Microsoft has officially squashed all the rumors that suggested existence of ‘Windows 8.1 Update 2.’ Though, the company will deliver security patches and small tweaks through its monthly Patch Tuesday update.
Speculations around a second update to Windows 8.1 began a few months ago. The company is apparently keen on providing more frequent improvements and security updates, and isn’t looking at any major update, it seems.
“Rather than waiting for months and bundling together a bunch of improvements into a larger update as we did for the Windows 8.1 Update, customers can expect that we’ll use our already existing monthly update process to deliver more frequent improvements along with the security updates normally provided as part of ‘Update Tuesday.’ So despite rumors and speculation, we are not planning to deliver a Windows 8.1 ‘Update 2,’ Microsoft stated in an official blog post.
As for the Patch Tuesday — which comes every second Tuesday of the month — the update will arrive through Windows Update (WU), Microsoft Update (MU), and Windows Server Update Services (WSUS). Whereas, Windows 8.1 users who have opted for automatic updates, might get the update a bit late, as it’s a “gradual rollout.”
Don’t lose all the hopes, though. Microsoft is offering several new features to Windows 8.1 users in the upcoming Patch Tuesday scheduled to arrive on August 12. Some of these features include,
- Precision touchpad improvements – three new end-user settings have been added: Leave touch pad on when a mouse is connected; allow right-clicks on the touchpad; double-tap and drag.
- Miracast Receive – exposes a set of Wi-Fi direct APIs for Independent Hardware Vendor (IHV) drivers or OEM drivers to develop Windows 32-bit applications that run on all supported x86-based or x64-based versions of Windows 8.1, enabling the computer as a Miracast receiver.
- Minimizing login prompts for SharePoint Online – reduces the number of prompts with federated use in accessing SharePoint Online sites. If you select the “Keep me signed in” check box when you log on for the first time, you will not see prompts for successive access to that SharePoint Online site.
Update 2 was hyped as another big update to Windows 8.1, after Microsoft unveiled the returning Start Menu back during the Build developer conference. Once Microsoft delayed the feature for Windows 9, it appears that Update 2 lost its hype. It makes sense for Microsoft to roll out the new improvements mentioned above on Patch Tuesday under the guise of just being just another update for Windows 8.1.
Further reading: Microsoft, Windows 8.1
