[HN Gopher] Microsoft announces Windows 11
       ___________________________________________________________________
        
       Microsoft announces Windows 11
        
       Author : neogodless
       Score  : 406 points
       Date   : 2021-06-24 15:14 UTC (7 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.theverge.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.theverge.com)
        
       | oramit wrote:
       | Microsoft and Apple both said a few years back that they had
       | "finished" their respective operating systems and were no longer
       | going to do versioning like this.
       | 
       | I wonder why the change of heart?
        
         | charwalker wrote:
         | New execs need to make their mark.
        
       | binkHN wrote:
       | I think I might switch to Chrome OS when this happens.
        
       | priyanmuthu wrote:
       | I see that it supports Android apps. Does that mean we have
       | complete GUI support for WSL2? I believe it will use WSL2 in the
       | backend?
        
         | ewzimm wrote:
         | Full GUI support is available now in preview, so by the time
         | Windows 11 launches, it should be ready for mainstream support.
         | It uses Wayland and RDP natively. I haven't seen any
         | announcement of if this will be used for the Android support
         | layer, but it will likely be using something similar.
         | 
         | Edit: It looks like this will be using Intel Bridge Technology
         | to cross compile into x86.
         | https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/newsroom/news/intel-...
        
       | janandonly wrote:
       | After looking at these screenshots I'm more grateful to be using
       | macOS now than ever before...
        
         | 72deluxe wrote:
         | Because it looks exactly the same??
        
       | A4ET8a8uTh0 wrote:
       | Wasn't 10 supposed to be the last Windows ever? Isn't that how
       | some of the more annoying update habits were justified to the
       | users?
       | 
       | I am underwhelmed with Win 11. I did not see a feature that felt
       | sufficiently useful to justify coming back. I am not sure, who
       | would consciously choose it outside of business sector and
       | gaming.
        
       | thibran wrote:
       | Looks like KDE with fixed magins :)
        
       | speeder wrote:
       | Snap layout felt to me a cute name for a feature I have seen last
       | on Windows 3.1
       | 
       | That said I did liked that feature I am happy it is back.
        
       | russli1993 wrote:
       | they are integrating teams, onedrive, office, microsoft 365 stuff
       | directly into windows 11. Doesn't that spark anti-trust concerns?
       | Think about Microsoft was fined for anti-trust for integrating
       | internet explorer into windows and making it the default. Looks
       | like every platform holder is just using the dominance of their
       | platform to push their other stuff.
        
       | wodenokoto wrote:
       | How does word look using the new design language? Still ribbons
       | or is it back to menus or something completely different?
        
       | chris_wot wrote:
       | 40% smaller Windows updates? I think they are missing the point.
       | It's not the size of the download, it's the time it takes for
       | Windows to work out its package dependency treee, it's ridiculous
       | SxS system that was only ever a massive kluge, and the incredible
       | number of forced reboots.
       | 
       | If it takes me no more than five minutes to run an apt update &&
       | apt upgrade ---yes with no reboots, how on earth is it that
       | Microsoft is still so behind the eight ball? Note that apt
       | upgrades _everything_ in _minutes_ , whilst Windows does not.
        
       | literallyaduck wrote:
       | Every time this happens someone says fuck it and installs Linux.
       | After two weeks some of them come back, but the Linux market
       | share grows.
       | 
       | I want an OS that stays current on security patches, attempts to
       | be as unobtrusive as possible, allows for Desktop Environment
       | customization but has sane defaults. I don't want special
       | integrations. The OS should follow single responsibility and
       | defer special functionality to app developers.
        
         | mdoms wrote:
         | Wait until you see what happens with Ubuntu updates.
        
         | miroz wrote:
         | I did this when Vista came out. I said fuck it and installed
         | Ubuntu, I had enough of Microsoft bullshit. Then Ubuntu
         | upgraded and moved all window icons to the left side and
         | rearranged them awkwardly. On the next update, they upgraded
         | the sound subsystem and I was without sound until I bought my
         | next PC. Another update came and computer went to sleep when
         | watching movies, so I had to move the mouse every minute to fix
         | it. I said fuck it and installed Windows 7. There's no escape.
        
           | zamadatix wrote:
           | The upside to Linux is when one of these kinds of changes
           | happen you have the freedom to modify or swap out components
           | to your liking.
           | 
           | The downside to Linux is nobody actually wants to constantly
           | modify or maintain components to their liking and nobody can
           | agree what a good liking is so nobody likes the way somebody
           | else does it.
        
             | IshKebab wrote:
             | Yeah and you can only do that if you have student-level
             | free time. I used Linux as a student. I could keep it
             | mostly working. Now I have a job and children and I like my
             | laptop to last longer than 2 hours and connect to WiFi
             | reliably.
        
           | handrous wrote:
           | My most recent attempt, last year, ended when xorg and
           | Wayland both crashed, reliably, at least once per day, on two
           | different distros (Fedora, Ubuntu) when just _using the
           | desktop normally_ --not even running games or anything like
           | that. Nope. Not accepting that shit in the year 2021. 2000-me
           | would have been like, OK, cool, Windows does that too. Not
           | anymore.
           | 
           | ... and that's just for my screwing-around desktop machine.
           | Work goes on macOS. I wish I had other decent options, but
           | it's the only game in town. No time or patience for messing
           | with my OS, these days.
        
           | nicbou wrote:
           | I had a similar experience. MacOS was the answer. For me, the
           | moat around MacOS is so large that I refuse to consider any
           | other laptop brand.
           | 
           | This has been the most frictionless operating system I've
           | used to date. It's not perfect, but it's good enough to make
           | other options undesirable.
        
             | mixmastamyk wrote:
             | May want to rethink:
             | 
             | https://sneak.berlin/20201112/your-computer-isnt-yours/
             | 
             | https://sneak.berlin/20210202/macos-11.2-network-privacy/
        
           | kylemuir wrote:
           | I've been using Linux Mint for years now and really enjoy it.
           | It looks good, works with most things out of the box and I've
           | had minimal issues with it.
           | 
           | It's a bloated distro since it tries to cater to most set ups
           | and ships with drivers, etc that you might not need which
           | will annoy the purists but for me the compatibility and
           | things just working is more valuable.
           | 
           | I only use it on a desktop PC so YMMV.
           | 
           | These days I only use Windows for work as that's what my
           | company uses and for games that don't work with Proton.
        
           | lucian1900 wrote:
           | For better or worse, the escape is macOS.
        
         | dgan wrote:
         | I said exactly that to myself when Windows 8 was out, quite
         | happy since then:)
        
       | jl6 wrote:
       | So many questions...
       | 
       | Will Win10 users be able to upgrade to Win11 for free or will
       | they have to buy it?
       | 
       | What's the end-of-life date for Win10 now?
       | 
       | Will the minimum hardware requirements be increased?
       | 
       | Will this be used as an opportunity to make backwards-
       | compatibility-breaking improvements?
       | 
       | Are they actually going to fix the _whole_ UI or just 80% of it
       | and leave the remaining 20% as sedimentary layers of previous
       | UIs?
       | 
       | And I really really really hope they fix Teams' performance and
       | stability issues before bundling it with the OS and running it
       | continuously.
        
         | MarcScott wrote:
         | Some answers here -
         | https://www.theverge.com/2021/6/24/22546801/microsoft-window...
        
           | acwan93 wrote:
           | More details here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-
           | us/windows/windows-11-specifica...
        
             | ehsankia wrote:
             | Great link, thanks!
             | 
             | Found this unfortunate change deep down:
             | 
             | > Taskbar functionality is changed including: Alignment to
             | the bottom of the screen is the only location allowed.
        
         | marcthe12 wrote:
         | It's free and it's minimum requirements are bumped massively.
        
         | salamandersauce wrote:
         | Free. 2025. Yes, 32-bit CPUs are out. I guess with 32-bit mode
         | so goes 16-bit support? Probably not to the last two?
        
           | xxpor wrote:
           | IIRC 16 bit support was dropped with 8 or 10?
        
             | salamandersauce wrote:
             | It still works in 32 bit Windows 10 but you have to install
             | NTVDM which provided as a feature on demand.
        
         | [deleted]
        
       | 1-6 wrote:
       | I think most people scratch their heads when they hear Windows 11
       | because it seems like the same Windows but skinned with a
       | slightly new UI. This is also from a company which puts function
       | over form.
        
       | 2OEH8eoCRo0 wrote:
       | I'd love to watch the event stream but it is down.
        
       | dukeofdoom wrote:
       | Except it will be the same old windows disguised.
        
         | lupinglade wrote:
         | Exactly, just more lipstick on a pig. They never seem to fully
         | commit to anything.
        
           | MaxBarraclough wrote:
           | That's too broad, they fully committed to Direct3D, and
           | they're more committed to backward-compatibility than anyone
           | else I could name.
           | 
           | They have real trouble committing to a UI toolkit or design
           | language, though.
        
       | aj7 wrote:
       | That's all well and good, but I'd just like search to work as
       | well as it does on MacOSX.
        
       | nly wrote:
       | Stealing all the advanced window management features from the
       | Linux DE world... say repeatedly that no other OS does it.
       | 
       | Stay classy MS.
        
         | 1_player wrote:
         | Ask the Linux DE world to put a patent on it and litigate
         | everyone that tries to steal their ground-breaking ideas.
        
       | pavlov wrote:
       | Pop-up file previews with spacebar in Explorer please...?
       | 
       | That's my #1 pain point when moving between Mac and Windows. It's
       | so annoying that the spacebar does nothing.
        
         | MikusR wrote:
         | There is an app for that "good" feature.
        
           | pavlov wrote:
           | Windows has an admirable amount of API hooks, so there's
           | presumably an app for everything.
           | 
           | That's not an excuse not to improve base Explorer, though.
        
         | fleaaaa wrote:
         | Quicklook does the job fine
        
       | dustinc1 wrote:
       | seems there's free upgrade from windows 10 to windows 11, but not
       | from windows 7 to 11.
        
       | sumthinprofound wrote:
       | still no windows explorer tabs?
        
         | djdjdkdkdkd wrote:
         | This. I thought they announced that feature as coming soon a
         | couple of years ago.
        
           | gjsman-1000 wrote:
           | They did. Then they threw out the entire concept.
        
       | TheDudeMan wrote:
       | How about they just re-release Windows 7 instead?
        
       | Koshkin wrote:
       | Yet another related ongoing thread:
       | 
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27619831
        
       | dragonwriter wrote:
       | The lack of support for start menu folders and named groups of
       | apps probably means that not only with the Start Menu suck even
       | worse than in Win 8-10, but third party replacements will no
       | longer have the data available to restore a decent experience.
       | 
       | As with the "task bar only can be attached to the bottom of the
       | screen", um, "feature", I really don't get this. Okay, sure, MS
       | targets a default UX that I'm not partial too, fine, maybe its
       | better for more of the market; lots of it is subjective so I
       | don't expect my tastes to be catered to in every default. But why
       | throw roadblocks in the way of what people who _don't_ prefer the
       | default experience have been doing for years to optimize their
       | personal experience?
        
         | zubspace wrote:
         | It's even more annoying if the change just happens because of
         | 'design'.
         | 
         | Can you imagine being the developer who says:
         | 
         | "Well, let's redesign that thing to make it look awesome. And
         | well, let's also remove all those existing features, which only
         | complicate the code. Don't need them."
         | 
         | Never in my life could I work at my current company with this
         | mindset without being thrown out in an instant. It's such an
         | odd way to approach redesigns.
        
       | DethNinja wrote:
       | So taskbar extends horizontally and places icons in the middle,
       | which means:
       | 
       | 1. It creates unnecessary visual clutter in the right and left
       | sides and takes up valuable space.
       | 
       | 2. Users will have harder time clicking to start button.
       | 
       | I'm having hard time seeing what is UX benefit of this?
        
         | AnimalMuppet wrote:
         | The first rule of UX design, as far as I'm concerned, is: _Don
         | 't make me think._
         | 
         | Moving stuff around? You just made me think. You'd better have
         | a _good_ reason for that, better than just  "it will play
         | better on touch devices". I'm not _on_ a touch device, so you
         | just slowed me down to solve a problem _that I don 't have_.
        
           | spaetzleesser wrote:
           | I agree. Teams is pretty bad about this. Every few weeks some
           | buttons get moved around so you have to look for them.
           | Instead of fixing problems it seems they just keep changing
           | the UI.
        
         | whywhywhywhy wrote:
         | Why does MacOS do it?
        
           | DethNinja wrote:
           | But macOS does it differently, visually it looks far pleasing
           | that what is shown here.
           | 
           | I'm not a huge fan of macOS dock bar but UX wise it isn't so
           | bad.
        
           | [deleted]
        
         | partiallypro wrote:
         | You can move it back to the corner in the settings.
        
           | Grimm665 wrote:
           | But why the change at all? I wonder what their user story for
           | this one was.
        
             | partiallypro wrote:
             | I have wondered that too, I don't like the look of the new
             | taskbar, I was hoping they'd do more with it with some of
             | the user concepts floating around (such as a rounded
             | floating taskbar.) I'm sure the true reason is that is what
             | MacOS does, so they just copied it.
        
               | WorldMaker wrote:
               | With (ultra)widescreens these days moving the Start Menu
               | and Search boxes to the center of the screen makes a lot
               | of sense. Literally brings them "front and center", and I
               | guess if the menus/windows/boxes are moving to the
               | center, moving the icons that open them to the center
               | makes sense.
               | 
               | As a vertical taskbar user (since way back in XP days)
               | though, I'm definitely upset by all the wasted space. I'm
               | perplexed why they aren't allowing vertical taskbars at
               | launch. I'm sure telemetry suggests most users keep a
               | bottom taskbar.
        
       | partiallypro wrote:
       | One thing that stood out to me as missing, was a file explorer
       | demo. Have they just given up on revamping that?
        
         | 72deluxe wrote:
         | Let's hope it wasn't as bad as the "revamp" in Windows 10 where
         | that dumb ribbon replaced a usable toolbar for good, where
         | Quick Access apparently was necessary because obviously the
         | file directory listing wasn't obvious enough...
         | 
         | And pressing tab to get to the other pane now gave focus to the
         | list header when in details view, forcing you to press tab 30
         | times to get between the left and right panes.
         | 
         | I think the most useful Explorer version was the Windows 98 one
         | or possibly XP, but it went downhill in Vista.
         | 
         | Let's hope they had a change of heart and just reverted to that
         | old version!!!
        
       | nprateem wrote:
       | Could have been a release video for KDE.
        
       | aplkorex wrote:
       | I work at a company where the majority of the employees complain
       | about every new version of Windows, some rather aggressively.
       | They resist adoption until the last possible minute. Then when
       | they upgrade, what do they do? -- continue to use Windows to make
       | cool stuff so our company continues to grow and, in reality,
       | persist with the same exact workflow they had the week before...
       | it just looks a little different. Then the complaints die off,
       | and, well, on to other things....
       | 
       | Until the next version of Windows is announced.
        
         | Shadonototro wrote:
         | and then management have to upgrade PCs because it runs
         | noticeably slower and tinker with services even more because it
         | interrupts workflow (remember the windows update popups during
         | weather forecasts?)
        
       | chadlavi wrote:
       | Quite a lot of stuff in that new UI looks directly pilfered from
       | apple. And "you can run android apps" sounds like a direct copy
       | of macOS running iPad apps.
       | 
       | Even the (in windows' case, completely nonsensical) decision to
       | center the taskbar feels like a ripoff of apple ui.
        
       | only_as_i_fall wrote:
       | It's OK, 2022 will be the year of the Linux desktop
        
       | markus_zhang wrote:
       | I think this actually going to convice me to move to Linux for
       | daily use...
        
       | agumonkey wrote:
       | I'm still baffled it's still about moving windows and apps around
       | (now with a global mute button).
        
       | ThrowawayR2 wrote:
       | > " _Microsoft is also integrating Microsoft Teams directly into
       | Windows 11, for both consumers and commercial users._ "
       | 
       | Not that I have any objections to Teams _per se_ but attempting
       | to drive adoption by bundling got Microsoft in trouble in the IE
       | era; didn 't they learn their lesson? Either way, probably the
       | first thing I'll be doing after a fresh install of Windows 11 is
       | uninstalling Teams.
        
         | 0xEFF wrote:
         | They didn't get in trouble for bundling IE. The got in trouble
         | for legal and technical restrictions on using alternatives to
         | IE.
         | 
         | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Microsoft_Cor...
         | .
        
           | nix23 wrote:
           | They got in trouble in the EU, that's why they had to make a
           | version without ie > Windows 7 E
        
         | [deleted]
        
         | ejh_hn wrote:
         | If you can even uninstall it. That's honestly my biggest gripe
         | about Windows besides the fact it's proprietary is all of the
         | stupid shit it comes bundled with that you will never use and
         | can't remove.
        
         | sonofhans wrote:
         | I think they learned their lesson very well. Microsoft suffered
         | little for bundling Internet Explorer into Windows. The court
         | case cost them some time and money, and in return they made no
         | substantive business changes, and shut out browser competition
         | for years. They had a plan and it worked. Why shouldn't they do
         | it again?
        
           | Iwan-Zotow wrote:
           | it worked?!?
           | 
           | they pretty much lost browser war to chrome and safari
        
             | sonofhans wrote:
             | Yes, it worked, and far longer than most corporate
             | initiatives do. The antitrust trial was decided in 2001 and
             | Chrome didn't launch until 2008. Microsoft owned the
             | pathway to the Internet for Windows users for a solid
             | decade.
        
         | A4ET8a8uTh0 wrote:
         | Eh, I do have misgivings about Teams and such tight Teams
         | integration since my company chose it as its default
         | communication platform.
         | 
         | My biggest beef is how limited I am as user with configuration
         | ( the notifications are too big for my taste -- and I can
         | either choose that they show or don't) and that UI somehow
         | feels worse than webex.
        
           | mrtranscendence wrote:
           | I'm on MacOS, not Windows, but I really concur with you on
           | the notifications. They're huge, they stay on screen too
           | long, and they can't be dismissed early. I hate that they
           | chose not to go with the standard MacOS notification system.
           | 
           | Another MacOS annoyance: Teams seems to exist in every
           | virtual desktop, so even if the main window is in (say)
           | desktop 3 and I'm in desktop 2, if I cmd-tab to Teams it
           | won't take me to desktop 3. I have to manually switch
           | desktops to get back to Teams.
        
