Get Into Devices

How to access Ubuntu partitions from Windows 10 on Dual Boot PCs - EASY METHOD

2018-03-22T06:35:00.002-07:00

Credits:Netmaddy

Rocking on a dual-boot PC ? Love Ubuntu ! but can't access the files you had on Ubuntu partition from Windows ? Ah! You are at right place! As most of you guys may know that we can access Windows files from Linux but Windows just doesn't show you any Linux partitions.

So if you downloaded a movie on Linux partition then you can't watch it on Windows ! Sad eh!
Here's the solution 😉 Say thanks in comments 😛

There is a third party driver -- called ex2Fsd -- for Windows systems which was originally released to support read/write on ext2 partitions. Since then it has been updated and now it support read operation almost perfectly on ext4 partitions too. (For those who didn't understand what I just told, just remember Linux partitions are ext4 and we'll need a driver for that to work on Windows).

You can download the ext2Fsd driver from the official site here. or just use this direct link.

Step 1: After download, simply install it with default checked options, Do not try to play with anything just yet :-)

Step 2: After installing and rebooting, open the 'Ext2 Volume Manager' from Start menu.

It will open up if you open it 😀

A weird Window like following one will appear.

Step 3: Now identify your partition of Linux which you want to access from Windows, these will be in ext4 file system. Right click on it and select 'Show Properties'.

Step 4: In the next dialog, click on 'Ext2 properties'. A new dialog will open.

Step 5: In the dialog box, check 'Mount volume in readonly mode' & 'Mountpoint for fixed disk, need reboot' and select a Drive letter of your choice from adjacent drop down menu.

Step 6: Hit 'Apply' and you're done after next reboot ;-)

After the reboot, the Linux partition will be available in Windows explorer and will open like a charm :-)

Note that the read-only mode is required because the driver doesn't fully support the Write mode properly, so you CANNOT write on your Linux drive from Windows, however read-only mode is perfectly fine and I've been using it since a year now. However if you still want to enable write access, your Linux partitions may get corrupt anytime ( It has happened to me and trust me, I want to save you !) 😘

So guys! This was a quick and easy way to access Linux/Ubuntu ext4 partitions on Windows, the method is personally used by me and should help most of the guys like you sop share with your friends and feel free to drop any comment, query and feedback. And last point...I love feedbacks!

😅
Thanks of visiting 😇 and stay tuned here for more cool stuff like this ! 🙂🙂

Android Nougat takes over Marshmallow to become the most used version of Android

2018-02-06T07:24:00.001-08:00

Android Nougat has finally won over Marshmallow to be the most commonly used version of the smartphone operating system.

Nougat , launched in August 2016, is now runs on 28.5 percent of Android devices, according to data from Google developers blog, a bit ahead of Marshmallow, which accounts for 28.1 percent. Android Marshmallow debuted in October 2015.

Google has always struggled in the past to get smartphone makers to upgrade devices to the most recent Android releases. The latest version of Android : Android Oreo, released in March last year is currently running on just 1.1 percent of Android devices.

Credits: Google

It's worth mentioning that Oreo percentage is even less than the good old Android Jellybean, which has been around since July 2012. The amusing part -- 0.3 percent of users are still using -- presumably antique and creaking -- phones that are running the forgotten Gingerbread, which arrived way back in 2010, Whoops !, It's been more than seven years.

Google has no way to force Android smartphone makers to upgrade their devices to the latest version of the mobile OS, so there tend to be many different versions in use. Many vendors will only offer the latest version of Android on their newest handsets, in order to encourage users to upgrade.

In contrast, Apple devices get updates quite quickly, since Apple controls hardware and software domains of their devices, it can drive upgrades faster. Apple's most recent data shows that 65 percent of iPhones are now running iOS 11, the latest version, while 28 percent are on iOS 10 (That's still not TOO old, released September 2016).

The remaining are most likely to be older devices with incapable hardware that cannot support the recent versions of iOS.

While Google has tried to remove this fragmentation of Android OS with its Project Treble incorporated with Android Oreo, it remains to be seen how far it can go to help deliver quicker updates.

2 Cool Ways to Disable Startup Programs in Windows 10 You probably Didn't Know

2018-01-27T10:13:00.003-08:00

Representative image

A general question to a Windows PC user -- Wanna make your computer boot faster ? 🙄

The obvious answer -- Hell Yes! 🤓

Over time a Windows PC builds up a hell load of applications, utilities and unwanted clutter that starts automatically when you turn on the PC or laptop. While some of these are useful - cloud synchronisation services -- Google Drive, for example, which work best when you don’t have to remember to enable them BUT -- not all are necessary or even worse -- not all are wanted.

Every single program in the startup list adds a bit more time between you pressing the power button and the computer being ready to use. Fortunately in Windows 10 it’s very easy to see who is the culprit.

In this tutorial, I'll be sharing here Two methods to disable any Unwanted startup item from your Windows PC, the first method is quite simple but it's pretty limited, some programs are beyond its reach.

For people NOT wanting to play with Windows Registry we recommend the Method 1.

But if your are the kind who would really love to play with Windows Registry or want a more detailed Auto-Start analysis of your PC, you will thank me for the Method 2 at the end of the post 😉 (It includes everything .. Yup literally every service, driver and hidden startup programs).

Method 1:

Step 1: Right click on the taskbar and click on Task Manager

Step 1

Step 2: Click on Startup tab in Task Manager Window

Step 2

This will display a list of programs which start automatically with Windows. Startup impact of each item gives a measure of how hard the item hits your boot time.

Step 3: To disable any unwanted program from startup, select it and hit disable... and you are done !

The next time you start your computer this program won't auto start, hence saving the system the valuable resources.

Having trouble with this method ? Simply drop a comment, I'll be more than happy to help.

Method 2: Modifying registry keys

Here comes the cool part of this tutorial, every program may not be visible in Task Manager's startup tab because some programs start themselves intelligently via invokes from its services or even more -- by Task Scheduler of Windows.

All the startup and Autorun programs, services and even drivers have their own Registry entries which provide the Autorun instructions and file paths for Windows to start these programs on Boot.

Microsoft's official SysInternals blog contains a free utility called Autoruns which readily gives the registry entries responsible for startup behaviour of various programs, you can download and read a more thorough documentation of it from here.

Step 1: So download the Autoruns.zip from the above link or just hit this direct download link.

Step 2: Extract the compressed .zip file and run Autoruns.exe (If you have 32-bit version of Windows) or Autoruns64.exe (If you own a 64-bit copy) as Administrator.

Step 3: JUST EXPLORE !!! The Autoruns window contains every single Autorun activity on your computer, enjoy geeking around -- You can disable a startup item by unchecking it and re-enable it by checking it again -- Isn't that simple ? But its potentially pretty dangerous too, don't mess with the things you don't understand because some of these are services and drivers and you might end up deleting your for example, Networking Service -- you don't wanna spend the next few hours gone crazy as to what happened to your Internet connection 😂😂 or even worse -- Disabling Anti-Virus Auto start and thinking that your Anti-Virus provider is cheating you with fake product. 😂😂😂

Autoruns window (Click the picture to Enlarge)

You can also any delete the AutoStart entry to eliminate the startup activity of that program once for all. Well ! I would suggest you take a backup first by hitting save button in toolbar or from the file menu. This might take a few minutes but its recommended if you are thinking of tweaking something really cool that can make your PC dead.

All these entries are stored in Windows registry so you are always free to manually delete any Autorun entry from Registry Editor.

For this, hit start and type regedit and open registry editor from the list.

