On September 30, 2014, Microsoft finally revealed to the world their next version of Windows. Speculation about the name had been ongoing for months, especially with the known internal name of 'Threshold' being used widely in the press. Would Microsoft call it just Windows? What about Windows One or the more traditional Windows 9?
Microsoft threw everyone a curve ball by announcing the name as jumping from Windows 8.1 to Windows 10. No official reason is known, although the most obvious is to make Windows 10 seem like a big deal as an update.
So should it be surprising to find the OS string actually reported as Windows 9 Professional (build 9860)? Definitely not. Microsoft had to call the OS something while it was being built and Windows 9 was likely its real name, at least until Terry Myerson and crew changed it up at the last minute.
Evidence for the Windows 9 name is found by using the Belarc Advisor, a free application that presents all sorts of useful information about your PC (don't worry, the info is not uploaded but stays local). After running the app on our Windows 10 machine, its full name of 'Windows 9 Professional (x64) (build 9860) is revealed.
It should be clear that calling it Windows 10 was a closely guarded secret decided at the very last moment. It is interesting if only to show that this new Microsoft is a lot more dynamic, acting (and reacting) quickly, as opposed to following the predictable path. And we like it.
Finally, remember that the public name are nothing more than that, as the internal name for Windows 10 is just going to be version 6.4, a small jump from the previous Windows 8.1 version 6.3. The bigger deal is that image you see above of Microsoft's OS convergence, something that has taken years to achieve. It is awesome.
Speaking of, what do you all think of the Windows 10 name anyway?
Thanks, Dharmateja P., for the tip; Windows 10 map image via @AndyHammar
