WINDOWS 8

Name: Fatima Khan Class: T.Y.B.Com Div.: B Roll No.:2506 Subject: Computer System and applications

Introduction
Windows 8 is the current release of the Windows operating system, produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablets, and home

theater PCs. Development of Windows 8 started before the release of its predecessor in 2009. Its existence was first announced at CES 2011, and followed by the release of three pre-release versions from September 2011 to May 2012. The operating system was released to manufacturing on 1 August 2012, and was released for general availability on 26 October 2012. Windows 8 introduces significant changes to the operating system's platform, primarily focused towards improving its user experience on mobile devices such as tablets to rival other mobile operating systems like Android and iOS,[4] taking advantage of new or emerging technologies like USB 3.0, UEFI firmware, near field communications, cloud computing and the low-power ARM architecture, new security features such as malware filtering, built-in antivirus capabilities, a new installation process optimized for digital distribution, and support for secure boot (a UEFI feature which allows operating systems to be digitally signed to prevent malware from altering the boot process), the ability to synchronize certain apps and settings between multiple devices, along with other changes and performance improvements. Windows 8 also introduces a new shell and user interface based on Microsoft's "Metro" design language, featuring a new Start screen with a grid of dynamically updating tiles to represent applications, a new app platform with an emphasis on touchscreen input, and the new Windows Store to obtain and/or purchase applications to run on the operating system. Windows 8 was released to mixed receptionalthough reception towards its performance improvements, security enhancements, and its improved support for touchscreen devices was positive, the new user interface of the operating system has been widely criticized for being confusing and having a steep learning curve (especially when used with a keyboard and mouse instead of a touchscreen). Despite these shortcomings, 40 million Windows 8 licenses were sold during its first month of availability, mostly to OEMs.

Development history
Windows 8 development started before Windows 7 had shipped[6] in 2009. In late January 2011, at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Microsoft announced that Windows 8 would be adding

support for ARM microprocessors in addition to the x86 microprocessors from Intel, AMD and VIA Technologies.[7][8] On 1 June 2011, Microsoft officially unveiled Windows 8's new user interface as well as additional features at the Taipei Computex 2011 in Taipei (Taiwan) by Mike Angiulo and at the D9 conference in California (United States) by Julie Larson-Green and Microsoft's Windows President Steven Sinofsky. The "Building Windows 8" blog launched on 15 August 2011, featuring details surrounding Windows 8's features and its development process. Microsoft unveiled new Windows 8 features and improvements on the first day of the BUILD conference on 13 September 2011.[12] Microsoft released Windows 8 Developer Preview (build 8102) the same day, which included SDKs and developer tools (such as Visual Studio Express and Expression Blend) for developing applications for Windows 8's new interface.[13] According to Microsoft, there were about 535,000 downloads of the developer preview within the first 12 hours of its release.[14] Originally set to expire on March 11, 2012, in February 2012 the Developer Preview's expiry date was changed to January 15, 2013.

Milestone 1, Build 7850, was leaked on April 12, 2011.[16] It was the first build where the text of a window was written centered instead of aligned to the left. It was also probably the first appearance of the Metro-style font, and its wallpaper had the text shhh... let's not leak our hard work. However, its detailed build number reveals that the build was created on September 22, 2010.[17] Its OS version read as 'Windows 7 Enterprise'.

Milestone 2, Build 7955, was leaked on April 25, 2011. The traditional BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) was replaced by a new Black screen, although this was scrapped later.[18] This build introduced a new Ribbon UI in Windows Explorer. Build 7959, with minor changes but the first 64-bit version, was released on May 1, 2011. On June 17, 2011, build 7989 was leaked. It introduced a new boot screen featuring the same fish as the default Windows 7 Beta wallpaper, which was later scrapped, and the circling dots as featured in the final. It also had the text Welcome below them, although this was also scrapped. On 29 February 2012, Microsoft released Windows 8 Consumer Preview, the beta version of Windows 8, build 8250. For the first time since Windows 95, the Start button is no longer present on the taskbar, though the Start screen is still triggered by clicking the bottom-left corner of the screen and by clicking Start on the Charm bar.[20] Windows president Steven Sinofsky said more than 100,000 changes had been made since the developer version went public.[20] The day after its release, Windows 8 Consumer Preview had been downloaded over one million times.[21] Like the Developer Preview, the Consumer Preview is set to expire on 15 January 2013. Many other builds were released until the Japan's Developers Day conference, when Steven Sinofsky announced that Windows 8 Release Preview (build 8400) would be released during the first week of June.[22] On 28 May 2012, Windows 8 Release Preview (Standard Simplified Chinese x64 edition, not China-specific version, build 8400) was leaked online on various Chinese and BitTorrent websites.[23] On 31 May 2012, Windows 8 Release Preview was released to the public by Microsoft.[24] Major items in the Release Preview included the addition of Sports, Travel, and News apps, along with an integrated version of Flash Player in Internet Explorer.[25] Like the Developer Preview and the Consumer Preview, the release preview is set to expire on January 15, 2013.