You can find the entries of Startup programs at following locations:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

Additional 64 bit programs (For 64 bit version of Windows) are located in :

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

Non-Core services can be found here:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services

You can disable context menu items from these locations:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes\Directory\ShellEx\ContextMenuHandlers

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes\Directory\Background\ShellEx\ContextMenuHandlers

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes\Folder\ShellEx\ContextMenuHandlers

Programs started via Windows Task Scheduler Entries can be found in Task Scheduler itself OR in the 'Autostarts' tool discussed above.

Also Read: 7 surprising ways to take faster screenshots in Windows 10 using built-in tools

So ! That's all for today. 🙂

So guys! These were two cool ways to disable startup items in Windows 10 and make your PC boot faster and quicker. Feel free to ask any queries in the comment section. I'll also be glad to read your feedback.

Thanks of visiting 😇☺ and stay tuned here for more cool stuff like this ! 🙂🙂

How to get Bing Daily Wallpapers on your Windows 10 PC

2018-01-19T10:11:00.001-08:00

All Images copyrighted to respective owners, all credit goes to them. Featured on Bing Daily Desktop

Want some high quality wallpapers for your PC ? Want them to update regularly to make your desktop feel "refreshing" ? If so, This post has got you covered, Whether it be sceneries, landscapes, pets or building, Bing Desktop app sets up all for you. It has got some of the best wallpapers I've ever seen in any wallpaper provider.

Don't believe me ? I have included some of the wallpapers in this post from my collection made from Bing Daily Wallpapers.

Each day, Bing features a beautiful high-quality image on their homepage. Not just that, but they also provide fun facts to go along with the image. Best of all if you’ve missed a day or just want to review, you can view their image archive to see what has been used in the past.

Fortunately, there’s an easy way to use the daily Bing background as your desktop wallpaper on Windows 7/8/8.1/10 -- It is --The Bing Desktop Application.

Bing Desktop is a free program that you can download, and with a couple of clicks from here (but don't try to install it, YET !) it will change your desktop wallpaper to Bing’s homepage image (And your default search engine too if you do not pay heed to installation), there are other cool images too exclusive to Bing desktop which you will love.

(NOTE: Yes! you can use Bing Desktop
wallpapers without any interference from Bing Search)

Firstly, if you don't haven't yet downloaded Bing Desktop, grab the Bing desktop application for Windows from here.(Don't try to install it ... for now ...)

This app from Microsoft actually provides you a Bing search bar on your desktop (don’t worry, you can get rid of it) and gives you the option to use Bing’s image of the day and other recommended Bing Images as your desktop background.

Whatever you do, DON'T just blindly rush through the Bing desktop installation, as Microsoft has tried to promote Bing in all kinds of stuff on your PC. It wants to switch your current desktop background image for a Bing image of the day slideshow, as well as set your default browser’s search engine to Bing and activate related Bing Search services)..

So, How to get just the Wallpaper stuff ?

The easiest thing to do is uncheck everything EXCEPT FIRST checkbox when you get to the post installation window (see here) with a number of check boxes.

Uncheck all checkboxes EXCEPT first

Unless, you want to use other features of Bing Desktop, just tick the first checkbox only.

Now open the Bing Desktop Application from Start menu. (If it gives corrupted files error, try to reboot your PC, it should get fixed automatically upon next restart)

Click on the Settings wheel in the upper right corner of the application’s window. Then go to Preferences and uncheck the following: “Show Bing Desktop icon on the taskbar” and “Show a search box on the taskbar.”

Uncheck First and second checkbox

Next, go to Settings > General and uncheck “Turn on wallpaper toolset” and “Automatically paste copied text in the search box.”

Leave “Automatically open when Windows starts” under Settings > General checked, as you want Wallpapers to update regularly from internet.

You can set the change interval of Wallpaper, Wallpaper categories change interval and manually choose Wallpapers by clicking ⓘ icon in toolbar.

Here are some other wallpapers I collected from Bing Desktop and other Bing platforms:

These are in Full HD resolution (1920 x 1200) and you can download them if you like by right clicking or long pressing the image (on touchscreen devices).

So, that's all for today, Drop a comment below if have trouble following any step or want any help, I'll be happy to reply.

Thanks for visiting ! and stay tuned here to get more awesome tutorials like this.

Samsung Galaxy S8 about to recieve Android Oreo update; Final beta version released

2018-01-13T06:31:00.002-08:00

Samsung Galaxy S8 owners are now one step closer to getting Android 8 Oreo on their smartphones.

This major update is currently being tested in beta version by users across the globe hoping to see its upcoming release.There’s no official news from Samsung on when Android Oreo will be rolled out to millions of S8 owners but the latest news suggests it could come soon.

Firstly spotted by Reddit users, Samsung has confirmed that its beta programme will come to an end on January 15.

All new registrations for the test software are also closed now, meaning those who haven’t already signed up won’t now be able to download the beta release.

Credits: Reddit, Samsung

This latest news from Samsung very likely means that the last beta to be pushed out was the conclusive version that will come up on all devices. This update included a number of bug fixes such as resolving the issue of the phone restarting while using the camera and the home screen not fitting on the device properly.

So this is clearly exciting news for S8 fans but it’s worth noting that -- if you are a S8 owner, it still may take some time for Oreo to hit your device even after beta testing ends.

The update will be rolled out in batches to avoid any serious issue from affecting all the devices at once. Batch roll-out allows the company to stop the update if any serious issue is reported to ensure that only a small number of devices are affected by that issue. This approach is employed by almost all companies while rolling out a new software update.

We will post new updates on Samsung news as soon as we get a word, so follow us on social media and to follow up ... It's simple, just hit the buttons on top right corner.

Thanks for visiting ! and stay tuned for more such updates and other cool tutorials

WhatsApp Beta for Android enables quick switch from Voice to Video Call

2018-01-11T06:11:00.002-08:00

Video calling has become a crucial part of any popular messaging app. As with WhatsApp, over 100 million calls are made per day on the platform.

Though till now WhatsApp supports both voice and video calls, and it has been rumoured for months that WhatsApp is testing a new feature that will allow users to switch between voice calls and video calls. The feature is now finally available on beta (v2.18.4) for Android (for now), and lets users switch between calls at the tap of a button.

You can register for the WhatsApp beta programme on Google Play.

If you are in the middle of a WhatsApp voice call and want to switch to a video call, you just need to tap that button to make the switch. Tapping the button will simply send a request to the person on the other side, asking for a confirmation to switch to video call.

If the request is accepted, the call will be switched. If the offer is declined, the voice call will continue as normal. Currently in WhatsApp, you need to end a voice call to make a video call. WhatsApp calls are currently only available for one-on-one conversations but it might allow group chats in the near future.

These features are expected to rollout in sooner updates to the app.

This new WhatsApp feature was spotted by WABetaInfo, a trusted source which tracks changes to the popular chat app. It said that the feature is only available to those who have signed up for the beta version of WhatsApp.

Image Credits: WABetaInfo

Recently, WABetaInfo reported that WhatsApp mistakenly rolled out the 'Reply Privately' feature in a beta update that allowed users to privately send a message to a participant in a group without anyone else knowing about it.

Watcher of the popular chat app @WABetaInfo said that the feature appeared and was subsequently dropped from the beta version of the app, confirming that the developers mistakenly enabled the feature.

WABetaInfo also leaked the details of some upcoming features that WhatsApp was developing for web and desktop namely tap to unblock and a picture-in-picture (PIP) mode.

