In a significant escalation of US efforts to limit China’s access to advanced technology, the Department of Commerce has reportedly mandated Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) to cease shipments of high-performance AI chips to Chinese customers.

The directive, effective Monday, restricts the export of TSMC’s 7-nanometer and more advanced processors, which are widely used in AI applications, Reuters reported.

The US Commerce Department’s latest move specifically targets chips that can power AI accelerators and GPUs, with a particular focus on halting indirect access to restricted technology by Chinese companies like Huawei, which the US considers a national security threat.

This directive, marking a new chapter in US-China tech tensions, applies to several key players in China’s AI ecosystem, potentially impacting companies beyond Huawei.

TSMC declined to comment on the said matter citing “market rumor.”

“TSMC is a law-abiding company and we are committed to complying with all applicable rules and regulations, including applicable export controls,” the chip maker said.

A query to the US Commerce Department did not elicit any response.

In another distantly related development, the Taiwanese government has said that the country’s law prevents TSMC from producing its 2nm chips — TSMC’s hitherto most advanced chip —  abroad.

“Since Taiwan has related regulations to protect its own technologies, TSMC cannot produce 2-nanometer chips overseas currently,” Taipei Times said quoting Minister of Economic Affairs J W Kuo.

Kuo made the remarks while addressing concerns that TSMC may have to accelerate 2-nm chip production in its Arizona fabs following Donald Trump’s re-election as US president.

TSMC is the main supplier of chips, including its most advanced one, for Nvidia and Apple and the US largely depends on the Taiwanese firm to further its technological advancements in the AI space.

TSMC’s involvement: The Huawei incident

This stringent order follows a recent finding that a TSMC-manufactured chip had been integrated into Huawei’s Ascend 910B, an advanced AI processor released in 2022.

A teardown analysis by research firm, Tech Insights, revealed the presence of TSMC technology within Huawei’s product, hinting at an export control violation and triggering the US crackdown.

The revelation prompted TSMC to inform the Commerce Department, shedding light on Huawei’s use of intermediaries to potentially bypass US trade restrictions.

The US directive mandates that any advanced product containing over 25% American technology require an export license — a requirement Huawei circumvented by procuring chips indirectly through third parties.

Impact on Chinese tech giants and the semiconductor market

The directive impacts numerous other entities in China’s technology landscape. In addition to Huawei, major AI-driven companies such as Alibaba and Baidu, which design and use similar processors, will face increased scrutiny.

Although the US regards them as competitors to Huawei, the move aims to curb any potential diversion of restricted technology for unauthorized AI applications in China.

Moreover, the order raises questions about TSMC’s ability to navigate US-imposed restrictions while continuing to serve clients in one of its largest markets.

Reports initially suggested that TSMC’s decision to halt chip shipments was voluntary, but it has since become clear that it was a response to direct US government orders.

However, the restriction on AI chips excludes automotive and consumer-grade chips, signaling that China’s AI and defense-related developments are the primary targets.

Growing tensions and US commitment to export control

The US has steadily intensified its stance against the use of American technology by companies that the government deems a security threat. By tightening export controls, the US aims to prevent China from leveraging AI and semiconductor advancements in ways that could counter US interests.

This latest directive follows broader efforts to restrict China’s technological capabilities, underscoring the US commitment to export control enforcement amidst ongoing geopolitical friction.

As the implications of the US directive continue to unfold, TSMC and other semiconductor producers may face a complex path ahead in balancing regulatory compliance with business needs in the Asia-Pacific region.

Source:: Computer World

Using the Monarch personal finance program, I went through my finances recently and found that I pay $510 every month on various subscriptions. (That’s not counting things such as my Internet bill, $120 a month for AT&T 2Gbps fiber.) I’m talking about Netflix, Google One, The Wall Street Journal, and other services and publications I actually want. 

But there were also over $100 worth of subscriptions that, frankly, I’d forgotten about  and no longer wanted or needed. That’s real money.

So, how do I get rid of them? Today, I have to dig into every last lousy one of them and jump through numerous hoops to cancel — but that may not be the case for much longer. 

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) last month announced a “click-to-cancel” rule aimed at making it easier for you and me to end recurring subscriptions and memberships. The new regulation requires sellers to make canceling services as simple as when you initially signed up for them.

