After the release of Windows 10 version 1511, Microsoft took a few months to refactor and otherwise update the deep-down chunks of their OS. After that was all settled, they started merging features from their many teams. For the last two builds, the amount of changes ramped way up, not all of which were announced at Build conference.
These features have been merged without much bug-crushing, though. Microsoft knows this, and then talk about a “Bug Bash” event happening sometime this week. To get a feel for the state of this build's quality, though, you can check out WinBeta attempting to show off the new features. Note that some of the issues they were experiencing were actually in the known issues list, namely the crash attempting to pin Settings options, but the list is quite long.
A couple of new changes are interesting and surprising. First, long-time, multi-monitor users will like that the clock is now on all taskbars, not just the primary monitor. They acknowledge that this was driven by the gaming community, although they don't explicitly state that it's because our applications run in fullscreen mode so frequently (covering the main monitor clock). I don't exactly know why this slipped past the user experience people for so long, at least since the multi-monitor enhancements in Windows 8, but it did. It should be publicly available in July.
They will also allow desktop icons to have mini symbols (badges) attached to them. This could tell you how many unseen emails you have, whether your alarm is active, and probably many other features when it's in a publicly-accessible API. It's concerning that it's UWP-only, though. It shows that Microsoft wants to deprecate Win32 for new features, without migrating them into UWP containers, which further suggests that Microsoft intends to deprecate Win32 altogether. This is very concerning for several reasons, but I'm not going to reiterate them in this post.
The other cool feature, though, is a new interface to select between multiple sound cards. In my scenario, I have two main sound devices. When I listen to my headphones, I plug them into a USB sound card (technically a Blue Yeti). When I want to use speakers, I flip over to motherboard audio and turn on my sound system. This means that I need to go deep into the Sound preferences in the Control Panel, and it also means that some applications don't cleanly switch over (even locking up entirely). With this a front-and-center input menu of Windows 10, it should pressure developers to test whether their software can accept a sound device change on the fly, and fix accordingly.
So yeah — those are the three features that spoke most to me. Again, the lack of innovation in native Win32 APIs is concerning. It reminds me of when browser vendors declared that certain new APIs would be artificially held back from non-secure HTTP contexts. In some cases, it makes sense — an unsecure Web app accessing your webcam is a sign that they don't care about your privacy — but it also means that software developers need to give up some level of their anonymity to acquire a certificate to access those features (unless offline sites are classified as secure in the user's browser, which Google Chrome does and others might too). Tangent aside, it feels like Microsoft is trying to apply the same level of pressure to push people away from bare Win32. That makes sense, they want to promote new platforms, but it also usually comes before the old one gets the guillotine.
It’s Win32 and the desktop
It’s Win32 and the desktop TIFKAM-ed into the bit bin, all with more spyware to slurp those jucy personal metrics! Windows 7 is that last M$ desktop OS, with windows 10 it’s all just a Potemkin village for the fools that agree to the EULA. And the EULA for windows 10 would make a tryant’s jaw drop at what it enables M$ to do to all that argee to its terms and conditions! The Gates are being slowly and insidiously closed while the slack-jaws worry about their DX12. It’s time to look at Vulkan and the other options before it’s too late!
Stupid consumers get what
Stupid consumers get what they deserve, so Microsoft and Apple has built prisons for them. Welcome to the world of artificial intelligence… or the rise of the dumb civilization.
I think it is time for MS
I think it is time for MS (Facebook, Google and others) to start paying taxes for all the data users provide to them (willingly or not).
I’m afraid the NASDAQ will
I’m afraid the NASDAQ will collapse if dot com companies have to pay taxes where their clients live instead of where they receive their mails.
In fact, I think the weakness of politics leaders corrupted by the banking system wouldn’t allow any kind of nationalism even if it means fair trade and reciprocity. Banksters prefer to humiliate people by robbing their cash and pushing them to loan their own capital with fees. Banksters can’t stay in the same location more than 5 years because people could ask them to give them back their cash by any mean (specially by force).
I don’t think I’ll ever
I don’t think I’ll ever download Win10 until they get a Q&A team up and running again.
Built and installed a gaming-oriented computer for a relative who requested Win10, and it is the biggest PoS imaginable.
Everything (hyperbolic obviously) is damn near broken, constant game crashes, applications not running correctly, bloat, advertisements on the desktop, atrocious UI.. poor guy tried sticking it out for the Win10 exclusive games but didn’t last more than a month until he upgraded to Win7 Ultimate.
The one thing though that really surprised me about Win10 was that there were built-in ethernet drivers.
I was pretty shocked about that, although linux has had that for over a decade but it’s a step in the right direction I guess.
Windows 7 has had built-in
Windows 7 has had built-in ethernet drivers since launch, this is not new in Windows 10. I deal with a variety of different desktop and laptop models from various manufacturers working in IT, and only on extremely rare exceptions does the Ethernet driver not work directly after OS installation on Windows 7.
Not to denigrate Windows 10, I’ve been using it since launch with no issues, it has been an improvement over Win 7 in almost every way. Maybe your gaming oriented relative needs to ask somebody else to build a Windows 10 system for them… Sounds like a build problem not an OS problem.
For M$’s monetization Scheme
For M$’s monetization Scheme it is an improvement but not for the end users or the free market suppliers of windows desktop applications, as M$ will be closing things up just as Gabe feared. It’s time to go with other ecosystems outside of M$’s clutches!
