"Microsoft Monday" is a weekly column that focuses on everything related to Microsoft. This week, Microsoft includes details about the end of private arbitration on allegations of sexual harassment, the return of PhotoSynth, the Surface Pro with LTE now available for the order, the removal of the Google Chrome installation application from Windows Store, Bill Gates share your 6 favorite tweets of 2017 and gifts for Secret Santa, Timeline and Sets for Windows 10 that are being tested and much more!
Microsoft completes private arbitration for sexual harassment claims
Microsoft has made a big change in its workplace policy. Microsoft is ending forced arbitration agreements for employees who register for sexual harassment, according to The New York Times. This change also supports a proposed federal law that would prohibit this type of agreement. The forced arbitration agreements have been criticized for allowing sexual abuse in work environments. Basically, forced arbitration allows companies to maintain allegations of harassment and discrimination outside the judicial system.
"We conclude that if we advocated legislation that would put an end to arbitration requirements for sexual harassment, we should not have a contractual requirement for our own employees that would force them to arbitrate sexual harassment claims," said the president and chief legal officer. Microsoft, Brad Smith. a blog post "And we must act immediately and not wait for a new law to be approved."
Microsoft is one of the largest institutions to implement this policy. And this is especially important since sexual abuse has been publicly denounced in recent months through the use of the #MeToo hashtag following accusations against film producer and executive Harvey Weinstein. An arbitration clause almost prevented former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson from also suing Fox's former president and CEO Roger Ailes for sexual harassment.
Many American workers have signed off on arbitration clauses without realizing it, according to the Economic Policy Institute. In fact, access to the courts is barred for over 60 million American workers.
U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) have proposed legislation — known as “The Ending of Forced Arbitration of Sexual Harassment Act of 2017″ – to make forced arbitration in harassment cases unenforceable based on federal law. Smith became aware of the Senate bill after he met with Senator Graham in Washington to discuss immigration and cybersecurity. And Senator Graham requested Microsoft to support the bill. Removing the arbitration requirement for harassment claims is an immediate step Microsoft could take as the Senate bill is being worked on.
According to Bloomberg, documents were recently unsealed in a gender bias case where an unnamed former intern at Microsoft accused another intern of sexually assaulting her in the basement of a house in Redmond, Washington. However, Microsoft is requiring the two of them to continue working together as the claim is being investigated.
Many American workers have signed arbitration clauses without realizing it, according to the Economic Policy Institute. In fact, access to the courts is prohibited for more than 60 million American workers.
US Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) have proposed legislation, known as "The end of forced arbitration of sexual harassment of 2017", to make forced arbitration in cases of harassment not enforceable in accordance with federal law. Smith learned about the Senate bill after meeting with Senator Graham in Washington to talk about immigration and cybersecurity. And Senator Graham asked Microsoft to support the bill. The removal of the arbitration requirement for harassment claims is an immediate step that Microsoft could take since work is underway on the Senate bill.
According to Bloomberg, the documents were recently opened in a gender bias case in which a former unnamed intern from Microsoft accused another inmate of sexually assaulting her in the basement of a house in Redmond, Washington. However, Microsoft requires the two to continue working together while the complaint is being investigated.
USA Today also reported that members of the Congressional Black Caucus also suggest that Microsoft prohibit private arbitration in cases of racial discrimination, gender identity, sexual orientation, discrimination and religion. "While we congratulate Microsoft for the steps it has taken to prevent discrimination in the workplace, more can be done," said Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Illinois), Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ). and Representative Emanuel Cleaver (D -Missouri) in a statement to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Microsoft employees are 74% men. And in the USA UU., 4% of Microsoft's staff is African-American and 5.9% is Hispanic.
Microsoft PhotoSynth comes back as a feature in the Pix app for iOS
Microsoft has returned to bring your application to join photos to create panoramas, known as PhotoSynth. PhotoSynth was created in 2008 and was removed earlier this year. However, it has been revived as a function in the Microsoft Pix application until December 20.
"Photosynth, helps create photos that encompass more of the perspective or scene in which you are standing, whether wide, tall or both, doing this by allowing you to scroll and capture freely from one side to the other, up and down, forward and backward , and even return to the beginning to include any part of the scene that has been lost, "Microsoft said in a blog post.
