I think it’s safe to say that Windows 8 has been a failure seeing as nobody liked it including several Microsoft business partners who took their shots. So you knew that Microsoft had to come out with something that would repair that damage quickly. The question is, does Windows 8.1 succeed at doing that?
First of all, if you want to take a look at it yourself, you can download a preview copy here. All the usual caveats relating to the fact that it’s per-release software and it shouldn’t be used in a production environment apply of course. I strongly recommend that you read the FAQ.
Now, here’s a list of what I find to be the most significant changes:
- Yes, there is a Start button on the desktop. However it simply takes you to the Start screen as opposed to working the way it did on every version of Windows since Windows 95. But there is a concept called Win-X (because of its keyboard shortcut) that takes you to an administrative menu that allows you to quickly shut down the computer among other items. So users will have some familiar concepts to work with to a degree. However, the much maligned Metro interface is still there and it looks like Microsoft isn’t backing away from it.
- Search is different. It opens in a panel, and by default searches “Everywhere” rather than just Apps. Oh, and Bing is even more integrated to it than before.
- SkyDrive is now part of the OS. It’s heavily integrated and there will be no escaping it.
- Internet Explorer 11 will ship as part of the OS. The word on the street is that it will eventually make it’s way to older versions of Windows.
- There’s a new feature called Workplace, which will let users access a business network under the control of IT administrators with their home PC (presumably a laptop) painlessly. This is in keeping with the Bring Your Own Device trend that seems to be in at the moment. The catch is that companies will have to upgrade their servers to the latest version of Windows Server to leverage this.
- The Windows Store has been blown up and redone. It’s actually very good to look at.
- The Mail app has been improved with better diagnostics to help you track down problems. This is something that I’m personally happy about as troubleshooting Mail issues was an exercise of guessing what was wrong rather than identifying what was wrong and fixing it.
So, will this be enough to quiet the discontent and restart flagging PC sales? I personally will reserve judgement until the final version of 8.1 comes out. But if you’re running the preview, share your thoughts by leaving a comment.
Like this:
Like Loading...
Related
This entry was posted on July 2, 2013 at 10:45 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Microsoft, Windows 8.1. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Windows 8.1: Here’s What To Expect
I think it’s safe to say that Windows 8 has been a failure seeing as nobody liked it including several Microsoft business partners who took their shots. So you knew that Microsoft had to come out with something that would repair that damage quickly. The question is, does Windows 8.1 succeed at doing that?
First of all, if you want to take a look at it yourself, you can download a preview copy here. All the usual caveats relating to the fact that it’s per-release software and it shouldn’t be used in a production environment apply of course. I strongly recommend that you read the FAQ.
Now, here’s a list of what I find to be the most significant changes:
So, will this be enough to quiet the discontent and restart flagging PC sales? I personally will reserve judgement until the final version of 8.1 comes out. But if you’re running the preview, share your thoughts by leaving a comment.
Share this:
Like this:
Related
This entry was posted on July 2, 2013 at 10:45 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Microsoft, Windows 8.1. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.