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Windows 10 is being adopted by business at nearly twice the rate of Windows 8

Microsoft’s latest OS is proving more attractive to firms than Windows 8 – particularly among larger businesses.

Windows 10

 

Businesses are proving far more willing to experiment with Windows 10 than they were with Windows 8.

Six months after Windows 10’s launch nearly one in five firms, 18 percent, appear to be testing the OS, research by professional IT network Spiceworks found. In contrast, at the same point after Windows 8’s release, the OS was only being trialled by just over nine percent of businesses.

The anonymised data on what proportion of firms are using at least one Windows 10 machine was gathered from the millions of IT pros that use its software. Spiceworks says businesses of all sizes use the software to inventory devices connected to their networks.

This faster pace of enterprise adoption is backed up by figures from IT asset management company Samanage, told that 62.4 percent of its enterprise customers have at least one managed PC running Windows 10. These are sizeable businesses, with each of Samanage’s enterprise customers having an average of more than 1,000 seats. Microsoft also claims that 76 percent of its enterprise customers are piloting its new OS.

“Our data shows that IT pros were most excited about the return of the familiar start button experience in Windows 10, which reduces the need for end-user training required for Windows 8,” said Peter Tsai, IT analyst at Spiceworks in his assessment of why the new OS is proving more popular than Windows 8.

“Many IT pros also liked the free upgrade offer via Windows Update, which makes it easy for many to test the new OS. And lastly, they were looking forward to new security features that promise to make Windows 10 a more secure operating system than previous versions.”

Windows 10 is benefiting from a comparison to an unpopular OS, demand for Windows 8 was so weak that analyst firm Canalys warned in 2014 that “Microsoft risks losing momentum unless it does something drastic to turn its Windows business around”.

And while a significant proportion of businesses may be experimenting with Windows 10, it is likely to be some time before a large number move to the OS, as business typically lag behind consumers due to the complexity of managing such upgrades at scale. Of those firms testing Windows 10, about 40 percent have three or more devices running the OS, according to Spiceworks’ data.

Medium and large businesses were the most likely to have at least one Windows 10 machine Spiceworks found – with 31 percent of firms with more than 500 people trialling the OS, compared to 10 percent of companies with 50 employees or fewer.

Windows 10

 

“We also know from many conversations with IT pros that smaller companies tend to have fewer resources for OS migration, so many SMBs could be holding off on Windows 10 until they have the time and manpower to adequately test the OS for hardware and application compatibility,” said Tsai.

Last year, half of the 500 IT pros surveyed by Spiceworks expressed an interest in adopting Windows 10 inside their business.

Microsoft’s decision to phase out support for Windows 7 and 8 on new PC hardware will also put pressure on businesses not to downgrade new Windows 10 machines to an earlier OS, as has been common in the past in order to standardize corporate hardware.

Microsoft is also reporting rapid adoption of Windows 10 by home users, with more than 200 million devices worldwide running the OS.

The popularity of the OS may, in part, be a result of Microsoft’s tactics to get consumers to upgrade. This aggressive approach includes recently implementing changes that will trigger the free upgrade to Windows 10 to begin automatically installing on many Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 PCs used in homes. Microsoft is making this push as part of its drive to get one billion devices running Windows 10 by 2018.

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Seven ways to sort and view Outlook email by accounts

Outlook

 

Most users manage more than one e-mail account. Outlook 2010 and 2013 automatically create individual folders for each account. If you’re still using Outlook 2007 or earlier, you can simulate this convenience, but you’ll have to set it up yourself. In this article, I’ll show you seven ways to sort or view email messages by their accounts. I’ll include instructions for 2010 and 2013; even if you need to sort by accounts, you might want to use these methods to sort by other criteria.

1. Create account-specific folders

You can simulate the account-specific Inbox configuration in Outlook 2010 and 2013 by creating new download folders for each account. Doing so is easy, and it’s probably the best way to manage multiple accounts in Outlook 2007 and earlier. You’ll create an account-specific folder as follows:

  1. Choose Account Settings from the Tools menu in Outlook 2007. (In Outlook 2010 and 2013, Account Settings are on the File tab.)
  2. Select the POP3 account you want to reconfigure.
  3. Click the Change Folder button. (This button isn’t available for IMAP accounts.)
  4. Use the resulting dialog to identify the folder you want to download your POP3 account mail to (Figure A) or create a new folder if it doesn’t already exist.
    Figure A

    Figure A
  5. Click OK and then Close.

After making this change, Outlook will download that account’s mail into the specified folder. You can create specific folders for every POP3 account you have.

Unlike the 2010/2013 configuration, all of your messages download into the same .pst file. In addition, Outlook will save copies of all sent messages in the default account, not in the account-specific folder.

