News Microsoft Windows Update : The Operating Systemels Evolution Of Microsoft Windows Through Out The Years

Microsoft Windows has seen ten major versions since its first release in 1985. Over 30 years, Windows evolved to look very different while retaining a degree of familiarity.
The evolution of Windows is both a reflection on computing power of that generation and the dominant input devices, be it a mouse and keyboard earlier and a touchscreen now.

Here’s a brief look at the history of Windows:

Windows 1

The original. This is where it all began. The original Windows 1 was released in November 1985 and was Microsoft's first attempt at a graphical user interface.

Windows 1 ran on top of the then dominant operating system, Microsoft's DOS, which relied on command-line input. Windows 1 was one of the first software to heavily rely on mouse control before the mouse was a common input device.

Windows 2

Arriving two years after the release of its predecessor in December 1987, Windows 2 introduced features like the ability to minimise or maximise windows and allowing different windows to overlap each other. Windows 2 introduced the control panel, where system settings and configuration options resided. It also introduced the world to Microsoft Word and Excel.

Windows 3

Windows 3 launched in 1990 and was the first version of the OS to see widespread success and be considered a challenger to Apple’s Macintosh and the Commodore Amiga graphical user interfaces, coming pre-installed on computers from PC-compatible manufacturers.

It introduced the ability to run MS-DOS programmes in windows, which brought multitasking to legacy programmes, and supported 256 colours, bringing a more modern, colourful look to the interface.

It also introduced the world to one the most iconic timesink ever created, Solitaire.

Windows 95

Windows 95 launched in August 1995 and brought with it the start button and start menu.

Its big push was “plug and play” – connect a peripheral and the operating system finds the appropriate drivers for it and makes it work. That did not pan out as expected and led to millions of “plug and pray” jokes.

Internet Explorer too made its debut on Windows 95.

Windows 98

Released in June 1998, Windows 98 built on Windows 95 and came with Internet Explorer 4, Outlook Express, Microsoft Chat and eventually Windows Media Player.

It introduced the back and forward navigation buttons and the address bar in Windows Explorer, among other things.

USB support was much improved in Windows 98 and led to its widespread adoption, including USB hubs and USB mice.

Windows ME

Released in September 2000, Windows Millennium Edition (ME) was the last Windows to be based on MS-DOS, and the last in the Windows 9x line.

Considered the worst version of Windows ever, ME was the consumer-aimed operating system twinned with Windows 2000 that aimed at the enterprise market. It introduced some important concepts to consumers, including more automated system recovery tools.

IE 5.5, Windows Media Player 7 and Windows Movie Maker all made their appearance for the first time. Auto-complete also appeared in Windows Explorer, but the operating system was notorious for being buggy, failing to install properly and being generally poor.

Windows 2000

The enterprise twin of ME, Windows 2000 was released in February 2000 and was based on Microsoft’s business-oriented system Windows NT that later became the basis for the much more successful Windows XP.

Windows 2000 was the first time that Microsoft offered automatic updates and it was the first Windows to support hibernation.

Windows XP

Released in October 2001, Windows XP was a product of a Microsoft at the peak of its powers.

The start menu and task bar got a visual overhaul, bringing the familiar green start button, blue task bar and vista wallpaper, along with various shadow and other visual effects.

Windows XP was the longest running Microsoft operating system, seeing three major updates and support up until April 2014 – 13 years after its original release. Windows XP was still used on an estimated 430 million PCs when it was discontinued.

But its huge popularity turned out to be a boon for hackers and criminals, who mercilessly exploited its flaws, especially in Internet Explorer.

Windows Vista

Windows XP was replaced by Windows Vista in January 2007. Vista updated the look and feel of Windows with focus on transparent elements and search and security. Its development was long and troubled, with ambitious elements abandoned in the final release.

It was buggy and burdened the user with hundreds of requests for app permissions under “User Account Control” – the outcome of XP’s security problems. It also ran slowly on older computers despite them being deemed as “Vista Ready”.

