Windows 10: The end of local accounts?

While Microsoft never tire of reminding us of the many benefits of a Microsoft account, they've grudgingly tolerated local accounts for years. This practice may soon come to and end though

By now, you've probably noticed that Microsoft would love nothing more than for us Windows users to link our Windows PCs to Microsoft online accounts. Our only way out: **offline accounts**. And while Microsoft never tire of reminding us of the many benefits of a Microsoft account, like better access to Office 365, Xbox Live and the Microsoft Store (for us and a wealth of personal data for them), they've grudgingly tolerated local accounts for years. This practice may soon come to and end though!

By now, you've probably noticed that Microsoft would love nothing more than for us Windows users to link our Windows PCs to Microsoft online accounts. Our only way out: offline accounts. And while Microsoft never tire of reminding us of the many benefits of a Microsoft account, like better access to Office 365, Xbox Live and the Microsoft Store (for us and a wealth of personal data for them), they've grudgingly tolerated local accounts for years. This practice may soon come to and end though!


Digital legacy: What it means and what you should know

Some topics we just don't like to talk about, like death and inheritance. The internet has complicated matters further. Who owns a Facebook profile once its original owner has deceased? There are a lot of questions that need answering.

Some topics we just don't like to talk about, like death and inheritance. The internet, with its multitude of paid service offerings, has complicated matters further. **Who owns a Facebook profile once its original owner has deceased?** What happens to digitally purchased movies and ebooks once the buyer is no longer with us? Is it safe to just delete the affected accounts? *There are a lot of questions that need answering*—and don't count on PayPal, Microsoft, apple, Amazon and others for help.

Some topics we just don't like to talk about, like death and inheritance. The internet, with its multitude of paid service offerings, has complicated matters further. Who owns a Facebook profile once its original owner has deceased? What happens to digitally purchased movies and ebooks once the buyer is no longer with us? Is it safe to just delete the affected accounts? There are a lot of questions that need answering—and don't count on PayPal, Microsoft, apple, Amazon and others for help.


Intel vs. AMD: It's on (again)!

Intel have been ruling the roost in terms of chip design for many years, but for the first time since 2006, the semi-conductor specialist is gradually losing ground to AMD!

Every large corporation needs competition, an archrival even, for interesting tales to emerge around their products. *Intel have been ruling the roost* in terms of chip design for many years, but for the first time since 2006, the semi-conductor specialist is gradually losing ground to AMD! Once primarily a low-budget choice, **AMD's products have evolved** into a genuine Intel alternative—even regularly outclassing them!

Every large corporation needs competition, an archrival even, for interesting tales to emerge around their products. Intel have been ruling the roost in terms of chip design for many years, but for the first time since 2006, the semi-conductor specialist is gradually losing ground to AMD! Once primarily a low-budget choice, AMD's products have evolved into a genuine Intel alternative—even regularly outclassing them!


15 years of Google Maps—(Re)Discovering the world the digital way

Google Maps' features go beyond a simple map like the ones we used to have in our cars. After 15 years, the time has come to take a closer look at the now massive feature set and ask ourselves how many of the features we really need/use.

A few years ago, I needed to get to Hamburg urgently. I didn't know my way around the city so I depended on my navigation device—and was thoroughly disappointed. The display stayed black and has remained this way ever since. In my distress, I turned to **Google Maps**, for the first time, and boy was in for a shock. The app sucked by battery dry like an electric blanket and I ended up in some shady harbor district, with even more *shady characters eyeballing my factory-fresh rental car*. The whole time, Google Maps advised me to turn around. Eventually, I was just as lost as the navigation service. It was a friendly local who ultimately came to my rescue. A lot has changed since then. Google Maps is now celebrating its 15-year birthday and, what started as a digital map, has become **a powerful exploration tool**.

A few years ago, I needed to get to Hamburg urgently. I didn't know my way around the city so I depended on my navigation device—and was thoroughly disappointed. The display stayed black and has remained this way ever since. In my distress, I turned to Google Maps, for the first time, and boy was in for a shock. The app sucked by battery dry like an electric blanket and I ended up in some shady harbor district, with even more shady characters eyeballing my factory-fresh rental car. The whole time, Google Maps advised me to turn around. Eventually, I was just as lost as the navigation service. It was a friendly local who ultimately came to my rescue. A lot has changed since then. Google Maps is now celebrating its 15-year birthday and, what started as a digital map, has become a powerful exploration tool.


