Windows 10 antivirus is not a security threat, Microsoft says
Windows Defender new feature raised concerns over possible security threat.
Read MoreWindows 10 has a bug that could be a danger to your music collection, specifically FLAC files, should you choose to edit their metadata.
Windows Latest spotted the music-related glitch which has been flagged up by Microsoft in a support document, and affects those using Windows 10 May 2020 Update (or newer).
The problem occurs when FLAC music files – a format that offers lossless audio for full CD audio quality, yet at a much smaller size than a WAV file – have their metadata edited in File Explorer (meaning the folders on your desktop). If this happens, the bug could cause the music file(s) in question to be rendered unplayable.
Microsoft explains: “This issue might occur when the FLAC files contain an ID3 frame before the FLAC header. The ID3 frame contains metadata such as title and artist. The FLAC property handler assumed that all FLAC files started with the 4 byte start code fLaC and did not take into account the ID3 frame at the beginning of the file. Therefore, the ID3 frame would be overwritten without the start code fLaC rendering the file unplayable.”
In other words, if the metadata is edited by the user, that ID3 frame can be overwritten, and therefore the file becomes corrupted.
This gremlin has been resolved in patch KB5003214, which was released in late May, but note that this is a preview update – the finalized version will be released in June (next week). Do remember that as a preview right now, KB5003214 could have issues of its own, and indeed is reportedly causing some trouble with the taskbar. Hopefully that separate issue will be fully cured when the June cumulative update is rolled out.
What about files that have already been affected by this bug? Fortunately, there is a way of repairing messed-up FLAC files, although it’s a little clunky: Microsoft details this fix (involving running a PowerShell script) here.
Note that the PowerShell script may make the FLAC file playable again, but it does not restore the metadata which was overwritten.
Windows Defender new feature raised concerns over possible security threat.
Read MoreWith the Apple March event in the rearview mirror, we're all still waiting on a new MacBook Air and new MacBook Pro 13-inch, and a new report says we might have to wait for a good while longer. Many of us expected the two new MacBook models to make an appearance this week, so much so that the Mac Studio and Studio Display announcement caught a few of us by surprise. Unfortunately, a new report from 9to5Mac indicates that we might have to wait until later this year before we'll see the new devices. According to unnamed sources, the new MacBooks will feature the rumored M2 system-on-a-chip (SoC), which is codenamed J413 and referred to internally as "Staten." According to those sources, the SoC is based on Apple's A15 Bionic chip that powers the iPhone 13, though, obviously, it would be a scaled-up version of that processor in order to power a full-sized computer rather than a mobile device. These sources also indicate that the M2 will have the same 6-core CPU, but will have a slightly beefier 10-core GPU. That would give it two or three more GPU cores than the M1 (which comes in seven-core and eight-core GPU configurations) and there is no word yet on whether there would be an upgrade to the SoC's neural engine core count or any additional features it might introduce. The report also says that the M2 Pro, M2 Max, and M2 Ultra are also in the works and that the M2 Ultra would have a massive 24-core CPU, but these are likely too far in the future for us to even begin to speculate on. As this author noted earlier this week, unnamed source reporting isn't always wrong, but it's impossible to distinguish between what is speculation and what is actual fact and until you get an official confirmation, you need to treat everything with skepticism. While there's no reason to doubt that 9to5Mac's sources are legit (they did break the news that the Mac Studio and Studio display were in the works), not all of the details in its exclusive were accurate. The Studio Display is not a 7K monitor but 5K, for example, and the Mac Studio and Studio Display weren't "in the works" with an eye towards a WWDC announcement, they were ready to go less than a week after the report was published. So, in short, these reports can be more or less on target, but we can't know until we see it confirmed, and even then it might only be partially legit. The problem is, we can't say which parts will pan out, and this is especially true of historically tight-lipped Apple. We've gotten contradictory reports on whether the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air will get a redesign, whether they'll feature an M2 chip, and honestly, the release date rumors have been all over the map. There's a reason nearly everyone this week expected a 13-inch MacBook Pro announcement, at the very least, but we didn't see one. In the end, it's a fairly reasonable assumption that we will see a new MacBook Air at some point, possibly even this year. It's Apple's most popular computer, by far, and it is arguably the best laptop you can buy right now. We can't imagine a world where it is discontinued. But honestly, take even that assumption with a grain of salt. If there's one thing we can definitively say about Apple it's that it loves making surprise announcements no one expected. It's a hell of a marketing strategy that's served it well in recent years, so we don't expect that to change any time soon.
Analysis: take everything with a grain of salt
Oculus is getting into AR, and it has big repercussions for the future direction of the company and its popular line of VR headsets – especially the eventual Oculus Quest 3.
Read MoreOneDrive for Business users had their storage limits lowered or their accounts switched to read-only mode.
Read MoreWant to hire best people for your project? Look no further you came to the right place!