IT Minds

CM launches Microsoft India’s cloud services MUMBAI: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday launched Microsoft India's local cloud services (LCS) from the company's state-of-the-art data centres in Mumbai, Pune and Chennai. Fadnavis said the state would host a range of digital services on Microsoft's local cloud, including citizen services, applications and other people-oriented government initiatives to enhance economic productivity, prosperity and overall efficiency in governance to meet the objective of digital Maharashtra. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella had assured commercial cloud services in India by the year-end, but practically launched it on Tuesday, ahead of the deadline. These services accelerate digital transformation, handle a wide range of data and help create speedy and innovative applications. Billing services and government schemes will get faster and easier in terms of accessibility and delivery. Cloud-computing with data storage and analytics offers...

The Indian Express

Microsoft’s Quiet Office Evolution Under Satya Nadella Mr. Nadella, 48 years old, is more likely to quote German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche than to scream and shout like his predecessors. His mission is markedly different, too: attempting to make Microsoft more innovative, a change that critics say was long overdue at a company that tended to fall behind in emerging technology areas. Messrs. Gates and Ballmer built a $350 billion software empire on the popularity of Windows, the personal-computer operating system that for years was the default interface of office life. Yet the primacy of Microsoft’s Office software—with its built-in Outlook email, Word for writing documents, and Excel spreadsheets—is no longer a sure thing. Rival tools for office tasks have arrived, include file-sharing service Dropbox Inc., Apple Inc.’s iPhones, and workplace versions of Google Inc.’s Gmail and Docs, many of them free. Thus Mr. Nadella is intent on talking about the evo...

Google Launches New Chromecast and Chromecast   Google Launches New Chromecast and Chromecast Audio by  Mani At a media event on Tuesday, alongside the  launch  of two new Nexus smartphones -  Nexus 5X  and Nexus 6P  - and  Pixel C  tablet, Google announced the refresh of its original Chromecast while also introducing Chromecast Audio. Also unveiled was the refreshed Chromecast app, support for Spotify streaming, and  Google Photos  support. Two years after Google launched the  Chromecast , a flash drive-shaped device that allows users to beam media content and on-screen activities from smartphones, computers, and tablets to TV and other big screens, the company believes it's time it further expanded in your living room. Enter Chromecast Audio, a device that turns any speaker with an auxiliary input into an Internet-capable device. Priced at $35 (roughly Rs. 2,300), the  Chromecast Audio ...

Critical Vulnerability Found in WinRAR Could Affect Millions of Users A security vulnerability has been found in WinRAR, a file archiver and compressor utility for  Windows that is estimated to be used by more than half a billion users. The vulnerability, if exploited, allows remote attackers to execute system specific code to compromise a computer. A proof-of-concept exploit for WinRAR SFX v5.21 has been published. Iranian researcher Mohammad Reza Espargham reported the vulnerability to Full Disclosure, a popular forum for disclosure of security information. "The vulnerability allows unauthorised remote attackers to execute system specific code to compromise a target system," he said. The vulnerability is said to affect all versions of  WinRAR  SFX, making its users extremely prone to attacks. Security firm MalwareBytes has independently  confirmed  the existence of the critical vulnerability in the said application. The vulnerability, if exploited...

How to Disable Windows 10 Automatic Updates Microsoft has made it mandatory for Windows 10 users to update their computer. The company has set the new operating system to automatically receive new updates by default. Windows 10 Pro users have an option to delay the updates they receive, but if you are on Windows 10 Home, there isn't much you can do about it. ( Also see :  How to Make a Bootable USB Disk for Windows 10 ) The company's move to automatically update all  Windows 10  computers has received a lot of flak from users. Not only could it eat a large chunk of data from your limited data plan, we have seen cases where an automatic update has caused issues in users' computer. Regardless of why you want to delay or block Windows from automatically updating your computer, there are a couple of simple tricks that could do the job for you. ( Also see :  How to Disable Automatic App Updates on Windows 10 ) If you use Wi-Fi to access t...

Sony Xperia M2, Xperia M2 Aqua Now Receiving Android 5.1 Lollipop Update Sony on Tuesday started rolling out Android 5.1 Lollipop update for its two smartphones - the Xperia M2 and Xperia M2 Aqua. Since it is a gradual rollout process, not all the users would be getting the update at once. It is worth noting that the Xperia M2, which was launched with Android 4.3 KitKat out-of-the-box, would be skipping the  Android  4.4 KitKat and Android 5.0 Lollipop OS versions. The Xperia M2 Aqua would also be bypassing the Android 5.0 Lollipop OS version as it was launched with Android 4.4 KitKat. With the  Android 5.1 Lollipop  update, the  Sony Xperia M2  and  Sony Xperia M2 Aqua  would be sporting the Google's Material Design theme with new UI animations, notification alerts, more customisation options under quick settings, and multiple profile modes among others. Other customisation options for controlling the volume settings, silent mode, alert f...

Google CEO Sunder Pichai's father-in-law remarries at 70 KOTA (Rajasthan):  Google chief executive officer (CEO) Sunder Pichai's father-in-law, Olaram Haryani, remarried at the age of 70 here on Wednesday.   Olaram, a widower, married 65-year-old Madhuri Sharma, a resident of Civil Lines area in Kota city. Sharma is a widow of a military man. The marriage was solemnized through Arya Samaj custom.  Olaram, a retired employee of a Government Polytechnic College in Kota, lives in Mumbai. His two children — a son and a daughter — live aboard. His daughter Anjali is wife of Sunder Pichai, the CEO of Google.  Everyone has a right to lead his life freely as per his/her wish, said Olaram after the marriage. 

Ankit Fadia’s biggest hack: Getting Modi government to make him a brand ambassador The highlight of Narendra Modi’s recent trip to the United States was his visit to Silicon Valley, where he played the role of the representative of a digital superpower to perfection. In fact, even in his politics, Modi is seen to be an expert in using technology, using social media and holograms to power his popularity. How then did Modi’s government make the controversial decision to appoint self-proclaimed ethical hacker Ankit Fadia as the brand ambassador of its flagship e-governance programme, Digital India? Confusion galore The process was confused from the start. On Monday, Ankit Fadia posted on Facebook that he had been appointed a “brand Ambassadors to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Digital India initiative”. Given his reputation, the claim immediately raised doubts. Sure enough, the Centre’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology issued a statement on Tuesday mor...