Add source Login
It’s here! Windows 10’s end-of-support deadline arrives

It’s here! Windows 10’s end-of-support deadline arrives

Windows 10 on Tuesday reached its end-of-support deadline, meaning businesses will no longer receive free security patches or technical support from Microsoft for devices running the operating system. Those that continue with Windows 10 past the deadline must pay $61 per device for the first year of additional support via Microsoft’s Extended Security Updates (ESU) program . The program will be in place for three years, with the yearly cost doubling every 12 months to reach $244 in the final year. Without extended support, businesses risk exposure to cyberattacks and data breaches as new security vulnerabilities will no longer be patched. Microsoft had been encouraging customers to upgrade to Windows 11 or to Windows 365 cloud PCs ahead of the Oct. 14 deadline. However, adoption has been relatively slow due to factors such as stricter hardware requirements for Windows 11, tight budgets among small and mid-sized businesses, and a lack of perceived benefits in the upgrade. Migrations have ramped up ahead of the deadline, however. Windows 11 has now overtaken Windows 10 in global enterprise adoption, accounting for 60% of deployments. That’s according to analysis of data from 8 million Windows devices last month by asset management software provide Lansweeper. The shift away from Windows 10 has also driven an uptick in PC sales this year. Last week, analyst firm IDC noted a 9.4% year-on-year increase in sales during Q3 2025 , due in part to the transition to Windows 11. Omdia’s research put the increase at 6.8% , with Windows 11 adoption set to continue to drive PC sales into 2026. “While Microsoft and its partners have greatly stepped up efforts to drive awareness, particularly amongst SMBs and consumers, a significant portion of the global Windows installed base remains either on Windows 10 or on a PC that is five or more years old,” Ishan Dutt, research director at Omdia, said in a statement last week. Omdia’s survey of PC channel partners indicated that many businesses are still in the process of upgrading to Windows 11. According to the poll of 453 channel partners, 39% said almost all of their business customers’ Windows 10 PCs are now refreshed or upgraded. Meanwhile, 18% said customers will continue to use Windows 10 past the support deadline, likely with support via the ESU program.