2. Use a rule

Rules have been around for a long time. They’re commonly used to manipulate mail as it arrives. You can also use a rule to manipulate mail received from a specific account as follows:

  1. Select the Inbox.
  2. In Outlook 2003 and 2007, choose Rules and Alerts from the Tools menu. In Outlook 2010 and 2013, click the File tab and click Manage Rules & Alerts in the Account Information section. (Outlook 2010 and 2013 users won’t need this rule unless they choose to combine all accounts into the same Inbox. Although this is unlikely, I’m including the instructions to be as comprehensive as possible.)
  3. Click New Rule on the E-Mail Rules tab.
  4. In Outlook 2003 and 2007, use Check messages when they arrive. Outlook 2010 and 2013 users, select Apply rule on message I receive.
  5. Click Next.
  6. Check the through the specified account option.
  7. Click the specified link in the bottom pane (Figure B).
    Figure B

    Figure B
  8. Choose the account from the resulting drop-down, click OK, and then click Next.
  9. Check move it to the specified folder.
  10. Click the specified folder link in the bottom pane. Then, identify the folder to which you want to download mail from the specified account (Figure C), and click OK. You can create a folder at this point, if necessary.
    Figure C

    Figure C
  11. Click Next twice (you won’t want to include any exceptions to the rule most likely).
  12. Give the rule a name. I recommend a name that includes the account’s name, such as “Move message for account name.”
  13. Turn the message on if necessary.
  14. Select Run this rule now on messages already in “Inbox” (Figure D) if you want Outlook to move existing messages into the folder. Doing so can save a lot of time.
    Figure D

    Figure D
  15. Click Finish, and then click OK.

This rule works similarly to the account-specific folder tip in #1. If you’re not familiar with rules, take a minute to review the many conditions and actions; you can do a lot with rules.

3. Use the Account view option

You can use a view property to sort message by their accounts. In Outlook 2003 and 2007, choose Arrange By from the View menu and then select E-mail Account. The change is immediate, but its helpfulness in a busy Inbox is limited. You’ll probably find it more useful to combine this setting with other sorting methods, such as search folders and filters. After creating the main sort, apply this setting to further define the results by account. In addition, you can quickly apply this setting to all folders by modifying the default Messages view and then copying it. (For more complete instructions on applying this setting to all folders, read “Pro tip: Use standard and custom views to personalize an Outlook folder.”)

In Outlook 2010 and 2013, you can combine individual .pst files into one and download all mail into the same Inbox. You’ll find this setting in the Arrangement gallery on the View tab. (Click the More button to see all of the settings.)

4. Sort by the E-mail Account column

Similar to changing a view’s configuration, you can sort multi-account folders by accounts. You might find this alternative easier or preferable to creating or modifying a view. To add this column, do the following:

  1. Right-click the title bar (in the Mail window).
  2. Select Field Chooser from the resulting dialog.
  3. Choose All Mail Fields from the drop-down.
  4. Drag E-mail Account to the title bar (Figure E) and release it. If it’s not where you want it, drag it accordingly.
    Figure E

After adding the E-mail Account column, you can click it to sort all mail in the folder by their accounts.

5. Use a view

Both the Account view and adding the E-mail Account column will sort messages by accounts, but you’ll still see mail for all of your accounts. If you want to view mail from a single account, create a view. Then you can apply views to filter messages accordingly. To view messages from a single account using a filtered view, do the following:

  1. In Outlook 2003, choose Arrange By from the View menu. In Outlook 2007, choose Current View from the View menu. In Outlook 2010 and 2013, click the View tab and choose Manage Views from the Change View drop-down in the Current View group.
  2. Click New.
  3. Give the view a name. I recommend naming the view for the account.
  4. Select Table and All Mail and Post Folders (the default).
  5. Click OK.
  6. Click Filter.
  7. Click the Advanced tab in the resulting dialog.
  8. Choose All Mail fields from the Field drop-down, and then choose E-mail Account (Figure F).
    Figure F

  9. Choose is (exactly) from the Condition drop-down.
  10. Set the Value using the account’s name (Figure G).
    Figure G

  11. Click Add to List.
  12. Press OK twice.
  13. Click OK to close the Manage All Views dialog and return to the Mail window.

Repeat the above steps to create a custom view for each account. To view all the messages for only one account, choose the appropriate view from the Change View drop-down (in the Current View group).

6. Sort into search folders       billionphotos-1647683

Similar to filtering with a view, you can display account-specific mail in a search folder. The difference, of course, is the difference between a view and a folder. The view merely filters mail to determine what you see, but all of the messages are still there. A search folder contains links to only those messages that meet the folder’s search criteria. To create a search folder for this purpose, do the following:

  1. In Outlook 2003 and Outlook 2007, choose New from the File menu, and then select Search folder. In Outlook 2010 and 2013, click the Folder tab and then click New Search Folder in the New group.
  2. In the resulting dialog, choose Create a custom Search Folder (in the Custom section at the bottom of the list).
  3. Click Choose, and then name the new folder. I recommend that you name the folder for the account.
  4. Click Browse, exclude folders and subfolders you don’t want to search, and click OK. Doing so will speed up your search.
  5. Click Criteria, and then click the Advanced tab.
  6. Choose All Mail Fields from the Field drop-down and then choose E-mail Account.
  7. Choose is (exactly) from the Condition drop-down.
  8. Set the Value using the account’s name.
  9. Click Add to List.
  10. Click OK four times.

