68 |^ |^ June 2019
henit firstappeared,
Windows 10 introduced
lotsofnewfeatures,
froma revamped
desktoptoCortana,the
virtualpersonalassistant
who’salwaysonhandtohelp,provided
you’repreparedtogiveupsomeofyour
privacy.InternetExplorergotdumped
infavouroftheall-singing(ifnot,
initiallyatleast,all-dancing)Edgeweb
browser.It alsoblendedthebestbitsof
Windows8.1– thevastlysuperiorFile
Explorerforaccessingyourfiles,for
example– withthebestbitsofWindows
7,suchasbringingbacktheStartmenu.
Otherchangeshavefollowedwith
eachnewsuccessivefeaturerelease.The
step-by-stepguideonthefacingpage
highlightssixmajornewfeatures,but
numeroussmallerchangeshavebeen
appliedwitheachreleasetoo.For
example,theAnniversaryEditionalso
introduceda newdarkthemethat–
fromtheFallCreatorsUpdate– cannow
beappliedtocompatibleapps,too.‘Nightlight’wasa highlightofthe
CreatorsUpdate,helpingtoreduce
eyestrainwhenusingyourPCatnight
(switchableviatheActionCentre).A
newGameModewasalsointroduced,
whichaimstoprioritisesystem
resourceswhenyou’replayinggames
sothattheexperienceisassmoothas
possible.TheCreatorsUpdatealsomade
it easytocapturea selectedportionof
yourscreenandcopyit totheclipboard
witha singlekeycombination– [Shift]+
[Win]+[S].TheFallCreatorsUpdateintroduced
MixedReality– theabilitytomixactual
footagewith3Dobjects– aswellasa
handfulofotherminornewfeatures.RHÀQLQJH[LVWLQJIHDWXUHV
Biggerchangescanbedetectedwhen
lookingatfeaturesintroducedwith
Windows10.Cortana’sbecomesmarter
overtime,buttherearequestionmarks
overprivacyassheofferstointegrate
herselfmorecloselyintoyourdailylife.
TheStartmenuhascontinuedtoevolve
aswell,withdesigntweakssuchas
removingthedefault‘mostused’view
forappsinfavourofanAllAppslist
underneathrecentlyaddedorupdated
programs.Advertisementshavestarted
toappearhere,too,butwe’llshowyou
howtoremovetheselater.
TheActionCentrehasbeenrolled
intothenotificationspop-outthat’s
accessiblefromthebottom-rightcorner
oftheTaskbar.Thishasevolvedtogive
youmorecontroloverwhat’sshown
alongwithhandyfeaturessuchasQuiet
Hours,whichenablesyoutodisable
notificationsfora specificperiod.
WhenWindows 10 waslaunchedthe
Settingsappcontainedonlya limited
numberofsystemtweaks,whilethe
ControlPanelstillplayeda majorrole.
Witheachmajorrelease,Microsofthas
rolledmorefunctionalityintothe
Settingsapp,withtheControlPanel
increasinglysidelined.SincetheCreators
Update,it’snolongeraccessiblefrom
the‘Quickaccess’menu([Win]+[X])
anditsdaysarecertainlynumbered–
fornow,accesstheControlPanelviathe
searchbarorbypressing[Win]+[R],
typingcontrolandpressing[Enter].
Thelistofappsthatareintegrated
withWindows 10 hasalsochangedover
time– theWindows 10 Skypeappwas
addedtotheAnniversaryEdition,while
Paint3DfirstappearedintheCreators
Update.ThePaintappalsogota major
overhaulintheFallCreatorsUpdate.What’s new in Windows?
Need reminding what’s been added and improved in successive
versionsof Windows10?Thesearethefeaturesto lookoutfor
What else is new?
TheApril 2018 Updateintroducedlotsofnewfeatures,includingtheTimeline.
ThisisembeddedintoTaskViewandenablesyoutojumpbacktofiles,apps
andsitesthatyou’verecentlyused.The ActionCentrealsogaineda fewextra
tweaks– lookforFocusAssistunderSettingswhereyou’llbeabletofurther
prioritisewhatnotificationsyoureceiveandwhen.Onefeaturethatwas
originallypromisedfortheApril 2018 Update,butneverarrived,wasSets.It
wouldhaveenabledyoutogrouprelated apps,documentsandsitestogether
undera singletabbedwindow,thoughMicrosofthassincekilledtheidea.
Luckily,TidyTabs(www.nurgo-software.com)doesmuchthesamething.W
Windows 10’s Action Centre has been refined
numerous times.Prevent eyestrain after dark with Windows 10’s
‘Night light’ feature.Image credits: Microsoft