Windows Media Player 11 and IE 7 debuted, along with Windows Defender, an anti-spyware programme. Vista included speech recognition, Windows DVD Maker and Photo Gallery, and was the first Windows to be distributed on DVD.

Windows 7

Windows 7 was released in October 2009 following the lukewarm response to the buggy Windows Vista. It was intended to fix all the problems and criticism faced by Vista, with slight tweaks to its appearance and a concentration on user-friendly features and less “dialogue box overload”.

It was faster, more stable and easier to use, becoming the operating system most users and businesses would upgrade to from Windows XP, forgoing Vista entirely.

Windows 8

Released in October 2012, Windows 8 was Microsoft’s most radical overhaul of the Windows interface. In an effort to bring Windows into the post-PC world dominated by touchscreen smartphones and tablets, Microsoft ditched the start button and start menu for a more touch-friendly start screen.

The new tiled interface saw programme icons and live tiles, which displayed information normally associated with “widgets”, replaced the lists of programmes and icons. A desktop was still included, which resembled Windows 7.

The radical overhaul led to a fallout with loyal Windows users. Microsoft's attempted to walk a fine line between touchscreen support and the traditional mouse and keyboard and somewhat failed on both fronts.

Windows 10

Released on July 29, 2015, Windows 10 is a sharp U-turn from its predecessor, bringing back the start menu and more balance to traditional desktop computer users.

It was released as a free upgrade to all users with legitimate copies of Windows 7 and Windows 8.1.

A major feature called Continuum introduced the ability to switch between a keyboard and mouse mode and a tablet mode, for those computers like the Surface Pro 3 with a detachable keyboard.

In an effort to recapture the web browser market it ceded to Google Chrome, Windows 10 comes with a new browser called Edge, which allows users to annotate web pages, save them to read later, or select "read mode" to strip out adverts and sidebars.

Windows 10 comes with Microsoft's virtual personal assistant, Cortana, which pops up with notifications and suggestions, and learns the user's preferences over time. Cortana responds to voice commands similar to Apple's Siri and has been touted as one of the core features of Windows 10.

Posted by Unknown Sunday, August 02, 2015

News Microsoft Windows Update : Windows 10 Review – Final Version Of Windows Might Be Microsoft's Best Ever

Microsoft’s last version of Windows is finally here: Windows 10 is arguably the best version of the ubiquitous operating system. But the question is, should you upgrade for free immediately? Or will it be another Windows 8 moment?

Windows 10 is a big step towards the Microsoft classic becoming an always-connected operating system for every device, not just PCs, which is continuously updated for free. It’ll run traditional desktop Windows apps, like Windows 7. But it will also run new “universal” apps downloaded from the Windows Store, which Microsoft hopes will become a trusted source of traditional Windows desktop programs as well.

Windows 10 on almost every device :

“Universal” is the key word for Microsoft’s ambitions. Windows 10 will run on everything from smartphones to giant servers, via tablets, convertibles, laptops, all-in-ones, desktop PCs and Surface Hubs with 84in screens. Universal apps will run on all Windows 10 devices and the Xbox One games console, removing the pain of learning different user interfaces for numerous incompatible devices, and making it simpler to share things between them.

Obviously, this will depend on how widely adopted Windows 10 becomes. Microsoft hopes to attract a billion users in three years by offering free upgrades to Windows 10 for devices running Windows 7, 8 and 8.1. That’s also why it’s a bit of a hybrid, skewed to appeal to the majority of Windows 7 users, while retaining a tablet mode familiar to Windows 8 users.

Installation should take 20 to 90 minutes, depends on your hardware.

The Start menu is back, baby :

It is the Start menu is Windows 10’s most obvious feature and it will please Windows 7 users. It combines a list of programs similar to Windows 7 with one or two panels of live tiles pulled from Windows 8. Selecting “all programs” shows them in alphabetical order, but the search box is familiar to users of Vista and Windows 7 has been moved to the taskbar, where it is more obviously accessible.