Apple makes a major energy investment in Europe

Apple makes a major energy investment in Europe

In what may become another strategically positive moat around its business, Apple has announced a huge 650MW European energy investment to ensure the energy required to use its devices and services is offset with renewable power. The move forms part of a global commitment as the company moves to build a circular business by 2030. Apple dramatically cuts Scope 3 emissions The energy used to charge Apple devices accounted for around 29% of the company’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2024, contributing a large amount to its Scope 3 emissions . The company is working toward becoming completely carbon neutral across its business, and slashing Scope 3 emissions is an integral part of that. The company has already slashed emissions by 60% since 2015. To help achieve this, Apple is supporting development of large wind and solar energy farms in Greece, Italy, Latvia, Romania, and Poland. This follows a similar investment in Spain earlier this year. Together, these Apple-enabled projects will add 650 megawatts of renewable energy capacity to electrical grids across Europe in the coming years. The aim is to ensure energy neutrality across the product lifecycle, from manufacturing to disposal and at each step between. Cleaner tech, plentiful energy supply While these energy producers will simply feed the energy they produce into their local grid, the idea is that Apple can use that energy production to offset the energy consumed by users. The overall intention is to match 100% of the electricity Apple’s customers use in Europe, (including the UK, which is part of the European tectonic bloc) to run their devices within five years. “By 2030, we want our users to know that all the energy it takes to charge their iPhone or power their Mac is matched with clean electricity,” said Lisa Jackson, Apple’s vice president of environment, policy, and social initiatives. “Our new projects in Europe will help us achieve our ambitious Apple 2030 goal, while contributing to healthy communities, thriving economies, and secure energy sources across the continent.” Apple is working to enable renewable energy projects worldwide – you can learn more about its overall strategic approach here . In addition to these investments, Apple and its suppliers support more than 19 gigawatts of renewable energy for use across its global corporate operations and manufacturing supply chain — including (I believe), Apple services such as Apple Intelligence. Energy intelligence for Apple Intelligence Because Apple now has manufacturing, its own business operations, and customer energy use met through renewables, the company is ahead in the game of sourcing sufficient energy supply. This should give it a competitive advantage as investment in energy to power AI accelerates. While competitors seek the energy, Apple’s low-energy high-performing systems will deliver Apple Intelligence at the edge, no additional energy required. In context, this matters because for many reasons, Europe is struggling with energy prices; and in the UK, where energy is completely privatized, domestic energy bills are the highest in the region . Apple estimates it will need to put in place a system to produce 3,000 GWh of renewable energy a year to match the electricity customers use for charging. The newly announced projects bring about a third of that amount, meaning Apple will need to continue to expand its investment in renewable energy in Europe to becoming completely energy neutral by 2030. Abundance? “This agreement represents the first international long-term corporate power purchase agreement and the largest CPPA in the Baltic region,” said Gregor McDonald, vice president, head of energy trading and PPA for European Energy, which is building a 110MW solar energy facility with support from Apple in Latvia. “Together with Apple, we are enabling new solar capacity to be built and contributing to the energy independence of European countries.” “Together, we are creating the infrastructure backbone that makes sustainable operations achievable for companies worldwide while accelerating the path toward a decarbonized energy system,” said Andreas Schell, CEO, ib vogt which now produces 131MW solar energy in Spain with Apple’s help. Building business, one energy supplier at a time Speaking to PA News Agency, Jackson stressed that the move to renewables is a business decision. The company invests in good renewables firms that will make money selling the energy they create. “So, we invest in businesses, and those businesses are investing, not out of the goodness of their heart, but because they see an opportunity to do what businesses do, which is make money selling the energy that comes from these projects,” she said. The bottom line is that it makes sense to invest in renewable energy to help reduce the cost of energy overall, while making energy more widely available. That’s going to be of particular significance as the energy demands of AI increase . You can follow me on social media! Join me on BlueSky , LinkedIn , and Mastodon .

MPI investigating report of mouldy butter sold at New World Whangaparāoa

MPI investigating report of mouldy butter sold at New World Whangaparāoa

The Ministry of Primary Industries is investigating a report that mouldy butter has been sold at an Auckland supermarket.  A shopper bought a 500g block of Pams butter from New World Whangaparāoa last week. The packaging showed it was packed on July 1 and was “best before” January 1 next year.  “I opened it and there was mould all over it,” the shopper told the Herald.  She bought the butter late last week and complained in the hope that “other people or kids don’t get sick”.  Vincent Arbuckle, the deputy director-general of New Zealand Food Safety, an authority within the Ministry of Primary Industries, confirmed they had received a complaint.  “We are looking into the complaint to establish the facts,” Arbuckle said.  A customer complains she bought mouldy butter from New World Whangaparāoa in Auckland. Photo / Supplied  The Ministry of Primary Industries is looking into the complaint. Photo / Supplied  “As always, if there is a food safety risk to support a recall, this would be undertaken to protect consumers.  “Our advice to people who see unintended mould in any product, such as this, is to avoid eating it and contact the manufacturer or retailer.”  A spokesman for Foodstuffs, which owns Pams, admitted the problem.  “Recently, we’ve identified some quality issues with a few batches of Pams butter.”  Foodstuffs and Pams will be withdrawing the affected batches while it looks into the matter because “we only want to provide the highest quality butter”.  “We want to reassure customers it’s a quality issue and not a food safety issue.”  Foodstuffs and Pams also addressed ongoing rumours about a supposed change of recipe for their butter.  “There has been no change to the ingredients in Pams butter. It continues to be made in New Zealand using just cream and salt, with no added water.”  And the company also said it was natural for variability between butter batches.  “While we aim for consistency, being a natural product there is occasionally variability between batches. If anyone isn’t entirely happy with their butter, they can bring it back to the shop and we’ll swap it for another block.”  Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers business, breaking news and local stories from Tāmaki Makaurau. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.

