4 ms·

I think Microsoft could have saved themselves a lot of pain by some renaming and re-skinning. - 'Windows 8' is Microsoft's next version of Windows! It uses the

by ender7 14y ago

I think Microsoft could have saved themselves a lot of pain by some renaming and re-skinning. - 'Windows 8' is Microsoft's next version of Windows! It uses the shiny new Metro UI. You install apps from the Windows App Store (or whatever they call it). - 'Windows 8+' is a special version of Windows 8 that can run apps written for older versions of Windows. Both versions of Windows 8 support Office!* * For Windows 8 vanilla, re-skin the Office apps so they look slightly more like Metro, or at least so they don't look like Windows 7 desktop apps. Hide the fact that they're running in the desktop environment. Include Outlook.

dpcan 14y ago
So, in your description, is Window RT = Windows 8? Or is Windows RT = Windows 8+? I had no idea that if you just bought Windows 8 you couldn't run older software, but had to have RT.... or am I backwards? EDIT: Googled. RT is the restricted version where you can only install apps from the new Windows Store.
DeepDuh 14y ago
How does that clear up anything? Wouldn't it make more sense to not use the Windows product name at all for the RT version? After all - where are the Windows? Even Apple, with their annoying iBranding, is more bold when it comes to introducing new products. Everything about Microsoft's branding schemes scream committee. "Microsoft(TM) Windows(TM) RT(TM) Surface(TM) tablet with all new Metro/strikethrough Modern/strikethrough new style/strikethrough Microsoft style UI. Do they themselves even know what the design is called now? Even big open source projects are more consistant than this.
- ender7 14y ago
  Microsoft has clearly decided that "Windows" is now the new Metro UI. The old stuff is there for backwards-compat and pro/business market reasons, but the future is Metro. Now, you may not like that decision, but I think that's where they're going. Given that, it doesn't make sense to call them two different things since their only differentiating factor is whether they run "old"-style apps.

by ender7 14y ago

dpcan 14y ago

So, in your description, is Window RT = Windows 8? Or is Windows RT = Windows 8+? I had no idea that if you just bought Windows 8 you couldn't run older software, but had to have RT.... or am I backwards? EDIT: Googled. RT is the restricted version where you can only install apps from the new Windows Store.

DeepDuh 14y ago

How does that clear up anything? Wouldn't it make more sense to not use the Windows product name at all for the RT version? After all - where are the Windows? Even Apple, with their annoying iBranding, is more bold when it comes to introducing new products. Everything about Microsoft's branding schemes scream committee. "Microsoft(TM) Windows(TM) RT(TM) Surface(TM) tablet with all new Metro/strikethrough Modern/strikethrough new style/strikethrough Microsoft style UI. Do they themselves even know what the design is called now? Even big open source projects are more consistant than this.

ender7 14y ago
Microsoft has clearly decided that "Windows" is now the new Metro UI. The old stuff is there for backwards-compat and pro/business market reasons, but the future is Metro. Now, you may not like that decision, but I think that's where they're going. Given that, it doesn't make sense to call them two different things since their only differentiating factor is whether they run "old"-style apps.