Apple on Monday released iOS 15.5 and iPadOS 15.5 to the public following the release of the RC build last week. The update doesn’t bring significant changes, but it does improve the Apple Cash and Podcasts app.
iOS 15.5 new features
Apple says that iOS 15.5 makes enhancements to Apple Cash, with support for more easily requesting and sending money from the Apple Cash card in the Wallet app. There’s also a new feature in Apple Podcasts to help preserve your iPhone’s storage space and some bug fixes for HomeKit.
Here are the full release notes for iOS 15.5 according to Apple:
iOS 15.5 includes the following improvements and bug fixes:
Wallet now enables Apple Cash customers to send and request money from their Apple Cash card
Apple Podcasts includes a new setting to limit episodes stored on your iPhone and automatically delete older ones
Fixes an issue where home automations, triggered by people arriving or leaving, may fail
Here are some other changes in iOS 15.5 we’ve spotted so far, not mentioned in Apple’s release notes:
You can update your devices by going to the Settings app, then General > Software Update. Check out Apple’s website for more details about the security patches included with iOS 15.5.
It’s unclear whether this update will be the last before the first iOS 16 beta, which should arrive shortly after WWDC 2022 in June.
The only examples of a USB-C iPhone we’ve seen to date have been DIY versions, but Ming-Chi Kuo claims that Apple will make the switch from Lightning to USB-C next year, in the iPhone 15.
The report comes as something of a surprise, as although Apple has adopted USB-C for Mac and iPad, it had seemed the company planned to stick with Lightning until it switches to a completely portless phone …
Background
Apple began its adoption of USB-C for Macs back in 2015, with the 12-inch MacBook. It then went all-in with the 2016 MacBook Pro, before backtracking a little last year by restoring MagSafe, HDMI and SD card slots.
The iPad made the switch from Lightning to USB-C in 2018, with the 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models.
That left the iPhone as the sole core Apple product with a Lightning socket. Since the iPhone retained the older connector for years after the Mac and iPad adoption of USB-C, the consensus view appeared to be that it would continue to do so until the first portless model.
USB-C iPhone 15 report
Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo tweeted today that Apple will make the switch to USB-C for iPhone in the second half of next year, which is to say the iPhone 15.
My latest survey indicates that 2H23 new iPhone will abandon Lightning port and switch to USB-C port. USB-C could improve iPhone’s transfer and charging speed in hardware designs, but the final spec details still depend on iOS support.
It’s expected to see existing USB-C-related suppliers of Apple’s ecosystem (e.g., IC controller, connector) become the market’s focus in the next 1-2 years, thanks to vast orders from iPhones and accessories’ adoption of USB-C ports.
The reference to USB-C suppliers benefiting for ‘1-2 years’ may indicate that Kuo then anticipates Apple will drop the port altogether.
9to5Mac’s Take
This is a somewhat odd report. Apple made the switch to USB-C iPads in back 2018, so if it planned to do with the iPhone too, we would have expected that to have happened by now.
It should be noted that although Kuo has a decent track record, he has more recently taken to tweeting simply thoughts or opinions about what Apple might do, rather than anything based on evidence. However, this tweet does specifically say that it’s based on his ‘latest survey,’ which means talking to suppliers.
Supply-chain reports can be of varying reliability. Apple likes to have multiple suppliers wherever possible, to allow it to negotiate better prices, and to reduce risk. If, for example, a major supplier of Lightning ports were to report Apple was planning to cut orders next year, that could mean nothing more than a rejigging of competing suppliers.
Similarly, USB-C suppliers talking about expecting a major boost in orders next year might again simply be Apple or other companies increasing orders with some suppliers while reducing them with others.
Kuo does seem confident in his interpretation of what he’s hearing from suppliers. It’s entirely possible that he’s right, but we wouldn’t count on it yet.
