Windows 8 on ARM

Windows 8 Release Expected in 2012 article says that Windows 8 will be with us in 2012. Windows 8 Features And Release Date article expect Windows 8 to be launched sometime in mid-late 2012. For details how Windows 8 looks take a look at Building “Windows 8″ – Video #1. For latest details check also Microsoft Newsroom on Windows 8 and Windows-ARM.Com.

The biggest changes in underlying technology is that Windows 8 is supposed to run on either the x86 or ARM architectures. Microsoft is in the process of rebuilding Windows for the post-PC era, by stepping back from its core roots (Intel processors) and embracing ARM. Windows-on-ARM Spells End of Wintel article tells that Brokerage house Nomura Equity Research forecasts that the emerging partnership between Microsoft and ARM will likely end the Windows-Intel duopoly. ARM-based chip vendors that Microsoft is working with (TI, Nvidia, Qualcomm) are now focused on mobile devices (smartphones, tablets, etc.).

Making the Windows to run other platforms than x86 seems to be a big change, but this is not the first time Microsoft has tried that (there has been once Windows NT for DEC Alpha and still Windows Server 2008 for Itanium). ARM is now hot and Microsoft is active pushing Windows 8 to use it. Sinofsky shows off Windows 8 on ARM and Office15 article tells that Windows boss Stephen Sinofsky has ended months of speculation with the first (fairly) detailed drilldown into Windows 8 on ARM (WOA) platform, and says it should be ready for a simultaneous launch with its x86/64 counterpart. WOA includes desktop versions of the new Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote. WOA is, as Sinofsky said, “a new member of the Windows family,” but it’s not Windows 8. It’s entirely new, and because it works only on ARM devices. Windows on ARM software will not be sold or distributed independent of a new WOA PC. In other words, WOA is to Windows as iOS is to Mac OS X.

Devices running WOA will come with both a Metro touch-based interface and the more traditional desktop, and will run Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote applications with full document compatibility with x86/64 systems. One thing was made crystal clear by Microsoft: Windows 8 on ARM will not be the same experience as Windows 8 on Intel-AMD.

290px-Windows_8_Developer_Preview_Start_Screen

How the two flavors of Windows 8 will be different article gives some details how Windows 8 on ARM is different from Windows 8 on X86. Windows 8 on ARM will not be the same experience as Windows 8 on Intel-AMD.

Building Windows for the ARM processor architecture article from Building Windows 8 blog is a goldmine to all you who are interested in more details on Windows 8 on ARM (WOA) platform. This post is about the technical foundation of what we call, for the purposes of this post, Windows on ARM, or WOA. WOA is a new member of the Windows family, much like Windows Server, Windows Embedded, or Windows Phone.

WOA builds on the foundation of Windows, has a very high degree of commonality and very significant shared code with Windows 8. Many low level details needed to be rewritten, but there is a significant portion of Windows that is generally built with code that can be made to work on ARM in a technically straightforward manner. These subsystems include the Windows desktop and applets and supporting APIs, though those needed to modified for better resource and power utilization. Enabling Windows to run well on the ARM architecture was a significant engineering task.

Here are my collection of the most important points I found from How the two flavors of Windows 8 will be different and Building Windows for the ARM processor architecture articles.

Windows 8 ARM devices will run on ARM processors from Texas Instruments, Qualcomm, and Nvidia, all running the same Windows OS binaries. WOA PCs use hardware support for offloading specific work from the main processor to integrated hardware subsystems to improve performance and battery life. ARM SoCs for WOA have DirectX capable GPUs (DX) for accelerated graphics in Internet Explorer 10, in the user interface of Windows, and in Metro style apps. WOA PCs are still under development, and thee goal is for PC makers to ship them the same time as PCs designed for Windows 8 on x86/64.

Windows 8 on ARM will not run traditional Windows 7 stuff (WIN32 x86 applications) because the processor is completely different and WOA will not support any type of virtualization or emulation. WOA does not support running, emulating, or porting existing x86/64 desktop apps.

Labeling to “avoid confusion”: When a consumer buys a Windows on ARM PC, it will be “clearly labeled and branded” so as to avoid potential confusion with Windows 8 on x86/64. Device makers work with ARM partners to create a device that is “strictly paired with a specific set of software (and sometimes vice versa), and consumers purchase this complete package, which is then serviced and updated through a single pipeline.”

Windows on ARM devices don’t turn off: You don’t turn off a WOA PC, according to Sinofsky. WOA PCs will not have the traditional hibernate and sleep options. Instead, WOA PCs always operate in the Connected Standby power mode, similar to the way you use a mobile phone today. Read Engineering Windows 8 for mobile networks for more details.

WOA supports the Windows desktop experience including File Explorer, Internet Explorer 10 for the desktop. Out of the box Windows on should ARM will feel like Windows 8 on x86/64. Sign in, app launching, Internet Explorer 10, peripherals, the Windows desktop and Windows Store access are the same. You will have access to the intrinsic capabilities of Windows desktop with tools like Windows File Explorer and desktop Internet Explorer if you want to use your mobile device in this way. Or you can use the Metro style desktop and Metro style apps (like what you see on Windows phone smartphones) if you like that more.

Metro style apps in the Windows Store can support both WOA and Windows 8 on x86/64. Developers wishing to target WOA do so by writing applications for the WinRT (Windows APIs for building Metro style apps) using the new Visual Studio 11 tools in a variety of languages, including C#/VB/XAML and Jscript/ HTML5.

Windows+Mobile+Phone+8

Together talking on launching Windows 8 Microsoft also talks about new Windows Mobile Phone 8 and it’s integration with Windows 8. Windows Phone 8 Detailed article gives some details what integration with Windows 8 means. Windows Phone 8 won’t just share a UI with the next-generation desktop and tablet OS, apparently: it will use many of the same components as Windows 8, allowing developers to “reuse most of their code” when porting an app from desktop to phone. The kernel, networking stacks, security, and multimedia support as areas of heavy overlap.
Windows Phone 8 is the version of the platform currently being referred to by codename “Apollo” (the one scheduled for deployment after the upcoming Tango update). Microsoft insider Paul Thurrott has published a post confirming many of the details.

