Windows 10 Build 10041 - Not sure where we are going....
Okay - so MS finally released the next public build of Windows 10 - build 10041 and I loaded on both testing platforms I've been using - a traditional desktop and an 8" Atom based tablet.
First - As with 9926 - the desktop install was a breeze - run Windows update - new build shows up - and installs.
The tablet on the other hand took some doing to get the build to show up in Windows Update at all. With 9926 - one of the updates that came down the line was for the Intel HD Graphics driver. That update would consistently fail with a compatibility error with the device in my case the Dell Venue 8 Pro.
I even tried to download the latest drivers direct from Intel but ran into the same issue. The challenge was that MS never provided an option to skip trying to download and install that update - so every subsequent time you tried to run windows update - the HD driver would show up - download and try to install yet to fail again. In Windows 10 MS seems to have skipped the whole important, recommended and optional classifications for updates and just downloads everything, every time. I'd like to see more control in that area.
After a while I just started getting an 0x80070241 error in Windows Update. To complicate matters a I also had tried to install the latest Office 16 for Business Preview - which was a disaster - more on that in another post.
Bottom line - before I could get to 10041 I had to completely re-install 9926 from the ISO. I did so as a clean install to try and rid myself of any lingering issues from 9926 and finally the "tbl impressive 10041 core" build showed up in windows update and installed. One interesting note is that the tablet used the "core" version of the build - while the desktop showed a "pro" version of the build. So not 100% yet on the details of the differences between the builds - but obviously a branch is being taken around the various platforms.
While I think it is impressive (sorry couldn't help it) that MS has developed a method for providing a full OS build via Windows update - I agree with many of the techies out there that MS should also provide a full iso if you choose to go that route. And I don't think you should have to be in the slow circle to get it. You should have just been able to go to the Windows Insider site and get it.
MS produced a new build process & screen with 10041 and I do have say I like it. In a single screen they show overall progress and 4 major steps the install is performing with percentage complete for each one. At first it seems and though you are hung up with the overall stuck on 3% for quite some time but then it continues right along and finishes nicely. I did have to install the Dell WiFi/BT Drivers to get all working on my tablet - but that was minor issue.
Regarding the build itself and how things seem to be progressing since 9926 - to be honest I'm not sure where MS is going. In my opinion they have actually made certain aspects of navigation and usability worse.
For example - MS so far is sticking with this new two sized start menu. On the desktop it's okay - if you have a large screen. I have a 25" monitor and there is enough screen real estate to place any of the live tiles or app icons on that screen. But they made the menu translucent which I'm not a big fan of. When there is a busy background or complex app behind it makes the menu hard to read.
Additionally the whole "all apps" panel on the left of the menu is horrible - just this massive long alphabetic string of apps. Yes it works okay on a large screen desktop - but it sucks on an 8" tablet.
The tablet experience in general to me is poor. My Venue 8 Pro has a better experience in desktop mode than tablet mode. All tablet mode does is remove the window controls from the apps give them a little more screen space. But then you have to swipe down from the top to get a title bar and then try to close. Half the time it doesn't work - the title bar disappears too fast and then you can't close the app. Frustrating.
There is one new wrinkle with tablet login - you are now required to hold the windows key and press power to unlock the device. I guess it provides some additional level of security - but to me more of a nuisance than anything else.
Some reviewers are hailing the updated Snap feature which does a better job of handling traditional, modern and universal apps - but big whoop I rarely use that feature.
I'm also not seeing any great shakes coming from the native apps. Okay sure MS provided some deeper integration between OneDrive and apps like Music. but these should have been there sometime back. The Album feature in Photos is still not working. Also MS screwed up the Mail, People Calendar apps which required you to run a Powershell command to remove then re-install via the Store.
Terry Myerson recently stated at WinHEC that Windows 10 would be available this summer and Gabe Aul has promised a more frequent release schedule for builds going forward.
In my opinion this means two things. First that "summer" means end of summer or most likely the September time frame that has been going around for a while. Second - while I applaud the more frequent build release schedule (looks like one per month) I really need to see more progress in the native apps. Do they work - yes - are they tremendously better than their Windows 8.1 versions ? Not really.
Bottom line - Has MS effectively turned the ugly duckling of Windows 8 into a swan with Windows 10 - not really.
Putting the Corporate IT hat on and asking the question "Can I migrate my Windows XP/7 base to Windows 10 and not have a support nightmare ?" - I'm not sure.
Yes the new Start is more like a Windows 7 style than Windows 8 and having a single desktop is less confusing. Windows 10 will certainly take advantage of the new hardware platforms coming out and boots in seconds. But that assumes I have the newer machines to run it. Will Windows 10 be a catalyst for Corp to refresh PCs ? in my opinion no - not by itself.
But more and more Corp IT departments are moving towards VDI with minimal Windows 7 base images and app streaming or hosting models. In that vein how well will Windows 10 compare and how many of the native apps will just be stripped out anyway to provide a lean base image.
Will I get better VDI performance with Windows 10 - maybe. Will my users increase productivity by switching to Windows 10 - again maybe - but most likely no.
So as much as MS has stated their new Mobile First, Cloud First strategy - I see the same MS legacy model coming for Windows 10. A new group of devices with a preloaded OS. Has MS provided anything more compelling than their competitors ? Personally I don't think so.
Yes there are going to be some great new devices this fall. New Haswell procs, DDR4 memory, M.2 factor SSD and 4K displays will be everywhere along with Intel's Real Sense technology and Touch. Windows 10 running on these devices will be extremely fast and stable from a core OS perspective. Battery life on laptops will be in the 8 hr range easy. Maybe that in itself will be enough to make Windows 10 more successful than Windows 8 was. But it will more because of the newer hardware than the OS itself.
