8 ms·

Microsoft Unveils New Operating System, Dubbed Windows 10

61 points by awa 12y ago

techdog 12y ago
This is all over the web. Why should I care that Windows 10 is named Windows 10? Why should I care about this story at all? So what? What about Windows 10? The fact of it being unveiled is not news.
- dragonwriter 12y ago
  That Microsoft has revealed the next OS release and that the tech preview will be available tomorrow is news, as are the (however minor) bits of information about its features and the new "Insiders" program. They may not be news that you care about, but that's a different issue.
- readerrrr 12y ago
  You missed a: for me at the end there.
- JohnTHaller 12y ago
  It's the new version of the OS that powers a huge majority of the desktops and laptops on the planet. And, even if you don't do anything Microsoft, it's likely a majority of the visitors to your website use it as well. It also represents an interesting take on the convergence of mouse, keyboard, and touch as opposed to trying to force touch interactions on everyone.
rbanffy 12y ago
I find it interesting the note about the Mozilla HDMI stick running FirefoxOS has more upvotes than this.
- ps4fanboy 12y ago
  HN isnt really receptive to any news coming from Microsoft.
  - rbanffy 12y ago
    I agree - and I was not that much impressed by what I saw, but there are a couple million news articles about Windows 10's announcement and less than 500 about the Matchstick... And that's not even mentioning how many of our customers run Windows (or personal tastes aside).
  - tdicola 12y ago
    There have been at least 3 different articles I've seen about Windows 10 on the homepage today. One about the announcement, one from the BBC, and this one from Wired. I think that's enough coverage, personally.
- soapdog 12y ago
  also the HDMI stick is not from Mozilla but from a company called Matchstick...
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
ps4fanboy 12y ago
Resizable metro app windows might actually see me use them more than the single time I have since installing Windows 8.
deciplex 12y ago
So, they called the third Xbox the Xbox One, they called the ninth Windows (or, at least, the version of Windows after Windows 8) Windows 10. Lest you think it's just Microsoft, Nintendo is calling their new 3DS device "New 3DS", and this is after a minor disaster with WiiU where a lot of potential customers thought it was just a new controller for the existing Wii. Is there some new paradigm in marketing circles where giving a product a confusing name is believed to increase sales?
- ethomson 12y ago
  Sadly, it's not new. The former Sun Microsystems was the king of this insanity. Like how Java jumped from 1.4.2 to 5, except that it was still sometimes 1.5. Or worse, the SunOS renaming fiasco, where SunOS was also concurrently Solaris. So that SunOS 4.1.1 was also Solaris 1.0. Except that, crazily, so was SunOS 4.1.1.1. Eventually, SunOS 4.1.4 (aka Solaris 1.1.2) was the last of the old BSD-based SunOS line and Solaris 2.0 came out, which was mostly SysV and different enough that most everybody started calling it Solaris. (Except that `uname` still reported SunOS 5, of course.) And then everything was sane again. At least until Solaris 2.7, aka SunOS 5.7, which they started calling Solaris 7. So, Microsoft has a ways to go before the names are completely ridiculous. (ObDisclaimer: Microsoft employee.)
  - rbanffy 12y ago
    > Microsoft has a ways to go before the names are completely ridiculous. Ceasing to be meaningful is not the same as being ridiculous. Remember the Windows XP family lineup? From Starter Edition, Home, Professional, Ultimate and all the Server editions?
  - mgkimsal 12y ago
    Java got so bad they had a 'Java Naming Help Desk': javanaming@sun.com
- sytelus 12y ago
  Apple currently takes a cake in branding mess. iPhone 6 is not called iPhone Air (like iPad-supposed-to-be-3). Watch is not called iWatch. If they want to be consistent, they would need to rename iPad to "Apple Pad" or iPhone 6 Plus to "Apple Phone Air Plus".
userbinator 12y ago
It looks nice and shiny, but I wonder how many new restrictions have been implemented and/or functionality removed, all in the name of "security"... to me it looks like Windows is heading quickly towards being a consumer-centric walled-garden.
seanmcdirmid 12y ago
Haters gonna hate. That is the second time today a Windows 10 story was knocked off the front page even though it had enough karma to stay on.
- showsover 12y ago
  Indeed, I saw several posts last night that now have disappeared. It seems that HN does not like Windows, which is sad I think. It's a great operating system (currently running 8.1, which is very good). I'm waiting for the resizable metro-apps to be honest. Full screen just doesn't do it on my 27" screen.
nnethercote 12y ago
Even-numbered Windows releases tend to suck, and odd-numbered ones tend to be good. Looks like they're aiming for two bad ones in a row!
- readerrrr 12y ago
  I think the rule is every other not odd-even.
  - delecti 12y ago
    Well we've never had the opportunity to test which it was.
    - basch 12y ago
      and still dont. Windows 8.1 was a full update, it counts as the odd.
      - deciplex 12y ago
        You can post this as many times as you want, it still completely misses the point.
sytelus 12y ago
Interestingly OSX Yosemite announcement on HN had almost 10X more points and comments [1]. Even more interestingly Windows has roughly 4X larger share of market than OSX at present. [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7834665 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7834665
mikeyouse 12y ago
Someone on twitter wondered out loud how many different utilities and programs inside Windows are running a "Is Windows 9*" check. Interesting question that might explain the Windows 10 name.
- yaeger 12y ago
  If that were true it would show exactly how messed up the Windows kernel is. To drag compatibility from 1995 around is just messed up if it is linked to the "Product Name". Not the kernel version or even the working title. nope. The customer facing, cooked up by marketing, product name.
  - mikeyouse 12y ago
    Anonymous but possible confirmation; http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/2hwlrk/new_windows_version_will_be_called_windows_10/ckwq83x http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/2hwlrk/new_windo...