Also Read: Google unifies Android Pay and Google Wallet under a single name -- Google Pay

Android Pay and Google wallet set to be replaced by Google Pay

2018-01-08T19:52:00.002-08:00

Google just announced that it’s merging all of its different payment services, including Android Pay and Google Wallet, into one unified service, now to be called Google Pay.

Google says it has worked for a year to “make these [payments] experiences simpler, safer, and more consistent,” Albeit Android Pay and Google Wallet products aren’t undergoing any major feature changes, but will now operate under the Google Pay name.

Credits: Google

In stores, the Google Pay brand will replace Android Pay in coming months and the Chrome Autofill setting will just be called Google Pay.

With the new method, payment information saved in your Google account will be available everywhere you use Google products: in Chrome for web purchases, in YouTube for renewing your subscriptions, in apps on Android for in-app purchases, and at retail outlets with NFC payments.

According to Google, apps like Airbnb, Dice, Fandango, HungryHouse, and Instacart already support Google Pay, with more sites and stores to follow shortly.

Also read: Android P -- What we want to see from Android 9

OnePlus 5 starts getting Android Oreo as OxygenOS 5.0.1 update

2018-01-07T03:59:00.002-08:00

Since last week, OnePlus started rolling out Android Oreo update as OxygenOS 5.0 for the OnePlus 5 users. But, the update was soon suspended as users started complaining of some bugs - it is still not clear what was the exact problem. This did disappoint the OnePlus 5 users though.

But now, it's time for the users to rejoice! Yes, OnePlus resumes the Oreo update for OnePlus 5 users, and this time as OxygenOS 5.0.1, as promised by the company.
Back then, when the update was cancelled, OnePlus acknowledged the bugs and stated, "Because of a bug on Oxygen 5.0, we have cancelled its global release. And we're preparing for Oxygen 5.0.1, the partial release will go alive soon." The Oxygen 5.0.1 update is now live for the OnePlus 5 users, and is ongoing batch rollout -- this means that if you are a OnePlus 5 owner and haven't received the update - hold on - as you may receive it soon.
"The build will be continuing to release here shortly. Remember this is a staged roll out, so it will take some time to get out to everyone," notes OnePlus in its blogpost.

Apart from the bug fixes, the new OxygenOS 5.0.1 comes with the same updates and features as the OxygenOS 5.0. OnePlus states "The build is now 5.0.1 and most of the changelog is the same, but we've added a few things to this new version". The two major changes that come with the OxygenOS 5.0.1 update are - bug fixes for third party camera application and fixed network issues for European operators.

Several other features that come with the new update are -- new alarm & calendar features, new Parallel apps feature, new design for Lift up display, and added Adaptive model screen calibration, Wi-Fi optimisations and also a redesigned Battery 🔋 Saver. The update comes along with the December Android security patch.

Also check-out: 8 Great Tips to Boost your battery life

8 Great Tips to Extend your Android Phone's Battery Life

2018-01-05T11:07:00.000-08:00

High-end Flagship Android smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Moto Z2 Force are powerful, but unfortunately, they don't have endless battery life. In fact, many Android phone users would be happy even with single full day battery backup in hope that a nightly recharge is sufficient.

Sadly, it isn't every time. A number of developments have added overtime to the power demand of our smartphones, Thinner designs with less room for batteries, larger and brighter screens, faster deca-core processors, more apps and services that run in the background, and power-hungry Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS radios, not to mention battery hoggy Google's Location services, all these developments share the responsibility. The move from 3G to 4G and LTE networks a few years ago have also deducted their power toll.

But there're many other factors which hamper battery life results than that. Fortunately, there's plenty you can do to get maximum juice from your Android device. These tips would essentially apply across just about ANY Android phone.

What we're not going to show you is how to reduce your handset's power consumption without making it unusable. We'll also give life changing 'hacks' for increasing your battery lifespan.

So here are things that you should try to extend your handset's battery life:

1. See what's sucking the most juice.

Just head over to Settings > Battery to see an organized breakdown of what's consuming your
phone's battery. Applications and features will display in a descending list of battery hogs. If you see an application you hardly use or a feature you never use, you'll want to uninstall or force stop the app or turn off the feature (whatever helps !).

2. Dim the screen brightness or use auto brightness

It is common myth that auto brightness sucks up more juice, but actually it uses less power than constantly running your screen at full brightness, but of course, you'll get even better results by turning your screen's brightness down to the lowest setting provided that you can tolerate leaving it there. Even if you follow nothing else we suggest, following this single tip will extend the life of your battery upto decently large extent.

3. Turn unnecessary hardware radios off

It's really great that today's phones have LTE, NFC, GPS, Wi-Fi, and BT, but do you really need all these activated 24 hours a day? Android keeps location-based apps resident in the background which suck up the juice from your battery.

If your phone has a power control widget, you can use it to quickly turn on/off GPS (the largest power drain), NFC, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and LTE.

On stock Android, swipe down twice to bring up the Notification bar, turn off desired radios from quicksettings menu (For KitKat and older versions tap the icon in top right corner in notification bar).

It is also helpful to turn off Google location history (if you don't have any use of it) to save a big share of your battery juice. Location history can access your location even with Location access turned off and even when you aren't using your phone, this makes it a battery sucking hog.

4. Don't leave apps running in the background

By killing apps that you aren't actually using, you can significantly reduce your CPU's workload and cut down on its power consumption.

Tap the multi-tasking button also called overview button - usually the right-most of the three icons at the bottom of the screen - and you can swipe away apps to close them.

You can get a detailed view of running services and processes under
Running services option in Developer options (For Marshmallow 6.0.1 and above) or Apps>Running section (For Lollipop 5.1 and earlier versions). In the list of running apps, Tap on each one to see what they're for; you can stop any apps that you don't need running in the background all of the time.

(Note: You can enable Developers options to make then available in settings app by repeatedly tapping on Build number in About Phone section of your device in settings app.)

Follow Tip 1 for a bonus in battery savings.

5. Keep an eye on signal strength.

If you're in an area with poor cellular coverage, the phone will work harder to catch onto a strong-enough signal, radio refresh frequency will increase. This has an adverse effect on battery life.

There's not much you can do about this, but keep in mind that this could be the culprit behind a seemingly weak battery.

If your area has weak coverage of a particular network only; for example, weak coverage of 4G in your area, try locking the network in 3G only or 2G only mode, just to get good signal strength. Nevertheless, older networks consume less power per unit time hence you will be getting longer session from your battery. It's worth popping the phone into Airplane mode if you don't need data or voice calls, this might give you some extra battery bucks.

6. Avoid Heating up you phone

Heat is one of the prime enemies of Lithium ion based batteries. leave your phone in car in summers and keeping your phone in direct sunlight would be a really bad idea here. Avoiding heat will help increase your battery lifespan in a long span by considerable amount.

7. Avoid draining your battery below 10%

This one is the next biggest step you can take to nourish your battery for longer life. Unfortunately, Lithium ion and polymer batteries are inherently unstable, they have a limited lifespan, discharge cycles and they are going to die one day, but by draining them to very low charge levels you are making this process fast. Try to keep your charge levels somewhere between 30-80 %, your battery will love for this. Draining your battery to 0% right from 100% on a regular basis would be a bad idea here.

Try to charge your phone several times a day to avoid low charge levels. If you can't access your charger at the moment, you can turn on Battery Saver from battery setting to prevent excessive battery drain or you can just shutdown your phone if ever battery gets below 10%.

The above two tips are the 'hacks' for drastically increasing your battery lifespan, do follow them if you want to make your battery live as long as possible.

