Windows 10 upgrade - Jump the Queue

Windows 10 has been installed on around 14 million devices within 24 hours and if you had reserved upgrade for your desktop/tablet, it may still take few days or weeks to receive automated notification from Microsoft.

I too had signed up in advance for this update however as soon as the final build was released to consumers, I gave in to the craving of manual installation. Please note that steps listed in this post would need a little advanced knowledge on your part to understand what you are going to do in order to push Windows 10 installation and it would be wise to back up windows files/settings etc. and note down your existing OS, MS office or any other application keys already installed just in case the OS transition process goes awry.

My Windows device is a Asus T100 Tablet/PC hybrid which houses Intel atom 1.33 GHz processor and runs on 2GB RAM, 32 Bit OS.

It would be good if you have reserved your Windows 10 copy in advance, if not try downloading this "Get Windows 10" App from this link  I am not sure if this would still work but you can give it a try.

Step 1

The easiest way to manually upgrade to Windows 10 is downloading Media Creation Tool from Microsoft website as per your OS type version (32 Bit or 64 Bit). It was dud attempt for me as this installer never went beyond Preparing -> "Something Happened" error!

Download this installer here

If the first option of "Upgrade this PC Now" works for you then it should be a cake walk process and if it does not then you can also run installation via a USB (ensure free space of 3GB or more on USB device and delete or copy content from that USB device before you configure it for Windows installation)

Some users have reported that this installer does tend to create issue and the problem is solved if you change your system region and keyboard language settings to US.

None of these options work out for me so on to step 2.

Step 2

This process involves a little bit of tinkering here and there on your system as I did not realize that while I was trying the first step with USB installation option, Windows 10 installation files were also downloaded on C drive (around 6GB in size)

1) Under view option on windows toolbar, keep hidden files option checked and select $Windows.~BT folder for deletion. You may get system permission issue prompt which may not allow you to clean up the entire folder so here are two more options to solve this problem.

a) Download "Take Ownership" registry utility which would allow you take ownership of all files and folders in the above directory to delete it completely b) Run disk clean up utility -> click on clean up system files button and ensure you check Previous Windows Installation(s) option.

2) Next step is go to - C: > Windows > Software Distribution > Download folder and delete everything inside this folder.

Both the above steps would remove all files left from previous unsuccessful installation attempt.

3) To prepare your machine for another round of update try this - Run Command Prompt utility in Administrator mode and then search for 'cmd' from Start menu/screen. Right-click on it and select 'Run as Administrator' from the context menu, Type the following command and press enter: wuauclt.exe/updatenow.

4) Wait for sometime to see the download process begin from the Windows Update screen section under control panel, it displays download size of around 2092 MB but it took around close to 2.5 hours on my 8MBPS broadband connection considering the tremendous traffic that must be hitting Microsoft servers during this period it was reasonable.

I encountered error after entire download process got completed which was more frustrating, so last attempt at going after registry tweak on Step 3.

Step 3

I had to follow clean up activities listed under step 2 to begin a new download process and this time I found a registry hack from Windows Central forum (cautious with this one, do not proceed if you don't feel confident)

Go to Run -> Type regedit command and follow steps from screenshot below, restart your PC/laptop/Tablet and once you go to control panel -> Windows Updates, I noticed that Windows 10 download had started again and in another 2 hours time finally my upgrade went through successfully.

Once the set up process started it required minimum intervention on my part and only when it comes to a screen where it prompts you to use express settings to proceed with installation ensure you choose to customize it by reading these options carefully because there are hell lot of privacy related settings which can to be tweaked to you preference.

All my apps, settings, programs, folders were left untouched and no issues with display or sound drivers. This could be the least troublesome Windows installation one may experience. I personally liked the metro interface which I started missing immediately however I know I would get used to the good old start menu option. Boot process is much faster than Windows 8/8.1 and there was no lag or difference in performance on my hybrid laptop/tablet device.

I am now eager to try out the Xbox one streaming experience, drivers for wireless xbox one controller are available to download, I would have to test it with some micro-usb cables to see if it works as publicized.

Why does it make Sense switching to Nexus 5

Google finally announced the much awaited Android 4.4 KitKat release yesterday along with Nexus 5 handset manufactured by LG which went on sale in 10 countries (Great Halloween treat!). The initial handset inventory got sold off in 27 minutes flat, that goes to prove a strong potential Google has got for Christmas to compete with flagship phones from other companies.

More importantly Nexus 5 got listed immediately on Indian Play Store with a coming soon tag and priced at Rs 28,999 for 16 GB and Rs 32,999 for 32 GB version. Android ecosystem seems to be up for a major overhaul after KitKat OS announcement where Google intends to go with one single version of Android running on almost all devices post Jan 2014, which is a bold move and more concrete step taken to do away with Android OS fragmentation issues.

This does not warranty automatic upgrade for handsets with low configurations released earlier, however Android OS bandwagon would be less crowded post 2014 with version 4.4 targeting major share.

