Re: So...
So you get touch capability enabled through continuum should your device support t but disabled otherwise
You get tiles providing information from inside apps if you choose to pin them but no tiles if you don't
You get Cortana which is linked to office 365 and can query your data update and managed your diary and ensure relevant documents are available for meetings if you enable it
And as a user of the system I've been quite happy with many of these changes as have many other users I've spoken too. Not sure where these horrors are, besides me stability issues you'd expect in beta, many of which are go now. The OS boots at speed, apps are well integrated yes some key apps are missing but Microsoft have failed to attract developers we know this.
In desktop mode apps run windowed not full screen. I have three 20inch monitors and the OS Tiles and all works great in later builds.