The Windows 10 Creators Update Arrives
by Brett Howse on April 25, 2017 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Software
- Operating Systems
- Windows
- Microsoft
- Windows 10
Windows 10 launched in July 2015, and on April 11, 2017, Microsoft released the third major update to their latest operating system. First announced in October with the Surface Studio, Microsoft has dubbed the latest update the Creators Update. Officially it is Windows 10 version 1703, OS build 15063. Naming it the Creators Update seems to signal some future intentions, but the actual release is less creative than the hardware they announced with it, and feels a bit like the company really just didn’t want to call it Windows 10 SP1 R2. Compared to the last major update, named the Anniversary Update, this version has less big features, but does bring a few new things to the OS along with some more polish.
With the new “Windows as a Service” model that came with Windows 10 in July 2015, more small updates seem like the proper method for servicing Windows, but Microsoft is definitely pulled between the consumer and business groups that they serve. Consumers want more features, and sooner, but business needs to test everything before rolling it out. They must walk this tightrope between the two groups, and it’s not clear that they have struck the right balance yet. With this update coming early in 2017, and an announcement of another event in New York City in early May, it does seem like there will be a second update later this year too.
Throughout it all, they have kept their successful Windows Insider program running, and they are now citing over 10 million people in the Insider Program. This feedback driven change has been very successful, even if certain features which have been highly requested still haven’t seen their introduction yet. The number of builds being released has ramped up significantly from when the program first started, and now it is not uncommon to see several builds released in a week. The overall quality of some of those builds has degraded though, so people running in the Fast Ring carry much more risk than before, but there are less risky rings to be in as well. Microsoft has also opened up the Insider Program to business as well, since they are going to need to stay on top of the changes.
Windows 10 is going to keep evolving for the foreseeable future, with regular updates being first tested with the Insider Preview program, and then rolled out to the general public. With almost two years of Windows 10 behind us, we can take a look at what’s improved, what needs work, and where Microsoft can go from here.
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leexgx - Wednesday, April 26, 2017 - link
""Consumers want more features, and sooner, but business needs to test everything before rolling it out.""interesting most people don't give a damn what new version of windows 10 offers, all they are interested in is that what ever browser works so they can do email and other stuff
for most a feature upgrade, this list is a follows
1 application PC settings are reset (browser and associations like PDF and pictures)
2 it uninstalls software without permission that was perfectly working fine (and still works perfectly fine when you reinstall it)
3 can't use there PC for about 2-8 hours when it does the upgrade (slow CPU/RAM/HDD vs SSD)
4 or better a non booting PC (or black screen as some may encounter as they broke the Video WDDM for some old video drivers and it sets the output to 0x0 resolution)
the Fix is use LTSB version if MS wount offer a legitimate LTSB single user licence then how are people supposed to buy it
jabber - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
Just be aware that if you have a mix of Office products say 2010 and 13/16 it will still delete off the latest versions if you do an upgrade. Well done MS, still not fixed that one.Gich - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
it didn't happen to me...I got Office 2007 and 16.
jabber - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
The disappointment for me is that MS is concentrating on adding fluff, bling and bloat I have zero use for but not concentrating on making it more secure, robust and faster. I'd also like a return of the custom install option so I can choose to install that fluff or not.Dave Null - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
Indeed. I finally bit the bullet and installed the LTSB version. This is the lightweight version of Windows I've been looking for.lord_anselhelm - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
Agreed. I also wish they'd focus on fixing bugs they've introduced as a result of updates. For example, Anniversary Update broke centre-alignment of folder/filenames in certain folder views and caused Libraries to start ignoring custom folder views. Both issues still exist in the Creators Update!Gasaraki88 - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
"secure, robust and faster"What does that even mean? How do you even quantify that enough to be worth an update. Do you want them to list that inthe change logs?
herbc - Wednesday, April 26, 2017 - link
Yup , a grossly overbloated OS from the start continues to get worse , my God the idiocy of MS is mind boggling.MutualCore - Sunday, April 30, 2017 - link
Your comment has no substance.fm13 - Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - link
I still can't install this thing - Windows Update seems busted and standalone installer stays stuck on 99% for days.Although Win10 is a nice OS, some things in it seem broken - things that worked flawlessly for years. For example, virus definitions on my system can't update themselves anymore - I have to download and install them manually.
How the hell do you break something like that?