Windows10 is getting a Makeover - Here's Your First Look

Windows10 is getting a Makeover - Here's Your First Look

Microsoft's Windows 10 file explorer is getting a facelift in the near future. The company has begun rolling out a special test build of Windows 10 that tweaks the icons for folders and default file types, giving the entire operating system a new look. [Amanda Langowski, head of Windows Insider, noted in a Windows Blog post that even the iconic Recycle Bin is getting a makeover.

Purists shouldn't worry too much about the new design. While the term "overhaul" may conjure up images of a series of massive and dramatic changes, this is not the case with Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 21343.

For the most part, the icons appear to have been moved front and center so that the images they represent are more clearly visible. However, Microsoft is already making some across-the-board changes to some of the icons, and they are quite different from what you might expect.

"Some changes, such as the orientation of folder icons and default file type icons, were made to improve consistency across Microsoft products that display files," Langowski says. In particular, top-level user folders such as Desktop, Documents, Downloads, and Pictures have a new design that makes them easily distinguishable at a glance."

For example, the side view of the full Recycle Bin has been replaced with a front-facing image, and hard drives viewed from the side are moved to the front, just as they are on a Mac. These are subtle differences, but users will definitely take notice.

Besides these specific icon adjustments, changes are sure to come. Microsoft is still considering implementing a "visual rejuvenation of Windows" in the foreseeable future in the form of a plan called "Sun Valley." This is part of an effort to tell users that "Windows Is Back," at least according to a January job ad found by The Verge. Microsoft has since announced a series of events to be held throughout the year that will focus on various aspects of its plans for Windows, gaming, and cloud services.

For now, the changes in Windows 10 seem to be localized to the icons you use every day. At some point in the future, however, there will be "radical changes" for a whole new look for Windows.

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