8. Buy a portable USB powerbank or a batterycase

Ah! This one is simple and straightforward, These days there's a huge choice of portable USB power banks, which you can use to charge your phone on the go. Plus, if you have a popular handset, you may find there are specific cases which incorporate batteries to give you extra power at the expense of only a little more bulk and weight.

Final Words:

Finally, it's worth rebooting your phone from time to time, rather than leaving it in sleeping all the time. This can sometimes cure otherwise inexplicable battery draining problems. Plus, disabling vibration also helps to conserve power, as a vibration motor need to shake your whole phone down to give you an alert, consider using ringtones and sounds instead.

Also note that, Disabling Google Assistant and Siri won't help: These services drain power only when you use them and they are listening for your command; if you don't use them much, don't lose out on a useful feature by disabling them

Nevertheless, if you are wondering whether using a different charger will affect anything, the answer is, you don't necessarily need to use the charger that came with your phone, as long as the output current and voltage specifications remain the same (you can them on a label in your charger), third-party chargers won't cause any issues with your battery unless they have a manufacturing flaw.

So guys! these were some easy tips to improve your Android smartphone's battery life. I hope you guys enjoyed the post, I'll be happy to see your feedback in comments.

Thanks for visting! and stay tuned here for more stuff like this.. 🙂🙂

Getting the most out of the Battery Power Slider in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update

2018-01-01T08:00:00.000-08:00

Microsoft experimented with “Power Throttling” in the Insider Previews of the original Creators Update. This feature has now arrived for everyone in the Fall Creators Update.

This feature allows Windows to automatically put the CPU in an energy efficient state when background work is being performed, saving battery power. Windows identifies applications running in the foreground, music and video players, and other important tasks and won’t throttle them. Microsoft stated that this feature can provide up to an 11% reduction in CPU usage when the PC is under heavy load.

You can control this feature from the power slider, which is now available when you click the🔋 battery icon. In Battery Saver or Recommended mode, Power Throttling is enabled. In Best Performance mode, it’s disabled.

Here's how to fix missing battery slider in Windows fall creators update :

If you have a missing battery slider even after the Fall Creators Update, then most likely because you’re using the High Performance power plan or any other custom plan.

Step 1(one and only step ;-) ): Just open power options in control panel switch to balanced mode and you should see power slider on battery icon now. (Restart your user session if you have to...)

And yes !, It's a bug, maybe Microsoft will fix it in coming updates. Currently the performance slider of Windows 10 does not support custom power plans, it shows only three default performance options. So it depends on your needs whether you want this slider on not.

You can also disable this feature for individual apps by heading to Settings > System > Battery, selecting an application, setting “Managed by Windows” to “Off”, and unchecking the “Reduce work app does when in the background” checkbox.

According to Microsoft’s announcement, this feature is currently only available on computers with processors that include Intel’s Speed Shift technology, which is 6th-generation Skylake (and newer) Core processors. Microsoft plans to roll it out to other processors in future.

So guys! This was the way to fix a missing power slider from battery button in Windows 10 fall creators update.

Thanks for visiting ! Stay tuned here for tips and tricks like this 🙂🙂... Happy new year BTW.

Xiaomi Mi A1 android smartphone gets Android Oreo 8.0 update

2017-12-31T08:47:00.003-08:00

Oreo on Mi A1

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi has announced the release of Android 8.0 Oreo update for its first Android One-powered smartphone, the Xiaomi Mi A1.

Also read: What's new in Android Oreo ? All you need to know!

The company has followed up on its promise to deliver Oreo 8.0 update for Mi A1 devices before the end of 2017 even though it is the last day of the year in India.

The company took to its official Twitter account to announce the roll-out of the new update.

We're ending the year with an O! #MiA1 users, stay tuned as we're rolling out your long-awaited update in batches but make sure you're already on the latest December update (7.12.19) to receive Android O! pic.twitter.com/GhRtDnyJn4
— Mi (@xiaomi) December 31, 2017

It is to be noted that users need to be on the latest update of version 7.12.19 that was released earlier this month to receive the Android Oreo update.

Company stated that the update will be rolled out in batches to avoid any serious issue from affecting all the devices at once. Batch roll-out allows the company to stop the update if any serious issue is reported to ensure that only a small number of devices are affected by that issue. This approach is employed by almost all companies while rolling out a new software update.

Mi A1 is the first smartphone by Xiaomi that runs on Android One, a project by Google to ensure quick update delivery and this has resulted in timely updates for almost all the security patches that are released by Google.

Update 13/01/2018 --

The Oreo update has been suspended for a few days as users have reported bug abiut freezing dialler app and unresponsiveness of camera app.

7 surprising ways to take faster screenshots in Windows 10 using built-in tools

2017-12-29T09:21:00.002-08:00

Representative image

Screenshots are quite useful -- whether you're trying to write a how-to article or show your friend something from your chats (As in a smartphone) -- but taking screenshots in a PC running Windows 10 could be quite simple or it may not turn out to be simple at all. Well, that's because there are many ways to take a screenshot in Windows 10 just by using built-in tools. Either way, this guide has got you all covered 😉

The process isn't just as intuitive as I'd like (I'm a big fan of Apple's screenshot process in macOS). But if you're looking for quicker ways to take screenshots in Windows 10 devices, look no further -- here are seven different ways to take a screenshot on your Windows 10 device and almost none of them uses any third party tools, you can choose your favorite one along the way, Here we go:

Snipping Tool

Ah! the good old snipping tool, most of you might be aware of it. it's been around since Windows Vista and is perfect if you need to snap a specific portion of your screen (called rectangular snip in snipping tool). The tools also features a free form snip that lets you draw around your screen to cut the snap out. Try it yourself, you can find this tool in Start > All Programs > Windows Accessories > Snipping Tool.

To use the Snipping tool, open it and click New to begin the screenshot process. The default snip type is a rectangular snip -- you'll use your mouse to crop a rectangular part of your screen for capture. You can also take free-form, window, and full-screen snips with the Snipping Tool.

The Snipping Tool does not automatically save your screenshots -- you will need to manually save them in the tool before you exit. It does automatically copy your captures to the clipboard.

Print Screen

To capture your entire screen, tap the PrtScn(Print Screen) button. Your screenshot will not be saved, but it will be copied to the clipboard -- you'll need to open an image editing or a documentation tool (such as Microsoft Paint or MS Word), paste the screenshot in the editor and save the file from there or just use it in a document by pasting it there.

Windows Key + Print Screen

To capture your entire screen and automatically save the screenshot, tap the Windows Key + PrtScn. Your screen will briefly go dim to indicate that you've just taken a screenshot, and the screenshot will be automatically saved in the Pictures > Screenshots folder (in your user library).

Windows Key + H

If you'd like to capture your entire screen for sharing purposes, you can use the Windows Key + H keyboard shortcut.

This will capture your entire screen and open the Windows Share toolbar so you can immediately share it with your friends via email, Facebook, Twitter, OneNote, etc

Alt + Print Screen

To take a quick screenshot of the active window(just the active one, not the whole screen), use the keyboard shortcut Alt + PrtScn. This will snap your currently active window and copy the screenshot to the clipboard. You will need to open the shot in an image editor to save it. Take a try using MS Paint for this. :-)

Windows Logo + Volume Down

If you're rocking a Windows Surface device, you can use the physical (well, sort of physical) buttons to take a screenshot of your entire screen - pretty similar to how you would take a screenshot on any other smartphone. To do this, hold down the Windows Logo touch button at the bottom of your Surface screen and hit the physical volume-down button on the side of the tablet. The screen will dim briefly and the screenshot will be automatically saved to the Pictures > Screenshots folder.