         | jimbob45 wrote:
         | Does that mean it's finally becoming a native app? By far the
         | worst part of MS Teams is that it's slow and can't really help
         | when it can't connect to its servers because it's just a web
         | page.
        
           | MikusR wrote:
           | It's moving from electron to webview2
        
             | jl6 wrote:
             | Do you have any information about what problems this is
             | expected to solve?
        
               | WorldMaker wrote:
               | WebView2 is shipped/serviced by Windows (auto-updates
               | with Edgmium at roughly the exact same pace as
               | Chromium/Chrome), and it's a shared control with a single
               | install which Windows can optimize memory
               | usage/performance. As opposed to Electron packages its
               | own Chromium, updates have to be shipped inside the
               | application at the application's pace (including and
               | especially security updates), and the install size and
               | memory usage/performance is bloated for every Electron
               | app bundling lots of the exact same Chromium DLLs and
               | whatnot.
        
         | zeusk wrote:
         | safari/iMessage/Facetime/Maps or every default app on iOS? or
         | any preinstalled and uninstallable app on Android?
        
           | nevi-me wrote:
           | Yeah, I thought of this too when I saw the integration, but a
           | lot of things have changed since the antitrust issues at the
           | time. If there's bundling issues, then I don't know.
           | 
           | The one thing I lament though is that using the same platform
           | for work and personal communication tends to trigger some
           | anxiety reflex in me.
           | 
           | I sometimes dread the long "quick call" in Teams, so hearing
           | the call notification even in a video has me looking for my
           | headphones :(
        
           | out_of_protocol wrote:
           | I don't use any of safari/iMessage/Facetime/Maps and, gladly,
           | they are sitting quietly in the corner. Don't think Teams
           | stuff will behave like that
        
             | kyriakos wrote:
             | Skype does in Windows 10
        
           | MajorBee wrote:
           | Neither iOS nor MacOS are dominant in their respective
           | categories. You can argue that the right metric to look at is
           | market share by revenue and not by devices sold, and iOS does
           | increase its footprint significantly at 42% of global
           | smartphone revenue [1] (cementing itself as the single
           | largest player), but still, arguably, not monopoly levels. I
           | couldn't find a similar figure for the Desktop OS market,
           | only (what I assume) is for devices currently running [2].
           | Sidenote: I think it's interesting to note that Windows
           | market share has been steadily declining over the years, from
           | a peak of ~91% a mere 8 years ago to around 76% in 2020.
           | 
           | Given this, by bundling a chat/productivity application (that
           | has nothing to do with the OS product that Microsoft is
           | selling), Microsoft is using its huge leverage in one
           | category (OS) to increase its market share in another
           | unrelated category (chat apps). This matches one of the
           | conditions for US anti-trust action [3], and could even match
           | the predatory pricing [uncited, hard to prove] condition
           | (Microsoft bundling Teams for free indicates the cost of
           | Teams is being absorbed by the Windows or some other business
           | unit).
           | 
           | [1] https://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-
           | apple/2021/04/apples-....
           | 
           | [2] https://www.statista.com/statistics/218089/global-market-
           | sha...
           | 
           | [3] https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/09/antitrust-
           | law.as...
        
             | yellowfish wrote:
             | It's just teams replacing skype and easy enough to disable,
             | the issue with IE was strong arming I doubt Microsoft is
             | going to strong arm slack at any other level.. same goes
             | for Onedrive/iCloud
        
               | MajorBee wrote:
               | Relevant snippet from the Wiki article on the Microsoft
               | antitrust lawsuit:
               | 
               | "The plaintiffs alleged that Microsoft had abused
               | monopoly power on Intel-based personal computers in its
               | handling of operating system and web browser integration.
               | The issue central to the case was whether Microsoft was
               | allowed to bundle its flagship Internet Explorer (IE) web
               | browser software with its Windows operating system.
               | Bundling them is alleged to have been responsible for
               | Microsoft's victory in the browser wars as every Windows
               | user had a copy of IE. It was further alleged that this
               | restricted the market for competing web browsers (such as
               | Netscape Navigator or Opera), since it typically took a
               | while to download or purchase such software at a store.
               | Underlying these disputes were questions over whether
               | Microsoft had manipulated its application programming
               | interfaces to favor IE over third-party web browsers,
               | Microsoft's conduct in forming restrictive licensing
               | agreements with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs),
               | and Microsoft's intent in its course of conduct."
               | 
               | To draw parallels between that lawsuit and this
               | discussion:
               | 
               | 1. I guess the download effort of Slack isn't really a
               | concern anymore. And while I have no idea of the feature
               | parity between the free versions of Teams and Slack, the
               | free versions of both apps should probably be sufficient
               | for casual users (i.e. the inertia of entering payment
               | information is not a concern).
               | 
               | 2. I have no idea if Microsoft has added any secret sauce
               | to Windows 11 that would make Teams run better on Windows
               | owing to tighter in-house integration. But if this is
               | true, and Slack (or other competitors) won't be able to
               | use this to boost their own performances as much, I
               | suspect this could be a big deal.
        
         | hackinthebochs wrote:
         | I'm sure they will gladly accept a billion dollar fine for
         | their video chat service to be dominant.
        
         | addicted wrote:
         | Doesn't Windows 10 come integrated with Skype? This would just
         | replace that wouldn't it.
        
         | bun_at_work wrote:
         | Will uninstalling be an option? They say it's integrated, so
         | that seems unlikely.
        
           | bick_nyers wrote:
           | I doubt it. What's important too is that you have to use a MS
           | account to use teams, goodbye local windows accounts.
        
           | bserge wrote:
           | Most likely easy to disable. Pretty sure I have Cortana and
           | Microsoft Store but I disabled the services, removed the
           | Taskbar icons and never think about it heh.
        
             | CursedUrn wrote:
             | I wouldn't be surprised if both of those are still running
             | in Task Manager's process list if you look, under
             | unassuming names like SearchUI.exe. It's quite hard to
             | disable Microsoft's malware in my experience, a lot of it
             | relaunches itself, or comes back after an OS update. The
             | number of running Microsoft processes goes up every year.
        
               | swiley wrote:
               | I've given up. If you have a computer with a spinning
               | rust disk this crap alone will saturate the I/O and
               | become completely unusable. (then you have OEM bloatware
               | which has also become harder to remove and bloated
               | software in general on top of that.)
               | 
               | At this point I just hand people thumbdrives with PopOS
               | on them when they complain that their computer is slow.
               | Both OSes run Android apps and between that, the web, and
               | wine most people hardly miss anything.
        
       | DoctorDabadedoo wrote:
       | I wish MS stopped doing redesign of their interfaces every couple
       | of years and just fixed the broken stuff the introduced somewhere
       | along the way.
       | 
       | - Settings / control panel inconsistency and the other dozen
       | places you can change configs for a single thing - Telemetry, ads
       | and system crap - Package management and sandboxing
       | 
       | And the list goes on.
        
         | phendrenad2 wrote:
         | Most of those are actually features.
         | 
         | 1. Old control panels: Drivers may overlay or modify the
         | window, so you can't really change them (don't forget: Windows
         | supports many obscure devices like DAWs and heavy machinery,
         | many things Linux users have never even considered connecting
         | to a PC, and all of those have custom drivers from the device
         | manufacturer that Microsoft doesn't control)
         | 
         | 2. Telemetry, ads: Yes, this is a serious "bug" that Microsoft
         | needs to fix, how do they keep accidentally adding fully-
         | featured invasive telemetry and ad platforms into their OS? I
         | guess that's what copying code from StackOverflow gets you!
         | 
         | 3. Package management: NuGet?
         | 
         | 4. Sandboxing: All modern OSs support lots of sandboxing
         | options, not sure what you mean by this
        
           | Darvokis wrote:
           | > 1. Old control panels: Drivers may overlay or modify the
           | window, so you can't really change them (don't forget:
           | Windows supports many obscure devices like DAWs and heavy
           | machinery, many things Linux users have never even considered
           | connecting to a PC, and all of those have custom drivers from
           | the device manufacturer that Microsoft doesn't control)
           | 
           | The bigger issue is that a fuckload of native _Windows_
           | settings can only be changed through the old Control Panel
           | dialogs. I hate the new Settings app, but they need to make
           | up their minds about what they want to do instead of
           | arbitrarily splitting everything up between the new shitty
           | hotness and the old dialogs.
        
           | infogulch wrote:
           | Windows Sandbox is a thing as of this year:
           | https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/security/threat-
           | pro...
           | 
           | Ephemeral, clean, windows instance on demand enabled by
           | hypervisor tech. Only on Pro though. :-/
        
           | DoctorDabadedoo wrote:
           | I meant broken more in the sense of "anti-pattern" practices.
           | It's been a while I used Windows to develop anything, so I
           | might be outdated on points 3 and 4.
           | 
           | I understand the driver conundrum, from a user perspective,
           | though, it's unbelievable how confusing and scattered Windows
           | settings are by default (settings app / control panel /
           | registry / AppData) and doesn't seem to exist a firm
           | curatorship of that.
           | 
           | On the telemetry, it's baffling that it may happen even on a
           | paid license and we just put up with it.
        
           | rrrrrrrrrrrryan wrote:
           | > 3. Package management: NuGet?
           | 
           | WinGet is their answer to this one:
           | 
           | https://devblogs.microsoft.com/commandline/windows-
           | package-m...
           | 
           | It's not proper package management, but it's a start.
        
             | stinos wrote:
             | Powershell + ChocolateyGet (+ DSC if you want) does a
             | pretty good job already. Apart from specialized software
             | it's been years I had to install via tedious hunt for link
             | + download + execute + go through wizards or similar. That
             | being said, the meat of it is 3rd party so not having
             | package management builtin is a valid builtin. Then again,
             | if you think about what that would take: non-trivial.
        
       | MarcScott wrote:
       | Developers can use their own payment systems, and MS take
       | nothing. That's a bit of a kick in the teeth to Apple.
        
         | gjsman-1000 wrote:
         | Except for, twist, if you are an Android developer. Amazon
         | takes it's 20% cut no doubt, and to avoid the cut you need to
         | make a native Windows app. Which actually isn't an awful
         | incentive structure, but it's not 0% in the Store across the
         | board.
         | 
         | Also it doesn't count if you make Xbox games. Microsoft still
         | takes a cut there.
         | 
         | So it's 0% if it's a native Windows app and it isn't an Xbox
         | Game. So let's just say Epic Games will still not be satisfied
         | with this.
        
           | beerandt wrote:
           | I'd be surprised if they somehow limited side-loading apks on
           | a PC.
        
         | [deleted]
        
         | swiley wrote:
         | No.
         | 
         | It normalizes OS vendor maintained AppStores which is a huge
         | deal for Apple. The only way to avoid them now is to install
         | Linux.
        
           | wilsonnb3 wrote:
           | Windows already had a vendor maintained App Store, though. It
           | will just actually be useful now.
        
           | dagmx wrote:
           | Linux distros also have equivalents to App Stores, and really
           | an app store isn't different than apt-get from a lay persons
           | perspective. Assuming you ignore payment/cuts, but it seems
           | you're opposed to free App Stores too.
        
             | swiley wrote:
             | Linux distro repos are maintained by the community not a
             | corporation. The only app store like that is f-droid.
        
         | seaorg wrote:
         | Not at all. Because the lack of curation will make the
         | ecosystem dead on arrival for 99% of users.
        
           | ArkanExplorer wrote:
           | Lack of curation doesn't really matter for apps, where the
           | user will find the software independently, and just use the
           | MS Store for the final download.
           | 
           | And for games, the curation will be where it matters - on
           | Xbox games pass.
        
             | seaorg wrote:
             | I'm talking about filtering out malicious software ala
             | Android App Store
        
         | apozem wrote:
         | Absolutely. Microsoft doesn't have a large existing Windows
         | Store business to protect, so why not make Apple's life harder?
         | 
         | I think it's also the solution that best meets the reality of
         | apps in 2021. Big third-party devs like Netflix and Amazon will
         | opt out of in-app purchase entirely before giving a cut to the
         | platform owner. May as well let them use their own payment
         | system so users get a better experience than signing up on the
         | web.
        
           | actuator wrote:
           | It is such a welcome thing. Big platforms like Netflix,
           | Spotify don't owe any revenue share to Apple, Microsoft or
           | others. They made their own brand and have been responsible
           | for their own success.
           | 
           | These big OS/device companies in fact compete with them with
           | unfair advantages like pre installed apps, prominent product
           | placement on AppStore and closed/early integrations.
        
           | SavantIdiot wrote:
           | > Microsoft doesn't have a large existing Windows Store
           | business to protect,
           | 
           | This is how you GET a large existing Windows Store business.
        
             | flohofwoe wrote:
             | It's not like Microsoft hasn't tried very hard in the last
             | 10 years to emulate the iOS business model, but I guess
             | Windows users don't like walled gardens.
        
               | oezi wrote:
               | But they messed up so bad with the Windows store. It is
               | beyond belief:
               | 
               | - By including Candy Crush and other bloatware in the
               | store, the store started with a bad reputation already.
               | 
               | - By allowing manufacturers to define apps you cannot
               | uninstall via the store, this infuriated any power user.
               | 
               | - By no allowing to delete any items from your "purchase
               | history" you could never try out any free apps without
               | them contaminating your history. They did so to prevent
               | people from losing their purchases, but this was just
               | stupid with free apps.
               | 
               | - Discovery in the store was a joke. Search results
               | showed apps with less than 100 installs. Descriptions and
               | screenshots of apps are often so bad that there is no way
               | to figure out what an app does.
               | 
               | - Not finding a way to offer legacy apps in the store was
               | such a fail, it is incomprehensible. It is 2021 and end
               | users still have to download applications from CNet and
               | Sourceforge. A security nightmare. Don't get me started
               | on UWP and the UIs from hell caused by it.
               | 
               | Finally, there is absolutely no reason that the Windows
               | store couldn't have been what Steam is now. Just MS
               | incompetence in their vision of where to start.
               | 
               | -- Edit:
               | 
               | It seems legacy apps are coming to the store with Windows
               | 11. Yeah! Let's see how they mess up this time.
        
               | ljm wrote:
               | I don't think it helps that MS have been trying to build
               | new UI and app development frameworks for the past
               | several years, each one with varying capabilities. I've
               | lost track, I think UWP is the latest one but it's not
               | UWP any more, or something?
               | 
               | It just seems harder to build and sell software that has
               | that same quality look-and-feel that many MacOS apps
               | have.
               | 
               | I just wonder what they'd be capable of if they had a
               | separate OS that didn't have to concern itself with
               | backwards compatibility. It'd be a monumental undertaking
               | to do all that from scratch, not really worth it from a
               | business standpoint, but it'd be interesting to see what
               | they'd come up with if they started off with Linux.
        
               | [deleted]
        
         | jmull wrote:
         | Did something change?
         | 
         | (Windows users/developers have always been able to use various
         | distribution systems... likewise for macOS.
        
           | MarcScott wrote:
           | I might be wrong (not a developer), but I thought within the
           | official stores, in-app purchases were subject to 30%, as
           | standard, going to the platform provider. At least that's
           | what I understand with regard to Apple and Google stores.
        
             | pram wrote:
             | You can install software on Windows and MacOS outside of
             | the app stores jfyi
        
               | zrobotics wrote:
               | I mean, you can also do that on Android; in fact Epic was
               | doing that for quite a while with fortnite.
        
               | [deleted]
        
               | pram wrote:
               | Yes, inarguably true, my omission wasn't implying
               | otherwise.
        
               | wongarsu wrote:
               | But now you can have your Windows Store presence and
               | still keep all your money.
               | 
               | Of course that's easy to offer while nobody uses the
               | Windows Store, but e.g. on MacOS that would be quite a
               | big deal.
        
             | jmull wrote:
             | I see now... the Microsoft store will let publishers
             | collect payments in alternative ways.
             | 
             | That's well and good, but I don't see that as a big deal
             | because the microsoft app store isn't that important.
             | 
             | The problem with the Apple ios app store isn't that they
             | have a specific, restricted payments mechanism. It's that
             | it's the only practical way for developers to distribute
             | native software to iOS devices.
        
               | flumpcakes wrote:
               | I think this is important to Microsoft, and actually
               | quite a smart move. By letting other people use the
               | Microsoft/Windows Store app natively built into windows,
               | with their own billing infrastructure, they basically
               | kill off any reason to have other applications for
               | buying/installing software.
               | 
               | Imagine if Steam allowed Blizzard/Activision/EA to sell
               | their games on the Steam store, and as long as they pay
               | their own hosting/billing infrastructure costs, Valve
               | takes no cut?
               | 
               | I think that would immediately kill the need for
               | EA/Ubisoft/Blizzard/etc. to ever need their own
               | applications to sell software.
        
               | TingPing wrote:
               | They still get value from their apps, those won't go
               | away.
        
           | defaultname wrote:
           | The change is that their current Windows Store is a
           | tumbleweed wasteland with astonishingly little uptake, so
           | Microsoft has offered some partners (I presume it's a subset
           | or it'll just become a scam central) like Adobe to put
           | themselves "on" the store, but not actually on it. Basically
           | a package manager.
        
             | WorldMaker wrote:
             | The announcement was that "bring-your-own-commerce"
             | platform was going to be open to all developers (it is
             | becoming basically a package manager), _except_ for things
             | categorized as Games, where presumably existing Xbox rules
             | still take priority.
        
       | Shadonototro wrote:
       | meh, sounds like more of the same atrocities since Windows8
       | 
       | no fundamental changes other than cosmetics
       | 
       | no tabs on file explorer, why the heck they kept ribbon
       | interface... wasn't windows 11 supposed to be about having an
       | uniform and consistent design?
       | 
       | no changes on filesystem? still have to wait 88486468468 minutes
       | when deleting a folder with lot of files?
       | 
       | --
       | 
       | the only positive surprise was android apps, BUT quickly became
       | uninterested the minute they mentioned amazon store.. yeah no
       | thanks
        
       | LyalinDotCom wrote:
       | FYI the official announcement is here:
       | https://blogs.windows.com/windowsexperience/2021/06/24/intro...
        
