Office 2019 Will Only Work on Windows 10, Says Microsoft

Microsoft has announced that its Office 2019 suite -- to be available in the second half of 2018 -- will only work on Windows 10 operating system.

"Office 2019 will ship in H2 of 2018. Previews of the new apps and servers will start shipping in the second quarter of 2018. Office 2019 apps will be supported on any supported Windows 10 Semi-Annual Channel (SAC) release," the company wrote in a blog post late on Thursday.

"Office 2019 will provide five years of mainstream support and approximately two years of extended support. This is an exception to our 'Fixed Lifecycle Policy' to align with the support period for Office 2016. Extended support will end 10/14/2025," the company added.

However, there was no change announced regarding the support term for existing versions of Office.
This release has no effect on Office for Mac, which is a separate product with a different release schedule.

Last year at Ignite, Microsoft announced Office 2019 -- the next perpetual version of Office that includes apps (including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook, and Skype for Business) and servers (including Exchange, SharePoint, and Skype for Business).

The company also announced servicing extensions for Windows 10 and changes to the Office 365 ProPlus system requirements.

The support for Windows 10 (versions 1511, 1607, 1703, and 1709) for enterprise and education customers running certain versions of the operating system was extended for another six months to help them move to the latest supported versions of the operating system.

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Bitcoin Set for Worst Week Since 2013 as Crypto Sell-Off Intensifies

Cryptocurrencies plunged on Friday, with several of the largest falling by more than 20 percent and Bitcoin sliding below $8,000 and headed for its worst week since 2013, as worries about a regulatory clampdown globally sent investors scrambling to sell. The slump in prices this week means the total market value of cryptocurrencies is down to $385 billion, less than half the high it reached in January, according to industry tracker Coinmarketcap.com.

The market value of cryptocurrencies is calculated by multiplying the number of digital coins in existence by their price, although many question whether that is the right way to value them.
Bitcoin, the biggest and best-known cryptocurrency, fell 12 percent on Friday to a two-month low of $7,910  on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange. It is down more than 30 percent this week.

The second and third largest virtual currencies, Ethereum and Ripple, have plunged 23 and 31 percent respectively in the past 24 hours, Coinmarketcap.com said.

"The regulatory pressure is extremely strong and that is creating a bad environment for cryptos. In the short term, it's shaking out a lot of investors," said Naeem Aslam, a London-based analyst at Think Markets who holds positions in cryptocurrencies.

Retail investors have poured money into digital coins, enticed by the huge run-up in prices, but regulators who say cryptocurrencies are highly speculative and dangerous investments are wrestling with what to do.

India on Thursday vowed to eradicate the use of crypto-assets, joining China and South Korea in promising to ban parts of the nascent market where prices have boomed in recent years.

Social media website Facebook said this week it would ban cryptocurrency advertising because many were associated with misleading or deceptive promotional practices, while US regulators have sent a subpoena to two of the world's biggest cryptocurrency players, Bitfinex and Tether
A massive $530 million  hack of a Japanese cryptocurrency exchange last week has also renewed concerns about the security of the industry.

Supporters of cryptocurrencies say short-term price volatility is to be expected and does not undermine the power and value of the blockchain technology underpinning them.
The run-up in prices, however, has largely been driven by speculative investment.

Going back to 2011 and including the current selloff, Bitcoin's price has been halved nine times on the Bitstamp exchange before it recovered. The last time was from November 2014 to January 2015.

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PS4 System Update 5.50 Beta Brings Supersampling to PS4 Pro

The PS4 Pro may soon make your games look better. According to those participating in the PS4 system software update 5.50 beta, supersampling has been added as an option to Sony's iterative console.

Supersampling allows games that support enhanced textures, anti-aliasing, and resolutions above 1080p to scale to 1080p screens allowing for improved image quality, fewer jagged edges, and a sharper overall experience.

Although most PS4 Pro enhanced games let you choose between better graphics or a higher frame rate or run with supersampling, this ensures that those that don't now will. It's an interesting addition as the Xbox One X has had it since launch, making it obvious that Sony is looking to close the gap from a features standpoint.

Nonetheless, Sony does note that the outcome of this will differ from game to game. In some cases, the image quality may not be all that better or the frame rate may be impacted.
While this is a part of the PS4 system software 5.50 beta, it will be interesting to see if Sony makes it available to a wider audience when 5.50 is ready for mass consumption, or perhaps hold it back for more testing.

This isn't the first time Sony has brought core, system-level features to the PS4 Pro with an update. Last year saw Boost Mode which promised to increase the frame rate in games that weren't optimised for the PS4 Pro albeit it saw mixed results. How much of an impact supersampling has will be a point of contention in the weeks to come. Till then, here's a list of games from popular gaming forum ResetEra that support supersampling.

PS4 Pro supersampling game list

• The Last Guardian
• Dishonored 2
• Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age
• Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn
• Assassin's Creed: The Ezio Collection
• Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix
• Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue (Dream Drop Distance)
• Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain
• Metal Gear: Survive
• Life is Strange: Before the Storm
• Nex Machina: Death Machine
• No Man's Sky
• Injustice 2
• Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana
• Everybody's Golf
• Call of Duty Black Ops 3

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