Microsoft Planning 'Sweeping Visual Rejuvenation of Windows' (theverge.com) 284
Microsoft is planning a "sweeping visual rejuvenation of Windows" that is designed to signal to users of the operating system that "Windows is BACK." From a report: That's according to a job listing posted by Microsoft recently, advertising for a software engineering role in the Windows Core User Experiences team: "On this team, you'll work with our key platform, Surface, and OEM partners to orchestrate and deliver a sweeping visual rejuvenation of Windows experiences to signal to our customers that Windows is BACK and ensure that Windows is considered the best user OS experience for customers." Microsoft quietly removed references to this "sweeping visual rejuvenation" this morning, after several Windows enthusiasts spotted the job listing over the weekend.
"Windows is BACK" (Score:5, Insightful)
Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Re:"Windows is BACK" (Score:5, Insightful)
I certainly am. Past experience shows that they will keep everything from before and bury it under something ostensibly better.
Get a watch and time how long it takes to find network adaptor settings. Now try device manager. I swear, with every new version of Windows the control panel becomes even less useful.
Re:"Windows is BACK" (Score:5, Funny)
Re:"Windows is BACK" (Score:4, Insightful)
Linux on the laptop snuck in while no one was looking. Tons of people and schools use the hell out of Chromebooks without even knowing it's Linux underneath.
The thing is laptops are increasingly irrelevant. Most people either need a full desktop or can get by on a smartphone - those who truly need an actual laptop are a shrinking demographic.
Re: "Windows is CRACK" (Score:3)
You must be new to Microsoft.
That is literally all they ever did.
Reskinned remarketing of other people's ideas. And then reskinings of that.
I mean is is even possible to go further with that, than when MS's big new feature announcement for Windows 10 was that "The Start menu is back!"? That is *literally* what the billboards said! Holy hell! While we were sitting there, with our Windows 7, asking "You expect me to pay money for that?"
Re:"Windows is BACK" (Score:5, Insightful)
Yes, it is really annoying how you cannot do the most basic things in the "modern" parts of windows and then have to go a really long and complex way to get to the classic parts where you can...
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Yes, it is really annoying how you cannot do the most basic things in the "modern" parts of windows and then have to go a really long and complex way to get to the classic parts where you can...
Which is indicative of a fundamental issue: MS cannot even do the mediocre crap they used to put out anymore. They have lost mastery of their platform.
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I certainly am. Past experience shows that they will keep everything from before and bury it under something ostensibly better.
Get a watch and time how long it takes to find network adaptor settings. Now try device manager. I swear, with every new version of Windows the control panel becomes even less useful.
That reminds me of Windows 8.1. Everyone hated the interface on Windows 8, so they said they would bring back the start button instead of having just a corner that kicked you to the metro screen.
What did the start button do on the desktop view? Kicked you into the metro interface.
Re:"Windows is BACK" (Score:5, Insightful)
And then in Windows 10 they brought back the actual start menu - because at the end of the day people don't really want Windows to change. The desktop UI metaphor doesn't need revamping every few years unless you're looking for an excuse for people to rebuy things (which likely is their true motive). Outside of bug fixes, security patches and updated drivers I don't care if any of my desktop OS's get a single new UI update ever again.
Re: "Windows is BACK" (Score:3)
I have to disagree about search it's really bad.
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They haven't finished doing that from the last time yet! There are still bits of the old UI in 10, still components that have not been updated.
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To get to device manager.
1- Right click on "This PC" on the desktop (you have added this icon to the desktop right?) and select "Properties"
2- Scroll down and select "Device Manager" under "Related Settings"
Basically it should take just as long as it did before.
If for some reason you don't have the "This PC" desktop icon you just hit the Windows key and type in "Control Panel" to bring up the Control Panel and select Device Manager from there.
Network adapter settings are just as fast to get to assuming you
Re: "Windows is BACK" (Score:3)
Putting those icons on the desktop is much harder than it should be. If you right click on the desktop and go to personalize, you'll see a link about desktop icons that takes you to a website talking about them rather than taking you to the place to turn them on and off, it's insane.