Parole Board says wrong-way Auckland motorway driver Kingi Karanga must stay in prison for at least 12 more months

Parole Board says wrong-way Auckland motorway driver Kingi Karanga must stay in prison for at least 12 more months

A man who drove at speed the wrong way down Auckland motorways, then pointed a pistol at his ex while on parole, is considered an “undue risk” and must remain in prison.  Kingi Johnson Karanga is serving a number of cumulative jail terms, which add up to nine years and nine months, for offending since 2017.  Now, he will remain behind bars for at least another 12 months after the Parole Board considered his case recently.  It noted Karanga had failed a drug test in the past year, was being assessed for rehabilitation and that another Parole Board hearing in six months would be “too soon”.  Karanga’s most recent sentence, for armed burglary, was imposed in July and added 18 months on to jail terms he was already serving.  The latest offence related to an incident in which he pointed a gun at his ex-partner through her open bedroom window.  He left her house after the woman’s toddler son told him he was being “naughty” and to “go away”.  At the time of that offending, Karanga was on parole from prison, where he was sent after a day of mayhem in 2017, during which he drove at speed against the flow of traffic on two Auckland motorways.  The judge at his sentencing in 2018 said he was “literally holding my breath for other motorists” as he watched footage of Karanga’s driving taken from the police Eagle helicopter.  A man later identified as Kingi Karanga drives the wrong way along an Auckland motorway, against the flow of traffic, in October 2017.  The judge said Karanga’s “appalling” driving could easily have resulted in a fatal crash.  Karanga drove against Auckland motorway traffic on three occasions on the same afternoon in October 2017, trying to evade police and their Eagle helicopter as they tracked the stolen vehicle he was in.  Drove on three spiked tyres  On the last occasion, he continued to drive at speed on three deflated tyres after they had been punctured by road spikes.  Karanga, now 33, came to a stop and was arrested only when the ute he was driving hit two cars that had stopped in traffic.  He also caused another accident after punching a motorist while trying to hijack his car, prompting the dazed man to drive off and accelerate into a lamppost, leaving him with head injuries.  After the highway havoc, Karanga pleaded guilty to “endangering transport”, a charge that carries a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison and is aimed at people who dangerously target transport facilities, including vehicles, ships, aircraft and navigation equipment.  The Crown also laid reckless driving charges as an alternative to endangering transport – a much less serious charge with a maximum penalty of three months in prison or a fine not exceeding $4500.  In the end, however, it was the three counts of “endangering transport” that stuck – one for each instance of driving the wrong way on the motorways.  The late Judge Ron Ronayne jailed Karanga for six years and nine months – a sentence that also took into account other offences, including attempting to unlawfully take a motor vehicle, assault with intent to rob, reckless and dangerous driving, failing to stop, resisting police, and burglary.  Later, Karanga received more jail time for an aggravated robbery.  Kingi Karanga was tracked by the police Eagle helicopter for his "appalling" driving in 2017 and again after offending in 2023. Photo / Supplied  Karanga was released on parole in March 2023.  The following November, he went to his partner’s house soon after their relationship ended, forced her bedroom window open and pointed a pistol at her while still standing outside.  He began grilling the woman about the father of her child, accusing her of resuming the relationship and demanding to see messages on her phone.  Toddler told him to go away  He appeared to have second thoughts after the woman’s toddler told him to go away.  Karanga...

Erica Stanford’s Smoke and Mirrors

Erica Stanford’s Smoke and Mirrors

On Monday Minister of Education Erica Stanford revealed she has been practicing for her post-politics career as a magician, using sleight of hand to turn dodgy statistics into proof that her ‘Structured Literacy programme’ was producing miraculous results. ‘“New phonics data shows a significant boost in reading success right across the country. Our relentless focus […]