As FTC Commission Chair Lina M. Khan explained: “Too often, businesses make people jump through endless hoops just to cancel a subscription. The FTC’s rule will end these tricks and traps, saving Americans time and money. Nobody should be stuck paying for a service they no longer want.”

Amen, sister!

The new regulations aren’t going to affect just Disney+ subscribers and the like. Businesses that rely on Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) — as either users or providers — are going to be affected as well. 

The new rule, which goes into effect six months after being published in the Federal Register, will have significant implications, for example, for providers like Google One and Microsoft 365. 

Here’s how it’s likely to affect these services.

For example, practices like requiring phone calls or in-person visits to cancel will no longer be allowed. If you think that’s an exaggeration, by the way, you clearly haven’t had a Planet Fitness subscription, which required snail-mail or an in-person visit to close out your membership.

Additionally, SaaS providers must provide clear and conspicuous disclosures about subscription terms: For example, automatic renewal information must be clearly stated and cancellation deadlines by which customers must cancel to avoid charges must also be spelled out. 

Under these regulations, you can no longer automatically resubscribe customers. They must consent before automatic renewals take place. Clearly, businesses that use automatic renewals will have to change how they’ll handle subscription renewals.

If your business gets customers by offering free trials that convert to paid subscriptions, you’ll also need to clearly disclose the trial’s terms, including when the trial ends and what charges will occur. And, of course, canceling after a free trial must be as simple as signing up for the trial.

All of this means, of course, that your company will have to update its terms and conditions. You’re going to have to pay your lawyers (as well as your programmers) to address these new rules. 

On the plus side, while none of this will be cheap, the FTC argues that customers will be happier and more likely resubscribe. And new transparent practices could even lead to  stronger customer relationships.

Not everyone is happy about the new regulations. Business organizations such as the Internet & Television Association (NCTA), the Interactive Advertising Bureau, and the US Chamber of Commerce oppose them. They have three major arguments: that the FTC doesn’t have the legal authority to implement the rules; the change will cost companies money; and they’ll force industries to change current cancellation processes that protect consumers or offer better deals.

In other words, it’s exactly what you’d expect them to say. 

Given the click-to-cancel rule is part of the Biden administration’s efforts to combat “junk fees,” you might think it’s dead as a doornail. Usually, I’d agree. But while Kahn has been a lightning rod for both Democrats and Republicans, she has one ally you probably didn’t expect; Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, who said: “I look at Lina Khan as one of the few people in the Biden administration that I think is doing a pretty good job,”

In addition, overall, the rule appears to be quite popular among consumers and consumer advocates. Let’s get real. People are sick of perpetual subscriptions. Their budgets are tight. Even if the FTC regulation costs companies some coin, it’ll be worth it in the long run.

Source:: Computer World

By Deepti Pathak Google Photos helps store your photos and videos by backing them up automatically, making it easier…
The post How to Stop Google Photos Backup on Android and iPhone? appeared first on Fossbytes.

Source:: Fossbytes

By Deepti Pathak Over time, your Mac’s downloads folder can fill up with files you no longer need, taking…
The post How to Delete Downloads on Mac? appeared first on Fossbytes.

Source:: Fossbytes

By The Conversation In the ambitious pursuit to tackle the harms from false content on social media and news websites, data scientists are getting creative. While still in their training wheels, the large language models (LLMs) used to create chatbots like ChatGPT are being recruited to spot fake news. With better detection, AI fake news checking systems may be able to warn of, and ultimately counteract, serious harms from deepfakes, propaganda, conspiracy theories and misinformation. The next level AI tools will personalise detection of false content as well as protecting us against it. For this ultimate leap into user-centered AI, data science needs…This story continues at The Next Web

Source:: The Next Web

By Chris Chinchilla Ruby’s creator, Yukihiro Matsumoto (Matz), released the first public version of the programming language in December 1995, making Ruby just shy of its 30th birthday. It spread across Japanese-language Usenet newsgroups, a popular way of exchanging conversation and media before the World Wide Web, and then reached broader communities throughout the late 1990s. This was thanks to Ruby’s friendly community and, in no small part, thanks to Matz. (The community has a motto, “Matz is nice, and so we are nice.”) At this year’s annual European Ruby Konferenze — EuRoKu — in Sarajevo, Matz said he created Ruby because he…This story continues at The Next Web

Source:: The Next Web

By Nick Godt BYD appears to be backtracking from plans to sell EVs in Canada

Source:: Digital Trends

By Nick Godt There are already 48,000 pre-orders for the Range Rover Electric, the brand’s first fully electric vehicle to be launched before year end.