Google Stadia-a rocky start to a billion-dollar project

Play at home but leave the heavy computational lifting to external servers? Google makes it possible! It's been a good two months since Stadia launched and all hopes around the hype have faded. Too much went wrong!

Imagine playing a resource-hungry, visually highly demanding game—on your cellphone, TV or in your browser *without dedicated hardware*. All you need is a display, internet connection and controller! That's exactly what Google have in mind with **Stadia**, and they're not shy on large-scale expectations: "If we reach only 100 or 200 million people, we have done something wrong", said Jack Buser, head of business development at Google. The projected figure went as high as 2 billion future Stadia users. It's been a good two months since Stadia launched and *all hopes around the hype have faded*. Too much went wrong!

Imagine playing a resource-hungry, visually highly demanding game—on your cellphone, TV or in your browser without dedicated hardware. All you need is a display, internet connection and controller! That's exactly what Google have in mind with Stadia, and they're not shy on large-scale expectations: &quot;If we reach only 100 or 200 million people, we have done something wrong&quot;, said Jack Buser, head of business development at Google. The projected figure went as high as 2 billion future Stadia users. It's been a good two months since Stadia launched and all hopes around the hype have faded. Too much went wrong!


The return of a classic: A review of THE C64 Maxi

The C64 is back, kind of. Same design but contemporary hardware. Naturally, I had to try out this homage to a milestone of home computing.

Some experiences are exceptionally formative. I had one of them on my birthday in 1985, when my heart was racing as I opened my presents. An elongated box immediately caught my eye. I tore it open and stared at the magic letters that said **Commodore C64 MicroComputer**. A bunch of disks and two joysticks were also included. It was a life-changing moment! This intriguing "bread box" would teach me the value of patience and the fundamentals of the BASIC language. The *fascination for technology and the drive to explore* I felt that day would take a firm hold and stay with me for the rest of my life. Now, the C64 is back, kind of. Same design but contemporary hardware. Naturally, I had to try out this homage to a milestone of home computing.

Some experiences are exceptionally formative. I had one of them on my birthday in 1985, when my heart was racing as I opened my presents. An elongated box immediately caught my eye. I tore it open and stared at the magic letters that said Commodore C64 MicroComputer. A bunch of disks and two joysticks were also included. It was a life-changing moment! This intriguing &quot;bread box&quot; would teach me the value of patience and the fundamentals of the BASIC language. The fascination for technology and the drive to explore I felt that day would take a firm hold and stay with me for the rest of my life. Now, the C64 is back, kind of. Same design but contemporary hardware. Naturally, I had to try out this homage to a milestone of home computing.


Microsoft's change of heart in the browser market: Edge reborn

Edge is now built on Chromium. Old name, new underpinnings! So what's new?

Our web developers at Ashampoo are quite pleasant fellows. Gentle folks with fawn eyes. But even their looks turn to stone once the I word is dropped, i.e. Internet Explorer. For years, **IE set the standard**, being both a bane and blessing. Whether unadventurous private user or member of an IT staff, Internet Explorer was the gateway to the world-wide web for many. And web developers in their quest to have their websites render correctly more often than not suffered the many *awkward development decisions* by Microsoft. During my time as a QA clerk, I had to report time and time again that sites that were working fine in Firefox or Safari didn't behave as expected in Internet Explorer. But that's all in the past, since **Edge is now built on Chromium**! Old name, new underpinnings! So what's new?

Our web developers at Ashampoo are quite pleasant fellows. Gentle folks with fawn eyes. But even their looks turn to stone once the I word is dropped, i.e. Internet Explorer. For years, IE set the standard, being both a bane and blessing. Whether unadventurous private user or member of an IT staff, Internet Explorer was the gateway to the world-wide web for many. And web developers in their quest to have their websites render correctly more often than not suffered the many awkward development decisions by Microsoft. During my time as a QA clerk, I had to report time and time again that sites that were working fine in Firefox or Safari didn't behave as expected in Internet Explorer. But that's all in the past, since Edge is now built on Chromium! Old name, new underpinnings! So what's new?


