On July 29, 2015, the new brainchild of Microsoft, Windows 10, was released. The highlight of the release was the ability to upgrade your G7 or G8 to the tenth version for free without losing personal data. A huge number of users around the world are wondering: "Is it worth upgrading to Windows 10?". In this article we will try to figure out what to expect from this operating system.
The main advantages
Start Button Returns
The first thing that every person pays attention after installing the “dozens” is the return of the “Start” button. The guys from Microsoft took into account the wishes of their customers and returned the interface element that was so much loved by many. It is already a little similar to what it was in Windows 7, but it performs its task perfectly.
The new "Start" is perfectly adapted for desktops and mobile devices. As before, all unnecessary elements can be removed by achieving a purely “Spartan” design - only the most necessary will be before your eyes. Will be satisfied and fans of the "tiles" of Windows 8 - now it is also part of this menu.
Multitasking
Have you ever had to work with two applications simultaneously? If yes - you will appreciate the opportunity to open two active windows and arrange them next to each other. In previous versions of Windows, one window was immediately obscured, it was enough to click the mouse somewhere else, and this created a lot of problems for developers and designers.
The changes also affected the usual switching of programs using Alt + Tab. The new Task View utility allows you to open on the screen mini-copies of all applications and select the desired window. Especially useful this function shows itself when working with several documents simultaneously.
Cloud technology in action
The developers have set a rather interesting task for Windows 10 - to achieve maximum comfort on multiple devices. Many probably used the synchronization of Chrome or Yandex browsers. This is quite convenient when your working PC, smartphone and home laptop have common bookmarks and interface settings.
Microsoft also does something similar, but already on the scale of an entire operating system. Configure Windows for yourself on one computer - and get synchronization on all other devices. Add to this cloud storage One Drive, which you can work through Explorer. It makes no sense to doubt whether to upgrade the laptop to Windows 10. In practice, cloudiness shows itself from a very good side.
New browser
Internet Explorer has a very bad reputation. Whatever Microsoft does, they are unlikely to dispel the sad fame of their brainchild. This was one of the reasons why IE has sunk into oblivion. Instead, a completely new browser appears - Egde, which promises to correct all the mistakes made when developing its predecessor.
Here there is a decent speed of work, and convenient tools for web developers and designers, and good protection from negative influences from the outside. But the most important is, of course, plugins. It is because of the plugins that Chrome and Firefox gained its popularity. Users like to add new useful features to their browser. Already after a few updates, this function will also be implemented in Edge.
Free update
A very interesting way to spread the "Ten". Microsoft allows you to update previous versions of Windows through a special utility Get Windows 10, which is installed along with the usual updates. As part of this program, you can upgrade your old system to a new one without losing personal files.
The free program will work throughout the year, so that all those who doubt whether to buy Windows 10 will be able to try it out and appreciate it. Fortunately, the OS system requirements are very democratic. If your computer pulls the "Seven" and, especially, the "Eight" - the new version will work perfectly.
Oneget
Another interesting thing that is often forgotten to mention in the reviews of Windows 10. If you have ever worked in Linux, you probably liked the ability to quickly install programs from repositories. Just open the console and enter the necessary command, as the system itself searches installation files, downloads them and installs on your computer.
Of course, all the old installation methods have not gone away - you can still use the app stores that are convenient for you or download programs from official sites. Really such a function will be appreciated by console lovers - system administrators. Just create a list of programs that need to be installed, and go about your business - OneGet will do everything by itself.
Voice control
Users can now control their PC with voice. Windows 10 has its own voice assistant, like Apple has. Her name is Assistant Cortana, and she can advise you on new system functions, find a file, create a document, set a reminder, and so on.
You can also call a taxi, book a hotel room and buy tickets directly from the desktop. Of course, Cortana can work with clouds. You can set a reminder on your phone, and in the evening it will be shown already on your work PC.
Unfortunately, there are no Russian-speaking assistants in the first releases of Windows 10 yet. Microsoft promises to release it in one of the first updates or SP.
Operating system flaws
Fight against piracy
This item will not please most of the Russian users who are thinking whether to install Windows 10 for games. It is worth it if you plan to use only licensed software. The new DirectX 12 can work with video cards directly, and finally correctly supports multi-core processors, which significantly increases the speed of data processing. Even those games that slowed down on Windows 7 can work more stably here.
If you download games from torrents, use repacks and key-genes, there is a considerable chance that the installed application will be simply blocked by the system. "Ten" tirelessly ensures that you use only officially installed software. This applies equally to games and other programs.
For owners of the Xbox One console, there is a great opportunity to play games from your console on the computer. You just need to connect both devices to the same local area network via Wi-Fi. The power of the PC in this case does not matter, since the Xbox takes over the entire computational load.
Espionage
Now let's talk about unpleasant things. Windows 10 with Cortana collects a huge amount of personal information of users and stores it on the cloud. Microsoft will know where you are, where and how often you call, with whom you correspond with Skype and which files you keep on your computer. Cortana will even send a sample of your voice and, according to unconfirmed data, images from a webcam to the server.
This item causes the most discussion on the topic: “is it worth being afraid of Windows 10?”. The problem is not only that the company will store personal data on the OneDrive cloud server. According to the license agreement (which you accept when installing the OS), Microsoft has the full right to provide this information at the request of special services or by court order. In addition, nothing prevents intruders from hacking into your account and downloading from the cloud a fairly complete list of information about your personal life.
Fortunately, most of the surveillance, which is active by default, can be disabled through settings. And if you also do not use the services of Cortana - there is no cause for concern.
Bugs, lack of drivers and other minor problems
Despite the best efforts of the developers, a slightly raw version of the product was released. Of course, this is not Windows Vista with its just disgusting work, but many users complain about crashes from programs, blue screens and missing icons. But do not despair, every young OS is facing such problems. The vast majority of errors will be fixed with the very first updates.
A rather modest number of drivers to the system also causes some discontent. And if the support of new devices will certainly be implemented in the very near future, then the owners of outdated equipment may have to go to the stores for a new one.
findings
Windows 10 brought with it a lot of interesting innovations that will appeal to users. A new adequate browser and built-in antivirus protection offer very good expectations. Computer games just fly under DirectX 12, which makes gamers very happy. "Ten" has not yet had time to show itself in all its glory, but now it is clear that this is more a success than a failure. But we recommend installing it only in the first half of 2016, when most bugs will be eradicated.