[Note for Surface devices with Type cover:]

If you have a Surface or Surface Pro tablet from Microsoft with Windows 10 with Type cover, you need to use completely different keyboard shortcuts, because there is no PrtScn key on the Type Cover. Instead, Microsoft offers the following Surface-device specific shortcuts for Windows 10:

Fn + Spacebar - saves an image of your current screen to the clipboard, so that you can paste it into any application. It is the equivalent of pressing the standard PrtScn key.
Fn + Alt + Spacebar - saves a screenshot of the active window, to the clipboard, so that you can paste it into any application. It is the equivalent of pressing the Alt + PrtScn keyboard shortcut.

Windows + Alt + PrtScn (Windows 10 Creators Update only)

In Windows 10 Creators Update, Microsoft has introduced new features for gamers, including a new Game Bar that can be used when playing games of all kinds, the bar can be opened using Windows Key + G combination.

One of the things you can do with this Game Bar is take screenshots of the active game window. While playing a game, press the keys Windows Key + Alt + PrtScn, and a screenshot is automatically created and stored in Videos > Captures folder of your library. Its filename will include the name of the game that you are playing and the date and time when the screenshot was made.

So Guys!, these were 7 ways to take screenshots in Windows 10, you can follow the steps to have an easier time taking screenshots in your Windows device.

Drop a comment below if you are having any problems in following this post. Thanks for visiting, stay tuned here for more cool stuff like this ! 🙂🙂

How to delete the Windows.old folder from Windows 10: 2 Easiest ways

2017-12-28T21:01:00.000-08:00

Representative image: Windows.old folder

Did you upgrade your PC to Windows 10 recently or maybe to some other version of Windows? If so, ever wondered what did happen to the previous version of the OS? It probably disappeared into the gallows automatically, Right?

Wrong. Your old OS didn't get erased; rather, it's still lingering in a system folder named Windows.old inside your Windows(Most likely C:/ drive). And depending on the size of that version, it could be hogging a lot of precious space.

Okay !, First things first: If you think you might want to downgrade to your previous windows installation then DON'T delete this folder as it would be required for downgrading without losing your previous settings and data.

So, if you have made your mind to delete it and want to reclaim that storage now -- you can delete the Windows.old folder immediately, though not in the way you might expect. Indeed, if you simply click the folder and then press the Delete key, Windows will tell you you need permission from trustedinstaller, even if you are a geeky guy removing permissions is not gonna help in most cases because there are lot of files inside that folder all protected....etc.

Let's stop beating around the bush,

Here's the proper way to delete the Windows.old folder:

Method 1: (Works with all versions of Windows):

Note: If you are rocking the latest version of Windows (starting from Windows 10 build 1703), a newer, easier and simpler method, Method 2 is for you)

Step 1: Click in Windows' search field, type Cleanup, then click Disk Cleanup.

Right click on your Windows (most likely C:/) drive in This PC/My Computer and click properties. In properties, click Disk Cleanup button.

Step 1

Step 2: Click the "Clean up system files" button after the Disk Cleanup dialog appears.

Step 2

Step 3: Wait a bit while Windows scans for files, then scroll down the list until you see "Previous Windows installation(s)."

Step 3

Step 4: Check the box next to the entry, then make sure there are no other boxes checked (unless you do indeed want to delete those items). Click OK to start the cleanup.

Step 4

As you can see from my screenshots,

Windows 8.1 was occupying nearly 27GB of space -- a full 5 percent of my C:/ partition of drive. Needless to say (but still saying :p), I was glad to be rid of this space hoggy Windows.old folder and get that space back.

Method 2: (Works with the latest version of Windows, Windows 10 build 1703 or later):

Well, this method can be called as "using storage settings" method. This one is simpler than the legacy Disk Cleanup method. Starting from build 1703 of Windows 10, an included option called "delete previous versions of Windows" is available in System settings.

You can delete Windows.old folder without running Disk Cleanup or any other third party utility.

Step 1: In the search box on the taskbar, type settings, then choose it from the list of results. Go to System and click on Storage on the left panel.

Step 1

Step 2: Next, click This PC at the top and then scroll down the list and choose Temporary files from the list.

Step 2

Step 3: Under Remove temporary files, select the Previous version of Windows check box and then choose Remove files.

Step 3

These screenshots have been taken from my Windows 10 laptop running latest version of Windows. So if you also have latest version of Windows you'll have an easier time deleting the Windows.old folder with this second method.

So Guys, these were the two easiest ways to delete the Windows.old folder in Windows 10 (Method will work well for Windows 7, 8 and 8.1 too), you can follow the steps to easily delete Windows.old folder in your computer too. Feel free to comment below for any help regarding the post.

Thanks for visiting and stay tuned here for more easy tutorials like this. 🙂🙂

3 Best C/C++ compilers on Android ; Available on Google Play

2017-12-27T19:01:00.001-08:00

Are you a programming lover ? Okay, maybe or maybe not ! In either case sometimes one just needs to do some programming either as a college course or for some fun (if you like it). Here are some apps on Android which let you do C/C++ compiling and debugging on the go, right on your Android device.

Play store links of apps are given below description of each. Here's the list goes :

1. C4droid

C4droid is a quite popular and user-friendly C/C++ IDE and compiler for Android platform. You can write and run C and C++ programs directly on your phone. It is a paid app (costing around $3 and believe me it's worth it) and I personally consider it the best C/C++ IDE for Android. It is really great application for C/C++ programmers and recommended for beginners.

Features

Create your own applications on android device and run them even without internet access
Source code editor with syntax highlighting, tabs, code completion, code formatting, file association and undo/redo
Easily run & export and share your programs as APKs or native executables (for terminal apps)
No root access is required
Full ANSI C and ISO C99 support with TCC (Tiny C Compiler) + uClibc
Supports Git integration
Customize the GUI, choose where to place tabs and buttons, various themes are also supported.
Very light, requires no more than 50 MB of C plugins, can build SDL, Qt and NativeActivity applications.

2. CppDroid-C/C++ IDE

It is another FREE and simple (but not that simple) C/C++ IDE and compiler for android devices. It is focused on learning programming languages and libraries.

Features

code complete, real-time diagnostics (warnings and errors) and fixes
file and tutorial navigator (variables, methods, etc), static analysis
smart syntax highlighting, auto indentation and auto pairing (configurable)
compile and run C/C++ code (no root access required)
works offline (no internet connection required), Dropbox support

Apart from this, it also provides so many tutorials, examples and projects that will help in learning C and C++ programming.

3. Mobile C (C/C++ compiler)

Yet another FREE and simple C/CPP compiler for Android and is definitely worth a try( if above two are not a good fit for you, this one is for you, it is a simple one and has less features and is completely FREE too).

Features

C/C++ auto complete.
C/C++ syntax diagnostic.
C/C++ jump to declaration/macro symbol/header.
Built-in Terminal/Shell.
No internet connection is required to run code.

Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google LLC.

That was all about it !

So guys, If you know about some other good apps that allow to do programming on android platform then please mention it by commenting below. I will try to include them in this list. Also share your experience after using above apps.

Feel free to comment below if you have any problem in using these apps. Thanks for visiting and stay tuned here for more stuff like this.

