Thanks to Swordmaker for the ping!!
Posted on 09/19/2015 6:05:47 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
The last four years have been quite troublesome for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). The company has been rapidly losing market share, especially since the release of Windows 8. Users were not happy with the live tile ecosystem offered and felt that the company did not provide a a user-friendly interface, which had been the main reason for Microsoft’s success in the past. Many users shifted to available alternatives i.e. Linux, iOS and Android.
Windows 7 was a huge success and users soon got accustomed to using it. Later, Windows 8 was released with one foot each each in mobile and computing - which turned out to be a huge failure for the company.
Microsoft recently released Windows 10 – the operating system (OS) is a make-or-break for the company. Windows 10 was released as an open source platform initially, similar to Android. The change meant the company did not just release 32 and 64-bit versions, but also a completely different ARM architecture, which allows the OS to run on smaller devices like smartphones and tablets. The ARM platform in Windows 10 is entirely different from the previous, Windows RT, used on tablets and smartphones. Windows heavily relies on third party apps which work directly with the OS, and because of this, for the first time Microsoft has allowed apps from other platforms to be easily ported into Windows 10. Going forward, it could pose a threat to Microsoft, as it can no longer compete with the likes of iOS and Android, and has thus made the integration of apps much easier.
Upgrading to Windows 10 has also been made much easier. Previously, users had to cough up a sizeable sum to obtain Microsoft’s latest software, but users can now upgrade from Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 directly, provided their copies are genuine. However, users who do not have a licensed copy have to pay an upgrade fee of $119.99. The upgrades will be available on Amazon, and will soon be sent out on removable flash drives.
The new OS will be available in seven different versions. These are IoT (Internet of Things) for devices like Raspberry Pi, Intel Galileo or Imagination's Creator Ci20, Mobile, Home, Enterprise and Professional. There's also a new Mobile Enterprise version called Education for academic establishments. Windows 10 mobile is mainly targeted toward Lumia devices, and this is Microsoft’s last gasp attempt to catch up with Android and iOS.
The most notable change in Windows 10 is the completely redesigned user interface. After millions of complaints from annoyed users from all over the world, the company has brought back its start menu, although the tile feature from Windows 8 is still present, users now have an option to remove the tiles completely. The OS comes with a new notification pane called the Action Center, which can be accessed from the taskbar and houses quick settings, such as Toggle for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Location services.
Possibly one of the best features Microsoft has added to the new OS is Cortana, which serves as your personal virtual assistant. it is quite different from Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) Siri though. Cortana can also be controlled by voice and not only does it search the Internet but also finds files and programs on the computer. The feature was added after repeated user complaints as the search application on previous Windows failed to find files on the hard drive. Cortana adapts to the user, and the more it is used, the smarter it becomes. On top of that, Microsoft has completely redesigned its browser and has changed its name. Internet Explorer was the norm for Windows but it has now been replaced with Microsoft Edge. The new browser comes with many new features i.e. allowing users to highlight text in pages.
The Tablet Mode is another new feature on Windows 10, which allows tablets to be integrated with personal computers. It is a very smart feature and the mode is activated as soon as the user detaches the keyboard, allowing touch features on the PC. The Aero Snap feature allows users to open four applications in each corner of the desktop, an upgrade to the snap feature in previous versions which only allowed two applications. The OS has also beefed up security features and now comes standard with biometric fingerprint support and facial recognition, called Hello. The command prompt has also improved and users can, for the first time, use shortcuts from command prompt to copy and paste text.
After using Windows for a full month, it is evident that Microsoft has incorporated user feedback and improved its latest OS in terms of speed and by making the new interface more user-friendly. Windows 10 seems to be the ticket for Microsoft to get back on top in the computing world.
What?
Thanks for posting,. Shame on MS for making p2p distribution the default.
Other than the privacy issues, W10 has been very good, fast and solid.
Of course, MS still is nowhere near as aggressive as Apple, Google and Amazon in gathering personal data. Those companies own their users, lock stock and barrel.
I find it incredible the number of people who will trade privacy for convenience.
Win7 users should turn off Customer Experience Improvement Program, if they don’t want MS intrustion.
Start»Search»CEIP
“I had one that didn’t make the transition, but when I re-loaded it, it worked.”
I tried that and still get a message that says “Incompatible program”
Microsoft is still on the give list to the Clinton Foundation for Global Corruption and Money Laundrying.
Thanks to Swordmaker for the ping!!
Did you read Asimov's "Foundation Trilogy"? The Galactic Empire continued, indeed thrived, even while the periphery crumbled and broke away. The megalith called Microsoft will continue, even while Apple and Linux and others eat away at its empire.
Microsoft is not dying, not by a long shot. Windows, or whatever Windows becomes in the next few years, is so much a part of how companies do business that it would take the collapse of American business for it to get loose.
I have doubts that anything can take Microsoft's place in the enterprise anytime in the next two decades, maybe more. And what does take its place will likely be an outgrowth of Microsoft, not something else. Certainly not Apple or Linux, and nothing else is on the landscape.
Now if you were to ask me whether I like that or not, well that's a different question. I'm just commenting on the degree to which Microsoft rules American business, not whether I personally like that fact.
Yup. That's what folks said about Apple in, what, 1998 1999?
Windows 10 lasted for about a day in our house. One of the programs we use every day doesn’t work on windows 10 unless you get the new “app” version, which is subscription based instead of straight purchase or free.
Nope not gonna happen
I’m very happy with Win10.
In light of some things Microsoft has been doing since Balmer it may get to be liked a lot more.
Part of that is the fact that there are many other companies with many other product lines and OSes that are good.
Another part is that they need to acknowledge that their customers have noticed they're not the only game in town, although they're still the biggest.
Wife has a laptop with 8.1 on it. She absolutely hates it. Enough that she had me put linux on it in a dual boot setup. Now she uses linux for most things, and windows only when she has to. She wants to go back to the simplicity of one OS though. Thinking about buying a copy of 7 outright, wiping everything and starting from scratch. 10 is kind of that dark horse, do I dare risk it, or would she hate it as much as 8.1....
He is one of the Apple fanboi fanatics, ignore him.
Now that the FReepathon is over, the Apple spam is off the wall. Good way to ensure the next one goes even slower.
Windows 8 is no filthy sandwich. It's better than Windows 7 in lots of ways, including performance and gaming. And Windows 10 is an excellent operating system.
OK, I’ve got to know the name of this supposed program that somehow doesn’t work just because you installed windows10.
I use an old copy of Paint Shop Pro from 1999, that I run from a thumb drive and a strategy game I’ve been carting between computers since Windows 98 and both work completely fine.
If this is some win32 program it seriously isn’t actually telling you it isn’t working.
I can't even talk about people who, as you said "will trade privacy for convenience". Their ignorance is shocking.
That's the Microsoft internal code name for this major update. It will likely be called Windows 10 November 15 Update; if Microsoft had used the old naming convention, it would have been called Windows 10 Service Pack 1.
> Got 7, and keep hearing 10 is not only buggy but seriously intrusive.
Intrusive?
How about this?
The default install allows Win10 to setup a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) network connection (both internal network and external internet) and use your PC and bandwidth to push out updates to the entire internet. If you are on a limited byte-counting plan, this will cost you money and let you hit your byte-limit early. They put this P2P stuff in a couple different places, so if you go and turn it off in one place, you might still miss it elsewhere.
Agreed. I've never done Facebook, very frightening. That's not even about convenience. Vanity, perhaps?
NSA couldn't have dreamt up a better gift.
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