Re:"Windows is BACK" (Score:4, Funny)
Is that you Bob?
Re:"Windows is BACK" (Score:4, Funny)
It looks like you're writing a Slashdot post! Would you like help?
o Get help with getting a life.
o Get help with using non-ASCII Unicode on Slashdot.
o Post to MSNBC instead.
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Yep, this is what we've been fearing since Windows 10, the next turd release that we can't just skip like ME/Vista/8, since Win 10 is basically Windows Forever: The Rolling Release.
Good thing almost all of my computers run Linux!
Re: "Windows is BACK" (Score:5, Funny)
Now I understand why the Dow dropped 500 points this morning
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Still using Windows 7... will be switching to Linux to avoid the catastrophy that is Windows 10.
"Designers" are evil
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Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Police: We tracked the IP... it's coming from inside the house and there may also be an Intel Inside [wikipedia.org] ... GET OUT NOW !!
God damnit (Score:5, Insightful)
More pointless change no one is asking for.
KDE folks: don't let this crap inspire your iconoclasts to mess up your DE. Just ignore it and let Microsoft shit the bed alone.
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Re:God damnit (Score:4, Funny)
Windows is BACK -- Better As a Clone of KDE!
Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:5, Interesting)
They may not realize this, but if they were to go back to the Windows 7 L&F on top of the Windows 10 base, they could probably get away with a JetBrains-like model where users pay them $50/year for updates in perpetuity.
OEMs would walk (Score:2)
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Re: Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:3)
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Haven't they already? Now that Windows 10 remembers recently opened documents like Windows 7 did, is there still anything missing from Windows 10 that was in Windows 7? Other than easy control over updates, that is.
Aside from Vista and Windows 8, all the Windows versions are pretty much the same as Windows 95. Which is a good thing.
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>is there still anything missing from Windows 10 that was in Windows 7?
Yeah killing UWP and getting rid of the forced spyware in the OS that records everything and sends it to third parties. Windows 10 is literally the NSA on your PC.
Not only that there are legitimate reasons to run cracked software for software preservation reasons, but you all seem oblivious to the fact that Windows 10 wants to marry hardware drm with software drm to end piracy permanently by phoning home via security chips.
Sorry to t
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That also looks like a list of things you wish weren't in 10, not things missing. They're also things nobody is forcing you to have. Stop using the crap free version and shell out for Pro.
Also, I think you mixed up Macs and PCs. The former has the security chip that dials home, not the latter.
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> is there still anything missing from Windows 10 that was in Windows 7?
Yes, as I pointed out [slashdot.org] last month, gradient title bars background color along with FULL control of foreground and background color for Active and Inactive Title bars is still missing from Windows 10.
Also, Windows Key + Arrow keys needs to be fixed to work for windows that are 100% offscreen. Instead I'm forced to use a AutoHotKey macro to fix basic functionality. Do the Windows programmers even use the system???
*FACEPALM*
Since the st
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>They may not realize this, but if they were to go back to the Windows 7 L&F on top of the Windows 10 base, they could probably get away with a JetBrains-like model where users pay them $50/year for updates in perpetuity.
Call it protection money - $50/month or the Windows 7 UI gets it in the neck you get the Windows 10 UI.
Re: Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:5, Funny)
Its not just the look and feel. They have to replace the backend of the UI too.
Windows 7s WinForms based UI reacted to every click within like 100 milliseconds. Meanwhile Windows 10s UWP UI reacts like youre browsing a website hosted on a raspberry pi in Pakistan.
They cant just reskin the UI to look as before.
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Yeah, that is because it is malware. They need to drop the malware.
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Its not just the look and feel. They have to replace the backend of the UI too.
Windows 7s WinForms based UI reacted to every click within like 100 milliseconds. Meanwhile Windows 10s UWP UI reacts like youre browsing a website hosted on a raspberry pi in Pakistan.
They cant just reskin the UI to look as before.
All of that performance burden you're talking about can be summed up in one word; Telemetry.
Good luck convincing Microsoft to drop you from their product line.
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Re: Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:3)
You mean Linux?
