Windows 10 Preview for Xbox One thread - With warnings

team56th

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Oct 20, 2013
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Windows 10 - Welcome to the danger zone!

On October 1st, 2014, Microsoft revealed Windows 10 to the world. With it started the Windows Insider Program, the world’s first attempt to develop an operating system with constant feedback from users. I have been there since the day 1, with the Desktop Build 9841. It’s been a great ride since then. Insiders were constantly introduced to the most cutting-edge features of Windows 10, with a few surprises along the way with multiple events. The program is still going on, and I am currently using Build 10532 on my Surface 3, and 10536 on my Lumia 1520. And this month, my Xbox One is highly likely to join the pack with the start of Xbox Preview Program for Windows 10.

However, as exciting as Insider Program has been, it has not been a smooth ride. The same is going to apply to Xbox One and its rendition of Windows 10. It is supposed to be very bumpy, and there will be quite a few problems until the official release. In this write-up, I will tell you what you should be careful of when you join the preview program for Windows 10.

You are in the Fast Ring.

While not an official name, if you opted for Windows 10 preview, basically you are in the Fast Ring. Insider Program has two rings: Fast Ring, and Slow Ring. Just like what it says, Fast Ring gets the newest build, though they are more unstable. Slow Ring gets the build later on when the Fast Ring build is deemed stable enough to be distributed to wider range of users. With Xbox One, if you did not opt for Windows 10, you are in the Slow Ring, getting all the new stuffs after those who opted in enjoyed them for a while. If you did opt in, you are in the Fast Ring. That means you understand that this build is unstable, lots of things can go wrong, and you should be able to deal with some critical errors by yourself. If you are scared, you need to go back now.

BSoD_in_Windows_8.png

Be prepared to see something like this a lot.​

It will be really buggy.

I used early Windows 10 preview on an 8-inch tablet called Dell Venue 8 Pro. Some of the insider builds really didn’t go along well with it. Back when Build 9926 was first distributed to fast ring, my device BSOD’d every time I boot it up. That error was fixed only when a patch was released two weeks later, and since I couldn’t even turn it on, I had to reinstall Windows again. Later when I bought Surface 3, Build 10130 couldn’t even be installed on it. These are just a fraction of the anecdotes on how unstable Windows 10 preview was before the release. Expect the same for Xbox One. The first build is going to be very buggy, and the actual bug list is likely to go way longer than what was announced, so be prepared.

You might have to wait a while until the next build.

Sometimes certain build may not work with you very well, and you would want a new build. But this is not as easy as it sounds. Preview builds are not like official builds. Microsoft issues patches for official builds to fix certain issue and make sure the fix does not affect anything else, but this is way too time-consuming for products that are still WIP. When they fix one thing, new bugs might appear, and that bug might be too critical and render the build impossible to distribute to preview users. Only a few builds that are relatively problem-free will be chosen and distributed, and how long that is going to take differs widely. For example, Build 10159 was released a day after Build 10158 came out, while Mobile Build 10536.1004 was released about 40 days after Mobile Build 10152. While I don’t expect 40 days between Xbox One builds, there can be huge inconsistency in terms of how often builds would come out.

WIP-Flights.png

Sometimes it takes really, really long.​

Stability is the last thing they work on.

Build 10158 was a turning point for many Insiders. Until Build 10130, the general consensus was that Windows 10 is still too unstable for official release, and it was the newest build until a month before the July 29th launch. But then Build 10158 came out in June 30th, exactly a month before the launch, and then it changed everything. Suddenly it became extremely stable, and people started to believe Windows 10 can be ready for launch in a month. In the coming weeks we had 4 more builds which really ramped up the stability even more, and the last build, 10240, is the one you are using right now if your PC is on Windows 10. Stability is the last thing Microsoft’s OS group works on after they are done with all the other stuffs. The same could apply to Xbox One as well, so expect the bugginess to persist until late October.

Report bugs.

Now here’s one most important thing. Buried under the huge list of user feedbacks it is hard to believe that Microsoft would listen to your bug report, but they are listening. They have a whole team reading and sorting out all the feedbacks to send them to the development team, and the leader of all of them, Gabriel Aul, is answering some of the questions himself through his twitter account. When you report something, whatever that is, there is a high chance it will be fixed. So report bugs through Xbox Preview Dashboard thread or Xbox Uservoice, have them fixed, make your Xbox One more perfect than ever.

Insider program has been a fun ride on desktop and mobile, and now I am happy to see my Xbox One waiting to join the others. If you are still interested – I’m sure many of you will – come over, brace yourself, and enjoy the ride. It will be worth it. And if you are not, well, we are here to perfect your new Xbox experience coming in November.

Lastly, use this thread for all news and discussions on Windows 10 Preview for Xbox One, which will start in mid-late September.
 
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The first build is out. Did you get it?



Current version: th2_xbox_rel_1508.150916-2200
Available as of : September 18th, PST 19:00

Change list:
First build, everything changes. Key changes include
  • Easier access to pins and key functions
  • Movies, videos, music and TV all integrated into OneGuide
  • Revamped store app
Bug list:
Games and Apps: The following are known issues with specific titles on the initial New Xbox One Experience updates.

Games Failing to Launch: The following games may fail to launch:
  • Guacamelee: SCTE
  • Unmechanical
  • Elite: Dangerous
  • Pool Nation FX
  • D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die
  • Xbox Fitness
  • Skylanders
  • Destiny: The Taken King
  • Game Compilation Discs (ex. Borderlands: The Handsome Collection, Saints Row IV).
Forza 6: You may encounter graphical errors (screen turns a blue or purple hue) when participating in races

Assassin's Creed Unity: Installing Assassin's Creed Unity DLC while the game is open will cause it to crash when the DLC finishes downloading.

