Windows 10 - Everything you Need and Want to Know

[CraigB]

You caught me out! I didn't read it oh well all my systems are running ssd's now so it's not for me, thanks

[bob3160]

Don't panic! DirectX12 won't require a new graphics card after all
More information about DirextX12

[Dch48]

I watched the conference and was extremely impressed with what Windows 10 is capable of. What I was most interested in was their statement that 10 would be  much better for gamers and they didn't disappoint. There is a game DVR with which you can record play from any game and save , share, or whatever else you want to do with it. It will also ship with the latest version of Direct X, DX 12 which is greatly improved in performance and capability over DX 11 and will not be made available to Windows 7 users. Owners of Xbox One will be able to stream their games to any device running Windows 10.

On the productivity side, Office will run on any Win 10 device, including phones, and there is a new piece of Hardware, the Surface Hub that will greatly facilitate on line and office meetings. Cortana is also fully integrated. Internet Explorer will still be a part of Windows 10 but there will be another browser option called Spartan which has been mentioned here before.

The most amazing thing is that there will be another new piece of hardware called the Holo Lens, a self contained headset computer. With it, you can make and view holographic images of anything and even more amazingly, save them and print them with a 3D printer.

Even though I won't use some of the new features, and probably won't buy the new hardware, I think Windows 10 is a huge leap forward for personal computing. It's no wonder they skipped the Windows 9 designation and went straight to 10. To me, this looks more like Windows 15 or at least, 12. I know I will be taking advantage of the free upgrade ASAP. (After making a system image of my 8.1 installation first of course. Just to be safe.)

Why the DX 12 won't be available to Windows 7 users even after it has been upgraded to Windows 10? Also about support, once Windows 7 gets upgraded to Windows 10, will Microsoft increase it's mainstream and extended support given that it has been upgraded from Windows 7 to Windows 10. Windows 7 extended support will finish on January 14, 2020. Just curious to know about this. Thanks.

I meant that those who don't do the upgrade and continue to use Win 7 will not get DX 12. It's included in 10 so of course you'll have it if you upgrade from 7. It may however be available to those who choose to stay with 8.1.

There is also the issue that most Win 7 machines will not have a graphics card that supports DX12 so that will have to be upgraded as well to take advantage of it.

The support cycle would also change to that of Windows 10 if you do the upgrade.

[bob3160]

There is also the issue that most Win 7 machines will not have a graphics card that supports DX12 so that will have to be upgraded as well to take advantage of it.

It might be wise to read the article in the link I supplied. You may be surprised what will work

[Eddy]

http://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/01/23/january-build-now-available-to-the-windows-insider-program/

[Cylac]

has anybody testing Avast 2015 on the latest Windows 10 Pro Technical Preview build released today? (build: 9926)

[bob3160]

There's already an update once you do the install.

[bob3160]

has anybody testing Avast 2015 on the latest Windows 10 Pro Technical Preview build released today? (build: 9926)

The online installer which worked on the previous build apparently doesn't work on build 9926

[Dch48]

There is also the issue that most Win 7 machines will not have a graphics card that supports DX12 so that will have to be upgraded as well to take advantage of it.

It might be wise to read the article in the link I supplied. You may be surprised what will work

The article supports exactly what I said and has nothing I didn't already know. Only the newer cards like the AMD GCN next ones and the Nvidia Fermi ones will support DX12.  Computers that were made for or were shipped with Windows 7 very likely will not have such recent cards unless they were upgraded. For AMD, only the R9 270 and above cards will support DX12. My laptop that was made in 2011 and has a first generation A8 APU will not run DX12.  The machine will have to be from the last couple of months of 2013 or later to have a chance at having a compatible graphics card unless, as I said, it has been upgraded by the user. Almost all Windows 7 machines were made earlier than that.

[digmor crusher]

ok, so if your computer is older than 2013 should you update to Windows 10.

