Questions for 7/20?

<p>I'm totally going to copy/paste this question that I have for Paul, but I thought it'd be interesting to get your take too, Brad.</p><p><br></p><p>*******</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>What are your thoughts on tablet mode and in general the touch capabilities of Windows these days? Does it even make sense anymore? I say this as someone who has been a huge advocate for touch and the pen input Microsoft has championed.</p><p>Like Live Tiles, the focus on touch in Windows 10 feels like a relic from the Windows 8 era, when Microsoft was desperate to modernize the platform, and more importantly, actually cared about the touch experience in Windows. The original Surface was meant to showcase the new OS, and for all its failings, Windows 8 just felt great to use on a tablet. It was polished and… yes, fast and fluid.</p><p><br></p><p>Today, the tablet UX is functional, but to me feels like a very compromised experience. Where Windows 8 had a great tablet UX that was admittedly bolted on to legacy Windows, Windows 10 feels like you're using legacy elements that may or may not be simply&nbsp; visually updated. E.g. the taskbar, File Explorer, etc. All of this combined with the inconsistency/bugginess (notifications not responding to my initial dismissal swipes, keyboard focus box randomly showing), make Windows 10 feel ill-suited to touch. At which point, I wonder why we're even doing this in the first place? It almost invalidates the point of the Surface line. I know, that's a little dramatic, but it does make me think. If Microsoft isn't going to do it right, why do it at all?</p><p><br></p><p>So even though Apple has gotten a lot of flak over their decision to keep macOS and iOS separate, in the end they seem to be doing it the sensible way by integrating the bits that make sense from each OS. Sort of goes along with your opinion on using the right tool for the job, and I'm inclined to agree.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Sorry for the long post, and thanks!</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Phil</p><p><br></p>