The October 2020 update for Windows 10 has arrived earlier than expected and has been named v2009 rather than v2010. The code name during the build was 20H2 or second half of 2020. As with last year the H1 update was a big one and the H2 update only minor although Microsoft have stated that it is not necessarily their intention for this always to be case. The advantage of a small update as with last year is that the time taken for the update is very quick and therefore you will only be waiting around the normal time for a monthly update rather than the couple of hours a major update sometimes takes.
If you are impatient you can force the update from Microsoft's Download page but as always I would recommend the cautious approach and waiting until you are offered the update through Windows update as part of the phased rollout process. So what do you get that's new with this update? Not very much at all but it's just possible that one of the features may be one that you have been waiting for.
The first change is a feature that has been taken away rather than added and that is the System icon in the Control Panel. I suspect this isn't used by many people but it's certainly handy for Administrators to check the Hardware specification of a Computer and what version of Windows it is running. Having said that System has always been available as part of Windows 10's Settings App and therefore you can just view it that way. Microsoft have a long term commitment to removing the Control Panel but progress has been slow. There are lots of useful functions there that you don't find in the new Settings App but on this occasion there has been little work involved in removing something that is already located in the App.
Microsoft's new Chromium version of their Edge Browser appears as a built in part of the Operating System for the first time. Many people will already be using it as a direct result of a Windows update but now it will be there from the word go.
The Start Menu theme has now been updated to include better colour integration. Whilst you were able to choose a light theme or dark theme for Windows 10 the Start menu always looked the same shade of blue. You can now set it to match your theme and this is slightly more pleasing to the eye.
The Alt and Tab feature has now been changed to show your 5 most recent Tabs in Edge. For some people this will be handy and for others it could be annoying. The good news is that you can head to Settings \ System \ Multitasking and change the options. This could be to only show the three most recent tabs or turn the feature off altogether. I know the first question I will be asked is whether this works for Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox or just Microsoft Edge? The answer is just Edge at the moment but the other browsers may be changed in the future to allow them to integrate with the new Alt and Tab feature.
Microsoft have improved the functionality if you pin specific websites to your taskbar. If you have a site open in multiple places you can now hover over the pinned item and see all the places where that website is open. Microsoft have also improved the Focus Assist feature that hides notifications. Many gamers used this function to try to eliminate the Notifications that keep popping up over their game. Annoyingly Focus Assist had its own pop-ups that were equally annoying at the start and end of every session. The Focus Assist Notifications have now been removed but can be turned back on if desired.
The Your Phone App has been improved and you can now manage your Samsung Android Smart Phone apps on your Computer screen. They will actually be running on your Phone but you can interact with them on your Windows 10 Desktop. Earlier in this article I mentioned the benefits of the old Control Panel and Microsoft's desire to gradually move things over to the Settings App. Well one thing that has now moved over is the setting for the 'Refresh Rate'. You used to have to head to the Control Panel to adjust this but can now do so in the App.
That's it really and I doubt for most people there is any pressing need to update urgently. If you do encounter any problems during the update or wish to grab it early and don't know how to then Churchdown Computers can help you with this. Call Mark on 07557 483438, e-mail mark@churchdowncomputers.co.uk or fill out the form at the bottom of theContact page.