Happy Coding!! 🙂 🙂

Android Oreo's Double Stuffed Security enhancements detailed by Google

2017-12-22T22:30:00.001-08:00

Representational image: Secure Oreo

Highlights

Google develops Android Verified Boot 2.0 with Project Treble
Android Oreo includes new OEM Lock Hardware Abstractions Layer(HAL)
Google implements Control Flow Integration (CFI) and process isolation

Google has detailed all the key security enhancements that it has designed for Android Oreo. The latest Android platform is already running on a list of mobile devices including the recent Pixel and Nexus models - but as per the latest November figures, it comprises 0.5 percent of active Android devices.

Android Marshmallow and Nougat already added few tidbits of security on devices. But with Android Oreo, Google has provided a new reference implementation of its Verified Boot that is designed to prevent devices from booting up with tampered software. The reference implementation, called Android Verified Boot 2.0(AVB), runs with Project Treble to enable security updates. AVB has a couple of cool features to make updates easier and more secure, such as a common footer format and rollback protection. Rollback protection is designed to prevent a device to boot if downgraded to an older OS version, which could be vulnerable to an exploit. To do this, the devices save the OS version using either special hardware or by having the Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) sign the data. Initially, Google's Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are available with the newest development, though Google recommends all device manufacturers to add the same feature to their new devices.

Oreo also includes the new OEM Lock Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) that gives device manufacturers more flexibility for how they protect whether a device is locked, unlocked, or unlockable. For example, the new Pixel phones use this HAL to pass commands to the bootloader. The bootloader analyzes these commands the next time the device boots and determines if changes to the locks, which are securely stored in Replay Protected Memory Block (RPMB), should happen. If your device is stolen, these safeguards are designed to prevent your device from being reset and to keep your data secure. This new HAL even supports moving the lock state to dedicated hardware which may be present to provide outstanding protection from attacks.Talking about Google itself, the company says to have invested in some tamper-resistant hardware, like the security module found in every Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. This physical chip prevents many software and hardware attacks and is also resistant to physical penetration attacks. The security module prevents deriving the encryption key without the device's passcode and limits the rate of unlock attempts, which makes many attacks infeasible due to time restrictions. The all new HAL supports such standalone dedicated security hardware and hence can take full advantage of these.

Android Oreo also enables an enhanced isolation by removing direct hardware access from the default media frameworks. Similarly, Google has enabled Control Flow Integration (CFI) across all media components to disallow arbitrary changes to the original control flow graph to make it harder for attackers to perform malicious activities. Additionally, Google has isolated WebView, media frameworks and HALs by splitting the rendering engine into a separate process and running the same in an isolated sandbox powered by Android's native JVM to restrict external resources.

This way such processes have limited power and they have access to only much required drivers.

In addition to these architecture changes and CFI, Android Oreo comes with a feast of other tasty platform security enhancements:

Seccomp filtering: makes some unused syscalls unavailable to apps so that they can't be exploited by potentially harmful apps.
Hardened usercopy a bounds checking feature is now backported to Android kernels 3.18 and above, which makes exploitation harder while also helping developers spot issues and fix bugs in their code.
Privileged Access Never (PAN) emulation: Also backported to 3.18 kernels and above, this feature prohibits the kernel from accessing user space directly and ensures developers utilize the hardened functions to access user space.
Kernel Address Space Layout Randomization (KASLR): Although Android has supported userspace Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR) for years, we've backported KASLR to help mitigate vulnerabilities on Android kernels 4.4 and newer. KASLR works by randomizing the location where kernel code is loaded on each boot, making code reuse attacks probabilistic and therefore more difficult to carry out, especially remotely.

Source : Android developers blog.

Android 8.1 Brings Speed Labels ‘Slow, Okay, Fast, Very Fast’ For Open Wi-Fi Networks

2017-12-09T04:12:00.000-08:00

Representative Image: Oreo 8.1 Final Build

We all love open Wi-Fi networks, they come in handy at public places and enables us to stay connected when we do not want to use our mobile data. However, not all the open Wi-Fi networks offer speeds for seamless connectivity, many are terribly slow. Google seems to be aware of the probability of finding a slow Wi-Fi network, which is why it has added something which is quite nifty to Android 8.1.
Google has implemented Wi-Fi speed labels for open networks in Android 8.1 Oreo. These labels show users about the network speed, which lets them decide whether they want to connect to a network or not. The feature may come across as confusing for the first timers.
For the WiFi speed labels, the strength has been there, but the speed is new (Slow, OK, Fast, Very Fast). Keep in mind that this will only show under open networks. Here are the speeds for each label

Slow = 0 – 1 Mbps
OK = 1 Mbps – 5 Mbps
Fast = 5 Mbps – 20 Mbps
Very Fast = 20 Mbps+

For users on Developer preview 2 to 8.1 final, the best option is to wait for the Android 8.1 OTA, which will take Dev preview 2 users to the final build.

Also Read: Android 8.1 Oreo comes with some interesting space-saving features !

Speed

Connection speed shows under the names of public networks. Speed can change with signal strength.

If you don't want to see network speed, open your device's Settings app Network & Internet Wi-Fi Wi-Fi Preferences Advanced Network rating provider None.

Source: support.google.com

How to Stop Laptop Overheating; Implement Overheat Protection for Processor

2017-12-01T07:11:00.001-08:00

Representational image: overheating laptop

Does your laptop overheat while doing resource intensive tasks ? and are you worried if there is any damage to components while playing AAA game titles ?

Here's a complete guide to avoid any overheating problems for mobile systems like laptops, ultrabooks etc.

Skip to see how to implement overheat protection (Video link to YouTube)

1. Preventive measures

The first thing you can do about laptop overheating is cleaning the vents on sides and back of you laptop casing with a mild air blow either from a low power vacuum cleaner of a small compressed air can and then you can try not to hold your laptop over cloths fur containing stuff while your are using it. Try to use it on a table on any hard surface to avoid blocking of vents. In winters when you would be normally using your laptop on your bed, you can try keeping it over a book and then on your lap to avoid fur blocking the cooling mechanism and air flow to internal components of laptop.

And lastly as a preventive measure you can purchase laptop cooling pads for your laptop size, there are numerous choices available in online market.

2. Overheat protection measure

So what if you try everything mentioned above and still feel like your piece of hardware may be prone to damage from heat from your heavy workloads, the savior is OVERHEAT PROTECTION, yes you can manually decide at what temperature your laptop should sleep/shutdown/hibernate or notify you about overheating of its processor (hottest part in whole laptop). Its a kind of self analysis and monitoring done by your laptop to protect its brain (CPU) from frying when you are extracting heavy work from it in a not so ventilated place.

lets stop beating around the bush, here's a free software for windows called Core Temp, as the name suggests it just tells temperatures of all cores of your laptop processor, you can download it from here and activate overheat protection for your laptop from it (How? : In the video given below)

YouTube link of the video

Microsoft Edge browser now available for all Android and iOS users; Beta testing finally over.

2017-12-01T05:42:00.001-08:00

Microsoft unveiled a beta version of its Edge web browser last month for iOS and Android. You can download them from here Play Store Link and Apple's App store Link.

Testers had to sign-up to get special access to the beta version of the new browser, but Microsoft has made both the Android and iOS versions generally available from Thursday. Microsoft Edge for mobile is mainly useful if you tend to resume a lot of browsing from a phone to a Windows 10 PC.

Microsoft has integrated its “continue on PC” functionality directly into Edge for iOS and Android, so you can ping a site over to your PC if it’s just not loading properly on mobile or you want to continue with a mouse and keyboard. Edge also includes access to favorites, history, reading list, and ebooks. Sadly, Microsoft still hasn’t added tab syncing to Edge for mobile, so you can’t share tabs or history between PC and phone.