470 Comments

  1. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Steve Ballmer is eyeing up an Apple-style future for Microsoft of device manufacture and support, just as he’s been personally dinged for underperforming in one of the company’s cash cows: Windows

    Microsoft’s chief executive has evangelised devices as the future opportunity for Redmond in his annual letter to shareholders, reserving the right to build more Surface-style hardware and – if persistent rumours are to be believed – Microsoft phones.

    “There will be times when we build specific devices for specific purposes, as we have chosen to do with Xbox and the recently announced Microsoft Surface,” he wrote.

    “Fantastic devices and services for end users” will also drive Microsoft’s enterprise business through the consumerisation of IT, he reckoned.

    Source: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/10/10/ballmer_devices_package/

    Reply
  2. Tomi Engdahl says:

    IDC analyst slams Windows 8 device pricing
    http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-57530038-75/idc-analyst-slams-windows-8-device-pricing/

    So far, newfangled Windows 8 hybrid devices are pretty pricey. Too pricey, according to IDC analyst Bob O’Donnell.

    Reply
  3. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Microsoft reportedly spending over $1 billion on Windows 8 marketing blitz
    http://www.theverge.com/2012/10/12/3492648/windows-8-marketing-campaign-ads-rumor

    It’s no secret that Microsoft is planning a big marketing campaign around Windows 8, but one estimate suggests that the company could be willing to spend between $1.5 and $1.8 billion. The huge sum, reported by Forbes, would be around triple the amount that the company allegedly spent on its Windows Phone 7 launch two years ago.

    Reply
  4. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Windows 8: Do I Really Need a Single OS?
    http://tech.slashdot.org/story/12/10/13/1221249/windows-8-do-i-really-need-a-single-os

    “If you skip Windows 8, you lose the appealing opportunity to synchronize all of your devices on a single platform — or so goes the argument. If you’re skeptical, you’re not alone. OS monogamy may be in Apple’s interest, and Microsoft’s, but ask why it’s in your interest. Can Microsoft convince the skeptics?”

    Reply
  5. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Windows 8: Do I Really Need A Single OS?
    http://www.informationweek.com/smb/hardware-software/windows-8-do-i-really-need-a-single-os/240008924

    If I skip Windows 8, some folks say I’m losing the appealing opportunity to synchronize all of my devices on a single platform. Color me skeptical.

    Windows 8 doesn’t launch for another couple of weeks, but it seems everyone already has an opinion on it.

    That includes me. I recently explained why I’m not planning to upgrade to Windows 8 even though I’m a long-time Windows user.

    I move between Windows, Mac, and Android without much thought, much less actual problems. Is a single OS for all devices really something I need–or is just something Microsoft wants me to think I need? Ecosystem homogeneity has worked very well for Apple, after all. (The cynic might argue that anyone who really cares about OS standardization across devices is already an Apple customer.) Google is making some inroads here with its Chrome and Android family, too. Now Microsoft is catching up. It makes sense in a big-picture kind of way.

    There are two related reasons why a uniform OS is probably not going to motivate me to upgrade. The first is money. The all-in scenario requires anyone who currently uses a hybrid approach to buy new hardware.

    The second reason: Let’s say there’s a world in which price is not an issue. (What a lovely world, too.) Are we suddenly dumping our iPads, iPhones, and Android devices in the name of OS unification? Color me skeptical.

    Reply
  6. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Win 8 ready for slate … but biz customers can wait
    Who needs to be touchy-feely in the corporate IT world?
    http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2012/10/15/computacenter_on_windows8/

    In a fortnight you’ll start to hear Microsoft’s marketing machine crunching into overdrive as Windows 8 is driven onto the market.

    The question remains though, certainly for many corporates: what’s Windows 8 for? Shall I stop my Windows 7 deployment, or should I not even start Windows 7 and deploy Windows 8 instead?

    Windows 7 and 8, are in many ways the same, though of course, Windows 8 has clearly evolved

    But fundamentally, under the bonnet, it works and runs the same. So, whilst it looks different (and it does, very different)

    Effectively, Windows now supports touch and non-touch optimised applications – as well as being able to work as usual with your existing corporate applications (it’s Win 7 underneath remember).

    You’ll start to see a whole new slew of devices shipping – slates, slabs and Ultrabooks that incorporate all these new features.

    So, where does this leave a customer in their wider deployment decision? Well, unless you’re planning on deploying touchscreen-enabled applications – which clearly will come in time – there’s probably little immediate value in delaying and readying for Windows 8… and thus Windows 7’s still going to be your primary choice.

    Secondly, the application compatibility between Win 7 & 8 is excellent, and so any work an organisation is doing on 7 will only benefit it in any future Windows 8 deployment.

    Windows 8 right now is going to be all about slates, a new sub-genre of device (part tablet/laptop/Ultrabook) that is unquestionably going to make a lot of organisations think about the iPad.

    Reply
  7. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Microsoft’s Windows 8 TV ads have started running in the US.

    As we know, Microsoft is facing a watershed moment here: it needs to introduce touch – both on PC and the new tablets – to the consumer body of Windows PC users, without alienating those who’ve become accustomed to keyboard and mouse.

    The ad is part of a $300m campaign awarded by Microsoft to Burger King and Virgin Atlantic promo shop Crispin Porter + Bogusky.

    So far, the Windows 8 interface has divided developers. Some have said they hate the Metro UI, which to their minds forces touch at all costs at the expense of the traditional desktop, while other devs have given the thumbs up to Metro and the downloadable apps.

    Source: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/10/15/windows_8_tv_ads/

    Reply
  8. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Acer big cheese: Microsoft Surface sales will be ‘superficial’
    Redmond bite will inflict only minor wound on us
    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/06/25/acer_comment_microsoft_surface/

    Acer EMEA boss Oliver Ahrens has brushed aside Microsoft’s foray into the tablet market, dismissing the Surface as a competitive threat.

    “Microsoft still has a big agenda for improving the user touch experience on Windows 8 and we hope this approach does not defocus them, but from a competitive point of view we are not concerned, not a bit,” said Ahrens.

    Last week, DigiTimes claimed that Taiwanese contract manufacturer Pegatron is building the Surface – with the Ivy Bridge model reported to be above $799 and the ARM-powered Windows RT above $599.

    “RT will compete with the iPad and Android devices and will be priced higher which may make it struggle… Microsoft could be on dangerous ground because the market has told us that if prices are high there has to be a round of cuts before it sells out”.