Create a folder for each of your accounts. To read the mail for an account, open that account’s search folder.

7. Format by account

Sometimes, a visual clue is all you need. When this is the case, apply a format to distinguish accounts as follows:

  1. In Outlook 2003 and 2007, choose Arrange By from the View menu. Choose Custom, and then select Automatic Formatting. In Outlook 2010 and Outlook 2013, click the View tab. Then, click View Settings in the Current View group. In the resulting dialog, click Conditional Formatting.
  2. Click Add and name the new View. I recommend that you name the view after the account.
  3. Click Condition.
  4. Click the Advanced tab.
  5. Choose All Mail Fields from the Field drop-down and then choose E-mail Account.
  6. Choose is (exactly) from the Condition drop-down.
  7. Set the Value using the account’s name.
  8. Click Add to List, and then click OK.
  9. In the Conditional Formatting dialog, click Font and change the formats accordingly. Changing the font’s color is a common choice.
  10. Click OK three times to return to the Mail window.

Outlook will update the folder immediately by applying the formats for the specified account.

About the .pst files

It might never matter to you, but should .pst management become an issue, keep the following in mind:

  • Outlook 2010 and 2013 download POP3 mail into separate (dedicated) .pst files. For each account, you’ll have a dedicated Inbox.
  • Outlook 2007 and earlier download all mail into the same .pst file, regardless of the changes you make for viewing the mail via the interface.

sjt

 

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Windows 10: Ten big things to watch for in 2016

This year will mark the first full year of release for Microsoft’s new OS. A look at what’s in store for Windows 10 this year.

Windows

Windows 10 was described as the “last version of Windows” – an OS that would evolve over time rather than be superceded.

In the few months since Windows 10’s launch Microsoft says it has been installed on more than 110 million devices. But just what lies in store for the OS in 2016, how will it get better and what new devices will it find its way onto?

1. Windows 10 will begin automatically installing on your old machine

Windows 10 is available as a free upgrade to Windows 7 and 8.1 users and Microsoft is getting increasingly aggressive about moving these users to the new OS.

From this year Windows 10 will automatically begin installing on most Windows 7 and 8.1 machines.

Users will still need to confirm the installation manually for it to continue. However, if they choose not to proceed it’s unclear if they can cancel it altogether, with Jeremy Korst, general manager of the Windows and Devices team at Microsoft, saying only that “the customer will have the ability to delay it for some period”.

If users do upgrade but don’t like Windows 10 they will have 31 days to roll back to their previous OS.

The automatic installation, the result of Microsoft changing the status of the Windows 10 upgrade to a Recommended update, will be preceded by increasingly insistent nag messages to upgrade. These notices are already being shown to some Windows users and have been criticised for not offering an easy opt-out.

2. Microsoft Edge will get extensions

Windows 10 launched with Microsoft Edge, a new browser that cast off a lot of the legacy code holding Internet Explorer back.

However, while speedy and capable on paper, the browser suffers from its share of bugs and is missing support for extensions, a key feature found in competitors such as Chrome and Firefox.

Microsoft will rectify this omission “early next year” when Korst said it will add extensions to Edge in test builds of Windows 10, ahead of being made generally available.

Extensions are small software programs, typically written using HTML, CSS and JavaScript, that augment the functionality of a browser.

Earlier this month, Microsoft accidentally published a website announcing the introduction of extensions to test builds of Windows 10. The site, which was taken down, referenced extensions for Pinterest and Reddit.

Microsoft originally planned to add support for extensions to Edge this year.

3. Windows 10 will blur the virtual and real world

Microsoft’s Windows 10-powered augmented reality headset HoloLens will ship to developers in the first quarter of 2016.

The augmented reality headset places 3D virtual images in the wearer’s vision so that they appear part of the real world – for instance, a Minecraft landscape sits on a coffee table or a Skype video sits on the wall.

After trying a demo of the headset this week, TechRepublic senior writer Dan Patterson said that though the headset had a limited “field of vision”, “the 3D animations are smooth, easy to interactive with, and result in only marginal eyestrain”.

The HoloLens doesn’t come cheap, with the developer kit priced at $3,000 – although Microsoft says this early release is meant for developers and commercial customers.

Although HoloLens has obvious consumer and gaming uses, Microsoft is stressing its use for business and is working with NASA, AutoDesk, Volvo, Dassault Aviation, Case Western Reserve University, and other large organisations to develop applications for it.

4. More security for enterprise

The coming year will also see some notable new features added to the enterprise version of Windows 10.

Key among these additions is Enterprise Data Protection, which will allow companies to separate work and personal data on devices using containerisation file techniques. It will also encrypt data as it moves around the organisation – helping to ensure that information isn’t accessed by the wrong people.

The feature will be rolled out to people testing Windows under the Insider Program “early this year”.

