So which statement would you prefer to hear? “The IRS is conducting an audit of your 2015 tax return” Or “Windows Update has begun installing 187 new files. It is 2% complete. Please do not turn off your machine even though you are ready to go home now.”
Yes friends, it’s time again for a new version of the mighty Windows operating system. Microsoft, being the care free monopolistic mega power that they are, have conveniently bypassed the logical next version, number 9, and gone straight to a perfect “10.” It’s good to own your market, it allows you to make high level decisions like developing your own numeric system and bypass ‘lesser’ numbers. According to Barry on the internet, 9 is an unlucky number in Japan.
In all seriousness, Windows 10 is coming out on July 29th and I for one am waiting with bated breath as I always do, expecting a miracle change to happen when usually it just means a lot of waiting for installs and reboots, then the features I use most move or disappear. Progress in Microsoft terms.
So what’s the big deal about Windows 10? Honestly, I have no idea, I just know my PC gave me a warning and flashed a message that I could get it for free. I have a hard time resisting anything free, even a windows update. And much like eating that one extra slice of ice cream cake, the aftermath will be painful and I will have deep regrets after I complete the activity.
Here’s what my computer told me. Be sure to note the asterisk – *yes, free. Not a trial. $119 – sounds like a bargain to me!
[su_guests]Content for guests[/su_guests]
Probably most amusing to me is the link at the top says to read more at Microsoft.com. Upon clicking that link I am brought to a page that reads
“We are sorry, the page you requested cannot be found. The URL may be misspelled or the page you’re looking for is no longer available.”
A sign of things to come? A harbinger? Did they outsource their Windows 10 QA team to Penguins this time around?
Sorry, I will stop beating up Microsoft (for now) and get to the heart of the matter – why update, what’s in it for me? The Voice in my head says “It’s free/ Save $119, they will force you to update later anyhow so just do it.” Note: The free version is for Windows 7/8 users and after a year after the launch the freeness will disappear so you have plenty of time for them to work the bugs out before you have to pony up $119.
So first off, according to this PCWorld.com article, most people won’t actually be getting access to the update on July 29th, it will be rolled out over time and only early adopters will be getting the actual update on that day. Sigh. So when exactly do I add my calendar entry in Outlook to plan to not have a working PC? (I know, said I would stop)
All joking aside, the first thing that might happen after you update is that your battery might die if you are one of the 97.8% of people that run Intel chips. It’s true. Ok, I exaggerated a bit on the facts, but it is still a known bug. Hopefully they will get it worked out before July 29th becomes the day known as Windows10Ageddon.
Expect such new features as enhanced speed (like with every OS release there is always an effect on speed), a new OS Browser called “Edge” (like Safari), Music and Photos apps (like iPhoto/iTunes), Cortana (a Siri for Windows) and OneDrive (Microsoft’s iCloud) and have added new Apps to the new Microsoft App Store. So in essence, they rebuilt the Apple Concept on Windows. Or tried to. Again. They do say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right?
I really like this quote from Dan Grabham on techradar.com. It sums up Microsoft’s struggle refining the OS experience to date without being overly snarky, demonstrating a deeper understanding of the company’s decisions than I can convey:
“Even though Windows 8.1 did improve things, there’s no escaping that with Windows 8, Microsoft was hugely complacent, buoyed by the success of Windows 7. It drastically misunderstood its users with a fundamentally changed user interface which didn’t make any logical sense and was hard to learn. It failed us. It failed itself.
Thankfully 2015 Microsoft is pretty different to 2012 Microsoft. The key management of the corporation has changed. It has woken up to the fact that people can choose other operating systems. It’s keen on making stuff for OS X, Linux, iOS and Android. As you’ll hear, it’s allowing apps from other platforms to be easily ported to Windows, too.
Microsoft believes the future of Windows is as a platform for all. Like Android, the strength of Windows is in the thousands of companies that develop for it (see the section about Universal apps for more on the relationship with developers) and use it in their products.”
So that’s great news, Microsoft has seen the light – that it is better to play nice with the millions of developers out there than to dictate the rules. This, actually, is *Not* like the Apple model, quite the opposite in fact. This opens the doors to integration with other products that very much could be the future of development, tough to say as we are at a crossroads in many ways. The Apple lockdown model certainly works for consumers, but has proven challenging for enterprise level products.
And finally, just to keep things simple, it appears that Microsoft will release no less than 7 or so versions of Windows 10, a Mobile version as well, so we can all experience version paralysis when we finally get our chance to update.
I, for one, can’t wait.
This blog was written by Market Street Talent’s Social Engagement Manager Rich Collins and is solely the opinion of Mr. Collins if any of our followers works with, or enjoys working with Microsoft’s products. We invite you to visit us at Market Street Talent online, or connect with us through our social channels on Facebook, Google+, Twitter and Linkedin to learn more.