Manufacturers like Samsung, HTC, Sony and LG could be sweating over Nexus 5 soon as their current crop of flagship phones are going to be left far behind in terms of performance and pricing. Also being a stock Google device dependency of being at mercy of these companies to push across new OS upgrades that take too long also goes away.

 There are rumors that Samsung may go for an early Galaxy S5 release next year to compensate for a less blockbuster response to Galaxy S4 sales, they have already announced that the next version of Galaxy phones would be based on 64 bit processing capacity and we may also see more RAM packed in OR better graphical processing power under the hood.

Samsung is not showing any signs of a shift in design, build and quality of it's Galaxy flagship phones. Note 3 is the only phone which comes with a different build quality now and TouchWiz OS gimmicks would continue to be offered as new features which most smartphone users do not actually use.

Both Sony and HTC has received decent response on Xperia Z1 and One phones which can provide them much required impetus to challenge Samsung's Android smartphone dominance in India.I am not sure how successful LG has being with G2 however Nexus 5 has got just the right pricing for Indian market which can boost prospects for this company next year.

Apple's iPhone 5C has got limited success until now where it has launched and 5S would be priced under premium category going beyond Rs 50,000 range as the case is with all new Apple iPhone's which get launched in India. I am doubtful how would Apple push their device adoption even with 5C (expected pricing around 41/42K) and EMI schemes across smaller cities and town in India?

Google device upgrades have being more balanced and well paced compared to yearly ritual now adopted by most companies, There's a limit to the upgrades we're going to see in smartphone hardware and software, and as the market saturates, the pressure to compete on price is going to become more intense. In such scenario a phone like Nexus 5 can be a value for money upgrade, which has got me planning to sell my S4 and go for this phone as it launches in India.

Would you go for Nexus 5 with the price it would be launched in India or prefer to wait for Galaxy S5 Or iPhone 5s, It would be interesting to read through your response on this.

Windows 8: Embracing a whole new experience

Microsoft India held a launch event for Windows 8 yesterday marking the arrival of it's new OS that promises to bring a significant change to the overall computing experience which would be fast, fun and fluid, also enabling consumers to use Windows 8 beyond the PC.

Reliance Digital, one of the largest electronics stores in India also unveils New Windows 8 on 26th October, 2012, after the last version being announced a year and a half ago.Along with multi touch capability infused, and support for up to five touches, It will strike a chord with the present trend and act as a trigger to its sales. Besides, this integration will pave way for network of touch sensitive LCD monitors. It will also surprise its users with the new features, an in- built system applications that will serve as a quick access bar for most sought after features and apps. Be it sharing, accessing hard drives or your settings, charm is at your service. It also supports device integration enabling you to stream video from your computer to your Xbox and enjoy a great viewing experience on your HDTV.

(Information Source – Reliance Digital Stores)

What went on while preparing for Windows 8 launch?

Microsoft has being seriously overhauling a gamut of services it has launched over the past few years like Xbox gaming service that was being morphed into an all around entertainment source for the entire family, scrapping erstwhile music service called Zune and paving way for Xbox Music which has close to 30 million tracks in it's library (not available in India yet). Windows 8 OS for mobile phones is also scheduled to launch on October 29, Microsoft also organised an AppFest earlier this year in Bangalore hosting a coding marathon which saw 2,567 developers coding non-stop for 18 hours creating a Guinness record. 

Efforts to attract developers for making apps on WP8 (Windows Phone 8) mobile platform is yielding results for Microsoft, surely it has a lot of catching up to do in comparison to Google and Apple when it comes to making inroads into building a credible app library, as per a company statement it has close to 1,00,000 apps and games as of now and it is surely to grow further with a committed support Microsoft has being getting from mobile manufacturers like HTC, Samsung and Nokia.

Surface tablet also aims to bridge the gap between a PC and Smartphone user already on the windows platform where a slew of android tablets already occupy the mid and lower segment of the tablet market and iPad still ruling the roost. 

It's not just about the OS any more

Windows 8 has being designed and developed to change the way we work on our computing devices like doing away with the system tray we have being so accustomed to view all these years on the previous windows platforms, bringing in apps, live tiles to work on and a similar experience I would get using my Xbox service which also has tiled layout, a browser included as well on the console now. 

An app called SmartGlass would be launched this month to enable this integration windows experience for consumers using Windows 8 installed on their PC, WP8 enabled smartphone (also extending support to iOS and Android phones) and the Xbox 360

Windows 8 is built to work on the ARM processing platform (read more about this here) that allows more vendors to manufacture hardware that supports adoption of Windows 8 OS, Microsoft has also strengthened the security on it's new OS with better anti-malware protection and improved windows defender performance.

Microsoft has also followed a very sensible approach in offering a discounted upgrade to genuine Windows OS users in India, who can move on to Windows 8 Pro for INR 1999 (Limited period offer), Looking forward to upgrading my laptop to the new Windows 8 experience today, just ran the windows 8 upgrade assistant, a little clean up to follow before the new install