Operating System

Windows 10 is a free upgrade for all Windows 7 and 8.1 users

Windows 10 will be free

Windows 10 is a free upgrade for all Windows 7 and 8.1 users.


Wondering how much Windows 10 will set you back? In most cases, more or less nothing. Microsoft has announced that the new operating system will be a free upgrade in the first year for everyone using Windows 7, Windows 8.1 or Windows Phone 8.1. The company sees Windows as a service rather than a product, Terry Myerson explains.

Microsoft is partly following in Apple’s footsteps (OS X upgrades have been free since Mavericks), but can you really complain about getting a big update for free?

Joe Belfiore demonstrated Cortana, which Microsoft announced it has added to the PC

Joe Belfiore demonstrated Cortana, which Microsoft announced it has added to the PC.


Windows 10 brings the same operating system to devices of all sizes, rather than having different ones for PCs/tablets, mobile phones and the firm’s Xbox games console.

One of the features highlighted at the presentation was how Cortana – the voice-controlled digital assistant previously limited to Windows Phone handsets – would now work on PCs.

Cross-device multiplayer gaming, Game DVR & more. The @Xbox experience is coming to #Windows10.

Cross-device multiplayer gaming, Game DVR & more. The @Xbox experience is coming to #Windows10.

Microsoft is currently live with Windows 10 Briefing: Watch the live event here.

Apple releases iOS 7.0.6 to fix a security issue

Apple iOS 7

Apple iOS 7

Apple has released iOS 7.0.6, a minor update to the operating system that resolves a security issue. The issue revolved around SSL verification, though Apple hasn’t yet described exactly what was going wrong. Presumably, it was important enough to warrant releasing an update to fix it now rather than bundling it into iOS 7.1, a large update to iOS 7 that Apple has been beta testing for several months now. Many iPhone and iPad owners have been eagerly awaiting the larger update, which is reported to include a number of design improvements and a fix to the pesky bug that’s been causing devices to restart seemingly at random during use. That wait may not be much longer though: reports have pegged iOS 7.1’s release as sometime in March.

On a new security page, Apple has disclosed the basic details of the flaw fixed in iOS 7.0.6. It seems that in at least one prior version of iOS, a hacker may have been able to retrieve and alter data that should have been protected by encryption. Apple says that this happened because the operating system failed to validate the connection’s security. Given the explanation’s limited details, it’s hard to judge just how serious this vulnerability may have been. But even so, it appears that it could have been a quite damaging, suggesting Apple had good reason to release the update quickly.