Windows 10 - Heavy Xbox Integration

[Nebor]

What's your solution for OTA? I've been wanting to get off WMC for the longest time.

I get all the local channels off Uverse, but admittedly never watch them. For the big 4 networks, all their content is available on Hulu usually the day after it airs.

 

[Nebor]

IIRC, they ditched the idea of console vs PC cross-platform multiplayer in the past for precisely that reason:-

"I've heard from reliable sources that during the development they brought together the best console gamers to play mediocre PC gamers at the same game... and guess what happened? They pitted console gamers with their 'console' controller, against PC gamers with their keyboard and mouse. "The console players got destroyed every time. So much so that it would be embarrassing to the Xbox team in general had Microsoft launched this initiative."
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/ms-killed-pc-xbox-cross-platform-play
http://www.techspot.com/news/39738-...because-pc-gamers-wrecked-console-gamers.html

Look at the gameplay videos from when Counterstrike allowed crossplatform play on PS3 and PC. People were going 200-0.

 

[Nebor]

Ah, but will Microsoft show that it actually cares about it's loyal customers and make Direct X 12 available for Windows 7? Or will MS yet again, spit in it's customers' faces and make it Windows 10-only?

I think we all know the answer to this question. MS will chose the money. It would be great if Satya Nadella really did change MS - the company that even the Financial Times says "lacks the consumer gene", he sounds like an amazing guy. But I wouldn't bet on it.

If you were a "loyal customer" you'd have Windows 8.1 instead of Windows 7.

 

[sweenish]

Why didn't you edit? Or multi-quote for that matter?

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Honestly, at this point, I wouldn't doubt if the new enhancements to DirectX/Direct3D were also tied into important tweaks to the kernel. You won't see significant changes to a kernel happen to earlier OS's, just to add a feature developed long after that OS. They've changed kernels through Service Packs (or through point-releases like Windows 8.1). However, I would not see it in Microsoft's best interest to release a Windows 7 SP2 that created a schism of compatibility. And that's assuming that at some level of engineering, they could actually make that work, and I highly doubt it.

At best, perhaps a later release of Windows 8.2 could bring those changes and DirectX support, but this whole free upgrade routine is designed to prevent the need to create those kinds of hassles at the development level, both for MS and for third-party devs. Why do that when you can more easily encourage users to simply hop onto the latest version, especially at a rate previously unprecedented for Microsoft. That will spur development in ways previous changes to Windows never have achieved. That's best for us all, quite frankly.

If you were a "loyal customer" you'd have Windows 8.1 instead of Windows 7.

Exactly!

 

[mmntech]

And you can even link and turn off and on your Xbox from the PC. Meaning if someone is watching TV you just walk over pop in a disc and go back to the computer while the game loads up on the monitor. With all the streaming the Xbox can do regardless, I'm glad they finally decided to combine all this stuff.

It's definitely a huge step up from Sony's implementation, which locks you in to Sony hardware (Vita, PSTV and Xperia). Play on a tablet, hook your laptop up to a second TV, whatever.

It's nice to see MS learning from early mistakes. The XB1 keeps getting better. PS4 (which I own) feels like it's stuck in neutral.

 

[sze5003]

It's definitely a huge step up from Sony's implementation, which locks you in to Sony hardware (Vita, PSTV and Xperia). Play on a tablet, hook your laptop up to a second TV, whatever.

It's nice to see MS learning from early mistakes. The XB1 keeps getting better. PS4 (which I own) feels like it's stuck in neutral.

I would like to see sony advance in their software stage. It still can't do streaming like the Xbox can although I understand it may be more powerful it also needs to take advantage of these other capabilities.

I buy all my multiplatform titles on ps4 but use the Xbox one for mostly streaming and entertainment in the living room. After trying pstv, before moving my ps4 to my bedroom, I hope their streaming service is more effective.

 

[destrekor]

It's definitely a huge step up from Sony's implementation, which locks you in to Sony hardware (Vita, PSTV and Xperia). Play on a tablet, hook your laptop up to a second TV, whatever.

It's nice to see MS learning from early mistakes. The XB1 keeps getting better. PS4 (which I own) feels like it's stuck in neutral.

