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Here are my thoughts after a week of using the new Windows 11.
My initial impression is that Win11 is clean and uncluttered. The font is simple and modern and the colours are soft and harmonious. It looks “new”.
The first thing I noticed is that the Windows icon is missing from the bottom left corner. This was what happened with Win8 and the reaction from the public was swift with the majority of users expressing antipathy towards the change, third party developers quickly offering applications and hacks that mimicked the familiar button from Win7. It will be interesting to see if the same thing happens with Win11.
The Windows button is not gone, however, but it’s been moved towards the centre of the task bar, as part of a group of 4 new icons that are somewhat permanent and cannot be removed using the usual right-click trick. These icons in order are Start, Search, Widgets & Chat. To the right of these semi-permanent icons are the usual application icons that can be added or removed using right-click techniques.
If you really want the Windows button to be in the bottom left corner, there is a Setting that allows for this. I am curious about the design decision that led Microsoft to make this change. They must have realised that people would resist this change, so what were the compelling reasons that led to this change being made?
It’s not immediately obvious how to get to Settings. Right-click on the Windows icon to get a list of different configuration items including Settings. There has been a big redesign of the Settings application. I found the sheer number of items to be a bit confronting but overall I think the new design is an improvement.
Live tiles in the Start menu are gone, replaced by customisable widgets. I was never a fan of live tiles, so it will be interesting to see if I warm to this new design. Time will tell.
Finally, it’s probably important that you know how to shut down and restart the computer. In the usual Microsoft fashion there are multiple ways of doing this but the most straightforward are to either left-click or right-click on the Windows icon. The former opens a sort-of Start Menu with the power icon located in the bottom right corner. The latter shows the list of configuration items, with Power at the bottom of this list.
Have you had any experience with the new Windows 11 yet? I would be interested in your thoughts. Please add your comments below.

It looks increasingly likely that 20 October will be the release date for Windows 11. Not everybody will get the upgraded version of Windows at the same time however. I would also strongly recommend holding off installing the new version of Windows for several weeks or even months to make sure that there are no issues that may affect your particular computer and the applications that run on it.
Also, not every computer will be capable of running Windows 11. Whilst Microsoft has made a checking application available, it can be a bit confusing to use. Some very clever programmers have created a simple application that you can run to see if there are any known issues that may affect your computer. It is free and doesn't make any changes to your computer. I would regard it as being safe to download and run.
If you have any questions, as always feel free to contact me or reply to this post. When Win11 is officially released I will install it on one of my computers and let you know how things turn out.

Here is the checker for you to download and run:

github-releases.githubusercontent.com

Most of the personal and business computers that I see are based on Microsoft Windows 10. There are a number of different versions available, with Win10 Home and Win10 Professional being the ones that an individual is most likely to use. Generally speaking, most users only need the features of Win10 Home, which is significantly cheaper than Win10 Pro. The difference is about $150, which gives the ability to connect to a special network called a domain, and also to use Remote Desktop inbound and create virtual machines with Hyper-V, along with some enhanced data encryption. In other words, you probably don't need it.
Many users don't realise that the cost of the computer also includes a license to use Win10 on that computer. A license for Win10 Home from Officeworks is currently $189. Windows is definitely not free.
As well as Win10 Home and Pro there are also versions for workstations (high end specialised computers), education, enterprise and embedded.
Microsoft has a good web page that gives more information about the differences between Home and Pro.

Compare Windows 10 Home vs Pro | Microsoft Windows Get reassurance on which Windows 10 version to buy. Compare Windows 10 Home vs. Pro with Microsoft’s comprehensive checklist and feel confident in your choice!

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Public funding for fossil fuels. Urgent 4 weeks to action. Hello and thanks for signing the petition regarding public funding for the Hunter Valley power station. We have over 20,000 signatures! Unfortunately it needs to be an “officially approved” petition to be tabled in parliament. I have gained official Government approval for a new petition regardi...