WW 908: Twenty-Six Boxes of Napoli - Microsoft Ignite 2024, Half-Life 2 turns 20, "Agentic"

Edge's data trick, Outlook's AI Themes, .NET 9, and more! Windows 11 The 24H2 quality issues continue, like a parade with no end. Patch Tuesday arrives Windows team says no Preview update in December... but what about November? Reminder of the Canary build last week with Prism emulator improvements. WHERE ARE THE ARM ISOs??? Most recent episode of Run as Radio is worth discussing again here Dev and Beta: Nice new "run as admin" shortcut in Dev, minor changes in Beta Canary: Mostly bug fixes Microsoft Edge is using a new trick to steal Chrome data It's dead, Jim: Microsoft reminds world that Outlook will replace Mail, Calendar, People If you pay for Copilot (dummy) you can make custom Outlook themes now for some reason Quick laptop update: AMD Zen 5 vs. Intel Lunar Lake vs. Snapdragon X Still more earnings Arm: $844 million, but disappointing. Also, Qualcomm legal battle looms Qualcomm: $10.24 billion in revenues, up 19 percent AMD to lay off 4 percent of (26,000 employee) workforce globally, focus on AI Dev Microsoft releases .NET 9 That means WPF support for Windows 11 theming is live But there's a surprise: Microsoft added one of the features we need .NET Conf is happening as we speak - Thursday is third-party day, and I am curious about Avalon and Uno announcements Qualcomm has a webinar tomorrow for AI developers and Snapdragon X Xbox Surprise! Death Stranding comes to Xbox three years later to the day Phil Spencer talks PS5, mobile devices, more in a new interview MAJOR NEW ACTIVISION RELEASE ON GAME PASS Just kidding, it's some stupid purple dragon Friend requests now available (again) to all Xbox users Paying GeForce Now customers get monthly usage caps NVIDIA app replaces GeForce Experience, no need to sign in anymore Sony has sold 65 million PS5 consoles ... it needs 20+ million more to surpass PS3 Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Quick Windows 11 Field Guide update App pick of the week: Stardock DesktopGPT App pick of the week #2: Quick Share Cocktail of the week: Salmoncito Ingredients 1 oz. tonic water, plus more for topping 1½ oz. London dry gin ¼ oz. Campari ¼ oz. fresh grapefruit juice Grapefruit twist and grapefruit supreme (for serving) Preparation Fill a highball glass with ice. Add 1 oz. tonic water, then pour in 1½ oz. London dry gin, ¼ oz. Campari, and ¼ oz. fresh grapefruit juice. Top off with more tonic water and stir gently with a bar spoon. Express oil of a grapefruit twist over cocktail and discard. Garnish with a grapefruit supreme. Hosts: Leo Laporte and Paul Thurrott Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: uscloud.com veeam.com