Did you know that May 5, 2022, is World Password Day?1 Created by cybersecurity professionals in 2013 and designated as the first Thursday every May, World Password Day is meant to foster good password habits that help keep our online lives secure. It might seem strange to have a day set aside to honor something almost no one wants to deal with—like having a holiday for filing your income taxes (actually, that might be a good idea). But in today’s world of online work, school, shopping, healthcare, and almost everything else, keeping our accounts secure is more important than ever. Passwords are not only hard to remember and keep track of, but they’re also one of the most common entry points for attackers. In fact, there are 921 password attacks every second—nearly doubling in frequency over the past 12 months.2
But what if you didn’t have to deal with passwords at all? Last fall, we announced that anyone can completely remove the password from their Microsoft account. If you’re like me and happy to ditch passwords completely, read on to learn how Microsoft is making it possible to start enjoying a passwordless life today. Still, we know not everyone is ready to say goodbye to passwords, and it’s not possible for all your online accounts. We’ll also go over some easy ways to improve your password hygiene, as well as share some exciting news from our collaboration with the FIDO Alliance about a new way to sign in without a password.
Free yourself with passwordless sign-in
Yes, you can now enjoy secure access to your Microsoft account without a password. By using the Microsoft Authenticator app, Windows Hello, a security key, or a verification code sent to your phone or email, you can go passwordless with any of your Microsoft apps and services. Just follow these five steps:
Choose Security. Under Advanced security options, you’ll see Passwordless account in the section titled Additional security.
Select Turn on.
Approve the notification from Authenticator.
Once you approve the notification, you’ll no longer need a password to access your Microsoft accounts. If you decide you prefer using a password, you can always go back and turn off the passwordless feature. Here at Microsoft, nearly 100 percent of our employees use passwordless options to log into their corporate accounts.
Strengthen security with multifactor authentication
One simple step we can all take to protect our accounts today is adding multifactor authentication, which blocks 99.9 percent of account compromise attacks. The Microsoft Authenticator app is free and provides multiple options for authentication, including time-based one-time passcodes (TOTP), push notifications, and passwordless sign-in—all of which work for any site that supports multifactor authentication. Authenticator is available for Android and iOS and gives you the option to turn two-step verification on or off. For your Microsoft Account, multifactor authentication is usually only needed the first time you sign in or after changing your password. Once your device is recognized, you’ll just need your primary sign-in.
Make sure your password isn’t the weak link
Rather than keeping attackers out, weak passwords often provide a way in. Using and reusing simple passwords across different accounts might make our online life easier, but it also leaves the door open. Attackers regularly scroll social media accounts looking for birthdates, vacation spots, pet names and other personal information they know people use to create easy-to-remember passwords. A recent study found that 68 percent of people use the same password for different accounts.3 For example, once a password and email combination has been compromised, it’s often sold on the dark web for use in additional attacks. As my friend Bret Arsenault, our Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) here at Microsoft, likes to say, “Hackers don’t break in, they log in.”
Some basics to remember—make sure your password is:
At least 12 characters long.
A combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.
Not a word that can be found in a dictionary, or the name of a person, product, or organization.
Completely different from your previous passwords.
Changed immediately if you suspect it may have been compromised.
Tip: Consider using a password manager. Microsoft Edge and Microsoft Authenticator can create (and remember) strong passwords using Password Generator, and then automatically fill them in when accessing your accounts. Also, keep these other tips in mind:
Only share personal information in real-time—in person or by phone. (Be careful on social media.)
Be skeptical of messages with links, especially those asking for personal information.
Be on guard against messages with attached files, even from people or organizations you trust.
Enable the lock feature on all your mobile devices (fingerprint, PIN, or facial recognition).
Ensure all the apps on your device are legitimate (only from your device’s official app store).
Keep your browser updated, browse in incognito mode, and enable Pop-Up Blocker.