Source:: Digital Trends

By Nick Godt Mazda is working on hybrid CX-5 and electric SUV

Source:: Digital Trends

By Nick Godt Hyundai’s 2025 Ioniq 5 is priced under $44,000, with extended driving range and a NACS port.

Source:: Digital Trends

French tech company Mistral AI has launched a new online moderation tool based on the AI ​​model Ministral 8B that can detect and remove offensive or illegal posts automatically. (There is still a risk of some misjudgments, however.)

According to Techcrunch, for example, some studies have shown that posts about people with disabilities can be flagged as “negative” or “toxic” even though that’s not the case.

Initially, Mistral’s new moderation tool will support Arabic, English, French, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and German, with more languages ​​are on the way later. Mistral in July launched a large language model that can generate longer tranches of code faster than other open-source models.

Source:: Computer World

Did you know that Apple’s macOS 15.1 Sequoia now lets you install and use applications acquired from the Mac App Store directly onto an external drive? This enhancement is actually particularly useful if your workflow requires you to handle a space-devouring application.

Here’s what you need to know about it and how it works.

What’s changed?

While anyone who is paying attention should already be impressed by the sheer speed and performance of Apple’s new Macs, that performance also means pro users will push the platform to its limits, banging into any inherent challenges to how Macs work.

One of these challenges is the need to optimize the space you have on your Mac when running larger applications — and given the cost of installing additional space on most Apple hardware, there was demand for a lower-cost way to do just that. The solution comes with macOS Sequoia 15.1.

Wait, is this really new?

So you’ve spotted that many Mac apps (downloaded from outside the App Store) allow users to install and use them on external drives. This is not automatically the case for applications downloaded and installed from the Mac App Store,however — these insist on being hosted on the Mac’s own drive. You have always been able to run most apps and macOS from an external drive, but now you can do the same with App Store apps, including Pro Apple apps.

What are the limitations?

There are some limits to the new feature tweak. 

The biggest is that you’ll only be able to install applications larger than 1GB in size, which is great for games and pro apps, less great for users of smaller apps, who may just want to manage storage their own way. We can hope Apple lifts the 1GB restriction eventually.

The second limitation is the speed of the external SSD; obviously, the speedier it is, the better the offloaded application will perform.

The final — and most inconvenient — limitation is that once it is enabled it is not optional. In the future, you’ll need to install any application of 1GB or more on external storage unless you turn the setting off. 

What do you need?

You need to be running macOS 15.1 and have a suitable connected drive. The drive must also be formatted to APFS. To check that this is so, with the drive connected to your Mac, right-click the drive icon in Finder and select “Get Info.”

How to begin installing Mac apps on external drives

Before you use the feature, you need to open the Mac App Store on your Mac.

Go to App Store>Settings in the Menu bar.

Check the box beside the “Download and install large apps to a separate disk” item in Settings.

When you have enabled that setting, you can select the external drive you want to save your applications to.

After that, when you want to install a large application from the Mac App Store, you will need to ensure the external SSD you want to use is connected to your computer.

How to use a Mac app on an external drive

At the risk of sounding obvious, you do need to connect the drive your application is stored on to your Mac to use the application you have hosted there. It is relatively seamless after that — the app will be visible in your Applications folder, opens with a double click and can be used just like any other app. (One thing it does not do is appear in Launchpad.)

Why does it matter?

Cost is the biggest reason this is important. Additional storage in Macs isn’t cheap; it will cost you an additional $600 to slot 2TB of storage inside the base model MacBook Pro, while a good and speedy external SSD should cost you around two-thirds of that, or less if you’re a little more flexible. That cost increases if you are provisioning multiple seats, so in some cases this feature could help you stretch purchasing budgets a little further. Consumer users can also use this to enable them to better explore and learn about professional applications without needing to worry about having enough space on their Mac.

Please follow me on LinkedIn, Mastodon, or join me in the AppleHolic’s bar & grill group on MeWe.