First - As with 9926 - the desktop install was a breeze - run Windows update - new build shows up - and installs.
The tablet on the other hand took some doing to get the build to show up in Windows Update at all. With 9926 - one of the updates that came down the line was for the Intel HD Graphics driver. That update would consistently fail with a compatibility error with the device in my case the Dell Venue 8 Pro.
I even tried to download the latest drivers direct from Intel but ran into the same issue. The challenge was that MS never provided an option to skip trying to download and install that update - so every subsequent time you tried to run windows update - the HD driver would show up - download and try to install yet to fail again. In Windows 10 MS seems to have skipped the whole important, recommended and optional classifications for updates and just downloads everything, every time. I'd like to see more control in that area.
After a while I just started getting an 0x80070241 error in Windows Update. To complicate matters a I also had tried to install the latest Office 16 for Business Preview - which was a disaster - more on that in another post.
Bottom line - before I could get to 10041 I had to completely re-install 9926 from the ISO. I did so as a clean install to try and rid myself of any lingering issues from 9926 and finally the "tbl impressive 10041 core" build showed up in windows update and installed. One interesting note is that the tablet used the "core" version of the build - while the desktop showed a "pro" version of the build. So not 100% yet on the details of the differences between the builds - but obviously a branch is being taken around the various platforms.
While I think it is impressive (sorry couldn't help it) that MS has developed a method for providing a full OS build via Windows update - I agree with many of the techies out there that MS should also provide a full iso if you choose to go that route. And I don't think you should have to be in the slow circle to get it. You should have just been able to go to the Windows Insider site and get it.
MS produced a new build process & screen with 10041 and I do have say I like it. In a single screen they show overall progress and 4 major steps the install is performing with percentage complete for each one. At first it seems and though you are hung up with the overall stuck on 3% for quite some time but then it continues right along and finishes nicely. I did have to install the Dell WiFi/BT Drivers to get all working on my tablet - but that was minor issue.
Regarding the build itself and how things seem to be progressing since 9926 - to be honest I'm not sure where MS is going. In my opinion they have actually made certain aspects of navigation and usability worse.
For example - MS so far is sticking with this new two sized start menu. On the desktop it's okay - if you have a large screen. I have a 25" monitor and there is enough screen real estate to place any of the live tiles or app icons on that screen. But they made the menu translucent which I'm not a big fan of. When there is a busy background or complex app behind it makes the menu hard to read.
Additionally the whole "all apps" panel on the left of the menu is horrible - just this massive long alphabetic string of apps. Yes it works okay on a large screen desktop - but it sucks on an 8" tablet.
The tablet experience in general to me is poor. My Venue 8 Pro has a better experience in desktop mode than tablet mode. All tablet mode does is remove the window controls from the apps give them a little more screen space. But then you have to swipe down from the top to get a title bar and then try to close. Half the time it doesn't work - the title bar disappears too fast and then you can't close the app. Frustrating.
There is one new wrinkle with tablet login - you are now required to hold the windows key and press power to unlock the device. I guess it provides some additional level of security - but to me more of a nuisance than anything else.
Some reviewers are hailing the updated Snap feature which does a better job of handling traditional, modern and universal apps - but big whoop I rarely use that feature.
I'm also not seeing any great shakes coming from the native apps. Okay sure MS provided some deeper integration between OneDrive and apps like Music. but these should have been there sometime back. The Album feature in Photos is still not working. Also MS screwed up the Mail, People Calendar apps which required you to run a Powershell command to remove then re-install via the Store.
Terry Myerson recently stated at WinHEC that Windows 10 would be available this summer and Gabe Aul has promised a more frequent release schedule for builds going forward.
In my opinion this means two things. First that "summer" means end of summer or most likely the September time frame that has been going around for a while. Second - while I applaud the more frequent build release schedule (looks like one per month) I really need to see more progress in the native apps. Do they work - yes - are they tremendously better than their Windows 8.1 versions ? Not really.
Bottom line - Has MS effectively turned the ugly duckling of Windows 8 into a swan with Windows 10 - not really.
Putting the Corporate IT hat on and asking the question "Can I migrate my Windows XP/7 base to Windows 10 and not have a support nightmare ?" - I'm not sure.
Yes the new Start is more like a Windows 7 style than Windows 8 and having a single desktop is less confusing. Windows 10 will certainly take advantage of the new hardware platforms coming out and boots in seconds. But that assumes I have the newer machines to run it. Will Windows 10 be a catalyst for Corp to refresh PCs ? in my opinion no - not by itself.
But more and more Corp IT departments are moving towards VDI with minimal Windows 7 base images and app streaming or hosting models. In that vein how well will Windows 10 compare and how many of the native apps will just be stripped out anyway to provide a lean base image.
Will I get better VDI performance with Windows 10 - maybe. Will my users increase productivity by switching to Windows 10 - again maybe - but most likely no.
So as much as MS has stated their new Mobile First, Cloud First strategy - I see the same MS legacy model coming for Windows 10. A new group of devices with a preloaded OS. Has MS provided anything more compelling than their competitors ? Personally I don't think so.
Yes there are going to be some great new devices this fall. New Haswell procs, DDR4 memory, M.2 factor SSD and 4K displays will be everywhere along with Intel's Real Sense technology and Touch. Windows 10 running on these devices will be extremely fast and stable from a core OS perspective. Battery life on laptops will be in the 8 hr range easy. Maybe that in itself will be enough to make Windows 10 more successful than Windows 8 was. But it will more because of the newer hardware than the OS itself.
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