all smooth running, that’s for sure, particularly not regarding Windows 10, which witnessed what can only be described as a staggering run of blunders and bugs, as fixes for various glitches created fresh problems in turn.
There were highs, too, as Microsoft made impressive strides with the revamped Edge browser, and also a number of nifty moves on the gaming front, not the least of which was the reveal of a powerful next-gen Xbox.
Speaking of Xbox Series X (formerly known as Project Scarlett), we’ll briefly touch on Microsoft’s progress in the console arena, but note that we are primarily focusing on the computing front here (meaning PCs and Windows).
(Image credit: Microsoft)
Windows 10 bug blunders
Sadly, the first thing that comes to our mind when you mention Microsoft’s 2019 is the quite frankly head-scratching debacle whereby a string of cumulative updates were pushed out, which resolved bugs on one hand, but caused others at the same time.
Things quietened down a little on the bug front towards the end of the year, but then Microsoft put its foot in it again, when in December the software giant embarrassingly deployed an update meant for businesses to Windows 10 Home users – for the second time, to make matters worse. Clearly, wonky quality assurance was a definite black smudge in Microsoft’s 2019 copybook.
Generally speaking, the new Edge has been well-received by testers, and there’s a pretty positive atmosphere about what Microsoft has done with the browser, and how it might tempt folks away from Chrome (not least because it isn’t such a memory hog).
That said, Microsoft still has a hell of a mountain to climb with Edge, as the existing browser has a pitifully small market share, and in the most recent stats from Net Applications at the time of writing, it slipped slightly (again) to under 6%. When it’s officially launched in January 2020, the revamped Edge will doubtless come out fighting – but one of the trickiest opponents it may face is the spectre of its former reputation.
Of course, Edge is coming to Linux, and a big part of Microsoft’s strategy with the new browser is to deploy it across multiple platforms. While it’s arguable how much impact Edge might have in some of these arenas – Linux fans aren’t typically jumping up and down to adopt Microsoft products – this move is still giving the revamped browser the best chance possible (unlike the original Edge, which was confined exclusively to Windows 10).
Overall, then, the rebooted Edge hit a positive note for Microsoft this year, but the real test will come in 2020, when those best laid plans are tested in post-launch reality.
(Image credit: Microsoft)
Surfacing
On the hardware front, Microsoft impressed with its Surface products in some respects, and remained distinctly static in other ways.
Most of the excitement was around the Surface Neo and Duo, which were revealed, but won’t launch until 2020. The Neo is a dual-screen device which is essentially two tablets hinged together like a book (with a small physical keyboard that magnetically attaches to the lower screen when needed, taking up about half the display).
Coupled with Windows 10X, a fresh spin on the desktop OS purpose-built for dual-screen products, Neo promises a tight integration of software and hardware which will hopefully deliver levels of versatility that we’ve never seen before in a Surface hybrid.
Surface Duo is essentially a smaller version of Neo, and to all intents and purposes, it’s Microsoft’s long-rumored foldable phone (it runs Android, not Windows). Although Microsoft is pitching it as more of a pocket-sized computer, and trying to get away from the concept that this is a dual-screen smartphone (it is capable of making phone calls, incidentally – but it’s not a phone, got it?).
These pieces of hardware represent the exciting future of Surface, but sadly the products actually released in 2019 fell short. The Surface Pro X at least represented a shot at something different, but in our review, we found that while it was a very slickly designed and highly portable 2-in-1, the device is just too pricey for the basic performance levels delivered by the ARM processor, and battery life was disappointing too.
Worse still, Microsoft’s latest update for the veteran Surface Pro range felt hugely underwhelming, and pretty much forgotten in the shadow of all the aforementioned products. While the Surface Pro 7 did benefit from the introduction of a USB-C port, that move was long overdue (and the Type-C connector doesn’t support Thunderbolt 3, either).
And yes, we also got a new processor which was a good upgrade on the performance front – particularly with much better Intel Iris Plus integrated graphics – but while Microsoft gave with one hand, the new CPU had a negative effect on battery life. And otherwise, the Surface Pro 7 remained pretty much identical to its predecessor, which was disappointing. Likewise, the Surface Laptop 3 wasn’t all we’d hoped for, either.
So, in short, we were shown devices with a lot of promise for 2020, but what we actually got in the here and now was pretty pedestrian at best. On a more positive note, it is admittedly good to see Microsoft taking its time with the dual-screen devices – something it made noises about previously – to ensure the company gets them right.
Surface Neo and Duo are massive moves for Microsoft – the company’s chief product officer Panos Panay has admitted himself they’re something of a gamble – but the time it’s taking, and the focus it’s giving this new breed of dual-screen hardware is encouraging, so we have to give Microsoft a tick in that respect.