Source:: Computer World

By Nick Godt Rivian’s R2 electric SUV will be powered by LG cylindrical batteries made in the U.S.

Source:: Digital Trends

Microsoft Ignite 2024 kicks off in Chicago and runs Nov. 19-22.  If you can’t make it to Chicago, no worries. First, the physical event is sold out, according to the Ignite event page. Second, it’s a hybrid event, so you can attend Ignite virtually. 

Whether you’re there physically or online, expect to learn more about the latest technologies from Microsoft — everything from artificial intelligence (AI) to cloud computing, security, productivity tools, and more  In the keynote address, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Microsoft leaders — including Charlie Bell, executive vice president of Microsoft Security and Scott Guthrie, executive vice president of the Microsoft Cloud + AI Group — will share how the company is creating new opportunities across its platforms in this rapidly evolving era of AI.

You can also network with industry experts and Microsoft’s team, IT leaders, and other tech enthusiasts; gain hands-on experience and learn from experts at technical sessions; and learn about new products and services. (Microsoft often announces new products and features at Ignite.)

As you get ready for the event to start, here’s a look back at some of our previous Ignite coverage, as well as recent articles that touch on some of the topics you can expect to see at the event. And remember to check this page often for more on Ignite 2024.

Previous Microsoft Ignite coverage

Microsoft to launch autonomous AI at Ignite

Oct. 21, 2024: Microsoft will let customers build autonomous AI agents that can be configured to perform complex tasks with little or no input from humans. Microsoft announced that tools to build AI agents in Copilot Studio will be available in a public beta that begins at Ignite on Nov. 19, with pre-built agents rolling out to Dynamics 365 apps in the coming months.

Microsoft Ignite 2023: 11 takeaways for CIOs

Nov., 15, 2023: Microsoft’s 2023 Ignite conference might as well be called AIgnite, with over half of the almost 600 sessions featuring AI in some shape or form. Generative AI (genAI), in particular, is at the heart of many of the product announcements Microsoft is making at the event, including new AI capabilities for wrangling large language models (LLMs) in Azure, new additions to the Copilot range of genAI assistants, new hardware, and a new tool to help developers deploy small language models (SLMs) too.

Microsoft partners with Nvidia, Synopsys for genAI services

Nov. 16, 2023: Microsoft has announced that it is partnering with chipmaker Nvidia and chip-designing software provider Synopsys to provide enterprises with foundry services and a new chip-design assistant. The foundry services from Nvidia will be deployed on Microsoft Azure and will combine three of Nvidia’s elements — its foundation models, its NeMo framework, and Nvidia’s DGX Cloud service.

As Microsoft embraces AI, it says sayonara to the metaverse

Feb. 23, 2023: It wasn’t just Mark Zuckerberg who led the metaverse charge by changing Facebook’s name to Meta. Microsoft hyped it as well, notably when CEO Satya Nadella said, “I can’t overstate how much of a breakthrough this is,” in his keynote speech at Microsoft Ignite in 2021. Now, tech companies are much wiser, they tell us. It’s AI at heart of the coming transformation. The metaverse may be yesterday’s news, but it’s not yet dead.

Microsoft Ignite in the rear-view mirror: What we learned

Oct. 17, 2022: Microsoft treated its big Ignite event as more of a marketing presentation than a full-fledged conference, offering up a variety of announcements that affect Windows users, as well as large enterprises and their networks. (The show was a hybrid affair, with a small in-person option and online access for those unable to travel.)

Related  Microsoft coverage

Microsoft’s AI research VP joins OpenAI amid fight for top AI talent

Oct. 15, 2024: Microsoft’s former vice president of genAI research, Sebastien Bubeck, left the company to join OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT. Bubeck, a 10-year veteran at Microsoft, played a significant role in driving the company’s genAI strategy with a focus on designing more efficient small language models (SLMs) to rival OpenAI’s GPT systems.

Microsoft brings Copilot AI tools to OneDrive

Oct. 9, 2024: Microsoft’s Copilot is now available in OneDrive, part of a wider revamp of the company’s cloud storage platform.  Copilot can now summarize one or more files in OneDrive without needing to open them first; compare the content of selected files across different formats (including Word, PowerPoint, and PDFs); and respond to questions about the contents of files via the chat interface. 