5. Testers will get a peek at even earlier builds

Those testing early releases of Windows 10 under the Windows Insider Program will be able to get earlier access to new features from January this year.

Those who choose to be in the “fast” ring of the Insider Program will receive builds of Windows 10 more frequently in 2016, according to Microsoft VP Gabe Aul.

The price of testers getting their hands on early builds more regularly will be that this software will likely include more bugs, he said. Those testers who prefer stability to early access should opt for the “slow” ring, he said.

6. Cortana will be everywhere

Microsoft is planning a major upgrade to Windows 10, codenamed Redstone, next year – with reports the upgrade will put Microsoft’s virtual assistant Cortana at the core of the OS.

An unnamed source told The Verge the new Cortana will help users with a much wider range of tasks inside Windows 10, appearing contextually in documents to provide “information and assistance” and giving Cortana control over a wider range of notifications.

The other major upgrade to Cortana will reportedly be an ability to start a task on one device and pick it up on another, for instance if you get a missed call on an Android phone running the Cortana app you could reply from your Windows 10 PC via text.

7. Microsoft doubles down on Windows 10 phones as desktops

A much touted feature of Windows 10 is its ability to run a desktop OS from a phone.

Microsoft’s new Lumia 950 and 950XL handsets can – wirelessly or via a dock – be hooked up to a monitor, mouse and keyboard and used to run a Windows desktop.

The Windows 10 OS can change the look and feel of certain apps, as well as its own appearance, to suit the phone or the desktop, as well as coping with everyday desktop tasks, such as multitasking and copying files from a USB stick.

The expectation is that Microsoft will further commit to this idea of using your phone as a desktop in 2016, with rumours that Panos Panay and the team behind the high-end Surface Book laptop are working on a Surface Phone that will release next year.

8. No more free upgrade

Windows 10 is available as a free upgrade to everyone running Windows 7 or 8.1 but only for a limited time.

The offer of a free upgrade will expire on 29 July 2016 – after which point it seems that users will have to buy a Windows 10 licence.

However, due to the in-your-face tactics that Microsoft is adopting to persuade people to upgrade, it seems unlikely that Windows 7 and 8.1 users will inadvertently miss out on the offer.

9. Windows 10 replaces its predecessors on new PCs

If you’re not a fan of Windows 10 then you should buy a new PC before October.

From the end of October 2016, PC makers will have to sell new machines with Windows 10, rather than Windows 7 or 8.1.

After that point businesses that want to run older Windows versions on new machines will have to rely on downgrade rights or software assurance rights under volume license agreements.

10. Windows 10 Surface Hub arrives

From January 2016 Windows 10 will power another new piece of hardware,Microsoft’s touchscreen computer the Surface Hub.

The successor to its large-screen Perceptive Pixel displays, the Surface Hub will run a custom version of Windows 10 and various apps needed for workplace communication and collaboration, including OneNote, Skype for Business and Office.

The 55-inch, Intel Core i5-based Surface Hub model will sell for $6,999 (estimated retail price), and the Intel Core i7-based 84-inch version for $19,999 ERP.

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Five ways Microsoft plans to get you to upgrade to Windows 10

To achieve its goal of getting one billion people onto Windows 10, Microsoft is getting more forceful in how it pushes Windows 7 and 8.1 users towards its new OS.

Windows10

Microsoft wants Windows 10 on one billion devices by 2018 – and its tactics for hitting that ambitious goal are about to get more aggressive.

From next year, Microsoft will be more direct in pushing Windows 7 and 8.1 users to upgrade to its latest OS, in an attempt to bolster the 110 million-strong Windows 10 userbase.

Here’s how Microsoft is about to crank up the pressure to make the switch.

1. Windows 10 will automatically begin installing itself

From “early next year”, Microsoft will change the status of the free Windows 10 upgrade so it is classified as a Recommended Update.

Given that most home machines are set up to install Recommended Updates automatically, the change to Windows 10’s update status will lead to most Windows 7 and 8.1 machines beginning the upgrade.

However, Microsoft says that before Windows 10 is installed users will need to manually confirm the installation, giving them a chance to pull out.

Business users should be able to prevent the upgrade from automatically starting using tools such as Windows Server Update Services.

For those on metered connections, Terry Myerson, Microsoft’s executive VP of the Windows and Devices Group, said people “have the option of turning off automatic updates” before going on to say that such a move is unwise because of “the constant risk of internet threats”.

Those who don’t like the new OS will have 31 days to roll back to their previous version of Windows. To go back, select “Start Button->Settings->Update and Security->Recovery and Uninstall Windows 10”.

2. Upgrade notifications will be made more obvious

Despite Microsoft sticking a ‘Get Windows 10’ icon on the taskbar of most Windows 7 desktops, many customers apparently still can’t figure out how to initiate the upgrade.

Myerson says since launching Windows 10 the number one complaint has been ‘How do I get my upgrade?’.

To address the difficulty some users are having, Myerson said Microsoft will change “our notifications to be more approachable and hopefully clear, and sometimes fun”.

