Welcome back, Folks!
Today is October 18th, 2022. It’s not Patch Tuesday, but updates from Microsoft, Mozilla, Oracle, Google, and others have triggered an out-of-cycle update.
Microsoft released Windows 10 22H2/19045. This is a minor update but introduces new features. Don’t be a lemming, let other people experience the inevitable stability issues so you don’t have to. If you don’t mind risking it, you can now get it through Windows Update.
Microsoft released an out-of-band update for .NET that resolves a security issue. Use Windows Update to install this update.
Google Chrome OS 106.0.5249.112 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version. A reboot is required.
Important Notes
Everything above this section should be checked by everyone on every computer. Chances are good that close to every single computer you touch will be affected by those updates. This is not the case with the items below, though you should still check each line item below to see if it applies to software you have installed.
The release of macOS Monterey (12.x) means that macOS Mojave (10.14) and older are no longer supported. If you can not install at least macOS Catalina (10.15) on your Mac then you should immediately remove it from the Internet and use it offline only. It will no longer receive patches or updates and can now no longer be secured.
The now-current release of the Windows 10 (v22H2) is very large so will take a long time to download on slower connections. Windows 10 pushes you to get the latest Windows 10 release every 12 months and only supports any consumer builds for 18 months. If you don’t let it finish and you’re on a slow connection, this process will kill your Internet performance forever. If you don’t have the bandwidth to download the bits, I’m happy to provide loaner USB drives to our local clients, or, if you prefer to have me mail it to you please contact me for information.
The now-current release of the Windows 11 (v22H2) is very large so will take a long time to download on slower connections. Windows 11 pushes you to get the latest Windows 11 release every 12 months and only supports any consumer builds for 24 months. If you don’t let it finish and you’re on a slow connection, this process will kill your Internet performance forever. If you don’t have the bandwidth to download the bits, I’m happy to provide loaner USB drives to our local clients, or, if you prefer to have me mail it to you please contact me for information.
Windows 11 is still very young so I encourage you to wait a few more months before you consider switching to it.
Please remember that while I list many different applications within these updates, most people should ONLY install updates for a program if they already have a previous version of that program installed.
It is essential to maintain all the applications you have installed on your computer, but often you can minimize the time investment and the potential for exploitation simply by uninstalling software you do not need or use, reducing the attack surface. This includes “free” applications like Avast, OpenOffice, and games you do not actually play.
Also note that using the applications own “check for updates” function, when available, will best preserve your current settings, and often avoid any crapware that might come with a fresh installer. Use this option if it’s available to you.
Finally, if you’re sick of doing this all yourself, let me! Call or email me any time, and we can set you up with subscription SaferPC updates which will be installed each month whenever necessary. Click, call or email for more details:
https://saferpc.info/updates/
209-565-12PD
shawn@12pointdesign.com
Driver Updates
If you’re using this hardware – these updates are for you.
DS4Windows 3.1.7 improves compatibility and updates libraries. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/Ryochan7/DS4Windows/releases/latest
Intel Driver and Support Assistant 22.6.42 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.intel.com/p/en_US/support/detect
Wacom Driver 6.4.0-10 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.wacom.com/en-us/support/product-support/drivers
Browser Updates
One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.
Brave 1.44.112 is a security update.
https://brave.com/
Google Chrome 106.0.5249.119 is a security update.
https://www.google.com/chrome/
Microsoft Edge 106.0.1370.47 is a security update.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge/business/download
Firefox 106.0 is now capable of editing PDF documents, adds OCR, and style improvements. If it’s your default browser it will now hijack the PDF file association as well. This is a security update.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
Vivaldi 5.5.2805.38 is a security update.
https://vivaldi.com/
Email Updates
One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.
Thunderbird 102.3.3 is a security update.
https://www.thunderbird.net/en-US/
Internet Updates
One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.