       | nsriv wrote:
       | Looks like a ton of nice little QoL improvements for the vast
       | majority of people especially with Snap and Multiple Desktops,
       | with monitor layout memory. Hope that taskbar can still have
       | programs with "non-combined" windows, as opposed to dock style.
       | Using PowerToys Run personally seems like it's going to sidestep
       | most of the complaints I'm seeing from this comment section.
        
         | mdldndndn wrote:
         | My guess is they are just making a macOS style application
         | taskbar default. I actually already use it that way on Windows
         | 10, but there are occasions when I miss having minimized
         | application instances in little rectangles. But these days I
         | can run so many applications at a time that it quickly becomes
         | too crowded to be of any use.
        
       | danirod wrote:
       | At this point, I feel I don't have the energy to hate unjustified
       | changes in user interfaces anymore such as integrating Microsoft
       | Teams with the taskbar.
       | 
       | As someone who doesn't use Microsoft Teams, as long as I can
       | right click and remove the button from the taskbar so that I can
       | move on until the next "forced UI change", I'll be good.
        
       | dang wrote:
       | Related ongoing thread:
       | 
       |  _Introducing Windows 11_ -
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27619354
        
       | neogodless wrote:
       | Integrated Android apps through the Amazon App Store (and
       | Widgets). Otherwise nothing too significant announced yet.
        
       | desktopninja wrote:
       | But can it run winamp-v2.92? :)
        
       | satysin wrote:
       | So to summerize what they have announced (so far) -
       | 
       | * A new look task bar. Centred similar to the macOS dock by
       | default but lacking the ability to position on any other screen
       | edge?
       | 
       | * A new start menu design
       | 
       | * Windows have rounded corners
       | 
       | * Some built in apps such as the Xbox app and Microsoft Store
       | have been redesigned (Xbox Game Pass and xCloud built into the
       | Xbox app)
       | 
       | * New touch keyboard (SwiftKey?) with improved speech recognition
       | 
       | * New haptics when a stylus is used
       | 
       | * Teams integrated into Windows
       | 
       | * Support for Android apps built into the OS (using Intel Bridge
       | technology whatever that is?). Apparently this works via the
       | Amazon App Store although I am not sure what this actually means
       | in a practical sense?
       | 
       | * A new widgets fly out for weather, news, etc. (appears this
       | will require you login with a Microsoft Account)
       | 
       | * Improved windows snapping with a dynamic (based on your
       | screen(s) size and layout) UI built into the maximize button
       | 
       | * DirectX 12 improvements (unsure if limited to Windows 11 only?)
       | 
       | * Auto HDR for games
       | 
       | * Improved experience when switching between tablet and desktop
       | modes
       | 
       | * Apparently there will be "Windows 11 ready" PCs for sale
       | "today"?
       | 
       | * Microsoft say they have been working with AMD, Intel and
       | Qualcomm to optimise the silicon for Windows 11
       | 
       | * 40% smaller Windows Updates
       | 
       | * TPM 2.0 and UEFI are hardware requirements. No legacy BIOS
       | compatibility at all?
       | 
       | * A Microsoft account and internet connectivity is _required_ for
       | Windows 11 Home setup
       | 
       | * 64-bit processor required (no 32-bit build at all?)
       | 
       | * There is a universal mute button in the system tray so you can
       | mute yourself system wide rather than in the app
       | 
       | Probably some other things I have missed
        
         | Black101 wrote:
         | > * TPM 2.0 and UEFI are hardware requirements. No legacy BIOS
         | compatibility at all?
         | 
         | Could they try to block Linux installs?
         | 
         | > * There is a universal mute button in the system tray so you
         | can mute yourself system wide rather than in the app
         | 
         | You could always click the speaker and mute it system-wide
        
           | zamalek wrote:
           | > Could they try to block Linux installs?
           | 
           | Linux works just fine with UEFI, that's how I have it
           | installed on all my machines.
        
             | laurowyn wrote:
             | I think the implication is TPM 2.0 and secure boot
             | preventing users from booting unsigned code and installing
             | Linux.
        
               | Arnavion wrote:
               | re: Secure Boot:
               | 
               | >https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-
               | hardware/design/dev...
               | 
               | >For more information, search for the
               | System.Fundamentals.Firmware.UEFISecureBoot system
               | requirements in PDF download of the Windows Hardware
               | Compatibility Program Specifications and Policies.
               | 
               | >https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-
               | hardware/design/com...
               | 
               | >Windows 11 >Download Specifications and Policies,
               | version 21H2
               | 
               | This is a .zip file containing multiple PDFs. From
               | "Systems.pdf":
               | 
               | >System.Fundamentals.Firmware.UEFISecureBoot (page 99 of
               | 184)
               | 
               | >15. No in-line mechanism is provided whereby a user can
               | bypass Secure Boot failures and boot anyway.Signature
               | verification override during boot when Secure Boot is
               | enabled is not allowed. A physically present user
               | override is not permitted for UEFI images that fail
               | signature verification during boot. If a user wants to
               | boot an image that does not pass signature verification,
               | they must explicitly disable Secure Boot on the target
               | system.
               | 
               | So if you want to boot an OS that doesn't work with
               | Secure Boot, you're allowed to disable it. You just won't
               | be able to boot Windows 11.
               | 
               | >20. (Optional for systems intended to be locked down)
               | Enable/Disable Secure Boot. A physically present user
               | must be allowed to disable Secure Boot via firmware setup
               | without possession of PKpriv. A Windows Server may also
               | disable Secure Boot remotely using a strongly
               | authenticated (preferably public-key based) out-of-
               | bandmanagement connection, such as to a baseboard
               | management controller or service processor. Programmatic
               | disabling of Secure Boot either during Boot Services or
               | after exiting EFI Boot Services MUST NOT be possible.
               | 
               | So they don't disallow the OEM from allowing Secure Boot
               | to be disabled.
               | 
               | It does seem weird to see "must be allowed to disable" in
               | a point marked "Optional", but maybe there's a strict
               | definition of "systems intended to be locked down" that
               | OEMs can't apply willy-nilly to any arbitrary consumer
               | device. At the very least, they're not requiring the OEM
               | to disallow Secure Boot from being disabled.
        
               | vbernat wrote:
               | Debian is able to use secure boot. I suppose this is the
               | case of some other distros.
        
               | xxpor wrote:
               | It does, but every computer I've had with both has the
               | ability to switch secure boot on and off.
        
           | nonameiguess wrote:
           | The BIOS vendor would need to prevent you from turning off
           | secure boot. Windows can't do that, except where they also
           | control hardware, so possibly on the Surface?
        
         | michaelbrave wrote:
         | > * TPM 2.0 and UEFI are hardware requirements. No legacy BIOS
         | compatibility at all?
         | 
         | This is a dealbreaker for me, guess I won't be upgrading and
         | will use linux most of the time instead of half of the time
         | going forward
        
           | josteink wrote:
           | Just out of curiosity, what part do you find troublesome?
           | TPM, UEFI or both? And why?
        
             | anakaine wrote:
             | For me personally, TPM is the concern because of how
             | integrated DRM is with it. Light DRM is fine, and prevents
             | casual rights abuse by casual players. Stricter DRM gets
             | used to lock things up and it becomes pervasive and hard to
             | discourage. It chews extra resources, requires more power,
             | and eventually means that some things that probably should
             | be copied freely eventually cannot ever really be. Just
             | imagine if Doom had been written with TPM in mind. You
             | would never see it running on any of the myriad devices
             | that people have had it running on, and the knowledge
             | gained during those builds would not have come into
             | existence.
        
         | Semaphor wrote:
         | > lacking the ability to position on any other screen edge?
         | 
         | I didn't watch the video, and your question mark gives me hope:
         | Was this actually said? A horizontal taskbar would be horrible.
        
           | tummulfingur wrote:
           | You have been able to move the task bar to left/right screen
           | edges for years. If your task bar is not locked, just click
           | and drag it to the window edges.
           | 
           | A feature to Left align the buttons has been shown in the
           | leaked builds.
        
             | satysin wrote:
             | Correct you can left align the buttons but there is no
             | longer settings related to locking the taskbar and dragging
             | it does nothing in the leaked build.
             | 
             | Hopefully that changes however with the new widgets fly-in
             | from the left side it may be locked to the bottom similar
             | to the dock on iOS.
        
             | moogly wrote:
             | > You have been able to move the task bar to left/right
             | screen edges for years
             | 
             | Since Windows 95, even.
        
               | spaetzleesser wrote:
               | I remember during the Windows 95 days users at my company
               | suddenly had their task bars stuck to the left or right
               | side of the screen and nobody knew how to get them back
               | :(
        
           | satysin wrote:
           | They didn't say however in the leaked build last week the
           | taskbar could not be moved to the left, right or top of the
           | screen as it previously could.
           | 
           | Hopefully it was just a limitation in that particular
           | developer build.
        
             | Semaphor wrote:
             | Thank you, I really hope that changes.
        
         | aikah wrote:
         | > * Support for Android apps built into the OS (using Intel
         | Bridge technology whatever that is?)
         | 
         | Interesting, why would they do that? I mean it's nice ;) but,
         | is this the new MS mobile strategy? Android?
        
           | beerandt wrote:
           | Microsoft pivoting business model to being an Amazon
           | referrer?
        
           | kinjba11 wrote:
           | I believe Apple is working on getting iOS apps working in
           | future versions of Mac OS. Microsoft being able to run
           | Android apps in Windows is probably in part a response to
           | that.
        
           | wongarsu wrote:
           | Seamless interaction between phone and Windows is their
           | mobile strategy. Windows 10 already did a lot in this
           | direction, with the ability to link a phone, or to cast the
           | phone screen onto a dedicated window. Allowing apps to run in
           | Windows is a logical next step.
           | 
           | The other part of their mobile strategy are tablets or
           | tablet-substitutes. Basically their whole Surface lineup,
           | which Windows 11 aims to improve.
        
             | williamstein wrote:
             | Except for one small detail, they appear not to support the
             | latest Surface Go 2 tablet! According to the PC Health
             | Check tool, my maxed out Microsoft Surface Go 2 that I
             | bought new a few months ago (with 8GB RAM, 64-bit Intel
             | core m3 processor) is NOT supported to upgrade to Windows
             | 11. Wow. Their system requirements tool also doesn't say
             | _why_ my tablet doesn 't meet the requirements, just that
             | it doesn't.
        
         | russli1993 wrote:
         | they are integrating teams, onedrive, office, microsoft 365
         | stuff directly into windows 11. Doesn't that spark anti-trust
         | concerns? Think about Microsoft was fined for anti-trust for
         | integrating internet explorer into windows and making it the
         | default. Looks like every platform holder is just using the
         | dominance of their platform to push their other stuff.
        
           | kwanbix wrote:
           | Microsoft was not fined for integrating IE IIRC. They where
           | fined because they did not allowed you to install Netscape
           | for example.
           | 
           | I meant to said that they prevented OEMs like Dell, Acer,
           | etc., to install Netscape. They gave them more discounts and
           | such if you didn't install Netscape.
           | 
           | They did similar with OS/2 IIRC. Is not that they prevented
           | you from installing OS/2 as an OEM, but Microsoft will charge
           | you for the number of PCs you sold, not he PCs with Windows.
           | 
           | This was a long time ago, so I might be wrong.
        
             | p_j_w wrote:
             | No, you were always able to install Netscape. It was indeed
             | bundling that they were fined for.
        
         | sorenjan wrote:
         | > A new look task bar. Centred similar to the macOS dock by
         | default but lacking the ability to position on any other screen
         | edge?
         | 
         | This is confirmed on the Windows 11 specification site:
         | 
         | > Alignment to the bottom of the screen is the only location
         | allowed.
         | 
         | https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windows-11-specifica...
        
           | schmorptron wrote:
           | Ughhh. This is legit something that'll stop me from upgrading
           | for at least a bit. Gotten so used to having it on the left
           | side that I really don't want to go back.
        
           | DavidVoid wrote:
           | > Alignment to the bottom of the screen is the only location
           | allowed.
           | 
           | That's incredibly disappointing! Having the task bar at the
           | top of the screen makes a lot more sense for me. Application
           | bars (tabs, urls, etc. in browsers) are at the top, so why
           | place the task bar as far away from that as possible? It just
           | doesn't make sense imo.
        
             | EForEndeavour wrote:
             | Thinking though how I use UIs, I like having one sidebar
             | per screen edge because:
             | 
             | - I can spatially separate OS-level and program-level
             | controls instead of visually/mentally hunting around in the
             | same general area of the screen
             | 
             | - The effective clickable surface area of a button next to
             | a screen edge is effectively infinite. For example, you can
             | "crash" the mouse pointer downward onto a minimized window
             | such that the bottom edge stops your mouse pointer from
             | overshooting, and clicking will maximize that window. If
             | you stacked OS-level and program-level control bars onto
             | the same edge of a screen, one of them loses this UI perk
        
           | moogly wrote:
           | Well, hopefully something like this app still works
           | https://github.com/CrypticButter/ButteryTaskbar (it makes it
           | so the Taskbar is only visible when you press the Win key).
           | 
           | I switched to having the taskbar on the left in 1999 or so,
           | then when I got a super ultrawide monitor I just realized I
           | don't need/want it visible at all and found the program
           | linked to above.
        
           | zubspace wrote:
           | This is a shame. I always was the odd one who put his task
           | bar to the right, but it makes so much more sense if you have
           | many windows open. I can scan over the titles much faster
           | vertically. There's more space for task tray icons and I
           | could easily add multiple rows of quick start icons in a
           | folder. [1]
           | 
           | For some reason nowadays design trumps everything. I
           | understand, it has to look good and I like how Windows 11
           | looks on those screenshots. But sometimes those Microsoft
           | developers seem to forget, that with every cut feature they
           | will annoy some users. For example, I fear the day they will
           | finally get rid of the old Control Panel.
           | 
           | It's even more annoying if the change just happens because of
           | "Design"...
           | 
           | [1] https://imgur.com/a/q7gOlIG
        
             | potiuper wrote:
             | Why right instead of left as text is ltr?
        
               | zubspace wrote:
               | Somehow it is easier for me. Can it be that I can drag
               | the mouse faster to the right as a right-hander? Maybe
               | because the cursor is more often on the right, because of
               | scrollbars on the right side? Maybe because many programs
               | have their vertical menu on the left side (Outlook,
               | Teams, etc) and therefore the left side would be too
               | busy?
               | 
               | But maybe I am just used to it.
        
               | Kuraj wrote:
               | To be honest, some of these are exactly the reason why I
               | would keep the taskbar to the left - UI elements such as
               | scrollbars or caption buttons are much faster to access
               | with mouse, when they're glued to the edge/corner of the
               | screen, because you can just "throw" your mouse cursor
               | instead of having to aim for a 20x20px target. Having
               | your taskbar to the right takes away that feature
        
               | jannes wrote:
               | That only applies if you maximise your windows. I
               | personally never maximise anything. My ultrawide monitor
               | would be too big for that.
        
           | Exmoor wrote:
           | Yuck. That'll keep me on 10 for the time being. With
           | widescreen monitors it's so nice to be able to use as much of
           | your vertical real-estate as possible.
        
         | feikname wrote:
         | > * Support for Android apps built into the OS (using Intel
         | Bridge technology whatever that is?).
         | 
         | Straight copy pasta from
         | https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/newsroom/news/intel-...
         | 
         | > Intel Bridge Technology is a runtime post-compiler that
         | enables applications to run natively on x86-based devices,
         | including running those applications on Windows. Intel's multi-
         | architecture XPU strategy provides the right engines for the
         | right workloads by integrating leading CPU cores, graphics
         | technology, artificial intelligence accelerators, image
         | processors and more, in a single, verified solution.
         | 
         | looks like a JIT recompiler to me
        
         | yyyk wrote:
         | IMHO, The main things of interest are the 40% smaller Windows
         | Updates, TPM 2.0 requirement and Microsoft account requirement.
         | 
         | * Windows Updates need to be solved even more comprehensively
         | (get rid of winsxs or use smaller backing, adopt sane file
         | locking so that reboots are less required, etc.). Still any
         | improvement can justify a new version by itself.
         | 
         | * Per wiki, TPM 2.0 was released in _2019_. 2019 wasn 't that
         | long ago. Does that mean older computers will be unable to run
         | W11? Many more computers will end up running Linux eventually.
         | 
         | * The account requirement is unfortunately. Really, MS didn't
         | get enough users using the old method?
        
           | pxeboot wrote:
           | > TPM 2.0 was released in 2019
           | 
           | This can't be right. I have 5+ year old PCs with 2.0 TPMs.
        
             | stonogo wrote:
             | It isn't. TPM 2.0 was standardized in 2015; the most recent
             | update to the standard was published in 2019.
        
         | jandrese wrote:
         | CPU requirements are also significantly stiffened up. Intel
         | Core i8 or newer or AMD Ryzen 2 or newer.
         | 
         | https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/min...
        
           | BoorishBears wrote:
           | Incredibly misleading statement.
           | 
           | You just linked to a list of processors for starting
           | development of a new embedded Windows device.
           | 
           | 99.9999% of people will never have to concern themselves with
           | this. Microsoft would never limit support to CPUs released a
           | few years ago.
        
         | celsoazevedo wrote:
         | > * A Microsoft account and internet connectivity is required
         | for Windows 11 Home setup
         | 
         | If that's the case, I guess Windows 10 is the last Windows
         | version I will use on my machines.
        
         | dean177 wrote:
         | - Windows have rounded corners       - Teams integrated into
         | Windows       - A new widgets fly out for weather, news, etc.
         | (appears   this will require you login with a Microsoft
         | Account)       - A Microsoft account and internet connectivity
         | is required for Windows 11 Home setup
         | 
         | No thank you
        
           | FridayoLeary wrote:
           | - A new widgets fly out for weather, news, etc. (appears this
           | will require you login with a Microsoft Account)
           | 
           | Sounds daft and pointless to me. Are they mistaking their
           | software for Apple or Android? Is Linux a usable alternative?
           | IMHO, Windows 7 is my favorite OS, also XP, I don't love
           | Windows 10 but Windows 11 sounds even less exciting, maybe MS
           | should make some kind of "special edition" Windows XP that
           | can support new features as a novelty.
        
