More MSFT Job Loses

Microsoft is laying off 7,800 people, primarily employees involved with Windows Phone hardware business, officials announced on July 8.

Microsoft also is taking a $7.6 billion write-down related to its Nokia acquisition, plus a restructuring charge of between $750 million to $850 million. Microsoft plans to complete the job cuts largely by the end of calendar 2015 and completely by the end of fiscal 2016, which means June 30, 2016.

Despite that fact, the company is not throwing in the towel on Windows Phone, one of a handful of first-party devices the company makes. (Other Microsoft-made/branded hardware include the Surface tablet line and Surface Hub conferencing system; Xbox gaming console; Microsoft fitness Band; and the coming HoloLens augmented-reality headset.)

Microsoft still plans to make Lumia phones and is pushing ahead with Windows 10 Mobile, its operating system for Windows Phones and small tablets, expected to hit later this year. Microsoft still plans to launch Lumia flagship devices this calendar year. (The rumor is this fall, once Windows 10 Mobile is available.)

Ubuntu Compute Stick

Canonical, the company behind the Ubuntu version of Linux, has announced that the Ubuntu version of the Intel Compute Stick will go on sale starting this week.

The Compute Stick is basically a computer in an HDMI dongle, allowing users to simply carry their computer around in their pocket, as long as they know that will have an HDMI-capable display wherever they need to use it.

"Consumers are looking for a more personal, flexible and cost-effective computing experience, and also looking for a choice of OS," said Jan Silber, CEO of Canonical, in a statement. "It's great to see Ubuntu becomes part of the Compute Stick family. This is another example of how we're working with Intel to bring a wide range of devices to market to give as many people as possible the chance to discover Ubuntu."

The stick itself will feature the 64-bit version of Ubuntu 14.04 LTS and includes an Intel Atom 1.3 GHz quad-core processor. The device also features 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of storage. Of course, this isn't the power needed for high-quality media production, but for business-people on the go or those needing to use fairly processor-light applications, the Compute Stick should be fine.

New Version Of Firefox

Mozilla has started letting outside developers use a test version of its Firefox browser with new virtual-reality technology that could make surfing the web more like watching movies or playing video games.

If the beta version of the technology checks out, Firefox users may soon be able to create a customized, fully-interactive online experience using VR devices such as Facebook's Oculus Rift.

A San Francisco-based non-profit foundation with more than 1,000 workers globally, Mozilla is hoping its new MozVR software can help Firefox better compete against Google's Chrome, Apple's Safari, and Microsoft's Internet Explorer.

Happy Fourth of July

We would like to wish a happy Independence Day to everyone.

God bless America.

Yet Another Win 10 Build

It's actually the "faster Fast Ring," according to a July 2 blog post announcing yet another new Windows 10 test build.

Microsoft is making available to its Windows Insider testers on the Fast Ring yet another new Windows 10 test build.

Today's build, Build No. 10162, is the third preview build for Windows 10 for PCs that Microsoft has rolled out this week alone. Build 10162 follows by a couple of days Build 10159, which provided 300 new bug fixes, plus the new Windows 10 wallpaper, to the five million registered Windows Insiders. On Tuesday, Microsoft rolled out Build 10158.

What's new in today's build? There aren't any details in Microsoft's July 2 blog post, other than the claim that "our testing and internal telemetry metrics show it has better reliability, performance, battery life, and compatibility than any Windows 10 Insider Preview build so far."

If this new build passes muster, Microsoft is likely to make it available to Slow Ring testers, with ISOs, next week, officials said.

OnePlus 2

OnePlus continues to slowly drop hints as to what the OnePlus 2 will be offering. In the startup's latest teaser, it revealed that its next smartphone will include a fingerprint scanner that is supposed to be easier to use than Apple's Touch ID.

Fingerprinting technology has only recently advanced to the point where its implementation truly adds to the end user's experience, according to a blog post from OnePlus.

In the past, fingerprint readers on mobile devices have been little more than a selling point and far from a useful feature, the company stated.

"We could've done this with the One, but we felt it was better to wait," said OnePlus.

MSFT Edge Browser

Microsoft is hurtling toward the release of Windows 10, pushing out Build 10158 on Monday to early testers. The new build provides yet more clues as to what the OS will look like when it ships at the end of next month.

One of the biggest changes involves Microsoft Edge, the company’s replacement for Internet Explorer. Microsoft announced the browser’s name at its Build developer conference last month. Today’s update finally shows off the new Edge branding ahead of its public launch with Windows 10. As seen in leaked builds, it’s a blue “e” very similar to the one used for Internet Explorer.

Running on the desktop, Edge now has a black theme that matches the Windows 10 taskbar, along with new menus for sharing content. The browser now supports filling in forms and password fields, bringing it closer to other modern browsers, including its predecessor. Users can also customize Edge’s New Tab page to display only their most visited sites, or their most visited sites along with suggested content that may interest them.

Like the launch of Edge’s branding on Windows 10 Mobile, this update brings a new app ID to the browser, which means that testers will lose their favorites, cookies, history and Reading List items from Project Spartan after the upgrade. Microsoft has instructions for backing up that data, for people who want to maintain continuity in their browsing experience.