After releasing a tantalising taster video a few months back, Microsoft has now listed the lid on its next generation operating system, Windows 8, and handed the reigns over to developers to see what they can do with it.
Laden with features best suited to touchscreens, Windows 8 is very directly aimed as an OS that can cut it on both computers and tablets, which is something its predecessor Windows 7 simply can’t do.
The look of Windows 8 is very much like that of Windows Phone 7, in that the Start button has been removed in favour of a sideways-scrolling selection of animated ‘tiles’, each of which pertains to an app or piece of software.
More apps will be available from the soon to launchWindows Store, and it’s here that the developers will now turn their attentions ahead of the platform’s launch in 2012, with a view to get it stocked full of software. Can Windows 8 be the operating system to rule them all that Microsoft hope it will be? Let us know your thoughts on the Gadget Helpline Twittter feed.