The Windows 10 Fall Creators Update is nearly upon us as summer rapidly draws to close.  Like 1511, 1607 and 1703 before it the current build of 16241 or  ‘Redstone 3’ has been available as a preview to insiders (in this case since April 14, 2017).

First impressions have demonstrated a host of useful new features to the Windows ecosystem.  Now that feature updates to WAAS (Windows as a Service) are delivered in an Apple like fashion it is quite an exciting time to be invested in the Microsoft OS.

Pick Up Where You Left Off

One of the most exciting new features has to be the ability to work on documents, browse websites and other items from your IOS or Android device and then continue using them on your Windows 10 PC.  This is very much like Apple’s ‘Continuity’ feature except that it works cross-platform.

This is how it worked in practice:

I first went to the App store on my iPhone and downloaded the ‘Continue On PC’ app from Microsoft

I opened a website on my iPhone:

I then pressed the ‘Share’ button and scrolled along to ‘Continue on PC’

I then selected ‘Continue now’ from the available options

I then selected the PC I wanted to continue working on

I received a message telling me the item was sent to the PC

On my Windows PC (already signed in to my Microsoft account) Edge opened automatically with the webpage I was using on my iPhone!

Timeline

Another Apple-esque feature is the Microsoft Timeline.  This will allow you to view your documents at various stages over time so that you can revert them or your system back to that state.  It sounds like  a nice GUI for System Restore/VSS/Previous versions.  Hopefully it will work as well as its Apple equivalent ‘Time Machine’.  I believe this was planned to be in the Fall Creators Update but has now been pushed back until March 2018.

OneDrive Files On-Demand

This could be  useful feature for some.  Basically once activated it allows you to mark certain files or folders as ‘Online only’ copies.  This means that the file is only downloaded to your local PC when it is actually needed.  You will see different icons for the various states as explained here.

Story Remix

It seems to be no secret now that Microsoft Paint is to be discontinued (well offered as a store app).  Microsoft also killed off Windows Movie Maker some years back.  It is therefore very positive to see that they have not forgotten types who enjoy these media editing features (It is afterall still the ‘Creator’s Update’).  Enter Story Remix, a powerful inbuilt video editor that works seamlessly with Windows photos and videos apps.

Power Throttling

If you are lucky enough to own a device modern enough to be fitted with an Intel 6th gen Core processor with Speed Shift technology you will be able to benefit from this feature.  It works by throttling power to background, less resource intensive apps and giving power to foreground apps that have been recognised to be more power hungry.