Microsoft’s next operating system for home computers has received its final name and the software will officially be known as Windows 8. This follows suggestion from the company itself that the Windows name may be discontinued after Windows 7 as the OS embraces a reinvention that will see it also touch down on tablets.
The software will also come in three different versions for upgraders – Windows 8, Windows 8 Pro and Windows 8 RT. Each supporting computers of varying chipsets: Windows 8 will be the basic version that will ship with new PCs when the software finally launched in the fourth quarter of the year, while Windows 8 Pro will enhance the experience for Intel x86/x64 users stepping up from the last edition, bringing features like PC management, encryption, virtualization and Microsoft Media Center.
Similarly, Windows 8 RT will bolster the features on ARM (WOA) computers, including Microsoft standards Word, Powerpoint and Excel for the touchscreen tablets or “slates” to quote the term used by enthusiastic CEO Steve Ballmer when the platform was in the earliest stages of its development. This will be a first for the traditionally desktop based OS.
There’s still not a fixed release date for the latest Windows OS, and following a series of somewhat disappointing releases we hope that Microsoft’s ambition for platform domination really pays off this time. We only need wait till October, which is the predicted date of arrival – this based on a pattern set by previous Windows releases.
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