On Halloween, the last day of October, Microsoft delayed Recall again. It was supposed to preview in October, this is the third delay. No clear reason why. December now, supposedly. Plus, Paul gives an earnings recap that he didn't get to dive into much last week. Windows New 24H2 bug More features coming to Prism emulator in Windows 11 on Arm (!) New generative AI features are coming to Paint, Photos, and Notepad Beta channel: Here's the new Windows Hello experience, with explicit references to passkeys Proton VPN is native on Windows 11 on Arm Windows Server 2025 is GA (and some are being mistakenly force-upgraded. This is what you get when you share a codebase with Windows 11, apparently) Google shifts Android development cycle - Major update each Q2, minor update each Q4, monthly feature/quality updates A Tale of 2 Chips Paul reviewed the AMD Zen 5-based HP OmniBook Ultra, it's awesome. Paul is also reviewing an Intel Lunar Lake laptop, and it is not awesome Early glee around Lunar Lake was misplaced Laptop reviewers all report what Paul is seeing (for once), that the performance is horrific. You need to switch to "Best performance" power management mode for reasonable performance, but this hasn't solved all the issues COD: Black Ops 6. Average FPS under Zen 5 is 90 to 120 at native resolution/medium graphics, single and multi-player. Lunar Lake? 40 FPS with all graphics settings on low/very low Intel now says Lunar Lake is a one-off too (Meteor Lake was likewise a one-off, architecturally). It will no longer package RAM with processors because of margins. Lunar Lake rushed to market and was key contributor to recent financial issues More Earnings Learnings Amazon: $159 billion in revenues, $27.5 billion for AW Apple: $95 billion in revenues, a small uptick in iPhone revenues Microsoft 365/AI Some curious/confusing moves with Microsoft 365 for consumers: subscribers in Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand are getting Copilot Pro credits with base subscription (Word, Excel, etc.), Designer, ... and the long-overdue and dreaded price increase This must be a test for the U.S. and western Europe. Feels inevitable OpenAI launches ChatGPT Search. This is not the Google Search replacement you're looking for Xbox It's November, so here's the incredible list of Activision Blizzard games now coming to Game Pass! Just kidding, but we are getting Flight Sim 2024 Microsoft introduced an AI-powered support virtual agent to Xbox because something something AI Switch sales drop off a cliff, Nintendo will announce backward-compatible successor before the end of March Sony launches the PS5 Pro to meh Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Windows 11 minus the MSA App pick of the week: Docs in Proton Drive RunAs Radio this week: Software-Defined Networking using Azure Firewall with Aidan Finn Brown liquor MOVIE pick of the week: Whisky Galore Hosts: Leo Laporte and Paul Thurrott Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: Melissa.com/twit 1password.com/windowsweekly lookout.com threatlocker.com

Enjoy Leo's many hats in this fun and silly edition of Windows Weekly. Happy Halloween! Windows 11 Yes, Windows 11 version 24H2 got its preview update for October too, a few days late as expected 24H2 was a surprisingly big platform shift - no enablement updates - faster updates going forward Dev and Beta get new builds, minor changes in each Microsoft 365/AI/dev Teams is... getting weird Microsoft 365 apps get Handoff support on Apple devices Notion Mail - a light alternatives to Google Workspace and M365? GitHub Copilot goes multi-LLM Apple Intelligence wave one arrives, mostly to indifference. Wave two in December. EU is getting it in the Spring New Macs this week with M4. But the big news? 16 GB of RAM, minimum. Finally. The Browser Company can't realize its vision for the future with Arc Earnings/Corporate Microsoft and Google duke it out over Cloud licensing - This one is getting ugly Google - $88.3 billion in revenues AMD - OK, but dominated by Intel on PCs and NVIDIA in AI/datacenter Xbox More games, more people, more devices, Microsoft says Less emphasis on console but what might a next-gen console look like? Arm? Mobile? Third-party hardware makers? Cloud Gaming is limited to the most expensive Game Pass tier - that has to change, and what about a standalone tier? Mobile app stores are coming - but what about native mobile games? Call of Duty Black Ops 6 lands on PC Game Pass, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, and Cloud Gaming - Paul puts aside his grudge and gives it a shot Microsoft previews new Home experience for Xbox app on Windows Tips and Picks Tip of the week: It might be time to look at the Raspberry Pi again App pick of the week: My God, it's full of web browsers RunAs Radio this week: Updating Windows on ARM with Aria Hanson Brown liquor pick of the week: Laird of the Fintry Black Label Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: 1password.com/windowsweekly uscloud.com threatlocker.com Melissa.com/twit