    Both the HP TouchPad and RIM’s BlackBerry PlayBook were subject to massive price reductions before they started to shift, and it seems only Apple is able to command a premium.

    Reply
  9. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Samsung Windows 8 PCs Will Have Start Menu After All
    http://blog.laptopmag.com/samsung-windows-8-pcs-will-have-start-menu-after-all

    Itís a case of now you see it, now you don’t and now you do again over at Samsung. When we first reported on Samsung’s first Windows 8 devices, notably the Series 5 and Series 7 Slate, they featured S Launcher, a Samsung utility that mimicked Windowsí familiar Start Menu. Then ZDNet reported that the S Launcher wouldn’t make it into the final shipping product in the U.S. That’s only partially true.

    It seems that you can’t hold a good utility down. We’ve received confirmation from Samsung reps that while S Launcher will not ship with Samsung’s Windows 8 devices, it will be available for download when the products hit store shelves.

    Reply
  10. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Analyst: ‘Windows 8 Expectations Plummet’
    http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-windows-8-sales-expectations-low-says-topeka-2012-10#ixzz29RsHdgZ2

    Topeka Capital analyst Brian White was traveling in Asia, meeting with supply chain sources, and he has bad news for Microsoft investors:

    Windows 8 Expectations Plummet and PC Trends to Remain Difficult. The sentiment around Windows 8 was overwhelmingly negative during our trip as the supply chain is experiencing little life ahead of the October 26 launch.

    One of our contacts does not expect Windows 8 to be material until the second-half of 2013. Similarly, the enthusiasm around the Ultrabook ramp has also deteriorated as the cost structure remains too high under Intel’s (INTC-$21.48: NR) specifications.

    Reply
  11. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Microsoft’s Windows 8 a Turnoff for Some Corporate Users
    http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443624204578058892291378504.html

    Microsoft Corp. has made big changes to its familiar Windows operating system to stay relevant amid booming sales of mobile devices such as Apple Inc.’s iPad. But some corporate customers worry Microsoft has made its workplace workhorse too unfamiliar.

    Reply
  12. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Microsoft training staff to explain Windows 8 versus RT
    http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-57534733-75/microsoft-training-staff-to-explain-windows-8-versus-rt/

    Microsoft is training sales staff to make sure customers know the difference between Windows RT and the full version of Windows 8, the company told CNET.

    Microsoft is getting staff up to speed on the differences between Windows RT and the fuller, backward-compatible version of Windows 8. It remains to be seen if the message reaches customers, though.

    “Compatibility is a huge, huge issue,” said Bob O’Donnell, an analyst at IDC. “They need to be clear on how [RT] differs from x86 tablets,” according to O’Donnell, who added that a lot of consumers will be oblivious to the differences and expect RT to run older Windows software. Intel-based devices are often referred to by the shorthand of x86.

    Reply
  13. Tomi Engdahl says:

    With Surface looming, Microsoft fails to explain Windows 8 vs. Windows RT to consumers
    If Microsoft Store reps don’t know the difference, how will Surface buyers?
    http://www.theverge.com/2012/10/17/3514556/windows-8-vs-windows-rt-surface-confused-microsoft-store-employees

    With only nine days remaining before an October 26th launch, Microsoft’s Windows 8 marketing campaign is approaching full force. With an estimated $1.5 billion budget, Redmond is plastering subway stations, spraying walls and sidewalks, erecting website banners and planning holiday pop-up stores, not to mention running expensive commercials on national television. So far, Microsoft is focusing much of that effort on promoting its flagship Surface tablet, which went on pre-order yesterday.

    There’s only one problem: Microsoft’s Surface RT doesn’t actually run Windows 8.

    The $499 tablet uses Windows RT, a stripped-down version of the operating system designed for low-power ARM chips like the kind you’ll find in today’s smartphones. That has some benefits, but it also means it runs a limited array of software as a result.

    Reply
  14. Tomi says:

    Surface RT vs. iPad: A comparison
    http://thetechblock.com/surface-rt-vs-ipad

    Summary

    With the Surface RT not even available for another eight days, there’s LOTS to prove yet. However, I truly believe that Microsoft has made a strong, bold move here with this set of devices, and I’m really looking forward to getting my hands on one soon. Having used Windows 8 for the past few months, I’m a convert.

    It’s time for all of you, my faithful readers, to tell me why I’m wrong. If you were shopping for your first tablet today, which one would you buy?

    Reply
  15. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Windows 8′s release shows: Microsoft’s revenue dipped

    Sticky PC sales and Windows 8′s release shows in Microsoft’s earnings. The company’s net income fell in September for the third quarter 22 percent from a year earlier.

    Microsoft’s net income reached 4.47 billion dollars (3.42 billion euros) recently ended fiscal year first quarter.

    Microsoft has already sold its Windows 8 and the new Office-Office package 1.36 billion dollars (1.05 billion euros). However, the company dropped the result of the sale of these products, because the official sale has not started yet. If the figures would have been included in the result, Microsoft’s revenue would have been approximately the same as last year.

    Source: http://www.tietoviikko.fi/kaikki_uutiset/windows+8n+julkistus+nakyy+microsoftin+tulot+notkahtivat+reilusti/a848617?s=r&wtm=tietoviikko/-19102012&

    Reply
  16. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Weak Windows makes Microsoft miss in fiscal Q1: Revenue of $16.01B and earnings per share of $0.53 are under estimates
    http://thenextweb.com/microsoft/2012/10/18/microsoft-misses-revenue-of-16-01-and-earnings-per-share-of-0-53-are-under-analyst-expectations/

    Today Microsoft reported its first quarterly (fiscal 2013) financial performance. For the three month period, the firm had revenues of $16.01 billion, and earnings per share of $0.53.

    Analysts had expected revenue of $16.42 billion, and earnings per share of $0.56. The company’s stock gyrated at the start of after-hours trading, but has now begun to decline.

    This is the final quarter for Microsoft before the company will release a set of new products – Windows 8, Windows Phone 8, Surface, etc – that are at the forefront of its transition from pure software company, to one that is both a service and device provider.

    This quarter is roughly a wash for the company. Its performance is not devastatingly bad, and given that Microsoft is set to release such a set of new products in about 8 minutes, its performance of the last three months is almost irrelevant What is next in line matters far more than these past 90 days.

