Windows 10 finally launched with a few upgrade hiccups, but it’s mostly a nice update to the Windows operating system. We talk in this week’s Theotek Podcast #034: Windows 9, I Mean Windows 10 about some of the things we really like and don’t like about the Windows 10 operating system and the update.
Windows 10 is easy to get. Just download the ISO or update media creation tool from Microsoft. The other option means waiting for Microsoft to offer it to you, if you reserved a copy using the little white Windows logo that pops up in the Windows 7 and Windows 8 system tray.
Upgrading to Windows 10
The upgrade goes smoothly for most people, but as always, backup your important data. I recommend doing that and then restoring your computer to factory spec using the recovery tool in Windows 8 or using your computer manufacturer’s recovery system if you’re running Windows 7. This will help you get a better Windows 10 experience. After restoring to Windows 8 or Windows 7 factory spec, then update all the drivers using Windows Update. Finally, after all that, run the update you downloaded using the link above.
OneDrive users will find a strange change from Windows 8. In Windows 8, OneDrive would put links to all of your files that aren’t installed locally. In other words, when a user set up OneDrive in Windows 8, they didn’t have to download all their files, but the folder looked like they did. Some of the files would only be placeholders so you knew what files your OneDrive stash contained online even if they didn’t reside on the hard drive. Click on a placeholder and Microsoft would download the file and then open it.
This placeholder method worked great on computers with limited storage. Users knew what they have online, but the file didn’t eat up precious space on a low-end computer or tablet with only 16 or 32GB of local storage, like the HP Stream 13 I own. However, in Windows 10 doesn’t work this way. They removed the placeholders in Windows 10 and only shows the files actually residing on the local hard drive. Some people prefer it this way but many of us like having the placeholders. Microsoft plans to restore the feature in an upcoming update.
Theotek Podcast
We record the Theotek Podcast every Friday morning at 9:00 a.m. using Google Hangouts. Follow me on Google hangouts to get notified when we go live. You can watch it after the fact on YouTube or via iTunes. Podcast app users can also listen by searching for Theotek in the app. Get all the links to the audio on Theotek.com.