4 ms·

So Windows RT is dead ? I'd say good riddance, it was just too closed. I remember having a family friend buying one of those devices and trying to install Chrom

by Aissen 12y ago

So Windows RT is dead ? I'd say good riddance, it was just too closed. I remember having a family friend buying one of those devices and trying to install Chrome on it. Well, no luck, WinRT's closed policies won't allow that (and it's not a technical issue.). But their store policies will still allow fake "Chrome" apps packaging an IE webview.

cwyers 12y ago
Windows RT is deader than dead; they're the only thing Microsoft makes that isn't getting Windows 10. Lumias that AT&T sell for $50 off contract? Windows 10. Xbox One? Windows 10. Okay, I guess they still sell the 360 and it's not getting Windows 10. Everything else? Windows 10. But not Windows RT. (Windows 10 Mobile will be allowed onto tablets, but not ones above a certain screen size, so RT isn't able to get that, either.)
- Aissen 12y ago
  Wondering if it's not a rebranding: with Windows 10 running on raspberry pi, what's the catch ? Are they simply abandoning the 9+inch tablet ARM devices?
  - cwyers 12y ago
    Microsoft has cut down to basically three versions of Windows that they admit to: * Windows 10 IoT, which runs x86 and ARM, and is the one that runs on the Raspberry Pi. * Windows 10 Mobile, which replaces Windows Phone 8, and I believe is also x86 and ARM, for devices under a certain screen size. No desktop, runs the Windows Universal versions of Office. * Windows 10, which replaces Windows 8 for desktop, and runs only on x86. Has a desktop and runs both versions of Office, desktop and Universal. RT slotted between Mobile and the full Windows -- it had a desktop, but only for a special ARM version of Office. Now there's a version of Office for Windows Universal, and so you can run Office without the desktop. Thus, the version of Windows with a desktop that can't run any non-Office desktop apps is geting killed. You can either get Windows 10 Mobile without desktop, or full Windows.
Amezarak 12y ago
> Well, no luck, WinRT's closed policies won't allow that (and it's not a technical issue.). It's true that Microsoft doesn't allow alternative rendering engines on WinRT, but it is ARM instead of x86, so there is a technical component; Google would have to port Chrome.
- bentcorner 12y ago
  The problem is that only store apps are allowed to be installed on Windows RT devices, and porting Chrome to a store app is not an insignificant amount of work, for what amounts to very little gain (RT customers would be the only ones who benefit). There's an argument that future store-compatible apps are easily ported to WP10, but Google has very little incentive for any of this work. If anything Mozilla had reasons to, but even they killed their efforts due to lack of customer interest.
- Dylan16807 12y ago
  Port? Android, ChromeOS... Arm is a first-class compile target.
  - Amezarak 12y ago
    Yes, in theory. What a blessing it would be if cross-compatibility was always as simple as "recompile with this as the target." That doesn't mean you can take Chromium for Windows and recompile targeting ARM and get something that works on jailbroken WinRT. As best as I can tell nobody has gotten Chromium running, but they have gotten many other x86 applications running. People have already tried. There's more work than that involved.
    - Dylan16807 12y ago
      Right, there's work involved, but it's taking code that already works on ARM, and already works on Win32, and making it work with the ARM version of Win32. Since microsoft disallows that, there's much less incentive to do that work. But it's not an enormous barrier.

by Aissen 12y ago

cwyers 12y ago

Windows RT is deader than dead; they're the only thing Microsoft makes that isn't getting Windows 10. Lumias that AT&T sell for $50 off contract? Windows 10. Xbox One? Windows 10. Okay, I guess they still sell the 360 and it's not getting Windows 10. Everything else? Windows 10. But not Windows RT. (Windows 10 Mobile will be allowed onto tablets, but not ones above a certain screen size, so RT isn't able to get that, either.)

Aissen 12y ago
Wondering if it's not a rebranding: with Windows 10 running on raspberry pi, what's the catch ? Are they simply abandoning the 9+inch tablet ARM devices?
- cwyers 12y ago
  Microsoft has cut down to basically three versions of Windows that they admit to: * Windows 10 IoT, which runs x86 and ARM, and is the one that runs on the Raspberry Pi. * Windows 10 Mobile, which replaces Windows Phone 8, and I believe is also x86 and ARM, for devices under a certain screen size. No desktop, runs the Windows Universal versions of Office. * Windows 10, which replaces Windows 8 for desktop, and runs only on x86. Has a desktop and runs both versions of Office, desktop and Universal. RT slotted between Mobile and the full Windows -- it had a desktop, but only for a special ARM version of Office. Now there's a version of Office for Windows Universal, and so you can run Office without the desktop. Thus, the version of Windows with a desktop that can't run any non-Office desktop apps is geting killed. You can either get Windows 10 Mobile without desktop, or full Windows.

Amezarak 12y ago

> Well, no luck, WinRT's closed policies won't allow that (and it's not a technical issue.). It's true that Microsoft doesn't allow alternative rendering engines on WinRT, but it is ARM instead of x86, so there is a technical component; Google would have to port Chrome.

bentcorner 12y ago
The problem is that only store apps are allowed to be installed on Windows RT devices, and porting Chrome to a store app is not an insignificant amount of work, for what amounts to very little gain (RT customers would be the only ones who benefit). There's an argument that future store-compatible apps are easily ported to WP10, but Google has very little incentive for any of this work. If anything Mozilla had reasons to, but even they killed their efforts due to lack of customer interest.
Dylan16807 12y ago
Port? Android, ChromeOS... Arm is a first-class compile target.
- Amezarak 12y ago
  Yes, in theory. What a blessing it would be if cross-compatibility was always as simple as "recompile with this as the target." That doesn't mean you can take Chromium for Windows and recompile targeting ARM and get something that works on jailbroken WinRT. As best as I can tell nobody has gotten Chromium running, but they have gotten many other x86 applications running. People have already tried. There's more work than that involved.
  - Dylan16807 12y ago
    Right, there's work involved, but it's taking code that already works on ARM, and already works on Win32, and making it work with the ARM version of Win32. Since microsoft disallows that, there's much less incentive to do that work. But it's not an enormous barrier.