Microsoft wants Copilot to be your new AI best friend

Oct. 09, 2024: Microsoft’s Copilot AI chatbot underwent a transformation last week, morphing into a simplified pastel-toned experience that encourages you…to just chat. “Hey Chris, how’s the human world today?” That’s what I heard after I fired up the Copilot app on Windows 11 and clicked the microphone button, complete with a calming wavey background. Yes, this is the type of banter you get with the new Copilot.

Source:: Computer World

The European Commission has opened a formal investigation into whether US glass producer Corning, known for its Gorilla Glass, might have abused its dominant position in the market for protective glass for electronic devices. Corning’s products are used, among other things, in several of Apple’s and Samsung’s devices.

The Commission suspects the company might have entered into anticompetitive agreements with cell phone makers and glass refiners, including claims for exclusive purchases and discounts based on those pacts. Gorilla Glass has been used in mobile devices for more than a decade.

The agreements might have prevented competitors from entering the market, reducing consumer choice, raising prices and inhibiting innovation. If Corning is found guilty, the company could be fined. Before that happens, Corning will have the chance to respond to the European Commission’s objections and the investigation can be closed if the company fulfills certain commitments.

Source:: Computer World

By Nick Godt Volvo is accelerating deliveries of its much-anticipated EX30 subcompact electric SUV so that it reaches the U.S. before the end of 2024.

Source:: Digital Trends

By Deepti Pathak Instagram automatically saves photos from posts to your device when you upload them, which can take…
The post How to Turn Off Instagram Downloading Post Photos? appeared first on Fossbytes.

Source:: Fossbytes

By Deepti Pathak Twitter, or X, is a popular social media platform where users share short messages, images, and GIFs. You’ll…
The post How to Download GIFs from Twitter/X? appeared first on Fossbytes.

Source:: Fossbytes

The Mozilla Foundation, the nonprofit organization behind the Firefox open-source browser, said it has laid off about 30% of its employees as part of a reorganization to increase its “agility.”

As of 2023, the foundation had between 80 and 300 employees, according to varying reports. A spokesperson declined to say how many employees the company has now.

Established in 2003, the group is best known for its development of the Firefox web browser, as well as its advocacy for internet privacy, digital rights, and freely-available, open-source software.

A Mozilla Foundation spokesman said the non-profit is reorganizing teams to boost agility and impact as it accelerates efforts for “a more open and equitable technical future. That unfortunately means ending some of the work we have historically pursued and eliminating associated roles to bring more focus going forward,” Brandon Borrman, vice president of Mozilla’s communications, said in a statement to Computerworld.

The non-profit arm is distinct from the Mozilla Corporation, which is the for-profit company responsible for generating revenue through products like the web browser. The corporation employs a much larger number of people, likely 700 or more.

The Mozilla Foundation’s executive director, Nabiha Syed, said in an email last week that two of the foundation’s major divisions — advocacy and global programs — are “no longer a part of our structure,” according to a TechCrunch report.

Contrary to reports, however, Borrman said the restructuring will not impact its goal of open-source and free internet advocacy. “On the contrary, advocacy is still a central tenet of Mozilla Foundation’s work,” he said. “Fighting for a free and open internet will always be core to our mission, and advocacy continues to be a critical tool in that work. We are in the process of revisiting our approach to it.”Along with the Mozilla Foundation, Mozilla currently consists of five organizations: the Mozilla Corporation, which leads consumer product-based work; Mozilla Ventures, a “tech-for-good” investment fund; Mozilla.ai, an AI R&D lab; and MZLA, which makes Thunderbird.

In 2020, the Mozilla Corporation cut about 25% of its 1,000-person global workforce, saying that the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on economies “significantly impacted our revenue.”

Borrman said the layoffs did not affect any of the other Mozilla entities.

Source:: Computer World

Let’s face it: For many people, web browser performance could well be more important than general PC performance.

Browser makers are wising up to this, too. Google Chrome just introduced new performance controls, while Microsoft Edge has attempted to stand out with its own browser performance options. And every web browser out there has long fought over the title of fastest in the land.

So let’s talk browser performance — and how you can get more of it, specifically when working within Windows. In a world where websites feel like they’re getting heavier and heavier, upgraded browser performance means everything from faster load times and a better all-around browsing experience to more reliable all-around PC performance and longer laptop battery life.