In case you missed it You didn't. But Qualcomm canceled that Snapdragon Dev Box, will refund customers Qualcomm picked the wrong company for this Also, there are plenty of Copilot+ PCs and does it make more sense to develop against the type of PC your customers will use? Windows 11 23H2 gets a preview update, as expected Copilot key customization, Gamepad for virtual keyboard, notification suggestions, etc. Qualcomm and Microsoft solve Paul's only hardware issue with Arm, more Qualcomm brings Oryon cores to the phone, comes out firing against Intel, and is sued by Arm Dev channel: That Gamepad virtual kb thing Canary: That Copilot key customization thing Photos app gets Super Resolution feature - Microsoft says in preview, but Paul sees it in stable Microsoft Store is getting "immersive trailers" because ADHD Microsoft 365, AI, more Report details mounting tensions between Microsoft and OpenAI. Worst partnership ever? Several months after releasing Mac and iPhone ChatGPT apps, OpenAI delivers a comicly-named "early version" of it for Windows. Thanks guys, don't hurt yourselves. Microsoft announces first AI agents for commercial space, DIY in AI Studio AI in phases? Copilot is phase one, this thing that works beside you (app, essentially) Agents is phase two, this thing that works on your behalf away from you (service, essentially) Copilot comes to OneNote for Mac, iPad in beta Two years behind in AI, Apple has figured out the right quips and marketing messages As expected, Google gets a stay of execution (pardon the pun) in Epic case (also, pardon the pun) WTF is happening with smartphones? Did Apple and Google look at the 2024 Windows 11 Mess and say, we want us some of that? Apple Intelligence to roll out over at least four major iOS 18 updates and then forever Google rushes Android 15 dev to meet new August deadline for Pixel 9 series, whiffs it, and then delivers it 2 months late ... But at least it's jam-packed with AI Xbox Age of Empires goes mobile In the wake of Xbox/Halo adopting Unreal Engine, Unity ships Unity 6 Engine Netflix shuts down AAA game studio - I could've saved you guys a lot of money New Xbox Wireless Headset more battery, better Bluetooth, new voice isolation Tips & Picks Tip of the week: Scott and Mark, sitting in a tree... App pick of the week: Affinity Photos 2.6 Beta RunAs Radio this week: Securing Data using Azure Virtual Desktop with Jim Duffy Brown liquor pick of the week: Glenmorangie Nectar D'Or Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: uscloud.com flashpoint.io veeam.com e-e.com/twit

On this episode, Leo Laporte shows off his new Snapdragon Dev Kit to Paul Thurrott and Richard Campbell. He also tries setting it up, and the process is TOTALLY "seamless." AMD has revealed the Ryzen AI PRO 300 Series alongside Intel's launch of the Core Ultra 200S desktop processors. The FIDO Alliance has published new credential exchange specifications. Sarah Bond announces that Xbox games will be purchasable on Android. And Paul unveils his new "get rich" scheme... as he looks for some feedback. x86's Last Stand? Intel and AMD announce partnership that is clearly aimed at taking on Arm. Intel was already working on simplifying the x86 architecture by removing older, unused bits Don't worry, Intel and AMD will still compete. And AMD just released new AI processors, with Intel also announcing first Core Ultra chips for Desktop Which raises a question: Why do the desktop chips not meet the Copilot+ PC spec? Windows Redmond, we have a quality problem: 24H2 is besieged by a curious number of issues despite several months of gestation and a shared feature set with 23H2. Dev and Beta: Beta is minor, but Dev has some Taskbar updates Release Preview: New builds for 23H2 and 24H2 hint at this month's Week D preview updates - since this announcement, some features have been delayed Microsoft 365/Surfac Google Workspace is adding a OneDrive (for Business) data migration capability Is there some new cloud interoperability thing going on? We're seeing this in the consumer space too. Wondering if this is related to regulatory attention A Lunar Lake Surface Laptop? Probably not Passkeys Get Real As expected, FIDO Alliance will standardize passkey portability Two sides to this: Portability between devices but also import/export between password managers Amazon has 175 million customers using passkeys - one year after initial unveil Xbox With Google antitrust loss, Microsoft vaguely reveals that Xbox games are coming to Android Long-forgotten ability to stream games you purchased over Cloud Gaming is now coming soon Microsoft settles BS "Gamers' lawsuit" for what we hope was a pittance The only gamers with a case to sue Microsoft are Xbox fans - one year this week Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and more are headed to Game Pass if anyone still cares Microsoft's Xbox Series X|S mid-season replacements are here, and they come with a fun surprise New Xbox wireless headset is incoming Microsoft to host Xbox Partner Preview tomorrow, October 17 Steam forced to communicate that you don't own anything you buy Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Check out the Thurrott swag App pick of the week: Arc browser, now native on Windows 11 on Arm! RunAs Radio this week: Pen Testing Yourself with Paula Januszkiewicz Brown liquor pick of the week: Jameson Irish Whiskey Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: lookout.com threatlocker.com 1password.com/windowsweekly uscloud.com