You can run your traditional desktop programs from either side of the Start menu, from the taskbar, or from XP-style icons on the desktop. If you really don’t want to change the way you work, Windows 10 won’t force you.

Microsoft’s pre-installed apps are improved over Windows 8 versions, particularly Mail and Calendar, Microsoft Photos and the PowerShell command system for power users. Windows Media Center, games and gadgets from Windows 7 are gone, but Windows Media Player is still there. Free replacements for missing apps are available in the Windows Store.

Highlights :

Windows 10 also offers some new features to encourage upgrades. The main one is Cortana, the personal assistant already familiar to Windows Phone users, but there are others.

• Windows Hello is a new sign-on system, which includes face recognition if you have an Intel RealSense-compatible camera.
• Action Center replaces the loathed Charms bar from Windows 8. It provides notifications and quick access to common settings.
• Task View provides an Apple expose-style view of all running programs at once, though Alt-Tab still works.
• Multiple virtual desktops are included as standard.
• Groove is a new music app/service that replaces Xbox Music. It can import and play your Google Play and iTunes music libraries.
• Continuum switches between desktop and tablet modes, and will enable future Windows 10 smartphones to work like desktop PCs.

Microsoft’s DirectX 12 is new for Windows 10 and more efficient enabling better gaming performance and longer battery life.

Microsoft’s new lightweight, standards-oriented and faster browser called Edge is also included, which feels faster than Internet Explorer and Chrome. With it you can write or type annotations on to web pages and email them to people, but it doesn’t support extensions yet.

Cortana loaded : 

The most Star Trek-like feature is Cortana, a digital assistant that competes with Apple’s Siri and Google Now, who can remember interests such as TV shows and sports teams, as well as previous questions. (Ask Cortana what she thinks of Siri and she says: “I think it’s great that we have Bing in common.”)

I couldn’t get voice to work on a Surface Pro 3 running the latest version of Windows 10. Cortana is much less fun if you have to type your questions, and if you do, she will only type her replies not talk to you.

Verdict :

Windows 10 works well, and didn’t break any of my older Windows software. The launch is just the start. Microsoft intends to continuously upgrade it over time, which the user has no choice about as you can’t turn updates off without becoming unsupported. There is a Microsoft tool to hide or block unwanted driver updates, however.

Should consumers take the free upgrade? If you use Windows 8 without a touch screen or you’re a gamer, it’s a no-brainer: get it as soon as you can, but back up first of course.

If you use Windows 8 on a tablet with no mouse and keyboard, Windows 10 is optional.

If you only use Windows 7, you will have some relearning to do into which the Get Started app provides a gentle introduction. You can certainly put it off for four-to-12 months, eventually you might be forced to upgrade.

Windows 10 is a significant upgrade and the extras are worth a try, especially if you can talk to Cortana. That’s probably not what I would have said three months ago, but using the final build has changed my mind.

• Pros: Smaller, lighter and faster than previous versions, works better with a mouse and keyboard, Cortana, “In place” upgrades should be painless, free upgrade
• Cons: Requires some relearning, some new features require new hardware, somewhat stark appearance won’t appeal to everyone, may break some very old applications

Posted by Unknown Wednesday, July 29, 2015

News Windows OS Update : Windows 10 vs. Windows 8: Performance Benchmarks Show A Close Battle For Fastest

Windows 10 performance is one of the hardest things to nail down right now. Testing of the new OS, due to ship on July 29, isn’t exactly easy, because the public doesn’t yet have a way to install the RTM version of it. Microsoft has been pretty mum about any under-the-hood changes. Even worse, hardware partners of Microsoft have been handcuffed from talking about the OS at all.

One thing we do know: Among the many big changes over Windows 8, Windows 10 may literally change the game in graphics performance as the only Microsoft OS with DirectX 12. Early testing of the OS shows performance gains elsewhere will be far smaller, though.

What I did have was access to two identical HP Spectre x360 laptops. One had build 10240 of Windows 10 Home, which Microsoft has officially blessed as “reviewable code,” while the other had Windows 8.1 Home.

