Is Windows 8 the Next Generation Operating System?

Windows might not be the most perfect operating system in the market. However, if you go through the operating system statistics, one thing is clear. Eighty to ninety percent of the computer users uses a Windows operating system. Supporting wide range of hardware models, provide a simple user friendly platform to work with and giving it for a reasonable price are the key factors for the success of the Windows. With time there are more hardware and software challenges in the market where Microsoft need to proved a solid solutions. Let's see how Windows 8 will take your computer experience to the next level.

Hardware challenges for Windows 8 are the touch base devices and low powered mobiles devices.

Microsoft first demonstration of Windows 8 shows, Windows 8 uses same user interface of Windows mobile 7. It is modern, clean touch friendly interface will change how you interact with the computer. It is not only designed for touch base devices tablets but for desktops, laptops and netbooks. That will allow you to use one operating system for your desktop, laptop netbook or even for tablets. Special requirement of Windows 8 is to support ARM devices, which are low powered mobile devices. That clearly shows that Windows 8 will enter the tablet market in 2012.

With the popularity it inherits the security issues. Windows operating systems are been the target of attacks, hacking and virus and malware attacks. Windows 7 fix most of the vulnerabilities that Windows XP was suffering. Windows 8 needs to improve it to provide a solid platform for its users. Early leaks and the Windows 8 Build show that it is going to have 128 bit option. It will give power to have fast processing and more secure computers with Windows 8. Not only that it be powered with Hyper-V 3.0 virtualisation. It is a more secure, fast and reliable environment.

Kinect is another life changer still only limited to gaming world but slowly rolling to your computer with the recent released software development kit (SDK) for the PC. Definitely it will change the way you use the computer. Control your computer with the hand and body movements. New Windows 8 user interface will provide the ideal user interface for this type of situation. Already, there are various application build with Kinect that can be run on the PC.

Windows 8 biggest challenge is to replace Windows XP and Windows 7. Windows XP is there for ages and Windows 7 been the most stable and secure operating system. Beating Windows XP and Windows 7 will need lots of improvements and adding new features required to support the new technology. Faster booting is one of the key areas that need to come with Windows 8 especially if Windows 8 is going to support tablets. Early Windows 8 leaks revealed that it solved the problem with Hybrid boot.

Soon we can figure out how Windows 8 will enter in to the tablet market as well as change the way we use the PC. Microsoft is planning to release Windows 8 in April 2012 and soon it will hit the market with the compatible hardware. One thing is sure that it will come with great new features and improvements and Microsoft will try their best to give an answer to security and provide an optimised PC experience.

How Is Windows 8 Different From Windows 7?

The article sheds light on the differences between Windows 8 and Windows 7, the two latest flagship operating systems from Microsoft. The information provided here is quite simple and reliable. Microsoft has taken an ambitious yet bolder step in terms of Windows 8. The engineering shows that Microsoft is all up for enthralling the world.

Windows 8 isn't out of Microsoft's magic box yet. However, the Windows 8 Developer Preview has been already out and on a roll for download. Since the rollout of the Developer Preview, users have been speculating how similar or different Windows 8 is from Windows 7. Do both the operating systems have anything common or rare to change the way they use their computers or the internet? Let's explore Windows 8 and depict the major differences between the to-be successor and its predecessor.

USB 3.0 support- Windows 8 integrates a built-in USB 3.0 support for a wide range of latest hardware and networking devices such as hubs and ports etc. The OS features a brand new, improved software stack for USB 3.0 support. It, besides, still features the old USB software stacks to support old USB devices. Individual users or businesses can now easily create virtual USB drives and transfer data 10 times faster than the earlier USB 2.0 functionality. Such an advanced USB device compatibility and data transfer speed are absent from Windows 7.

User Interface- The Metro-style UI (user interface) is the catch in Windows 8. It has become the most talked-about thing so far. The UI has been completely overhauled to offer more space and neatness. Why is it called Metro-style? It is because it brings all your apps and settings in one place. You can access everything from your emails, RSS feeds, photos, documents, to settings in Control Panel etc. from the user interface with a single tap and without navigating to different sections.