Want more Windows PC tips? My free Windows Intelligence newsletter delivers all the best Windows tips straight to your inbox. Plus, you’ll get free in-depth Windows Field Guides as a special welcome bonus.

Windows web browsing boost #1: Cull your extensions

Does your browser feel inexplicably slow? Before you do anything else, I’d recommend pruning any installed browser extensions. Add-ons can be useful, but they can also add some serious overhead to your browsing. They may be always running in the background, or they may run some code on each web page you load.

In Google Chrome, you can click the main three-dot menu icon > Extensions > Manage Extensions to see a list of what’s installed. From there, you can disable or remove them. Other browsers have a similar menu and mechanism, potentially with slightly different placement and phrasing.

You might want to try disabling a few browser extensions first to see if your browser feels faster. If not, you can easily re-activate them by flipping their switches back on in that same area of your browser’s settings.

Windows web browsing boost #2: Put those tabs to sleep (or keep them awake)

Modern web browsers — including Chrome, Edge, and Mozilla Firefox — all have features that put tabs to “sleep.” If you don’t use a tab for a while, your browser will stop it from running. It won’t be able to use resources in the background. When you click back to the tab, your browser will reactivate it.

This saves memory, and it also stops pages in background tabs from using CPU resources. Overall, it will boost your browsing speed.

However, in some cases, it could slow things down. Perhaps you often find that you switch back to a tab and your web browser quickly reloads it. If that’s a problem, you’ll want to make your browser stop putting tabs to sleep — especially if you have a powerful computer with a lot of RAM and a fast CPU. (You can also tell your browser to stop putting specific websites to sleep if it causes a problem with a website.)

To control tab suspending:

In Google Chrome, click menu > Settings and select “Performance” in the left pane. Look under “Memory Saver” and choose an option: Moderate, Balanced, or Maximum. You can also disable Memory Saver entirely — or add websites you never want Chrome to suspend to the “Always keep these sites active” list there.

In Microsoft Edge, click menu > Settings and select “System and performance” in the left pane. Use the “Save resources with sleeping tabs,” “Put inactive tabs to sleep after the specified amount of time,” and “Never put these sites to sleep” options to control this behavior.

In Mozilla Firefox, this feature is always activated — unless you dig deep into Firefox’s settings to turn off tab unloading.

Modern browsers can suspend, sleep, or unload tabs to save system resources. These are all names for the same trick.Chris Hoffman, IDG

Windows web browsing boost #3: Preload more pages

Your web browser of choice can “preload” some pages. In other words, it might load them in the background if it thinks you’ll visit them. If you do, the page loads very quickly — because by the time you’re looking at it, it’s already loaded in the background and ready to go!

Most browsers offer different preloading options, some of which are more aggressive than others. And preloading has some potential privacy implications, as your browser might load links you wouldn’t have clicked. But, for maximum speed, you’ll probably want the most aggressive preloading options available.

To control preloading:

In Google Chrome, click menu > Settings and select “Performance” in the left pane. Scroll down to the “Preload pages” option. For maximum speed, ensure “Preload pages” is active and that it’s set to “Extended preloading.”

In Microsoft Edge, click menu > Settings and select “Cookies and site permissions” in the left pane. Click “Manage and delete cookies and site data,” and ensure “Preload pages for faster browsing and searching” is activated.

In Mozilla Firefox, prefetching is always active — unless you’ve gone out of your way to dig into about:config and disable it.

Windows web browsing boost #4: Check your browser’s task manager

Want to see what’s actually using CPU and memory? Modern Chromium-based web browsers — including Chrome, Edge, Brave, Arc Browser, and more — have task managers that will show you. (Firefox has something similar, too.)

In a Chromium-based browser, just right-click an empty spot on the tab bar and select “Task Manager” or press Shift+Esc to open it.

You will see a list of processes — including open web pages, browser extensions, and browser components — along with how much CPU and memory they’re using. If your web browser is mysteriously slow, this is a good place to check: You might spot an open web page that’s dragging everything down, and you can close it from here. You can also click the “CPU” heading to sort processes by CPU and see the most CPU-hungry items at the top of the list.

In Firefox, you can access something similar by plugging about:processes into Firefox’s address bar and pressing Enter. (The Shift+Esc shortcut will work, too!)