Another feature that Microsoft added to the Pix application is called Comix. The Comix function determines the best frames in a video to create a story using deep learning and AI processing. Then users can add and edit speech bubbles in the strip. You can get more information about the Pix application from iTunes Preview.
The Surface Pro with LTE is now available for orders
Microsoft announced the Surface Pro with LTE in May 2017. And according to Neowin, the Surface Pro with LTE is now available for purchase. You will notice that "Optional advanced LTE" is available in the configuration of Surface devices. The price ranges from $ 800 - $ 2,700
Currently, Surface Pro with LTE is available as a "commercial" model and is limited to Core i5 processors. The $ 1,150 version has 4 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage. The $ 1,450 version has 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage.
Microsoft removes the Google Chrome installation application from the Windows Store
Microsoft has removed a Google Chrome installation application from the Windows Store. The application essentially just opened a new tab in your web browser with a link to the Google Chrome download website. Microsoft removed that application for violating the policies of the Windows Store because the application did not provide "a distinctive value".
One of the main reasons why the Chrome browser is not available in the Windows Store is because Google uses the Blink web rendering engine to build its browser. But the Windows 10 S browser requires HTML and JavaScript engines.
I doubt that Google creates a customized version of your browser for Windows 10 S. Windows 10 S is a version of Windows 10 designed for students, which only allows the use of applications in the Windows Store.
The White House praises Microsoft and Facebook for thwarting North Korean hackers
White House Interior Security Advisor Tom Bossert praised Microsoft and Facebook for helping to prevent the spread of the WannaCry malware attack by the North Koreans. Bossert made the announcement at a press conference where he accused North Korea of being behind the WannaCry ransomware attack.
Facebook eliminated accounts that stopped the operational execution of continuous cyber attacks, Bossert said through CNET. And Facebook notified users that they might have been affected by North Korean hacks with suggestions on how to further protect their accounts.
Microsoft discovered that the WannaCry ransomware was linked to North Korea by tracking the attacks and coordinating that data with the government. In addition, Microsoft patched additional vulnerabilities in addition to the WannaCry attack.
"The governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Japan have announced that the government of North Korea is responsible for the activities of ZINC / Lazarus, and we are pleased to see these governments making this strong statement of In order to stop the rising wave of nation-state attacks on civilians, governments must be prepared to summon the countries that launch them.Today's announcement represents an important step in the action of the government and the private sector to make the Internet safer, "Microsoft president and chief legal officer Brad Smith said in a blog post. "Microsoft welcomed the opportunity to work with Facebook and others in the last few weeks to address this problem." As we look towards 2018, it is essential that we act with shared responsibility to further strengthen alliances with the security community and the communities. governments to combat cyberattacks against civilians. "
Bill Gates is a generous Secret Santa again this year
Like last year, the Microsoft co-founder participated in the Secret Santa gift exchange through Reddit. The user of Reddit VietteLLC shared the video of all the gifts he received from Bill Gates. Gates sent VietteLLC a box with more than a dozen gifts including some Pusheen plushies, a Dr. Who's table book, a Dr. Who's Cardboard Tardis for cats, a Dave Matthews Band T-shirt, and a decal from car, a $ 150 gift card for True Grit and three donations of $ 250 each to three of her favorite charities: the Friends of Felines Rescue Center, Stray Cat Alliance and Town Cats.
Bill Gates shares his 6 favorite Tweets of 2017
In a personal blog post, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates shared six inspiring tweets that may have been missed this year. Here is a breakdown of the six tweets he shared:
1.) samazingfeeling - Edwardo Sanchez tweeted a photo where he is dressed in a cap and a robe and said he was the first person in his family to graduate from college. "I love hearing stories like this," Gates said.
2.) Dear John: A tweet about the Bollywood movie "Toilet: A Love Story" starring Akshay Kumar, which is a film focused on a cause that Gates is deeply concerned about: the health challenge in India.
3.) Victory of vaccination: a tweet about measles that is being eliminated in Bhutan and the Maldives.
4.) The Farmer's Minister - A tweet about Dr. Akinwumi Adesina winning the 2017 World Food Prize. Dr. Adesina was the son of an agricultural worker and grew up in a one-bedroom house in Nigeria without water or electricity. After receiving a Ph.D. in agricultural economics and working for the Rockefeller Foundation, Dr. Adesina became Nigerian Minister of Agriculture.
