More Windows 10 Changes Unveiled

John Lister's picture

Microsoft has started public testing on the next major update for Windows 10. Many of the new features are for the Edge browser, but tweaks to security and usability are also on the way.

The changes are now available to members of the Windows Insider program that allows users to act as guinea pigs and try out new features and fixes, albeit with the risk that not everything will always work perfectly. It appears the new features will be rolled out to the general in the spring as part of a major update.

Initially it appeared that update, codenamed "Creators Update" or "Creative Update" would be more about high-tech devices such as touch screens and features, such as 3D image creating. However, the new features that have been revealed appear more practical for home users.

Edge Gets Tab Screen Previews

Microsoft Edge is getting a potentially useful change with the addition of an extended toolbar at the top of the screen. Rather than just showing a list of tabs with their titles and a tiny icon (known as a "favicon"), there will now be a thumbnail graphic for each showing what the entire page looks like, somewhat like a contents section at the front of a magazine. (Source: theverge.com)

Edge is also getting some features that are common in rival browsers. Users can save their list of open tabs so that they can close the entire browser (or even shut down the computer) and then reopen the tabs automatically upon restarting. Edge will also block Flash content by default unless it's from a trusted source; users can still click on the relevant page section to activate the content.

Blue Light Toned Down At Night

One tweak for Windows 10 as a whole is a new option for blue light reduction. If selected, the option will automatically reduce the blue levels at nighttime, something medical research suggests will make it easier to get to sleep soon after using a PC. The hours the feature operates will adjust automatically to fit sunrise and sunset levels in the user's location. (Source: venturebeat.com)

There will also be an overhaul of Windows Defender, the main built-in security tool on Windows 10. The changes should make it easier to use, with more control over exactly what the tool scans for and in how much detail.

What's Your Opinion?

Do the changes interest you? Do you use your computer after dark and if so, would reducing blue light be welcome? Have you explored or altered settings in Windows Defender or trusted it to run without supervision?

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Comments

shulco1_6765's picture

will all these updates still be forced on you? does Microsoft ever plan to let the
owner of the pc decide if they want the new updates or not? It really bites my a**
when it is forced on me, I'd probably get the updates anyway, but I would like that to be MY chose not theirs.

twocvsix's picture

When are Microsoft going to allow us to permanently display our favorites down the left or right side of Edge? Goodness knows, it's been asked for so many times. Even the tool to "pin" the favorites doesn't work. Come back to the home page, and the favs are gone!! This one improvement would lure me away from Firefox, which I've been using for years, but now seems to be suffering with "Flash" issues.

Stuart Berg's picture

I've been using a free program called f.lux (https://justgetflux.com/) for many months to minimize any blue light from my PC screen after dark. It surprises me that Microsoft is incorporating that capability in Windows 10. I wonder if it will have all the flexibility of f.lux.