Windows 8
Microsoft this week provided new information about how it will integrate its SkyDrive cloud-storage service with Windows 8 (and previous Windows versions), dramatically improving the interoperability between the two. Put simply, SkyDrive should see a huge surge in usage in the next year or two: This already-useful service is about to become indispensable.
more Microsoft confirmed on Friday that a rumored change to the Windows logo for Windows 8 is real, confounding tech enthusiasts, virtually all of whom doubted its authenticity. The new logo, which controversially dispenses with the flag motif Microsoft has long used, is a throwback of sorts to the original Windows logo, Microsoft claims.
more There's been a lot of debate about Windows on ARM, or WOA, and how Microsoft will differentiate this from PC-based versions of Windows. But what if it's really very simple after all? And what if this differentiation actually makes plenty of sense?
more This year, dozens of new Ultrabook devices will flood the market. Are they just MacBook Air rip-offs, or do these new machines offer some unique benefits? And how will the release of Windows 8 in late 2012 impact this market?
more This week, after over a year of silence in the face of persistent and understandable questions from customers, tech enthusiasts and the press, Microsoft finally revealed more about its plans for Windows 8 on ARM or, as the company now calls it, WOA. I'm grateful that Microsoft answered a ton of questions about this release. There are, however, a few more questions too.
more There's been a lot of silliness and angst about Windows 8 supposedly dropping the Start button, the first time this central user interface has been absent from Windows since its debut in 1995. There's just one problem: The Start button isn't going anywhere. In fact, it's being made more prominent than ever in Windows 8.
more Thanks to an exhaustive blog post and video about the Windows 8 Consumer Preview, Microsoft's ARM plans, and Office 15, we now have our best peek yet at the future of Windows. Here are some shots from that video, which reveal the Windows 8 Consumer Preview and Office 15 Technical Preview.
more Microsoft has delivered its improved Kinect for Windows, a motion sensor device that aims to bring Kinect entertainment to the PC masses. But unlike its Xbox 360 forefather, the Kinect for Windows comes sans any utilities or games. So for now at least, it's a plaything for developers only.
more In Windows 8, Microsoft isn't just replacing the Windows shell with the new Metro-style Start screen. It's also replacing the low-level Windows runtime engine with a new technology called WinRT. What does this mean to you? It means that Windows 8 really is a complete reimagining of Microsoft's dominant operating system.
more While we eagerly await the Windows 8 Consumer Preview, which is still expected to come sometime this month, two blogs have leaked numerous screenshots of what appears to be the release. And based on these shots, we can see some important differences between the current build, the Developer Preview, and the coming Consumer Preview.
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