P
Perez78
Guest
There are several behaviors of Windows 10 that remind me of Windows XP. While I may get overly rambunctious with how great XP was and how 10 leaves me wanting, I first wish to address the features 10 offers, which are clear improvements over XP. Secondly, I hope others also mention the things they enjoy about 10, and what (if anything) it could do better. Thirdly, hopefully, all of this helps Microsoft create customizations that work for a broader range of people in varying communities.
There are clear improvements Windows 10 has over Windows XP. First, it has a search function on the Quick Access Toolbar. Second, there are tiles in the "Start Menu". Third, the icons in the toolbar are more intuitive. It is possible I have grown as a power user and this is why I can tell what each icon represents. However, it is just as possible that Windows is doing a better job of picking icons for things like battery, speakers, WIFI, and the Cloud.
I have been using Windows for the majority of my life. I knew full well that one day I would no longer be able to use Windows XP. There are certain features I miss. To be overly honest about my fear, I did not want to tell Microsoft about how I desire certain features in XP to replace the newer features in 10, because my opinion should not override the needs of other Windows consumers. Something I have feared that happens all too often in the business world is a handful of consumers giving feedback on products and their feedback changes the product so it works great for the few and is a downgrade for the many. All this is why I would love to create a Pros and Cons list here on Microsoft's forum. Hopefully, we will figure out a way to let Microsoft know how we perceive Windows. Granted, the subject is about Windows 10 and Windows XP, because it is useful to have a concrete example of two products, I hope that eventually, we extend this subject to all Windows OSes. I believe that settings is a great solution as to how to let people customize their Windows experience.
Unlike my wish to address the things 10 does right, first, I am about to address the things that feel like downgrades to me. First, in Windows XP, I could do a bunch of things with my keyboard. Suppose, I am looking at a folder. In that folder, I wish to create a new MS Word document. I would only need to press the alt key, a series of buttons, and voila a new word document would appear. The new document would have the default name highlighted. This would allow me to type any name as the user sees fit. However, in Windows 10, if I am looking at a folder, the only new thing I can easily create is another folder. If I were to navigate the Home Menu, I would need to press alt + H, which would open the menu. Then I would press w (for new). Next, I would press the down keyboard button until "Microsoft Word Document" is highlighted. Pressing enter would create a new word document. Now, I don't know about you, but the arrow keys on my keyboard are placed such that I need to move my hand and look at them. This process is not exactly seamless. After all this, I would once again be able to type in the name for the document as I see fit. Clearly, at least to me, this is a verbose explanation of a Windows 10 con.
Please allow me to restate the previous con in different words. In Windows 10, I can press the alt key while a folder window is active. This displays several characters on the screen. Each character is a hotkey that opens a menu. Once the menu is open, several new hotkeys appear. Unfortunately, opening a submenu only exposes a limited number of newer hotkeys for the menu contents. My guess is that most users are okay with the limited number because the majority of Windows users only typically use those items. I, too, agree that only a limited number should be visible because I would be overwhelmed if all of them had a hotkey. Unfortunately, the ones I got very used to in XP are no longer available.
There are several ways that Windows 10 could solve this hotkey problem. First, if I were able to right-click the option and select "Customize hotkey" in the right-click menu, then I would be able to specify the hotkey I wish to assign to that particular menu option. Second, somewhere in Windows Settings, the user can specify keyboard shortcuts and assigning hotkeys to menus and their options.
The second con has to do with clicking the folder icon in the "Quick Access Taskbar". Most of the time I enjoy seeing the recently opened files. There are times when I wish to go automatically to my documents instead. Being able to do both makes sense to me. If there were two similar icons for navigating my documents, one for recently opened files and another for seeing the folders within "My Documents", this would solve the problem. The main reason for this gripe is that in Windows XP, I took for granted being able to click once and type. I would click the icon. It would open the folder. Then I could search for the right folder by pressing a key. The key would be the first letter of the name of the folder. Pressing the key would highlight that folder. From there, I could either decide if I highlighted the desired folder or press the enter key to view the contents of the folder. Now in Windows 10, I still need to break myself of the habit of releasing the mouse after merely clicking once.