             | usrusr wrote:
             | Again, Microsoft seems to be genuinely incapable of
             | understandng why anyone could havev ever liked the Windows
             | already available. As if that was some crazy unthinkable
             | impossibility. Perhaps at some point between 60 and 90%
             | market share you should stop trying too hard to be like the
             | others and consider the possibility that not everything
             | you've done is wrong?
        
             | megablast wrote:
             | I stopped using windows when they bought out vista.
        
               | FridayoLeary wrote:
               | you should have waited 'till 7 - and stayed there IMO.
        
             | ryan29 wrote:
             | I don't get it either. I've never met anyone who liked any
             | of the dynamic content provided by MS pretending that
             | Windows is media platform. I think these are features the
             | MS execs want, not users.
             | 
             | > Is Linux a usable alternative?
             | 
             | Who knows. Look at Ubuntu and some of the other distros
             | that try to push the app store model, connected accounts,
             | etc.. These people are building the software they want, not
             | the software I want as a consumer.
             | 
             | I pay for Windows. I'd gladly pay for Linux instead if it
             | was good enough.
        
               | falcrist wrote:
               | Red Hat seems at a glance to be more focused on making a
               | good workstation for professional use. Ubuntu seems to be
               | more for beginners on their home computer.
               | 
               | Admittedly, I haven't spent much time with Red Hat (stuck
               | in windows most of the time due to embedded development
               | tools). Can anyone who has used it (and something like
               | Ubuntu) weigh in?
        
           | IshKebab wrote:
           | You forgot: moved the most clicked button away from the
           | easiest place to click it.
        
             | aarchi wrote:
             | The Windows button is useless if you use the Windows key
        
           | r00fus wrote:
           | > - Teams integrated into Windows
           | 
           | Is this just asking for antitrust? I mean, Apple can get away
           | with sherlocking their opposition but they don't have a
           | monopoly on desktop OS.
        
             | da_chicken wrote:
             | I don't really think desktops are a real source of tech
             | competition anymore. If the FTC isn't going to do anything
             | about vendor lock-in on iOS, MacOS, Android, or ChromeOS,
             | they really don't have any business doing the same on
             | Windows.
        
             | UnpossibleJim wrote:
             | I was going to ask, didn't they get sued in the 90's for
             | something similar?
        
               | wolfi1 wrote:
               | history repeats itself.
        
               | pookeh wrote:
               | They got sued but IE also became the dominant browser. I
               | think they must be factoring this decision into their
               | Teams' CAC.
        
             | dmt0 wrote:
             | Gonna wait for Windows 11N
        
           | bluescrn wrote:
           | > Teams integrated into Windows
           | 
           | How about fixing basic functionality like the ability to
           | scroll back and view old messages, before integrating it into
           | the OS?...
        
             | MereInterest wrote:
             | And having a client that can switch between tabs at
             | something faster than a glacial pace. Switching from Chat
             | to Teams took about 10-15 seconds, during which the program
             | was entirely unresponsive. And yet it still claims that it
             | goes faster by virtue of using a horrendous amount of RAM
             | for a chat program.
        
           | r_police wrote:
           | You will eat ze bugs.
        
         | zeusk wrote:
         | I work on displays, AutoHDR and DX12 changes are coming to 10
         | as well (unsure about win7 or dx12on11).
        
         | Aerroon wrote:
         | > _* A Microsoft account and internet connectivity is required
         | for Windows 11 Home setup_
         | 
         | I refuse. There better be easily accessible versions without
         | this requirement.
        
           | emteycz wrote:
           | I expect the enterprise version to not have this requirement.
           | Massive enterprises would refuse to upgrade if it did.
        
             | satysin wrote:
             | Correct, this is a limitation in the Home Edition only
             | according to the system requirements.
        
           | pkulak wrote:
           | 5.12.12 was released on the 18th.
        
           | bick_nyers wrote:
           | Smells like you are forced to login with a Microsoft account
           | and can't do a local account
        
             | ziml77 wrote:
             | You can use a local account as has been demonstrated by
             | many people on YouTube when installing the leaked build.
        
           | aksss wrote:
           | Who uses home edition anyway? Your parents? It's not suitable
           | for anyone that may want to lift the hood.
        
             | XzAeRosho wrote:
             | They mostly come bundled with laptops, which your parents
             | and most users will buy without even caring about it.
        
               | k12sosse wrote:
               | Exactly, and if you do care, you can upgrade to pro
               | without a wipe within the OS.
        
           | agentdrtran wrote:
           | Yes, it's probably called Windows 11 Pro
        
           | ryan29 wrote:
           | I _need_ a local account. I set up my PC with multiple
           | profiles. I start with a local admin account and then I add
           | Microsoft accounts for my day-to-day work. I have one profile
           | logged in to my personal Microsoft account. Another is logged
           | in to an Office 365 account that belongs to someone I do work
           | for. Etc..
           | 
           | Why is MS encouraging people to have one giant admin account
           | with a work or school account connected? That's stupid. My
           | personal account should be considered untrusted. Having it
           | acting like the root account is just dumb, right?
        
             | k12sosse wrote:
             | Windows professional for professionals. Windows home for
             | grandparents. Always has been this way. I'm ok with that.
             | The tiers of OS have different requirements and features.
             | Expected.
        
               | ryan29 wrote:
               | I use Win10 Pro, but have Home on a few computers for my
               | parents and nieces/nephews. I set up the first user on
               | all of them as a local admin and their account (local or
               | MS) is always a normal user.
               | 
               | It's such a simple way of making sure they don't trash
               | their machine that I'm going to miss it. I'm sure
               | there'll be a _new_ way of doing the same thing, but with
               | 5x the effort and 1 /2 the effectiveness.
        
               | Silhouette wrote:
               | Windows Professional _used to be_ for professionals. I
               | think there is a strong argument that since Windows 10 it
               | hasn 't been, at least not for technically competent
               | professionals. In 10, the Pro edition still has much the
               | same user-hostile aspects as Home, which are
               | inappropriate in a business context. If Windows 10 Pro
               | had the same kinds of control over things like updates
               | and telemetry as the Enterprise and Education editions,
               | but without the volume licensing and large-scale
               | management features that larger organisations want, it
               | would still be suitable for small businesses or
               | independent professionals.
        
               | rektide wrote:
               | since windows me it's been clear there's a product
               | designed to be utterly unpalatable, a product whose
               | purpose is to produce upsells by behaving rudely.
        
               | squarefoot wrote:
               | I always thought that Windows ME was designed to make
               | users rush to XP, and Windows Vista to drive them to 7.
        
               | smackeyacky wrote:
               | Depends on the business. If you buy into the office365
               | thing it actually makes it easier to set up a business
               | network across a number of machines without having to
               | dork around with Active Directory or anything hideous
               | like that. Up to 25 people I think it's pretty good. I'd
               | much rather set up a clients business on Office365 than
               | have to install an Exchange/AD server on their premises.
               | 
               | However the real reason to install Pro is to get access
               | to the virtualisation services, which aren't enabled on
               | Home. Most users doing development now benefit from that
               | (think Android emulators, Docker desktop etc). The
               | enterprise versions are just overkill for a lot of small
               | businesses.
        
               | Silhouette wrote:
               | For me, as someone who runs small tech businesses, it's
               | not about what you get with Pro, it's about what you
               | don't.
               | 
               | Specifically, I have a problem with any operating system
               | that will update itself in arbitrary ways without our
               | consent and at a time we have not chosen. We no longer
               | have control of our own business's IT resources and
               | whether they will continue to meet our business needs in
               | this scenario. That is simply unacceptable in a
               | professional context IMO. Moreover, I have worked in
               | several places over the years where long-running jobs
               | (days or more) were needed, and you shouldn't have to ask
               | your equipment's permission to start a job like that
               | before you can safely start it and expect it to complete
               | uninterrupted, and you certainly shouldn't have to ask
               | and risk being told no.
               | 
               | I also have a problem with any operating system that will
               | phone home with any data from our systems without our
               | consent. That's all kinds of liability waiting to happen
               | if you work with any sort of sensitive information,
               | whether it's a client's trade secrets, personal data
               | about customers, technical data you've been given under
               | NDA, unreleased company statements, or simply whatever
               | you're working on right now that you haven't chosen to
               | disclose publicly yet. I don't care what Microsoft is or
               | isn't doing _right now_ , partly because of the previous
               | point. The fact that the technical capability exists at
               | all without an absolute power to disable it is a deal-
               | breaker, and the convoluted mess that is Microsoft's
               | numerous legal terms and privacy policies offers me no
               | reassurance at all on this point.
               | 
               | Professionals control their own IT systems. It's really
               | as simple as that. That's why the higher editions of
               | Windows 10, which aren't just used by professionals but
               | administered by IT professionals as well, don't try to
               | pull these kinds of stunts.
        
               | willtim wrote:
               | > Specifically, I have a problem with any operating
               | system that will update itself in arbitrary ways without
               | our consent and at a time we have not chosen.
               | 
               | I was sitting in a keynote talk at a conference once and
               | mid-presentation Windows decided it was time to update.
               | Very embarrassing for the speaker _and_ for Microsoft.
        
               | nicce wrote:
               | I think this should not be related for OS tiers. Every
               | user should have possibility to use different accounts on
               | their computer, and to adjust permission levels of them
               | and choose which one to connect to MS account.
               | 
               | One could be sceptical that with admin account required
               | for MS account, telemetry collection and applying some
               | other kind of restrictions is much easier to target the
               | vast majority of the users.
        
           | thesuperbigfrog wrote:
           | There is a workaround for now: just press Alt-F4
           | 
           | See https://www.neowin.net/news/windows-11-home-requires-
           | interne...
        
             | huhtenberg wrote:
             | Probably intentional. They'll remove this in Windows 12.
        
               | dmt0 wrote:
               | Microsoft is continuing their long tradition of screwing
               | up every other version of Windows.
               | 
               | 98SE - ok, ME - bad, XP - good, Vista - bad, 7 - good, 8
               | - bad, 10 - good, 11 - can safely skip it and wait for 12
        
               | MereInterest wrote:
               | I thought Windows 9 was the good one that would have come
               | between Windows 8 and 10. Because 10 certainly isn't a
               | good one (looking at you, fantastically broken start menu
               | search that needs frequent re-indexing).
        
               | k12sosse wrote:
               | Version parity with competitors. It's stupid but a thing.
               | At least they didn't straight up call it Windows X.
        
               | wtallis wrote:
               | It was less about version parity with Apple and more
               | about avoiding bugs in applications that would have
               | mistaken a Windows 9 for a member of the 95/98/98SE
               | family.
        
               | FridayoLeary wrote:
               | It's not just me then;) Windows vista seems to be crying
               | out for a Windows 7, XP is ok and Windows 8... I've never
               | even _used_ Windows 8, it 's the most anonymous Windows
               | imaginable.
        
               | drewzero1 wrote:
               | The way I see it, 8.1 was the (relatively) good version,
               | and 10 has been... okayish. 8.1 did a good job walking
               | back most of the interface travesties from 8, and still
               | retained the best parts of the Windows experience.
               | (Fullscreen apps notwithstanding.) 10 has been changing
               | dramatically with every update, moving or replacing
               | system/settings screens and making their own
               | documentation obsolete.
               | 
               | I hate 10 a lot less than I did 5 years ago. I'm hoping
               | 11 will be a little less screwed up, but I'm not holding
               | my breath.
        
           | kleiba wrote:
           | I'm not a Windows person but recently had to go through the
           | setup process on my parents' newly purchased desktop machine.
           | As far as I could tell, creating a user account _just
           | locally_ was not possible, you had to have an online account,
           | hooked up with a valid email address. Given that most free
           | email providers require you to provide your phone number (I
           | don 't own a phone), I had to do some digging--- all just to
           | create a local user account on Windows 10.
        
             | mvolfik wrote:
             | iirc it is possible, but I recall you needed to click
             | unobvious buttons or just do it while offline and connect
             | only after that
        
               | handrous wrote:
               | It used to be a sneaky button, but last time I installed
               | there was _no way_ to do it without disconnecting from
               | the Internet. If you 're connected, you are not presented
               | an option to create a local account, even in a way that's
               | hard to find.
        
               | Ndymium wrote:
               | Last time I did it, the trick was to begin logging in or
               | creating a new online account (forget which way), and
               | from there you could actually change your mind and create
               | a local account.
        
               | dsissitka wrote:
               | It looks like they removed it from Home but not Pro.
               | 
               | https://i.imgur.com/vxs03rC.png
               | 
               | Another difference: Cortana talks you through the
               | installation on Home but not Pro. After years of
               | installing Pro that was a bit of a shock.
        
             | satya71 wrote:
             | It's possible, but only if you don't connect to the
             | internet. See https://www.pcmag.com/how-to/how-to-set-up-
             | windows-10-with-a...
        
               | MeinBlutIstBlau wrote:
               | Yes which is why you don't connect to wifi right away.
               | But I've installed Windows without an internet connection
               | many times.
        
             | satysin wrote:
             | On a recent (i.e. the last 2 or 3 major releases) Windows
             | 10 install (any edition) you can create a local account
             | during the post-install setup assistant by selecting to
             | make an offline account and then selecting "limited
             | experience" when it tries to convince you an online account
             | is better.
             | 
             | You can see this in steps 8 and 9 at
             | https://www.windowscentral.com/how-set-windows-10-local-
             | acco...
        
               | ziml77 wrote:
               | I just did an install of Windows 10 this morning and can
               | confirm that the option is still there in 21H1.
        
               | jandrese wrote:
               | It is available on Pro but not Home unless you disable
               | all Internet access while doing the install.
               | 
               | On Windows 11 it seems like they are saying you won't be
               | able to install Home without an active Internet
               | connection.
        
             | squarefoot wrote:
             | You can set up an offline account but you have to literally
             | disable any Internet connection (pull the Ethernet cable,
             | turn off the WiFi card, etc) so that it activates the
             | option to tell the installer you want to install offline.
        
             | FpUser wrote:
             | >"As far as I could tell, creating a user account just
             | locally was not possible"
             | 
             | I do it all the time. Do not plug network cable and do not
             | connect to WiFi. Windows then proceeds to setting up local
             | account
        
               | mdiesel wrote:
               | If you do accidentally connect to a network, before you
               | realise this, there's no way to get it to forget.
               | Rebooting doesn't work. The only solution I found was
               | walking 30m away to the other side of the parking lot out
               | of range of WiFi.
        
               | dolmen wrote:
               | Disable WiFi in the BIOS.
        
               | IshKebab wrote:
               | Insane that you have to resort to that.
        
               | garethrowlands wrote:
               | You don't have to resort to that.
        
               | torgoguys wrote:
               | Start the install over from scratch. You can have wifi
               | enabled when installing. Just don't plug in a network
               | cable and don't connect to a wifi network when it prompts
               | you to. Read carefully, you can avoid connecting and if
               | you do you don't connect, you don't have to use a
               | Microsoft account.
        
             | rypskar wrote:
             | >>Given that most free email providers require you to
             | provide your phone number
             | 
             | Didn't windows suggest to create a free email @outlook.com
             | (or whatever MS have for free emails)? I have used that on
             | a couple of computers, was no requirement for phone number
             | and I have no idea about what the addresses I created are
        
             | vsareto wrote:
             | Can you make a Microsoft account at the time of install?
             | 
             | I think I'm just going to make a junk account instead of
             | linking it to any real account I use
        
               | kleiba wrote:
               | That's what I did, but I first had to find a free email
               | provider that doesn't asks for a valid phone number.
        
             | Aerroon wrote:
             | > _As far as I could tell, creating a user account just
             | locally was not possible, you had to have an online
             | account, hooked up with a valid email address._
             | 
             | It's usually an option that's hidden away. It's definitely
             | there if you disconnect the computer from the network when
             | you install the OS.
             | 
             | Also, if you want the old type display drivers instead of
             | DCH you'd have to do that. Otherwise Windows will
             | automatically download and install DCH drivers which are a
             | pain to uninstall.
             | 
             | Edit: if you're wondering what the problem with DCH drivers
             | can be, then the problem is that they can't come with an
             | application. If you have Nvidia display drivers installed
             | as DCH and want to use the Nvidia Control Panel then you
             | have to get the Control Panel from the Microsoft Store
             | separately.
        
         | xxpor wrote:
         | >40% smaller Windows Updates
         | 
         | Was there anything about faster updates?
         | 
         | Why does the Windows Update service take 50%+ of my CPU and
         | multiple minutes to figure out if there's any updates available
         | for me?
         | 
         | I get Windows doesn't have a package manager, but given yum and
         | deb can figure out the answer in seconds... there has to be
         | some way to improve that.
        
           | encryptluks2 wrote:
           | Actually Windows does have a package manager now, it is
           | called winget.
        
             | xxpor wrote:
             | So when is MS going to start using it for basic OS stuff?
             | :)
        
               | userbinator wrote:
               | Hopefully once it's actually usable, which might be a
               | _long_ time away --- the last I looked, it didn 't even
               | support dependencies or uninstalling...
        
               | encryptluks2 wrote:
               | Well, I guess you haven't looked recently.
        
         | silicon2401 wrote:
         | > A Microsoft account and internet connectivity is required for
         | Windows 11 Home setup
         | 
         | Looks like I'll be skipping windows 11 and any future windows
         | iterations if this is unavoidable
        
           | philliphaydon wrote:
           | Looking at windows 11 I might move back from linux.
        
             | tryptophan wrote:
             | I tried Linux mint recently and was impressed. My parents
             | seem to use it without issue.
             | 
             | As long as you don't game, need to use office or some other
             | windoze software it seems like a viable choice.
        
               | reader_mode wrote:
               | Do you use a high DPI screen ?
        
               | formerly_proven wrote:
               | If you use _a_ high DPI screen things have been fine for
               | many years. Mixed DPI is a different story, no idea if it
               | works well, but it doesn 't really work well on Windows,
               | either.
        
               | rowanG077 wrote:
               | Games should work fine on Mint. The only reason I can't
               | recommend Linux for most people is that there is no
               | usable office suite. And no the libre and open office
               | really are not usable.
        