Just remember that you bought your PC/Laptops from mostly third party PC/Laptop OEMs and not M$, so M$ is only a supplier of the OS part of the third party OEM laptop SKUs. Like standard Oil of the Past, M$ is applying its illegal monopolistic market control over the PC/laptop OS market to force an illegal vertical market integration of the third party PC/Laptop OEMs and you the end user of that third party OEM PC/Laptop product! Thank You government’s inaction on enforcing the antitrust laws already on the books for allowing M$ to continue unhindered with its scheme!
Even Apple is does not try and force its way with any third party OEM PC/laptop makers, as Apple only does its closed ecosystem on PC/Laptop hardware that Apple directly brands and sales!
Yeah no, I’ve built many,
Yeah no, I’ve built many, many PCs over the years and literally not a single one had ethernet drivers working out of the box – I had download drivers for them.
I hope you’re getting paid per word for your shilling, because you’re doing a shit job
That’s odd. The vast majority
That's odd. The vast majority of PCs that I've built connected by Ethernet out of the box. Granted, I tend to buy motherboards after Windows releases. I think the ECS one didn't, though.
What I usually find is Intel
What I usually find is Intel ethernet works out of the box. Any other chip needs drivers before it works.
That’s the strangest thing
That’s the strangest thing I’ve ever heard. From various DIY builds to clean installs on a bunch of laptops, I’ve never needed to provide any basic drivers whatsoever, least of all Ethernet. Not since Windows Vista, at least. Whether it’s 10 or 7 (or 8/8.1, the few times I’ve tried it), it “just works,” straight from the installer. Heck, most WiFi cards have included drivers in W10.
>The one thing though that
>The one thing though that really surprised me about Win10 was that there were built-in ethernet drivers.
I was pretty shocked about that, although linux has had that for over a decade…< Windows have, for decades, included drivers for ethernet as well as many other peripherals. I've found that it was almost always the more established vendors (Intel and SMC, for example and sometimes Linksys) that had their drivers included in the RTM builds - maybe it was a money/ resource thing. That is primarily why Windows installers were always bloated; lots of cab files filled with default drivers for common peripherals. Win 9x, Me, 2k, XP+ did it, so no reason to stop now - especially since 10 was designed to run on just about any hardware from the past decade or so.
YMMV. I’ve been running W10
YMMV. I’ve been running W10 since the Insider Preview days on my main rig. First in dual boot for experimentation, then as an in-place upgrade from 7. I’ve had far fewer issues with 10 (outside of the expected early Insider Preview instability) than I did with 7 – and this in on a Socket 775/Intel X48 platform, which hasn’t had manufacturer made drivers for any OS past W7.
Sure, I have the occasional game crash, but that’s far more down to game development issues and the extremely eclectic mix of hardware in my rig (X48 Mobo + C2Q 9450 @3.5GHz on air cooling, 8GB DDR2, R9 Fury X). Windows is rock solid.
>C2Q 9450 @3.5GHz on air
>C2Q 9450 @3.5GHz on air cooling, 8GB DDR2, R9 Fury X< lol How is that CPU keeping up with the Fury? I thought of doing that but decided against it. I did the socket 775/771 mod and replaced a C2Q with a $39 Xeon X5470. It outperforms even the QX9770 (extreme) but I dialed it back to 3.8GHz until I go liquid (the stock 775 cooler got me to 4). I thought the R9 380 (X?) is the highest one can go with this type of hardware. Is it worth the added expense?
For gaming at 2560×1440,
For gaming at 2560×1440, absolutely. I’ve tried to compare my performance to various benchmarks run on more modern platforms, and outside of 3DMark (which puts a lot of weight on the Physics part for calculating scores), I never lag behind more than 10%, and often just 3-4%. My CPU usage in most games hovers around 80-90% on all cores, but it’s perfectly okay still. I don’t plan to upgrade my GPU for a few years (my last one was an HD 6950), so this was mainly done for future proofing. Considered a 390(x), but in the end decided against it due to power consumption and form factor.
Thx for sharing. I need
Thx for sharing. I need something decent as I’d like to make use of Virtual Super Res. Will wait a bit longer to see what Polaris has to offer – or for the resulting lower Fury prices.
“Winders”…It’s what we old
“Winders”…It’s what we old people look out of…Stay off my lawn you Bassturds!
“Microsoft’s Windows 10
"Microsoft's Windows 10 nagware interrupts live TV weather forecast" To get around PCper's spam filter http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/04/28/windows_10_live_tv/ What! Where is that tornado and it's time to "Upgrade" to windows 10! Wait windows 10, but what about the Twister—crash bang—-lots of noises—sounds of howling winds—…
[Jeremy – What you talkin' 'bout Willis?]
Remove the brackets [ ] and
Remove the brackets [ ] and spaces from “h t t p”
This is not good!
U THINK THEY WILL BRING AGAIN
U THINK THEY WILL BRING AGAIN THE PPPOE AUTO CONNECTION ???
IN 2016 WE STILL NEED TO MANUALLY CONNECT TO THE INTERNET.
In 2016 most people uses
In 2016 most people uses modem-routers to maintain their PPPoE session.
“When I want to use speakers,
“When I want to use speakers, I flip over to motherboard audio and turn on my sound system. This means that I need to go deep into the Sound preferences in the Control Panel”
You know that this setting was relatively easily accessed by right clicking the system tray volume icon and selecting “playback devices,” right? No need to ever open the control panel. I appreciate the added ease of switching, though. Three clicks and no new windows compared to five clicks and an unnecessary settings window is a UX win.