Microsoft has put a great deal of development blood and sweat into creating the Metro interface of Windows 8, and whilst many have taken something of a shining to the new look of the title, others have been less than impressed with some of the features being removed (or added) over previous releases of Windows.
If you’re using a desktop computer and it is powered by Windows 7, then you and your computer are now, almost three years after its release in late 2009, part of the majority. Yes, according to the latest statistics, Windows 7 is the most popular desktop operating system today. Check out the details after the jump.
It's becoming increasingly obvious that the technology world is accelerating at an unprecedented pace, something that is occurring with both hardware and software. That has never been more evident when Mozilla released Firefox 15 to the general public a few days ago, and a beta build of version 16 is already available for testing. Those millions of web users around the world who choose Firefox as their main desktop or mobile browser have barely had a chance to familiarize themselves with version 15 and now Firefox 16 beta is here to be played with.
The tablet market has, up until recently, been pretty one dimensional, but now it's emerging into a battle fought on several different fronts. The original iPad first arrived in 2010, and having tried to emulate its success by essentially emulating its design, competitors have taken revised approaches. As well as the smaller tablet (see Google-ASUS Nexus 7), there's now a Microsoft-lead push for so-called hybrid devices - tablets which can also double up as notebooks and ultrabooks with attachable keyboards.
Despite having something of a terrible last couple of weeks what with the San Jose court case, today's press regarding Samsung has been all positive thanks to the company doing what it does best - talking new gadgets. As well as the Galaxy Note II and the ATIV S Windows Phone 8 smartphone, which we discussed in an earlier post, the Korean outfit has also showcased a couple of new tablets, and here, we give them the once-over.
Joining scores of other vendors, Sony has just announced its very own ultrabook / tablet effort with the VAIO Duo 11, and it certainly packs in some decent hardware to help kick its way into this increasingly-competitive market. When Microsoft first announced the Surface, it was praised as an innovative median between notebook and tablet, and since, a string of manufacturers have joined the potential gravy train.
Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system is not too far from releasing, and whilst we all mull over the Metro user-interface and quicker boot-up times, there are some very unsettling findings with regards to the privacy of its users.
Microsoft's Windows OS has yielded a reputation as being something of a magnet when it comes to malicious software and security threats in general, so the news that your login password could be pretty easy for an unscrupulous individual to find is, rather than being surprising, something of a disappointment.
Microsoft today has started taking registrations for Windows 8 upgrade program for existing Windows 7 users. The program, which is available in 140 countries, lets you upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for as low as $14.99, provided that you meet the required criteria for the upgrade.
If you are the owner and operator of a Windows based PC then the chances are that you might have taken the plunge and downloaded the Windows 8 release-to-manufacturing (RTM) build that has recently been made available by Microsoft to subscribers of MSDN and TechNet. The Windows 8 operating system has gained some significant traction during the course of the testing phase and there is definitely quite a buzz surrounding the official release with Windows fan desperate to get their hands on Microsoft's latest creation.