New and changed features

New features and functionality in Windows 8 include a faster startup through UEFI integration and the new "Hybrid Boot" mode (which hibernates the Windows kernel on shutdown to speed up the subsequent boot),[39] a new lock screen with a clock and notifications,[40] and the ability for enterprise users to create live USB versions of Windows (known as Windows To Go).[41][42] Windows 8 also adds native support for USB 3.0 devices, which allow for faster data transfers and improved power management with compatible devices,[43][44] along with support for near field communication to facilitate sharing and communication between devices.[45] Windows Explorer, which has been renamed File Explorer, now includes a ribbon in place of the command bar. File operation dialog boxes have been updated to provide more detailed statistics, the ability to pause file transfers, and improvements in the ability to manage conflicts when copying files.[46] A new "File History" function allows incremental revisions of files to be backed up to and restored from a secondary storage device,[47] while Storage Spaces allows users to combine different sized hard disks into virtual drives and specify mirroring, parity, or no redundancy on a folder-by-folder basis.[48] Task Manager has also been redesigned, including a new processes tab with the option to display fewer or more details of running applications and background processes, a heat map using different colors indicating the level of resource usage, network and disk counters, grouping by process type (e.g. applications, background processes and Windows processes), friendly names for processes and a new option which allows users to search the web to find information about obscure processes.[49] Additionally, the Blue Screen of Death has been updated with a simpler and modern design with less technical information displayed.

Safety and security

Additional security features in Windows 8 include two new authentication methods tailored towards touchscreens (PINs and picture passwords),[52] the addition of antivirus capabilities to Windows Defender (bringing it in parity with Microsoft's Security Essentials software)[53] SmartScreen filtering integrated into the desktop,[54] and support for the "Secure Boot" functionality on UEFI systems to protect against malware infecting the boot process.[55] Parental controls are offered through the integrated Family Safety software, which allows parents to monitor and control their children's activities on a device with activity reports and safety controls. Windows 8 also provides integrated system recovery through the new "Refresh" and "Reset" functions.[59] Windows 8's first security patches would be released on 13 November 2012; it would contain three critical (most severe as per Microsoft) fixes.

Online services and functionality

Windows 8 provides heavier integration with online services from Microsoft and others. A user can now log in to Windows with a Microsoft account, formally known as a Windows Live ID, which can be used to access services and synchronize applications and settings between devices. Windows 8 also ships with a client app for Microsoft's SkyDrive cloud storage service, which also allows apps to save files directly to SkyDrive. A SkyDrive client for the desktop and File Explorer is not included in Windows 8, and must be downloaded separately.[61] Bundled multimedia apps are provided under the Xbox brand, including Xbox Music, Xbox Video, and the Xbox SmartGlass companion for use with an Xbox 360 console. Internet Explorer 10 is included as both a desktop program and a touch-optimized app, and includes increased support for HTML5, CSS3, and hardware acceleration. The Internet Explorer app does not support plugins or ActiveX components, but includes a version of Adobe Flash Player that is optimized for touch and low power usage, but works only on sites included on a whitelist. The desktop version does not contain these limitations.[64] Windows 8 also incorporates improved support for mobile broadband; the operating system can now detect the insertion of a SIM card and automatically configure connection settings (including APNs and carrier branding), track and reduce bandwidth use on metered networks. Windows 8 also adds an integrated airplane mode setting to globally disable all wireless connectivity as well. Carriers can also offer account management systems through Windows Store apps, which can be automatically installed as a part of the connection process and offer usage statistics on their respective tile.