               | indigo945 wrote:
               | WPS Office is alright for most people, if you are okay
               | with proprietary software from a Chinese vendor. However,
               | it obviously doesn't cover e.g. Excel power user needs.
               | 
               | Or you can just use Google Docs, or even the browser
               | edition of Microsoft Office.
        
               | tryptophan wrote:
               | My parents mostly use google office for when they need
               | it, which is like never.
               | 
               | Libre-office seems a little rough around the edges, but
               | it works for 95% of use cases I can think of.
        
               | KozmoNau7 wrote:
               | I've been exclusively using LibreOffice for ~10 years,
               | and OpenOffice before that, and aside from just doing
               | some things _differently_ (not worse) compared to MS
               | Office, it 's been smooth sailing.
               | 
               | And for most people Google Docs or... Office 365 are all
               | they really need.
        
               | rowanG077 wrote:
               | It's simply cannot touch Microsoft Office. And Microsoft
               | Office is already a dumbster fire. And good luck if you
               | want interoperability.
        
               | cassepipe wrote:
               | Installed it for a friend. Most of his steam games were
               | working and some who didn't I easily installed them with
               | Lutris Iirc. Libre office may not look super polished but
               | it really covers any normal person's use case and beyond.
               | The only thing he does not get are updates but automatic
               | updates are coming soon anyways. I am a programmer and I
               | run Linux Mint myself on all my machines because it just
               | works. Any software that's not in the packages I use an
               | Appimage or Flatpak or language specific packages manager
               | such as cargo.
        
               | falcrist wrote:
               | As recently as a decade ago, Linux was borderline
               | unusable for a home computer. Lots of driver problems.
               | Lack of software.
               | 
               | In contrast to Apple's OSs (and increasingly Windows)
               | which assumes you don't know what you're doing, Linux as
               | a whole basically assumes you already know everything you
               | need to know about what you're doing. Fixing a display
               | issue could be a whole _adventure_ , complete with side-
               | quests as you worked your way to a solution. Not the best
               | experience TBH.
               | 
               | Some time between 2010-ish and 2015, Linux (at least Mint
               | and Ubuntu) suddenly became MUCH better. I'm not saying
               | it's perfect, but things tend to "just work" much more
               | often. A lot of the open source software improved by
               | leaps and bounds during that period as well.
               | 
               | Sadly for the past few years, I game at home, and I'm
               | stuck using windows programs at work (embedded
               | development), so I haven't really kept up well with
               | Linux.
        
             | ziml77 wrote:
             | "from"? Is that a typo or do you really mean you are
             | considering using Windows 11?
        
           | mpfundstein wrote:
           | just get Pro
        
             | NeutronStar wrote:
             | Pay more to remove features?
        
             | symlinkk wrote:
             | No. Why am I paying a company more money to fix a problem
             | they caused? I think I'll just get a Mac.
        
               | vetinari wrote:
               | That's exactly happened when I disabled GWX in Windows 8
               | Updater for about third time.
               | 
               | "I'm too old for this sh*t", and by the next day, a new
               | Macbook Pro was on my table.
        
               | asdff wrote:
               | If its anything like windows 10 was you could just never
               | activate the license and nothing practically would be
               | different, unless you wanted desktop backgrounds I
               | believe. I barely notice the watermark anyhow telling me
               | to activate windows for the last few years.
        
               | cercatrova wrote:
               | Or just get a Windows keygen/updater like KMSpico.
        
               | npteljes wrote:
               | There's a digital license way of activation that doesn't
               | even need an active service like kmspico. Just a one time
               | activation and you're golden.
        
               | Roverlord wrote:
               | Use your Windows 7 key if you have one.
        
               | mk89 wrote:
               | What a lame excuse to buy yourself a Mac. Totally
               | recommended :)
        
               | FalconSensei wrote:
               | Totally recommend it too. There are a few things that I
               | don't like on Mac, but overall, works really well. And
               | you can have a local account
        
               | handrous wrote:
               | What's frustrating about the Mac is that every time they
               | screw up bad enough that I try to switch back to other
               | options (I was a Windows and Linux, among other things,
               | user for 15 years before I started using Mac) I find
               | they're still so much worse that I'd just be cutting off
               | my nose to spite my face, by switching.
               | 
               | I wish they had actual competition. It doesn't seem like
               | anyone else is targeting the same market at all, despite
               | technically having "competing products".
        
               | ur-whale wrote:
               | > And you can have a local account
               | 
               | For now.
        
               | wongarsu wrote:
               | A second-hand Windows 10 Pro license costs like $25 (and
               | used to be $5). That's a pretty small price for a
               | substantially better experience.
        
               | ocdtrekkie wrote:
               | This is false. A _pirated_ Windows 10 Pro license costs
               | like $25. These are not legitimate licenses, they 're
               | overprovisioned enterprise keys being sold in violation
               | of the license agreement. And yes, they register
               | differently in Windows, and can be easily detected.
               | (Command is slmgr /dli)
               | 
               | Like, if you want to pirate software, go pirate software.
               | If you're going to pay someone on a per-install basis for
               | pirated keys, I'm gonna laugh at how easily you're being
               | taken advantage of.
        
               | vbezhenar wrote:
               | Cheap key allows you to activate windows and to bind
               | valid windows license to your hardware, so you won't have
               | to enter any product key anymore. Using cracks is just
               | not safe for most people. I'd recommend to buy cheap key
               | over crack any time.
        
               | wongarsu wrote:
               | For $25 I can get a legitimate Windows 7 Pro license
               | sticker that works like any Windows 10 license, which is
               | perfectly legal all the way through.
               | 
               | But depending on your jurisdiction, the $5 enterprise
               | keys can also be entirely fine. Sure, in a way that's
               | outsourcing piracy. But the law doesn't have to see it
               | that way. There's nothing illegal about buying enterprise
               | keys, and if they are overprovisioning keys that's
               | between them and MS, I can't even know if that's the
               | case.
        
               | handrous wrote:
               | Wait, are free pirated keys that work as reliably as paid
               | technically-pirated enterprise keys and don't require
               | downloading some probably-comes-pre-botnetted "hacked"
               | Windows installer, but work flawlessly with the installer
               | downloaded straight from Microsoft, readily available?
               | Asking for a friend.
        
           | hoopleheaded wrote:
           | I tend to avoid accounts as much as possible but this seems a
           | juvenile response. Do you use a smartphone?
        
             | badsectoracula wrote:
             | > this seems a juvenile response
             | 
             | Why? Why not wanting to associate your computer with some
             | Microsoft account is juvenile?
             | 
             | > Do you use a smartphone?
             | 
             | What does that have to do with anything?
        
               | kinjba11 wrote:
               | > Do you use a smartphone? >> What does that have to do
               | with anything?
               | 
               | I would bet 99% of iOS and Android users sign in with
               | their Apple or Google account. Signing into an account
               | for an OS is par for the course in 2021.
        
               | rurp wrote:
               | I sign into my phone with _an_ account, but not my
               | primary personal one. I use a secondary one I use for
               | this and some other throwaway uses. I 'm sure this isn't
               | the norm, but I bet it's not that unusual, at least among
               | tech people.
        
             | silicon2401 wrote:
             | A smartphone isn't a desktop OS. You're free to think it's
             | juvenile, and I'm free to prefer a desktop OS that doesn't
             | require an account like win10 or linux.
        
               | hoopleheaded wrote:
               | That's fair. I think I took issue with your tone which is
               | 100% on me. My tone was not terribly constructive.
               | 
               | I would certainly prefer it to not require an account.
        
             | shp0ngle wrote:
             | Android does not require a Google account, I'm not sure
             | about Apple and iOS but I think also not?
        
               | hoopleheaded wrote:
               | Suppose you are correct that neither actually requires an
               | account but suspect the user experience is not great
               | without.
               | 
               | Correct in that you can at least get through setup to
               | have a functional device though.
        
               | nguyenkien wrote:
               | But if you want get android app from playstore, you still
               | need google account. Same for iOS, and it's even worst
               | than android, since you can't sideload apps
        
               | nguyenkien wrote:
               | @cronix, @BiteCode_dev, @gruez: I know we can sideload,
               | but it's inconvenient. Fdroid have limited number of
               | apps, and store like apkpure is security risk. Most of
               | regular people just get an Google account.
        
               | vetinari wrote:
               | However, we are not discussing what's more or less
               | convenient, but what can you do and what are you forced
               | to do. Big difference.
        
               | BiteCode_dev wrote:
               | I used android for 5 years without an account. You can
               | side load, use fdroid or apkpure.
        
               | Guest19023892 wrote:
               | Why not create a throwaway account? When you setup the
               | phone, just go through the process of setting up your
               | fake Google account, and don't use it for anything aside
               | from the Play Store for easily downloading and updating
               | apps.
        
               | BiteCode_dev wrote:
               | Because once you have that account, it links all apps
               | data to it, and you give enough data about yourself to be
               | indentified somewhere else even without the account.
        
               | gruez wrote:
               | >But if you want get android app from playstore, you
               | still need google account
               | 
               | nope, just use aurora store
        
               | dolmen wrote:
               | From the terms of service
               | https://auroraoss.com/de/download/AuroraStore/terms-of-
               | servi...
               | 
               | > You agree to defend, indemnify and hold us harmless
               | from and against any and all costs, damages, liabilities,
               | and expenses (including attorneys' fees, costs,
               | penalties, interest and disbursements) we incur in
               | relation to, arising from, or for the purpose of
               | avoiding, any claim or demand from a third party relating
               | to your use of the Service
               | 
               | I'm not sure what is the worst: being tied to Google or
               | being tied to a company which wants to push me in front
               | of Google's lawyers if they get annoyed.
        
               | cronix wrote:
               | Yes, ONLY if you want to download them from the
               | playstore. As you already noted, on Android you can
               | sideload apps and get them from other places other than
               | the playstore. So you can still get the same app from
               | another source without an account.
               | 
               | Some companies like DJI actually let you download from
               | their site directly and bypass the playstore. Notice the
               | apple version links to the apple store but the Android
               | version downloads the APK directly from DJI:
               | https://www.dji.com/downloads/djiapp/dji-fly
        
               | dolmen wrote:
               | Bypassing the Play Store is also a bad sign, especially
               | from chineese company. This is bypassing the Play Store
               | rules about permissions granted to the app.
               | 
               | From experience, companies that provide apps directly
               | have some malware to hide.
               | 
               | Here is an example: GAN Cube is the world leader in
               | Rubik's Cube. They provide an Android app by direct
               | download [1]. Strangely this app has the permission to
               | install other apps. That's obviously something not
               | allowed to publish on the Play Store.
               | 
               | [1] https://cubestation.com/
        
             | voussoir wrote:
             | I use Android with no Google account signed in. For the two
             | or three Play Store applications I need, I use Aurora Store
             | to download them.
        
       | Datagenerator wrote:
       | How to downvote?
        
       | ttty2 wrote:
       | I'm pretty sure the main point is to send more spam within the
       | os. I hated Linux ux ui for long time but windows is pushing it
       | to the limits... And I'm finally thinking to move to Linux.
        
       | colechristensen wrote:
       | I was happy with Windows 95 UI, really.
       | 
       | Congratulations on incrementing a number and changing things so
       | I'll be annoyed by a marginally different set of things? I can't
       | raise to caring about something which should be _done_ at this
       | point. To some people it is important I 'm sure but a lot of us
       | just want the OS to keep doing the basics and get out of the way.
        
         | swiley wrote:
         | One of the biggest arguments I hear for using Windows instead
         | of Linux is that people are used to the UI.
         | 
         | I've been using the same FVWM config and shells inside Xterms
         | since I started using Linux 18 years ago, meanwhile Windows has
         | gone through something like 4 redesigns.
        
           | [deleted]
        
       | mandeepj wrote:
       | "Teams" sound great in a work environment. But, at home - I'm not
       | sure.
        
       | uncomputation wrote:
       | > Windows updates are 40 percent smaller, and more efficient as
       | they now happen in the background. Hopefully that will mean that
       | Windows 11 doesn't disturb you in the middle of work.
       | 
       | I wonder why this was never done sooner considering Windows is
       | basically synonymous with "enterprise."
        
       | smusamashah wrote:
       | The trailer made me feel like a dumb windows user who doesn't
       | know how to do anything. Those big zoomed in windows, buttons and
       | other interfaces felt popping directly on face. What does it
       | offer for power users?
        
       | polskibus wrote:
       | I hope embedding Teams will lead to antitrust like IE did. This
       | is basically making everyone use Teams and will cut out a lot of
       | competitors and other companies who have some form of
       | collaboration built-in into their product.
        
         | kinjba11 wrote:
         | I'm with you, but I doubt it. To my knowledge, Apple hasn't
         | faced any antitrust pressure from bundling FaceTime and
         | iMessage into iOS/Mac OS.
        
         | sbelskie wrote:
         | How does this make everyone use Teams?
        
           | kinjba11 wrote:
           | "Everyone" in a casual sense. You don't have to use Safari,
           | iMessage and FaceTime on Apple devices, but for all intents
           | and purposes "everyone" does because it's the default.
           | Similar to Internet Explorer on Windows - clearly inferior
           | product, but it took years for it to become common knowledge
           | among the non-technical folks that you really should install
           | a better browser.
        
       | stewx wrote:
       | The Xbox app is terrible, performance-wise. It feels like a
       | poorly implemented Electron app.
        
       | mmastrac wrote:
       | Remember: always skip every second version of Windows!
       | 
       | But seriously, 10 is pretty good and is there really a compelling
       | reason to move?
        
       | fastball wrote:
       | But does it run on ARM?
        
       | kyriakos wrote:
       | Apart from the UI there seem to be some interesting gaming
       | upgrades backported from xbox into windows (direct storage and
       | autohdr). Autohdr in particular works really well on my xbox / tv
       | combo.
        
       | awiesenhofer wrote:
       | > Windows 11 will be available through a free upgrade for
       | eligible Windows 10 PCs and on new PCs beginning this holiday.
       | 
       |  _which_ holiday? Do they mean Christmas 2021?
       | 
       | Edit: via
       | https://blogs.windows.com/windowsexperience/2021/06/24/intro...
        
       | Ecstatify wrote:
       | Presentation is so cringe. Why does the main presenter sound like
       | he's about to start crying and tell me he always loved me.
        
       | JamesAdir wrote:
       | Anyone has a good guess why Microsoft needed to bump the version?
       | All of these updates seems something that can be easily updated
       | to Windows 10 in several or one half year update. Is this
       | something related to it's corporate clients or licensing
       | services? Really can't understand why a need to create a new
       | version with so much hype, when they've announced in the past
       | that W10 will be the last Windows version.
        
         | TonyTrapp wrote:
         | Maybe they had to now that macOS finally arrived at version 11
         | as well ;)
        
         | somebody_amzn wrote:
         | They wanted to drop support for quite some old hardware, like
         | 32-bit only machines, which are no longer supported in Windows
         | 11.
         | 
         | (and some newer ones too, rumours say that a TPM might be
         | mandatory to have, finally)
         | 
         | Dumping support for HW and major UX changes without bumping the
         | version number is a bad idea.
        
         | EvanAnderson wrote:
         | I'm betting that getting out of support / lifecycle
         | requirements is part of the major version bump. Internet
         | Explorer 11 support is likely tied to the lifecycle of Windows
         | 10.
        
           | MeinBlutIstBlau wrote:
           | Sadly, I'll still be supporting IE11 on Windows 10 for the
           | next decade. The bane of a massive company with old people
           | that panic at opening chrome.
        
             | charrondev wrote:
             | Should edge be replacing that?
        
               | MeinBlutIstBlau wrote:
               | I will be supporting it for as long as IE11 is installed
               | on all computers.
               | 
               | For reference, we extended Windows 7 support until just
               | this year lol
        
         | lp0_on_fire wrote:
         | > Really can't understand why a need to create a new version
         | with so much hype, when they've announced in the past that W10
         | will be the last Windows version.
         | 
         | Money is the answer. It hurts sales prospects when you say it's
         | the last version ever.
        
         | [deleted]
        
         | beardyw wrote:
         | I am certain that they said 10 was to be the final version of
         | Windows. On the strength of that I decided I didn't want 10 so
         | my only option was to jump ship (to Linux). I wonder how many
         | others did? Saying that I doubt I would want 11 either, but
         | that's academic now.
        
           | ddmma wrote:
           | Also Star Wars was considered the ca last movies in the
           | series. Different management will always have new vision.
        
         | voidfunc wrote:
         | Marketing noise and kicks off a sales frenzy for enterprise
         | customers :)
        
         | kyriakos wrote:
         | For windows store I think its like hitting the reset button.
        
       | Retric wrote:
       | Wow, Windows just keeps getting worse. Anyone know who's
       | responsible for the Mac OS inspired start menu?
       | 
       | Presumably it's an easy to change default, but why exactly copy
       | such a user hostile layout.
        
         | aaomidi wrote:
         | I do. It was Microsoft.
        
       | 72deluxe wrote:
       | Looks like Windows Monterey, with the "Start menu" now being a
       | Spotlight clone!
       | 
       | I am unsure if the removal of the titlebar is a good thing -
       | there is still an alt-space menu to the left of windows that do
       | not have an icon top left, and double-clicking on a titlebar is a
       | convenient place to double-click; this isn't possible with no
       | titlebar (eg. in Chrome/Firefox at the moment).
       | 
       | Looks a nice modern UI refresh though.
        
       | vmateixeira wrote:
       | Does it come spyware free?
        
         | Phil_Latio wrote:
         | It's just telemetry bro!
        
       | extrememacaroni wrote:
       | It looks so much like a theme/skin from a linux distro to me.
       | Can't put my finger on which.
        
       | notRobot wrote:
       | Can't we just go back to Windows 7 UI and UX with modern Windows
       | 10 feature and security enhancements?
        
         | plushpuffin wrote:
         | It's hard to overstate just how bad the Windows 10 UI is
         | compared to 7. Just look at this example of how Windows 7
         | visually shows you the differences between the various desktop
         | stretching/fitting options, and Windows 10 leaves you guessing:
         | 
         | http://www.wwddfd.com/plushpuffin/personalize-desktop-7vs10....
        
         | antisthenes wrote:
         | W7 was the only MS product I ever paid money for (as a
         | student), and feel like it was a great deal.
         | 
         | Would gladly keep paying for security enhancements for it and
         | don't really see anything that W10 (or W11 for that matter)
         | offers over it for work or gaming.
         | 
         | It's a real shame that taking away controls from power users
         | seem to be more important than providing a great product. But I
         | guess when you're a monopoly you can do whatever you want.
        
