As you probably heard, Microsoft's October update of Windows 10 was a bit of a disaster.  Sure, it updated your OS, but unfortunately for many users, it also deleted a variety of files. This prompted outrage from the company's massive user base.

Things would have been bad enough if the calamitous October update had been an isolated mis-step.

Given how unpopular ads are, you wouldn't think that Microsoft would be experimenting with ways of displaying more of them. Unfortunately, that's the direction the company is headed.

Currently, members of the Windows Insiders test group can see ad banners in both the Mail and Calendar apps.

Microsoft hasn't been terribly impressive lately when it comes to Windows 10 updates.  In fact, it's fair to say that they've been a complete mess.  Just recently, they've issued updates that have deleted user files and caused crashes after creating incompatibilities with keyboard drivers.

Microsoft is having problems, and those problems are spilling out onto the company's massive user base.  In a highly unusual move, the company pulled its latest Windows 10 update after receiving numerous complaints from users about missing files.

Unfortunately, this isn't the first time the company has had problems with updates to their OS.  Back in April, the company delayed a planned update because at the last minute, Blue Screen of Death issues were discovered.

Windows 10 is far and away the fastest growing version of the OS in the company's history.  It recently hit an installation base of a staggering 700 million devices after about three years on the market.

Note that these installation figures include installs not just on PCs, but also on Surface Hubs, Xbox, HoloLenses and smartphones.

Microsoft has been making two major Windows 10 releases every year, giving businesses 18 months before they need to move to the next update. This plan and schedule is part of the company's "Windows as a service" paradigm, designed to ensure that Windows 10 gets new features, as opposed to the company's former practice of a new Windows release every three years.

Researchers at McAfee have demonstrated a method that hackers could use to perform an end-run around Cortana and access data, run malicious code, or even change a locked computer's password.  In this case, however, the emphasis is on the word "could.

Microsoft has made numerous ventures into the smartphone ecosystem, but so far, they've only been met with limited success.  This time, they're trying something a little different.

Instead of making their own Windows-based phones, they've created a "Your Phone" app that syncs your phone with your PC.  The app is still in testing and is slated to be released sometime in October.

If you've used Windows 10 for any length of time, you've probably had this happen to you.  You're right in the middle of working on something important, and all of a sudden, your OS decides it would be a great time to install some updates!

In response to user complaints, Microsoft introduced a "snooze" feature that allowed users to delay the installation of upgrades.

Do you use Cortana?  It's a handy virtual assistant (like Siri) built into Windows 10.  Unfortunately, as useful as she is, there's a problem. Even if you don't use Cortana yourself, take heed:  Microsoft has recently issued a security update based on findings by McAfee researchers.