In this day and age, there are multiple use cases for computing. Whether it be on a small tablet, a laptop, or a desktop PC, Microsoft is working to make the next Windows operating system tailored to meet your needs. With Windows 10, you can have an environment that is tailored to mouse and keyboard use, or touch use.
Microsoft is implementing a feature called “tablet mode” in Windows 10, which makes it easier than ever to navigate around the operating system while on a tablet or small device. In this environment, the Start screen and Windows apps are made full-screen, preventing you from resizing them.
On top of that, certain user interface elements have been optimized for touch usage in tablet mode. The taskbar in Windows 10 build 10056, for example, now adds extra padding between icons, making it easier to touch — a general rule of thumb for touch-friendly web designers too.
The codename for this feature is Continuum, but the actual name is tablet mode. With this feature, Microsoft hopes to make it easy to dynamically switch between being touch-friendly and keyboard/mouse-friendly, depending on system behavior and what hardware is available. For example, if you plug a keyboard into your Surface 3, it will switch from tablet mode to normal mode.
Microsoft is still working on this feature and newer improvements are now apparent in the latest leaked build of 10056. The operating system is expected to be released this summer. Windows 10 is currently in preview, available to participants of the Windows Insider Program.
Further reading: Microsoft, Windows 10