           | NtGuy25 wrote:
           | What control is taken away from power users? Most things can
           | be toggled in the registry, and won't go away due to
           | compatibility reasons. And patchguard can be disabled
           | extremely easily. Same with DSE. I can't think of a single
           | thing a power user can't do on Win 10 that they can on Win 7.
        
             | themacguffinman wrote:
             | - [Taskbar] Alignment to the bottom of the screen is the
             | only location allowed. [1]
             | 
             | - Touch Keyboard will no longer dock and undock keyboard
             | layouts on screen sizes 18 inches and larger. [1]
             | 
             | - [Start Menu] Named groups and folders of apps are no
             | longer supported and the layout is not currently resizable.
             | [1]
             | 
             | - Windows 11 Home will require a Microsoft account [2]
             | 
             | - TPM 2.0 is required [1] (some gaming/enthusiast mobos
             | sell TPM modules separately AFAICT)
             | 
             | [1] https://www.microsoft.com/en-
             | us/windows/windows-11-specifica...
             | 
             | [2] https://www.theverge.com/2021/6/24/22548480/windows-11-
             | home-...
        
             | antisthenes wrote:
             | Can you make the interface of W10 look like W7? How about
             | easily removing bloatware without being an internet
             | detective?
             | 
             | Customize those ugly flat panels that MS stuck everywhere
             | next to Windows 3.1 legacy selection boxes?
             | 
             | Also, yes. I guess if you are willing to spend an extra
             | 10-20hrs of your time to configure group policies and
             | registry tweaks and removing telemetry to get it into an
             | "acceptable" state...for exactly the same experience, then
             | it's fine. Even then, I keep reading horror stories about
             | settings being reverted after updates and the OS generally
             | not respecting uptime over vague "security" updates.
             | 
             | I don't find that acceptable, unless MS cuts me a check for
             | wasted hours of my time every time I have to fix something
             | that wasn't broken. For comparison, my W7 system has been
             | rock stable since 2016, with most system downtime due to
             | physical hardware changes and updates.
             | 
             | To be fair, _some_ use cases were improved in W10. Mobile
             | (bluetooth) connectivity seems to be working great. So are
             | things like making a wi-fi hotspot and networking in
             | general. (I don 't have in-depth knowledge about other
             | improvements because they're outside of my use cases)
        
           | yyyk wrote:
           | >Would gladly keep paying for security enhancements for it
           | 
           | You can (until 2023) via the (expensive) ESU program. There's
           | also 0patch, not sure how effective is their approach.
        
       | nsriv wrote:
       | I think an interesting thing mentioned at the end about the
       | Microsoft Store is that if developers use their own "commerce
       | engine" they keep 100% of the profits.
        
       | hughrr wrote:
       | Sorry for the not very constructive comment but it looks like
       | ass. Like a B grade KDE theme.
        
         | voldacar wrote:
         | OS aesthetics just seem so bland and meek these days. I think
         | Win7 Aero/OSX Lion/Compiz cube thing was the peak and after
         | that everything became homogenized and boring. I want my
         | computer to look cool, goddammit
        
           | BitwiseFool wrote:
           | At least they aren't trying to make everything as white and
           | minimalist as possible...
        
             | hughrr wrote:
             | To be fair that's actually working the best for me at the
             | moment. Mostly because it is at least consistently white
             | and consistently minimalist.
        
         | dawnerd wrote:
         | Microsoft needs to hire a proper UX/UI team. It looks like
         | developers designed it.
        
           | jtvjan wrote:
           | If developers designed it, it wouldn't have all these rounded
           | corners, superfluous animations, and useless padding
           | everywhere.
        
             | dawnerd wrote:
             | It would if you have product people saying they want it to
             | look like Macos but just lets the developers run with it.
        
             | hughrr wrote:
             | Yea as a developer if I did it, it'd still look like
             | windows NT.
        
       | fader wrote:
       | Putting the start menu button in the middle of the panel rather
       | than at a corner seems to forget Fitts' Law. Is this a push to
       | make people use hotkeys more or just bad design?
        
         | hackinthebochs wrote:
         | With huge monitors becoming the norm, having important click
         | targets aligned to corners makes little sense.
        
           | bick_nyers wrote:
           | The only people using ultrawide monitors (techy people) are
           | the same ones that use the windows hotkey and search, press
           | enter. No mouse movement needed. The UI scale can be changed
           | as well if we are talking about size and not aspect ratio.
           | 
           | Edit: Alt+Tab too.
        
           | cunthorpe wrote:
           | It doesn't? Because I think it's easier to throw the cursor
           | at the absolute corner of the screen and click rather than
           | have to carefully select a button somewhere along the X axis.
           | Just a thought, I'm a macOS user myself.
        
             | silicon2401 wrote:
             | I use both windows and mac and I agree. It's why I hate
             | that the menu bar on mac can't be moved (it clashes with
             | the window buttons), and why I don't ever use the dock (I
             | cmd+space for spotlight instead). Hopefully this is
             | customizable
        
             | cuddlybacon wrote:
             | Moving to the corner requires a swipe, pickup, and swipe.
             | Moving the mouse to the bottom can be done in a single
             | swipe.
        
             | hackinthebochs wrote:
             | I agree it is easier to throw your cursor at the corner
             | than to precisely target near the corner, but I would
             | rather have the important click targets nearer to wear my
             | cursor already is. I have a 34 inch ultrawide monitor and
             | my cursor is more often near the center where my active
             | focus is. When I want to switch apps, it's easier to move
             | the cursor down rather than diagonal to the lower left
             | corner.
        
           | jerf wrote:
           | Fitt's Law says that is exactly backwards. It is when your
           | monitors are largest that you need the largest click targets.
           | It's when things were 640x480 that small targets were easiest
           | to hit.
        
             | cuddlybacon wrote:
             | But the corners are far away. Testing just now, it took two
             | swipes to get my mouse where the start button would be. It
             | took one to get to the dock.
        
             | hackinthebochs wrote:
             | Bigger, yes. But the issue here is where to position the
             | target area. The less you have to move your cursor to reach
             | frequently accessed targets, the better (as someone who
             | doesn't use mouse accel this extra distance is very
             | noticeable).
        
         | bastardoperator wrote:
         | The entire idea of a start menu just seems crazy to me at this
         | point especially when it's being used to advertise garbage. Why
         | would I mouse around when I can hotkey?
        
           | OGWhales wrote:
           | That might be the logic they used. Maybe it is easier to
           | press it in the new location when using tablet mode and they
           | figure people can use a hotkey for the start button on
           | desktop.
           | 
           | But having worked with plenty of users at work, it's very
           | rare they use the windows key rather than dragging their
           | mouse to the corner... if I tell them about the windows key,
           | they act super surprised.
        
         | addicted wrote:
         | I think it's simpler than that.
         | 
         | I suspect most people using a mouse also have their keyboard
         | and so they just hit the Windows key instead.
         | 
         | The centered start menu is extremely useful for touch users on
         | the other hand.
        
         | b0rsuk wrote:
         | Ultrawide (21:9) and super ultrawide (32:9) are becoming more
         | common. If you put the menu in the middle, it's more consistent
         | no matter the aspect ratio.
        
           | mehlmao wrote:
           | It's only consistent as long as the number of
           | icons/applications on the task bar never changes. Every time
           | an additional program is started, the button will slide
           | further towards the left.
           | 
           | With the older left-aligned positioning, users can just flick
           | their mouse to the left corner to open the start menu, or the
           | right corner to minimize all windows. Buttons are in the same
           | spot every time.
        
         | lp0_on_fire wrote:
         | It's bad design in the sense that they took a part of the
         | operating system that's been in the same place for a quarter
         | century and moved it for seemingly no reason while leaving a
         | bunch of other neglected issues to be dealt with later.
         | 
         | I guess fixing the damned control panel and various settings
         | apps isn't sexy enough.
         | 
         | Frankly this whole update stinks of "oh we hired a bunch of new
         | MBAs and they have to make their mark otherwise they're out of
         | a job".
        
           | OGWhales wrote:
           | I cracked up at the video where he says "the start is
           | centered... it puts YOU at the center" like no, you're
           | clearly just trying to copy MacOS.
           | 
           | I could see it being easier to hit for tablets when it's not
           | in the corner, but I find the corner a good spot for things
           | like that on a regular desktop.. Granted, I always use the
           | windows key on my keyboard but the other corner button, the
           | one that minimizing everything, I use all the time. Very easy
           | to mindlessly drag your cursor to the corner IMO.
           | 
           | Some of the other design features I really enjoy, but I would
           | love a unified and sensible control panel before anything
           | else.
        
           | wvenable wrote:
           | I think it's ironic how often HN discusses various software
           | development methodologies, release early-and-often, etc. But
           | Microsoft slowly iterating on the Settings panel over time is
           | seen as a bad thing.
        
             | lp0_on_fire wrote:
             | If they're iterating on this at all it's at a glacial pace.
             | The settings and control panel workflow has been broken
             | since Windows 8.
        
               | wvenable wrote:
               | They are iterating; the Settings panel gets more settings
               | on every release. The first version on Windows 10 was
               | incredibly sparse.
               | 
               | It's also fair to say that there is a novice/expert
               | divide -- Microsoft wants the settings panel to be as
               | simple as settings on a mobile phone. That's great.
               | However, occasionally I need to revert and diagnose the
               | Wifi driver on my cheap Chinese mini laptop and I need a
               | more powerful UI than most average people are never going
               | to need.
               | 
               | At this point, I can't think of a setting that my parents
               | would need that isn't there.
        
               | InitialLastName wrote:
               | The problem isn't that settings are missing, the problem
               | is that there are related settings in multiple, entirely
               | disconnected locations that interact in subtle ways.
               | 
               | I have 4 UIs on my windows machine where I can set things
               | related to inactivity/power down states. That's
               | unreasonable, and nobody was confused in windows XP when
               | those were all in one place (with an "advanced Settings"
               | fold).
        
               | wvenable wrote:
               | But you really only need the settings app. If you are a
               | power user and want to mess with the individual details
               | you hit "Additional power settings" and get the old UI.
               | But so what?
               | 
               | My point was Microsoft is doing exactly the right thing
               | here -- iterating on an existing design and keeping old
               | software around for those who need it. Everybody seems to
               | want Microsoft to throw out everything and instantly
               | redesign several decades worth of software and that is
               | ridiculous. That's not the way anyone should develop
               | software.
               | 
               | > nobody was confused in windows XP
               | 
               | I'm sure they were -- the new settings app is
               | significantly less complicated.
        
           | eitland wrote:
           | > and moved it for seemingly no reason
           | 
           | There is one good reason: some screens are getting really
           | wide.
        
             | lp0_on_fire wrote:
             | I swear nobody at Microsoft (and fewer people than I'd
             | hoped on HN) actually talk to non-technical people that use
             | their products.
             | 
             | If they'd just added the option to move it I'd have no
             | qualms but they decided to make it default and I'd be
             | willing to put money down that the overwhelming majority of
             | Windows users do not have super widescreen displays.
        
               | eitland wrote:
               | > I swear nobody at Microsoft (and fewer people than I'd
               | hoped on HN) actually talk to non-technical people that
               | use their products.
               | 
               | >
               | 
               | > If they'd just added the option to move it I'd have no
               | qualms [...]
               | 
               | I keep mentally blaming this on designers who want to be
               | Steve Jobs (edit:)and Henry Ford and do daring leaps in
               | design.
               | 
               | Edit: I've seen quotes like "if I asked people what they
               | wanted they would say a faster horse" a few times.
               | There's a time for that but most of the time it is time
               | for boring (not really, I love much of it if I'm allowed
               | to) work on getting things right: make it work in all
               | major browsers, make sure tabs work, make sure it works
               | fast etc.
        
             | WorldMaker wrote:
             | Right, which is more reason to move to vertical taskbars
             | instead of filling far too many pixels with useless space.
             | The specification note that 11 won't support vertical
             | taskbars is infuriating as someone with an ultrawide. I
             | don't need 1000s of pixels of unusable taskbar white space.
             | Centering it is smart if I did want to waste all that
             | space, but oof I do not want to waste that much space.
        
               | dm319 wrote:
               | I just can't understand how there can be so much argument
               | about the position of a task bar. Why can't Windows just
               | allow people to do what they like with it? I know plenty
               | of people who have their taskbar vertically, surely it
               | can't be hard to have a taskbar that can go vertically,
               | horizontally, to the edges out centred.
               | 
               | I will carry on using my dual bar layout on MATE because
               | I didn't want to change to gnome 3 or unity.
        
               | WorldMaker wrote:
               | Moving somewhat further off-topic, as a fan of vertical
               | taskbars I also disliked Unity's take on it. In my own
               | testing (going way back to Windows XP era), I found I
               | much preferred right-hand side taskbar. As a left-to-
               | right language user, when applications are full screened
               | there are usually far more important application controls
               | on the left hand side than the right. The obvious one
               | being File menus on the immediate left edge, but that's
               | not the only example. Unity tried to fix the File menu
               | issue by doing the "merged global menu" thing similar to
               | macOS, but it still didn't account for most of the rest
               | of application stuff on the left hand edge.
               | 
               | But I also realizes that not everyone agrees with my
               | "right-hand" taskbar preference. I agree that allowing
               | customization is probably the best bet. It's odd to me
               | that when one of the messages in the Windows 11
               | announcement was that they wanted it to be more
               | personalizable that according to their notes they are
               | removing an important personalization in taskbar
               | placement. (Which has been supported to varying degrees
               | of success all the way back to Windows 95 at this point.)
        
         | ptx wrote:
         | They can just do what they did in Windows 95 (possibly not in
         | the very first version) where the start button doesn't actually
         | extend all the way into the corner, but clicking the corner
         | pixel teleports the cursor a few pixels inwards, so that the
         | click hits the button.
         | 
         | The same fix would work in Windows 11, although it would
         | involve teleporting the cursor halfway across the screen.
        
         | thomasahle wrote:
         | > seems to forget Fitts' Law. Is this a push to make people use
         | hotkeys
         | 
         | I feel this is a general problem with Fitts' law: Anything
         | that's used often enough to deserve to be in a corner should
         | really only be accessed by hotkey.
        
         | noen wrote:
         | It's yet another effort by Microsoft to make Windows relevant
         | to touch form factors at the expense of productivity, desktop,
         | and keyboard/mouse/touchpad.
         | 
         | It's astonishing how little (close to zero) human factors
         | research is done, much less sought out or taken into
         | consideration by PM or engineering on the software side of
         | Microsoft.
        
           | WorldMaker wrote:
           | Windows 8 had a ton (!) of smart human factors research done,
           | but people gut reacted to all the individually beneficially
           | changes horribly when released all at once (rather than
           | taking some time to try adapting). I almost wonder if
           | Microsoft learned the exact wrong answer from that and
           | decided to ignore their own research more as they stripped
           | out the beneficial improvements from 8 into 10.
        
             | noen wrote:
             | No it didn't. I worked at Microsoft for 14 years. I know
             | exactly how Windows 8 UX design was designed and built.
             | 
             | There was almost zero HF research, and the brunt of UX
             | research done was trying to justify and fix fundamental
             | issues with an already decided design direction, not to
             | inform a valuable direction in the first place.
        
             | themacguffinman wrote:
             | I don't doubt they did research but I don't think they were
             | individually beneficial changes. Nielsen Norman critiqued
             | Windows 8 UX changes and found them fundamentally lacking
             | [1]. If this is the outcome of their internal research,
             | maybe they need better research.
             | 
             | [1]
             | https://www.nngroup.com/articles/windows-8-disappointing-
             | usa...
        
         | stan_rogers wrote:
         | Just bad design. There's a setting to set it hard left, but
         | it's not the default, and the vast majority of users will have
         | to contend with important things moving around and being harder
         | to hit. (There's a lot in the UI that seems to be borrowing
         | from phones used vertically. Which would make sense if the
         | target devices were phones being used vertically.)
        
         | danirod wrote:
         | While it is a totally legit point, the macOS dock hasn't been
         | corner aligned since OS X 10.0 too and it seems people got used
         | to it. Probably not a big deal after all most of the time.
        
           | xoa wrote:
           | The Dock isn't the equivalent to the Start Menu, the closest
           | Mac equivalent is the Apple menu. That dates back to I think
           | the very beginning of the Macintosh, and particularly in the
           | classic era (Mac OS 1 through 9) shared a lot more in common
           | with the Start menu. When Apple was just first barely dipping
           | a toe in the waters of multitasking applications with the
           | 1987 MultiFinder, the Apple menu let you switch between
           | running applications. Also was where desk accessories went,
           | though there were limits (which 3rd parties quickly created
           | offerings working around :)). System 7 expanded it a lot,
           | with a dedicated way to put aliases of docs/software in the
           | menu. Mac OS X and the dock actually kind of split out some
           | of that functionality for better or worse.
           | 
           | But through it all the Apple has stayed glued in the top left
           | corner of the screen, the furthest left thing on the menu
           | bar. The one time they briefly contemplated eliminating
           | it/moving it to the center was IIRC in the Mac OS X public
           | beta (which I think I still have lying around here somewhere,
           | would be a hoot to try to get it running again under QEMU
           | maybe?). But there was harsh feedback from a lot of us in the
           | PB on that one and it was restored from 10.0, so there was
           | never a public release of a "Mac OS" without it. And even
           | though it's visually offset a bit from the edge of the menu
           | and when you click the highlight box also seems offset from
           | the side, that doesn't actually affect the clickable area one
           | bit. You can jam your mouse to the upper corner pixel blind
           | and it'll still open right up. They've stuck with Fitt's Law
           | on that one at least even amongst all their other GUI
           | "innovations" in the last few decades.
        
             | 1_player wrote:
             | Nice history lesson, but for all intents and purposes the
             | Dock _is_ equivalent to the Start Menu, as both are the
             | main ways to start or switch applications for most users.
             | 
             | The Apple menu has nothing to do with running applications
             | in modern macOS versions.
        
               | OGWhales wrote:
               | Doc is equivalent to the apps locked to your taskbar..
               | not the start button.
        
