Inside the Windows 10 Insider Program
I’ve always been a Windows kid.
Never an OSX kid, though often desired to be Linux kid, however always strayed back the juggernaut of all operating systems; Microsoft Windows.
There’s been good times and bad;
- I remember doing everything I could to get XP running on my Pentium II desktop (it wasn’t really up to it).
- I only used Vista for about 2 weeks.
- I couldn’t believe how perfect Windows 7 was.
- And possibly, most controversial of all; I really like Windows 8.
Sure, there were some teeth issues from a UI perspective. It really took till about Windows 8.1 before I’d expect my mother to be able to use it without crying. The whole time though, Windows 8 has one big thing going for it.
Speed and speed trumps almost all.
I remember fighting with the Mac kids, one of them claiming that OSX is always faster than Windows. We did a boot test of his Macbook Pro vs my Thinkpad. Windows 8 was up in a matter of seconds. OSX was still on that grey screen. Speed is what made Windows 8. It took the stability of 7 and kicked it up a notch.
Now Windows 10 is here via the Windows Insider Program and I honestly have to say, it’s exciting. They’ve tempered the all-out metro/tablet mode (unless you undock your tablet) and instead focused on bringing the best of desktop operating systems into the modern world.
I remember when there were rumours that ‘Apple would ditch Intel if they could’. Implying that Apple laptops would run on some turbo-charged ARM architecture. With the success of iOS and the apparent (at the time) dominance of touch, I also thought this would happen. I teased the Mac kids that OSX was going. Their Macbooks were to become fast iPads with attached keyboards.
I guess I underestimated the continued relevance of the desktop operating system. In a ‘constantly connected’ world, productivity means more than desktop at work, however that desktop at work is still where ‘things get done’. Well, it does in web design anyway.
Windows 10 is the acceptance, adoption and embracement of this.
Should you upgrade?
Sure it’s still in development, but I’ve only had one error with it so far, so my recommendation is:
Do it (probably backup important things first):