Tip: When answering security questions, provide an unrelated answer. For example, Q: “Where were you born?” A: “Green.” This helps throw off attackers who might use information skimmed from your social media accounts to hack your passwords. (Just be sure the unrelated answers are something you’ll remember.)
Passwordless authentication is becoming commonplace
As part of a historic collaboration, the FIDO Alliance, Microsoft, Apple, and Google have announced plans to expand support for a common passwordless sign-in standard. Commonly referred to as passkeys, these multi-device FIDO credentials offer users a platform-native way to safely and quickly sign in to any of their devices without a password. Virtually unable to be phished and available across all your devices, a passkey lets you sign in simply by authenticating with your face, fingerprint, or device PIN.
In addition to a consistent user experience and enhanced security, these new credentials offer two other compelling benefits:
Users can automatically access their passkeys on many of their devices without having to re-enroll for each account. Simply authenticate with your platform on your new device and your passkeys will be there ready to use—protecting you against device loss and simplifying device upgrade scenarios.
With passkeys on your mobile device, you’re able to sign in to an app or service on nearly any device, regardless of the platform or browser the device is running. For example, users can sign in on a Google Chrome browser that’s running on Microsoft Windows, using a passkey on an Apple device.
These new capabilities are expected to become available across Microsoft, Apple, and Google platforms starting in the next year. This type of Web Authentication (WebAuthn) credential represents a new era of authentication, and we’re thrilled to join the FIDO Alliance and others in the industry in supporting a common standard for a safe, consistent authentication experience. Learn more about this open-standards collaboration and exciting passwordless capabilities coming for Microsoft Azure Active Directory in a blog post from Alex Simons, Vice President, Identity Program Management.
To learn more about Microsoft Security solutions, visit our website. Bookmark the Security blog to keep up with our expert coverage on security matters. Also, follow us at @MSFTSecurity for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity.
Faster, easier and more secure sign-ins will be available to consumers across leading devices and platforms
Mountain View, California, MAY 5, 2022 – In a joint effort to make the web more secure and usable for all, Apple, Google and Microsoft today announced plans to expand support for a common passwordless sign-in standard created by the FIDO Alliance and the World Wide Web Consortium. The new capability will allow websites and apps to offer consistent, secure, and easy passwordless sign-ins to consumers across devices and platforms.
Password-only authentication is one of the biggest security problems on the web, and managing so many passwords is cumbersome for consumers, which often leads consumers to reuse the same ones across services. This practice can lead to costly account takeovers, data breaches, and even stolen identities. While password managers and legacy forms of two-factor authentication offer incremental improvements, there has been industry-wide collaboration to create sign-in technology that is more convenient and more secure.
The expanded standards-based capabilities will give websites and apps the ability to offer an end-to-end passwordless option. Users will sign in through the same action that they take multiple times each day to unlock their devices, such as a simple verification of their fingerprint or face, or a device PIN. This new approach protects against phishing and sign-in will be radically more secure when compared to passwords and legacy multi-factor technologies such as one-time passcodes sent over SMS.
An Expansion of Passwordless Standard Support
Hundreds of technology companies and service providers from around the world worked within the FIDO Alliance and W3C to create the passwordless sign-in standards that are already supported in billions of devices and all modern web browsers. Apple, Google, and Microsoft have led development of this expanded set of capabilities and are now building support into their respective platforms.
These companies’ platforms already support FIDO Alliance standards to enable passwordless sign-in on billions of industry-leading devices, but previous implementations require users to sign in to each website or app with each device before they can use passwordless functionality. Today’s announcement extends these platform implementations to give users two new capabilities for more seamless and secure passwordless sign-ins:
Allow users to automatically access their FIDO sign-in credentials (referred to by some as a “passkey”) on many of their devices, even new ones, without having to re-enroll every account.
Enable users to use FIDO authentication on their mobile device to sign in to an app or website on a nearby device, regardless of the OS platform or browser they are running.