Dropbox 159.4.5870 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.dropbox.com/
Facebook Messenger 165.0.0.16.91 is a security update.
https://www.messenger.com/download
FreeFileSync 11.27 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.freefilesync.org/download.php
Google Drive 65.0 improves accessibility and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://drive.google.com/start
Java 8u351 is a security update.
https://www.java.com/en/download/manual.jsp
Omada Software Controller 5.6.3 implements features to be enabled later, resolves several bugs, and improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.tp-link.com/us/support/download/omada-software-controller/
Skype 8.89.0.403 improves live captions and subtitles, search, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.skype.com/
Media Updates
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
3tene 3.0.5 resolves several bugs and improves tracking, scaling and compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://en.3tene.com/
Game Updates
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
GameMaker Studio 2022.9.1.51 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.yoyogames.com/en/gamemaker
PS5 22.02-06.02.00 improves performance. This is not a security update.
https://www.playstation.com/en-us/support/hardware/ps5/system-software/
Steam 2022.10.12 adds QR-code authentication and updates the login interface. This is not a security update.
https://www.steampowered.com/platform/update_history/index.php?skin=0&id=0
Office Updates
One or more of these are likely to be of interest to most people.
Adobe Illustrator 27.0 and 26.5.1 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/illustrator/apsb22-56.html
Calibre 6.7.1 adds several new features, resolves several bugs and adds news sources. This is not a security update.
https://calibre-ebook.com/
IcoFX 3.8 adds custom SVG shapes tool, improves UI, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://icofx.ro/
LibreOffice Fresh 7.4.2 resolves over 80 bugs. This is not a security update. Be aware that the Fresh line is beta software and should be avoided by most users.
https://www.libreoffice.org/
Security Software Updates
One or more of these is likely to be of interest to most people.
Gpg4win 4.0.4 is a security update.
https://www.gpg4win.org/download.html
MalwareBytes Anti-Malware 4.5.15 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.malwarebytes.org/antimalware/
ProtonVPN 2.2.0 improves stability. This is not a security update.
https://protonvpn.com/download
RogueKiller 15.6.2 resolves a security bug and improves compatibility. This is a security update.
https://www.adlice.com/download/roguekiller/
Tails 5.5 should be treated as a security update.
https://tails.boum.org/install/dvd/index.en.html
VT-CLI 0.10.4 improves usability. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/VirusTotal/vt-cli/releases/latest
Converter Updates
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
DVDFab 12.0.9.0 adds support for new encodings. This is not a security update.
https://www.dvdfab.cn/download.htm
iMazing HEIC Converter 2.0.2 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://imazing.com/heic
MakeMKV 1.17.2 improves reliability for media with mastering errors and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.makemkv.com/download/
StreamFab 5.0.5.7 improves performance and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.dvdfab.cn/downloader-new.htm
Utility Updates
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
CPU-Z Installer 2.03 adds support for newer hardware. This is not a security update.
https://www.cpuid.com/softwares/cpu-z.html
Git SCM 2.38.1 is a security update.
https://git-scm.com/
Homedale 2.03 adds 6GHz support. This is not a security update.
https://www.the-sz.com/products/homedale/
iExplorer 4.6.0 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.macroplant.com/iexplorer/
ZoomIt 6.1 adds right-justification, improved scaling and usability fixes. This is not a security update.
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/zoomit
Unity 2022.1.20 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://unity3d.com/get-unity/download/archive
Windows 10 Upgrade 22H2/v19045 is now available. This is the next major build of Windows 10, but you should avoid it for at least the next month or two.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10
Windows 10 Media Creation Tool 22H2/v19045 is now available. This is the next major build of Windows 10, but you should avoid it for at least the next month or two.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10
Developer Updates
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
Android Studio 2021.3.1.17 resolves a dozen bugs. This is not a security update.
https://developer.android.com/studio
Node.js 16.18.0 is a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/
Node.js 19.0.0 is a major version adding several new features and default behaviors. This is not a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/
Web Package Updates
These are likely to be of interest only to web developers.
WordPress 6.0.3 is a security update.
https://wordpress.org/
WooCommerce 7.0.0 is a major update with dozens of fixes, new features and improved mobile support. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/woocommerce/
That’s all for now folks. Keep it clean out there. 😉
Regards,
Shawn K. Hall
https://SaferPC.info/
https://12PointDesign.com/