Long wait for initial load of this site
There are numerous topics about slowness of this site going back for years (before recent update, which was already so long ago). But what i am experiencing for the past few months is something different. Every time i come to this site first time and say click a link in RSS feed for one of the blog articles i have to wait up to a minute for it to start loading anything (it shows an empty page and loading animation in the browser). After that it would be loading pages quick (well, normal speed for this site, which is still sluggish). But if i do not browse here for 30 min or longer then again first load will be annoyingly long. It is like there is some load balancer/throttling for each new visitor and you have to stand in line.
Massive Battery Drain Overnight With Windows Shut Down
I've had this issue a few times, but the latest one was the impetus to post here. About 95% of the time, I run the laptop on battery power only. If I'm using Davince Resolve, I'll run from the mains, but that only accounts for about 0.5% of the time. I fully charge it when it drops below the 20% mark, so that would account for the other 4.5%, as I'll be using it at the time, and want to finish what I'm doing. Yesterday morning, I switched on the laptop, and was immediately greeted with the message to charge the battery. The battery level was showing 0%. The previous day, I had powered down the laptop at 14:52 and it was showing at 26%. This is what Windows shows. Another curious one is the graph is for the 'Last 24 hours', yet the 'Screen on' value is over 21 hours! This is despite me shutting the laptop down at around 3:00pm. I also ran the battery report, and this the excerpt from that for the same day. As you can see, when the laptop is initially switched on, the battery level was 22% (so a 4% loss overnight), and by the time it displayed the message, and I switched on the power supply (at arms length from me), the battery level was showing '-'. I used HWinFO and it shows the battery having 0% wear level and a cycle count of 60, although I don't understand that one. I might switch the laptop on 3-4 times a day at most, and always power it down, so if the cycle count was every time the laptop was powered down, I could have reached that in less than a month, and yet I've had the laptop for over 2.5 years. Fast Startup is also disabled. So is Windows 'shut down' not shutting down completely? If not, is there a way to make it shut down fully.
Microsoft goofed: Group Policy Office ADMX/ADML Problem
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=49030 That's the link MS gives to download the Office group Policy files. Everything works until you open GP and all the policies are in German. Yes, I selected ENGLISH (it was the only option). No, I can't speak German - wish I could. I can't find these files anywhere else. PLEASE HELP. Azure Server 2022 Datacenter - need latest Microsoft Office 365 ADMX/ADML files (which may still be the Office 2016 ones, nice job keeping up with the times, Microsoft).
Excel Formula Help!!
Hi, I'm looking to write a formula that can help my class with some basic budgeting skills. They basic layout is each column is it's own category with an allotted amount for each: ex column A is for groceries with a total of $90 to be spent in that pay period. Each column has a sum cell (B31) so students can see how much they have spent and right beneath it in the same column, there is a cell that lets them know how much of the allotted amount for that category they have left. I was wondering if there was a way to modify it so that in the cell (ex: B 32) that currently displays the remaining balance for that category if gone over budget (as in the number is now in the negatives) could be stopped at zero and the negative balance could be subtracted equally from other categories? To visualize what I've done so far: The formulas for row 13 are =sum(ColumnLetter2:CL12) Row 14 is where it differs by each cell; A: =minus(90,A13) B: =minus(100,B13) C:=minus(120,C13) D:=minus(50,D13) E:=minus(40,E13) F:=minus(60,F13) G:=minus(90,G13) H:=minus(75,H13) I:=minus(50,I13) The main question comes once students start filling in the spreadsheet. With the hypothetical fill of : How can I create a formula in row 14 that continues to show remaining balance, but only when a column reaches negative (like the beauty) takes the negative value (15 dollars) and equally subtracts (1.875) it from the remaining columns that can have that amount subtracted without going negative themselves? I wouldn't want any of the overspent value of beauty to be taken from Misc. as there is only one dollar left and that is less than the evenly split amount (1.875). Is there a way to write such a formula into the formula for row 14 or would it need to occur in a different row? I'd love for my students to be able to see how to manage the occasional sometimes necessary overspending in one category to see how to adjust spending in others (hopefully it wouldn't be for beauty lol). I've thought about using If formulas, but am struggling on how to fit in all the criteria. I would appreciate any help in creating a formula!! Thank you so much!!!Power Platform Community Conference: MVPs, Community, Insights & Inspiration
At the Power Platform Community Conference (PPCC), Microsoft senior leaders, product engineers, and Microsoft MVPs from around the world came together to teach, demo, and answer hundreds of real‑world questions - showcasing how vibrant and hands‑on this community truly is. More than 35 MVPs took the stage across keynotes, breakouts, and the Community Theater - demonstrating the vibrancy, generosity, and hands-on spirit of this community. Why PPCC matters to our community Events like PPCC are where learning becomes momentum. MVPs don’t just present slides - they share production‑tested practices, spark new connections, and lift others up. This year’s conversations ranged from governance on a budget to app performance tuning and the accelerating role of AI‑powered copilots. The result? Attendees left with practical checklists, patterns to adopt on Monday, and a bigger network to call on when they’re stuck. MVP voices from the week MVP Lindsay Shelton presenting a session: From Zero to Governance: One Organization's Journey to Implementing Power Platform Governance At PPCC25, MVP Lindsay Shelton