Re: Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:4, Insightful)
In Win10, it checks the URL, does Windows Defender, than open ports for the Russian hacker, the Chinese hacker and the Indian IRS scam call center, only after that it connects to the malware site in Pakistan. It takes time to do all this. But now you get four scammers, instead of a lonely one swearing at his raspberry Pi in Pashtoo.
Re:Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:5, Insightful)
UI's have gone crappy since this whole "flat modern" thing become dogma. I fired up an old ipod stuck at iOS 6, it was far less infuriating than whatever the current version in (14?). So much less cruft, and far easier to just do what I was trying. Too much stuff fails the "It just works." mantra. Try copying a playlist from your iPad to a new iPhone without paying for an Apple Music subscription, you can't.
Windows 10 also suffers from flat for the sake of flat UI, with too much complexity crammed into a fake simplicity facade. The Ribbon is still flaming garbage. Control panels have been partially taken over by settings, but clearly the mandate is to keep those too simple, so you end up in the legacy control panel (or elsewhere) 90% of the time anyway. Hiding and obscuring stuff is not the same as simplifying it.
Re:Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:5, Informative)
One of the trends I hate attempts to hide complexity by failing to acknowledge them. Windows 10 Settings are the worst for me. Instead of a Control Panel that has things by icon, Settings pushes them to be sub menus under other sub menus that often require ultimately linking to the old control panel app.
For example, my sound is sent via HDMI through my graphics card to an A/V Receiver. Every now and then the HDMI defaults to stereo instead of 5.1. The problem is that no part of Settings can change that. Sound in Settings has a handful of controls that wants to take up the entire screen. To change it, go to Sound Control Panel, click on the Configure button, and it is the first thing
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The Windows 10 base is malware. Their model is selling users not selling to users.
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Re:Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:4, Informative)
I kind of liked windows 8.1. It got rid of the boot-to-metro from windows 8 and you could boot straight to desktop. After some registry changes to fix the UI borders (which amazingly wasn't in the preferences) it looked ok to me. Windows 10 screwed that up by adding in extra telemetry and mandatory we-know-better-than-mere-users updates, the dangerous addition of Microsoft accounts (all the better to track you with), hiding even more settings, making settings that did exist even more difficult to understand, and an overall dumbing down of things. Windows 8 was faster than Windows 7 most of the time which I liked, I liked the shutdown-is-really-hibernation, etc. But Windows 10 slowed things down a LOT and it's using more RAM than Windows 8 did. It forced me to get an SSD, apparently Microsoft assume everyone has one of those now so why bother optimizing. On a VM on my Mac at work it is amazingly slow and busy all the freeking time (it recompiles all the .NET crap in the background after an update in order to improve the user experience but to me it means leave the damn thing alone for 10 minutes after starting it up)
Re:Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:5, Informative)
Just install Open Shell (née Classic Shell) [github.com]. It gives you a Windows 7 L&F on top of Windows 10. It's the first thing I do for any windows install.
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Windows 95 sucks!
Windows 98SE for the win!
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In many ways? Yup.
The GUI actually peaked in Win98SE. In terms of repair on the bench for a tech it was arguably a win as well. I'm just moving on from ME. Obviously nothing improved the GUI itself after that by which I mean the actual interactive experience if we assume the same TECHNICAL advances and not moving everything around, adding search bars, indexing, and all that other nonsense. XP brought NT's kernel which was good and bad. Everything has required some sort of classic mode interface to be enable
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XP brought NT's kernel which was good and bad.
Actually Windows 2K used NT's kernel first. 2K was their best OS until Win7 imho. XP stripped out a lot of useful things that 2K had. XP also had an atrocious initial release. The random RAM dumps that got sent to Microsoft really pissed off a lot of folks. I can't tell if it's the user base that has changed and don't care about the Win10 telemetry or if people just care less about privacy now than they did then.
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Win2k wasn't a desktop operating system so it doesn't count. XP was the first.
Re: Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:3)
No, the GUI peaked in Vista. That is when we got searchable start menu and taskbar with pinnable icons. It is virtually unchanged in Win7.