In addition to facilitating a better user experience, the broad support of this standards-based approach will enable service providers to offer FIDO credentials without needing passwords as an alternative sign-in or account recovery method.
These new capabilities are expected to become available across Apple, Google, and Microsoft platforms over the course of the coming year.
“‘Simpler, stronger authentication’ is not just FIDO Alliance’s tagline — it also has been a guiding principle for our specifications and deployment guidelines. Ubiquity and usability are critical to seeing multi-factor authentication adopted at scale, and we applaud Apple, Google, and Microsoft for helping make this objective a reality by committing to support this user-friendly innovation in their platforms and products,” said Andrew Shikiar, executive director and CMO of the FIDO Alliance. “This new capability stands to usher in a new wave of low-friction FIDO implementations alongside the ongoing and growing utilization of security keys — giving service providers a full range of options for deploying modern, phishing-resistant authentication.”
“The standards developed by the FIDO Alliance and World Wide Web Consortium and being led in practice by these innovative companies is the type of forward-leaning thinking that will ultimately keep the American people safer online. I applaud the commitment of our private sector partners to open standards that add flexibility for the service providers and a better user experience for customers,” said Jen Easterly, Director of the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. “At CISA, we are working to raise the cybersecurity baseline for all Americans. Today is an important milestone in the security journey to encourage built-in security best practices and help us move beyond passwords. Cyber is a team sport, and we’re pleased to continue our collaboration.”
“Just as we design our products to be intuitive and capable, we also design them to be private and secure,” said Kurt Knight, Apple’s Senior Director of Platform Product Marketing. “Working with the industry to establish new, more secure sign-in methods that offer better protection and eliminate the vulnerabilities of passwords is central to our commitment to building products that offer maximum security and a transparent user experience — all with the goal of keeping users’ personal information safe.”
“This milestone is a testament to the collaborative work being done across the industry to increase protection and eliminate outdated password-based authentication,” said Mark Risher, Senior Director of Product Management, Google. “For Google, it represents nearly a decade of work we’ve done alongside FIDO, as part of our continued innovation towards a passwordless future. We look forward to making FIDO-based technology available across Chrome, ChromeOS, Android and other platforms, and encourage app and website developers to adopt it, so people around the world can safely move away from the risk and hassle of passwords.”
“The complete shift to a passwordless world will begin with consumers making it a natural part of their lives. Any viable solution must be safer, easier, and faster than the passwords and legacy multi-factor authentication methods used today,” says Alex Simons, Corporate Vice President, Identity Program Management at Microsoft. “By working together as a community across platforms, we can at last achieve this vision and make significant progress toward eliminating passwords. We see a bright future for FIDO-based credentials in both consumer and enterprise scenarios and will continue to build support across Microsoft apps and services.”
The FIDO (Fast IDentity Online) Alliance, www.fidoalliance.org, was formed in July 2012 to address the lack of interoperability among strong authentication technologies, and remedy the problems users face with creating and remembering multiple usernames and passwords. The FIDO Alliance is changing the nature of authentication with standards for simpler, stronger authentication that define an open, scalable, interoperable set of mechanisms that reduce reliance on passwords. FIDO Authentication is stronger, private, and easier to use when authenticating to online services.
About Apple
Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple TV. Apple’s five software platforms — iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay, and iCloud. Apple’s more than 100,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.
About Google
Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. Through products and platforms like Search, Maps, Gmail, Android, Google Play, Google Cloud, Chrome and YouTube, Google plays a meaningful role in the daily lives of billions of people and has become one of the most widely-known companies in the world. Google is a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc.
About Microsoft
Microsoft enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
Managing lots of files at once can be difficult, especially when dealing with large ones. When struggling with the problem of moving lots of documents and files, an excellent solution is to create a zip file that compresses the files down to a more manageable size.
The good news is that macOS has a built-in tool for creating and unzipping zip files called Archive Utility. The bad news, however, is that it often receives quite a few complaints about things such as its disappointing compression ratio and limited feature set.
