5 ms·

Windows 8 App Store Screens Leaked

26 points by Garbage 16y ago

fierarul 16y ago
Heh, there was a comment the other day asking "what could you do on Mac that you can't do on Windows" and I wanted to reply: "well you could get an $99 dev account and have apple sell your stuff world wide". I guess Windows is getting an AppStore too... I'm curious though how will Microsoft handle this. In terms of internal bureaucracy and support for non-US developers. It seems that except Apple, nobody (not even Google with the Android marketplace) got this right.
- statictype 16y ago
  well you could get an $99 dev account and have apple sell your stuff world wide Maybe this is true for the Mac App Store but it certainly isn't (anymore) for the iOS App Store. Even though Apple's hosting your app, the massive barrage of existing items in the app store means you have to find ways to sell it yourself.
  - SpiralLab 16y ago
    So it's still easier for people to find and buy your app than it was before the App Store - and you still have to do the same marketing that you would have without the App Store. What's the problem?
    - statictype 16y ago
      No problem. I'm just pointing out that you still have to work hard at marketing to get your app noticed. The original comment I replied to made it seem like Apple takes care of that for you. On the iOS store that's not really true anymore, that's all. I agree with what you said.
      - SpiralLab 16y ago
        Ah, that makes sense! Sorry.
  - fierarul 16y ago
    I'm not talking about the App Store from a marketing point of view. I'm talking about the App Store as a world-wide, easy to use credit card processor. It is non-trivial (technically, legally) to implement credit card handlind yourself, especially the further you are from the US. Also, people will never trust a small player as much as they trust Apple. So, Apple takes care of a lot of international red tape for you, for $99/year.
    - ashleyw 16y ago
      $99/year and 30% of your income. Don't forget that.
      - fierarul 16y ago
        True, but it still might be worth it due to the market size. I guess after a point the AppStore becomes expensive and it might be worth it to sell your own stuff and keep the 30%. But $99 is a really low barrier to entry for non-US individuals and companies to sell software to the whole globe.
obtino 16y ago
MS never has been a great innovator. This is one of the best examples of that.
- eagleal 16y ago
  I'm sure that's a mockup, or a prototype at best.
  - riffraff 16y ago
    I believe grandparent may have intended that they have come as a far second in the os-cum-app-store club. EDIT: which I still find _huge_ news anyway
    - eagleal 16y ago
      Definitely more likely, wasn't sure if he was referring to the software quality only.
- mickeyben 16y ago
  Oh common ... Kinect, C#, F#, Linq, Office, Win7 (this one is debatable but I really think it's full of innovations even if I'm using OSX principally). Of course some of them are here through acquisitions but they made them great products.
  - masklinn 16y ago
    > Kinect, C#, F#, Linq, Office, Win7 (this one is debatable but I really think it's full of innovations even if I'm using OSX principally). Erm... Kinect is the only product even remotely innovative there. Office has never been innovative in all its lifetime (apart from the Ribbon if you stretch it), C# is as innovative as mud (== it was innovative a few billion years ago), F# is an OCaml crappified by making it compatible with the .Net framework and LINQ is a bunch of collection methods, a preprocessor and a common interface (yeah that was innovative about 30 years ago). > Of course some of them are here through acquisitions but they made them great products. Obtino was talking about innovation. Apart from Kinect, none of the things you mentioned is even remotely innovative.
latch 16y ago
I know this was a "leak", but I wonder if they got permission form Rovio this time for the Angry Birds logo.
Kylekramer 16y ago
Yeah, the fact that Windows 7 Ultimate as one of the apps either means this is a fake or Microsoft has a decent sense of humor.
- davweb 16y ago
  Since you can already buy upgrades to Windows 7 Ultimate from other versions Windows 7 online as a "Windows Anytime Upgrade" this is just the kind of thing I'd expect to see in Windows App Store. http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msstore/en_US/pd/productID.216649800 http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msstore/en_US/pd/product...
  - contextfree 16y ago
    I really doubt they'd just plop it in with the other apps.
    - cooldeal 16y ago
      This is pre-beta software. What do you expect? Some QA guy would've just seeded the data so that people can see how it looks. You people are talking as if this thing is a leak of something releasing tomorrow.