You can now touch-open all your apps with the new touch-friendly screen. Those shortcut icons don't appear anymore on the Start screen. You will rather see small, beautiful tiles for all the apps viz. documents, Windows Explorer, Internet Explorer, and Control Panel among other things. You can even customize your apps to determine what appears and what not on the interface. The years-old Windows Start button is gone. You will rather see 4 buttons at the extreme left hand corner if you want to navigate further. You will now also be to touch-type using either of two virtual keyboards, a thumb size and a full size.

Now you need not click on the famous X button to close a window. The app windows will close automatically after a certain period of time (don't worry, it will save the changes before being closed) to offer you a more enhanced and faster experience. You need not worry about closing all the windows before leaving or shutting down your computer. The famous and useful Windows Search utility has been shifted on the right hand of the screen and appears only when you want it to. There are many hidden utilities on the UI that appear only and only when you hover around your mouse. Otherwise, these remain hidden to make the UI look neater and spacious. All such features are not available in Windows 7.

SoC and ARM Support- Windows 8 now integrates a built-in support for SoC (System on Chip) structural designs and ARM (Advanced RISC Machine)-based devices from Intel, AMD, NVIDIA, Texas Instruments, and Qualcomm. The inbuilt featuring of SoC and ARM designs will surely change the computing experience of users. Powered by ARM designs, Windows 8 devices will now support both full desktop and Metro-style apps. The Windows 8 ARM version will come pre-integrated with Microsoft Office 15 apps viz. Excel, OneNote, PowerPoint, and Word etc. and Internet Explorer 10 among other desktop apps. Since Windows 7 has none of features, it remains totally different from Windows 8.

Built-in Security- Windows 8 integrates an inbuilt antivirus program in its Kernel. It will prevent viruses or other online threats from intruding into your system via the internet or infected USB devices. So if you plug in an infected USB device in the drive or your Windows 8 computer, it will simply not boot telling you that the device is infected and needs to be removed immediately. Isn't this sound great? Yes, it does as a built-in security is still a dream in Windows 7 and previous OS versions.

ISO Mounting- Windows 8 features an inherent ISO mounting utility. It means that you need not rely on third-party tools for creating virtual disk drives for partitions or ISO images files. There is no more DVD or CD burning if your hard drive already has a disk image. Mounting ISO files has become easier and more convenient with Windows 8. Every time you will mount an ISO file, a new letter (drive) will appear in the list of drives. Windows 7 has no built-in ISO mounting feature.

WIndows 8 : The new sensation in Operating systems

The Windows 8 Consumer Preview (here's the Windows 8 download) updates the look of the Developer Preview, adds a lot of new features and revamps a few old ones.

The round Start button is gone, the Metro-style Start screen remains and yes, you can only pick from nine colours and five patterns for the Start screen background.

But there's far more to the Consumer Preview user interface than the Start screen, and far more to Windows 8 than the user interface.

There are new ways of switching between apps, as well as more updates to the desktop tools. There are changes under the hood to file copying, power management, security, networking, hardware support and more. 

And then there are the first real Metro apps, so you can find out what it's like to use Metro for more than just trying out Metro, and the Windows Store for the first third-party apps from real developers.

Much of what we're seeing in the Consumer Preview will be the same on Windows on ARM (WOA) systems. Most stuff - from the Metro user interface to the touch gestures, to the Windows desktop and built-in Windows tools such as Explorer and Task Manager - will be practically the same. But until we see it in action, we don't know what WOA performance and battery life will be like.

Consumer Preview doesn't include the desktop Office apps that will be bundled with WOA either - and of course it runs all the x86 desktop apps that won't work on WOA.

When you download the Consumer Preview, installing is easier than usual with a beta operating system. You can start the installation directly from the web page, instead of having to download an ISO file and burn that to an optical disc.

You can still burn an ISO if you want, and the installer can also create a bootable USB stick so you can download Consumer Preview once and install it on multiple machines.

The tools for creating a Windows To Go USB stick aren't available yet, so you can't run Windows 8 directly from USB, but you'll get a far better feel for how Windows 8 performs if you can try it out directly on a PC.