In this article, we’re going to tell you about one of the best archive utilities Mac users can use to get the very best results. Keep on reading to learn more!
Mac’s Built-in Archiver Utility
Archive Utility, the built-in archiver utility that comes pre-installed on macOS, can handle zip files, but when it comes to files in other formats or particularly big files, it may not be the best choice. Below are some of its drawbacks.
1. Only one supported format
There are some very common archive formats that Archive Utility simply can’t handle, including the very popular rar format.
2. Disappointing compression ratio
While it does reduce file size, Archive Utility doesn’t have as great of a space-saving impact on disk space as other archiving apps.
3. Limited key features
Archive Utility is missing key features such as archiving, encryption, and volume compression. This is because Apple has not significantly updated Archive Utility in the time since these types of features have become standard.
Unarchiver One Mac is the best free archiving tool for Mac. In seconds, it can archive and unarchive tons of file formats including RAR, Zip, 7z, gzip, bzip2, and lots more.
Unarchiver One can save you huge amounts of disk space by compressing large files into much smaller sizes. And unlike Archive Utility, it also supports encryption and volume compression.
1. How to set up Unarchiver One as the default unarchiving tool
Setting up Unarchiver One as your default unarchiving tool couldn’t be easier. To do so, follow the simple steps below.
(1) Right-click on any compressed file and select ‘Get Info’.
(2) Choose Unarchiver One as your default unarchiving tool.
(3) Click ‘Change All’.
2. How to unzip files on Mac
After setting Unarchiver One as your default unarchiving tool, you can open compressed files by simply double-clicking on them. However, there are also other ways to unzip files with Unarchiver One easily:
(1) Right-click on the compressed file. Unarchiver One will quickly extract files to the current folder by just right-clicking on the compressed file and choosing ‘Open With > Unarchiver One’.
(2) Drag and drop archive files to Unarchiver One’s console. Effortlessly drag and drop archive files to Unarchiver One’s console to easily browse and securely extract their contents with just one click.
3. How to make a zip file on Mac
There are two main ways to make a zip file with Unarchiver One.
(1) Right-click on the files you want to compress.
First, follow the steps above and set up Unarchiver One as your default unarchiving tool.
Then choose all the files you want to compress and right-click on them.
After clicking on ‘Compress’ you’ll find that the archive file is instantly stored in the current folder!
(2) Drag and drop all the files to Unarchiver One’s console.
Choose all the files you want to compress and drag and drop them into Unarchiver One’s console. Click on ‘Compress’.
Choose where you want to save the compressed file and the specific archive format. In this step, you can also encrypt the file if required.
Most people don’t realize it, but when you uninstall apps on Mac, they almost always leave behind what is commonly referred to as “leftovers”. These leftovers are files that were required by the app or program to function when it was installed, but now it’s been removed, they are merely taking up valuable storage space on your Mac. Over time, as you use your Mac and install and uninstall various apps, these leftovers can really begin to pile up — eventually significantly slowing down your Mac.
Fortunately, there are several ways that you can remove these leftovers during the uninstallation process, and in this article, we will show you three of them. They vary slightly in complexity, but if you’re looking for the absolute easiest way possible, you’ll want to skip to number 2!
1. Uninstall programs using Finder
This method is one that most people are completely comfortable using, but with a slight twist.
1. Open Finder and select Applications.
2. Locate the app you want to delete and right-click on it. Select Move to Trash.
3. Open Trash by clicking on its icon on the Dock. Select Empty.
4. Now here’s how to delete the leftovers. In Finder, select Go > Go to Folder.
5. Type “/Library/” in the search box and select Go.
6. Type the removed app’s name into the search box. Right-click on any of its associated files and select Move to Trash. After you’ve removed all the leftover files, empty the Trash folder once again.
