Posts
Being a Web Designer comes with a rather unique side effect. We have to be comfortable working with all types of environments and platforms, and while We each have our personal preferences (in My case Apple) one common thing is Our Designs have to look right on any platform a user might consider using.
This, of course, brings us to the New Kid on the Block, Windows 10. Windows 10, right from announcement has felt like it almost had a mentality of "One Platform to Rule them all" to it, and honestly in that aspect it lived up to the hype.
For This Designer, the first experience with Windows 10 came via the free upgrade offered on My HP Stream 7 Tablet. The install process was a breeze, clocking in at a little over 2GB and completing install in less than one hour's time frame.
Once inside the environment, changes were easy to notice and very welcome as tap targets seemed to respond better, and the returning Start Menu delivered on its promise of a Windows 7 like experience, at least in "Desktop Mode". In Tablet Mode things skew more to an android like feel to the interface, with your Start Menu automatically displaying as you close an app and your task bar having shortcuts for a virtual back button, search and multiple desktops.
A stylus may still be a wise investment for those who have a device with a 7 Inch screen size.
Bloatware was present, with the most annoying aspect being the bundled install of Candy Crush Saga. There were also links, via "Live Tiles" encouraging the download of specific Microsoft Apps including Office 365 This however was quickly addressed, along with privacy settings in the control panel.
For those who are wondering about the reports of having to pay for Solitaire, lets address that. the App itself is Free in the Windows Store, however there are small ads bundled into the menus, but when actually playing a game none are to be seen. Your scores with Solitaire, much like Microsoft Mahjong, Minesweeper and Puzzles, can be linked to your Xbox Gaming ID for achievements and cloud backup of your games.
Cortana, Microsoft's new virtual assistant named for the AI Character in Halo, was unable to be tested as it appears it has not been rolled out to all markets. This was to be expected as Cortana is on a slow deployment in select markets to start.
Of course, with tweaking and set up done, as a Designer My next step was to jump into playing around with Microsoft's new Browser "Edge" (formerly codenamed Spartan). Websites I had designed, including inertialzendesigns.com displayed flawlessly and even reformatted as coded to account for the changes from portrait to landscape viewing.
The ability to share a Website to email from directly within the browser could potentially be a benefit for users, depending on options of what email services can be set up and a full service, split screened code inspector that can be deployed in one menu click is very welcome for those moments of troubleshooting Web Code.
Overall first impressions of Windows 10 is pretty good. I would advise using the custom settings instead of express settings while installing if privacy is a concern, could have used a bit less bloatware (hopefully a Microsoft Signature Series version will be made available through the Microsoft stores) and battery life has taken a welcome improvement vs that of Windows 8.1.
So, as I said in the title Windows 10, at least on first impression, does not suck. If your Windows Device qualifies for the Free Upgrade, I would recommend that you take the time and install it.
