Microsoft has dropped the flag from its Windows 8 logo and adhered to its “Metro” design aesthetic for the forthcoming operating system.
“We realised an evolution of our logo would better reflect our Metro style design principles,” Sam Moreau, principal director of Microsoft’s User Experience for Windows, wrote in a 17 February posting on The Windows Blog.
Unlike previous iterati
It’s perhaps ironic that, despite Windows’ logo returning to its roots, Windows 8 represents something of a radical deviation from the “traditional” Windows user interface. In a bid to run effectively on both tablets and PCs, Windows 8 features a “Metro”-style “start” screen of colourful tiles linked to applications – the better to tap and swipe, if the device running the OS happens to feature a touch-screen.
Power users and those who want the old-style Windows experience can flip from there to a fully actualised desktop, which has undergone some tweaks of its own.
Microsoft executives claim that Windows 8 will offer “no compromises” in either its tablet or traditional PC iterations. Indeed, Windows on ARM (the architecture that powers many of today’s mobile devices and that Microsoft has started referring to using the acronym “WOA”) will feature a modified version of “Office 15,” the upcoming version of Microsoft’s Office software.
“Within the Windows desktop, WOA includes desktop versions of the new Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote, code-named ‘Office 15,’” Steven Sinofsky, president of Microsoft’s Windows and Windows Live division, wrote in a 9 February posting on the corporate Building Windows 8 blog. “WOA will be a no-compromise product for people who want to have the full benefits of familiar Office productivity software and compatibility.”
Because of its presence on tablets, Microsoft will face competition from Apple’s iPad and a big family of Google Android devices. Even on PCs, where the Windows franchise has long dominated, Microsoft will need to overcome many users’ likely reluctance to upgrade from Windows 7.
However it fares in those battles, at least Microsoft will have a nifty new logo.
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I have been using windows 8 consumer preview version for a few weeks. I hate it. It is not something that i will upgrade to. Download it and try it yourselves and see what you think. I dont think very many people are going to be impressed with it.
Same here, i made the mistake of installing windows 8, i didn't like it at all, have gone back to windows 7 and will be keeping it.
What's your problem with Windows 8? I've given it a go, and could find hardly anything but positives. IE isn't brilliantly designed, and maybe a start orb would've been useful in addition, but what's the big deal?
Oliver it's the usual thing, happens every time anyone changes anything, especially on computers.
98 -> XP loads of people hated it at first
XP -> Vista again loads of people hated it
Vista -> 7 again loads of people hated at first
Office 2007 - 2010 ribbons
Facebook old page -> timeline
Of course there could be a very good reason that many people using computers object to the change at first.
Many people who get the first look at such interfaces are heavily into computers, computers is a specialised role that really appeals to people on the autistic spectrum (like myself I have Aspergers). People with autistic conditions don't tend to appreciate change.
Which is why when ever any new type and improved type of interface is introduced there are always a lot of people who say they don't like it, because it's a change from the norm.
The logo for W8 does not look as nice as those XP and 7. Overall I hate W8 and shall stick to dual-booting with XP and Vista's successor.
Has anyone ever told corporations like MS that 'code-names' are not really necessary for anything that you're announcing on your corporate blog. It's a computer programme update, not an invasion of Europe.
There are still rival firms out there who may be willing to try and steal the name, and some idiots who would be willing to register domain names for future products, so it's better to refer to them as codenames.
The original Amiga chipsets were all called girls names and each booked onto an airline under those names when being moved, and Amiga is Spanish for girlfriend, and that was to stop spies from rival firms.
I know one firm that even codenamed it's breakfast cereal to prevent rival firms from gaining information on it.
I have used the win 8 developer preview and it is terrible, I could not see myself installing any other version now bar win 7.
Forget Windoze! Download Ubuntu Linux; more stabler, no viruses or firewall needed and much much quicker!
Linux distro's have come on leaps and bounds over the past few years and i would suggest giving one of them a try.
Too true Dave, Windows XP broke on my laptop over 12 months ago now and since then I've been using Puppy Linux, really can't be bothered going through with the re-installation of Windows just to fix it at present when Puppy runs just as well, plus it runs entirely from CD so if any files get corrupted it's very easy to correct and upgrading is also a breeze.
Is Windows 8 version 7.0 or 6.2?
I have used the Windows 8 consumer preview, and like others here, I have found it awful :/ It's design is impractical and often unattractive, with dull colours on the metro page. It seems some areas of the interface have been designed for use on tablets,(Programmes are now called 'apps') whilst other areas are like your typical Windows OS. Also, it doeesn't have a start menu. As a result I'm just not sure what market it's aimed at. It is of course only at the consumer preview stages, but still, it doesn't appear to have been thought out well. I am not well pleased.