shared what draws her to this conference year after year—and how it continues to shape her work and community impact. “Some of it comes from this being the first big conference I ever attended, back in Orlando the first year, and the amazing time I had and the way it just expanded my horizons about what was possible so vastly. That was actually the message of one of the sessions I delivered this year - a case study about what happened when I came back from the first PP Conf and realized that I wanted to do all of the Power Platform things, but realized that by default, there was no governance in place, so how did I implement basic governance on a budget all by myself.” “Another reason is that I love sharing knowledge forward, and every person who takes the time to say thank you after a workshop or session or ask a question makes all the hard work worth it. Lastly, it's such an amazing group who put on the conference, and they are always a pleasure to work with, so it's my pleasure to submit to speak each year, hope for the best, and get to see so many friends, make new friends, and make new connections!” MVP Keith Atherton presenting his session Full Power! Power App Optimisation The future of Power Platform was a hot topic at PPCC25, and the main keynote didn’t disappoint. MVP Keith Atherton reflected on a pivotal moment when Charles Lamanna, President of Business & Industry Copilot at Microsoft, challenged the audience with a bold statement about the evolution of low-code. Keith shares how this announcement—and Microsoft’s investment in generative AI—signals a new era for makers and developers alike: “During the main keynote, Charles Lamanna, President, Business & Industry Copilot at Microsoft made a bold statement that "low-code (as we know it) is dead." While some may have found this shocking - especially when people are expecting a low-code themed conference - it showed how Microsoft is following current trends and investing in generative AI. The Power Platform utilises generative AI to build solutions in a variety of ways as well as provide the hugely popular Copilot Studio product which has the ability to create custom agents. Using features such as Plan Designer, Power Apps Generative Pages and Copilot Studio can accelerate development of solutions like never before, so the future looks bright!” When it comes to optimizing Power Apps, few are as passionate as Keith. We asked Keith what inspired him to return to PPCC as a speaker and what he hoped attendees would take away from his sessions. Here’s how he described his experience and the message behind Full Power! Power App Optimisation, “I was proud to return to PPCC25 as a speaker, this time with two main sessions as well as two sessions at the Community Theater! My main solo session, Full Power! Power App Optimisation, was about how user experience (UX) can make or break adoption of a solution, and a large part of that experience can be the performance of our apps. In my session, I demonstrated various ways to optimise Power Apps to get optimal performance to improve that experience. Hopefully, everyone left my session with knowledge on how to make our apps perform as fast as possible, happier customers, and less support tickets!” Nick Doelman presenting “Creating an App? Start with the Plan Designer, Build with Copilot!” MVP Nick Doelman shared what resonated with him about Olympic Gold Medalist Michael Phelps inspiring keynote on success, failure and mental health. “Microsoft Vice President Sangya Singh’s interview with Michael Phelps really resonated—his discipline, visualization, and adaptability translate directly into how we build. And yes, Plan Designer’s evolution is exciting. Big picture: AI is removing walls between makers and pro devs. Fusion teams can now work tighter and ship faster.” MVP Diego Domingos da Silva and MVP Cat Schneider share about their journey to the MVP Award. Connections were the heartbeat of PPCC - here’s how MVP Cat Schneider experienced it, “One of my favorite things about this conference is the sense of coming home and seeing family. Many of the people that I see at PPCC every year are those that are near and dear to my heart. I might not get but this one week every year to see some of my most favorite people on this planet, and my heart winds up overflowing in love for this community. And every year I leave with more friendships than I started with, whether it's new connections with Microsoft Product Teams, new community friends that I've adopted and introduced around to people they never dreamed of meeting, or finally connecting with other MVPs and community superstars that I've been aware of but just never had an opportunity to meet in person before. This conference is an absolute blessing and joy to attend, and I highly recommend it for anyone working in the Power Platform!” Curious what motivates MVPs to take the stage and share their expertise? Cat shared what inspired her to speak at PPCC, and what key messages she hoped to deliver to the community. Here’s what she said, “Community, first and foremost, and the power that comes from the ease of getting started with the Power Platform, are both the inspiration and key messages from my sessions. I had two community-based sessions and one technical session, but all of them were driven by fully embracing the community and those around you. One session was about being neurodiverse in this space, and letting AI help to unburden the mental workload that comes from having a neurodiverse brain. We talked about the AI tools and resources that have helped us and how they can be used by others. Another session was purely about finding your voice in this community and pushing boundaries to make space for yourself and others. That the journey is different for everyone; it's all about taking a few scary but small steps forward and embracing the uncomfortableness of it all. And the last session was an audience-led session on how easy it is to get started using the Plan Designer tool, that happened to focus on my wardrobe/costume choices for this conference. MVP Julie Yack and I took suggestions from the audience on what to prompt Plan Designer with, and continued to show the ease of use for building upon the plan with help from the associated agents. By the time we finished, we had a plan with users, data tables, apps, flows, and reports ready to start building