Cortana
Cortana is truly one of Microsoft’s best efforts on the mobile front, and she’s coming to Windows 10! An intelligent personal assistant that understands who you are, where you are and what you are doing, Cortana can assist when called upon, either by providing key information, suggesting actions and sometimes even performing them for you if granted the appropriate permissions.
Internet Explorer 12
Microsoft hasn’t given up on its browser either. On the contrary, Windows 10 will be sporting a version of Internet Explorer (12) which will finally be able to accommodate extensions — like Chrome and Firefox. We do not yet know where these extensions will come from, nor what they will do, but it is likely that Microsoft will pay particular attention to the enterprise, given the renewed focus on business users.
Compliance with the latest web standards, already greatly improved in Windows 8.1, should also be further refined in IE12.
Back To Business
Businesses were particularly neglected by Windows 8 and 8.1, as most of the new features were feared towards the consumer market. With Windows 10, Microsoft definitely wants to see all businesses, including all those remaining Windows XP installations, adopt the new system. Not only is yesterday’s the first Technical Preview intended for these folks, but all new BYOD features and remote administration are also expected to be incorporated along with improvements to Hyper-V.
Windows Update, Redesigned
So far, Windows Update has been distributing the same updates to all Windows users. Windows 10 introduces the concept of continuous delivery, where new features will still be regularly offered, but only up to the allowable specifications of the machine and the type of user.
This principle is essential to the Technical Preview. Though still very incomplete, and very unstable, it will allow users to receive patches and new features as soon as they’re finalized by the developers. Moreover, many of the features shown here (such as Cortana, Storage Sense and Wi-Fi Sense) are not present in yesterday’s Technical Preview. Instead, they will be gradually installed by early 2015 via Windows Update.
Windows Insider Program
Microsoft also introduced a new Windows Insider Program in which users who volunteer will frequently receive new features to test. A mechanism for feedback is integrated to allow them to tell Microsoft what they like, what they dislike, suggest improvements, chat with other “insiders" about what's new. Microsoft seems more interested than ever in listening to its users. Perhaps it wants to avoid another Windows 8 fiasco.
The Consumer Preview
The Windows 10 Technical Preview, which became available for download yesterday afternoon, is not without bugs. This is still a very incomplete draft, intended for engineers, developers and enthusiasts, and aimed primarily at IT departments. However, Microsoft plans to release a Consumer Preview around the New Year, and that should better reflect the final version. The Consumer Preview should also be offered on the ARM-based Surface RT and Surface 2, which the Technical Preview is not (x86-only).