Windows Store and Apps

Windows 8 introduces a new style of application, Windows Store apps; according to Microsoft developer Jensen Harris, these apps are to be optimized for touchscreen environments and have smaller scope in relation to desktop applications. Apps can run either in a full-screen mode, or be docked directly to the side of a screen.[66] They can provide notifications and a "live tile" on the Start screen for dynamic content. Apps can use "contracts"; a collection of hooks to provide common functionality that can integrate with other apps, such as search and sharing. [66] Apps can also provide integration with other services; for example, the People app can connect to a variety of different social networks and services (such as Facebook), while the Photos app can aggregate photos from services such as Facebook and Flickr.[63] Windows Store apps run within a new set of APIs known as the Windows Runtime, which supports programming languages such as C, C++, VB.NET, C#, along with HTML5 and JavaScript.[66] Depending on the language used, apps written for Windows Runtime can be cross-compatible with both Intel and ARM versions of Windows.[67] To ensure stability and security, apps run within a sandboxed environment, and require permissions to access certain functionality, such as accessing the Internet or a camera.[68] Retail versions of Windows 8 will only be able to install these apps through the Windows Store a namesake distribution platform which offers both apps and certified desktop applications. Only the Enterprise version will allow system administrators to deploy apps from outside the Windows Store. Windows Store apps were originally known as "Metro-style apps" during the development of Windows 8, referring to the Metro design language. The term was reportedly phased out in August 2012; a Microsoft spokesperson denied rumors that the change was related to a potential trademark issue, and stated that "Metro" was only a codename that would be phased out prior to Windows 8's release.[70] Following these reports, the terms "Modern UI-style apps",[71] "Windows 8-style apps"[72] and "Windows Store apps" began to be used by various Microsoft documents and material to refer to the new apps. In an interview on September 12, 2012, Soma Somasegar (vice president of Microsoft's development software division) officially confirmed that "Windows Store apps" would be the official term for the apps.

Web browsers
Special exceptions are given to web browsers classified as being "New experience enabled" (formerly "Metro-style enabled"), which can provide a special version to run within the "Metro" shell. Unlike other apps, they can be coded using Win32 code instead of WinRT (allowing the reuse of code from their desktop versions), permanently run in the background, use multiple background processes, and are distributed with desktop web browsers rather than through the Windows Store. Despite these looser restrictions, they can still take advantage of features typically reserved for Windows Store apps, such as the use of contracts to link to other apps. However, only the user's default web browser can be used in this setting. The developers of both Chrome and Firefox both committed to developing versions of their browsers to run in the app environment; while Chrome's app simply backports the existing desktop interface, Firefox's (which is currently available in development versions) uses a touchoptimized interface inspired by the mobile version of Firefox.

Interface and desktop

Windows 8 introduces significant changes to the operating system's user interface, many of which are centered towards improving its experience on tablet computers and other touchscreen devices. The new user interface is based on Microsoft's Metro design language, and features a new tile-based Start screen similar to that of Windows Phone, which has replaced the previous Start menu entirely. The Start screen displays a customizable array of tiles linking to various apps and desktop programs, some of which can display constantly updated information and content through "live tiles".[66] As a form of multi-tasking, apps can be snapped to the side of a screen.[66] A vertical toolbar known as the charms bar (accessed by swiping from the right edge of a touchscreen, or pointing the cursor at hotspots in the right corners of a screen) provides access to system and app-related functions, such as search, sharing, device management, settings, and a Start button. The traditional desktop environment for running desktop applications is accessed via a tile on the new Start screen. The Start button on the taskbar has been removed in favor of the Start button on the charms bar and a hotspot in the lower-left corner of the screen.[78][79] Swiping from the left edge of a touchscreen or clicking in the top-left corner of the screen allows one to switch between apps and the Desktop. Pointing the cursor in the top-left corner of the screen and moving down reveals a thumbnail list of active apps.[79] Aside from the removal of the Start button, the desktop on Windows 8 is similar to that of Windows 7, except that the Aero Glass theme has been replaced by a flatter, solid-colored design inspired by the Metro interface.

Hardware requirements
PCs
The minimum system requirements for Windows 8 are slightly higher than those of Windows 7. Notably, Windows 8 now requires that a system's CPU support certain hardware features, specifically the PAE, NX bit, and SSE2. Windows Store apps require a screen resolution of 1024x768 or higher to run, while a screen resolution of 1366x768 or higher is required in order to use the snapping functionality for apps.[92] To receive logo certification, Microsoft requires that an x86 system resume from standby in 2 seconds or less.

Tablets and convertibles

Microsoft released minimum hardware requirements for new tablet and convertible devices designed for Windows 8, and defined a convertible form factor as a standalone device that combines the PC, display and rechargeable power source with a mechanically attached keyboard and pointing device in a single chassis. A convertible can be transformed into a tablet where the attached input devices are hidden or removed leaving the display as the only input mechanism.