Updates from the Computer Club
Our first project this summer has been upgrading our classroom PCs to the professional version of Windows 10. The forced upgrading process inherent in the home edition had proved to be disruptive and problematic. We are currently in the midst of our annual maintenance program for all classroom equipment and planning for our fall teaching schedule. When the classroom is fully shipshape once again, we intend to offer a few summer classes. Check our class calendar at saddlebrookecc.org for early information as the end of May approaches.
Enrollment for our fall semester will open August 15. Fall semester classes begin in mid-September and conclude just before Thanksgiving. Expect multiple new classes available this fall in addition to our usual fare. Our free public presentations will also resume in September, currently scheduled for our traditional third Monday of the month.
Microsoft has proclaimed “May 2019 Update” as the marketing name for Windows 10 version 1903, the seventh “feature update” since the 2015 product launch. This rollout release officially begins in “late May” for consumers who elect to upgrade manually and for devices running a release of Windows 10 that is nearing the end of support. This delay adds a month of additional testing of the “final release” before it becomes available to home users.
This version will have some welcome improvements in the updating process for Windows 10 Home Edition users. Beginning with this feature update, you will finally have two options that were previously unavailable. First, you can delay installing routine updates for up to 35 days, even after those updates have been downloaded. Second, subsequent large semi-annual feature updates will no longer be forced. Instead, Windows will notify users that a feature update is available, and provide a new link on the Windows Update page to download and install the new version. You still must install the new version no later than 18 months after release, as support for this version will end at that time.
The required ritual of visiting the taskbar and clicking on “Safely Eject” before removing a flash drive will finally become a thing of the past. The new version of Windows 10 changes the default setting for USB and Thunderbolt-enabled external devices to ‘Quick Removal’, which means that you can simply pull out your flash drive when desired.
Microsoft has released early test versions of the rebuilding of their Edge browser to developers and Windows Insiders. At present, there has been no announcement of a public release date.
Visit our website at saddlebrookecc.org to review our up to the minute schedule, to read full class descriptions, find answers to frequently asked questions (FAQ), join the SaddleBrooke Computer Club, register for classes or participate in our members only eLearn classes. New members pay $55/single or $80/couple to join the club and may then enroll in any class on a space available basis for the current calendar year. Established members pay a $35 annual fee to enroll in subsequent years.