BACK TO THE START
Microsoft stakes a claim for a universal new era
As its 29 July release edges ever closer, the full details of Windows 10 are coming into focus. Much, however, remains unclear. We know, for example, that Win10 marks the end of Windows Media Center. It’s gone, not to be replaced. That’s big news. But all we know is that it’s dead, nothing more. Our full preview of exactly where Windows 10 stands right now, and what it can do, starts on page 46. For the moment, here’s a little more detail.
THE RELEASE DATE
Well, we know that you will be able to get Windows 10 for PCs and tablets, in 190 countries and 111 languages, on 29 July. Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 users will be able to upgrade, for free, at any point within the first year. You'll then receive free service updates for the lifetime of your device. That's even the case if you buy a Windows 8.1 device between now and the release date. What we still don't know, of course, is what happens beyond the lifetime of your device, or if you buy/build a new device after the OS is on the market (see "Regular Service," on page 48, for more on that).
Another area that remains unclear is when to expect other versions of Windows 10 to hit the market. What we do know is that there will be multiple versions of the operating system (see "The Seven Versions of Windows 10," on page 49), and that they will not be treated equally when it comes to release dates.
PCs and tablets will be the first to hit Windows double-digits, while phones, HoloLens, Xbox One, and more, will have to wait until later in the year. So, yes, Windows 10 does launch on 29 July, but not on every screen you own.
MOBILE WIN
Much of the latest technical information has come from Microsoft’s Build developer conference, held in April, which was an opportunity for the company to show developers where it was at that moment.
On the first day, Microsoft's Terry Myerson surprised the crowd when he announced that Win10 will support apps written for iOS and Android. With some reworking, of course. This will undoubtedly blow the Windows 10 app store wide open.
So, when Windows 10 for Phones launches later in the year, you’ll be able to run Android apps, for example, on phones and small tablets (but not on a Surface, notebook, or desktop PC). They’ll run on an Android subsystem that’s likely to be based on KitKat (using the same hooks once used to put a POSIX subsystem in Windows NT).
But this doesn’t mean every Android app will run. “We replace the Android services with our own,” explained Microsoft’s Kevin Gallo. “We're running them in our own container—conceptually, as a universal app, so we use a middleware layer for translating APIs across, but they still run in the Windows app security model.” That will improve performance and battery life over Android, he suggested. Standard platform capabilities will be redirected to the Windows equivalents—that’s the file system, contact and photo integration, camera, sensors, and network connections.
Not all Android apps will work well this way. “Messaging apps and those that have deep integration into background tasks will probably have issues running,” Gallo told us, “and it also comes down to [where they have good] performance.” But then, he pointed out, “not every app works in every Android distribution.”
Bringing Android apps to Windows Phones isn’t the only way Microsoft is trying to bring developers and their apps to Win10. There’s also the ability to wrap Win32 and Silverlight apps in the App-V container, or to bundle up a website as an app (complete with API calls to add Windows 10 features) and distribute them through the Windows Store. Plus, iOS devs can bring an Xcode project into Visual Studio and share source code between an iOS and Windows app.
BUILD ON
The Build reveals were free-flowing, though generally short on details. Windows 10 is now available on the Raspberry Pi 2 micro computer and Intel Minnowboard Max, for example. Some specific tailoring had to be done to fit the operating system on these tiny machines, resulting in a version of the OS earning the name Windows 10 IoT Core.
Microsoft’s voice-based virtual assistant Cortana, meanwhile, will serve up information based on how people use the web and their PCs. The Cortana interface will suggest new apps based on what people search for, plus let users interact with apps through voice control.
STAYING SECURE
Microsoft has always taken security seriously, often releasing patches daily. Now, it's looking to take its security measures to the next level, with two-factor authentication (2FA) becoming standard on enterprise versions of the OS.
Microsoft also intends to protect user identities by storing user access tokens in a secure container that runs on top of Hyper-V technology, isolated from the rest of the OS. Windows 10 will also offer a dataloss prevention solution that will allow users to separate their corporate personae from their non-work ones.
So, that's some of what Windows 10 is promising for the future. On the next page we take a look at where it stands right now.