Today we will take a look at these features and offer possible alternatives to users who still use them. Cool Tip: Not sure whether your PC will be able to run Windows 10? Take a look at the minimum specifications laid out by Microsoft.
Windows Media Center
I will start with the biggest. Windows Media Center, which has been long forgotten, was once synonymous with computer DVR. It may be from the Windows XP era but it still has some loyal fans who are disappointed that Microsoft dropped it from Windows 10. The next best option after Windows Media Center is XBMC, which is now known as Kodi. If that’s not your cup of tea, there are more options to choose from.
Native DVD Playback
While Microsoft dropped support for this in Windows 8 itself, you still had the option upgrading to Windows Media Center to get it. But as Media Center is gone too, you have no alternative other use a third party program for the job. VLC is the best media player for Windows and, not surprisingly, also handles DVD playback. Follow our guide for the How-to.
No Desktop Gadgets
For those upgrading directly from Windows 7 to 10, your Desktop gadgets won’t have a place on desktop. Microsoft already removed them in Windows 8 and this will remain the same for Windows 10. If you still want them, download the Sidebar for Windows 10, from GadgetsRevived, which is a specially dedicated website to bring desktop gadgets to Windows 8 and above. Once you download the sidebar, add the gadgets of your choosing from the library.
No Native Floppy Drive Support
If you still have a PC which has Floppy Drive, it won’t likely run on Windows 10. This feature should have been removed in Windows 7 itself, but maybe Microsoft knew a class of people who still use floppy disks to store content downloaded over there AOL dial-up network. For some reason (that only God knows), if you want to use floppy drive, locate the manufacturer and install the drivers manually, provided its website is still functioning. Did you know: A 32GB SD card can hold information of as many as a 22,755 3.5 inch-ED floppy disks!!
No Pre-installed Solitaire, Minesweeper and Hearts Games
Again this change will be for Windows 7 users. The above games will not come pre-installed with Windows 10. This is carried over from Windows 8, which also didn’t come with these games. Those looking to relive nostalgia, will have to download the revamped versions from the Microsoft Store, from here and here. For Hearts, search the store and find any one of the games from a third party developer as Microsoft doesn’t have its own version.
The Ability to Defer Updates (for Windows 10 Home only)
This might be inconvenient for some users. In all previous versions, you had an option to manage updates, but for Windows 10 Home, this has been removed and updates will be downloaded and installed automatically. This is not always favorable, as some updates might not play nice with your PC and cause issues. Of course there is always a manual way to override this, which we will be exploring once the final build comes out.
Deal Breakers for You?
So are any of these features so important that they will stop you from upgrading to Windows 10? Do share your views and thoughts in comments section.
