Windows 10 Anniversary Update: The Road To Redstone
by Brett Howse on August 2, 2016 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Operating Systems
- Microsoft
- Windows 10
Hey Cortana, Remind Me to Explain Windows Ink
Cortana
Microsoft’s digital personal assistant has been updated as well. The most obvious change is that Cortana can now be accessed on the lock screen. If you’re not too worried about others seeing the lock screen, such as on a home PC, you can even have Cortana access your calendar and email on the lock screen. If you enable voice control with “Hey Cortana” you could even ask Cortana to play a song from across the room. It’s a nice feature, but on a PC it may not be that useful. On a tablet or mobile device, it might get a bit more use.
Perhaps the biggest updates with Cortana is just how much Microsoft has expanded the reach. While Cortana began as a feature of Windows Phone, Microsoft now offers it as a downloadable app on Android and iOS as well. That makes a lot of sense considering how the mobile smartphone game has played out, and gives Windows 10 users the ability to have reminders across their devices.
Speaking of across device abilities, Cortana can now send notifications from a smartphone to the PC. You can even reply to SMS messages on the PC using Cortana, which is pretty handy.
One other change has certainly caused some confusion prior to the release. The ability to turn Cortana off completely has been removed from the update, as well as the ability to assign a different browser/search engine via the registry - from now on users will be limited to Edge and Bing. You can opt to sign out of Cortana to remove the personalized features, but Cortana will still be the default search in the taskbar. It’s a change in policy for sure. As always, you can adjust what Cortana knows about you at any time by using the Notebook, and if you sign out of Cortana you’ll get a non-personalized version.
Windows Ink
It’s fair to say that Microsoft has been a proponent of the stylus input on computers for a long time. Over the years, the capabilities of the inking support have grown, and when Windows 10 launched last year, inking was a first class input method, with the ability to use the pen to write on any dialog box, and more. With the Anniversary Update, they are taking it to the next level with Windows Ink.
Windows Ink is a one-stop shop where you can easily access all of your inking apps, like Sketchpad, Sticky Notes, and others. It’s also an easy way to discover more apps built for the pen, and you can configure the pen here as well. It’s a smart idea to help people use the pen to get more out of the experience.
They’ve also added more features to the inking experience, including a digital ruler. It’s one of those “wow that’s so obvious” additions to the pen input, and being digital it can be more than just a straight ruler. Microsoft showed off at Build a version of Adobe CS with a digital French Curve ruler. I’ve actually tried to use an actual ruler with a stylus before, and it’s a pretty frustrating experience. The digital version is much easier to use, and more adaptable.
Some of the inking is even integrated into Cortana, and now Cortana can automatically decipher hand-written sticky notes in the sticky notes app, and create reminders based on them. Sticky notes are still one of the skeuomorphic ideas, but for some people they are indispensable, even as a digital version.
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jlabelle2 - Tuesday, August 16, 2016 - link
- how many of us want a private, customizable (think no Cortana / Store / forced updates / automatic removal of programs) OS?It is not because they are idiot people out there that Microsoft should cater their OS for those.
Cortana is nothing more than a search if you disable all the tailor made options.
Removing Windows Store is like asking that OS would run without softwares and cars without wheels. Store apps have inherent advantages compared to Win32 programs (more secured, uninstall without leftovers, free up memory automatically, scale perfectly, support all input types, integrate with notification center / share API / Cortana, roam the settings accrias devices...) that make them (when they do what you want) factually better that Win32 programs. Nobody is forcing anyone to install them but removing the Store is just an utterly silly request.
And at last, regarding automatic updates, we all know, reading those forums what is the perception of average Joe toward Windows PCs being prone to viruses / malwares / slow down compared to tablets like iPad and this is the smartest decision from Microsoft to force update and back in Windows Defender plus Store apps to give people the same advantages as iPad in term of simplicity / security / continuity of performance while still allowing users to use the millions of legacy Win32 programs if necessary.
jlabelle2 - Tuesday, August 16, 2016 - link
What is Cortana if you removed all points of interest except a glorified search? Why people are asking the possibility to disable Cortana? This is beyond me especially people that do think they understand computer better that my mom. Do not want to use search, do not. Simply as that.looncraz - Tuesday, August 2, 2016 - link
This is basically an article highlighting all of the things I remove from Windows 10 to make it a palatable platform. Except Bash.Dark mode also works in the original Windows 10, you just have to manually set a registry key.
baka_toroi - Tuesday, August 2, 2016 - link
Call me paranoid, but I see the combination of project Centennial and the impossibility of rejecting Windows updates as a surefire way to block Win32 apps in the distant future. "We know better than you, boy. Don't try to do as you wish to do with your own computer." In other words, an Apple world.Sure, there will be jailbreaks and stuff but we all know it's not the same as having legitimate access to your whole system.