               | 1_player wrote:
               | OP is arguing that the Apple menu is used to start and
               | switch applications, not the Dock. What?
               | 
               | How is the Apple menu equivalent to Start in modern
               | macOS? Do you click the Apple menu to start your apps? Or
               | even switch to them?
        
               | OGWhales wrote:
               | I wasn't talking about the apple menu, though it is more
               | similar in function to the start menu than the doc is...
               | However, start does a whole bunch of things, so it's not
               | really the same. Nobody switches apps using the start
               | menu (that's what the taskbar is for), but people will
               | search for apps (and files) that aren't on their taskbar
               | already. I don't think people do that with the apple
               | menu, I don't even know if you can do either of those
               | things there on modern MacOS (they were talking about
               | older versions in the above comment). I believe people
               | open the launchpad for apps not on their doc. It's been a
               | while since I have used MacOS, so please correct me if I
               | am wrong.
               | 
               | > the Dock _is_ equivalent to the Start Menu
               | 
               | This is what I was referencing in my previous comment.
               | This is not accurate. They are not even similar. The doc,
               | however, is very similar to the taskbar. The doc and
               | taskbar are used almost exactly the same way by users.
               | I'd say they are effectively equivalent. That's all my
               | first comment was trying to say.
               | 
               | The start button is used for many of the things the apple
               | menu can do, but also for searching for things, from apps
               | to files. I am not sure you can easily compare it to one
               | thing on MacOS, as it seems like those functions are put
               | into multiple different places, many of which are
               | discrete apps _on_ the doc... which may have been what
               | you meant. The above user was saying the Apple menu _was_
               | the same as the start button is now, but acknowledged
               | that those functions have been broken apart since that
               | time.
               | 
               | edit: updated comment
        
               | djrogers wrote:
               | The start menu is a _single button_ , whereas the dock is
               | a large number of icons. Corner aligning the dock would
               | do no good, as any icon other than the _one_ in the
               | corner wouldn 't be corner aligned either.
               | 
               | Regardless of how you see the function parity between the
               | two, the corner alignment argument just doesn't hold
               | here.
        
           | BitwiseFool wrote:
           | I feel like a more apt comparison would be moving the Apple
           | Icon from the top left of the screen to the middle. That's a
           | _close enough_ analogue to what the start button did.
        
           | sharkjacobs wrote:
           | I would argue that the difference is that there isn't a one
           | most important button in the dock like the Start button. Even
           | if the dock was corner aligned it would only make it easier
           | to select either the Finder or Trash icon depending on which
           | corner it was in.
        
         | jodrellblank wrote:
         | Is there anything stopping a click in the lower left corner
         | from bringing up the start menu, even with nothing visible
         | there? The other corners do magic surprise things in Windows
         | (like charms bar, app switching) with no UI visible as a
         | precedent.
        
         | pndy wrote:
         | It seems there's still an option on taskbar settings to move it
         | onto left but new position seems to be default [1] - at least
         | in the "leaked" build.
         | 
         | [1] - https://winaero.com/how-to-disable-centered-taskbar-in-
         | windo...
        
         | fassssst wrote:
         | There's a setting for left aligned, but Fitts Law is overrated
         | for the Start menu. None of the apps on your taskbar have ever
         | benefited from it, and you probably click those all the time,
         | much more than the Start button.
        
           | bsoft16385 wrote:
           | Taskbar buttons absolutely benefit from Fitt's Law.
           | 
           | Fitt's Law says that the time required to interact with an
           | element depends on both the distance to that element and the
           | width/height of that element.
           | 
           | Putting an element on an edge (where the cursor cannot go
           | beyond that edge) essentially makes it infinitely large in
           | one dimension. Putting it in a corner makes it infinitely
           | large in two dimensions.
           | 
           | Taskbar buttons in Windows (or menu items in macOS) do
           | benefit from Fitt's Law, just not as much as items in the
           | corners.
        
         | Shadonototro wrote:
         | it's to make room for "widgets panel" since the right side is
         | already taken by god's know what other atrocities are,
         | including notification center
        
         | gjsman-1000 wrote:
         | UI Designers don't give a rip about Fitt's Law or any of these
         | self-proclaimed design "laws". Unless it's a useful authority
         | to appeal to for beating opposing UI Designers.
        
         | nly wrote:
         | My hunch is that it's a controversial change made for no
         | purpose other than to deliberately get people talking about
         | W11.
         | 
         | It's easy to 'fix' via preferences so serves no other purpose.
        
       | eljimmy wrote:
       | I wonder if Microsoft would ever release a flavor of Windows
       | targeted at the user who wants a minimalist but equally powerful
       | OS which gives the user absolute control.
       | 
       | Someone who wants local only accounts, bare-bones UI, no tablet
       | or touch screen support, no app stores or telemetry, no
       | integrations, just plain old Windows.
       | 
       | Wishful thinking, probably.
        
         | achn wrote:
         | Very wishful, unfortunately. The entire goal of this update is
         | to move windows closer to an AppStore model where MS makes
         | money off of driving the behaviour of its users and monetizing
         | external developers. Even on the server, admins have less and
         | less control over the services running.
        
       | bigtex wrote:
       | Will Windows 11 run on ARM and be publicly available?
        
       | aloer wrote:
       | First screenshots look like they have a normal curve for rounded
       | corners. Not that special apple curve thing. Is that protected in
       | any way?
        
       | schlotzisk wrote:
       | It's mind boggling to me, that Microsoft went with a redesign
       | here. Personally the Windows UI never bothered me that much. I
       | just feel like that they could have focused more on things like,
       | stability, the search functionality or, and I'm not even kidding,
       | printer and scanner support.
        
         | ehsankia wrote:
         | There's nothing wrong with redesign as long as they do it
         | consistently across the whole OS, but from my experience, they
         | reskin like 30% of the stuff and everything else stays
         | inconsistent [0]. If they're gonna work on UI, I'd like to see
         | them actually grow that 30% rather than keep changing things
         | up.
         | 
         | [0] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27556754
        
           | IshKebab wrote:
           | I agree, they should have done the boring but worthwhile work
           | of updating the control panel, font selector, etc. But nope.
           | Add more inconsistency. And make the start button harder to
           | click while you're at it.
        
       | mdavid626 wrote:
       | Hmm, nice improvements, but is it just me who doesn't care about
       | them at all? Most of them feels like change just for the sake of
       | change, but not an actual improvement.
        
         | dvfjsdhgfv wrote:
         | Not you, re not alone, and some of them (like no local
         | accounts) seem like a step backward.
        
           | satysin wrote:
           | To clarify there are still local accounts in all versions.
           | However to complete the setup a Microsoft account is required
           | in the Home edition. You can then create other local
           | accounts.
           | 
           | In other editions you can create a local account during
           | setup.
           | 
           | In the leaked build it is possible to cancel out of the
           | forced Microsoft account requirement in Home by closing the
           | screen with a simple Alt+F4 however that may be changed in
           | the final build.
        
         | marcthe12 wrote:
         | There is a severe bump in hardware requirement. Prob the main
         | reason the even did this (big enough to warrant some kind of
         | LTS). Obviously that doesn't sell so there so other random
         | changes
        
         | silicon2401 wrote:
         | > change just for the sake of change, but not an actual
         | improvement.
         | 
         | That's a lot of software change. I couldn't care less about
         | aesthetic changes in MacOS, windows, android, xbox, but they're
         | all forced on the users no matter what. If I had the choice,
         | I'd still be using whatever android version my galaxy s3 had,
         | the windows 95 UI, and the Mac OSX UI. But the easiest way to
         | make people want something new is to make it look new I guess
        
       | watertom wrote:
       | macos
        
       | SavantIdiot wrote:
       | I can't wait to see if "Device Manager" still uses the same
       | Windows 95 GUI.
        
         | CursedUrn wrote:
         | If you're lucky they've built a new one with reduced
         | functionality and a button to open the old one. That's how they
         | usually handle things.
        
       | kleiba wrote:
       | > "Microsoft is also integrating Microsoft Teams directly into
       | Windows 11, for both consumers and commercial users."
       | 
       | Have they not learned from the legal backlash with IE back in the
       | day?
        
         | WesleyLivesay wrote:
         | Not really different than Apple including iMessage and
         | Facetime.
        
         | MeinBlutIstBlau wrote:
         | I think we're beyond that now. So many illegal monopolistic
         | activities have happened in the past decade that I've lost all
         | faith in the US government. If a new Teddy Roosevelt doesn't
         | come around soon, it's gonna be the railroads owning the
         | country all over again.
        
       | meamin wrote:
       | > Android Apps
       | 
       | Not long till the Surface Dou will be running Windows 11 instead
       | of Android. Then comes the Surface Phone.
        
       | nsriv wrote:
       | Not a fan of the Android apps installable and discoverable onto
       | Windows...but through the Amazon appstore. Weird, and I'd much
       | more prefer installing to PC from Google Play itself.
        
         | jccalhoun wrote:
         | Probably not google because google wouldn't play ball. I wonder
         | if users will be able to (easily) sideload android apps since
         | not everything is in Amazon's app store and apps there are
         | often not updated as often as the google play store version.
        
           | nsriv wrote:
           | Right, that was my assumption too. Sideloading would be my
           | way around, but I'm guessing there may be some runtime
           | signing or containerizing involved as well, else every
           | Android vulnerability just became a Windows vulnerability.
        
         | yellowfish wrote:
         | I think amazon's appstore is free of google play services which
         | could be a big reason
        
           | fooey wrote:
           | Not having google play services is a big reason the amazon
           | store is a barren wasteland
        
         | jannes wrote:
         | Do you really think Google would allow that?
        
           | nsriv wrote:
           | Honestly, yes. Someone else mentioned Google Play Services
           | being a probable point of contention. Overall, with Surface
           | Duo, Microsoft Launcher and Google's work towards making
           | Flutter along with the leverage and developer interest they'd
           | gain through having the Windows install base using the Play
           | Store, it seems like a fair relationship.
        
       | was_a_dev wrote:
       | I have my taskbar vertical on the left of my screen - so that
       | will be interesting in Windows 11
        
         | twobitshifter wrote:
         | Me too is that no longer an option?
        
       | JoshTriplett wrote:
       | Getting rid of tiles and similar seems like a substantial
       | improvement, and might address part of people's complaints about
       | Windows 10. The most important question, though: is Windows still
       | "evergreen" with free updates, or will people have to buy Windows
       | 11? The latter would mean we can't count on Windows systems being
       | up to date. I was happily looking forward to the day when
       | software could _just_ support Windows 10 and no other Windows
       | version.
        
         | rhengles wrote:
         | I found a link to a tool[0] that checks your PC compatibility
         | with Windows 11, but it seems that many many people with
         | powerful devices are getting a "No" answer.
         | 
         | [0] https://twitter.com/_h0x0d_/status/1408075658350108674
        
           | neogodless wrote:
           | Looks like AMD systems might mostly be coming back as "This
           | PC can't run Windows 11."
           | 
           | > Trusted Platform Module (TPM) version 2.0
           | 
           | Possibly most AMD motherboards don't have TPM integrated? I
           | don't know a lot about TPM though.
           | 
           | Someone said...
           | 
           | > enable tpm in your bios i did it and it worked for me, I
           | have a 3080, 5800x, 16gb of ram
           | 
           | EDIT: My motherboard (Asus Prime X470 Pro) lists TPM as a
           | separate module you buy, but the connector is present. $12
           | module, for example: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1
           | 237446-REG/asus_tpm_...
           | 
           | The manual does list an fTPM setting as well, but I have not
           | tested that yet.
        
             | izacus wrote:
             | > Possibly most AMD motherboards don't have TPM integrated?
             | I don't know a lot about TPM though.
             | 
             | Ryzen CPUs do have TPM onboard - at least my Ryzen 3800X
             | does have it. It's disabled by default for some reason.
             | 
             | Funny enough, Apple laptops don't have it so Windows 11
             | won't be usable in BootCamp on Intel Macs.
        
             | OGWhales wrote:
             | Thanks for this info.
             | 
             | Supposedly the fTPM should work with Ryzen CPUs and offer
             | TPM 2.0, but I can't confirm now either.
             | 
             | Similar deal to yours, my Gigabyte x570 board offers TPM
             | cards: https://www.gigabyte.com/us/Motherboard/TPM-Card. I
             | am assuming this is unnecessary tho, but good to know.
        
               | Deathmax wrote:
               | Posting from the other Windows 11 post, I can confirm
               | that a Ryzen fTPM will get a checkmark from the PC Health
               | tool at least.
               | 
               | Screenshot of the security processor page:
               | https://i.imgur.com/ZWtq8EO.png
               | 
               | Screenshot of the PC health check:
               | https://i.imgur.com/Rb3eZIc.png
        
           | blibble wrote:
           | of the 20 or so machines I've owned in the last 15 years I
           | think only one of them has had a TPM, and that was an
           | enterprise laptop
           | 
           | no gaming motherboard I've ever had has had a TPM
           | 
           | edit: seems like the intel PTT bios option counts, so maybe
           | not a huge problem (though it's off by default everywhere)
        
             | ewzimm wrote:
             | So now we finally know that 2025 will be the year of the
             | Linux desktop. There will be no more supported Windows
             | version for older hardware, and Microsoft's love for Linux
             | will finally blossom into forcing migration for millions of
             | computers. This is the most interesting part of the
             | announcement, and I hope that desktop Linux distros will
             | take advantage of the situation. Of course, Microsoft could
             | reverse course by then.
             | 
             | edit: Looks like TPM 2.0 is not a hard requirement, only
             | 1.2. This will likely still result in a lot of users left
             | out of Windows, but the year of the Linux desktop may be
             | delayed again. https://docs.microsoft.com/en-
             | us/windows/compatibility/windo...
        
           | xeromal wrote:
           | I have a badass gaming rig and I got the not compatible
           | message. lol. Oh well.
        
         | zamalek wrote:
         | > is Windows still "evergreen" with free updates, or will
         | people have to buy Windows 11?
         | 
         | It's a free upgrade, just like 8 -> 10.
         | 
         | I assume Microsoft is doing this because of the hype that
         | typically surrounds new Mac OS versions. I have no doubt that
         | this could have been one of the evergreen updates, if only
         | Microsoft hadn't been calling Windows 10 updates 'exciting'
         | things like "21H2".
        
         | partiallypro wrote:
         | I believe they have said, or hinted, that it will be a free
         | upgrade. Microsoft has an incentive itself to get as many
         | people on one build itself to lower legacy costs.
        
         | po1nter wrote:
         | Windows 11 will be a free upgrade:
         | https://www.theverge.com/2021/6/24/22546801/microsoft-window...
        
           | JoshTriplett wrote:
           | Looks like that news just came out. Glad to hear it.
           | 
           | Now let's hope it's an _automatic_ upgrade for as many
           | Windows 10 users as possible.
        
             | npteljes wrote:
             | I hope so too. The more they annoy the users the better.
        
             | Laarlf wrote:
             | The update will come automatically as you can read here.
             | https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windows-11 This is
             | basically Windows 10 21H2. Just naming it differently
             | because... New UI i guess?
        
               | pitterpatter wrote:
               | No, once 20H1 was released it got cut into its own
               | release branch. 20H2, 21H1 and 21H2 are all just updates
               | on top of that branch. You can tell because their build
               | numbers are all 1904x.
               | 
               | Windows 11 is based on the mainline branch after the
               | above (though it too has been cut into its own release
               | branch now). of course, some changes might be ported back
               | and forth between releases.
               | 
               | So machines not eligible to be upgraded to Windows 11
               | will stay on Windows 10 and get 21H2 and who knows how
               | many more updates.
        
               | JoshTriplett wrote:
               | That makes sense; perhaps they're changing the name to
               | help entice people who didn't like Windows 10 to take
               | another look.
        
             | [deleted]
        
             | throwawayay02 wrote:
             | Oh Windows users, what a crazy bunch. I personally would
             | never use a piece of software that updated (or downgraded,
             | depending on the perspective) against my wishes.
        
             | silicon2401 wrote:
             | Let's not, because I have no interest in windows 11 from
             | what I've heard so far.
        
             | lp0_on_fire wrote:
             | Let's hope not, thank you.
             | 
             | It's one thing to force an update that just makes
             | background improvements. It's another thing entirely to
             | force a UI update that breaks your workflow.
             | 
             | Most of us just got the people we support used to the new
             | design now they're going to up and change it completely
             | again.
             | 
             | My Grandmother has basically given up using the computer
             | because she doesn't have the mental energy to relearn a UI
             | every time some MBA comes along wanting to "disrupt" the
             | status quo.
             | 
             | It's basically akin to the company that manufactures your
             | car showing up at your house while you're sleeping, moving
             | the steering wheel to the center of the car, re-arranging
             | buttons on the console, blacking out two of the windows
             | because it looks cool, then leaving a nice little note on
             | your front porch: "We upgraded your car, it's so much
             | better!"
        
               | rurp wrote:
               | I agree with this 100% and it blows my mind that so many
               | in tech take the opposite stance. For the people who just
               | see a computer as a tool, which is probably the vast
               | majority of users, they just want it to work and then get
               | out of their way. Very few are interested in spending a
               | bunch of time relearning a new UI just to keep up with
               | the latest design fad.
               | 
               | All of this bias towards churn is probably great for my
               | career options so I guess that's something. But stories
               | like this make me really feel for the millions of less
               | tech-interested users who get frustrated by big changes
               | like this. Within the tech bubble it's easy to forget how
               | many things we take for granted as simple are actually
               | quite hard for many people.
        
               | JoshTriplett wrote:
               | Software developers around the world don't have to build
               | software compatible with your old car, and get blamed for
               | any incompatibility.
               | 
               | There have already been posts showing that there's an
               | option to put the start menu back on the left if you want
               | that. Hopefully there will be options to deal with other
               | inconveniences. As it stands, this already looks like it
               | _fixes_ many of the complaints people had about Windows
               | 10; in that regard, parts of it are exactly what many
               | people asked for.
               | 
               | I don't want people to deal with a UI they dislike. I
               | also don't want developers having to deal with a no-
               | longer-evergreen OS. Windows was the last OS to move to
               | the evergreen model; when Windows 10 came out, it was a
               | great relief to many developers, who saw a point on the
               | horizon where there was only _one_ version of Windows
               | they would have to support, and it would always be up to
               | date.
               | 
               | Remember, the alternative isn't just "oh well, I guess
               | we'll support Windows 10 and Windows 11". One alternative
               | is "guess we'll build a web app instead", or "guess we'll
               | drop support for Windows 10" (in which case people still
               | need to upgrade, but they blame app developers instead of
               | Windows).
               | 
               | I'm sure the option will exist to _not_ upgrade, at least
               | for a while. But if the default is to upgrade, app
               | developers get much less of the blame if they expect and
               | depend on that upgrade.
        