2. Automatically remove apps using Cleaner One Pro (the easy way!)
One of the great features of Cleaner One Pro is its ability to completely remove apps, including any leftovers, with the click of a button. It really couldn’t be any easier!
1. Open Cleaner One Pro and select System Optimizer.
2. Select App Manager > Scan.
3. Hit the checkbox to the left of the app you wish to completely remove. Verify that all the checkboxes next to the app’s associated files are selected and click on Remove.
Compared to the other options that are available for completely removing apps (like the two mentioned in this article), there is no more straightforward method than using Cleaner One Pro . To read more about Cleaner One Pro and all its other excellent features, click here.
3. Delete apps using Terminal
For most people, this method will be overly technical and come with too much risk, but it does work.
1. Open Terminal and type mdfind -name “application name” and press Enter. For example, if you wanted to remove Google Chrome, you would type mdfind -name “google chrome”.
2. This will return all files associated with the name of the app, but it doesn’t mean you should delete them all. If you are using this method of uninstallation, you should have a pretty good idea of what you’re looking for, but in general, you should be searching for .app files, .plist files, settings and preferences, caches, and other accessory files.
3. Once you have located the files you wish to remove, you can do so using the rm command by typing “sudo rm -rif ~” + the directory and file name. For example, “sudo rm -rif ~/Library/Managed Installs/icons/GoogleChrome.png”. Please note, the rn command is irreversible, so please exercise caution.
Consistency is key
Whichever method you opt to use, you’ll be doing your Mac a big favor in the long run. By removing all the associated files every time you remove an app, your Mac isn’t going to eventually get bogged down by them. Trust us, after your Mac is still running super quick in years to come, you’ll be glad you took our advice!
Your browsing history is a vital piece of information that can define your personality, your drives, and your likes and dislikes. That’s why third parties love to collect this information for targeted advertising and, sometimes, malicious activities.
To prevent others from collecting your browsing history, make it a habit to delete it now and then. Here’s some simple steps on how to delete browsing history on your Safari browser.
For Mac
1. Open your Safari App and click History on the top menu options. 2. Click Clear History. A pop-up menu will appear and you can choose how far back you want to clear your browsing history.
You can also clear specific safari browsing history:
In Safari, press Command-Yor select History > Show All History.
From the long list, click once on a history item to select it.
Right-click to bring up a menu, then choose Delete.
Manually clearing search and browsing history from your safari can be tedious. However, there is also an automatic solution you can try: Antivirus One , from Trend Micro.
The privacy cleaner feature in Antivirus One can help you clean sensitive browsing information to protect your privacy. Here, you can select Safari and then click the “Clean” button to remove all browsing info in a few seconds.
For iPhone
1. Go to Settings and click Safari.
2. Tap “Clear History and Website Data”.
This will remove history, cookies, and browsing data from Safari.
If this article has been of use and/or interest to you, please do SHARE with friends and family — and remember to give Antivirus One a go.Get Antivirus One
Users have been complaining that the search engine, Bing, loads as the default instead of Google. Annoying, but don’t fret! We’ve put together a simple guide on how to get rid of Bing and restore your preferred search engine.
On Google Chrome
1. Open Google Chrome and click the 3-dots menu. 2. Select More Tools, then choose Extensions.
3. Remove any Bing Extensions you see. 4. Go back to the Menu, then select Settings.
5. Look for Search Engine and click it.
6. On the right side, choose your preferred Search Engine (Google, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo or Ecosia). 7. Restart Google Chrome. If it still uses Bing as your search engine, we suggest resetting or reinstalling Chrome.
On Mozilla Firefox
1. Open Mozilla Firefox and click the hamburger menu (3 horizontal lines). 2. Select Add-ons and themes.
3. Choose Extensions on the left side, then remove any Bing extensions you see.
4. Go back to the Menu, then select Settings. 5. On the left side, click Search and look for the Default Search Engine section on the right side.