For both of these cons, I am very much open to suggestions as to how to work-around them. As I hopefully mentioned earlier, I do hope this post becomes a discussion on what Windows 10 does right, what it does wrong, and what could be done a little bit better.
Continue reading...
There are clear improvements Windows 10 has over Windows XP. First, it has a search function on the Quick Access Toolbar. Second, there are tiles in the "Start Menu". Third, the icons in the toolbar are more intuitive. It is possible I have grown as a power user and this is why I can tell what each icon represents. However, it is just as possible that Windows is doing a better job of picking icons for things like battery, speakers, WIFI, and the Cloud.
I have been using Windows for the majority of my life. I knew full well that one day I would no longer be able to use Windows XP. There are certain features I miss. To be overly honest about my fear, I did not want to tell Microsoft about how I desire certain features in XP to replace the newer features in 10, because my opinion should not override the needs of other Windows consumers. Something I have feared that happens all too often in the business world is a handful of consumers giving feedback on products and their feedback changes the product so it works great for the few and is a downgrade for the many. All this is why I would love to create a Pros and Cons list here on Microsoft's forum. Hopefully, we will figure out a way to let Microsoft know how we perceive Windows. Granted, the subject is about Windows 10 and Windows XP, because it is useful to have a concrete example of two products, I hope that eventually, we extend this subject to all Windows OSes. I believe that settings is a great solution as to how to let people customize their Windows experience.
Unlike my wish to address the things 10 does right, first, I am about to address the things that feel like downgrades to me. First, in Windows XP, I could do a bunch of things with my keyboard. Suppose, I am looking at a folder. In that folder, I wish to create a new MS Word document. I would only need to press the alt key, a series of buttons, and voila a new word document would appear. The new document would have the default name highlighted. This would allow me to type any name as the user sees fit. However, in Windows 10, if I am looking at a folder, the only new thing I can easily create is another folder. If I were to navigate the Home Menu, I would need to press alt + H, which would open the menu. Then I would press w (for new). Next, I would press the down keyboard button until "Microsoft Word Document" is highlighted. Pressing enter would create a new word document. Now, I don't know about you, but the arrow keys on my keyboard are placed such that I need to move my hand and look at them. This process is not exactly seamless. After all this, I would once again be able to type in the name for the document as I see fit. Clearly, at least to me, this is a verbose explanation of a Windows 10 con.
Please allow me to restate the previous con in different words. In Windows 10, I can press the alt key while a folder window is active. This displays several characters on the screen. Each character is a hotkey that opens a menu. Once the menu is open, several new hotkeys appear. Unfortunately, opening a submenu only exposes a limited number of newer hotkeys for the menu contents. My guess is that most users are okay with the limited number because the majority of Windows users only typically use those items. I, too, agree that only a limited number should be visible because I would be overwhelmed if all of them had a hotkey. Unfortunately, the ones I got very used to in XP are no longer available.
There are several ways that Windows 10 could solve this hotkey problem. First, if I were able to right-click the option and select "Customize hotkey" in the right-click menu, then I would be able to specify the hotkey I wish to assign to that particular menu option. Second, somewhere in Windows Settings, the user can specify keyboard shortcuts and assigning hotkeys to menus and their options.
The second con has to do with clicking the folder icon in the "Quick Access Taskbar". Most of the time I enjoy seeing the recently opened files. There are times when I wish to go automatically to my documents instead. Being able to do both makes sense to me. If there were two similar icons for navigating my documents, one for recently opened files and another for seeing the folders within "My Documents", this would solve the problem. The main reason for this gripe is that in Windows XP, I took for granted being able to click once and type. I would click the icon. It would open the folder. Then I could search for the right folder by pressing a key. The key would be the first letter of the name of the folder. Pressing the key would highlight that folder. From there, I could either decide if I highlighted the desired folder or press the enter key to view the contents of the folder. Now in Windows 10, I still need to break myself of the habit of releasing the mouse after merely clicking once.
For both of these cons, I am very much open to suggestions as to how to work-around them. As I hopefully mentioned earlier, I do hope this post becomes a discussion on what Windows 10 does right, what it does wrong, and what could be done a little bit better.
Continue reading...