               | lp0_on_fire wrote:
               | > Software developers around the world don't have to
               | build software compatible with your old car, and get
               | blamed for any incompatibility.
               | 
               | That sounds like a problem for software developers, not
               | my grandmother. Now she can't use _any_ software because
               | she has to relearn the OS every few years. She doesn't
               | have that much time left on this earth and I don't blame
               | her for not wanting to expend the mental energy on
               | learning something that's just gonna change for no
               | apparent reason a few years down the road.
        
               | stonogo wrote:
               | Cars have standards for user interfaces to prevent
               | _exactly this problem_.
        
               | cjaybo wrote:
               | As an audio application developer who still supports
               | users on OSX 10.6.8, I have to ask, what is this about
               | "Windows was the last OS to move to the evergreen model"?
               | Do the breaking changes in MacOS version updates somehow
               | not count anymore?
               | 
               | If developers don't want to support multiple versions of
               | an OS, there are plenty of domains where that isn't an
               | issue. The desktop seems like a weird place to complain
               | about this issue, though, since this is a challenge
               | inherent in the fact that users have choices and
               | freedoms.
               | 
               | Completely disagree with your attitude here.
        
               | JoshTriplett wrote:
               | I'm not suggesting that apps should drop such support
               | instantaneously or gratuitously. Rather, I'm just
               | suggesting that in the normal course of development, as
               | an OS version becomes sufficiently old _and_ has genuine
               | issues that make support non-trivial, and if the upgrade
               | to a newer version is free and automatic (so it 's
               | reasonable to expect people to upgrade), an app developer
               | may at some point say "we expect at least this OS
               | version; if you're using an older version, _you 're
               | welcome to try_, but we don't test on those OS versions
               | so we can't offer any support or respond to bug reports
               | from those OS versions".
               | 
               | I absolutely believe that the "you're welcome to try"
               | part of that is important, assuming there's no _known_
               | issue (which there may sometimes be). Developers also
               | have an upper bound on available support bandwidth. I don
               | 't think apps (or websites) should _prevent_ users from
               | even trying, unless there 's some specific technical
               | reason (e.g. a known incompatibility that's producing
               | substantial support burden just to triage, or a library
               | or API that simply doesn't exist on the older version). I
               | do think it's reasonable to say "please upgrade and try
               | again, and if you're still experiencing the issue we'll
               | take a look".
               | 
               | Along the same lines, if a user reports an issue to a
               | website where it doesn't function properly in Chrome 12,
               | or Firefox 9, it's entirely reasonable for the site to
               | respond with "please upgrade, we don't support outdated
               | browsers". It's a little more questionable for a site to
               | say that about a version released the previous month,
               | unless the site is a tech demo for bleeding-edge
               | technology. But at _no_ point do I think a site should
               | actually _block_ users attempting to use older browsers;
               | at most, it 's reasonable to show a "not supported or
               | tested, might not work" message.
        
         | MrOxiMoron wrote:
         | yeah, no... I know a hospital that just upgraded to Windows
         | 7...
        
           | roblabla wrote:
           | That hospital is dumb and will likely face issues in the near
           | future then. Win7 isn't supported by Microsoft since early
           | 2020, which means no more security updates. Given hospitals
           | are getting more and more frequently targeted by
           | ransomware... Well, we'll see how that goes.
           | 
           | There's still win8 and win8.1 to worry about though, and
           | win10 also has LTSC releases that stay supported for at least
           | 10 years IIRC.
        
             | zten wrote:
             | A buddy of mine with a Subway franchise is finally being
             | prodded by corporate to upgrade his Windows 7 hardware.
             | They still have support for Windows 7 for a little while,
             | but not long -- it's apparently done by August 31st this
             | year. And, their upgrade path is Windows 10 LTSC, which
             | will expire in 2026.
        
             | mrweasel wrote:
             | What I don't get is hospitals buying things like MRI
             | scanners, with Windows based "controller" with no upgrade
             | path. The hospital, and the manufacturer, knows that the
             | version of Windows they're running will be EOL before the
             | hardware, yet nobody ask the manufacturer how they plan to
             | deal with that fact.
             | 
             | The promise of Windows 10 being the last Windows could have
             | but an end to that nonsense.
        
               | lovich wrote:
               | If it's not networked does it matter if it gets updates?
        
               | Aerroon wrote:
               | Why does it matter? Just don't connect it to the internet
               | and there should be no issue. Why would you _want_ to
               | update software that could potentially break your super
               | expensive machine if it already works?
        
               | anderskaseorg wrote:
               | So what you're saying is, this can't have happened
               | because nobody would be dumb enough to buy a convenient
               | Internet-enabled smart device and then _actually_ connect
               | it to the Internet:
               | 
               | https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomasbrewster/2017/05/17/wa
               | nna...
               | 
               | And also that this problem definitely won't get worse as
               | more and more of these devices are built on platforms
               | that want to _require_ you to sign in with a cloud
               | service...
        
               | Aerroon wrote:
               | Of course people are going to do silly things, but you
               | can't protect people from stupidity.
               | 
               | > _And also that this problem definitely won't get worse
               | as more and more of these devices are built on platforms
               | that want to require you to sign in with a cloud
               | service..._
               | 
               | Which is why it's so important that not giving network
               | access to medical machines becomes standard practice.
        
               | ziml77 wrote:
               | It blows my mind that any would be accessible from the
               | internet. These devices shouldn't be networked at all if
               | possible. But at the very least they should be on their
               | own network, preferably physically isolated instead of
               | VLANs.
        
               | mrweasel wrote:
               | But they know that it has to be network enabled. MRIs
               | connects to a PACS. That's how you actually get any
               | useful information from an MRI.
        
               | mimsee wrote:
               | > ...with no upgrade path.
               | 
               | The manufacturer of the MRI machine doesn't care. In
               | their mind the "upgrade path" is to buy a new one. That
               | might support the current iteration of Windows + their
               | drivers until the next Windows is released. Sure it's
               | nonsense but the hospital can't just not have an MRI
               | machine. They need one and someone will capitalize on
               | that need.
        
               | johncalvinyoung wrote:
               | MRI machines aren't like a copier. They're million-plus
               | dollar room-sized installs that require massive
               | facilities support, custom spaces, and in many places in
               | the US, a certificate of need to allow you to purchase
               | and install it (distributed geographically by population
               | and governmental formulas).
               | 
               | I suspect the 'replacement' or 'upgrade' market for such
               | machines is very very low. Major capital expenditure
               | intended to be amortized/depreciated over many years.
        
             | EvanAnderson wrote:
             | Windows 7 is absolutely still supported through an ESU
             | subscription through 2022. There are plenty of
             | organizations who are using that program to continue to use
             | Windows 7 in places where it makes financial sense.
        
       | virgulino wrote:
       | No AMD Zen 1st gen support:
       | 
       | https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/min...
       | 
       | Zen+ supported.
       | 
       | I wonder why.
        
         | bloggie wrote:
         | Only 8th gen and up Intels supported... 5 year old computers
         | are unsupported. Surprising.
        
         | easton wrote:
         | I bet the TPM isn't 2.0. I was hoping buying into AM4 would
         | mean I could keep this board longer too, but the but the 5xxx
         | chips aren't compatible with the original chipset.
         | 
         | My machine is super fast, but I guess unless I feel like
         | staying on insider (which will have the TPM requirement patched
         | out for the next little while according to MS), I'll need to
         | upgrade sooner than I planned.
        
         | TazeTSchnitzel wrote:
         | There are some hardware issues with the first gen. Could it be
         | related?
        
       | scoutt wrote:
       | So the first tweak would be something like:
       | .bar_icons {             float: left;             padding: 10px;
       | }
        
       | bun_at_work wrote:
       | Now is the time to abandon Windows.
       | 
       | I don't know what can replace it right now, for non-technical
       | users, but the market is ready for an OS that isn't tied to
       | hardware (MacOS) and doesn't require as much expertise or effort
       | as Linux variants (especially when running specific software).
       | 
       | Microsoft is here with Windows 11, integrating teams into the OS,
       | because they want to shill it, not because it's what users want.
       | They are making claims about it being more performant, but that's
       | hard to imagine when considering their promises for backwards
       | compatibility.
       | 
       | Windows is a bloated nuisance OS that only stays around because
       | of legacy software and DirectX. The folks at Microsoft who work
       | on Windows have demonstrated for decades now that they care more
       | about implementing new features than they care about user
       | experience, consistency, and reliability. Here comes another UI
       | overhaul instead of simply fixing the trash menus and numerous
       | other problems the OS has. Why?
       | 
       | It's time to move on from Windows.
        
         | seniorThrowaway wrote:
         | >Windows is a bloated nuisance OS that only stays around
         | because of legacy software and DirectX
         | 
         | The reason it stays around is because of it's entrenched market
         | share at very large enterprises. Until there is a replacement
         | for managing huge numbers of end user devices centrally that is
         | as easy or easier then Active Directory that won't change.
        
           | bun_at_work wrote:
           | Ah yeah, AD is another reason it stays around, however, like
           | DirectX, it can be replaced. It's a ripe market opportunity.
        
         | nsriv wrote:
         | I think Teams integration is more of an acknowledgement that
         | video-calling and workplace collaboration is a default usecase
         | for desktop computing (like email, calendar, calculator, text
         | editing).
         | 
         | >They are making claims about it being more performant, but
         | that's hard to imagine when considering their promises for
         | backwards compatibility.
         | 
         | I can run Windows 95 programs on Windows 10, not sure where the
         | knock is coming from on backwards compatibility.
         | 
         | >Here comes another UI overhaul instead of simply fixing the
         | trash menus
         | 
         | From the leaked ISO, the menus are much improved and
         | overhauled. Sure, I want a modern tabbed File Explorer too, but
         | it's clearly being worked on.
        
           | bun_at_work wrote:
           | The knock on backwards compatibility isn't a complaint about
           | backwards compatibility, per se. It's about how so much of
           | the OS is held back due to that support for old software.
           | 
           | The trash menus I'm referring to, while the language is a bit
           | strong, are how there is no unified design throughout the OS.
           | It reeks of implementing new features halfway and rushing it
           | out, since most of what the user sees is now "new".
        
         | [deleted]
        
         | yellowfish wrote:
         | Windows works well enough for me it's just a tool
        
         | jodrellblank wrote:
         | > " _Now is the time to abandon Windows. I don 't know what can
         | replace it right now, for non-technical users_"
         | 
         | ???
         | 
         | Complaint: Microsoft have spent years adding many features and
         | even people with no expertise can use it. This is, somehow,
         | bad.
         | 
         | Suggested course of action: Abandon it.
         | 
         | Complaint: There is nothing else comparable, because everything
         | else has fewer features is harder to use, and can't run
         | software people want to run.
         | 
         | > " _the market is ready_ "
         | 
         | The market is still giving money to Microsoft hand over fist.
         | Consumers have basically run to Android phones, iPads,
         | Chromebooks, Kindles, Alexa devices, macBooks, and away from
         | desktops entirely. What are you looking at which suggests it's
         | ready for a change of consumer desktop/laptop OS?
        
       | n_io wrote:
       | Am I the only one who feels like Windows 11, at its core, is just
       | one giant telemetry upgrade with a shinier UI?
        
       | Ajedi32 wrote:
       | Looks like some pretty nice improvements, particularly in regards
       | to window management.
       | 
       | From the video, it sounds like they're adding persistent grid
       | layouts, with apps able to be assigned to specific tiles in the
       | grid, and Windows remembers and restores those positions when you
       | restart apps or switch monitor layouts (e.g. when connecting a
       | laptop to a docking station). Looks like they've also expanded
       | the multi-desktop feature to integrate nicely with these new
       | persistent grid layouts, with labeled desktops for particular
       | tasks.
       | 
       | The new native support for Android apps also seems like it could
       | be really useful, depending on how well-integrated it is with the
       | rest of the OS.
        
       | gjsman-1000 wrote:
       | We fired shots at BlueStacks and Zoom. Rejoice with us.
        
       | ZoomZoomZoom wrote:
       | I would really like to know if there's _anything_ positive
       | besides UI and up-to-date security this brings to a user 's table
       | compared to Windows 7.
        
       | sbadger wrote:
       | 24 years ago my company moved from mac to windows (granted macs
       | would crash every 20 minutes). At the time we were given a
       | windows laptop to try for a bit, with the rollout a month or so
       | later. When I went to shut it down I asked how to... 'press
       | start', I was told. I thought 'nope, they still don't get it...
       | pressing start to stop... send it back to them and tell them to
       | try again and harder'. Its still true.
        
         | Crono wrote:
         | That old joke ... But i have a solution for you: You could use
         | that fancy thing called a "power button" - no joke, it will
         | actually help you in turing of the computer - or do you want to
         | only start it with this button?
         | 
         | Jokes aside: cmon, its not a big deal to open the windows menu
         | to power of the machine. The Word "Start" is now missing since
         | Windows Vista which released 2007 - nearly 15 Years ago!
        
       | _benj wrote:
       | I honestly was expecting more "innovation", more daring decisions
       | and deep convictions that "this new way", even though it might
       | get some backlash, will prove to improve the wellbeing of it's
       | users, even if they don't know it yet.
       | 
       | I haven't seen anything like that since the days of Steven Jobs
       | and it kind of saddens me. Have we reached a plateau in tech? Are
       | we just up for making more of the same, just a little different,
       | as long as we can get VC or increase the stock price? Are there
       | no more Wright Brothers? Alex G. Bell? Elon Musk for more
       | industries?
       | 
       | Sorry for the sad comment, but this release just disappointed me.
       | Idk what I was expecting, but it wasn't just another Windows...
        
         | tomtheelder wrote:
         | Desktop OSes have been basically stagnant for almost 20 years.
         | There's plenty of software innovation out there, but not in
         | this space.
        
         | rhengles wrote:
         | They tried that with Windows 8, the backslash was so enormous
         | that I think they will be on the safe side and stick with
         | 'familiarity' for the foreseeable future.
        
         | BitwiseFool wrote:
         | I was hoping 11 would get rid of a bunch of old Windows
         | backwards compatibility cruft. Make Windows 10 the long-run
         | version and Windows 11 the forward looking one. Almost like
         | what Apple did with Mac OS X.
        
           | marcthe12 wrote:
           | Well did drop 32 bit and bios. So they probably dropped a
           | huge chunk of kernel code
        
           | timw4mail wrote:
           | 16bit support isn't legacy enough? No 32bit install?
        
           | wvenable wrote:
           | Mac OS X has direct linage from NeXTStep that was first
           | released in 1989 -- four years before Windows NT.
           | 
           | When it was originally rebranded OS X there was so much
           | backlash from developers and Apple had to go back and spend a
           | year creating a new API (Carbon) to mimic the one in Mac OS
           | classic.
           | 
           | There is no reason to complain about "backwards compatibility
           | cruft". An OS exists to run software and an OS that runs less
           | software is less useful. Over time this backwards
           | compatibility stuff is less and less significant -- you can
           | run several copies of Windows 95 entirely in the L2 cache of
           | a modern system.
        
       | arathore wrote:
       | I am looking forward to performance improvements. It would be
       | great if the core window services were optimized to use less
       | resources to improve the windows experience on less impressive
       | hardware.
        
       | nevi-me wrote:
       | I didn't hear anything about availability, previews, etc. Did I
       | miss something? I listened to the live stream in the background,
       | and also skimmed through The Verge's article and live stream.
       | 
       | As a happy Windows user, this looks exciting.
       | 
       | I hope that there'll be a Windows Pro upgrade path that's not
       | pocket-heavy, so I can update my 8 year old laptop, and my recent
       | desktop without paying too much.
        
       | dolmen wrote:
       | "people will be able to discover Android apps in the Microsoft
       | Store and download them through the Amazon Appstore"
       | 
       | 3 big tech in one sentence from Microsoft.
        
       | typh00n wrote:
       | I really do like Windows, but it has a lot of issues for me:
       | Pushing its users to Microsoft Accounts, telemetry, ads,
       | bloatware it automatically installs, and last but not least
       | inconsistencies all the way through the OS - and adding another
       | design-layer with windows 11 wont help that. I think microsoft
       | really need to address some of this and get back to the needs of
       | "prosumers". I personally want a slim but nice looking OS.
       | 
       | The only thing keeping me away from Linux at this point are
       | games. I know, Proton opened huge possibilities but unfortunately
       | it is not enough in my case. Either games won't work because of
       | DRM (e.g. FallGuys), or the game itself runs fine but needed mods
       | to run online-multiplayer are not possible on Linux. (e.g.
       | Command & Conquer 3 + CnC-Online)
        
         | npteljes wrote:
         | "Pushing" really is the thing that bother me most about
         | Windows. Just so pushy about a lot of stuff. Putting things
         | here, there, switching it around, turning it off when it was
         | always on, and vice versa. I just have the feeling that it very
         | strongly wants something, and that's not what I want.
         | 
         | Windows as a requirement is really unfortunate. I have the same
         | reasons as you to keep it around. Win compatibility came a
         | really, really long way, but anti-cheat will always be a
         | problem, which cuts out a good chunk of games.
        
         | Icathian wrote:
         | I've said for years the day I can reliably play League of
         | Legends on Linux you'll never see me using anything else at
         | home again. Just frustrating that gaming is still largely a
         | best-effort crapshoot despite all the work by Valve and others.
        
           | fermentation wrote:
           | Last summer all I had was a linux box to play games, and I
           | found that a lot of games I wanted to play (like the witcher
           | 3) worked surprisingly well via Proton. I think the main
           | issues come from the massive GaaS like LoL and Destiny that
           | have so many moving parts and points of failure.
        
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       (page generated 2021-06-24 23:01 UTC)