boot13My install of Opera 18 updated itself recently, from version 18.0.1284.49 to version 18.0.1284.63. There was no announcement of the change, and there is no release notes page for the new version. The ‘unified’ release notes page for version 18 was last updated on November 18. Is Opera moving toward stealth releases like Firefox? If so, why? While there may be some value in software that silently updates itself, IT staff still need to make intelligent decisions about updating corporate desktops, and they can’t do that without knowing what has changed between versions. The only sensible alternative is to switch to a different browser. Another nail in the coffin for Opera, which is sad.
WordPress 3.8 released
The latest version of WordPress includes a style and responsiveness overhaul of the dashboard, sharp new vector-based icons, better support for mobile platforms, improved responsiveness features, better theme and widget management, better RTL (Right To Left) suport, some bug fixes, and a new theme, TwentyFourteen. An entry in the WordPress Codex lists all the changes in the new version.
Firefox 26 released with no announcement
Tuesday saw another stealth release of Firefox: version 26. As usual, the new version was not announced by Mozilla; I learned about it from a post on the CERT Current Activity blog. The official release notes for version 26 describe some of the changes in this version: nothing worthy of note. Version 26 does include fixes for some security issues, so you should upgrade as soon as possible.
Update 2013Dec16: One notable change in Firefox 26 is that Java is now blocked on all sites by default. This behaviour can be changed, but we recommend using the default setting.
Microsoft fiddling with Windows 7 lifecycle dates
Lifecycle is the term used by Microsoft when presenting the various dates related to the sales and support of their products. The Windows Lifecycle fact sheet provides all the relevant dates for all versions of Windows.
The lifecycle for Windows 7 was recently updated by Microsoft, making October 30, 2014 the last date on which new PCs can be sold with Windows 7. Shortly afterward, that date was removed, and it now appears as ‘To be determined.’ Someone at Microsoft apparently saw the latest sales figures for Windows, and realized that given Windows 7’s growth, stopping sales of that O/S in 2014 would significantly reduce overall revenue. Presumably a new cutoff date for OEM sales of Windows 7 is being debated internally, but I have no doubt that the October 30, 2014 date will eventually be pushed back.
Ars Technica has more about this.
Flash Player 11.9.900.170 fixes two vulnerabilities
Adobe has released a new version of its ubiquitous Flash Player. Version 11.9.900.170 includes fixes for two security vulnerabilities, as well as some other bug fixes.
As usual, Flash in Internet Explorer 10 on Windows 8.x will be updated separately, by way of Microsoft Update. Google Chrome will also get the new version of Flash via its own internal update mechanism.
Patch Tuesday for December 2013
Yesterday being the second Tuesday in December, another batch of updates was made available by Microsoft. This month there are eleven updates, affecting Windows, Internet Explorer, GDI+ and various server software. Five of the updates are flagged as Critical.
The official Security Bulletin Summary has all the technical details. As usual, there’s a somewhat less technical explanation of this month’s updates over at the MSRC blog. The MSRC post is worth reading, if only for the explanation of the difference between a security advisory and a security bulletin. The short version is that a bulletin is always associated with an update, whereas an advisory usually isn’t.
ISP horror stories
There’s an interesting hilarious horrifying post over at Ars Technica with some examples of the kind of service we’ve all come to expect in the competition-free world of Internet Service Providers.
Those stories make our ISP (Shaw) look pretty good by comparison with Comcast, Verizon, and Time Warner. Still, our WAN connection has been up and down during the last few days, and I’m still waiting for a service call. It’s up now, but it’s been down for a total of 34 hours in the last week.
Windows 7 sales outpacing Windows 8
People are still staying away from Windows 8, according to the latest sales figures. When compared with historical Windows 7 sales, Windows 8 is selling extremely poorly.
To make matters worse for Microsoft, Windows 7’s current growth rate exceeds that of Windows 8. In other words, Windows 7 sales are increasing faster than Windows 8’s. That problem may actually get worse before it gets better – if it ever does get better – as we move closer to the end of support for Windows XP on April 8, 2014. Standard advice to anyone upgrading from Windows XP is to go with Windows 7: a solid operating system that will continue to receive support until 2020.
Microsoft is obviously aware that Windows 8 is starting to look like Windows Vista or Windows Me: versions of Windows heavily criticized and properly avoided where possible. And as you might expect, they are starting to look at backtracking on some of the most-despised features of Windows 8. Windows 8.1 brought back the Start button, but without the Start menu, that move was mostly pointless. But the next version of Windows may bring back the Start menu.
Advance Notification for December 2013 updates
On December 10, Microsoft will publish eleven bulletins, with associated updates affecting Internet Explorer, Windows, Microsoft Exchange and GDI+.
The official advance notification has the technical details, while a post on the MSRC blog describes the updates in less technical language.
Chrome 31.0.1650.63 released
A new version of Google Chrome was released on December 4. Version 31.0.1650.63 includes fifteen security fixes.