What is bloatware?

Depending on the manufacturer, a large portion of your screen may be plastered with unexpected apps .Uninstalling is often barely possible, which is especially vexatious with resource-hungry memory and performance hogs that eat away at your battery.

Many a one proud owners of Android cellphones know the story: You boot your device up for the first time, go through the setup procedure—and are faced with a welter of unexpected apps. Depending on the manufacturer, a large portion of your screen may be plastered with them. This **bloatware** scourge is especially prevalent in the lower price range. Some retailers even openly advertise the "extensive software bundle". Not all of these apps are useless or dangerous, customers simply would like to have a choice! Uninstalling is often barely possible, which is especially vexatious with *resource-hungry memory and performance hogs* that eat away at your battery. Time for Google to take action!

Many a one proud owners of Android cellphones know the story: You boot your device up for the first time, go through the setup procedure—and are faced with a welter of unexpected apps. Depending on the manufacturer, a large portion of your screen may be plastered with them. This bloatware scourge is especially prevalent in the lower price range. Some retailers even openly advertise the &quot;extensive software bundle&quot;. Not all of these apps are useless or dangerous, customers simply would like to have a choice! Uninstalling is often barely possible, which is especially vexatious with resource-hungry memory and performance hogs that eat away at your battery. Time for Google to take action!


Are Bluetooth headphones under $50 any good? A review of AIKELA TWS-X10 headphones

Bluetooth headphones are currently much sought-after. Check out what I found under my Christmas tree! A review of AIKELA TWS-X10 in-ear headphones

Are Bluetooth headphones under $50 any good?

Christmas is over and I'm seriously hoping you had a great start into the new year! Naturally, my presents included a few tech gadgets, along with a genuine surprise: *a pair of wireless headphones*. I had already owned a pair of over-ear wireless headphones but they were bulky and heavy, thanks to the sizable batteries—and they won't get any prize in terms of design either. Definitely unsuitable for sports or casual listening on the go, which is why I unwrapped the **Aikela TWS-X10** with glee. I had neither heard of the company nor ever owned in-ears, so it was a double premiere so to speak.

Christmas is over and I'm seriously hoping you had a great start into the new year! Naturally, my presents included a few tech gadgets, along with a genuine surprise: a pair of wireless headphones. I had already owned a pair of over-ear wireless headphones but they were bulky and heavy, thanks to the sizable batteries—and they won't get any prize in terms of design either. Definitely unsuitable for sports or casual listening on the go, which is why I unwrapped the Aikela TWS-X10 with glee. I had neither heard of the company nor ever owned in-ears, so it was a double premiere so to speak.


A Merry Christmas 2019 from the Ashampoo Blog team!

The first Christmas in new surroundings always has a more magical feeling to it. Last year, I experienced this first hand in private, this year, the Ashampoo team is spending the Advent season in their new HQ. But some things never change!

The first Christmas in new surroundings always has a more magical feeling to it. Last year, I experienced this first hand in private, this year, the Ashampoo team is spending the Advent season in their new HQ. And there are plenty of differences to prior years: I'm no longer staring at gray rooftops but a (quite pretty) fire pond, we're no longer packed like sardines but have lots of open space and a neatly decorated Christmas tree is sitting next to the main entrance (and it's doing a far better job of conveying the spirit of Christmas than *that pile of snow tires* ever did in the old building). But **some things never change**!

The first Christmas in new surroundings always has a more magical feeling to it. Last year, I experienced this first hand in private, this year, the Ashampoo team is spending the Advent season in their new HQ. And there are plenty of differences to prior years: I'm no longer staring at gray rooftops but a (quite pretty) fire pond, we're no longer packed like sardines but have lots of open space and a neatly decorated Christmas tree is sitting next to the main entrance (and it's doing a far better job of conveying the spirit of Christmas than that pile of snow tires ever did in the old building). But some things never change!


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