News & Reviews:   Microsoft Windows 8

Microsoft has officially announced the end of Windows 7, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 today. As of 10 January 2023, Microsoft will stop supplying security updates for these older operating systems.

Microsoft has officially announced Windows 10 with a release date expected in April 2015. While we have no idea where Windows 9 went (perhaps it was Windows 8.1 ~ 8 + 1) the big news is that this new Windows 10 will run on every Windows device. This means that when it comes out, it should replace Windows 8 on your PC and Windows Phone on your tablet or smartphone. No news yet on whether this would be called Windows Phone 10 or just Windows 10 throughout, but we're thinking that since Microsoft is aiming for total unification, everything will be called just Windows 10 regardless of device. Key features mentioned for Windows 10 includes:

• An integrated Start Menu ~ The Start button and menu returns, this time incorporating the Metro Live Tiles into the start menu, so you get the best of both worlds without having to constantly switch between the two. You can easily customize this menu by pinning apps as tiles and so forth.
• Universal touch apps on the desktop ~ Instead of having touch apps running on their own Metro UI, everything runs from the desktop, including these touch-based apps. They will be called Universal apps (perhaps because they can be used on a PC and tablet) while Classic apps are your normal PC apps. So far, it looks like it will open up a window on the desktop for the Universal App to run while keeping the desktop intact. Apps will be purchaseable on the Store for any device, but we assume that apps that aren't designed for a touch device like a tablet simply won't appear in the Store.
• Multiple Desktops ~ Looking much like the Recent Apps menu from Android, the new Task View lets you switch between multipled desktops with each desktop running a different app. You can then switch between these desktops and apps at will, without losing data in any of them.
• Customizable desktops with Snap Assist ~ Like to have multiple windows or apps open at one time? Well, now you can easily snap at least four apps at a time without having to precisely resize each window.
• Adaptable design ~ just like responsive design for a website, the Continuum feature in Windows 10 will automatically adapt your OS according to the device. A tablet can switch to just tablet mode or when attached with a keyboard go to PC mode. No news yet how it might look like on a smartphone, but it should look like the current touch-based UI.

It isn't big news that Microsoft's Windows 8 hasn't been doing well. Despite losses amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars both in terms of Windows 8 and Windows RT based devices as well as software, Microsoft has kept plugging at it with the latest update being Windows 8.1, but even this doesn't seem to be taking off. Rumours have recently surfaced that Microsoft may be scrapping all the changes Windows 8 did and come back to the old Windows 7 interface. One of these rumours comes from Paul Thurott who is quite well known for Windows related news. What sets his rumour apart is that he predicts Microsoft will come out with Windows 9 in April 2015. According to him the announcement will come in April 2014 with the roll-out release next year. As a dedicated computer desktop user I can't say that I've been thrilled by the rather intrusive Windows 8 redesign, but it has been getting a following for it's various touchscreen devices. We still don't know what tech specs or features the Windows 9 revamp will have but it is rumoured to have three major points along with an optional Metro 2.0 feature. Stay tuned for more updates.

Many in the tech industry feel that Windows RT and subsequent Windows RT-based devices lack many of the capabilities and features of more capable Microsoft operating systems and devices. Rumours about the death of Windows RT have circulated for quite some time at practically every chance. But so far, most of the rumours have been from third-parties, this time around, we have a comment from within Microsoft itself that could indicate Microsoft officially killing off Windows RT. The comment comes from Julie Larson-Green, who is Executive Vice President of the Devices and Studios and one of the big movers in Microsoft. Her comment was:

"We have the Windows Phone OS. We have Windows RT and we have full Windows. We're not going to have three. We do think there's a world where there is a more mobile operating system that doesn't have the risks to battery life, or the risks to security. But, it also comes at the cost of flexibility. So we believe in that vision and that direction and we're continuing down that path."