3. Upgrades will happen immediately

The process of initiating the upgrade to Windows 10 has also been streamlined.

In the weeks after Windows 10’s launch earlier this year, Microsoft required users to first reserve a Windows 10 upgrade, which would then be installed at a later date.

Microsoft has now replaced that two-step process with an immediate upgrade. Users clicking on the ‘Get Windows 10’ icon will now be given the option to ‘Upgrade Now’ to begin the upgrade process straightaway.

4. Simpler upgrade from unsanctioned copies of Windows

Myerson admits surprise at how many people running copies of Windows 7 and 8.1 that have not been authenticated then go on to buy Genuine copies of Windows 10.

Based on this experience, Microsoft plans to make it a “one-click” process for people running unsanctioned copies of the OS to “get Genuine” via the Windows Store or by entering an activation code bought elsewhere. The offer will be trialled in the US and, if successful, may be extended to other countries.

5. Upgrading multiple machines to Windows 10 will be easier

Those looking to upgrade several Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 machines to Windows 10 will soon find the process gets more straightforward.

Microsoft’s Media Creation Tool is used to create an image that can be run off a DVD or USB stick to upgrade qualifying machines to Windows 10.

According to Myerson, you will soon be able to use the tool to create a single image that will allow any number of 32-bit or 64-bit, Home or Pro machines to be upgraded and which will also allow for clean installs “wherever you have a Windows license”.

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Which deployment option for Microsoft Office 2016 is best for your organization?

Microsoft Office 2016 is now available for deployment in your enterprise. There are several options to choose from, but which one is right for you?

Office 2016

As of September 22, 2015, the official version for Microsoft’s productivity and collaboration suite has been upgraded to Office 2016. For consumers and small businesses who subscribe to Office 365, the upgrade to Office 2016 will be deployed automatically. For IT administrators working in enterprise environments, however, the deployment of Microsoft Office 2016 is a bit more complicated.

The plan

How IT admins will chose to deploy Office 2016 will be determined, at least in part, by how they subscribe to the productivity suite in the first place.

For example, if you subscribe under the Office 365 Pro Plus plan, your enterprise can continue to receive feature and security updates on a monthly basis as you have been. Microsoft has dubbed this always up-to-date deployment process as “Current Branch.” Under this plan, your enterprise will always have deployed the most current version of Microsoft Office. The Current Branch for this month released on September 22, so congratulations Current Branch subscribers, you have all the latest Office 2016 apps available.

Office 2016

However, the Current Branch is not the only option for enterprise deployments. If you choose, you can opt to deploy Office 2016 using what Microsoft calls “Current Branch for Business.” This method is particularly useful for enterprises who require more compatibility testing for new features.

Under the Current Branch for Business plan, enterprises will still receive monthly security updates, but they’ll only receive new feature updates three times per year. The first Current Branch for Business build will be deployed in February 2016, and it will include the September 22, 2015, features available under the Current Branch plan, along with any after-the-fact security updates associated with those features.

It’s important to note that the Current Branch for Business plan is the default plan for Office 365 Pro Plus subscribers.

What’s in a name?

As is typical, Microsoft’s naming scheme for Office 2016 deployment lacks imagination and descriptive clues about what to expect from each method, but the concept is relatively straightforward. If compatibility is not a problem in your enterprise, you should probably opt to use the Current Branch method for deployment.

Enterprises with a volume licensing agreement can download Office 2016 from the Microsoft Volume Licensing Service Center starting October 1, 2015.

However, if your enterprise has issues with compatibility that require extensive testing before deploying new features, then you’ll want to keep using the Current Branch for Business plan.

No matter which plan you choose to use, if your enterprise is of significant size, you’ll likely want to use the Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) to help control network traffic.

Bottom line

There are many new features in Microsoft Office 2016 that may be beneficial to users in your enterprise, including Skype for Business, Clutter for Outlook, better cloud collaboration tools for all apps, real time co-authoring in Word, and built-in business intelligence tools. This is a significant update to Office, so the decision on when and how to deploy it is not a trivial matter.

Microsoft has provided numerous tools and options to help IT admins deploy Office 2016, so there is really no excuse not to find a way to get it to your users. After all, you’re subscribing to Office 365, so you’re paying for Office 2016 apps whether you deploy them or not. Therefore, you might as well let your users take advantage of the latest features. It only makes sense.

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How to upgrade to Windows 10: A step-by-step walkthrough

Windows 10 is now available as a free update. Here is what you can expect when you say “yes” to the update.

Here’s a step-by-step walkthrough of the upgrade process while upgrading Windows 8 machine to Windows 10.

Launch Windows 10 upgrade through Windows Update

Look for the Update screen in Windows 8 and click the Check for Updates link. When the check is over, you will see the screen shown in Figure A.

Figure A

As you can see, it is a 2699.0 MB download. Click the Get Started button and then the screen shown in Figure B will appear.

Figure B

You may be able to get Windows 10 via a free update, but it still requires that you agree to a license/user agreement.