(Image credit: Shroud / Microsoft)
Mixing it up
In the world of live streaming, Microsoft did its best to push Mixer against dominant services like Twitch. Back in July, Microsoft set its stall out by declaring it was instigating measures to help combat some of the toxic behavior which can blight the gaming community (or any online community, for that matter).
Then came the really interesting move – Microsoft poached two big-name Twitch streamers. And when we say big-name, we mean really-huge-name: Ninja and Shroud. This has raised the profile of Microsoft’s streaming service considerably, and if more money is going to be thrown around in this respect, we could see things really start to happen for Mixer.
Then again, these moves haven’t had much impact in the near-term, and Mixer still has a hell of a long way to go to become anything like competitive with Twitch, which holds something like three-quarters of the streaming market.
Still, what we’ve seen happening in 2019 might just foretell one of the biggest shifts – and indeed shocks – in this sideline of the gaming industry. And more broadly, it shows how much emphasis Microsoft is placing on pushing the gaming side of its business these days.
(Image credit: Microsoft)
Xbox-ing clever
Speaking of that grand push on the gaming front, Microsoft had a lot to say at E3 back in June. Top of the bill, naturally, was the revelation of the next-gen Xbox, with the console being heralded as (up to) four times as powerful as the Xbox One X, no less; and that it would be launching with Halo Infinite.
Xbox Series X will go on sale in Holiday 2020 (and was further teased at the end of the year at The Game Awards 2019, when we got our first glimpse of what looks more like a tower gaming PC – albeit a compact one – than a typical console).
On the PC front, though, the big news was the arrival of Microsoft’s subscription service, Xbox Game Pass, for PC gamers. The service is a little confusing, and still in beta, but we cover everything you need to know about it here. The short version is you access it via the new Xbox app in Windows 10, and it offers a library of over 100 games currently for a subscription of $5 / £4 / AU$4.95 monthly (at least while it remains in beta).
There are still a lot of issues to iron out – again, not exactly unexpected for beta software – but equally there are some pretty smart games on offer, and this represented a very useful addition for PC. Indeed, throughout the year, Microsoft was making all sorts of noises about how it has rather let down PC gamers in the past, and that all this is going to change.
Xbox Game Pass is part of that, as is bringing a load of Xbox Game Studio titles to Steam – including Gears 5 – and this has all been a refreshing change for 2019.
(Image credit: Microsoft)
Cloudy future
A final big cog in Microsoft’s gaming machine of 2019 was Project xCloud, the firm’s game streaming service which launched a public preview in October. The idea is to let you stream games to any device, and although it only supports mobile phones currently, Windows 10 PCs will be covered in 2020.
Microsoft’s big advantage here is that it has the necessary infrastructure in place, already commanding a large network of (Azure) data centers. The plan is to have a massive library of games eventually – although options are pretty limited now – and also let gamers stream Xbox games they already own.
Again, Microsoft is apparently flexing its muscles and potentially leveraging those deep coffers, with reports that the company is looking at securing exclusive games for Project xCloud – although this is just a rumor, and any such deals would likely be years down the line. But we can well believe this is the case.
As to the reality of Project xCloud right now, our impressions are that Microsoft is nailing things in the crucial department of latency, and overall performance is good, despite some issues (but again, with a beta, gremlins are expected).
So this is another bright spot, but Google Stadia does have the jump on Microsoft in this sector, having already launched with impressive results – at least for those with good net connections. From what we’ve seen early on, Microsoft could have the edge in terms of performance with more average broadband speeds (and that could be a key aspect, of course).
(Image credit: Future)
Concluding thoughts
Microsoft’s 2019 was really all about Microsoft’s 2020. What we mean by that is the full products which actually came out in 2019 weren’t anything to particularly shout about, but Microsoft was laying a hefty weight of foundations for a successful next year.
So we had a pretty underwhelming set of Surface devices, and a particularly uninspiring launch in the Surface Pro 7. And the reputation of Windows 10 copped a load of flak thanks to all those incidents of bugs causing yet more bugs, although at least Microsoft avoided any major disasters with its biannual updates.
That said, there wasn’t much doing with the big updates, with the second outing of 2019 effectively being a mere service pack with no major new features. So when Windows 10 wasn’t plagued with gremlins, the rest of the year was all rather yawn-inducing.
But then comes the promise, and all the groundwork laid for 2020. That included pushing forward with some impressive work on Edge, which has generally been well-received anecdotally, and could make a big impact next year. Then we have the Surface Neo and Duo poised to take computing versatility to another level – if the hardware and indeed Windows 10X pans out right.