    Reply
  17. Tomi says:

    Windows 8 wait prompts PC sales droop in EMEA
    Lenovo only firm to boost channel sales-in during Q3
    http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2012/10/19/q3_pc_market_emea/

    IDC has confirmed sales of PCs to distributors in Europe, the Middle East and Africa tumbled in Q3 as all the major players bought stock conservatively ahead of the launch of Windows 8.

    The beancounter noted “weak sell-in levels” in July and August forced a 7.7 per cent slide in shipments across EMEA and a 12.8 per cent decline in Western Europe for the quarter.

    Reply
  18. Tomi says:

    Salesforce CEO Benioff: Win 8 is ‘the end of Windows’
    Shocks world with cloudy future prediction
    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/10/19/benioff_on_windows8/

    The official launch of Windows 8 is only a week away, but Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff won’t be making the upgrade, and he doesn’t think most enterprise CIOs will, either.

    “Windows is irrelevant,” Benioff said, speaking at a press Q&A session at Salesforce’s Cloudforce event in New York on Friday.

    Benioff explained that the rise of cloud computing and the bring your own device (BYOD) model means CIOs have more choices today than they did even 36 months ago, and that as a result, Windows 8 won’t be considered a mandatory upgrade the way previous versions of Windows were.

    “The common phrase was, ‘the Windows 7 upgrade cycle,’” Benioff said. “You’re not going to hear about ‘the Windows 8 upgrade cycle.’ I think it’s the end of Windows.”

    Benioff said that as customers switch to mobile devices for their personal use, they will put increasing pressure on CIOs to allow them to use the same devices in the workplace. As a result, CIOs will have to choose whether to invest in another Windows upgrade or to explore other models, he said, adding, “They did not have that choice with Windows 7.”

    Reply
  19. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Analysis: Most companies won’t be early adopters of Windows 8
    http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/22/us-microsoft-windows8-business-idUSBRE89L03N20121022

    There was once a time when the launch of a new Windows operating system was a huge deal for the technology departments in many businesses. Not anymore. Microsoft Corp’s release of Windows 8 on Friday is likely to be a non-event for most companies — and some experts say many may never adopt it.

    Microsoft’s main goal is to show it can master the new touch-optimized, mobile forms of computing pioneered by Apple Inc and Google Inc. Its colorful, action-packed advertising for the system are aimed at a young, free-wheeling audience, and its new Surface tablets are being positioned squarely as consumer devices.

    Corporate customers have been lukewarm about the product even after test versions have been available for more than a year.

    “Talking to a lot of CIOs, they are not ready to jump into Windows 8 with both feet yet. They are taking a wait-and-see attitude. They are thinking ‘That’s a lot of work, I need to upgrade System Center (Microsoft’s IT management platform), I need to have a little different process for managing the back end.’ A lot of CIOs I’ve talked to, they are saying I’m not really seeing a benefit.”

    “Some organizations, when they look at Windows 8 Intel tablets, they are going to like them because they are manageable,” said Michael Cherry, an analyst at Directions on Microsoft, an independent consultancy that helps customers understand the company. “When they look at RT they are going to be disappointed, because it’s no easier to manage than an iPad.”

    Even as it launches Windows 8, a key priority for Microsoft is to get customers off the decade-old Windows XP — which still runs on 41 percent of the world’s 1.5 billion PCs. For the last three years, it has urged enterprise customers to move to Windows 7, and it has said it does not expect organizations to drop those plans because of Windows 8.

    Reply
  20. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Steven Sinofsky: Microsoft’s controversial Mr. Windows 8
    http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-57536905-75/steven-sinofsky-microsofts-controversial-mr-windows-8/

    The software giant asked the exec to deliver a new, quality operating system and do it on time. This week, we’ll find out if his sharp elbows and turf fighting were worth it.

    On Thursday, Sinofsky will debut Windows 8. The newest version of the operating system is a huge bet for Microsoft, a bid to regain some of its lost leadership in an industry where Apple and Google are increasingly setting the tone.

    Success is hardly a sure thing for Windows 8. There’s no doubt Microsoft will sell hundreds of millions of copies of the operating system, as PC makers roll it out to consumers with their latest hardware and corporations eventually adopt it under existing licensing arrangements. The real metrics to watch will be how quickly consumers and businesses buy Windows 8, and how much of a dent Microsoft makes in Apple’s huge lead in the tablet business.

    If Windows 8 succeeds, it will be the biggest triumph of Sinofsky’s 23-year Microsoft career.

    Reply
  21. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Why Microsoft’s Tablet Can’t Fail
    Microsoft’s about to release Surface, the most important product it’s made since the Xbox. So why is it freaking out right now? Because it can’t afford to lose another decade.
    http://www.buzzfeed.com/mattbuchanan/why-microsoft-is-acting-so-freaked-right-now

    the company is in a war for the future of computing, and not quite the one it expected, or hoped, to find itself in. It’s generally agreed that the nearish future of computers for normal people looks something like smartphones and the iPad and maybe Google’s Project Glass. Not Windows, not PCs as we’ve come to know them, and not, well, basically anything else Microsoft has been successful in so far. Microsoft, once the most powerful company in tech, maybe borders on irrelevance. It’s breathtaking.

    Windows 8, a radical rethinking and redesign of Windows (at least compared to Microsoft’s traditionally rigid, iterative approach to upgrades), is its attempt to answer nearly every aspect of its existential dilemma at the same time. (The other pieces are Xbox/Kinect and Windows Phone, FWIW.) An attempt to build something that is the past, present and future of computers, all at once: It sort of runs old Windows stuff! It works a lot like an iPad! It’s sort of mostly built for tablets but also runs on regular computers! It is Microsoft’s E V E R Y T H I N G. If Windows 8 fails, it won’t kill the company, but it will raise some serious questions about what the future of Microsoft looks like. It could end up rich but invisible; important to businesses and computing and technology but not, in any immediate way, to normal people.

    This is why it built Surface. It’s an “extension of Windows,” explains Panay. Windows 8 is too important to let other companies’ shitty PC hardware screw it up. Even though there are well over a billion PCs running Windows, Surface is the first PC that Microsoft has created itself in its nearly 40 years of existence.

    At 10.6 inches with a 1366×768 resolution, its pixel density is 148 pixels per inch, notably lower than the iPad’s 2048×1536 retina display, which has a pixel density of 264 ppi.

