Up until a couple days ago, I was under the impression that Windows 10 was supposed to be the “final” version of Windows, with major iterations being released twice a year. This turned out not to be the case, as an early version of Windows 11 was recently leaked online just prior to the expected announcement of the OS at a Microsoft event scheduled for June 24th. I have yet to personally install it (who knows what the leaker might have hid in it), but based on what others are reporting, it appears to be a re-skin of Windows 10 with some minor updates to usability.
The most immediate change appears to be a reorganization of the start menu to be functionally similar to a dedicated mobile OS (Android or iOS). This was a big pain point when they tried it with Windows 8, but so far it looks to be more user-friendly than the tile menu overlay abomination. The start menu is also being moved to the center of the taskbar by default.
Most notably for me (sadly) is the inclusion of more window snapping functionality. You’ll be able to hover over the maximize button for a window and will be given other options for how you want to orient the window, such as having it take up ½ or ¼ of the screen. This can already be done using the Windows Key + Directional Keys, but the added functionality is nice for those unfamiliar with the keyboard shortcuts.
It’s also worth noting that this is still an early build of the new OS, so there are expected to be a slew of other changes on the horizon that will be announced. Hopefully there will be something to soften the blow of Windows 10 going end-of-support in 2025!