Microsoft is planning to support tab syncing and the iPad at some point in the future, but both features probably won’t arrive until next year. Microsoft Edge for iOS and Android is available on Apple’s App Store or the Google Play Store.

Currently Google Chrome is world's most popular browsers having a market share of over 50% while Edge still stuck on <5%. It's gonna be quite challenging for Microsoft to give a good competition to Chrome, at least in Android.

Twitter Lite App for Android Now Available in 24 More Countries

2017-12-01T05:06:00.003-08:00

After a successful trial in the Philippines, Twitter is now rolling out its data-friendly Lite Android app in 24 more countries across Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East and Latin America. Twitter Lite was first launched as a Progressive Web App (PWA) for the mobile Web in April, with India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico the primary target markets. In September, the company began testing an Android version of the app in the Philippines. Unfortunately, the Android app is NOT available in India yet.

Available on Google Play, Twitter Lite (under 3MB size) loads quickly on 2G and 3G networks and offers offline support in case users temporarily lose connection.

Similar to Facebook Lite, it offers a data saver mode to download only the images or videos users want to see.

"In April, we launched Twitter 'Lite', a new mobile Web experience that minimises data usage, loads quicker on slower connections, and is more resilient on unreliable mobile networks," wrote Jesar Shah, Product Manager at Twitter, in a blog post on Friday.

"Since then we've seen an increase in engagement - for example, tweets sent from Twitter Lite have increased more than 50 percent," she added.

In September, Twitter made it available in the Google Play Store in the Philippines.

"Through on-the-ground user research and Play Store reviews, we received a lot of valuable feedback. Based on these positive results, we have decided to bring it to more people around the world," Shah said.

Twitter Lite is now available in Algeria, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Egypt, Israel, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Malaysia, Nigeria, Nepal, Panama, Peru, Serbia, El Salvador, South Africa, Thailand, Tunisia, Tanzania, and Venezuela.

The company has 330 million monthly active users, 80 percent of whom are outside the US.

Android 8.1 Developer Preview 2 Now Available, Enables Pixel Visual Core SoC

2017-11-28T03:56:00.004-08:00

Oreo at Googleplex

Google on Monday started rolling out Android 8.1 Developer Preview 2 for compatible Pixel and Nexus devices. The final preview is available for the entire hardware range of devices that received the original Android Oreo update earlier this year, including Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, Pixel C, Pixel, Pixel XL, Pixel 2, and Pixel 2 XL. Amongst other features, the new version enables the Pixel Visual Core coprocessor, which boosts the image signal processing and machine learning on pixel 2 smartphones.

Following the launch of the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL back in October, Google revealed the smartphones featured a Pixel Visual Core chip that it had designed in partnership with Intel. The new chip is specifically designed to enhance the existing image-taking experience on the new Pixel handsets using machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI). Although the chip has existed on the Pixel 2 models since their arrival, the Mountain View tech giant has finally enabled its experience through the new developer preview build.

Developers will be able to leverage to the presence of Pixel Visual Core to offer HDR+ shots on their apps, using the Android Camera API. This means that third-party apps would be able to deliver an experience close to the default camera app on the Pixel 2 models.

In addition to the Pixel Visual Core advancement, the Android 8.1 Developer Preview 2 includes "near-final" Android 8.1 system images for Pixel and Nexus devices along with official APIs (SDK 27), latest optimisations and bug fixes, and the November 2017 security updates. There is also Neural Networks API that accelerates computation and inference for on-device machine learning frameworks like TensorFlow Lite and Caffe2 among others. Additionally, the new developer preview includes a Shared Memory API for lower-end hardware with 1GB or less RAM, which will enable system-wide page file swap on Android.

If you've already enrolled in the Android Beta Program, you'll soon receive an update notification to download the new preview through an over-the-air (OTA) package. However, you can also flash your Pixel or Nexus device manually by installing a compatible factory image. Factory images for all supported devices are available for download on Android Developers' site. In case you don't want to install the developer preview, anticipating the public release of Android 8.1, you will need to wait for few weeks. The official launch of the new Android version is due in December according to Google. It will include all the features of the first and second developer previews as well as enhancements such as an 'SMS Connect' for Chromebooks and a space-saving tweak for devices with lower internal storage.

Nokia 8 smartphones get Android 8.0 Oreo Update

2017-11-25T18:55:00.001-08:00

Nokia 8

HMD Global chief Juho Sarvikas recently announced that the company is already testing Android 8.0 Oreo for Nokia 8 with select users. The testing finally came to an end on November 24 as the company started rolling out the OS version to all Nokia 8 users around the globe. The announcement came from Sarvikas himself on Twitter.

Also Read: What's new in Android Oreo 8.0? Everything you need to know !

This makes Nokia 8 one of the first OEMs in the industry to get Android 8.0 Oreo. OnePlus already started rolling out the final OS version to OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T users a few days ago. The swift arrival of Android Oreo on Nokia 8 is likely due to the near-stock Android interface the OEM uses in its handsets, something that leads to less customisation and time consumption as compared to other OEMs and their custom UIs like Touch Wiz.

Also read: Nokia 8: Full specifications and first impressions

If you are a Nokia 8 user, you will get all the native features that come with Android Oreo. This includes the Picture-in-Picture mode, Notification Dots, updates Android security patch, Autofill passwords and faster boot up time.

"We're proud to deliver our pure and secure take of Android 8.0 Oreo on the Nokia 8. We always want to give our fans the best possible Android experience. That's why we've taken the time to test, optimize and refine the platform," said Sarvikas.

"Working together with our fans under our newly setup up Nokia phones beta labs, we've created a pure version of this highly anticipated mobile platform, delivering all the exciting new features with none of the unnecessary clutter paired with great performance and even better battery life. Android 8.0 Oreo is packed with new features that make communicating, creating, gaming and exploring even more fun."

However, don't fret if you are a Nokia 6, Nokia 5 or Nokia 3 smartphone user. HMD Global has already announced that Android Oreo will be coming to other Nokia smartphones as well. However, there is no set time frame for the roll out.

Android devices seen secretly sending location data to Google

2017-11-24T05:54:00.002-08:00

Representative image: An Android device

An investigation by Quartz has revealed that Android devices send cell tower location data to Google even if the user has disabled location services for apps in their device settings.

Quartz also said it observed location data being sent even if devices had been reset to factory default settings. Android devices with a cellular data or a wi-fi connection were seen to send the data to Google each time they came within range of a new cell tower — including devices with no SIM cards installed (these offloaded the location data via wi-fi, where available).

It says there is currently no way for Android users to prevent their location data from being sent to ad targeting giant Google — short of removing SIMs from their devices and disabling wi-fi (or else leaving the devices inside a faraday cage).

After raising its results with Google, Quartz reports that a company spokesperson told it the cell tower location data harvesting has been going on for the past 11 months, and that cell tower addresses were included in information sent to the system it uses to manage push notifications and messages on Android devices.

The spokesperson further claimed the location data was never used or stored. And Google added that it intends to end the practice by the end of November, having had the location tracking issue flagged to it by Quartz.

“In January of this year, we began looking into using Cell ID codes as an additional signal to further improve the speed and performance of message delivery,” the Google spokesperson said. “However, we never incorporated Cell ID into our network sync system, so that data was immediately discarded, and we updated it to no longer request Cell ID.”

Whatever the reason Google was experimenting with harvesting Android users’ location info, it’s another troubling instance of the company slurping up sensitive user data without making people explicitly aware it’s doing so — let alone giving users controls to opt out of another major invasion of their privacy.