5.) Doing good is good for you: Gates is linked to a study on how the benefits of volunteering include lower blood pressure and a decrease in mortality rates.
6.) extremereading - Reading is one of Gates favorite hobbies and that's why he was intrigued by a sports trend that saves time called "extreme reading" where people read no matter what else they are doing, be it parachuting, soccer, horse riding a horse, swimming underwater or jumping on a trampoline.
Microsoft releases Windows 10 Redstone 4 Build for Beta Testers with timeline and sets
As the latest version of Windows 10 Redstone 4 Build for PC is released for beta testers, known as Build 17063, Microsoft has been fixing some bugs and adding new features such as Timeline and Sets.
The timeline makes it easier to return to what I was working in the past. This is especially useful if you forgot what website or application you were using. The timeline allows users to resume past activities that started on the PC, other Windows PCs, Android and iOS devices. The default view of the timeline shows the most relevant activities from the beginning of the day or the specific past date.
Windows 10 Timeline
Within the timeline, a user's activity is the combination of a specific application and a specific content on which he or she was working at a specific time. Each of these activities links directly to the website, document, playlist, task, article, etc. There is a new activity history setup page that allows you to control which accounts appear in the Timeline. Cortana will suggest what activities you would like to resume as you change your device.
Dark theme in Edge
Microsoft Edge now has a dark theme updated with dark blacks and a better contrast with all the colors, texts and icons. And Edge now supports Reveal in the navigation buttons, action buttons, buttons in the tab bar and lists in Microsoft Edge, as in the HUB (Favorites, Reading, History, Downloads).
The Sets feature could be called something different when it is sent. The Sets feature ensures that everything related to the task, including web pages, research documents and applications, is connected and available to you with a single click.
Dozens of new features are also being added. You can read what is being added in Windows 10 Redstone Build in the Microsoft blog post about it.
Insiders have learned that there are a number of errors in Windows 10 Redstone 4 Build, according to BetaNews. For example, many users have problems installing Build 17063. And the cause of the problem is identified as error 0xc1900101. To solve the problem, some users uninstalled Macrium Reflect and deleted SD cards / USB jump drives. And Build 17063 seems to be causing audio problems with Firefox and Edge. In addition, Build 17063 has caused games to stutter.
Microsoft Launcher Surpasses 10 Million Downloads
Microsoft Launcher
MSPowerUser has reported that the Microsoft Launcher application for Android has exceeded 10 million downloads on Google Play. Each separate download is counted, so the 10 million downloads are distributed on 10 million Android devices.
Netflix adds HDR support for Windows 10
Netflix has announced that it has added High Dynamic Range (HDR) support in Windows 10 for the Edge browser and the Netflix application. "With this update, Netflix members who have a compatible device and a premium plan can enjoy incredible Netflix movies and HDR programs, with HDR enabled, fans can immerse themselves in the delicious colors of Chef's Table, the terrifying depths of Upside Down in Stranger Things 2, and enjoy the next Netflix movie, Bright, starring Will Smith, and this is just the beginning! Today, we have more than 200 hours of HDR entertainment, and in 2018, even more HDR PC they will enter the market and will admit the growing number of Netflix originals, "Netflix said in a blog post.
New subscriptions of Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game
For a limited time, Microsoft has reduced the price of Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game subscriptions to $ 1 only for new subscribers. Unfortunately, people who are already subscribed to Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game subscriptions will not have access to the offer. And it is valid for only one month, so the normal price will be activated after that. The promotion is available until January 5, 2018.
Axiim To Showcase The First Wireless Speaker System For Xbox One And Windows 10 PCs At CES
Wireless system Axiim Link HD
The wireless home audio and video home theater product company Axiim has announced the first wireless home theater solution designed for Xbox One and Windows 10 PC called the Axiim Link HD wireless speaker system. The Link transmitter connects to the Xbox One or Windows 10 PC through a USB cable to deliver up to 7.1 wireless audio channels. By providing an immersive wireless surround sound experience, the Link system amplifies Xbox One graphics. In addition, it only takes a few minutes to configure it.
"Adding the Axiim Link with wireless 7.1 speakers to Xbox One creates the best 4K home theater gaming experience for any room," said Axiim CEO James Hammer. "The combination of wireless audio performance, a convenient and simple configuration and reliability is what inspired us to design this product and we are delighted to bring Axiim Link as an Xbox licensed product for Xbox One S and Xbox One X."
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