People know that I'm generally critical of the entire "Metro" direction Microsoft took with Windows 8. But after endless bit-twiddling, the company has nailed it with Windows 10.

If you look up all the complaints about Windows 10 thus far, with only a few exceptions, the objections are minor if not completely unimportant. The only substantial grouse is about the continuous auto-updates, which can often overwrite a specialty driver necessary for the machine to operate. This is a problem that needs quick fixing. Other than that, you will be surprised at how fluid and comfortable the OS feels.

I received an updated Dell XPS 13 loaner with Windows 10 last week. Dell somehow improved the already sleek XPS 13 with some nice design tweaks, and its touch screen is as smudge-proof as any I've ever used. It's a very slick unit.

Dell, like the other PC manufacturers, are all jacked up about Windows 10. They hope it will boost sales of their upgraded machines, and they may be on to something. Windows 10 is hard to hate.

The OS boots in about 10 seconds off an SSD and shuts down in about 2-3 seconds. That makes it very handy on airplanes when the flight attendants are bugging you to power down. No need for stand-by with those times.

Anyone who wisely uses the wonderful Classic Shell to "fix" the issues with Windows 8.1 might be able to pass on it with Windows 10. While Windows 10 does not completely revert to the past with a Window 7-type Start menu, the one it provides is completely revamped, somewhat customizable, and actually quite pleasant and useful. It makes you wonder: Why did it take Microsoft so long to do this? And what was it thinking with Windows 8?

For one thing, the difference between the hokey "start screen" and the desktop are no more. The desktop now contains the start screen as a kind-of drawer addendum to the Start menu. While this seems odd at first, this paradigm shift instantly fixes everything wrong with the existing graphical user interface (GUI).

Windows 8.1 somewhat corrected Microsoft's incredibly lame idea that programs and apps should all run full screen as if today's PCs are equivalent to a DOS machine in 1982. Windows 10 opens them in a window rather than full screen. It appears as if the folks at Microsoft who actually use computers are back in charge.

Related 10 Tips to Help You Get the Most Out of Windows 10

There is no doubt that over the next few months various anomalies and problems will be discovered. At this point in testing, none should be deal-killers. Overall, the users will be very happy with the results of this upgrade. Previously, I recommended waiting for a while to get something patched and perfected. But playing with this OS will make people want to upgrade fast.

It's kind of ironic since the late Steve Jobs used to carp about how Microsoft was a company with "no taste." This OS is very tasteful and elegant, much more than the current iteration of the Mac OS.

Windows 10 is designed in a way that, as you use it more and more, you find new useful features as needed. The importance of this is hard to explain, but the best analogy is those zippered suitcases that get bigger and bigger until they are as big or small as you want. With Windows 10, this happens effortlessly; you are never out of a comfort zone. This is a great product. I'm stunned.

For more, see PCMag's full review of Windows 10.

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