Windows 8 Wikipedia. Windows 8. A version of the Windows NT operating system. Developer. Microsoft. Windows 8 is a personal computer operating system developed by Microsoft as part of the Windows NT family of operating systems. Development of Windows 8 started. Source model. Closed source and shared source1Released tomanufacturing. August 1, 2. 01. 2 5 years ago 2. Generalavailability. October 2. 6, 2. 01. Update method. Windows Update, Windows Store, Windows Server Update Services. Platforms. IA 3. Kernel type. Hybrid. License. Trialware, Microsoft Software Assurance, MSDN subscription, Dream. Spark. Preceded by. Windows 7 2. 00. Succeeded by. Windows 8. Official websitewindows. Support status. Unsupported as of January 1. Windows 8. 1 in order to continue receiving updates and support. Windows 8 is a personal computeroperating system developed by Microsoft as part of the Windows NT family of operating systems. Development of Windows 8 started before the release of its predecessor, Windows 7, in 2. It was announced at CES 2. September 2. 01. 1 to May 2. The operating system was released to manufacturing on August 1, 2. October 2. 6, 2. 01. Foundation Licence Manual Pdf more. Windows 8 introduced major changes to the operating systems platform and user interface to improve its user experience on tablets, where Windows was now competing with mobile operating systems, including Android and i. OS. 6 In particular, these changes included a touch optimized Windows shell based on Microsofts Metrodesign language, the Start screen which displays programs and dynamically updated content on a grid of tiles, a new platform for developing apps with an emphasis on touchscreen input, integration with online services including the ability to synchronize apps and settings between devices, and Windows Store, an online store for downloading and purchasing new software. Windows 8 added support for USB 3. Advanced Format hard drives, near field communications, and cloud computing. Additional security features were introduced, such as built in antivirus software, integration with Microsoft Smart. Screenphishing filtering service and support for UEFI Secure Boot on supported devices with UEFI firmware, to prevent malware from infecting the boot process. Windows 8 was released to a mixed critical reception. Although reaction towards its performance improvements, security enhancements, and improved support for touchscreen devices was positive, the new user interface of the operating system was widely criticized for being potentially confusing and difficult to learn, especially when used with a keyboard and mouse instead of a touchscreen. Despite these shortcomings, 6. Windows 8 licenses were sold through January 2. OEMs for new PCs. On October 1. Microsoft released Windows 8. It addressed some aspects of Windows 8 that were criticized by reviewers and early adopters and incorporated additional improvements to various aspects of the operating system. Windows 8 was ultimately succeeded by Windows 1. July 2. 01. 5. Support for Windows 8 RTM ended on January 1. Microsoft lifecycle policies regarding service packs, Windows 8. Development historyeditEarly developmenteditWindows 8 development started before Windows 7 had shipped in 2. At the Consumer Electronics Show in January 2. Windows would add support for ARMsystem on chips alongside the existing x. AMD and Intel. Windows division president Steven Sinofsky demonstrated an early build of the port on prototype devices, while Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced the companys goal for Windows to be everywhere on every kind of device without compromise. Details also began to surface about a new application framework for Windows 8 codenamed Jupiter, which would be used to make immersive applications using XAML similarly to Windows Phone and Silverlight that could be distributed via a new packaging system and a rumored application store. Three milestone releases of Windows 8 leaked to the general public. Milestone 1, Build 7. April 1. 2, 2. 01. 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. However, its detailed build number reveals that the build was created on September 2. The leaked copy was Enterprise edition. The OS still reads as Windows 7. Milestone 2, Build 7. April 2. 5, 2. 01. The traditional Blue Screen of Death BSo. D was replaced by a new black screen, although this was later scrapped. This build introduced a new ribbon in Windows Explorer. Build 7. 95. 9, with minor changes but the first 6. May 1, 2. 01. 1. The Windows 7 logo was temporarily replaced with text displaying Microsoft Confidential. On June 1. 7, 2. 01. 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 although the final version comes with smaller circling dots throbber. It also had the text Welcome below them, although this was also scrapped. On June 1, 2. 01. Microsoft unveiled Windows 8s new user interface, as well as additional features at both Computex Taipei and the D9 All Things Digital conference in California. The Building Windows 8 blog launched on August 1. Windows 8s features and its development process. Previewsedit. A screenshot of Windows 8 Developer Preview running on a multi monitor system, showcasing some features. Microsoft unveiled more Windows 8 features and improvements on the first day of the Build conference on September 1. Microsoft released the first public beta build of Windows 8, Windows Developer Preview build 8. A Samsung tablet running the build was also distributed to conference attendees. The build was released for download later in the day in standard 3. SDKs and developer tools Visual Studio Express and Expression Blend for developing Metro style apps. The Windows Store was announced during the presentation, but was not available in this build. According to Microsoft, there were about 5. Originally set to expire on March 1. February 2. 01. 2 the Developer Previews expiry date was changed to January 1. The new File Explorer interface with Ribbon in Windows 8. On February 1. 9, 2. Microsoft unveiled a new logo to be adopted for Windows 8. Designed by Pentagram partner Paula Scher, the Windows logo was changed to resemble a set of four window panes. Additionally, the entire logo is now rendered in a single solid color. On February 2. 9, 2. Microsoft released Windows 8 Consumer Preview, the beta version of Windows 8, build 8. Alongside other changes, the build removed the Start button from the taskbar for the first time since its debut on Windows 9. Windows manager Chaitanya Sareen, the Start button was removed to reflect their view that on Windows 8, the desktop was an app itself, and not the primary interface of the operating system. Windows president Steven Sinofsky said more than 1. The day after its release, Windows 8 Consumer Preview had been downloaded over one million times. Like the Developer Preview, the Consumer Preview expired on January 1. Many other builds were released until the Japans Developers Day conference, when Steven Sinofsky announced that Windows 8 Release Preview build 8. June. 3. 4 On May 2. Windows 8 Release Preview Standard Simplified Chinese x. China specific version, build 8. Chinese and Bit. Torrent websites. On May 3. 1, 2. 01. Windows 8 Release Preview was released to the public by Microsoft.