Along with a lot of promising stuff on the beta front in the gaming world, namely Project xCloud and Xbox Game Pass for PC. Microsoft is even trying to gain some momentum with Mixer against the might of Twitch, which may seem a little on the futile side, arguably, but certainly shows a commitment to driving forward across all facets of gaming. And naturally Xbox Series X is a major force poised in the wings…
In the end, 2019 was really a reshaping and rebuilding year, trying to get all this stuff aligned – and we can’t underestimate how important that might be for Microsoft if all of the above does come to fruition in terms of being successful in 2020. But still, it’s hard to get excited about what actually happened in 2019, as opposed to what was revealed, teased or beta-tested.
Which of Microsoft’s Surface devices is on our best laptops list?
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Artificial intelligence‘s recent rise to the forefront of business has left most office workers wondering how often they should use the technology and whether a computer will eventually replace them.
Those were among the highlights of a recent study conducted by the workplace communications platform Slack. After conducting in-depth interviews with 5,000 desktop workers, Slack concluded there are five types of AI personalities in the workplace: “The Maximalist” who regularly uses AI on their jobs; “The Underground” who covertly uses AI; “The Rebel,” who abhors AI; “The Superfan” who is excited about AI but still hasn’t used it; and “The Observer” who is taking a wait-and-see approach.
Only 50% of the respondents fell under the Maximalist or Underground categories, posing a challenge for businesses that want their workers to embrace AI technology. The Associated Press recently discussed the excitement and tension surrounding AI at work with Christina Janzer, Slack’s senior vice president of research and analytics.
Q: What do you make about the wide range of perceptions about AI at work?
A: It shows people are experiencing AI in very different ways, so they have very different emotions about it. Understanding those emotions will help understand what is going to drive usage of AI. If people are feeling guilty or nervous about it, they are not going to use it. So we have to understand where people are, then point them toward learning to value this new technology.
Q: The Maximalist and The Underground both seem to be early adopters of AI at work, but what is different about their attitudes?
A: Maximalists are all in on AI. They are getting value out of it, they are excited about it, and they are actively sharing that they are using it, which is a really big driver for usage among others.
The Underground is the one that is really interesting to me because they are using it, but they are hiding it. There are different reasons for that. They are worried they are going to be seen as incompetent. They are worried that AI is going to be seen as cheating. And so with them, we have an opportunity to provide clear guidelines to help them know that AI usage is celebrated and encouraged. But right now they don’t have guidelines from their companies and they don’t feel particularly encouraged to use it.
Overall, there is more excitement about AI than not, so I think that’s great We just need to figure out how to harness that.
Q: What about the 19% of workers who fell under the Rebel description in Slack’s study?
A: Rebels tend to be women, which is really interesting. Three out of five rebels are women, which I obviously don’t like to see. Also, rebels tend to be older. At a high level, men are adopting the technology at higher rates than women.
Q: Why do you think more women than men are resisting AI?
A: Women are more likely to see AI as a threat, more likely to worry that AI is going to take over their jobs. To me, that points to women not feeling as trusted in the workplace as men do. If you feel trusted by your manager, you are more likely to experiment with AI. Women are reluctant to adopt a technology that might be seen as a replacement for them whereas men may have more confidence that isn’t going to happen because they feel more trusted.
Q: What are some of the things employers should be doing if they want their workers to embrace AI on the job?
A: We are seeing three out of five desk workers don’t even have clear guidelines with AI, because their companies just aren’t telling them anything, so that’s a huge opportunity.
Another opportunity to encourage AI usage in the open. If we can create a culture where it’s celebrated, where people can see the way people are using it, then they can know that it’s accepted and celebrated. Then they can be inspired.
The third thing is we have to create a culture of experimentation where people feel comfortable trying it out, testing it, getting comfortable with it because a lot of people just don’t know where to start. The reality is you can start small, you don’t have to completely change your job. Having AI write an email or summarize content is a great place to start so you can start to understand what this technology can do.
Q: Do you think the fears about people losing their jobs because of AI are warranted?
A: People with AI are going to replace people without AI.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration said Tuesday that it would provide up to $325 million to Hemlock Semiconductor for a new factory, a move that could help give Democrats a political edge in the swing state of Michigan ahead of election day.
The funding would support 180 manufacturing jobs in Saginaw County, where Republicans and Democrats were neck-in-neck for the past two presidential elections. There would also be construction jobs tied to the factory that would produce hyper-pure polysilicon, a building block for electronics and solar panels, among other technologies.
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on a call with reporters that the funding came from the CHIPS and Science Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law in 2022. It’s part of a broader industrial strategy that the campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, supports, while Republican nominee Donald Trump, the former president, sees tariff hikes and income tax cuts as better to support manufacturing.
“What we’ve been able to do with the CHIPS Act is not just build a few new factories, but fundamentally revitalize the semiconductor ecosystem in our country with American workers,” Raimondo said. “All of this is because of the vision of the Biden-Harris administration.”
A senior administration official said the timing of the announcement reflected the negotiating process for reaching terms on the grant, rather than any political considerations. The official insisted on anonymity to discuss the process.
