Microsoft announces Windows 10, skipping Windows 9
Microsoft Corp announced its 'Windows 10' operating system on Tuesday to replace the largely unpopular Windows 8, skipping a number to mark a leap toward unifying the way people work on tablets, phones and traditional computers.
The next version of Microsoft's flagship product, which still runs the vast majority of personal computers and is used by 1.5 billion customers worldwide, is aimed at recapturing the lucrative business market, which generally ignored the new-look Windows 8.
Windows 10 will be "our greatest enterprise platform ever," said Terry Myerson, Microsoft's head of operating systems, at an event in San Francisco. Only 20 percent of organizations migrated to Windows 8, which was released two years ago, according to tech research firm Forrester. Many PC users disliked the touch-optimized interface and bemoaned the loss of the traditional start-button pop-up menu.
The next version of Microsoft's flagship product, which still runs the vast majority of personal computers and is used by 1.5 billion customers worldwide, is aimed at recapturing the lucrative business market, which generally ignored the new-look Windows 8.
Windows 10 will be "our greatest enterprise platform ever," said Terry Myerson, Microsoft's head of operating systems, at an event in San Francisco. Only 20 percent of organizations migrated to Windows 8, which was released two years ago, according to tech research firm Forrester. Many PC users disliked the touch-optimized interface and bemoaned the loss of the traditional start-button pop-up menu.
Microsoft was also keen to stress the benefits of Windows 10 for enterprise users, highlighting the ability for companies to choose how quickly they adopt new features and customize an app store so that it caters specifically for the needs of its workers.
Microsoft will start distributing the Technical Preview build of Windows 10 for laptops and desktop machines on October 1. The consumer version of the operating system is expected to ship mid-2015.
It’s likely that you still have some pretty significant questions about Windows 10. Given the questions that Microsoft left unanswered today, that’s a reasonable reaction. The company sees this initial announcement of the OS as a step on the road to its eventual release. It intends to listen closely to enterprise customers and preview testers over the coming months, tweaking and improving the experience leading up to release.
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| Windows 10 shrinks Windows 8's Start Screen and moves it to the Start Menu |