Michael Bay - Tuesday, August 2, 2016 - link
That day sure is coming, but not any time soon. Way too much legacy sw still in active circulation.prophet001 - Tuesday, August 2, 2016 - link
Why do people just swallow this hook line and sinker?I know why: Ignorance.
Michael Bay - Tuesday, August 2, 2016 - link
If you`re not using some banking client from 80s, there is little use in holding on tightly to win32. It`s not like they are restricting your ability to develop under winrt and will likely start some kind of transition program for developers like Apple did.Ascaris - Wednesday, August 3, 2016 - link
Win32 programs are for regular desktop or laptop PCs. UWP is for tablets and phones. There's already too much of the horrendous UWP "design language" in desktop Windows 10-- I'm certainly never going to add to it with anything "app." When I had a Windows 10 installation on my test PC, I uprooted Windows Store, Cortana, Edge, and all of that kind of stuff... most satisfying thing I ever did with 10, other than wiping the drive when I finally gave up on 10 ever becoming a usable OS.All the stuff about "it uninstalls cleanly" that we hear about UWP is certainly a good thing, but there's nothing inherent about Win32 that makes this inevitable (other than the existence of the registry in general). In the Win 95 days and prior, Windows pretty much allowed any installer to make any change it wanted. It was common for installers to sprinkle DLLs into the Windows directory, sometimes overwriting system files. They were allowed to do most anything with the registry. There was no enforced or even theoretical schema to any of it... it was just "do whatever you want."
A big part of Windows 95's crashiness can probably be directly attributed to this.
Later versions tightened it up some, but installers still have considerable authority to make changes that are not adequately tracked by the system. That doesn't have to be.
If the changes with UWP were mainly about fixing this, that would be one thing, but that's not the main reason for it. It's so "apps" can run on multiple platforms. Maybe some people will be happy running phone apps on their PCs, but I won't. Too many compromises have to be made to make it sorta-work on devices as dissimilar as a touch-screen 5 inch phone (that is usually held in portrait) and a PC with three times the CPU and GPU power and nearly unlimited local storage with a 24" screen that is always in landscape, with input via an actual keyboard and a mouse.
Of course, I know that the idea is that some "apps" will be strictly PC, but those are not the point of UWP. The point is trying to unify dissimilar and ergonomically incompatible computing platforms, even though there are good reasons why PC and mobile UI design parameters are different and distinct.
jlabelle2 - Tuesday, August 16, 2016 - link
- Win32 programs are for regular desktop or laptop PCs. UWP is for tablets and phonesThis cannot be further of the truth. This is an arbitrary split that you are spreading as if everything should be split like Apple decided (even if they are themselves coming back from those toaster/fridge complain as the iPad Pro is proving).
The one advantage you claim from UWP is real. And many others are. It seems that you would have liked Microsoft to evolve Win32 to integrate all the UWP advantages than starting from scratch. Whatever was the best way to proceed, UWP offers clear and undeniable advantages, even purely on desktop compared to Win32 apps (see some that I mentioned above).
- It's so "apps" can run on multiple platforms
Exactly. And as such, that is already a very important advantage that Win32 does not share. And honestly, mobile being so important these days, it is clear that it is much more clever from Microsoft to push applications that could run as well on laptop, tablet or even mobile phone than legacy Win32 softwares.
- Maybe some people will be happy running phone apps on their PCs, but I won't
I am. Because there are nothing specifically phone related. For instance, Drawboard PDF has simply no Win32 equivalent. And there are plenty examples of those.
And there is no reason why phone apps advantages would not be valid when used on a tablet or desktop or laptop.
- Too many compromises have to be made to make it sorta-work on devices as dissimilar as a touch-screen 5 inch phone
Not really as the interface can morph and adapt to the screen size so indeed, UWP are quite flexible on tis regard. You are trying to create a dichotomy that simply does not exist anymore.
Many people are using tablet or laptop with touchscreen. Keyboard is natural input method, even on phones (be it on-screen keyboard). Pen can act virtually like a pointing device making applications benefiting from a mouse very much as usable with a pen on a tablet.
Also, even if laptop or desktop have bigger screen, they are also used from further away.
You are mentioning the aspect ratio but this is something UWP manage very well. A good example is for instance Outlook which is using 3 different vertical panes on phones (account and forlder list,mail list, mail content pane) that can be all displayed at once on a desktop / laptop landscape screen.
Indeed, UWP is an evidence that there is so much overlap that the distinction that Apple is still trying to promote (even if contradicting themselves with the iPad Pro) is not making sense anymore. Google has realize that as well with Android apps running on Chromebook.
- here are good reasons why PC and mobile UI design parameters are different and distinct.
If there were "PC" on one side and "mobile" on an another, where does tablets and laptop fits ?
Daniel Egger - Tuesday, August 2, 2016 - link
lol, Microsoft passed Apple a *long* time ago when it comes to restrictiveness and lack of privacy. Actually it was right at the time when they introduced "Genuine Advantage"...