The next screen (Figure C) is very important. Updating takes about 2 hours depending upon the machine. If you cannot afford to be off your computer for that long, it may be a good idea to schedule a time when you can.

Figure C

Installation process

After you start the update process, your PC will immediately restart. From that point on you will just have to wait for the update to finish. During update the screen gets blank for over an hour, so please don’t panic and turn your PC during this seeming lack of activity.

Your PC may also restart several times during the update, but eventually you will reach a screen that asks if you want to do an Express Configuration or a Custom Configuration. Express configuration will be the best choice for most people.

Note that the update does take a bit of bandwidth, so it might be more efficient to update one PC at a time.

When the entire update procedure is complete, you will be presented with the Windows 10 desktop or tablet interface depending on your device as you can see in Figure D.

Figure D

There are new versions of OneDrive and the Snipping Tool in Windows 10. Of course, there is also the new web browser, Microsoft Edge, too.

Get Windows 10 without using Windows Update

If you would like to get Windows 10 without going through the update process, for a clean install for example, then you will have to download the Windows 10 ISO file.

If you have a Windows Vista or Windows XP PC you would like to update, you have to purchase Windows 10. Windows 10 Home will cost you $119, while Windows 10 Pro will cost $199.

As of July 29, 2015, most new devices will be available with either Windows 10 or Windows 8.1, which can be upgraded to Windows 10 for free. If your PC is more than a few years old, it might make more sense to spend money on a new device rather than to update an old one.

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Windows 10: The end of computing as we know it

IT leaders considering a Windows 10 migration as a cornerstone initiative risk having a focus that is a decade behind.windows 10

Microsoft and I have been “partners” in computing since my father brought home a strange beige box with MS-DOS 2.11 installed. I remember a few years later shuffling through a half-dozen 3.5-inch floppy disks and watching in amazement as my C:\> prompt was replaced with the seemingly magical Windows 3.0 user interface, kicking off years of computing bliss (and occasional frustration) with the famed Wintel alliance at my side.

Much as my early days of computing were defined by Microsoft, CIOs, and even average computer-using “civilians,” hung on the company’s every announcement. A Service Pack release, let alone a new version of Windows, was a cornerstone item in most IT project portfolios. In the past few years, a confluence of developments brought us to today, where Windows 10 — Microsoft’s soon to be latest and greatest OS update — barely registers on most CIOs’ radars.

The end of desktop dominance

Sales of traditional desktops and laptops, and now even tablet computers, have been fading for several years. Perhaps the greatest contributor to this trend is the rise of hosted applications, whether they’re public web apps like Gmail, heavy-duty enterprise applications accessed through a browser, or cloud offerings. Increasingly, Windows is merely a portal to get to the web-based tools we need to get our jobs done.

Even the web browser, once the subject of complex anti-trust lawsuits and one of the greatest “battles” in technology history, has become largely irrelevant. Whether Chrome, Firefox, IE, or Safari is the “weapon of choice,” they’re now about as relevant to how we consume computing services as a Samsung TV vs. a Sony TV is to experiencing the latest episode of Game of Thrones.

The failed “Windows Everywhere” gambit

Microsoft did something bold with Windows 8 by attempting to create an OS that transparently adapted to the user’s device. Dock your tablet, and the OS would theoretically adapt to a keyboard and mouse-centric computing experience. For developers, write a single “Modern” app and easily run it on a variety of Microsoft products from Xboxes to phones.

Unfortunately, the gamble failed. Windows 8 was panned by enterprise customers, most of whom migrated from XP to Windows 7 as support for XP ended, even though Windows 8 was an available option. Consumers were confused by the new user interface, and developers opted to follow the money to the Android and iOS platforms.

Windows 10 promises to rectify many of the failures of Windows 8, much as Windows 7 helped the company regain its footing after stumbling with Vista. However, we’re in a very different place than the summer of 2009, when the iPhone was still largely scoffed at as a “serious” enterprise device, and most corporate software still ran on fat clients that necessitated a capable desktop. The world was clamoring for a better Windows; now, most of that excitement is reserved for the latest Android device or iPhone.

Freeing Windows

Microsoft seems to have recognized this trend, and has made upgrades to its desktop OS free for consumers and made its crown jewel, Microsoft Office, available on platforms ranging from Android phones, to Mac desktops, to web browsers. Rather than a destination in itself, the desktop is now a gateway to a company’s cloud offerings like iTunes, Azure, Siri, and Cortana. Even Google is in on this game, offering its own platform with just enough muscle to get a user online and connected to Google’s portfolio of services.

The bottom line for IT leaders

Even though Windows 10 may be relevant to your organization, it doesn’t mean you should let Microsoft define your enterprise computing strategy. It seems even the vaunted company realizes that Windows is little more than a gateway to higher value services. As IT leaders, we need to make sure we’ve acknowledged the same trend.

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When free Windows 10 becomes Expensive. You Must Know this!!

