1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,040 Isn't it confusing how in recent versions of Windows, 2 00:00:03,040 --> 00:00:07,600 the Settings app exists side-by-side with the old-school control panel? 3 00:00:07,600 --> 00:00:12,400 Come to think of it, there are a number of Windows features that look pretty dated at this point. 4 00:00:12,400 --> 00:00:19,080 I mean, these icons that you can pick for your shortcuts are literally unchanged since Windows 95. 5 00:00:19,080 --> 00:00:22,560 What gives with that? To find out, we went straight to the source, 6 00:00:22,560 --> 00:00:26,200 so we'd like to thank Microsoft for shedding some light on this situation. 7 00:00:26,200 --> 00:00:31,960 A big part of this mixing and matching of old and new user elements or UI elements 8 00:00:31,960 --> 00:00:37,280 is the fact that Windows is worked on by a huge number of distinct teams at Microsoft. 9 00:00:37,280 --> 00:00:43,200 Combine that with the fact that Windows has been developed in a fairly piecemeal fashion for the last 30-plus years, 10 00:00:43,200 --> 00:00:47,800 and it's not super surprising that each release of such a massive operating system 11 00:00:47,800 --> 00:00:53,320 has consisted of incremental improvements rather than full recodes from scratch. 12 00:00:53,320 --> 00:00:58,240 In fact, each team that works on Windows uses a guide on how to modernize a setting 13 00:00:58,280 --> 00:01:02,880 if they want to make whatever it is they're working on more congruent with the rest of the OS. 14 00:01:02,880 --> 00:01:06,240 It's a real process, meaning that Microsoft 15 00:01:06,240 --> 00:01:11,120 has to prioritize what to redesign and what to just leave alone. 16 00:01:11,120 --> 00:01:15,400 To do this, then, the company is continually collecting user feedback to figure out 17 00:01:15,400 --> 00:01:21,720 which elements users interact with the most. For example, the taskbar is almost unrecognizable 18 00:01:21,720 --> 00:01:26,620 from what it was like when it debuted in 1995, and the reason it's been revised so often 19 00:01:26,620 --> 00:01:30,820 is because most folks are interacting with it almost constantly. 20 00:01:30,820 --> 00:01:35,820 But even parts of the OS that aren't as front and center can be attractive targets for a redesign. 21 00:01:35,820 --> 00:01:38,860 Task Manager, for instance, has had performance graphs, 22 00:01:38,860 --> 00:01:42,660 startup programs, and per-process resource usage added 23 00:01:42,660 --> 00:01:47,980 because enough folks who regularly go into Task Manager wanted to be able to keep tabs on exactly 24 00:01:47,980 --> 00:01:51,380 what their programs were up to. But hold on a second. 25 00:01:51,380 --> 00:01:55,020 Even if people aren't demanding an overhaul of some other Windows feature, 26 00:01:55,020 --> 00:01:58,620 is it really that hard for Microsoft to just make everything look like 27 00:01:58,620 --> 00:02:03,620 it's at least part of the same OS? It turns out that lots of the legacy UI elements 28 00:02:03,620 --> 00:02:07,800 that you see actually rely on older software frameworks, 29 00:02:07,800 --> 00:02:12,620 basically the underlying code, that don't always play nicely with a redesign 30 00:02:12,620 --> 00:02:15,860 unless you rebuild the entire feature from scratch. 31 00:02:15,860 --> 00:02:20,540 And with as many requested Windows improvements as there are turtles holding up the earth, 32 00:02:20,540 --> 00:02:24,020 redesigning a feature that not many people are clamoring for 33 00:02:24,020 --> 00:02:30,060 simply isn't a main priority for Microsoft, which might explain why 28-year-old icons 34 00:02:30,060 --> 00:02:34,740 are still hiding inside the OS. But even if Microsoft had more resources 35 00:02:34,740 --> 00:02:38,260 to throw out the problem, certain UI elements are actually left 36 00:02:38,260 --> 00:02:44,100 the way they are on purpose. Some customers, particularly business or enterprise users, 37 00:02:44,100 --> 00:02:48,540 rely on having these legacy features remain exactly as they are. 38 00:02:48,540 --> 00:02:51,780 In fact, certain organizations use custom scripts, 39 00:02:51,780 --> 00:02:56,380 which assume, for example, certain settings in the control panel will be present. 40 00:02:56,380 --> 00:03:00,580 So Microsoft doesn't wanna break software that other folks have written. 41 00:03:00,580 --> 00:03:05,300 And then other organizations will reach out to them to tell them that these older elements in Windows 42 00:03:05,300 --> 00:03:08,780 really need to be kept as they are, not to mention that Microsoft also wants 43 00:03:08,780 --> 00:03:12,620 to keep things familiar for all users instead of changing too many things at once. 44 00:03:12,620 --> 00:03:17,220 So then, does that mean the classic control panel is gonna be around forever? 45 00:03:17,220 --> 00:03:21,060 Well, Microsoft, unsurprisingly, did not want to comment on 46 00:03:21,060 --> 00:03:26,220 if and when it'll be phased out entirely. But what we can tell you is that they are continuing 47 00:03:26,220 --> 00:03:29,500 to try to chip away at migrating as much as they can 48 00:03:29,500 --> 00:03:33,820 over to the new settings app, which is good news for the neurotic among us 49 00:03:33,820 --> 00:03:36,820 who are really bothered by the weird mix of old and new. 50 00:03:37,740 --> 00:03:42,660 Part of me thinks, though, the control panel is gonna find a way to hang on into, like, Windows 20. 51 00:03:42,660 --> 00:03:46,260 If you guys liked this video, click like. If you didn't like it, well, I mean, hey, there's that button too. 52 00:03:46,260 --> 00:03:50,380 If you have a suggestion for a future fast as possible, leave us a comment, maybe let us know 53 00:03:50,380 --> 00:03:54,880 your favorite mismatches down below, and subscribe.