Well to a certain point, it is equally as restrictive, as it is only available on devices with Windows 10. That means no Android device is capable at all, no tablets other than Windows tablets, no Mac users (or Linux users for that matter, although who really expects new compatibility there? ), etc.

Steam remote play is a little more forgiving, only requiring it be on a platform that can run Steam, iirc.

 

[Nebor]

Why didn't you edit? Or multi-quote for that matter?

Look at my post count. You haven't even reached the free coffee mug yet, don't criticize me for going for the custom jacket.

 

[sweenish]

Post count?

Sarcasm aside, that was weak-sauce. I mean, post count is gained just by posting "first!" into every thread, that's common knowledge.

 

[Aikouka]

The one thing that has me a bit unsure about the Xbox integration is the Xbox app itself. The screenshots make it appear to be a full-screen Modern app. I don't know if that bothers anyone else, but I'm not terribly keen on having to use this huge, full-screen program just to send a simple message to someone. I would be fine if they made it pop out from the side of the screen (sort of like a hiding version of the Windows Sidebar) on demand.

I would like to see sony advance in their software stage. It still can't do streaming like the Xbox can although I understand it may be more powerful it also needs to take advantage of these other capabilities.

You can if you use Plex!

 

[sze5003]

The one thing that has me a bit unsure about the Xbox integration is the Xbox app itself. The screenshots make it appear to be a full-screen Modern app. I don't know if that bothers anyone else, but I'm not terribly keen on having to use this huge, full-screen program just to send a simple message to someone. I would be fine if they made it pop out from the side of the screen (sort of like a hiding version of the Windows Sidebar) on demand.



You can if you use Plex!

Yea the full screen mode for the app does suck but it would be cool to have it minimized or snap to the side of your monitor.

As for Plex, I'm not going to pay so I can stream my content from the PC when the xbox one can do it free of charge. I haven't actually looked at all the benefits of the Plex pass yet.

 

[destrekor]

The one thing that has me a bit unsure about the Xbox integration is the Xbox app itself. The screenshots make it appear to be a full-screen Modern app. I don't know if that bothers anyone else, but I'm not terribly keen on having to use this huge, full-screen program just to send a simple message to someone. I would be fine if they made it pop out from the side of the screen (sort of like a hiding version of the Windows Sidebar) on demand.



You can if you use Plex!

I'm sure you can run the app in a window. It's possible you cannot, but I highly doubt it. All "universal" apps, or "metro apps" can be ran in a window in Windows 10. They were probably just demonstrating the full potential.

 

[Nebor]

The one thing that has me a bit unsure about the Xbox integration is the Xbox app itself. The screenshots make it appear to be a full-screen Modern app. I don't know if that bothers anyone else, but I'm not terribly keen on having to use this huge, full-screen program just to send a simple message to someone. I would be fine if they made it pop out from the side of the screen (sort of like a hiding version of the Windows Sidebar) on demand.



You can if you use Plex!

You can snap the current xbox app in windows 8.1 into a side panel, I don't know why you wouldn't be able to in windows 10.

 

[Aikouka]

You can snap the current xbox app in windows 8.1 into a side panel, I don't know why you wouldn't be able to in windows 10.

Hmm... so my only Windows 8-based devices are my laptop (no touch) and my touch-based HTPC. Now, these are both single-display devices, so how does the screen splitting work with multiple displays? Also, how do you even do it with a mouse? On my touch screen, I swipe down from the bezel, and you perform the same action with a touch pad on the laptop. Also, what would happen to the second monitor?

I have no qualms with being integrated into Xbox Live so long as it's unobtrusive yet fairly accessible. I don't know if I'd want to go through the hassle of creating a split-screen setup every time I want to use Xbox Live and the normal PC stuff at the same time.

As for Plex, I'm not going to pay so I can stream my content from the PC when the xbox one can do it free of charge. I haven't actually looked at all the benefits of the Plex pass yet.

See... I think they would've been better served if they didn't introduce the newer clients through PlexPass. Now, it's not unheard of as Plex normally introduces their newer, beta features to their paying members. These features end up rolling down to all users after a month or two. People that actively go searching for Plex are possibly aware of this extra cost. The problem with the PS4 is that Sony doesn't have a DLNA solution, which is getting people that don't understand Plex (as they normally wouldn't use it) to consider it.