Is Microsoft really going to charge $100 to $200 to users who want the Pro edition or who don’t qualify for the free upgrade? Lets take a look at some alternative pricing ideas.

In Last week’s article, qw showed you how to reserve your free copy of Windows 10 upgrade from your Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 System. As you may know, the free upgrade will move you to the same edition of Windows that you’re currently running.

 

Windows 10 cost

“When you upgrade, you’ll stay on like-to-like editions of Windows. For example, Windows 7 Home Premium will upgrade to Windows 10 Home.”

However, what if you get Windows 10 Home and then decide that you would like Windows 10 Pro? How much will it cost to upgrade? What if you are running Windows Vista or XP? Or, what if you are planning on building your own system and want to install Windows 10 from scratch? How much will you have to pay for Windows 10? Let’s take a closer look.

The free upgrade chart

Along with the like-to-like editions description, Microsoft presented an upgrade chart (Figure A).

Figure A

sjt-blog-photo-windows

As you can see, this is how Microsoft will be doling out the free editions of Windows 10. For those getting the Pro edition of Windows 10, this will be perfect. And for most folks getting the Home edition of Windows 10, this will be a fine deal. However, what if you’re really a Pro type of user who just happened to end up with a Home edition of Windows 7/8? Will you be satisfied with the Home edition of Windows 10?

For example, my main system is running Windows 8.1 Pro with Media Center. However, my laptop is running the standard Windows 8.1, because that’s what was preinstalled when I purchased it last year from Dell. I’ve always wished that it had the Pro edition, as there are certain features that I’ve grown accustomed to on the Pro edition that I sorely miss, such as being able to configure my laptop as a Remote Desktop host.

I know that I won’t be satisfied with the Home edition of Windows 10 on my laptop.

The Windows 10 Pro Pack

Microsoft has released statements to various technology media sites, such as CNET, confirming the existence of an upgrade package called the Windows 10 Pro Pack that will allow you to move up from the Windows 10 Home edition to Pro edition. The Windows 10 Pro Pack will cost $99 (USD).

While that might not sound like a lot, when compared to FREE, it seems kind of unfair.

I understand that I’m getting a like-to-like edition upgrade, but I was hoping for some kind of break. After all, I’ve been a loyal Microsoft customer for years.

How about selling the Windows 10 Pro Pack for $39.99 for a limited time? Say, 90 days after launch? That would be more than acceptable to me–and it’s not unprecedented.

As you may remember, back when Windows 8 was first launched in October of 2012, upgrades to the Pro edition were priced at just $39.99 for anyone using an existing product. That offer ran until January 31, 2013. After that, the price of Windows 8 went up to the regular price point.

Retail packages

Microsoft has also released the MSRP for copies of the new operating system. Windows 10 Home will sell for $119 and Windows 10 Pro will sell for $199. Again, this seems to be a pretty stiff deal when compared to FREE.

This is the price that anyone using Windows XP or Windows Vista on a system that’s capable of running Windows 10 will have to pay for the full install of the new operating system. This also applies to users who are planning on building their own systems.

If the goal is to really get everyone off of old operating systems and onto Windows 10, Microsoft should offer these folks a special price for a limited time.

Again, such a deal is not unprecedented. When Windows 8 first came out, the retail package of the Pro edition cost $69.99.

If Windows XP/Vista users and system builders could get Windows 10 Pro for $69.99 for the first 90 days after launch, I think that a lot more people would go for it than if they have to pay $199.

What’s your take?

If you get a free Windows 10 Home upgrade, will you be satisfied–or will you want to move up to Windows 10 Pro? If so, would you be willing to pay $39 for the upgrade? If you don’t qualify for the free upgrade, would you be willing to pay $69 for Windows 10? Let us know

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Watch out, Chrome, there’s new browser in town!

browser

With the latest release of Windows 10 and the Edge browser, Microsoft looks increasingly ready to tackle Chrome’s performance lead.

Over the years Microsoft has fallen behind its competitors in the battle to provide the best performing browser.

Google’s focus on making Chrome feel fast and responsive has won the browser millions of users at the expense of the more sluggish-feeling Internet Explorer (IE).

With the release of Windows 10, Microsoft is hoping to change the status quo and offer the fastest on-ramp to the web.

To this end it has been reworking how its new Edge browser handles JavaScript (JS), the default scripting language of the web.

JavaScript is at the core of the modern web, with heavy pages loading in tens of scripts that in turn fetch more JavaScript. If your browser is slow at JavaScript, it’s slow full-stop.

At the heart of every browser is a JavaScript engine that parses the JS, interprets its commands and compiles its instructions into machine code.

Like IE 11 before it, the Edge browser uses the Chakra JS engine, and Microsoft has been tweaking Chakra to give Edge a boost on Windows 10.

This fine tuning has allowed the Edge browser to outgun not only IE, but also the latest experimental builds of Chrome and Mozilla Firefox, according to benchmarks run by Microsoft.

The Octane and JetStream benchmarks measure JavaScript performance and importantly are not produced by Microsoft but by their rivals, Octane by Google and JetStream by Apple.