6. Choose your preferred Search Engine (Google, Amazon.com, DuckDuckGo or Wikipedia). 7. RestartFirefox. If it still uses Bing as your search engine, we suggest resetting or reinstalling Firefox.
On Microsoft Edge
1. Open Microsoft Edge. 2. Click the 3-dots menu on the upper right corner, then select Settings.
3. Select View Advance Settings and click the Changesearchengine button.
4. Choose your preferred Search Engine then click the Set as default button.
We hope this short guide has helped you get things back to normal! If you’ve found it a useful article, please do SHARE with friends and family.
In the modern world, searching for information is simple. There’s no need to go from one library to another, flipping through numerous pages, or checking the table of contents before you get to what you’re looking for. Simply typing words on the internet will give you limitless results — all you need to do is narrow them down.
What is a Search Engine?
If you need to find something, like a website or page that contains your needed information, you’ll need to go and visit a search engine page to query keywords.
A search engine is a program or application that checks, hunts, and searches the web for sites based on keywords. It uses these keywords and returns pages that are connected to what you have typed.
Search engines use web crawlers or web spiders to catalog the World Wide Web. These crawling bots are used for indexing contents. They will scan, check, assess and inspect site pages and their information across the web.
Notable Search Engines and Their Brief Histories
Archie — During the 1990s, the very first search engine arrived, named Archie. Its purpose was to search FTP sites to create indexes of files that are downloadable.
Veronica and Jughead — Created around 1992/93, they both searched file names and titles in Gopher index systems.
Infoseek — In 1994, Webmasters would submit and provide a page in real-time with this program.
Yahoo Search — Also created in 1994, it created a collection of favorable web pages with description of each website.
Looksmart, Excite and AltaVista — These search engines were created in 1995 and tried to compete with Yahoo.
Backrub — Created around 1996, Google’s initial project, Backrub, was a search engine that utilized backlinks for searches. It ranked pages depending on citations from other sites.
Ask Jeeves — Started in 1996, this search engine used human editors that tried to match search queries.
Google — Officially launched in 1998.
MSN Search — Relied on three different search engines: Looksmart, Overture and Inktomi.
Snap — A somewhat complex search engine, released in 2005, that shows search volumes, revenues and advertisers.
Bing — Rebranded name for MSN/Live Search.
Schema.Org — In 2011, Microsoft, Google and Yahoo collaborated to create Schema.org to create structured internet data.
Top 10 Most Used Search Engines
The following list contains the top ten from across the world:
1. Google:“Just google it” is a ubiquitous expression nowadays. Google is the most popular across all search engines — even more than all others combined. According to statistics, around 78% of desktops and laptops uses Google.
2. Yahoo: In the past, Yahoo had competed with Google. But as the years went on, Yahoo users had declined significantly. Now it is mostly used as a backup search engine in case the dominant one is down.
3. Bing: Microsoft Bing (or just Bing) is owned by Microsoft. Its origin came from MSN Search and Windows Live Search. This search engine is proud of its ‘decision’ engine which provides suggestions on the sides.
4. AOL Search: Known before as American Online Search. This search engine is used mostly by older people accustomed to AOL.
5. Duck Duck Go: Some say that Duck Duck Go is for and by Hipsters. But the main reason users choose this search engine is that it does not track search history and avoids spammy websites.
6. Baidu: This search engine is the 3rd largest out there. Baidu dominates the Chinese market and is the first choice in China. This engine has a sophisticated online censorship system since there’s many restrictions in its operating region.
7. Yandex: If Baidu has China as its market, then Yandex has the Russian market.
8. Ask: Its origin is the older “Ask Jeeves”. Since it could not compete with Google, it’s now powered by Google — if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!
9. Naver: South Korea is another huge tech and communications market with its own search engine, Naver.
10.Seznam: The search engine popular in the Czech Republic and C. Europe.
