TECH TALK
WINDOWS 10 UPDATE
By Jackie Saylor
The Saylor Law Firm LLP
[email protected]
I
f you are considering a move to Windows 10 from Windows
7 or Windows 8 and you want to get it for free, you have
until July 29, 2016 to reserve a copy. Microsoft’s Windows
10 has a very high adoption rate with free, continuous
upgrades; it has a Start menu which functions to “unify the
desktop PC, tablet, smartphone, game console, and Internet
of Things devices with a single OS and a single app store.”1
There are a number of features that are notable, such as
Cortana, the “voice-responsive personal digital assistant,”2
very good touch support and the Edge web browser, the
Internet Explorer replacement. Edge competes with Chrome
and is streamlined, more compatible and faster. The information above and in the following paragraph came from an
article in PC Magazine which reviewed Windows 10 after its
first upgrade; the article is quite positive, but its main “con”
was that Windows 10 is “less touch-friendly” than Windows
8 Browser and lacks extension support.3
Most people can get Windows 10 in two versions: Home and
Pro; most of the features are similar but the Pro adds features
that are helpful in an office setting, especially the BiltLocker
encryption. Since attorneys are responsible for protecting their
clients’ information, the security features of Pro are essential.
Even though it may seem obvious, you need to update from a
Professional version of 7 or 8 to get Pro.4 Of course if you buy
a new computer, Windows 10 Home or Pro is already on it.
However, not everyone is ready to jump on board yet. According to Lamont Burrell, the State Bar of Georgia Management
Information Systems Director, the State Bar is not installing
Windows 10 until next May or June. He assumes there will
be bugs for a while because companies release programs
knowing they have bugs. He believes that there should be
numerous fixes and updates between now and then that will
be helpful. Lamont states that as far as Windows 10 goes,
“no one is raving about it or trashing it.” He is not sure it is so
different from previous versions.
Some users think that Windows 10 is too busy and that it is
harder to find what you are looking for. A group of architects
told me that all the “cool” architects, engineers and corporations use Windows 7. Windows 10 is not seen as offering
something valuable. There is uncertainty whether Computer
Assisted Design (CAD) will work well. According to the architect, some features in Windows 10 are not liked by coders;
they believe that the computers “phone home” a lot, that is,
they send statistics to Microsoft.
One reason to be careful about upgrading to Windows 10 is
that many programs were made or updated before Windows
10 was released. That is, they were not built with Windows
10 in mind. One example of this is Intuit’s professional tax
return program software Lacerte. Lacerte recommended that
users of their latest program delay upgrading to Windows 10
until after April 18, a significant tax deadline. The program
does not support Windows 10 but Lacerte now reports that
it is compatible with Windows 10 and that it can be used for
the fall 2015 tax returns. We have heard many law firms are
moving to Windows 10 by July 29 to take advantage of the
free upgrade. ■
1
Muchmore, Michael. “Microsoft Windows 10.” PC
Mag. N.p., 14 Mar. 2016. Web.
2 Id.
3 Id.
4 Id.
The Official News Publication of the Atlanta Bar Association THE ATLANTA LAWYER
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