13th Sep, 2011, At its developer focused BUILD Conference Microsoft is showcasing the latest major release of its wide spread OS - dubbed Windows 8. It features a new UI- Metro Style, which looks like an overgrown version of its WP7 smartphones. There are several improvements on performance, security, privacy and reliability and more.
Click the link below, to know WINDOWS 8 in 8 minutes;
http://youtu.be/d9AdL1aBp8w
Windows 8 tries to substitute what we do with a mouse and keyboard
with touch swipe gestures, while at the same time still providing the
same experience if you want to go the peripheral way. The new Metro UI
features the all-too-familiar live tiles from Windows Phone 7, which are
implemented in the Metro UI’s Start Screen. This screen unites all of
your live tiles, widgets, apps, people, content and more. It’s basically
your main homescreen.
Metro UI also incorporates the well familiar Windows 7 desktop style,
which can be accessed at any time – the same in looks and functionality
as it is on current PCs. This eliminates the need to drastically
change your work paradigms and what you’ve grown accustomed to – it’s
all still there.
Internet Explorer 10 is the browser of choice for Windows 8 (Platform
Preview version 3 is on Win 8 currently) and is said to put the
emphasis on the sites you’re browsing and not the browser by offering a
minimalist, out-of-the-way UI. IE 10 is based on HTML5 and promises to
be free of add-ons and plug-ins, which could slow it down.
There’s an array of available apps for Windows 8 – from the essential
pre-installed ones like calendar, Photos, Mail and so on to additional
games, entertainment apps and more. This will make Windows 8 competitive
against iOS, Android and the likes, especially in the tablet game.
Microsoft pride themselves with the fact that the Windows 8 Marketplace
will offer both ARM-specific and Win32-specific apps.
Windows 8 builds on the know-how and principles of version 7 and
improves on speed, battery management and offers an amazing 8 second
boot time, which was demonstrated on a couple of devices (including
currently selling ones). Everything in Windows 8 will be hardware
graphics accelerated and all Metro-style apps will benefit form the
acceleration too. It also has improved on the security of its
predecessor. Windows 8 also has the same hardware requirements as
Windows 7 so there’s no need to upgrade your system in order to get it.
Finally, Windows 8 will be supported on a wider range of devices and
architectures, such as ARM-based ones and x86 ones (x32 and x64), on
touch devices, from your run-of-the-mill 10″ tablet or netbook to
high-end 27″ touch all-in-one PCs.
Here’s a demo video of the Windows 8-running on a development tablet.
Luckily, we won’t have to wait for long to try it out for ourselves
because Microsoft has has finally released the Developer Preview on
their website for everyone to download.
Now we have three different files here to download. The first is the
full blown 64-bit version that comes with the OS as well as developer
tools. If you are a developer wanting to get a feel of the Windows 8 SDK
then this is the version to download. You will have to perform a clean
install with this version.
The second version is 64-bit just like the first version but comes
sans the developer tools. You can retain your accounts files and
settings if you choose by opting for this version.
The third version is identical to the second one but is 32-bit.
(Note: You may find that download accelerators are unable to
download the files. In that case revert back to using the built-in
download manager of your web browser.)
In each case the download is an ISO file that you will have to burn
on a disc or a bootable thumb drive. You’ll need a dual-layer DVD for
the developer version, as well as a drive that supports burning and
reading them. System requirements for running Windows 8 Developer
Preview on your PC are as follows:
- 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
- 1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
- 16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
- DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver
- Multi-touch display for using the touch-based functions
WARNING:
Do remember this is a beta software. There can and will be bugs and
certain apps may not work correctly. Issues are part of testing a beta
software and as usual, should you choose to download a beta software you
instantly lose the right to complain about the bugs and issues that you
may face while using it.
DO NOT install it on your primary computer,
especially if it’s your work PC. Microsoft cannot be
held responsible for the loss of any personal data or information or
damage to your hardware should you choose to install this beta software.
Also, backup your current system before you install the Developer
Preview or you may lose all your files. The Developer Preview cannot be
uninstalled. You will have to re-install your previous OS and then
perform a restore to go back to the way things were.
