We’re once again approaching that time of the year when Microsoft releases a new feature update to Windows 10. In line with the version numbering scheme we’ve been seeing, this update is currently known as Windows 10 version 2004, or 20H1, because it’s being released in the first half of the year.
While we did get a feature update in the second half of 2019, there was only a very small number of additions, and those additions were also minor in nature. It was more about refining the previous update than making significant leaps forward. Surprisingly, even though version 2004 is a more significant feature update, it’s one of the smaller ones, despite having a longer period of testing with Insiders than what we’ve seen before.
With that being said, there are still a few changes and improvements to many parts of the experience, and if you want to know all about it, we’ve compiled this list for you. Let’s get started.
There’s some nice additions in there, but nothing earth-shattering or game-changing. Windows 10 is five years old now, and it feels like the model of frequent feature updates (instead of monolithic Windows releases and the occasional service pack) just isn’t really moving the needle.
Yep, I thought they might avoid using 2003 as the version number (just in case some particularly idiotic developer tested for Server 2003 using that number in the product name instead of testing for version 5.2).
Meanwhile; ever since Vista I have been waiting for MS to integrate something like Everything: https://www.voidtools.com/
I might be part of a minority, but I am in fact very happy of all the changes mentioned in the linked post – as well as the fact that there are _very little_ new features this time around.
Most of the new stuff that got pushed into Windows in recent years felt either unfinished anyway, or sub-par compared to existing offers, both commercial and open source. Or just the kind of stuff that I have no use for, given that I use Windows for working, not for living a digital lifestyle.
Let’s keep the all-knowing, all-managing digital assistant with a locked-down, dumbed-down interface confined to phones and tablets, please. But better Settings app? Putting back sense into Windows update? Bringing Notepad closer to a useable code/config file editor? I am a taker!
gggeek – I 100% agree, I’m very happy with a slow burn evolution and continual refinement of what they have got. Make it reliable, make it faster, make it safe. I don’t need a new major version every twelve months.
New is for nerds and News Ltd!
“Windows 10 is five years old now, and it feels like the model of frequent feature updates (instead of monolithic Windows releases and the occasional service pack) just isn’t really moving the needle.”
Does anybody really care? We don’t want the large missteps of previous versions for the sake of a “big” change. We want a solid desktop system that is continually being refined and kept up to date.
The only thing that would have been nice, but got pulled from the previews, is the Sets feature.
grahamtriggs wrote,
Yes, I too am looking forward to that feature, but it’s absence is not a critical delay, I want it to be working and stable when we get it.
I’d say they’ve already moved the needle far too many times, and public outcry is forcing them to move it back. The tiles in the Start menu are a prime example.
I wouldn’t say there is nothing big. WSL2 is a pretty big departure from WSL1. And Microsoft used a custom Linux kernel and published the sources on github. From calling it a cancer in 2001 to publishing kernel sources in 2020.
ShadesFox,
Indeed. Microsoft wanted to kill off linux, but they failed. Windows wasn’t very competitive for the hosting market. Windows also lost out to linux for the up and coming “internet-of-things”. For a company who’s 2nd in command would go about chanting “developers, developers, developers”, they lost the ball with indy kernel developers like myself when they took away owner’s ability to install our own drivers. Microsoft completely underestimated the importance of indy kernel developers and by telling us “your not welcome here” the number of kernel developers turning to linux for their pet projects just grew and microsoft kernel development stagnated. To this day we still see linux driving kernel innovation.
Microsoft’s recent “embracing” of linux in windows has to do with getting back the development mindshare that they lost. I understand that WSL is fairly decent, but for me personally it’s too little too late. I’m not interested in crawling back to a corporation that would take away my freedoms and privacy to turn a buck.
Obviously it’s not just microsoft who’s at fault here. My philosophy is that owners have the last say in what can run on their devices, not microsoft, apple, or google, etc. To the extent that it’s feasible to do so, I encourage everyone to support products & manufacturers that respect owner rights.
I was rather underwhelmed by WSL v1 until the Pengwin distro came along and stripped out all the non-essentials like systemd. I feel like the custom stripped down Linux kernel is another step along the same lines and moving into a container is in line with where Windows 10X is moving — which is smart from both an architecture and security standpoint. As a three decades long BSD and Linux user (AmigaOS before that), I feel like despite their sordid history under Steve Ballmer, Microsoft really has turned a new leaf in innovation, patent trolling, etc. I say this as someone that took a great deal of umbrage at their business practices over the years with regard to being antagonistic towards open source software in general.
My reaction to hearing of updates from Microsoft is PLEASE NO!! No more changes! I haven’t undone the one’s in the last update yet so I can use my PC without incident. No more grouping the download directory by date! No more grouping every folder in Outlook by date! Who in the hell thought forcing that on users would be a good idea? I’m tired of it! No one at MS gives a rats ass. Endless searches to find the solutions that correct this BS. I’m ready for Linux.
I saw were Win10 was heading, back in 2016. I knew when Win7 would “be put in the grave” by Microsoft.
Soooo…… I went full Linux in 2016. I fully understand what you are saying. MS Dos 6.22 was solid and good, Win98 was useable, XP was useable, Windows7 was one of the best they did. I am just tired of MS, because they did so many crappy systems. Yes, I began using x86 when MS Dos 3.3 was mainstream. And I have used nearly all other systems from MS. I am not going back to Windows, unless it is on a machine i borrow or use at a workplace.
I can’t say I share those experiences, I’ve found Win 10 Pro x64 to be the most hardware universal OS I have implemented, working on a broad range of hardware generations with the least amount of intervention. So I’m hell bent on getting as many systems off XP or Win 7 and onto Win 10 as possible. I admit it took a while to get there, but that’s where it sits for me now. The other pleasant surprise has been the performance of Win 10 on older hardware, in most cases it’s user experience is snappier than XP or 7.
My main problem is that 3rd party hardware suppliers are the entities causing me the most grief, some are without doubt using OS changes as an excuse to force people to purchase upgraded kit. But when the kit is an electron microscope, spectroscope or scanning interferometer which cost up to $1M, upgrading might not be an option!