Windows 8

Microsoft’s release of its new Operating System, Windows 8 at the end of October marked a new era for Windows. Ever since Windows emerged with its Graphical User Interface, the general layout of the Operating System has been the same. There has been a traditional desktop for icons and shortcuts, a task bar at the bottom of the screen and a start button to access various functions of the computer.

Windows 8 completely redesigns the interface of the system by changing the Start button into a “Start Screen”. With this new approach, the Start screen consists of tiles much like most popular Smart Phones. Windows 8 is fully compatible and arguably most effective when used with touch screen devices. There is a slight learning curve for this new system. There are new gestures/swipes to learn and getting used to new placement of applications, programs and settings. Once these commands or tasks are picked up on, the operation of the system is very fluid and quick. When Windows 8 boots up, it opens to the Start interface but if you prefer it to resemble the previous versions of Windows, it takes purchasing an additional app to load directly to the desktop.

In addition to the new interface, there have been many performance upgrades and additional features added to it. In past versions of Windows, updates would be displayed when they became available or when the computer is being shut down. These updates would inevitably come at the worst times like in the middle of work being completed or any other time in which restarting the system would be a huge inconvenience. Windows 8 checks for these updates in the background and asks to install them at the login screen now.

After having used and tested the Windows 8 operating system, we are happy to share our experiences and opinions with you. Contact us if you have any questions!