REDMOND (Web Desk) – Good news for Microsoft users as Microsoft has started rolling out Windows 10 worldwide.
Windows 10 begins to deliver on the vision for more personal computing. In this world experiences are mobile, moving with you seamlessly and easily across your devices. Interacting with technology is as natural as interacting with people – using voice, pen, gestures and even gaze for the right interaction, in the right way, at the right time.
Windows 10 is a big step up from Windows 8, but also from those that hung back on Windows 7. With the free upgrade from Windows 7 or 8 being offered for a year, adoption should be strong, but time will tell.
From the beginning, Windows 10 has been unique – built with feedback from five million Windows Insiders, delivered as a service with ongoing innovations and security updates, and offered as a free upgrade to genuine Windows 7, Windows 8.1 and Windows Phone 8.1 customers.
Windows 8’s biggest pain points, such as the Start Screen, full screen apps, and the Charms bar, were not going to be tweaked in this release, but completely done away with.
Back was the Start Menu, back was windowed apps, and back was what made Windows, well, Windows. Where Windows 8 was promoted as touch-first, Windows 10 was created as productivity first, with the OS trying to assist you with things like Snap Assist rather than get in your way.
With Windows 10 being the first ever free upgrade, here is a quick look at what to expect if you signed up to get the upgrade on day one.
Fast and Familiar
- With the familiar Start menu, Taskbar, and Desktop you’re already an expert and Live Tiles provide streaming updates of what matters most to you, instantly.
- Windows 10 is designed to be compatible with the hardware, software and peripherals you already own.
- Free updates help keep you current on features and security updates.
- With OneDrive online storage, you can easily share and keep your files up to date across all your devices, simply.
Most Secure Windows Ever
- Offering enhanced Windows Defender and Smart Screen to help safeguard against viruses, malware and phishing.
- Windows Hello greets you by name, providing a fast, secured, password-free way to log in.
More Personal & Productive
- Voice, Pen and Gesture input allow you to more naturally interact with your PC.
- Windows 10 is designed to run Office and Skype perfectly to increase your productivity. New Office Mobile apps on Windows 10 – Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote – are available today in the Windows Store. Built for on-the-go scenarios, the Office Mobile apps offer a consistent, touch-first experience for small tablets. Full featured OneNote comes installed with Windows 10 for your digital note-taking needs. The upcoming release of Office desktop apps (Office 2016) will offer the richest feature set for professional content creation, designed for the precision of a keyboard and mouse.
- Cortana is your personal digital assistant making it easy to find the right information at the right time.
- You can easily switch between apps and stay organized with Snap and Task View.
- Continuum optimizes your apps and experience beautifully across touch and desktop modes.
Innovative Experiences & New Devices
- New Microsoft Edge browser allows you to quickly browse, read, and even mark up and share the web.
- The integrated Xbox App delivers the Xbox experience to Windows 10, bringing together your friends, games, and accomplishments across Xbox One and Windows 10 devices.
- The Companion Phone app lets you set up your iPhone, Android or Windows phone to work seamlessly with your Windows device.
- Windows powers the most innovative devices today and tomorrow – from phones to tablets to PCs to HoloLens.
- Built-in apps including Photos, Maps, Microsoft’s new music app Groove, and Movies & TV, offer entertainment and productivity options.
Best for Business
Feedback from millions of IT Pros has helped shape our best enterprise version of Windows ever. Ready for corporate deployments, Windows 10 will help your company protect against modern cyber-attacks, deliver experiences your employees will love and enable continuous innovation with a platform that keeps your company up to date with the latest technology.
Your business can control the frequency of your updates and select the features and functionality that is right for each group of your employees.
Windows 10 includes built-in enterprise grade security, so employees can replace passwords with more secure options, help protect corporate data and corporate identities, and only run the software you trust. New management and deployment tools simplify device management and help lower costs, and enable you to power your business with the enterprise strength of the Azure cloud.
Top Apps
The new Windows Store opens today and is now accepting new apps for Windows 10. The Windows Store offers one-stop shopping for popular free and paid apps, games, movies, TV shows and the latest music, which work across all Windows 10 devices.
The new Windows Store is the only Store where you can use Cortana to control apps with your voice and get real-time notifications on your app tiles.
All Windows Store content is certified by Microsoft to help keep your devices safer.
In addition to existing Windows 8.1 apps such as Netflix, Flipboard, Mint.com, Asphalt 8: Airborne and The Weather Channel, the Windows Store provides a constant stream of new and updated Universal Windows Apps and games, including Twitter, “Minecraft: Windows 10 Edition beta”, Hulu, iHeartRadio, USA Today, Candy Crush Saga, and others including WeChat and QQ, which will launch soon. Check out our new Windows Store today.
Other features
And these features are really just the tip of the iceberg, with far more available including virtual desktops, drop shadows, a new dark theme, and more.
Keyboard Shortcuts
Although Windows 10 aims to be fairly intuitive, Microsoft has introduced a variety of keyboard shortcuts to navigate between features. Here are some of the most useful:
Windows key + Tab = Activate Task View
Windows key + A = Activate Action Center
Windows key + S = Activate Cortana
Windows key + C = Activate Cortana with speech
Windows key + E = Open file explorer
Windows key + I = Open Windows 10 settings
Windows key + Ctrl + D = Create a new virtual desktop
Windows key + Ctrl + F4 = Close virtual desktop
Upgrading to Windows 10
Today Windows 10 available in 190 countries. The launch of Windows 10 is being celebrated around the world with global fan celebrations and a new yearlong initiative to celebrate people and organizations making a difference around the world.
If you’re getting sick of waiting around for Microsoft to tell you that you can download Windows 10, you can skip the queue and install the update right now by visiting this page on Microsoft’s website.
Before you begin, you will need to check the system requirements, and have A blank USB or DVD with at least 4 GB of space. If you are upgrading from Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 you will also need your Windows product key.
