The US technology blog The Verge said in a paper today that some Microsoft employees have called Windows 10 "the last version of Windows". This shows that Microsoft will adjust the way Windows is developed, and Windows will become a service in the future.
This week, at Microsoft's Ignite conference, Microsoft's developer evangelist Jerry Nixon said: "We are about to release Windows 10. Since Windows 10 is the last version of Windows, we are still continuing to develop. & rdquo; Nixon said that when Windows 8.1 was released last year, Microsoft was already developing Windows 10. At present, Microsoft employees are free to discuss future upgrades of Windows 10, because there will be no secret version in the future, but only Windows 10.
On the surface, Microsoft seems to suggest that it will not continue to develop new versions of Windows, but the actual situation is more complicated. For Microsoft, the future lies in "Windows as a Service".
Microsoft has been discussing "Windows as a Service" for some time, but the company has not explained in detail how this will affect future versions of Windows. This may be due to the fact that Microsoft will not release any major versions of Windows for the foreseeable future.
Microsoft has changed the way Windows is developed and released, and the first to be affected is Windows 10. Microsoft will not release large-scale version updates, but will release optimizations and updates on a regular basis. Microsoft's ability to do this is partly due to the separation of components such as start menus and built-in applications from the core of the operating system, allowing for independent updates to the operating system core. This is a major change, but Microsoft is actively working in this direction to ensure that Windows 10 is suitable for many types of devices.
In the coming months, we will see the results of Microsoft's move. On the other hand, Microsoft is ready to launch a series of applications and services for Windows 10. Some users are currently testing the preview version of Windows 10, while applications like Xbox and Mail are being updated regularly on a monthly basis. Office on the Windows 10 platform is even regularly updated in a way that mimics mobile applications, rather than releasing a major upgrade every few years.
For Nixon's statement, Microsoft did not completely deny it. A Microsoft spokesperson said in a statement: "Recent comments on Windows 10 at the Ignite conference indicate that Windows will be released as a service in the future, bringing innovation and upgrades to our individual and corporate users in a sustained manner. Continue to bring value. ”
The statement also states: "Customers can be confident that Windows 10 will be up to date and applied to a range of devices such as PCs, mobile phones, Surface Hub, HoloLens and Xbox. We look forward to the long-term future of Windows innovation. ”
It can be argued that starting with Windows 10, Windows will not release a major update every few years. This will be similar to how Google upgrades the Chrome browser, and such a version-by-version upgrade is hard to follow. Microsoft's move may also bring similar results. This is the concept of Windows as a Service and the reason why Windows 10 will be the last version of Windows.
Microsoft may still release Windows 11 or Windows 12 in the future, but if Windows 10 users can update automatically on a regular basis, then no one will notice the version number, but will only notice "Windows".