PCWorld July 2022

The day has finally arrived: Microsoft has killed off Internet Explorer. Or has it? The answer to that is: well, sort of. Microsoft has said for years that it plans to replace the venerable Internet Explorer browser in favor of a more secure option: Microsoft Edge. Today, Internet Explorer 11 ends support for most users, which means the browser won’t receive any additional support or patches going forward. If Internet Explorer is discovered to be vulnerable to malware, for example, you’re on your own. But who will be affected by Microsoft’s decision, and what can you do about it? We have the answers below. Here’s the big picture: For years, Microsoft has maintained Internet Explorer alongside Microsoft Edge. But just as in the tale of the three pigs, some of the…

On Tuesday, Mozilla and its Firefox browser announced Total Cookie Protection, a powerful way for Firefox to preserve your privacy while allowing websites to recognize you and provide customized experiences. Total Cookie Protection is rolling out to all Firefox users worldwide, the company announced on Tuesday. It will be on by default. Here’s how Total Cookie Protection works: Websites place cookies in your browser, small identifying bits of code that allow the website to “know” that your browser represents you, a unique individual. But those websites can also track you across the web, either by reading the contents of other cookies stored within your browser or by using other sites to host the site’s code—such as in the code used by a website’s comments system, for example. Either way, those…

Photoshop is the indisputable industry standard for photo editing and image generation. It’s also indisputably expensive. After coming in the Creative Suite for $700+ for years, Adobe now sells it only in Creative Cloud subscription form starting at $120 a year. That’s not the most effective way to get new users—in fact, it’s a great way to make people search for some free alternatives. But it looks like Adobe is getting a little more consumer-savvy with its recent web-based version of the tool, and plans to make it free for everyone. If you’re not familiar with the web version of Photoshop, it’s effective if somewhat stripped-down in terms of features. As a Photoshop user of nearly 20 years, I’d say the online version is somewhere between Photoshop Elements and the…

The future of Outlook is here, albeit with some caveats. Microsoft has officially released the new Outlook for Windows, with features that integrate Microsoft’s futuristic Loop interface as well as more practical innovations such as quick document attachments, a My Day summary, and reminders to respond to important email. For now, though, the new features are only available to members of the Office Insiders program, specifically the Beta Channel. We’ve seen the “future of Outlook” many times over the years, from 2015’s simple, effective Outlook apps for iOS and Android, to 2017’s more cohesive approach toward unifying Outlook across various platforms. We’re also seeing the first fruits of Project Cortex in how Microsoft (and its rival Google) are blurring the lines between various applications. But Microsoft has also been working to…

Simply testing Thunderbolt docks can be a challenge. But when even the best Thunderbolt docks suddenly vanish from store shelves, it can be like pulling teeth for vendors, retailers, journalists and consumers alike. Unfortunately, it’s not getting better. Plugable fights on the front lines of the skirmish between rival device makers, trying to find new supplies of key components—and in times of need, the company redesigns its products to take advantage of what’s available. At press time, the Plugable TBT3-UDZ is our pick for the best Thunderbolt dock, and it’s in stock, too. That’s not always the case. According to Bernie Thompson, the founder and chief technology officer of Plugable, three out of its five highest-selling Thunderbolt docks offering power delivery are sold out. (At PCWorld, we recommend docks not…

AMD’s Financial Analyst Day is when it reveals a peek at its upcoming lineup for all the people who really matter in the world of consumer electronics: insanely rich investors. But fortunately we lowly consumers get to see the same info, which included details on upcoming plans for the Zen CPU line and RDNA3 graphics processors. On the desktop side of things, we got more details on Zen 4 AKA Ryzen 7000, which is already known to be coming later this year and will provide a single-thread performance boost of 15 percent over Zen 3. The new series of 5nm and 4nm chips will also feature higher clock speeds (which we’ve already seen hinted at in an earlier demo of a Ryzen 7000 chip hitting 5.5 GHz), plus boost instructions…