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Microsoft releases LinkedIn Windows 10 app (web wrapper)

Microsoft and LinkedIn announced today the release of the new LinkedIn application for Microsoft's Windows 10 operating system.

The app, which will be rolled out gradually until the end of the month to the Windows 10 population is LinkedIn's first application for Windows 10.

The company announced earlier that it made the decision to retire the Windows Phone application.

The blog posts on the Windows Experience and LinkedIn blog highlight that Windows 10 users will "enjoy a richer, more engaging and connected LinkedIn experience".

It is rather disappointing however that the new LinkedIn application for Windows 10 is pretty much just a wrapper for the LinkedIn website with some features baked on top of that.

The LinkedIn Windows 10 app

linkedin

What that means is that Windows 10 users get pretty much the same experience that they get when they open LinkedIn in a web browser. The features that Microsoft added to the app are Action Center and Live Tile support, as well as support for real-time notifications.

The application on top of that is only available for desktop PCs; mobile is not supported.

My take on this

Some Windows 10 users will certainly like the functionality that Microsoft added to the LinkedIn wrapper. I'd like to see some stats about the use of Live Tiles and the Action Center on desktop PCs.

LinkedIn does support notifications in browsers already as well however, but I don't know if those are in real-time or delayed.

Good news is that users of the app may customize which notifications are displayed and which are not in the Action Center.

I cannot imagine that a lot of users make use of these features on the desktop, except maybe for a quick glance on the weather tile every now and then.

My main issue with the application is that it lacks dedication. Windows Store is arguably still in its infancy when compared to the big contenders. The situation improves with every release, but if Microsoft cannot deliver powerful applications that show the strength of the Universal Windows Platform, how can the company expect that third-party developers invest resources in doing so?

What is the message that Microsoft sends when Android and iOS get a custom LinkedIn application, and the company's own Windows 10 operating system a wrapper with some added features on top of it?

The only explanation that I have for the move is that Microsoft did not have the time yet to create a dedicated application for LinkedIn for Windows 10.

Now You: What's your take on the release?

 

This article was first seen on ComTek's "TekBits" Technology News

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