61 points by awa 12y ago

This is all over the web. Why should I care that Windows 10 is named Windows 10? Why should I care about this story at all? So what? What about Windows 10? The fact of it being unveiled is not news.

dragonwriter 12y ago
That Microsoft has revealed the next OS release and that the tech preview will be available tomorrow is news, as are the (however minor) bits of information about its features and the new "Insiders" program. They may not be news that you care about, but that's a different issue.
readerrrr 12y ago
You missed a: for me at the end there.
JohnTHaller 12y ago
It's the new version of the OS that powers a huge majority of the desktops and laptops on the planet. And, even if you don't do anything Microsoft, it's likely a majority of the visitors to your website use it as well. It also represents an interesting take on the convergence of mouse, keyboard, and touch as opposed to trying to force touch interactions on everyone.

rbanffy 12y ago

I find it interesting the note about the Mozilla HDMI stick running FirefoxOS has more upvotes than this.

ps4fanboy 12y ago
HN isnt really receptive to any news coming from Microsoft.
- rbanffy 12y ago
  I agree - and I was not that much impressed by what I saw, but there are a couple million news articles about Windows 10's announcement and less than 500 about the Matchstick... And that's not even mentioning how many of our customers run Windows (or personal tastes aside).
- tdicola 12y ago
  There have been at least 3 different articles I've seen about Windows 10 on the homepage today. One about the announcement, one from the BBC, and this one from Wired. I think that's enough coverage, personally.
soapdog 12y ago
also the HDMI stick is not from Mozilla but from a company called Matchstick...

deleted 12y ago

[deleted]

ps4fanboy 12y ago

Resizable metro app windows might actually see me use them more than the single time I have since installing Windows 8.

deciplex 12y ago

So, they called the third Xbox the Xbox One, they called the ninth Windows (or, at least, the version of Windows after Windows 8) Windows 10. Lest you think it's just Microsoft, Nintendo is calling their new 3DS device "New 3DS", and this is after a minor disaster with WiiU where a lot of potential customers thought it was just a new controller for the existing Wii. Is there some new paradigm in marketing circles where giving a product a confusing name is believed to increase sales?

ethomson 12y ago
Sadly, it's not new. The former Sun Microsystems was the king of this insanity. Like how Java jumped from 1.4.2 to 5, except that it was still sometimes 1.5. Or worse, the SunOS renaming fiasco, where SunOS was also concurrently Solaris. So that SunOS 4.1.1 was also Solaris 1.0. Except that, crazily, so was SunOS 4.1.1.1. Eventually, SunOS 4.1.4 (aka Solaris 1.1.2) was the last of the old BSD-based SunOS line and Solaris 2.0 came out, which was mostly SysV and different enough that most everybody started calling it Solaris. (Except that `uname` still reported SunOS 5, of course.) And then everything was sane again. At least until Solaris 2.7, aka SunOS 5.7, which they started calling Solaris 7. So, Microsoft has a ways to go before the names are completely ridiculous. (ObDisclaimer: Microsoft employee.)
- rbanffy 12y ago
  > Microsoft has a ways to go before the names are completely ridiculous. Ceasing to be meaningful is not the same as being ridiculous. Remember the Windows XP family lineup? From Starter Edition, Home, Professional, Ultimate and all the Server editions?
- mgkimsal 12y ago
  Java got so bad they had a 'Java Naming Help Desk': javanaming@sun.com
sytelus 12y ago
Apple currently takes a cake in branding mess. iPhone 6 is not called iPhone Air (like iPad-supposed-to-be-3). Watch is not called iWatch. If they want to be consistent, they would need to rename iPad to "Apple Pad" or iPhone 6 Plus to "Apple Phone Air Plus".

userbinator 12y ago

It looks nice and shiny, but I wonder how many new restrictions have been implemented and/or functionality removed, all in the name of "security"... to me it looks like Windows is heading quickly towards being a consumer-centric walled-garden.

seanmcdirmid 12y ago

Haters gonna hate. That is the second time today a Windows 10 story was knocked off the front page even though it had enough karma to stay on.

showsover 12y ago
Indeed, I saw several posts last night that now have disappeared. It seems that HN does not like Windows, which is sad I think. It's a great operating system (currently running 8.1, which is very good). I'm waiting for the resizable metro-apps to be honest. Full screen just doesn't do it on my 27" screen.

nnethercote 12y ago

Even-numbered Windows releases tend to suck, and odd-numbered ones tend to be good. Looks like they're aiming for two bad ones in a row!

readerrrr 12y ago
I think the rule is every other not odd-even.
- delecti 12y ago
  Well we've never had the opportunity to test which it was.
  - basch 12y ago
    and still dont. Windows 8.1 was a full update, it counts as the odd.
    - deciplex 12y ago
      You can post this as many times as you want, it still completely misses the point.

sytelus 12y ago

Interestingly OSX Yosemite announcement on HN had almost 10X more points and comments [1]. Even more interestingly Windows has roughly 4X larger share of market than OSX at present. [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7834665 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7834665

mikeyouse 12y ago

Someone on twitter wondered out loud how many different utilities and programs inside Windows are running a "Is Windows 9*" check. Interesting question that might explain the Windows 10 name.

yaeger 12y ago
If that were true it would show exactly how messed up the Windows kernel is. To drag compatibility from 1995 around is just messed up if it is linked to the "Product Name". Not the kernel version or even the working title. nope. The customer facing, cooked up by marketing, product name.
- mikeyouse 12y ago
  Anonymous but possible confirmation; http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/2hwlrk/new_windows_version_will_be_called_windows_10/ckwq83x http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/2hwlrk/new_windo...