[Staticguy]

There is also the issue that most Win 7 machines will not have a graphics card that supports DX12 so that will have to be upgraded as well to take advantage of it.

It might be wise to read the article in the link I supplied. You may be surprised what will work

The article supports exactly what I said and has nothing I didn't already know. Only the newer cards like the AMD GCN next ones and the Nvidia Fermi ones will support DX12.  Computers that were made for or were shipped with Windows 7 very likely will not have such recent cards unless they were upgraded. For AMD, only the R9 270 and above cards will support DX12. My laptop that was made in 2011 and has a first generation A8 APU will not run DX12.  The machine will have to be from the last couple of months of 2013 or later to have a chance at having a compatible graphics card unless, as I said, it has been upgraded by the user. Almost all Windows 7 machines were made earlier than that.

My graphics card is Nvidia GeForce GT 630M and when new version of the graphics card driver is detected by Nvidia GeForce Experience I update it. So is DX12 supported for my graphics card? I bought my laptop on 2014 so I will be able to upgrade my Windows 7 to Windows 10 right?

[bob3160]

ok, so if your computer is older than 2013 should you update to Windows 10.

I have computers older than 5 years that are running windows 10.
Age has nothing to do with "should I upgrade".

[bob3160]

       Download Windows 10 Build 9926 ISO Files

[Dch48]

There is also the issue that most Win 7 machines will not have a graphics card that supports DX12 so that will have to be upgraded as well to take advantage of it.

It might be wise to read the article in the link I supplied. You may be surprised what will work

The article supports exactly what I said and has nothing I didn't already know. Only the newer cards like the AMD GCN next ones and the Nvidia Fermi ones will support DX12.  Computers that were made for or were shipped with Windows 7 very likely will not have such recent cards unless they were upgraded. For AMD, only the R9 270 and above cards will support DX12. My laptop that was made in 2011 and has a first generation A8 APU will not run DX12.  The machine will have to be from the last couple of months of 2013 or later to have a chance at having a compatible graphics card unless, as I said, it has been upgraded by the user. Almost all Windows 7 machines were made earlier than that.

My graphics card is Nvidia GeForce GT 630M and when new version of the graphics card driver is detected by Nvidia GeForce Experience I update it. So is DX12 supported for my graphics card? I bought my laptop on 2014 so I will be able to upgrade my Windows 7 to Windows 10 right?

As Bob said, age has nothing to do with it as long as you're not expecting the graphics features of DX12. If you're satisfied with DX11 (and there are now rumors that some of the DX12 features will be able to be programmed by developers for DX11). In my opinion, given all of the new features and enhancements (DX is just one of them), it wouldn't make much sense not to take advantage of the free upgrade. If your computer runs Win 7, then it can definitely run 10. It's also a way to extend the service life of the machine. Those in the gaming community should definitely go to 10.

As for your card, the GT 630m belongs to the Fermi class and this is a quote from Nvidia;

NVIDIA will support the DX12 API on all the DX11-class GPUs it has shipped; these belong to the Fermi, Kepler and Maxwell architectural designs

.

Therefore it should support some but maybe not all of the DX12 enhancements.
There is also this article to consider; http://www.polygon.com/2015/1/22/7874793/directx-12-wont-require-a-new-graphics-card-after-all

[Staticguy]

@bob3160 and @Dch48: Thanks for your answers about my queries. I am not satisfied about my computer to upgrade to Windows 10. As for my graphics card may not support all features of DX12 as Dch48 mentioned am also satisfied. As long as my upgrade to Windows 10 goes I am also happy that it will extend my laptop lifecycle 

As for our desktop computer goes. It is also Windows 7 and it got AMD Radeon HD 7400 Series and will it also support some/all features of DX12? I don't think I will upgrade our desktop computer, because it has got most of my dad's work and programs that he uses during weekends and also he remotely access his office desktop via our home desktop for his office work. Also I don't know if/when his programs will be compatible with Windows 10?