Microsoft on the verge of finalizing Windows 10 Anniversary Update

[sincity]

Microsoft has released a new preview build of Windows 10, complete with a load of bug fixes and tweaks, and apparently this will be the last release before the RTM version of the Anniversary Update is finalized.

At least, that's the scoop according to a source who spoke to Windows Central, who reckons that the RTM (release to manufacturing – in other words, ready to be deployed) version will be build 14384 – and this just released preview client is 14383.

In its blog post announcing the release of build 14383, Microsoft itself noted that the desktop build number watermark was gone in this incarnation, because "we're beginning to check in final code in preparation for releasing the Windows 10 Anniversary Update".

So this really is the final stretch, then.

Tweaking aplenty

What exactly is new in this fresh version 14383? Of course, there are no sizeable changes as the addition of new features was frozen a little while back, but some of the tweaks include a change to the keyboard shortcut for Cortana (it's now Win + Shift + C), and the link to get extensions in the Edge browser now takes users directly to the Windows Store where they can grab the add-ons they desire.

A large number of bugs have been squashed, predictably enough, and these include erratic behavior from some Bluetooth mice, an issue with the Surface Book being hooked up to an external monitor, and a problem with the LastPass extension in Edge whereby some sites caused a memory leak.

The anniversary update is due to land on August 2 – just a few days after the free upgrade to Windows 10 offer expires – but testing will continue on the OS after that date, carrying on in the same vein it has previously, because Microsoft believes the system is working well as it is.

• See more details on how Windows 10 will continue to evolve post-Anniversary Update