First Windows 10 Insider Build with Bash for Linux released by Microsoft

Insiders on the Fast Ring get first peek at "Windows Subsystem for Linux"

Just one week after announcing an audacious plan to bring Ubuntu Linux and Windows together to form "Ubdows", Microsoft has released its first Windows 10 Insider build incorporating the Bash Command line. This will enable Linux programs to run inside the Windows shell.

Build 14316 won't work out of the box. Once you've updated you'll need to turn on Developer Mode and then turn on the Windows feature called Enable Windows Subsystem for Linux (Beta).

Also new is the Windows 10 Skype app, not to be confused with the old Windows 8 Metro Skype app, which was removed in order to concentrate on the desktop app, but has now apparently become a Windows Universal App. At a time like this, we could really use an aspirin.

Along with the hybrid evolution and the Skype-type confusion, there are some new features for Cortana that will see battery warnings cross between Windows 10, Windows Mobile and Android.

Also new are some additions to the Edge extensions canon. After waiting nearly a year, they're coming thick and fast, with OneNote Clipper and Pin It for Pinterest, both seen in pre-release form, making it to the parts of the public that thrive on nearly finished software.

There are colours as well. A new dark theme for Windows makes everything look like a cheap spy thriller, and emojis have been updated to deal with skin tones, bringing Microsoft into line with Unicode 8.

Of course, all of this comes with the usual caveats of running a beta version on your main computer. But we're already starting to get a flavour of what the 'Anniversary' (aka Redstone II) update to Windows is going to look like and, if you just can't wait, grab a secondary device and sign up for the Insider programme.