Microsoft Previews Windows 8 with Cues from iPad and App Store

[TuffLuffJimmy]

PPC and Intel were not separate. Apple has only two products: Client and Server. Microsoft offers many different editions with different features enabled. This is completely different than what you are talking about.

What do you mean they aren't separate? The different editions of Windows aren't separate either. Pending on the activation code you put in decides what features will be unlocked. And this version of Windows will only have one desktop OS that will run on tablets, desktops, laptops, netbooks, etc. Apple's desktop OS will only run on desktops and laptops.

 

[petvas]

What do you mean they aren't separate? The different editions of Windows aren't separate either. Pending on the activation code you put in decides what features will be unlocked. And this version of Windows will only have one desktop OS that will run on tablets, desktops, laptops, netbooks, etc. Apple's desktop OS will only run on desktops and laptops.

Ok, just to make it clear:
When you buy Windows, you have a choice between many editions. Of course they are based on the same code and of course it is a registry entry (or entries) that control the behaviour of the OS. For the end user Windows offers many editions to choose from.
When you buy Mac OS X, there is only one version to choose from.
I am not saying that is bad (well, it isn't good but I don't care).

Do you get it now?

 

[TuffLuffJimmy]

Do you get it now?

Of course. Im just saying that Windows 8 will only have one version, like OS X. Get it?

 

[petvas]

Of course. Im just saying that Windows 8 will only have one version, like OS X. Get it?

Ok. We'll see about that

 

[KingCrimson]

There will be several versions of Windows 8. x86 for Desktops, laptops. ARM for tablets and netbooks.

 

[TuffLuffJimmy]

There will be several versions of Windows 8. x86 for Desktops, laptops. ARM for tablets and netbooks.

It's going to be one version that expresses different feature sets based on the hardware it's installed on. Is that really so difficult to understand?

 

[JAT]

More appropriate name:

Windows 7 SHELL

Just as Win 3.1 - Win ME were prettier versions of DOSSHELL.

It's going to be one version that expresses different feature sets based on the hardware it's installed on. Is that really so difficult to understand?

No. Just to believe.

 

[butterfly0fdoom]

You worked for AppleCare and you don't know there was no PPC MacBook? The "consumer" notebook during the PowerPC days was "iBook".

I was at the Genius bar once and someone brought in an aluminum iMac. The Genius asked if it was PPC or Intel.

 

[Hueyfreeman]

Only one version? Okay, I missed that. Wow, that's a huge change for Microsoft. Great for Windows users if Microsoft keeps the price down to say, Home Premium sort of pricing or less.

Microsoft has to be feeling the hurt with this one. I'm guessing it has less to do with copying Apple and more to do with the fact that so many people are still using XP. Wow, according to Wikipedia, XP is still at around 40%! That's even more than I realised. For an OS released back in 2001, that's quite incredible. I guess Windows users have sent Microsoft a pretty clear message that the Windows upgrade pricing model is way out of step with OEM pricing, and they'd rather wait until they get a new PC. Either that, or they just don't trust newer versions of Windows. It will be very interesting to see whether Windows 8 can change all that.

I don't know how apple works to be honest But I know for Windows if you do not need the new OS to run a certain program or hardware. Then you don't waste your time buying it. I only upgrade windows when building a new machine or Direct X requires a new windows. Otherwise I just stay with what I have. Windows is just something to run your Programs from. With mac you use less programs and more of the OS specific programs leads people to update their os for the os programs

 

[TuffLuffJimmy]

I don't know how apple works to be honest But I know for Windows if you do not need the new OS to run a certain program or hardware. Then you don't waste your time buying it. I only upgrade windows when building a new machine or Direct X requires a new windows. Otherwise I just stay with what I have. Windows is just something to run your Programs from. With mac you use less programs and more of the OS specific programs leads people to update their os for the os programs

Where exactly do you get information like this? Care to share some statistics or cases where what you say is true?

 

[umbilical]

windows 8 etc... still the ugly GUI ever, soooooooo ugly, microsuck dont have money for pay to designers?

 

[Wicked1]

I even liked how they copied the split screen thumb keyboard from Apple, good inovations Microsoft, perfect reason not to buy a MS product when you own the original Apple product, it is the same thing

 

[Eidorian]

I even liked how they copied the split screen thumb keyboard from Apple, good inovations Microsoft, perfect reason not to buy a MS product when you own the original Apple product, it is the same thing

Samsung did it first.

 

[johnhw]

I have one recommendation on MS on these tiles. Make them color-coded (like what Windows 7 has now, it's colored like the color of the logo) to differentiate them easily. I'm impressed in Microsoft innovating recently. It's a win-win situation, this means even better products from Apple! Right..??

 

[KnightWRX]

I even liked how they copied the split screen thumb keyboard from Apple

That's ok, Apple copied it from developers that made it for Android, who basically ripped off the idea from Samsung's 2006 Q1 tablet :

Notice the OS on which it is running...

 

[kdarling]

That's ok, Apple copied it from developers that made it for Android, who basically ripped off the idea from Samsung's 2006 Q1 tablet :

That keyboard came with the 2006 Microsoft Windows Touch Pack, which was a free addon to the Windows Tablet Edition used in Origami UMPCs.

Prior to that, the 2005 Pepper webpad had a physical split keyboard:



And perhaps they got the idea from the 2004 Nokia 6820 which had a split keyboard that flipped out from the body:



Or perhaps not. Split touch keyboards have been shown in R&D demos for a long time. Let me dig around a bit. It's a pretty obvious idea once you play with a touchscreen for any length of time. I even remember a thumb based WinCE app that had a keyboard with the letters around the screen edges.