And some honorable mentions:
Ecosia — Donates surplus income to organizations that plant trees.
Dogpile — Shows results from the top 3 search engines (Google, Bing and Baidu).
Gigablast — An open-source search engine.
Qwant — A popular, EU-based search engine.
Tips For Using Search Engines
Search engines are brilliant tools to immediately get the information we want. However, since search engines generally do not have much security capability, you should invest in a security product to provide and efficient browsing.
1. Install the Maximum Security tool bar to prevent you from visiting malicious websites.
You can install the Trend Micro Maximum Security toolbar service, which warns you of security risks relevant to the websites you visit.
When you search online, it monitors and rates websites in search engines such as Google, Bing, Baidu, and Yahoo. The Trend Micro Toolbar provides Page Ratings that show if the page is safe, suspicious, dangerous, trusted or untested.
A Mac User? No problem. Trend Micro Antivirus for Mac has the same toolbar feature to protect your online activity.
2. Install AdBlock One to stop annoying ads.
In addition, be sure to also use AdBlock One for Safari. This app stops annoying online ads from bothering you and helps load web pages faster — a significant boost in securing and improving your digital life.
Because it can contain so many different kinds of files, the Other category is a difficult source of clutter to deal with, and frequently causes frustration to Mac users. In this article, we’ll show you the steps to take to clean it up — and get more from your Mac!
What Is Other on Your Mac’s Storage?
The Other category in Mac storage contains files that don’t easily fit into the typical categories of Document, Photo, App, Video, Audio, etc. Other storage on Mac can hold a wide range of files, including system files, temp. files, and cached files. But not all the files in the Other category on Mac are as easy to justify as cached files or archives. “Bloatware” (such as junk files) refers to programs that aren’t useful but take up a lot of space, decreasing performance.
The file types considered Other in Mac storage mayinclude:
MacOS system files and folders.
Temporary files.
Common document and file types (for instance, PDF, DOC, PSD).
Archives and disk images (such as ZIP, ISO, DMG).
App plugins, add-ons, and extensions.
Files from your library (such as Application support, iCloud files, and screensavers).
Cached files (user cache, browser cache, and system cache).
Files not recognized by a Spotlight search, such as a virtual machine hard drive.
How to Check Other Storage on Your Mac
1. Click the Appleicon in the top-left corner and select About This Mac.
2. Choose the Storage tab. You’ll see a chart showing the types of files that are taking up storage on your Mac. If you’re reaching your limit, it’s time to clear out that Other storage!
How to Find Other Storage Files on Your Mac
1. Open Finder and click Go in the menu bar.
2. Select GotoFolder.
3. Enter ~/Library and press enter (or click Go).
4. The library will appear, which contains all files and folders categorized as Other. What follows is quite a risky and time-consuming process. Besure to do your research and know your file names — as the wrong deletion can be catastrophic.
The One-Stop Solution: Trend Micro’s Cleaner One Pro
Cleaner One Pro is an easy-to-use, all-in-one disk cleaning and utility optimization app that will help you boost your Mac’s performance. It will take care of the Other problem automatically.
Cleaner One Pro includes several housecleaning tools, including:
Memory Optimizer
Junk Cleaner
File Scanner
Duplicate Files Finder
App Manager
File Shredder
Memory Disk map
These functions are all rolled into one easy-to-use interface for maximum efficiency and simplicity. Click the link above or the button at the bottom of this page to get more from your Mac.
How to Delete Other Storage on Your Mac
After successfully opening the window above, you now want to go through these three primary folders:
When you’re done going through these folders and deleting as necessary, empty the Trash and restart your Mac. But be careful what you delete — you do not want to jeopardize your device by deleting the wrong file!
Furthermore, while deleting files, remember that the Other label DOES NOT signify junk files. Some files in this category exist for a reason: for example, some cache files are needed in order to make your system work faster, while ZIP archive files can contain important system documents and data. Good luck!
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