Back in October, for example, a number of Google Home Mini devices were shown to have malfunctioned and been persistently recording audio in the background in their owners’ homes, instead of only waking up when a specific trigger word was used.

As of now it's blaming engineering experimentation for Android covertly harvesting location data.

Location data is highly sensitive personal data from which much can be inferred about a person’s life and lifestyle, especially given the rule for mobile devices is to accompany the user wherever they go. And while cell tower location data isn’t necessarily hugely precise, triangulation of multiple cell towers can be used to calculate a more exact location.

So even if message speed and performance could be enhanced by the Android OS knowing a user’s cell tower location, Google should at least be asking people to opt in to that location-tracking enhancement and/or providing them with a way to opt out.

Google’s privacy policy does include the following section on “location information” (below) which states that users of “Google services” may have their location data collected, including cell tower data — though the linked examples Google uses refer to specific Google apps, like Google Maps, rather than to the Android OS itself; while the linked example on wi-fi access points and cell towers talks only in terms of location data being collected for users who have enabled Google’s Location Services (not persistently, because you are using the Android OS):

When you use Google services, we may collect and process information about your actual location. We use various technologies to determine location, including IP address, GPS, and other sensors that may, for example, provide Google with information on nearby devices, Wi-Fi access points and cell towers.

According to Quartz’s findings, the location tracking did not appear limited to particular Android phones or tablets. It says Google was apparently collecting cell tower data from all modern Android devices.

It further cites a source familiar with the matter specifying that the cell tower addresses were being sent to Google after an early 2017 change to the Firebase Cloud Messaging service that’s owned by Google and runs on Android phones by default.

While this is notable as an instance of Google itself, Android’s platform controller, apparently caught covertly tracking users’ location via the OS, last year a range of budget Android smartphones sold in the US were found to be secretly sending personal data to a third party company based in China — including information about users’ locations.

Though in that case the culprit was commercial firmware pre-installed on the devices, rather than the Android OS itself, as here.

Google assistant gets a bunch of new developer features and support for more languages

2017-11-16T03:59:00.000-08:00

Google Assistant

Google Assistant is going to be more helpful for its users, thanks to a new series of updates rolling out for it and its SDK. One of the biggest will be on the developer side. Creators will be able to make apps that use Google Assistant in Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and Indian English.

The idea is that expanding the language support will allow more users to find apps they want to check out for their devices.

Speaking of which, the app directory for Assistant will add “What’s new” and “What’s trending” sections, allowing users to stay informed on the latest new and popular apps. Sub-categories will also be added to the app directory, which means users will be able to quickly find, say, the best food and drink apps, or the best fitness apps. Also, family-friendly apps will get a “For Families” badge in the Google Assistant app directory.

A new feature called Implicit Discovery will help users say things to Google Assistant in more natural-sounding commands in order to launch actions in apps, without having to actually name the app itself. For example, if you tell Google Assistant, “Get me a phone”, it might launch the Amazon app to get that started since the digital assistant will know that is what you meant to launch.

The company is rolling out an API to developers that will allow apps to begin a Google Assistant conversation on Google Home, and then end it on a smartphone. This could be handy in cases like confirming a purchase. Those are actually just a few of the new features for Google Assistant developers that are being rolled out, and you can check out the entire list at the company’s blog post ( Google Developers blog)

Android distribution chart for November 2017 is out; Oreo on 0.3 percent devices as Nougat reaches 20.6 percent !

2017-11-14T13:52:00.001-08:00

Concept art : Android versions

Android fragmentation reaches a breaking point as 1 billion devices are reported to be out of date yesterday on Android developers blog.

Android and Apple fans can argue endlessly about who stole what and which phones are better, but there is at least one area where Android has consistently failed to keep up with its biggest rival: fragmentation. For years, Google has been trying to roll out the latest versions of its operating system to vendors in a timely fashion, but despite making promises, Google has failed to make any significant progress yet. (Not including Project Treble here as that remains to be seen).

Android Developers blog has released the latest distribution chart of Android OS versions over devices over the globe for November 2017. This chart is an indication of what version of Android is running on how many devices in the market in terms of percentage.

Version	Codename	API	Distribution
2.3.3 - 2.3.7	Gingerbread	10	0.5%
4.0.3 - 4.0.4	Ice Cream Sandwich	15	0.5%
4.1.x	Jelly Bean	16	2.2%
4.2.x		17	3.1%
4.3		18	0.9%
4.4	KitKat	19	13.8%
5.0	Lollipop	21	6.4%
5.1	Lollipop	22	20.8%
6.0	Marshmallow	23	30.9%
7.0	Nougat	24	17.6%
7.1	Nougat	25	3.0%
8.0	Oreo	26	0.3%

Data and image credit: Android Developers

Data collected during a 7-day period ending on November 9, 2017.
Any versions with less than 0.1% distribution are not shown

According to the latest chart, Android Oreo, the latest operating system that Google released back in August, is running only on 0.3 percent devices.

The 0.3 percent mark for Android Oreo is an improvement over the 0.2 percent market that the OS version held last month as reported by GSMArena. The interesting part is that this 0.3 percent gives us a perspective about how lagging the rollout for latest updates for Android-powered smartphones is across the market.

Android Marshmallow still tops the list maintaining a 30.9% share on global Android devices and hence wins the most popular mobile OS version award for now. :P

Android

Well, Google has been trying to fix this fragmentation issue for years now but with no significant success.

However, with Oreo and Project Treble, there might be some hopes for getting quick update rolllouts in devices running Oreo or later.

Also read: Android 8.1 Oreo comes with some interesting space-saving features !

Hey! This percentage quite gives us an idea of how many Google Pixel/Pixel 2 and Nexus devices are there is the market at the time of writing. :P

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Android 8.1 Oreo comes with some interesting space-saving features !

2017-11-11T16:20:00.001-08:00

Concept art: Oreo 8.1

While the base storage has seen smartphones get rid of the 16GB models, storage is still much of a contention point when it comes to app sizes, with the Facebook app itself covering over 400MB. New applications are getting larger in size and while devices with 64GB of storage may not think twice about installing an app over 100MB, those with lower-end devices and limited storage could find their smartphones running out of space over time.

A new mechanism introduced in the upcoming Android 8.1 will help devices with limited storage by reducing application cache sizes for those apps not regularly used. An October 31 commit to the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) framework describes a feature that triggers automatically when a device is running low on space. Applications not used in a specific window will be marked as inactive. It’s those apps that Android considers as not recently used in the foreground or by packages in the background that will be in scope for the optimization method.

In Android 8.1, applications marked “inactive” aren’t run through dexopt(.dex file optimisation tool), the Android tool that optimizes .dex files to produce an .odex file. As a result, they don’t take up space in the Dalvik/ART compiler’s cache and therefore don’t take up valuable resources.

Also read: What's new in Android Oreo 8.0 ? All you need to know !

Applications will take up the same amount of install space but the system cache side of things will be limited and it’s here where the gains are to be had. While the feature is good, it’s still part of Android 8.1 which the likelihood of the devices that would benefit from this feature actually getting it is pretty small. At least things are moving in the right direction.

Note: Dalvik/ART cache is different from normal cache of apps which includes thumbnails and temporary files.

Android 8.0 Oreo, which was released in August, has an install-base of just 0.2 percent. At 32 percent, Android 6 Marshmallow still powers the majority of the Android market. Worse still, these space-saving features must be enabled by the manufacturer itself.