    The only thing that Microsoft talks about more than the Surface’s screen is the Touch Cover, which happens to be the center of its first Surface ad campaign. It’s a large part of what makes Surface Surface, and not simply Microsoft’s iPad, or just another Windows 8 tablet from just another hardware manufacturer.

    It would be dumb to buy a Surface without a Touch Cover. It’s the engine of Surface’s transformations, and what allows Sinofsky to somewhat credibly claim that it’s both the best laptop and the best tablet he’s ever used, while insisting that the device technically belongs to neither category.

    And Surface may indeed have some priceless magic in it. But the question, ultimately, is whether Microsoft can get people to pay a price for that magic. There’s a giant shadow looming over the launch of Surface and Windows 8: Windows Phone.

    What’s incredible about the future for Microsoft is that for the first time in a long time, no one knows what that looks like.

    Walking out of Store Zero an hour later, I could only think that Surface is going to make some kind of history for Microsoft, one way or another.

    Reply
  22. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Windows 8: Microsoft will declare victory, but will anyone believe it?
    Channel feeling ‘impotent’ as major launch nears
    http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2012/10/22/larry_walsh_on_windows8/

    If you’re having a hard time getting excited about Windows 8, you’re not alone.

    While Microsoft has steadily ramped up expectations and extolled the new operating system’s virtues for much of the last year, few of the software company’s traditional manufacturing partners and channel solution providers are seeing much opportunity resulting from Windows 8.

    Early reviews of Windows 8 are promising. Testers and analysts say the operating system is stable, functional and innovative.

    There’s much to be excited about. Yet, not many in the channel are excited. In fact, the Microsoft ecosystem – component makers, PC manufacturers, distributors and resellers – is bracing for a lull rather than a surge in Windows-related sales.

    Consider this: Intel, ARM, Seagate and Western Digital have all revised their fourth quarter sales forecast downwards as they continue to see PC sales slip.

    Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, Dell and the rest of the PC market saw sales slip nearly 9 per cent in the third quarter as demand shifted from notebooks and desktop computers to tablets and smartphones. And AMD is reportedly preparing to lay off between 10 and 30 percent of its workforce as it sees demand slide.

    Windows 8 is actually having a dampening effect. Yes, a large part of the market is shifting toward mobile devices, and this accounts for some of the slacking sales in the Microsoft ecosystem. However, a large number of users – particularly businesses – are taking a wait-and-see approach.

    The typical business adoption curve for a new Windows version is 18 months after release. Analyst firm Gartner historically recommends against businesses adopting a new version until after Service Pack 1 is released.

    Not that Microsoft is actually making Windows 8 upgrades readily available for its reseller partners. The company is advocating for users to upgrade to Windows 8 by buying discount licences directly from its website. This is aggravating to nearly everyone in the Microsoft value chain – manufacturers, distributors and resellers – because it cuts them out of the initial sales wave and contributes to the dampened PC market.

    Now, let’s be fair: Microsoft is in a near-impossible situation.

    Will Windows 8 be a smashing success? It depends on your perspective. Solution providers are on board for the long haul. Microsoft, of course, will claim victory regardless of what happens.

    After all, this is the same company that insisted Windows Vista was a great operating system to the bitter end.

    Reply
  23. Tomi Engdahl says:

    I just LOVE Server 2012, but count me out on Windows 8 for now
    Some of us consumers don’t like consumer stuff
    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/10/22/trevor_pott_on_windows_8/

    Overall, I think Windows 8 is a truly wonderful operating system. The under-the-hood changes make it a fantastic improvement over Windows 7. I am completely in love with Server 2012; I can’t imagine the next few years without it. Despite being in love with the technology underpinning Windows 8, I ultimately have to walk away from Microsoft’s new client OS.

    Using Windows 8 as a workstation and on my stylus-driven Asus R1F has proven to be frustrating.

    The Microsoft Surface is supposed to be the ultimate Windows 8 device. Only a select few tech journalists – those good at staying on message – have been invited to demo the device.

    At $600 for the cheapest variant with its sexy keyboard case, it is simply too much money for me to drop on a device that may or may not meet my needs. Fondling it in the store for a few minutes isn’t going to tell me much about long term use, so when my Asus Transformer dies it will be replaced by whatever the latest Android Transformer is. That thing’s been good to me.

    I love Metro Start, but I loathe how it’s implemented. Windows 8 is two completely different (bimodal) operating systems – one touch, the other a workstation. One should not intrude on the other.

    I’ve got “setting up Windows 8 into a desktop-only environment I can live with” down to a science, but I do not want to be working help desk the day this get rolled out to any of my clients.

    It’s no secret that the reason for forcing Metro on everyone was to acclimate us to the UI so that they should shift more phones.

    Unfortunately, as a “power user,” it leaves me feeling as though I’ve been thrown under the bus in order to facilitate Microsoft’s quest for piece of Apple’s consumer pie.

    Like it or not, Windows 8 has a good solid technological foundation. If the biggest gripes that can be mustered are “look and feel,” licensing and corporate attitude, then – power users or no power users – Microsoft will do just fine

    Reply
  24. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Windows 8: An awful lot of change for a single release
    This is not your father’s operating system
    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/10/23/road_to_windows_8/

    This is Microsoft’s third major attempt to fix Windows security, if you count Windows XP SP2 as the first, and Vista’s UAC as the second. It brings in a new platform in which apps are sandboxed and installed from Microsoft’s store, imitating Apple’s model.

    Windows 8 is also the third attempt to get Windows on a tablet right, if you count XP tablets as the first attempt, and the 2006 “Origami” ultra-mobile PC as the second.

    This time Microsoft is serious, with a new touch-friendly user interface that runs applications full-screen and without visible screen furniture: not so much windows or even a window but rather windowless. In order to keep faith with the past, Windows 8 also has a desktop mode, and in its x86 form is similar to Windows 7 though with the Start menu replaced by a Start screen running on the new platform.

    With Windows 8, Microsoft is trying to exorcise its ghosts. Security, touch control, and even dependence on manufacturing partners are all addressed in this release. That is a lot of change. The risk in Windows 8 is not lack of innovation, but that for some long-term Windows users it is simply too different.

    Reply
  25. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Windows 8 is a problem: “I felt like an amateur computing,”

    People’s immediate reactions to Windows 8 do not encourage to change to the new version, says Business Insider.