Re:Just give us Windows 7 back (Score:5, Insightful)
No no, for what it was, it was good for its time. Sure, everything beneath was a mess, but the Win95 GUI wasn't horrible.
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Does this one go to Windows 11? (Score:2)
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Oh ... (Score:2)
Many users will not like this (Score:3)
they want it to stay exactly as it is. For some changing colours, layout, etc just cause confusion. The average slashdot user might find this laughable, but for many users any change at all will not be welcome.
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Heck, even move an icon in a deployed image, and users will shit themselves.
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Tough Love's first law (Score:3)
Tough Love's first law of Grand Sweeping Visions: When a PHB has a grand sweeping vision it never ends well.
At last! (Score:2)
They're doing a "rejuvenation" so... are they bringing back 3.11 interface?
Ballmer back? (Score:5, Funny)
Is Steve Ballmer back? Sounds like something he would do.
I decree, we are now not uncool or behind, because I declare it!
We are hip, windows is BACK baby! Whoo ahhhh.
Re:Ballmer back? (Score:4, Funny)
Is Steve Ballmer back? Sounds like something he would do.
I decree, we are now not uncool or behind, because I declare it!
We are hip, windows is BACK baby! Whoo ahhhh.
Well, there's one good thing if he's back.
The annual Microsoft chair-throwing contest will be revived once this "baby" shits all over itself...
How to know your interface is bad... (Score:2)
Re:How to know your interface is bad... (Score:4, Interesting)
Brought To You By, (Score:5, Funny)
Windows is back (Score:2)
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Fix Nothing (Score:2)
And break more shit.
The Microsoft Way.
Rejuvenation? (Score:2)
I don't see how combining three health potions, three mana potions and a chipped gem is going to help Windows at all.
Comment (Score:5, Funny)
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Running out of ideas (Score:3)
Coca Cola, Heinz Beans and Lyle’s Golden Syrup keep a consistent design for decades, a stable Windows interface should be like those. Same goes for Mozilla, as they manage to do it with Seamonkey but not Firefox. There is a reason why I use MATE when using Linux.
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I am not sure what this Windows thing is that everyone keeps talking about. I use a computer operating system called Classic Shell and have done for what seems like decades. It never changes, though some of the boxes seem to change color and get renamed occasionally which is a bit of a pain. /s
Please stop (Score:3)
Can you stop putting giant buttons on the Windows versions of your apps, as if the HDTV screen is a phone touch screen for people with fingers the size of those giant long circus balloons?
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I laughed when firing up the calculator. It nearly takes up my entire 4k 15” laptop display.
What it would take to bring me back (Score:2)
As most people have noted a new UI won't change people's opinion of Windows in a positive way. For most people here on /. any UI changes, short of actually reading our minds and putting data we're thinking about up on the display instantly, will be met with "meh". For non-technical users any UI changes (regardless of how good they are) to ensure a positive response will need to be rolled out gradually so the new features, interfaces, approaches, controls, etc. don't appear at once and be overwhelming.
Pers
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For non-technical users any UI changes (regardless of how good they are) to ensure a positive response will need to be rolled out gradually so the new features, interfaces, approaches, controls, etc. don't appear at once and be overwhelming.
This is Microsoft we're talking about. You seem to have forgotten about metro on Windows 8 and then doubling down on it with Windows 8.1.
New (Score:2)
Did it leave at some point? Acronym? (Score:5, Funny)
Would that start riots?
In other words" (Score:4, Insightful)
"Once again you won't know where anything f***ing is. Enjoy!"
How about just organizing the settings? (Score:4, Insightful)
This morning I was trying to figure out how to specify my DNS server without disabling DHCP. Damn this thing!
BugFest 2021 (Score:2)
Be there!
Please Noooo (Score:5, Insightful)
The best change to Windows 10 UI would be removal of the spacious web like interfaces for something more information dense, better keyboard support and a native support of some linux tilling window manager (e.g. i3, xmonad, ...). And please return back tooltips and that small question mark button which was in the top right window corner in the past. Or at least some help files and the "Help" button :)
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Well, if the trend of UI changes in Windows will hold then:
So, like a Mac.
They probably even lower the contrast for window 3D shadows so that you do not have any clue where window boundaries are.
