Windows 10 reveal hits high notes. Satya Nadella's Microsoft is fighting back against perceptions that it's in a death-spiral.
And, by jiminy, it seems to be working.
In IT Blogwatch, we round up the reviews.
Your humble blogwatcher curated these bloggy bits for your entertainment.
Gregg Keizer rules, dude: [You did that gag already -Ed.]
Microsoft...showed off more of its still-under-construction Windows 10, focusing on...the voice-activated Cortana digital assistant and its "universal" app model. [It] also announced that upgrades to Windows 10 will be free to all devices currently running Windows 7 and Windows 8.1.
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The two hour-and-a-half-hour keynote -- which kicked off a day-long, invite-only press and analyst event on the firm's Redmond, Wash. campus -- both summarized earlier revelations about Windows 10 and then offered up more information about what is coming in impending previews. ... Terry Myerson, the Microsoft executive who leads its operating systems group...claimed that Microsoft had accumulated about 1.7 million [Insiders --] participants in its Windows 10 preview program.
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Microsoft said...Windows 10's official release...would be "later this year." ... "We want to move from people needing Windows to choosing Windows to loving Windows," said...CEO Satya Nadella. MORE
Free Windows upgrade? Preston Gralla's got four words for you:
Microsoft's wide-ranging announcements...covered things as mundane as new customizations for the Windows 10 Start screen and as mind-blowing as a new computing holographic platform. ... But the four most important words they uttered may have slipped right by you: Windows as a Service.
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[WaaS] may sound more like a marketing concept than an actual product. But [it] is real and seems to be the future of Windows. ... [Myerson] noted that it's not just a one-time upgrade -- Windows will continue to be upgraded for free for the life of the device:.."The idea of asking 'What version are you on?' will cease to make sense."
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What's not clear yet is Microsoft's revenue model for this. ... Will you need to pay a subscription fee every year? ... And is it something that users will want? MORE
Microsoft's Terry Myerson positively glows with pride:
Today I had the honor of sharing new information about...the new generation of Windows.
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We are moving Windows from its heritage of enabling a single device – the PC – to a world that is more mobile, natural and grounded in trust. ... We know that people care deeply about privacy. ... That’s why everything we do puts you in control – because you are our customer, not our product.
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Windows 10 supports the broadest device family ever – from PCs, tablets and 2-in-1s to phones to Xbox [to] the Internet of Things [to] Microsoft Surface Hub and Microsoft HoloLens...the world’s first holographic computing platform.
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Today was an important next chapter...but there is much more to come. MORE
Dieter Bohn says Microsoft "got it right":
It's snappy and fast in a way that some doubters don't believe Windows can be — but more importantly, everything feels faster because there are just fewer concepts to juggle in your head. ... Microsoft has essentially made the distinction between desktop apps and "Modern" apps...invisible
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Then there's Cortana. ... Microsoft really wants you to use it (her?), dedicating a big spot on the status bar. MORE
And Jessi Hempel touches Nadella's rainment:
When Microsoft was founded, its ambitious mission to power a personal computer on every desk in every home [was] radical. ... But 40 years later, the going perception...is that the company’s best days are behind it. ... Though Microsoft makes a lot of money—sales revenue jumped almost 12 percent to $86 billion last year—its core business is declining.
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This was the state of affairs that Nadella faced when he took the top job a year ago. ... He quoted philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, saying Microsoft must have “courage in the face of reality.” Since then, he has been doing just that. [Microsoft's] culture has grown competitive and insular. ... People were motivated to produce things they knew their managers would like, rather than take risks on new ideas.
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It has become accepted wisdom in Silicon Valley that large, successful tech companies can’t reinvent themselves...“And so things change,” he concludes. MORE
Meanwhile, someone calling himself "Steve Ballmer" has got 140 sweaty characters for you:
Today made all MSFT employees proud, customers excited and shareholders salivate. The wave of windows 10 hw, services OS rocks.
I love MSFT. MORE
You have been reading IT Blogwatch by Richi Jennings, who curates the best bloggy bits, finest forums, and weirdest websites… so you don't have to. Catch the key commentary from around the Web every morning. Hatemail may be directed to @RiCHi or itbw@richi.uk. Opinions expressed may not represent those of Computerworld. Ask your doctor before reading. Your mileage may vary. E&OE.