    Those who have used Microsoft Windows for the past couple of decades, are not likely to easily get to grips with the novelty of the system. Trial users of the interface confusing for consumers, and it is difficult to use.

    “I felt more amateur computer use than ever,”

    Explanation for the weird user interface is that it is intended to be controlled by the touch screen.

    Blodgett believes that many Windows users have avoided a Mac user for the transition because they do not want to learn a new system. Now, these users will have to learn a new interface anyway, so they might change to a new Mac instead of Windows.

    Source: http://m.tietoviikko.fi/Uutiset/Windows+8+tuottaa+ongelmia%3A+%22Tunsin+itseni+amat%C3%B6%C3%B6riksi+tietokoneen+k%C3%A4yt%C3%B6ss%C3%A4%22

    Reply
  26. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Windows 8 Arrives
    http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/news/Press/2012/Oct12/10-25Windows8GAPR.aspx

    Easy-to-download upgrades and the best range of PCs ever welcome Windows 8 to worldwide availability.

    NEW YORK — Oct. 25, 2012 — Microsoft Corp. today announced the global availability of its popular Windows operating system, Windows 8. Beginning Friday, Oct. 26, consumers and businesses worldwide will be able to experience all that Windows 8 has to offer, including a beautiful new user interface and a wide range of applications with the grand opening of the Windows Store. As a result of close work with hardware partners, more than 1,000 certified PCs and tablets, including Microsoft Surface, will be available for the launch of Windows 8 — making it the best lineup of PCs ever across the Windows 8 and Windows RT ecosystem.

    “We have reimagined Windows and the result is a stunning lineup of new PCs,” said Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. “Windows 8 brings together the best of the PC and the tablet. It works perfect for work and play and it is alive with your world. Every one of our customers will find a PC that they will absolutely love.”

    Windows 8 will be available for download to upgrade existing PCs in more than 140 markets and 37 languages at http://www.windows.com/buy

    Reply
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  28. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Microsoft’s Pivot — A Plan to Dominate “Devices and Services”
    http://www.adamalthus.com/blog/2012/10/25/microsofts-pivot/

    We are cur­rently wit­ness­ing a major pivot in Microsoft’s core busi­ness model. It is start­ing to become clear that — as Steve Ballmer recently announced — Microsoft is deadly seri­ous about becom­ing a global leader in con­sumer “Devices and Ser­vices.” Suc­cess­ful exe­cu­tion of this strat­egy will require the com­pany to con­trol every­thing from man­u­fac­tur­ing, dis­tri­b­u­tion logis­tics through to retail.

    Nok Nok…

    Per­haps the com­pany most likely to be impacted by Microsoft con­sumer devices strat­egy is Nokia. I have absolutely no doubt that Microsoft is going to become a man­u­fac­turer of a full range of Win­dows 8 based smart­phones. That is going to hap­pen sooner rather than later. When Microsoft launches a ‘Sur­face Phone’ it is quite sim­ply game over for Nokia.

    Truly a sad end to a once dom­i­nant company.

    Two OS to Rule Them All?

    Can Microsoft main­tain its cur­rent cor­po­rate struc­ture if it suc­cess­fully piv­ots its busi­ness model to become a lead­ing con­sumer devices com­pany? I sus­pect not.

    Suc­cess­fully exe­cut­ing on the strat­egy out­lined in this arti­cle would clearly give Microsoft a new lease on life.

    The prob­lem of where to put the Win­dows divi­sion would be made a lot eas­ier if Microsoft had two oper­at­ing sys­tems, one con­sumer focused and the other designed for the enter­prise. This real­iza­tion puts a whole new spin on the Win­dows 8 strategy.

    There are two ver­sions of Win­dows 8 — one a direct descen­dant of Win­dows 7 designed for the Intel archi­tec­ture and a sec­ond brand new ‘RT’ — ver­sion designed for ARM based devices. Ini­tially this looked to be a ret­ro­grade step. The com­pany spent years and bil­lions of dol­lars try­ing to col­lapse it’s com­plex oper­at­ing sys­tem port­fo­lio down to one gen­eral pur­pose vari­ant of Win­dows. Now it has gone in the oppo­site direc­tion. Microsoft now has two ver­sions of Win­dows; one enter­prise focused and one pur­pose­fully designed for con­sumer devices.

    Break­ing the com­pany up into inde­pen­dent con­sumer and enter­prise focused enti­ties would drive huge clar­ity and focus and unlock a lot of share­holder value. Hav­ing two dis­tinct ver­sions of Win­dows 8 aligned to each seg­ment just made that a lot more straightforward.

    Reply
  29. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Windows 8 is a revolutionary operating system. But it is a different matter whether the upheaval worthwhile. The transparency of the orientation is low.

    In recent years, computer usage has shifted to the browser. It has been a natural evolution, and guaranteed services function in virtually all computer users. Well-designed websites have opened for almost every device, which can be found only a web browser.

    Now, Microsoft is pushing development in the other direction. Windows 8 transfer services from the network available to their own applications.

    Saddest thing is Windows 8 applications is the fact that some of them have been built html5-description language. In practice, the application could therefore also act as a conventional web browser. But no. I now have to the network address instead of writing navigate Windows Store and download the application.

    Sure own applications also offer opportunities that are not a Web browser can be implemented.

    But for small applications are a step away, open to all services. In particular, they can be irritating who want to abstain from some other operating systems than fresh Windows 8.

    Microsoft’s approach is understandable. Personal computer sales have lagged in recent years, while the tablet computers have been sold.

    Source: http://m.tietoviikko.fi/Uutiset/Kaikille+avointa+interneti%C3%A4+suljetaan

    Reply
  30. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Security guru Bruce Schneier calls not to fear: “The situation is brilliant”

    Schneier is a security industry legends. He has a tendency to make mainstream opinions.

    “The situation is brilliant. We use computers every day and nothing happens. I think the situation is much better than many people think, ”

    In his opinion, the fact that the things written in the press, is actually a sign that the phenomenon is rare. Schneier concludes, therefore, that the leaves do not bother to write generalities.

    “If your account is hacked, the bank to return the money to you,” Schneier soothes and adds: “I do not want to downplay. Bad things happen in the world, but in general, things are pretty good. ”

    Can the situation get any worse? “The question is not easy to answer. I do not think it will get worse, at least not much. Crime numbers vary from one decade to the next. Things go up and then they will fall. ”

    Schneier is clearly irritated on spread of data security fear. “I buy goods online from Amazon and I will leave economic future in their hands. I’m more concerned about whether Mitt Romney as President of the fight cybercrime, “he says.