Well, they love the flat design language after all.
I bet they will remove the possibility to set active window title bar colour so that you cannot see which window is active.
Stop giving them ideas.
The best change to Windows 10 UI would be removal of the spacious web like interfaces for something more information dense, better keyboard support and a native support of some linux tilling window manager (e.g. i3, xmonad, ...). And please return back tooltips and that small question mark button which was in the top right window corner in the past. Or at least some help files and the "Help" button :)
Probably won't see that.
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Upcoming highly anticipated features (Score:2)
-Azure integration is now mandatory for all non-Enterpise users. As part of this integration you are assigned to AI boss that nags you to complete weekly timecards and forwards you random emails that you already received.
-The Home edition now has productivity gamification enhancement. You have to reach level 100 in Solitaire or Minesweeper to unlock star
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or maybe... (Score:2)
please.... not another win7 fiasco. we don't really need to see the blue screen in 3d.
thanks.
To paraphrase the great Rich Evans (Score:2)
Microsoft is smart enough to listen to the criticisms and change other things...
Comment removed (Score:3)
Fix FileManager (Score:3)
Any file that can exist on any supported file system must be select-able, copy-able and rename-able in File Explorer.
It is shameful that a mature, commercial operating system cannot do this.
FFS.
Just give us the Windows 200 UI (Score:4, Insightful)
The 3D-ish look of buttons and window edges and all that stuff WORKS. It made things easy to see. The Windows 7 UI was pretty good, too, but I always felt that it wasted a lot of pixels on decorative stuff that nobody cares about.
Seriously, the Windows 200 UI was close to perfect the way it was. All it needed was more theme/color options ( a true "dark theme" for it would be great). And, of course, it had TONS of theme/color options compared to Windows 10, which has essentially NONE of those options.
All that said, I have no real issues with the Windows 10 UI. It's not *that* much different. The biggest complaint I have is the same one everyone else has - the "control panel/settings" stuff is a complete and utter mess. Still.
Because changing UIs is such an efficiency boost (Score:3)
Just like a house (Score:3)
Let's say you have a house, and to make it look new you completely redo the entire front of the house (and garage) every 2 years. Sure it looks new, but every once in a while you decide to drive on your front lawn because that's where the driveway used to go.
Has it ever occurred to software companies that a refresh doesn't equal better? What it does is decrease productivity because people have to learn how to use the software all over again. They also screw up features that worked and break things.
Defective by design (Score:4, Insightful)
I swear that we could solve the world's energy problems by fixing the OS so that it doesn't fart around for ten minutes after you boot it before you can do anything thus encouraging you to put the computer to sleep instead of totally shutting it down at the end of the day.
Why does this remind me of "Apple II Forever"? (Score:3)
This reminds me of Apple's big "Apple II Forever" event, back when the Mac was about to eclipse the Apple II. back in 1984. It even worked, for a little while - the Apple IIc was quite popular in its day, though the seeds if its demise were already planted. And between MacOS, iOS, Android and Linux, Windows isn't looking so dominant these days - according to https://gs.statcounter.com/os-... [statcounter.com], Windows is down to 31% market share. Though competition is good - if MS starts actually innovating, that'd be good for everyone!
gray (Score:4, Insightful)
Perhaps you've noticed the difference between the vibrant (read: visible) colors in previous versions of Windows, vs. the bland pastel colors in Win10, ever more so with the Fluid Experience. Well, with this new user Experience, we're going to go all the way with pastel--all the way to black, white and gray. Yes, we will have no colors. And you will like it.
Think I'm joking? Remember the three color themes in Microsoft Office? White, Dark Grey, and Black.
Silver spoons (Score:3)
Awesome! (Score:3)
So MS marketers *themselves* already see Windows as dying or dead.
Otherwise they would feel no need to declare that is it "BACK".
Although it would be hilarious if they brought back the Windows 95 or 3.1 look, after the current bevel anorexia. Just like they brought back the Start menu. Because we sure do love to pay to get what he used to have after we paid to have you ruin it!
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Why would Bill Murray work for Microsoft?