14 DAY TRIAL // Windows 10 Redstone 2 (also known as Creators Update) is not here just yet, but Microsoft is thinking in advance, so it’s already working on some changes that are supposed to see daylight in the next-next update, namely Redstone 3.
One of them is what’s being called Project NEON, a new design language that Microsoft has been working on behind closed doors for nearly one year and which the company hopes would bring more consistency in its operating system.
Citing unnamed sources, WindowsCentral writes that the purpose of this new design language is to bring together all Windows 10 devices, including not only PCs, tablets, and smartphones, but also the HoloLens.
Project NEON would be specifically focused on HoloLens and on 3D features, as Microsoft is now investing aggressively in 3D and the upcoming Creators Update is the first step towards this new approach.
All-in on consistency
The goal with Project NEON is to address the inconsistencies in the operating system and Microsoft is working on a set of guidelines for app developers that would help them take advantage of this new push. Most likely, Redmond itself will update its apps to embrace NEON starting next year, soon after the debut of Windows 10 Redstone 2.
Design inconsistency has been quite a problem in Windows 10, and this is how we ended up having several designs for context menus across the operating systems, apps with hamburger menus or not, and other approaches that do not align with the rest of the OS.
Microsoft wants to fix them all with Windows 10 Redstone 3, and although this could take longer than expected, the company is expected to make the first steps towards this goal with the introduction of preview builds in the spring.
Windows 10 Redstone 3 is most likely expected in the fall of 2017, so the first insider builds should see daylight shortly after the debut of the Creators Update early next year.