      - contextfree 16y ago
        Fair enough - though I think senior people would probably have worked out the major categories by now, and there definitely wouldn't be an "OS" category. The Chinese site where this originated has posted both real and fake stuff in the past; they seem to be fairly indiscriminate about their sources. That's why I kind of have a "presumed fake until shown to be real" mentality with their leaks.
X-Istence 16y ago
Don't they mean the Windows Exe Store? -- All joking aside, App has been cemented in my brain, and the brains of consumers across the globe as being distinctly Apple. I was recently telling my friend that Amazon now had an App store as well, and his first reaction was "Apple allowed that on the iPhone?" Now it seems everyone and their mother has an App store: RIM - App World Windows Phone 7 - Windows Phone Apps Android - Market Place (Although if you search in Google Apps - Market Place) Apple - App Store Apple - Mac App Store I don't know who is right, and who is wrong or who should be able to use what. App wasn't something mainstream on anything besides Apple for a long time. I don't remember having discussions with friends about apps for Windows, I remember it being about wares, software, or programs for Windows. I do remember when I got Mac OS X for the first time that .app extension made sense and I remember talking about Mail.app, Disco.app (burning program) and asking friends what app's they would suggest for me to install. Either way, I think it is awesome that these new stores are popping up giving many developers the ability to market themselves through an officially sanctioned "portal" into the users computers thereby giving the more exposure. Also it makes downloading more secure, instead of coming from download.com and having clicked 6 links you simple click install and it takes care of the rest for you, it should hopefully with good quality control lessen the amount of damage that malware can do.
- timepilot 16y ago
  App was slang for Application long before there was an iPhone.
- contextfree 16y ago
  Did you never hear the phrase "killer app"?
- halo 16y ago
  While it's true that Microsoft has tended to favour 'programs', the term 'applications' and 'apps' has been used generically for years. The earliest reference to the term in Gogle News is a paywalled article in the Washington Post from November 1990, which discusses PC Magazine shortening 'applications' to 'apps' because the word is too unweildy. I think "app store" could be seen as analogous to "media player", a generic term Microsoft coined and popularised.
floppy 16y ago
It's more likely that the UI will be based on the Metro look of Windows Phone 7 (cf. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metro_Design_Language http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metro_Design_Language), so I wouldn't judge anything from this screenshot. I think the leaked roadmap from June 2010 was also far more insightful: http://msftkitchen.com/2010/06/windows-8-plans-leaked-numerous-details-revealed.html http://msftkitchen.com/2010/06/windows-8-plans-leaked-numero... What does HN think of http://allmyapps.com http://allmyapps.com? We launched this application store for Windows in December and we've recently passed the 100K members mark. We want to make the app store experience on PC as seamless as on smartphone, and make sure you never get any third-party software (e.g toolbars & extensions). 1500+ applications are already available for download & install in 1-click, from your browser or our desktop client. The website has a nice list feature to get multiple apps at once, and you can get silent updates for all your apps via the client (opt-in feature). Your feedback is greatly appreciated.
- twodayslate 16y ago
  I agree. The screenshot given isn't the same direction that MS has been going with their most recent apps. Look at Zune or even Office 2010. allmyapps looks interesting. I like the idea of auto-updating. Just needs some better polishing and some unique apps. Being lightweight is always a plus.
isani 16y ago
Microsoft has a store for downloadable software right now at http://www.microsoftstore.com/ http://www.microsoftstore.com/ They also used to have a store called Windows Marketplace that sold third-party apps, but that closed in 2009.
contextfree 16y ago
99.9% sure these are fake. The UI style doesn't match recent or new Microsoft design trends (what is with that menu bar?), and the text and details are just weird (Office's category as "Efficiency"? Windows 7 Ultimate upgrade just thrown in with the other apps in an "OS" category?) It hasn't been posted by any of the more reputable leakers, either.