    We are not necessarily concerned about the right things. The average man does not need to be concerned about the security situation. “It is sufficient that performs a number of precautionary measures,” he advises.

    After all, we worry too much about that either, the cars pass you, even though they also have their risk.

    Source: http://www.tietoviikko.fi/kaikki_uutiset/tietoturvaguru+kehottaa+olemaan+pelkaamatta+quottilanne+on+loistavaquot/a851072

    Reply
  31. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Foolproof blog
    Is Planet Earth ready for Windows 8?
    http://www.foolproof.co.uk/is-planet-earth-ready-for-windows-8/

    Hype surrounding the imminent launch of Windows 8 has so far been dominated by reviews and expert opinion. But, with an estimated 70% of the world’s computers running Windows, we wanted to know what real consumers think of the operating system and how they will cope with the learning curve when they upgrade.

    We observed 14 typical users as they interacted with Windows 8 for the first time. All were experienced with Windows, and covered a wide range of ages and ability levels. In sessions lasting from 20 to 30 minutes, we asked them to perform basic tasks such as browsing websites, using social media, sending emails and viewing photos.

    It’s certainly a radical departure from the existing interface and has the potential to create an easier and more engaging experience. But it comes with a huge learning overhead, which we think is likely to slow down adoption of the new system. It may even present an opportunity for competitors to steal market share.

    While our participants found the Modern UI fresh and attractive, the radical changes it introduces caused all of them significant problems. At the end of their session, none of our participants felt confident using the new interface.

    In Windows 8, moving to the Modern UI or sticking with the traditional desktop UI is not an either/or choice. For regular tasks, users must move between the two.

    A bold and brave move
    Microsoft has always exercised caution when introducing new concepts to previous versions of Windows. They have worked hard to make sure that new features are easy for existing users to understand and adopt. Our findings suggest that the Modern UI breaks this pattern.

    There’s no doubt that this is a bold and brave move but people are going to need to set aside time to get to grips with this new interface. Repeated across around 500 million worldwide Windows users, the back of our beermat tells us, by the time every user has switched to Windows 8 there will be at least 300,000 man-years of learning curve time expended. That’s quite a suck on Planet Earth’s productivity.

    Reply
  32. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Steven Sinofsky on How Windows 8 PCs Deliver Better Value Than Apple
    http://allthingsd.com/20121026/steven-sinofsky-on-how-windows-8-pcs-are-better-value-than-apple/

    With Windows 8, Steven Sinofsky said that Microsoft and its PC-making partners have found a way to deliver modern computing at a price far less than that fruit-named competitor.

    He notes that there are full-featured Windows 8 laptops that sell for $279.

    “These are fantastic machines,” Sinofsky said Thursday, shortly after presiding over the Windows 8 launch. They’re not netbooks or bargain-basement machines. At that price, he said, you can get a computer good enough to last a student through college.

    “It’s $279,” he said, “Here we are, talking about seven-inch recreational tablets for $329.”

    Reply
  33. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Surface is ‘a quirky cat,’ teardown shows
    http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-57541980-75/surface-is-a-quirky-cat-teardown-shows/?part=rss&subj=news&tag=title

    iFixit determines Microsoft’s tablet is pretty tough to repair, coming in only slightly easier than the iPad.

    Microsoft’s Surface is a little easier to repair than the third-generation iPad, iFixit says, but it’s still pretty difficult to take apart.

    iFixit notes Surface’s design allows it to be opened without fear of shattering the display glass. Also, several components are modular and replaceable without requiring desoldering, and the battery can be removed pretty easily.

    However, it’s pretty difficult to remove the rear panel and gain access to the device, iFixit said, and it’s impossible to remove the keyboard connector without first removing the display from its frame.

    Reply
  34. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Ballmer bets ‘all in’ on Phone 8 and Windows
    Claims other smartphone UIs are old or stolen
    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/10/29/ballmer_phone8_windows_launch/

    Steve Ballmer is promising Microsoft is “all in” on the Windows 8 system and took to the stage, along with a mystery celebrity, to push the latest version of Microsoft’s smartphone operating system at a launch event in San Francisco.

    “Today we’re bringing phones into the Windows Family with Windows Phone 8,” he said. “If you’re one of the hundreds of millions of people that will use Windows 8 in the next year, there is no better phone for you than a Windows phone. All Windows 8 devices share the same iconic look and feel.”

    Microsoft has correctly figured out that if it can’t make Phone 8 attractive from an applications perspective then the operating system is doomed, so it made a big deal of the subject. There are over 120,000 applications ready in its store, Belfiore said, and claimed that Windows Phone 8 has 46 of the top 50 mobile apps in use today.

    Reply
  35. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Forgetting Microsoft: How Steve Ballmer’s Surface could win
    Ignore Apple, it’s Google he must take on
    http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2012/10/30/open_and_shut/

    Open … and Shut In a Windows world we bought the product. In Google’s world we are the product. Judging from market share trends, we apparently don’t mind being bought and sold. At least, so long as the price is right.

    Yes, Apple gets all the news (and profits), but it’s Google Android that is set to displace Microsoft Windows by 2016, according to Gartner. So much of the media’s focus is on the battle between Android and Apple’s iOS for the heart and soul of the mobile industry that we forget the meta-battle between both iOS and Android against yesterday’s desktop market, still owned by Windows.

    Microsoft put on a good show last week at its Windows 8 launch, but the only thing that really matters is how well Windows performs in mobile device markets.

    In Google Land, in other words, the hardware and software is going to be cheap and free, respectively, with money being made through advertising or other services, largely invisible to the cost-conscious consumer. Yes, there are premium buyers happy to pay for Apple or Microsoft devices, but the majority of the market is heavily trending toward “cheap and free.”

    And when that happens, Microsoft (and, eventually, Apple) can kiss goodbye to the developer ecosystem critical to winning over users. Developers go where the volume is, and that volume is Google’s to lose.

    Microsoft could pull an Apple and sell a consolidated device like the Surface.

    It might not be enough, anyway. Apple is happy to occupy the premium segment of the market, even as Google’s Android takes the mass-market lower-end. Where does this leave Microsoft? It’s unlikely to be able to beat Apple at the top and its strategy ensures it has no chance of beating Android at the bottom.