Eventually, the PS4 and X1 clients should just have a one-time cost associated with them, which is just like it is for the iOS, Android, Windows 8 and Roku clients. Albeit, the Roku and Android clients are free for PlexPass users, and PlexPass users can also manually download the Windows 8 (Modern UI) binaries.

Ultimately, if you have an interest in sharing your media with various devices, Plex might actually be nice for you. PlexPass also includes a feature to save media to your devices, which includes any encoding that needs to occur for it to natively play. My friend uses that to put movies on his iPad for his son to watch.

 

[Nebor]

Click and hold the top of your screen and drag down. Whatever app you're using will sort of shrink onto your mouse cursor. You can, from there, drag it to the bottom of the screen to close it, or to the left or righto put it in a pane. Once in a pane you can adjust the size of the pane.

 

[Chaotic42]

Windows 8 has been awesome for me. Lightning quick and problem free.

KT

Same here

 

[destrekor]

Same here

Yep. I can understand why it annoys people, but I've never had a Windows experience more stable and snappier in every task I have ever done. It was a little rocky with games when 8.0 was new, but that was immature driver development. Nowadays, it is a snappy as ever.

 

[sze5003]

I haven't had issues either except with the latest amd omega drivers. After a reboot the screen would go black then go back to my desktop. I installed the beta drivers and now its fine. Other than that, windows 8 is fine because I rarely ever use the tiles. Glad they brought that windows icon back and I have it boot directly to my desktop. On an ssd its super snappy.

 

[Texashiker]

Microsoft had an event today where they unveiled some new features for Windows 10. They went into the more typical OS features, and they saved the best for last... gaming!

snip

For the most important non-gaming aspect, Windows 10 will be a free upgrade for the first year for all Windows 8/8.1 and Windows 7 users.

Sounds to me like microsoft has run out of ideas. Now that I think about it, they ran out of ideas with windows xp.

If they are not going to offer new features, such as integrated video and photo editing, why not work on improving the os so it uses less resources.

I have zero interest in xbox integration. But what I would like to see is less resource usage.

 

[sweenish]

Is video and photo editing something you expect in an OS?

When Windows tried to include all that garbage, nobody cared, nor did anyone serious about that stuff ever use it. If you want to dabble in that stuff, there are plenty of free programs that are great for that.

And I enjoy how you scorn this version for not having any new features, proceed to bring up video and photo editing, and completely ignore the fact that Cortana will be in Windows 10.

And just because you don't care for Xbox integration (a valid opinion to have), you think they're still not adding features? What kind of ignorance is that? How is enabling console to PC streaming and [also] truly unified apps across PC, tablet, phone and Xbox not new features?

It just sounds like you want free video and photo editing software, provided by the OS. Just say that next time. Or better yet, use the free tools.

 

[sze5003]

I remember when they included that media TV bundle but I never used it even when I had a TV tuner card. If they made it use less resources which by windows 8 already does, then it should be fine. I agree there are a few free tools that do the job fine. Most people that really get into photo and video editing usually go with a Mac.

 

[Texashiker]

Is video and photo editing something you expect in an OS?

Why should people buy an operating system when there is nothing new about it?

What is microsoft bringing to the table that is new and innovative? Nothing, thats what.

For the next decade windows 7 will probably microsofts flagship OS. That is probably why MS is going to give windows 10 away for free, because it brings nothing new to the table.

All most people want is email, browser and play games. How many times can MS repackage the same product?

One thing that has changed in the past few years is the face of social media. We need better integration with blogging and social media platforms.

Widgets was nice, while they lasted.

 

[sze5003]

There hasn't been major changes in 10 aside from the start menu and a few other quirks. But at least its free. Apple has been giving free updates for a while too and until Yosemite there hasn't been that much change either. I'd rather use Linux mint than buy another windows os.

 

[cmdrdredd]

What am I reading? They aren't adding anything new but sweenish has pointed out many new things. Universal apps that can function between Xbox, and other windows devices isn't at all new? Even OS X can't make apps work universally with iOS. Just because you don't care doesn't mean there is nothing new at all.