The tests found Edge to be 2.25 times faster than IE in the Octane 2.0 benchmark and 1.6 times faster in the JetStream benchmark.

“The key is that Microsoft Edge has already come a long way from IE11 in terms of improved JavaScript performance on both, benchmarks and real world web as it exists today,” said Gaurav Seth, principal PM lead for Chakra at Microsoft in blog post.

“As mentioned in the beginning, performance is a never-ending pursuit. We will continue pushing the performance boundaries for JavaScript in Microsoft Edge.”

Edge’s relative performance in Octane is a step above its showing when TechRepublic ran the benchmark earlier this year, which saw Edge achieving an 8.8 percent worse score than IE.

To check this latest performance win, we replicated the benchmark run by Microsoft using the same browsers under build 10122 of a 64-bit version of the Windows 10 Technical Preview.

Tests were run on a Toshiba Portege laptop. The machine has an 2.1GHz Intel Core i7 4600U processor, with 8GB of memory and a 256GB SSD.

Although Edge didn’t come out on top in our tests it did put in a good showing, bettering IE’s score by an impressive 44 percent and Firefox Nightly by five percent in the Octane test. Edge still lagged behind Chrome Canary by just under six percent in Octane, but came within spitting distance of Chrome in JetStream, racking up a benchmark just three percent shy of Google’s browser.While our benchmarks found Edge failing to match Microsoft’s claims, it does appear to be a noticeable step forward, leaving IE in the dust and edging closer to the performance of Chrome.

Edge doesn’t appear to have snatched the performance crown as of yet but with work continuing to improve the browser, Microsoft finally seems to have produced a contender in the browser wars.

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Windows Server 2003: Dangerous to use but still surprisingly popular

One in 10 web-facing computers is still running Microsoft Windows Server 2003, according to a report – despite the OS no longer being patched by Microsoft.

Windows 10

Hundreds of thousands of computers are still using the Windows Server 2003 operating system – despite it no longer being patched against hacks.

Internet services found more than 600,000 web-facing computers, together hosting millions of websites, still running the OS that Microsoft ceased supporting in July this year.

The end of support means the OS no longer receives patches against viruses, spyware and other malware that might seek to exploit the system. The US Computer Emergency Readiness Team warns that those running Windows Server 2003 risk “loss of confidentiality, integrity, and or availability of data, system resources and business assets”.

Despite these risks, 175 million websites – what it terms “one-fifth of the internet” – are hosted on machines running Windows Server 2003. The OS also appears to be in use on computers sitting behind web servers for a further 1.7 million sites.

Together accounting for 55 percent, the US and China are home to the bulk of the machines running Windows Server 2003, with 166,000 in the US and 169,000 in China.

The unsupported nature of Windows Server 2003 makes it a tempting target for attackers – which is why it is important for firms to switch away from the OS as soon as possible.

“As time goes by, there will be some vulnerabilities that affect Windows Server 2003 and if those allow things like remote code execution and so on, we’re likely to see a massive number of web-facing computers and a much larger number of websites getting hacked. These could then go on to distribute malware and even be made into botnets to enable other attacks.

“Of course, because Windows Server 2003 is now unsupported, those people who try to find vulnerabilities might even now be particularly focusing on this platform because they know it won’t be fixed.”

Windows Server 2012 R2 is the most recent version of Microsoft’s server-targeted operating system – with a variety of options for licensing. In part, the cost of moving to a more recent Microsoft OS for the proportion of machines still running Windows Server 2003.

“[That proportion] is over 10 percent of all web-facing computers, and shows the true potential cost of migration,” the report states.

Moving a server to a Linux-based OS can be difficult for organisations that have traditionally used Windows Server, Mutton said, particularly if they rely heavily on scripts written for ASP.NET, Microsoft’s server-side web application framework.

The report lists several major firms and banks still running Windows Server 2003 machines, including UK bank NatWest, part of the larger publicly-owned Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS).

However, while Microsoft is no longer supporting the OS for most users, it will offer fixes for the OS to organisations willing to pay for a custom-support deal.

Such a deal was recently struck by the US Navy, which agreed to pay at least $9m to Microsoft to provide ongoing support for Windows XP, Office 2003, Exchange 2003 and Server 2003. A spokesman for RBS said NatWest is also covered by a custom support deal with Microsoft that began in March this year.

Firms without such a custom support deal in place that use Windows Server 2003 to serve sites that handle financial information could be in breach of data security standards, which carries out security testing and assessments for companies.

The requirement under Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) 6.2 that “all system components and software to be protected from known vulnerabilities by installing vendor-supplied

“Many merchants still using Windows Server 2003 are likely to be noncompliant and could face fines, increased transaction fees, reputational damage, or other potentially disastrous penalties such as cancelled accounts.”

Microsoft advises several options for machines still running Windows Server 2003 – including switching to Windows Server 2012 R2 or its cloud platform Microsoft Azure. It provides an interactive Windows Server 2003 Migration Planning Assistant.

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