Both laptops had the same screen, same battery, same 8GB of LPDDR3, same 128GB SSD make and models, and the same Intel Core i5-5200U CPUs inside and the same BIOSes. Other than OS, they were exactly the same.

I threw a bunch of different benchmarks to see if I could coax out any performance differences. I ran compression tests, chess benchmarks, and 3D rendering, as well as a spate of DX9 and DX11 benchmarks.

We were hoping for a daramatic face-off. What we got was a tie, or well within the margin of error.

For example, here’s the performance in PCMark 8 Creative Conventional. PCMark, for those who don’t know, simulates various “real-world” application loads. The Creative Conventional, for example, tests simulated web browsing, photo editing, video editing, gaming and group video chat. The Home load adds writing and casual gaming.

The result persisted just about everywhere between Windows 8.1 and Windows 10: mostly a tie with some loads giving Windows 10 a very slight edge. I could produce a lengthy page of graphs between the two in WinRar, CineBench, Valve’s old Particle Test, 7Zip, Passmark and 3DMark, but what’s the point? The bars would be almost the same on all of them and I’d just be wasting Internet bandwidth. If you want to see a graph, just take the above and change the name of it to 7Zip or whatever test you want.

I won’t throw away a day of testing without giving you more numbers, though, so here’s some of the results I saw. Other tests I simply didn’t record because after a while, it felt silly essentially writing down the same number twice.

But what about gaming?:

There is more promise on the gaming side. DirectX 12, in games that implement it, should see healthy improvements. But in games that don’t use DX12, it’s probably going to be a lot closer.

For example, I ran Tomb Raider on our PCWorld zero-point system. It has an Intel Core i7-4770K, 16GB of DDR3/1600, and a GeForce GTX 980. I used the same Nvidia drivers with both OSes. Note that I ran Wndows 10 build 10162 rather than the current build 10240, as that’s the last ISO of Windows 10 preview that Microsoft made available—no amount of coaxing would get Microsoft’s servers to kick down anything newer. My tests show a definite, if small, edge for Windows 10. Here’s Tomb Raider for you to gawk at: 

Other tests gave up a little more of a win for Win10, but this won’t set the world on fire like DX12 is expected to once games that support it are out. We’re planning a more in-depth look at Windows 10 gaming performance, so stay tuned.

Here are the takeaways: The first is that despite all the Windows 8 hate out there, the OS is actually quite fast. Anecdotal reports I’ve seen from when Battlefield 4 was released, for instance, attributed many performance improvements to running Windows 8 over the beloved Windows 7. Windows 8 offered improvements in video and audio decoding that made it faster, too. Another takeaway is that if Windows 8 was zippy, Windows 10 will be, too.

This isn’t the last word:
There’s a lot my initial testing doesn’t cover. Battery life improvements, file system improvements and other areas may indeed have been buffed by Microsoft. Once I get a proper ISO of the OS I can perform clean installs, and I’ll have a better feel for its performance outside of the areas I’ve touched on today.

OS performance testing has other challenges. Many of the benchmarks I ran are designed to test hardware, not the OS. Cinebench R15, for example, is a pure CPU test, though the OS has some impact. Windows Vista famously destroyed USB performance until SP1 was released, and the overhead from the OS can pull down performance elsewhere too.

Conclusion :

Windows 10 seems to offer basically no performance advantage over Windows 8 in mainstream tests, but let’s not be too negative, because there’s no reason to be. With Windows 7, Microsoft updated the scheduler for how the OS dealt with CPUs, which promised improvements and battery life savings for both Intel and AMD CPUs. That wasn’t a check-off item for Windows 10. because Windows 8.1 performance was already very good.

And, again, let’s not forget that Windows 10 ushers in DirectX 12, which should very much yield significant performance increases in games that support it.