Your browser’s task manager will show you if a web page or browser extension is hogging system resources.Chris Hoffman, IDG

Windows web browsing boost #5: Clear your browser cache (or stop clearing it)

Ah, the browser cache. As you browse, your web browser remembers the pages you visit and the things you type in a history, it stores images and other bits of downloaded pages in a cache, and it keeps cookies with information from websites — like your sign-in status.

Many people frequently clear this browser cache. If your browser is slow, you can try clearing browsing data. In fact, Microsoft’s official Edge browser documentation says “Clearing your browser data on a regular basis will improve the performance of your browser” — and who am I to argue with Microsoft? Surely, it understands how its own browser works.

Clearing that data is worth a shot. But, conversely, if you’re clearing your browsing data too regularly, you might want to stop doing that. The browser cache is there to speed things up: Your browser can pick images and other bits of web pages out of its cache rather than redownloading them, which improves load times when you revisit a page.

You’ll find options for clearing browsing data in your browser’s menu, but you can also just press Ctrl+Shift+Delete to quickly open the browser-history-clearing tool.

Clearing your browser data can speed things up — but clearing your browser cache too aggressively can also slow down page-load times.Chris Hoffman, IDG

Windows web browsing boost #6: Scan for malware

We have to talk about malware for a minute. Whenever a PC is running mysteriously slow, malware is always one of the first things you should check for.

Be sure to run a scan with your installed antivirus tool of choice if you’re concerned about questionable performance drops. If you haven’t installed anything special, your PC is using Microsoft’s Windows Defender antivirus. You could also get a second opinion with a different antivirus tool, if you’re not too confident in your current security solution. (Our friends over at PCWorld have a list of highly recommended free antivirus tools.)

Windows web browsing boost #7: Switch up your ad-blocker

When it comes to ad-blockers, one thing people don’t often talk about is the fact that such systems can both speed up and slow down your browsing. The speed-up part is obvious: By refusing to load advertising resources on web pages, ad-blocking plugins reduce download size and produce a lighter page that opens more quickly.

But there’s also a slow-down factor: Ad-blockers might also run extra code on the pages you visit, increasing memory use and making them take longer to load.

Different ad-blockers will have different effects on performance. There’s been a lot of controversy about Google Chrome’s switch to Manifest V3 and how it stops the popular “classic” uBlock Origin ad-blocker from functioning. But here’s the thing: While the new way Chrome blocks ads with Manifest V3 is less powerful, it’s also faster. So if you happen to be using uBlock Origin and install the new uBlock Origin Lite, you could see improved page load speeds.

That’s because those new Manifest V3-compatible ad-blocker extensions work by providing a list of resources they want to block. The Chrome browser engine then blocks those resources. That means the ad-blocking browser extension itself doesn’t have to get involved and run a bunch of code on the pages you access.

If you want a speed boost, it’s something worth chewing over. If you’re not yet using any ad-blocker, consider installing one. If you are using an ad-blocker, consider switching — for example, to something like uBlock Origin Lite.

Just bear in mind that you might occasionally break a page; you might need to turn it off for a page if you run into issues. 

Windows web browsing boost #8: Try a fresh browser profile

If a device isn’t working properly, factory-resetting it is a good tip. You might reset a Windows PC to its default settings or factory-reset an Android phone to get it to a nice fresh state if you can’t pin down a performance problem. The same is true for browsers.

To be clear: I’m not recommending you run out and factory-reset your PC! But popular browsers have built-in “fresh start” tools that will clean up your browser profile and its settings, wiping away any configuration changes, disabling extensions, and erasing cached files to give you a like-new browser. It’s worth a shot.

Here’s how to do it:

In Google Chrome, click menu > Settings and select “Reset Settings” in the left pane. Use the “Restore settings to their original defaults” option.

In Microsoft Edge, click menu > Settings and select “Reset Settings” in the left pane. Click the “Restore settings to their default values” option.

In Mozilla Firefox, click menu > Help > Troubleshoot Mode. You can then click “Refresh Firefox” in the dialog box that opens.

It’s a good way to start over. And hey — if you’re experiencing any kind of PC performance issue, browser-related or otherwise, the old standby advice is always good: Try turning it off and on again.

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Source:: Computer World