Well I haven’t done a blog for a while as I’ve been busy with other things but with Windows 10 now out, I thought I should give my first opinions on it. I have been running Windows 10 on my Surface Pro since the first technical preview and have loved it. People are saying its the best operating system that Microsoft have ever released and I think they could be right. Since the early previews it has come on a long way and I’ve been able to follow it with every update.

The return of the start menu:
The biggest and best new feature for me is that we have our start menu back. The biggest and major downfall of Windows 8 was the fact that Microsoft got rid of the start menu. With Windows 10 you get the best of both worlds as it has the start menu back but with a twist. MS have updated the start menu and it now has apps and titles included in it which make it look attractive indeed.

Your new best friend Cortana:
With Windows 10 you get a Microsoft’s version of Siri. This allows you to talk to your device and ask it to find something, search online, add something or pretty much anything you fancy. You can also type in Cortana if you don’t fancy sitting there and having a full-blown conversation with your laptop. Cortana is providing to be a power tool within Windows 10.

The Action Centre:
Microsoft tried to create a side bar of options on Windows 8 but there wasn’t much you could do on it and you found your self using the control panel instead. Windows 10 has reinvented that Action Center giving you the options to toggle your wireless, enter tablet mode, toggle your location settings as well as a few other options. Notifications from your apps and programs will also appear here. You can turn these off though in your settings if you wish to.

Explorer:
Windows Explorer has had a little bit of a make over as well with some new icons and a quick access area. In the quick access area you can pin the items you might access often so they are easier to find. The home screen of the File Explorer now includes a recently viewed items as well as being able to see your most accessed. For me this feature is annoying but this is because I like the old way it all looked, as it seemed more organised.

The new Task View:
Windows 10 sees the introduction of whats called Task View. This is a quick way to toggle through the windows you have open. In previous versions of Windows you were always able to hit Alt and Tab to toggle through the windows you have open but now Microsoft have added a new button to the task bar that allows you to see what’s open. Microsoft didn’t stop there, they also added multiple desktops so you can have more than one desktop.

Edge:
Internet Explorer has been a part of Windows since the early days of Windows 95 but with Windows 10 we get a new experience of internet browsing. Edge just looks sharper, performs better and seems like an all round better web browser than IE was. Microsoft have had tough contest with the likes of Google Chrome, Safari and Mozilla Firefox but it seems Edge could well be a good contender against them. Internet Explorer 11 is included in Windows 10 incase some websites don’t work as they should in Edge but I’m sure that won’t last for long. Cortana is well linked with Edge and you also have the feature to take notes now on websites and highlight things.

Other changes have been made in Windows 10 and it sees a much improved built-in apps like the Store, Calendar and Reader. Windows 10, to me, seems like everything Windows 8 should of been and I’m sure Microsoft will want Windows 8 forgotten like Vista has been.

Verdict:
As I said in the opening paragraph I think it is safe to say this is the best ever operating system Microsoft have made. Microsoft have also slim lined the OS as it seems to take up a lot less hard drive space than its predecessors did. The best thing about Windows 10 is that its fast, easy to use and just works like its supposed to.