Posted by Unknown Saturday, July 18, 2015

News Microsoft Windows Update : A Photo Tour Of Microsoft's Exhibition Stand At Mobile World Congress 2015

Like many of the world's leading tech giants, Microsoft is at this year's Mobile World Congress - and it's here in considerable force. The company unveiled two new handsets - the Lumia 640 and Lumia 640 XL - at their keynote yesterday, along with a new Universal Foldable Keyboard, but is that enough to fill an entire exhibition stand at the world's biggest mobile industry event?

Not even close - but Microsoft has far more on its stand than just a couple of demo units for its new devices.

Microsoft's stand at MWC is in the same location occupied by Nokia in previous years, and its scale is immense - the image above shows just one corner of the giant stand.

The stand offers visitors the opportunity to check out some of Microsoft's products - including its digital 'personal assistant', Cortana.

Indeed, more than just viewing demos, visitors are offered the opportunity to try stuff like Cortana out for themselves. I have to admit that I had a bit of a giggle listening to people with a dizzying array of beautiful and exotic accents trying to interact with Cortana in English - although I was rather surprised by how well it appeared to cope with some of the more unusual pronunciations that I overheard....!

Booths and interactive displays are available for those who have never actually used some of Microsoft's products. This one introduces Windows Phone, using the same 'emulator' that is available on the company's website.

But visitors are also invited to play with the various devices on Microsoft's stand too. Here, a lady examines the Lumia 635, which has the Windows 10 Technical Preview for phones pre-installed.

It's just not phones either - Microsoft is pushing the idea of "Windows for multiple screens" at MWC, showing continuity of the Windows experience across PC, tablet and phone. Of course, that story isn't exactly complete yet - but it will get better with Windows 10.

But, of course, this being the Mobile World Congress, phones and tablets are the real stars of the show, and the Lumia range is displayed prominently across the stand, along with its Surface Pro 3.

All those devices have been maintaining a decent footfall to the Microsoft stand over the last couple of days - no mean feat considering that it's vying for attention with LG, Sony, Samsung and many other leading brands, who are its immediate neighbors at the show.

...and yes, that is a giant hot-air balloon. The basket is the DJ's booth!

Microsoft's "first phones" range is also on display here - these are its 'non-smart' feature phones (sometimes called 'dumb phones), which target buyers primarily in emerging markets, who have never owned a mobile handset before.

But of course, the Lumia range is what Microsoft really hopes buyers will choose - including those in business environments. While Android and iOS have made serious in-roads into the enterprise mobile space, Microsoft has succeeded in gaining significant business share in many markets, such as the UK. Understandably, it's keen to build on this (it's a rare success story for Windows Phone, after all).

And despite Windows 10 still being months away from its official launch, Microsoft is already courting business and enterprise customers - including many key decision makers and influencers visiting MWC this week from around the mobile world - and talking up the benefits of its next-gen OS for the workplace.

Windows 8 failed to make significant progress into the business market, but Microsoft is hoping that the shallower learning curve of Windows 10 - and its broad similarities to Windows 7 - will make it an easier sell to companies.

The company has also been talking up its apps platform to just about anyone who will listen. Here, users are being shown demos from a Windows Phone handset, and I've overheard many reps on the stand talking up the big name apps available on the platform today (presumably in an effort to continue fighting the perception that Windows Phone has 'no apps').

There are many 'zones' across the Microsoft stand - each attempting to reach out to a different part of the Mobile World Congress audience.

But there is another side to the Microsoft stand at MWC. The company has continued a tradition started by Nokia, of offering hospitality and seating to all of the world's press attending MWC, as well as Microsoft partners.

...and in the interests of full disclosure, it's only fair that I mention all the delicious food that Microsoft heaps upon journalists from all publications, along with plenty of tasty fruit juices and other (non-alcoholic!) beverages.

There's also a huge work and meeting space, where press can gather to casually listen in on conversations between Microsoft executives and other very important people, while we pretend to be distracted by all the yummy food.

Of course, a big shout-out must go to the staff on Microsoft's stand (and those on the stands of every other brand exhibiting at MWC, for that matter). These folks work long, long days - often dealing with stupid questions and, occasionally, a bit of self-entitled rudeness from some of the more arrogant attendees. Indeed, regardless of which company the reps working on the show floors at MWC represent, they are the true heroes of the entire expo.

