Windows 8
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Windows 8 | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Microsoft Windows family | |
 | |
| Windows 8 Home Screen at 2011 D9 Event | |
| Developer | |
| Microsoft Corporation | |
| Website | windows.microsoft.com |
| Platform support | IA-32, x86-64, and ARM |
| Preceded by | Windows 7 |
| Support status | |
| Under development and testing | |
Contents[hide] |
History
At the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Microsoft announced that it would be including support for system-on-a-chip (SoC) and mobile ARM processors in Windows 8.[2][3][4]A 32-bit Milestone 1 build, build 7850, with a build date of September 22, 2010, was leaked to BetaArchive, an online beta community, which was soon leaked to P2P/torrent sharing networks on April 12, 2011.[5] Milestone 1 includes a ribbon interface for Windows Explorer,[6] a PDF reader called Modern Reader, an updated task manager called Modern Task Manager,[7] and native ISO mounting.[8]
A 32-bit Milestone 2 build, build 7955, was leaked to BetaArchive on April 25, 2011.[9] Features of this build were new partern login/new oobe/immersive UI and more. [10]
A 64-bit Milestone 3 build, build 7959, was leaked to BetaArchive on May 1, 2011.[11] This build is notable for being the first publicly leaked Windows Server 8 build, as well as the first leaked 64-bit build.
A Milestone 3 build, build 7971, was released to close partners of Microsoft on March 29, 2011[12] but was kept under heavy security. However, a few screenshots were leaked. The Windows 7 Basic theme was replaced by a new theme referred to as "Aero Lite", which uses similar metrics to the Glass style, but maintains its non-hardware accelerated design, and also supports taskbar thumbnails. The boxes that encase the "close, maximize, and minimize" buttons have been removed, leaving just the signs.[13]
Milestone 3 includes a new Welcome screen,[14] a new packaged application model called AppX that is based on Silverlight,[15] Windows Store to review and buy applications online,[16] and a setting to automatically adjust window color to fit the wallpaper.[17] It also includes a stripped down "Immersive" version of Internet Explorer, similar to the mobile version of Internet Explorer, but using the desktop Trident rendering engine.[18] It also includes a new boot screen (as seen in 7989) and new Aero Theme in 797x builds and up.
Other new features found in leaked builds include a new "Hybrid Boot" option that uses "advanced hibernation functionality" on shutdown to allow faster startup times.[19] Another is the ability to create a Portable Workspace, an installation of Windows 8 on a USB storage device.[20]
At the Microsoft Developer Forum in Tokyo on May 23, 2011, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced that the next version of Windows will be released the following year (in 2012).[21]
- "And yet, as we look forward to the next generation of Windows systems, which will come out next year, there's a whole lot more coming. As we progress through the year, you ought to expect to hear a lot about Windows 8. Windows 8 slates, tablets, PCs, a variety of different form factors."[21]
- "It appears there was a misstatement. We are eagerly awaiting the next generation of Windows 7 hardware that will be available in the coming fiscal year. To date, we have yet to formally announce any timing or naming for the next version of Windows."[22]
Microsoft will cover more of the new features and improvements in Windows 8 at the BUILD developer conference, planned for September 13, 2011.[25]
Windows 8 build 7989 screenshots were leaked on June 17, 2011 and show a new boot screen, new Sysprep reset and new desktop wallpaper. On June 21, 2011, the build itself was leaked, thus revealing such new features as an advanced virtual keyboard, new SMS feature and geo-location services[26].
Features
The main feature that was shown is the extensively redesigned user interface, optimized for touch as well as use with mice and keyboards. The Start menu is replaced by the new "Start screen", which includes live application tiles. The user can return to the regular desktop by choosing a "Desktop" application. Examples of applications on the Start screen include a weather application, Windows Store, Investments, RSS news feeds, user's Personal Page, and user's Windows Live Account. The new interface is primarily designed for 16:9 screen resolution, with 1366×768 and larger screens able to display two Windows 8 applications using "Snap". 1024×768 screens can display one Windows 8 application in full-screen, and 1024×600 screens can only use the traditional Windows desktop.[27]Mike Angulo confirmed at Computex 2011 that Windows 8 would use OEM Activation 3.0 instead of Windows 7 OEM Activation 2.1 which will make it less prone to hacks.
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