Microsoft is working on a 'sweeping visual rejuvenation' for Windows 10

[Ben Myers]

Year after year after year, Microsoft upends the Windows desktop, several times provoking serious negative reactions. At the same time, Windows continues to be an unstable house of cards, with pathetic diagnosis of hardware errors, continued unpleasant adventures with Windows updates, flawed releases of Windows 10 versions. Recovery from various classes of system and operating system failures continues to be a horror show, as I see every day when people bring me their messed up systems to fix. MIcrosoft's priorities for Windows continue to be bolluxed. All people really want is something that works, and our lives with Windows continue to be far less than that.

 

[Ben Myers]

I for one really like the Windows 10 look. It's mostly the configuration and settings stuff that's still rather all over the place. So if they can unify that without losing functionality - great. I wish we could get nice big icons in the start menu (and option to turn labels on and off). I use iconifier for this now so it's no biggie, but often the icons reset themselves when apps are updated.
Some more configurability and options for the left hand pane in the explorer would be good too. But the overall look is fine by me.

I for one really like the Windows 10 look. It's mostly the configuration and settings stuff that's still rather all over the place. So if they can unify that without losing functionality - great. I wish we could get nice big icons in the start menu (and option to turn labels on and off). I use iconifier for this now so it's no biggie, but often the icons reset themselves when apps are updated.
Some more configurability and options for the left hand pane in the explorer would be good too. But the overall look is fine by me.

The old Control Panel from Windows 7 and earlier was and is perfectly fine for getting at important information. With Windows 10, Microsoft has made it sometimes very hard to find the settings, whether the same older ones or those newly introduced. And now there is the rumor that the old Control Panel could go bye-bye? ACKKKKKK!

The answer here is not yet another book, to be obsolete in 6 months (!), or a Microsoft training course in how to use all the settings, or countless on-line how-to articles about Windows 10 settings. The answer is simplicity and economy in software design, lost in Microsoft land long ago.

 

[terzaerian]

First thing installed on Windows 10 since day one - Classic Shell.

Amen. The Windows 10 Start Menu is hot garbage.

What I'd really like is a Linux distro from someone that actually likes and respects the GUI and aims to utilize its strengths instead of sticking a perfunctory one on there for "normies". I'm sick and tired of hearing the same memes about CLI - yes, it's more powerful than a GUI, yes, it has more room for batch commands - I *don't f'ing care* when my objective is to move a single file from one folder to another in as few keystrokes as possible, or just open a program, or just tweak a single setting off. What CLI chauvinists constantly overlook is that besides often being more intuitive, a well-designed GUI can be more efficient for common, simple tasks. It's shitty that the only OS that recognizes this is Microsoft's Windows, from the same company that wants to black-bag computing into a lobotomized tablet paradigm.

 

[Mugsy]

If MS is looking for suggestions, I proposed to them about a year ago to produce a "hybrid" start menu that more closely resembled Win7 on the left with Win10 Tiles on the right.

I even sent them a picture of my own mockup:
https://I.postimg.cc/BQTyjJkV/my-Win10-start-menu-mockup.jpg

 

[kmo911]

Control panel will be removed soon ? tv2 ?

 

[Dyson Parkes]

Classic Shell is always the first thing I install to fix the start menu. And things like Rainmeter exist to modify lots of other things

If you enjoy these two things, take a look at explorer++ and Cairo Shell - both pretty solid options to further augment things like rainmeter, fences, rk launcher, rocket dock, classic shell... I put Cairo, notepad++, and explorer++ on hyper-v hosts for if I ever have to do quick file manipulation.

 

[comnut]

You probably have an SSD on C:/. That explains the "fast startup", ever so much more than Windows 10.

We've had a litany of claims about "fast boot times with Windows 10", ever since its release.

Well, the machine someone just built to install 10, likely has a CPU damned near twice as fast as the one it replaced, along with near twice faster RAM, and an SSD. So why does Windows 10 seem to get all the credit?

get 'process explorer' - it will show ALL the processes going on - If you think windows has 'finished loading' when the icons appear, you are WRONG (if you do not try doing things straight away)

all a bit of 'lying' to make people think it is fast..

 

[mgwerner]

Let me guess: Remove the Start button

 

[FatRoot]

Microsoft is so far behind the curve all they can think to do is pick low hanging fruit like restyling old bug-ridden code to make it more modern and attractive looking. Well, I guess a pig with lipstick still tastes like bacon so gee wiz, I can't wait.

 

[Tyr Antilles]

The only way I see to really rejuvenate the Windows interface is to build two interfaces plus one customizable one.
- interface 1 with large buttons for simple phone/tablet users who just want to change their wallpaper and nothing more.
- interface 2 for power users with all advanced options available, aimed for use with HD monitors.
- custom interface that every power user can change for his own needs.

I never use the new hard to use Windows 10 start menu, but I add a new toolbar on taskbar that contains the shortcuts I want. This way I have my good old start menu without installing any 3rd party program (see photo): https://1drv.ms/u/s!AqtI3rSJQnG_lkTasXS9q2BBCYxK?e=H0NO4k

 

[Gastec]

Honestly I couldn't care less. And I'll never understand the Windows 8 outcry either. It's been like a decade or so, but we still have people whining about the Start menu. Seriously, how much time do you spend in the Start menu daily, 10 seconds, 20 maybe? Like 0.001% of your time? Why's that such an issue? Why is it the single most important issue? It's about as relevant to me as the looks of the BIOS settings. Who the hell cares, just get on with it.

I'm not using Windows, I'm using my APPS on Windows, Windows is just a tool to allow me to do that. It's literally just a task bar for organizing my open apps' icons lol. The rest of the issue is just people with too much free time on their hands, looking for things to get angry about.

From your comment, which sure smells like "teen spirit", I conclude that:
1. We should not care anymore.
2. We should not complain (whine, as you put it) anymore.
3. We should be more aggressive, in writing at least.
4. End sentences with "lol".

 

[bviktor]

From your comment, which sure smells like "teen spirit", I conclude that:
1. We should not care anymore.
2. We should not complain (whine, as you put it) anymore.
3. We should be more aggressive, in writing at least.
4. End sentences with "lol".

Been doing this professionally for a decade. For another decade as a hobby. Been a senior Linux and Windows server admin for a couple of years, then moved onto devops and information security. Feel free to browse an excerpt of my work on GitHub, or my blog. I'm also the original creator of HexChat. Call it "teen spirit" if you like (whatever that means in your book).

1. You should not care about things with next to zero importance. Prioritize.
2. Complain about real issues. Having a different looking default Start menu with the same exact functionality (actually, more functionality), which is revertible to the old looks anyway, is not an issue.
3. No one said anything like that.
4. See point 3.

 

[Sir Sparkles]

Next they are going to come up with amazing new features like rounded corners and borders on the windows, and system options in lists. It'll be like... XP. But better, because of all the chaos and suffering beforehand will create contrast.