After site work, Hemlock Semiconductor plans to begin construction in 2026 and then start production in 2028, the official said.
Running in 2016, Trump narrowly won Saginaw County and Michigan as a whole. But in 2020 against Biden, both Saginaw County and Michigan flipped to the Democrats.
Although no one likes a know-it-all, they dominate the Internet.
The Internet began as a vast repository of information. It quickly became a breeding ground for self-proclaimed experts seeking what most people desire: recognition and money.
Today, anyone with an Internet connection and some typing skills can position themselves, regardless of their education or experience, as a subject matter expert (SME). From relationship advice, career coaching, and health and nutrition tips to citizen journalists practicing pseudo-journalism, the Internet is awash with individuals—Internet talking heads—sharing their “insights,” which are, in large part, essentially educated guesses without the education or experience.
The Internet has become a 24/7/365 sitcom where armchair experts think they’re the star.
Not long ago, years, sometimes decades, of dedicated work and acquiring education in one’s field was once required to be recognized as an expert. The knowledge and opinions of doctors, scientists, historians, et al. were respected due to their education and experience. Today, a social media account and a knack for hyperbole are all it takes to present oneself as an “expert” to achieve Internet fame that can be monetized.
On the Internet, nearly every piece of content is self-serving in some way.
The line between actual expertise and self-professed knowledge has become blurry as an out-of-focus selfie. Inadvertently, social media platforms have created an informal degree program where likes and shares are equivalent to degrees. After reading selective articles, they’ve found via and watching some TikTok videos, a person can post a video claiming they’re an herbal medicine expert. Their new “knowledge,” which their followers will absorb, claims that Panda dung tea—one of the most expensive teas in the world and isn’t what its name implies—cures everything from hypertension to existential crisis. Meanwhile, registered dietitians are shaking their heads, wondering how to compete against all the misinformation their clients are exposed to.
More disturbing are individuals obsessed with evangelizing their beliefs or conspiracy theories. These people write in-depth blog posts, such as Elvis Is Alive and the Moon Landings Were Staged, with links to obscure YouTube videos, websites, social media accounts, and blogs. Regardless of your beliefs, someone or a group on the Internet shares them, thus confirming your beliefs.
Misinformation is the Internet’s currency used to get likes, shares, and engagement; thus, it often spreads like a cosmic joke. Consider the prevalence of clickbait headlines:
You Won’t Believe What Taylor Swift Says About Climate Change!
This Bedtime Drink Melts Belly Fat While You Sleep!
In One Week, I Turned $10 Into $1 Million!
Titles that make outrageous claims are how the content creator gets reads and views, which generates revenue via affiliate marketing, product placement, and pay-per-click (PPC) ads. Clickbait headlines are how you end up watching a TikTok video by a purported nutrition expert adamantly asserting you can lose belly fat while you sleep by drinking, for 14 consecutive days, a concoction of raw eggs, cinnamon, and apple cider vinegar 15 minutes before going to bed.
Our constant search for answers that’ll explain our convoluted world and our desire for shortcuts to success is how Internet talking heads achieve influencer status. Because we tend to seek low-hanging fruits, we listen to those with little experience or knowledge of the topics they discuss yet are astute enough to know what most people want to hear.
There’s a trend, more disturbing than spreading misinformation, that needs to be called out: individuals who’ve never achieved significant wealth or traded stocks giving how-to-make-easy-money advice, the appeal of which is undeniable. Several people I know have lost substantial money by following the “advice” of Internet talking heads.
Anyone on social media claiming to have a foolproof money-making strategy is lying. They wouldn’t be peddling their money-making strategy if they could make easy money.
Successful people tend to be secretive.
Social media companies design their respective algorithms to serve their advertisers—their source of revenue—interest; hence, content from Internet talking heads appears most prominent in your feeds. When a video of a self-professed expert goes viral, likely because it pressed an emotional button, the more people see it, the more engagement it receives, such as likes, shares and comments, creating a cycle akin to a tornado.
Imagine scrolling through your TikTok feed and stumbling upon a “scientist” who claims they can predict the weather using only aluminum foil, copper wire, sea salt and baking soda. You chuckle, but you notice his video got over 7,000 likes, has been shared over 600 times and received over 400 comments. You think to yourself, “Maybe this guy is onto something.” What started as a quest to achieve Internet fame evolved into an Internet-wide belief that weather forecasting can be as easy as DIY crafts.
Since anyone can call themselves “an expert,” you must cultivate critical thinking skills to distinguish genuine expertise from self-professed experts’ self-promoting nonsense. While the absurdity of the Internet can be entertaining, misinformation has serious consequences. The next time you read a headline that sounds too good to be true, it’s probably an Internet talking head making an educated guess; without the education seeking Internet fame, they can monetize.