26 points by Garbage 16y ago

Heh, there was a comment the other day asking "what could you do on Mac that you can't do on Windows" and I wanted to reply: "well you could get an $99 dev account and have apple sell your stuff world wide". I guess Windows is getting an AppStore too... I'm curious though how will Microsoft handle this. In terms of internal bureaucracy and support for non-US developers. It seems that except Apple, nobody (not even Google with the Android marketplace) got this right.

statictype 16y ago
well you could get an $99 dev account and have apple sell your stuff world wide Maybe this is true for the Mac App Store but it certainly isn't (anymore) for the iOS App Store. Even though Apple's hosting your app, the massive barrage of existing items in the app store means you have to find ways to sell it yourself.
- SpiralLab 16y ago
  So it's still easier for people to find and buy your app than it was before the App Store - and you still have to do the same marketing that you would have without the App Store. What's the problem?
  - statictype 16y ago
    No problem. I'm just pointing out that you still have to work hard at marketing to get your app noticed. The original comment I replied to made it seem like Apple takes care of that for you. On the iOS store that's not really true anymore, that's all. I agree with what you said.
    - SpiralLab 16y ago
      Ah, that makes sense! Sorry.
- fierarul 16y ago
  I'm not talking about the App Store from a marketing point of view. I'm talking about the App Store as a world-wide, easy to use credit card processor. It is non-trivial (technically, legally) to implement credit card handlind yourself, especially the further you are from the US. Also, people will never trust a small player as much as they trust Apple. So, Apple takes care of a lot of international red tape for you, for $99/year.
  - ashleyw 16y ago
    $99/year and 30% of your income. Don't forget that.
    - fierarul 16y ago
      True, but it still might be worth it due to the market size. I guess after a point the AppStore becomes expensive and it might be worth it to sell your own stuff and keep the 30%. But $99 is a really low barrier to entry for non-US individuals and companies to sell software to the whole globe.

obtino 16y ago

MS never has been a great innovator. This is one of the best examples of that.

eagleal 16y ago
I'm sure that's a mockup, or a prototype at best.
- riffraff 16y ago
  I believe grandparent may have intended that they have come as a far second in the os-cum-app-store club. EDIT: which I still find _huge_ news anyway
  - eagleal 16y ago
    Definitely more likely, wasn't sure if he was referring to the software quality only.
mickeyben 16y ago
Oh common ... Kinect, C#, F#, Linq, Office, Win7 (this one is debatable but I really think it's full of innovations even if I'm using OSX principally). Of course some of them are here through acquisitions but they made them great products.
- masklinn 16y ago
  > Kinect, C#, F#, Linq, Office, Win7 (this one is debatable but I really think it's full of innovations even if I'm using OSX principally). Erm... Kinect is the only product even remotely innovative there. Office has never been innovative in all its lifetime (apart from the Ribbon if you stretch it), C# is as innovative as mud (== it was innovative a few billion years ago), F# is an OCaml crappified by making it compatible with the .Net framework and LINQ is a bunch of collection methods, a preprocessor and a common interface (yeah that was innovative about 30 years ago). > Of course some of them are here through acquisitions but they made them great products. Obtino was talking about innovation. Apart from Kinect, none of the things you mentioned is even remotely innovative.

latch 16y ago

I know this was a "leak", but I wonder if they got permission form Rovio this time for the Angry Birds logo.

Kylekramer 16y ago

Yeah, the fact that Windows 7 Ultimate as one of the apps either means this is a fake or Microsoft has a decent sense of humor.

davweb 16y ago
Since you can already buy upgrades to Windows 7 Ultimate from other versions Windows 7 online as a "Windows Anytime Upgrade" this is just the kind of thing I'd expect to see in Windows App Store. http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msstore/en_US/pd/productID.216649800 http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msstore/en_US/pd/product...
- contextfree 16y ago
  I really doubt they'd just plop it in with the other apps.
  - cooldeal 16y ago
    This is pre-beta software. What do you expect? Some QA guy would've just seeded the data so that people can see how it looks. You people are talking as if this thing is a leak of something releasing tomorrow.
    - contextfree 16y ago
      Fair enough - though I think senior people would probably have worked out the major categories by now, and there definitely wouldn't be an "OS" category. The Chinese site where this originated has posted both real and fake stuff in the past; they seem to be fairly indiscriminate about their sources. That's why I kind of have a "presumed fake until shown to be real" mentality with their leaks.

