The enterprise highlights of Windows 10

Microsoft’s presentation on Windows 10 yesterday was a little underwhelming. It’s a merging of Windows 8 and Windows 7 and really comes across as an apology to those Windows 7 hold-outs. While the main surprise at the event may have been that Microsoft is bypassing Windows 9 and jumping straight to naming the next operating system “Windows 10”, there were still a few other features unveiled.

Windows 10 is supposed to be a consolidation, one platform across computers, tablets, phone, and Xbox. The interface will now be more dependent on what type of device you have. The Windows 8 tablet-like controls will be used on touch devices while the desktop experience will be available for computers. Along with that change, the Start Menu is coming back to replace the Start Screen. It will still take some of the live tiles ideas from Windows 8 but is returning to the still familiar Windows 7-style Start Menu.

Other features include Windows 8 Modern (Metro) apps running inside of Windows instead of full screen so that they can be moved around and multitasked. Windows can also be snapped to the side of your monitor with a smart prompt that offers other open windows to fill the remaining space. A task view button allows viewing all open programs. There is also a new feature for multiple desktops so you can keep open things separate from each other, perhaps a work desktop and a home desktop. You can now also use Control+V to paste into Command Prompt.

Other features touched on include multifactor authentication, file encryption, in-place upgrade options, mobile device management tools, Windows Store volume license purchasing and custom stores for company-owned apps.

Microsoft is also creating a Windows Insider program to allow people to preview the operating system and provide feedback on its development at preview.windows.com.