Here’s What’s New In The Windows 8.1 Update 1
The last time we covered something important about Windows 8 was back in October 2013 when we explored the many new features that were introduced via Windows 8.1. Boot to desktop and the deeply-missed Start Menu button were the noteworthy features that aimed to bridge the gap between the ‘desktop’ and the ‘Modern UI’ environments. The Redmond based software giant has now released another similar patch labeled Windows 8.1 Update 1 which was recently made available via Windows Update tool. We installed it on our desktop to see what exactly Microsoft brought to the table, so here’s our full guide to those changes and how they’ll affect your Windows 8 usage.
Boot To Desktop Is Now Default
There’s no denying the fact that the ‘Start Screen’ – the tile-filled canvas that replaced the classic Start menu – has received plenty of hate from users. While visually impressive, the blocky UI doesn’t make much sense at all when using the operating system with the mouse. This is also the first screen that actually greets you upon booting Windows 8 on both desktop and touch-enabled devices, forcing users to skip it every time they boot the machine regardless of whether they fancy the Start Screen or not.
Microsoft addressed this issue in Windows 8.1 by giving users the choice of either booting to the Start Screen or skipping it altogether via a new option called ‘Taskbar and Navigation Properties’ sheet. But now it seems the company is finally admitting that the metro interface is in fact not the way to go when it comes to using Windows 8 on desktop.
This has been achieved by making Windows 8.1 contextually aware. To make things simpler, those who will use the operating system on PC will boot directly to the desktop rather than landing on the Modern UI first. If you’re on a touch-enabled devices, for instance Microsoft Surface or some other Windows RT tablet, then it will still kick off things to the Start Screen as before.
Nonetheless, you can choose to enable or disable this option in Update 1 too. To do that, open Taskbar Properties sheet, click ‘Navigation’ tab, and look for the checkmark that says ‘When I sign in or close all apps on a screen, go to the desktop instead of Start’, and enable or disable it as required.
SkyDrive Is Now OneDrive
One of the biggest changes in Windows 8.1 was native SkyDrive integration. In Windows 8, SkyDrive was only available as a Modern UI app , but Microsoft integrated it at the system wide level throughout the Modern UI and desktop in Windows 8.1. Among many advantages, the native integration provided an easier way to not only sync files to the cloud but also, access them whenever required from the desktop.
Back in January, Microsoft also announced that it’s rebranding SkyDrive to OneDrive following a legal lawsuit in the UK from media company BSkyB. The latest naming scheme didn’t bring any functional changes, but the name OneDrive itself remained absent from Windows 8.1 up to this point.
Thank you so much for posting this. I have 8.1 and had upgraded last week with no problems (I thought) or error messages. The result was that I had 2 start buttons on top of each other, my apps didn’t work, it only wanted to show me the ‘downstairs’ part of the start screen, I still had Sky Drive – not One Drive (and it didn’t work,) and I couldn’t get the taskbar to hide. So I did a successful system restore.
Then yesterday on the start page I saw your news link to the “upgrade or be left out,” and decided I guess I’d better get used to living with that mess. (Not a Chrome fan.) But this info on the new features convinced me that my update last week must have been a blooper – and was it ever! Today I updated again, and got the correct results. I’m so glad you showed us the previews, or I may not have tried it again.
How do I get to “taskbar and navigational properties”?
Linda, just right click on an open area of the taskbar which is the bar at the bottom where “volume”, antivirus program is, etc. and click “properties” and then “navigation”. Happy Easter!