X-Istence 16y ago

Don't they mean the Windows Exe Store? -- All joking aside, App has been cemented in my brain, and the brains of consumers across the globe as being distinctly Apple. I was recently telling my friend that Amazon now had an App store as well, and his first reaction was "Apple allowed that on the iPhone?" Now it seems everyone and their mother has an App store: RIM - App World Windows Phone 7 - Windows Phone Apps Android - Market Place (Although if you search in Google Apps - Market Place) Apple - App Store Apple - Mac App Store I don't know who is right, and who is wrong or who should be able to use what. App wasn't something mainstream on anything besides Apple for a long time. I don't remember having discussions with friends about apps for Windows, I remember it being about wares, software, or programs for Windows. I do remember when I got Mac OS X for the first time that .app extension made sense and I remember talking about Mail.app, Disco.app (burning program) and asking friends what app's they would suggest for me to install. Either way, I think it is awesome that these new stores are popping up giving many developers the ability to market themselves through an officially sanctioned "portal" into the users computers thereby giving the more exposure. Also it makes downloading more secure, instead of coming from download.com and having clicked 6 links you simple click install and it takes care of the rest for you, it should hopefully with good quality control lessen the amount of damage that malware can do.

timepilot 16y ago
App was slang for Application long before there was an iPhone.
contextfree 16y ago
Did you never hear the phrase "killer app"?
halo 16y ago
While it's true that Microsoft has tended to favour 'programs', the term 'applications' and 'apps' has been used generically for years. The earliest reference to the term in Gogle News is a paywalled article in the Washington Post from November 1990, which discusses PC Magazine shortening 'applications' to 'apps' because the word is too unweildy. I think "app store" could be seen as analogous to "media player", a generic term Microsoft coined and popularised.

floppy 16y ago

It's more likely that the UI will be based on the Metro look of Windows Phone 7 (cf. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metro_Design_Language http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metro_Design_Language), so I wouldn't judge anything from this screenshot. I think the leaked roadmap from June 2010 was also far more insightful: http://msftkitchen.com/2010/06/windows-8-plans-leaked-numerous-details-revealed.html http://msftkitchen.com/2010/06/windows-8-plans-leaked-numero... What does HN think of http://allmyapps.com http://allmyapps.com? We launched this application store for Windows in December and we've recently passed the 100K members mark. We want to make the app store experience on PC as seamless as on smartphone, and make sure you never get any third-party software (e.g toolbars & extensions). 1500+ applications are already available for download & install in 1-click, from your browser or our desktop client. The website has a nice list feature to get multiple apps at once, and you can get silent updates for all your apps via the client (opt-in feature). Your feedback is greatly appreciated.

twodayslate 16y ago
I agree. The screenshot given isn't the same direction that MS has been going with their most recent apps. Look at Zune or even Office 2010. allmyapps looks interesting. I like the idea of auto-updating. Just needs some better polishing and some unique apps. Being lightweight is always a plus.

isani 16y ago

Microsoft has a store for downloadable software right now at http://www.microsoftstore.com/ http://www.microsoftstore.com/ They also used to have a store called Windows Marketplace that sold third-party apps, but that closed in 2009.

contextfree 16y ago

99.9% sure these are fake. The UI style doesn't match recent or new Microsoft design trends (what is with that menu bar?), and the text and details are just weird (Office's category as "Efficiency"? Windows 7 Ultimate upgrade just thrown in with the other apps in an "OS" category?) It hasn't been posted by any of the more reputable leakers, either.