Elder Scrolls Online: Logging in to an existing character will cause an error indicating you do not have network connectivity and prevent you from connecting to the server.

Titles with DLC installation issues: You will be unable to install DLC from game collection as no manage UI is present. Simply download the DLC and bundled title from the Store.

Apps Failing to Launch: The following apps may fail to launch:

  • ABC News
  • VUDU
  • SlingTV
  • WWE
  • Showtime Anytime
  • Every Street United
  • BlinkBox
  • TWC TV
Apps with video issues: The following apps will launch but videos or streams will not play. - SyFy - USA Now - BravoNow - TED - MLB

General System Issues

System Update Errors: If you encounter an update error screen while downloading a system update and the console freezes, please wait 3 minutes before rebooting the console to ensure crash data is captured. Crash data is submitted automatically; no action required on your part.

Party Chat: When entering connected standby with a party chat session open, after resuming from connected standby party chat may no longer function. Workaround: Hard reset the console.

Xbox Button: While holding down a button on the controller or plugging in a racing wheel and pressing the Xbox button, the power menu may pop up after which the Xbox button will fail to recognize input. Workaround: Hard reset the console.

Automatic Downloads: Content purchased from Xbox.com will not automatically download to the Xbox One console. This feature is planned to come later.

Browser: You will be unable to use voice commands in the browser; using voice commands in the browser will likely cause the console to hang and require a hard reset to resolve the issue.

My games & apps: After downloading a system update My games & apps may fail to populate. Workaround: Hard reset the console.

Games stuck in the queue: You may find games are unexpectedly remaining in the download queue.

Notifications: Friends do not receive game toast notifications.

Live TV: The following issues affect the Live TV experience:

Cable/Satellite set top box compatibility is not yet at parity with the current Xbox One experience. Please continue to report video playback and audio issues using the Report a problem app to help us improve the experience. HDMI troubleshooting steps:

  • Go Home and press the menu button on the OneGuide app to quit, then restart it.
  • Unplug and re-plug the HDMI-in cable from the Xbox, ensuring it's seated securely in the port.
  • With the Xbox One turned on, pull the power cord on the cable/satellite box, wait a few seconds, and plug it back in.
  • Press and hold the power button on the front of the Xbox One to perform a hard reboot of the console.
Dolby Digital surround sound will not work for Live TV.

App channels cannot be set as a Favorite.

The "Xbox Snap TV" voice command does not work. You can snap TV via voice command by saying "Xbox Snap OneGuide" or choosing OneGuide from the Snap Center.

The OneGuide pin doesn't function. You can launch OneGuide using the app, voice commands, or from the OneGuide twist.

You may experience a stuck frame streaming TV to the Xbox App. You can enter OneGuide or resize your window to restore video playback.

The media transport controls do not work when streaming TV to SmartGlass and Xbox app clients.

When resuming from connected standby the Xbox One media remote may fail to send commands; a hard reset resolves this.

Community Twist

Currently this area is not fully populated with content and is missing large sections of the user experience. Activity feed content also may not be actionable and items on the trending items second level screen have not been fully tuned. As Preview moves forward content and features in this area will light up.

Xbox App/Smartglass

SmartGlass and Xbox App Live TV/OneGuide: You may experience issues connecting to Live TV or OneGuide when connecting to the console with SmartGlass. Workaround: Set your SmartGlass connection to auto connect, quit the app, and restart. If the issue persists, hard reset the console.

Basic SmartGlass functionality is now available including gamepad navigation, touch navigation, remote text entry, media playback control, and companions for apps and games. Other features such as two-finger touch panning, media companions, and power on/off will not function in this build.

Accessories

Xbox One Media Remote:

When resuming from connected standby the Xbox One media remote may fail to send commands; a hard reset resolves this.

The buttons for media playback will not work (rewind, play, pause, fast forward, skip back, stop, skip forward). The directional and center "select" button will function as normal.

USB TV Tuner: If you have a USB TV Tuner plugged into your Threshold Xbox One console, Windows and Windows Phone SmartGlass devices will crash when attempting to connect to the console. To avoid this, you can switch to the Xbox App on Windows 10 or reset your TV settings and avoid setting up the USB TV Tuner.

Third Party Steering Wheels: Using a third party steering wheel will work in games, however, it may cause instability to the console after attempting to use the Xbox button to return to the dashboard. Workaround: Hard reset the console.
 
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I've got the invite, but decided to wait untill the code is more stable

Good idea. It seems like first few builds are going to be really annoying to use. The best way is to wait until reckless pack of early adopters (including myself) start waving hands.
 
I opted in despite the potential issues. I'm eager to see it
 
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Haven't gotten in yet. Microsoft obviously doesn't know how important I am.
 
This is going to be one of the beta that you signed up and everybody who have been with live for 2 years get it and those for over 12 years get Dogsh*t.
 
I opted in but have only been a preview member for 3 months so will probably be a while, which is fine with me. Let all the biggest issues get fixed before I get to play around with it.
 
Like I've said before, I like the current dash, but I'm glad they're switching it up to keep things fresh. So far this generation really has been great in terms of MS listening to the fans.
 
I'm most looking forward to the new guide. The old one was so slow. Typical scenario: I'll just open up my friend's list while the level loads... waiting... waiting... damn game is already loaded before the Friend's app opens.