Windows 8 ( Review 2012) – Technology Times

WINDOWS 8:  Even when Windows 8 is locked, you can now change the volume, pause songs and skip to new songs.  Windows 8 Release Preview sports a number of small, subtle interface tweaks, many barely noticeable.  And Windows 8 still seems as if it's two operating systems bolted together not particularly well, rather than a seamless whole.

As mentioned before, what still hasn't changed in this version of Windows 8 is the sense that Metro tablet interface and the more traditional Desktop interface are two separate operating systems, co-existing somewhat uneasily.  Windows 8 Release Preview is out , and it offers only moderate changes to the previously released  Consumer Preview version .  With Windows 8 Metro style arriving soon this could be the natural evolution of Tablet computing.

Microsoft also says that this version of Windows 8 includes touchpad multitouch gestures for tasks such scrolling, although they didn't work on my machine.  There will be a choice of either Intel or ARM-Based processors. The Intel devices will be powered by Surface for Windows 8 Pro Operating System.  At least you won't get such tired arms whilst using this touch interface, a problem I mentioned in my post on Windows 8.  It is expected to first see the light of day when Windows 8 ships, later this year.

Whatever the reason, we'll have to wait for the final release of Windows 8 to get a complete look at the new interface.  In a blog entry announcing the change, Jensen Harris, director of program management for the Windows 8 user experience team, listed "long battery life" as one of the goals of the Windows 8 user experience.  The new complement of Metro apps in the Release Preview shows that, even on desktops and laptops, Windows 8 could do well in a world in which information is pushed to the user.

The Desktop is still missing the Start Menu -- in fact, at least one report maintains that Microsoft has gone through code in this version of Windows 8 and deleted anything that might allow someone to hack the Desktop to bring back the Start menu.  The purported leaked Windows 8 documents offer an interesting view into what Microsoft is rumored to be thinking about for the future.