    Can Microsoft turn this ship around?

    Google’s dominance is not set in stone, any more than Apple’s was. But there’s a lot of hard, painful work for Microsoft to do

    Reply
  36. Tomi Engdahl says:

    “Desktop machines is best to use an old Windows”

    New Windows is ideal for tablets, but according to Petteri Järvinen, the desktop should use the more traditionaldesktop view. Portable equipment are in between these two extremes, in which both sides can be of use.

    Source: http://www.tietokone.fi/uutiset/poytakoneissa_on_jarkevinta_kayttaa_vanhaa_windowsia

    Reply
  37. Tomi Engdahl says:

    The chip manufacturer ARM has revealed to work with Microsoft Windows stimulate RT operating system to suit later disclosed to the public 64-bit architecture-based arm processors.

    ARM is preliminarily estimated to have 64-bit processor on market in 2014.

    Source: http://www.tietoviikko.fi/kaikki_uutiset/microsoft+ja+arm+tyostavat+yhdessa+64bittista+windows+rtta/a853032?s=r&wtm=tietoviikko/-02112012&

    Reply
  38. Nova Miraflores says:

    Dj Soulless Ft. Bohagon & Yung Gutta – Above The Law Mixtape here is the link-> djsoulless.com

    Reply
  39. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Journal: Nokia to delay it’s tablet due Microsoft

    Mobile phone manufacturer Nokia has had to postpone their tablet PC because of the publication of Microsoft’s tablet, says Digitimes.

    Notebook brands that were originally aggressive about pushing Windows on Arm (WoA) tablets have mostly cooled down following the launch of Microsoft’s Surface RT. Digi Times reports that Nokia and other manufacturers have transferred to Windows-based tablet computers in income due to Surface. These include Asustek, Dell, Samsung and Lenovo.

    Sources:
    http://www.3t.fi/artikkeli/uutiset/teknologia/lehti_nokia_viivastyttaa_tabletiaan_microsoftin_takia
    http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20121030PD211.html

    Reply
  40. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Microsoft admits only half of 32GB Surface RT storage is usable
    Bloatware built in
    http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2222733/microsoft-admits-only-half-of-32gb-surface-rt-storage-is-usable

    TABLET NEWCOMER Microsoft has disappointed Surface RT users by admitting that the 32GB tablet has only 16GB of available storage.

    According to Microsoft the 50 percent discrepancy in usable storage on the 32GB Surface RT is due to the Windows RT operating system, built-in applications and Windows recovery requirements. The company broke down the figures, showing that the Windows RT operating system, Microsoft Office suite and built-in applications consume 8GB, while 5GB is taken up by Windows recovery.

    Microsoft’s 32GB storage figure is based on the falsehood that 1,000MB equals 1GB, but in truth there is only 29GB of actual storage space, with a further 13GB used by the operating system and applications.

    Microsoft’s Surface RT tablet isn’t the only device to offer less storage space than its name suggests

    Reply
  41. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Developer downloads for programming Windows Store apps
    http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/apps/br229516

    Reply
  42. Tomi says:

    Windows 8 FAQ: Can I downgrade from Windows 8 to Windows 7?
    http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-Operating-Systems-e-g/Windows-8-FAQ-Can-I-downgrade-from-Windows-8-to-Windows-7/td-p/1980149

    Question:
    Can I downgrade from Windows 8 to Windows 7?

    Answer:
    Yes, customers can downgrade to Windows 7 and you will remain protected by HP product warranties.

    However, HP has not tested all Windows 8 platforms for Windows 7 and we may not have your particular drivers available.

    If you choose to install a different operating system (OS) and have a problem that requires HP support, you may need to restore the original OS to fully diagnose your problem

    Reply
  43. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Windows 8 protected from 85% of malware detected in the past six months, right out the box
    http://thenextweb.com/microsoft/2012/11/09/windows-8-protected-from-85-of-malware-detected-in-the-past-six-months-right-out-the-box/

    Security firm BitDefender ran a very interesting test recently: the company took 385 of the most popular malware samples it found in the past six months and threw them at Windows 8 to see how it fares in its default state (with Windows Defender enabled).

    Only 61 malware threats managed to infect Windows 7′s successor, or about 15.84 percent. BitDefender rounded this down and declared that the “Newly launched Window 8 is prone to infection by some 15 per cent of the 100 malware families most used by cyber criminals this year.” I prefer the reverse number, as you can see in the headline above.

    While we do know BitDefender is in the business of selling security software, it’s difficult to say more on the results without more data. Either way, 15 percent is an impressive achievement. Microsoft will surely continue updating its definitions, and this number will only drop further.

    With Windows Defender disabled, 234 of the samples ran successfully (60.78 percent), 138 samples could not be started on the machine for various reasons (35.84 percent), six threats executed but then crashed (1.56 percent), and seven others launched but had their payload blocked by UAC (1.82 percent).

    Reply
  44. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Microsoft’s Wowzapp Hackathon Attracts 17,000 Student Developers Who Want To Build Windows Apps
    http://techcrunch.com/2012/11/09/microsofts-wowzapp-hackathon-attracts-17000-student-developers-who-want-to-build-windows-apps/

    Three weeks ago, Microsoft announced that it would hold a free global hackathon in over 100 cities around the globe. Today is the first day of this “Wowzapp 2012” event, and Microsoft just announced that it has managed to attract over 17,000 developers – many of them students – who are currently working on their Windows 8, Windows Phone 8 and Windows Azure apps with the help of mentors from Microsoft. The event is scheduled to run until November 11.

    When Windows 8 launched, Microsoft was regularly criticized for not having enough good apps in its store. Events like this, the company surely also hopes, will help accelerate the growth of the Windows 8 ecosystem.

    Reply
  45. Tomi says:

    Microsoft boss: Microsoft Surface tablet sold “modestly”

    Surface runs a stripped-down version of Windows 8 to, Windows RT. The user interface, however, largely resemble Windows 8.

    Parisien magazine says Ballmer praises future Surface Pro devices that run all Windows programs.

    Source: http://www.tietoviikko.fi/kaikki_uutiset/microsoftpomo+microsoftin+surfacetabletti+myynyt+quotvaatimattomastiquot/a855455?s=r&wtm=tietoviikko/-13112012&

    Reply

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