out, all surrounding my costume closet.” MVP Dian Taylor and MVP David Warner running the Copilot Studio workshop: Recipes for Success: How to Prepare, Cook, and Serve Custom Agents For MVP Dian Taylor, one keynote crystallized the week’s energy - and the shift it signaled for makers. Here’s how Dian describes its impact, “For me personally, the most impactful session at the 2025 Power Platform Conference in Las Vegas was the keynote by Charles Lamanna. It seemed to hit differently this year. His message was clear: intelligence is now abundant, and low code as we know it is gone! I feel like we are stepping into a new era where curiosity fuels creativity, and our ideas have no limits. The lines between business apps are blurring, and the way people get work done is evolving fast. As makers, we’re no longer just building apps, we’re creating full systems that think, connect, and adapt. The speed of innovation right now is unreal, and this keynote perfectly captured that energy. It wasn’t just inspiring, I also believe it was a wake-up call to start thinking differently!” Looking ahead, AI and Copilot are reshaping how we build on the Power Platform - here’s how Dian sees it, “AI and Copilot is already reshaping how we build on the Power Platform today. The focus when building solutions is shifting from “How do I build this?” to “What do I want this to do?” This is a very different way of doing things as ideas can now flow straight from natural language into working solutions. I see Copilot becoming the maker’s right hand (wo)man, handling the repetitive stuff while we focus on logic, design, and experience. I think it's important to understand that this is not about replacing makers; it’s about amplifying them. I believe in the near future we'll start to see fewer boundaries between apps, data, and automation; everything will feel more connected, more intelligent, and more adaptive. Copilot and AI will help us to build systems that learn and evolve, not just apps that execute. Power Platform will become less about tools and more about co-creation with AI.” MVP Christine Flora and a giant Surface Pro, Copilot+ PC MVP Christine Flora connected with other professionals, community members and MVPs in the Community Lounge. She shared, “Working in the community lounge in the Ask-a-Pro area is always such a joy and so inspiring. I love hearing about all the different and diverse ways people and companies are using these tools to solve real world problems. It always energizes me. And if I can help them even a little bit to push that to the next level or get past a road blocker, even better.” Christine shared her thoughts on how she thinks AI and Copilot will influence Power Platform development going forward, “Over the last three years, I’ve really seen the genesis of how AI can not only help non-traditional business makers get into creating very robust solutions for their departments and organizations but how those tools have really evolved from the creating a simple app from literally a drawing on a napkin to full blown enterprise-ready apps.” Christine had great advice for those who were on the fence about attending the Power Platform Community Conference next year. “Try your best to get there next year! Also I would say try to get involved in your local Power Platform user group.” Keep the Momentum Going: Join the Power Platform Community and Grow Your Network If you couldn’t make it to this year’s Power Platform Community Conference, here’s the one thing you should know: the energy, learning, and connections don’t stop when the conference ends. MVP Christine Flora’s advice rings true - try your best to get there next year, but don’t wait to get involved! The Power Platform Community is always open, welcoming new members and helping everyone grow. By joining your local Power Platform user group, you’ll find answers to real-world challenges, discover practical tips you can use right away, and connect with a network of makers, MVPs, and passionate professionals who genuinely want to help each other succeed. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to push boundaries, there’s a place for you - and you’ll be amazed at how quickly your circle expands. So take that first step: visit the Power Platform Community, jump into the forums, check out upcoming events, and introduce yourself. You never know who you’ll meet or what inspiration you’ll find. The community is waiting to welcome you.
Windows 11 Create Recovery Drive
I recently upgraded to Win11 24H2 and when I went to create a recovery drive I ran into problems. After telling Windows that I would like to Create a Recovery Drive including system files Windows went off in search of media and came back and told me i needed a 32GB thumb drive. Tried it without system files and no luck either. No matter what kind of thumb drive 32GB, 64GB, USB 2.0, USB 3.0, Formatted NTFS, FAT32, exFAT. Whether I formatted the drive using the file explorer utility, or using DISKPART and cleaning the drive and restoring the partition and reformatting. Nothing worked. sfc /scannow and DISM did't show any problems either. I know I can and i did, use a third party application to create a recovery disk, I would like to use the built in Microsoft tool. Any suggestions??Save the date: Windows Office Hours - November 20, 2025
Save the date for our next monthly Windows Office Hours, on November 20 from 8:00-9:00a PT! We will have a broad group of product experts, servicing experts, and engineers representing Windows, Microsoft Intune, Configuration Manager, Windows 365, Windows Autopilot, security, public sector, FastTrack, and more. They will be standing by -- in chat -- to provide guidance, discuss strategies and tactics, and, of course, answer any specific questions you may have. For more details about how Windows Office Hours works, go to our Windows IT Pro Blog. If you can't make it at 8:00 a.m. Pacific Time, post your questions on the Windows Office Hours: November 20th event page, up to 48 hours in advance.
No taskbar after update to windows server 2025
On a machine with windows server 2025 24h2 I recently installed update kb5066835 and after rebooting I was left with no taskbar. I tried restarting explorer.exe 1000 times to no avail as well as sfc and DISM recovery and still the same issue. Along with plenty more fixes online. Any help would be much appreciated