For all their hard work, the Microsoft team enjoys a bit of fun now and then - for example, by spontaneously bursting into a quick dance to celebrate winning a bunch of best-in-show awards at MWC for its new devices.

...and again, just 'cause.

So, it's (mostly) hard work at the Microsoft stand, showcasing the company's latest and - it hopes - greatest products. Now, if anyone has any ideas for how to steal that hot air balloon

Posted by Unknown Wednesday, March 04, 2015

News Microsoft Windows Update : Microsoft Gives A Small Look At An Updated Build Of Windows 10 For Phones

Microsoft is in Barcelona this week where they announced the Lumia 640 and the 640 XL. At the same keynote, the company also showed off a newer build of Windows 10 for phones.

We grabbed a couple screenshots from the stream that shows the Spartan icon and updates to the messaging app. Sure, these are not any groundbreaking new features but they do show items that are currently not available via the preview release that went out a few weeks ago.

While we did get to see some of the new messaging features back in January, you can now get a better look at the actual chat part of the messages app. The new message selection view also has rounded chat heads that we have seen in various parts of Microsoft's new UI as well.

Overall, the Start screen UI is still very similar to that of the first preview release but it's clear that there is work being done deep down in the apps to help the UI align across the entire Windows ecosystem. The Messaging app now looks a lot like the UI concept that Skype showed off back in January that you can see below.

When you see the direction the Skype/Messaging app is headed on the desktop, you can begin to see the UI similarities to what has been shown off with Windows 10 for phones.

Microsoft has remained quiet about when the next release will occur for phones and if/when they will expand supported devices for the public preview. It should be noted that during the MWC keynote, the presenter was using a Lumia 930 which is not currently supported by the public release of the OS.

Posted by Unknown Wednesday, March 04, 2015

New Product Launched : HP Unveils The Spectre x360, A 13-Inch Convertible

HP is looking to wow customers with its latest notebook, a touch-enabled, hybrid device called the Spectre x360. Featuring a machined-aluminium body, a thin profile, powerful internals, and long-battery life, the Spectre looks set to impress.

Hybrid devices have been a staple of the Windows 8 era but the new laptops coming onto the market seem to just now be coming into their own. That’s thanks to better than ever battery life, and improvements in screens and CPU power optimizations.

The Spectre x360 fits into this market very well, and HP seems to have focused heavily on the design and aesthetic of this machine. The device features a 0.6-inch profile and a clamshell formfactor.

However, the 13-inch FHD/QHD touchscreen display can bend over backwards, up to 360 degrees. Users can change the screen orientation depending in which way they use the machine, alternating between regular laptop and tablet styles of use.

HP is also touting the new hinges that the device uses, claiming they’ll last for the lifetime of the laptop without any of the problems that are traditionally found on this type of device.

One of the most important aspects that the manufacturer is touting, is the Spectre’s battery life. HP claims that the combination of efficient screens, CPU and Wi-Fi optimizations will allow the device to go more than 12 hours without a charge. Of course, this claim will need a lot of testing once the device hits markets.

Here are the Spectre x360’s main specs:

• Dimensions: 12.7 in (W) x 8.6 in (D) x 0.6 in (H)
• Weight: 3.26 lb (1. 47 kg)
• Intel Broadwell i5 -5200U CPU at 2.2 Ghz
• 8GB DDR3 RAM
• 256GB SSD (upgradeable to 512 GB)
• 13.3-inch Full HD/Quad HD display
• 3x USB 3.0 ports, HDMI port, MiniDisplay port

The HP Spectre x360 goes on sale today on the manufacturer’s website, and will also be arriving on BestBuy after the first half of this month. As for pricing, that all depends on which specs you opt for. The base i5 model with a 1080p screen starts at $899.99, while a range-topper i7 with a QHD screen and a 512GB SSD will end up costing you $1399.99.

Posted by Unknown Sunday, March 01, 2015