Windows 10 9879 (left) | 9926 (right)
Late last week, Microsoft pushed out a new build of Windows 10 to those of you who are participating in the 'Insiders' program. The latest version of Windows 10 comes with it many new features, some easily accessible, others not, but one thing is for certain, the Charms bar is dead.
Replacing the Charms bar is the Action center which has many of the same shortcuts as the Charms bar but also has a plethora of other information too. Notifications are now bundled into the Action center and the shortcuts to individual settings are still easily accessible from this window.
The death of the Charms bar is not unexpected; we began reporting that the feature would be going away during the summer. But that's not the only feature to be axed in this build as the Start screen is no longer present for desktop users.
Windows 10 9879 (left) | 9926 (right)
If you take a look at the images above, you will see that the options for launching the Start screen is gone, which isn't a huge surprise as Continuum as taken over what the Start screen initiated with Windows 8. While the removal of this feature may disappoint some, it is part of Microsoft's unified path forward for Windows 10; in the images above the Start screen option has been completely removed from the top of the settings area.
It is worth pointing out that on smaller devices, sub 8-inches, a Start screen is present but is limited to devices of this class and is not present, in this build of Windows 10, on larger devices. Microsoft could change its mind and return the Start screen for larger devices but right now, it looks like Continuum is the future.
Both of these changes represent a large shift in how Windows 10 operates when compared to Windows 8. But, for those who are migrating from Windows 7, and based on recent market share stats that's a significant user-base, these changes are designed to enhance the workflow of many individuals.
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