August 27, 2024 -

October 26, 2012 “ windows reimagined” also the only physical copy of windows that I have on DVD

October 26, 2021 -

Windows 8 was made available to the world on October 26, 2012 — nine years ago today.

The Windows 8 desktop

Windows 8 is a significant release that introduced a new development platform (referred to as the Windows Runtime, or WinRT) with features such as contracts, and a new interface based on a new design language alongside the Windows desktop, with an emphasis on touch-based user interaction; it is the first version of Windows where touch is regarded as a first-class citizen, where touch is melded with the desktop to create a single operating system based on distinct experiences and interfaces. Microsoft consistently described Windows 8 as the 'no compromise' operating system — one which was planned before the completion of Windows 7 as an operating system that would revisit fundamental, longstanding principles and ideas. Microsoft said it was 'Windows reimagined'.

We started planning Windows 8 during the summer of 2009 (before Windows 7 shipped). From the start, our approach has been to reimagine Windows, and to be open to revisiting even the most basic elements of the user model, the platform and APIs, and the architectures we support. Our goal was a no compromise design.

...

Windows 8 brings together all the power and flexibility you have in your PC today with the ability to immerse yourself in a Metro style experience. You don’t have to compromise!

Why not just start over from scratch? Why not just remove all of the desktop features and only ship the Metro experience? Why not “convert” everything to Metro? The arguments for a “clean slate” are well known, both for and against. We chose to take the approach of building a design without compromise.

...

We believe there is room for a more elegant, perhaps a more nuanced, approach. You get a beautiful, fast and fluid, Metro style interface and a huge variety of new apps to use. These applications have new attributes (a platform) that go well beyond the graphical styling (much to come on this at Build). As we showed, you get an amazing touch experience, and also one that works with mouse, trackpad, and keyboard. And if you want to stay permanently immersed in that Metro world, you will never see the desktop—we won’t even load it (literally the code will not be loaded) unless you explicitly choose to go there! This is Windows reimagined.

The Windows 8 Start screen

For the first time since Windows 95, Windows no longer had the Start menu — or even the Start button; instead, Windows 8 introduced the Start screen, an interface that represented applications as tiles (live tiles) which displayed dynamic information:

We designed the Windows 8 Start screen so you can create a connected dashboard that keeps you in touch with all the apps, activities, places, and people you care about. The news app shows the latest headlines, the weather app shows the forecast, an RSS app tells you what’s new, a social networking app displays your status, or a game can tell you when it is your turn—and when it isn’t.

Even content from within apps can be pinned to Start: people, mail folders, accounts, websites, books, albums, singers, movies, clients, sports teams, cities, etc. Everything you care about is efficiently available and up-to-date at all times. Tiles are the future and fit the way people look for fresh content in apps and websites. Just as yesterday's static highway signs telling you what you already know are being replaced by active and customizable message boards with road conditions, traffic alerts, and flexible lane usage, your PC should convey information that is current and up-to-date. Icons are yesterday’s way of representing apps.

The tooltip for the Start screen in Windows 8

The new Start screen was hidden by a tooltip; pressing and holding the desktop with a finger or hovering over the lower left hand corner with the mouse cursor caused the tooltip to appear. The tooltip was hidden in accordance with the new design language which emphasized content over chrome, removing interface elements and user interfaces in favor of content shown in applications.

The Charms bar in Windows 8

The new Charms bar, a right-hand interface hidden by default, replaced interface elements and created a consistent location for application commands and contracts for new Windows applications: Search, Share, Start, Devices, and Settings were always available regardless of the application in use. Similarly, a new application switcher separate from the taskbar on the Windows displayed open apps. Finally, a new app bar featured commands and replaced menus and ribbons of desktop applications.

Master diagram showing different methods of interaction in the new interface of Windows 8. Source: O’Reilly Media, Inc.

Users could sign in to Windows with their Microsoft accounts for the first time and roam settings across desktops, laptops, smart phones, and tablets. Consumers could finally experience one of the interesting and unique benefits of a Windows Server domain — but without a server, and in a home.

The prompt in Windows 8 to sign in to a Microsoft account

New applications in Windows 8 included Calendar, Camera, Mail, People, Photos. Notably, for the first time, Windows could natively use cameras — with a built-in application dedicated to taking photos and recording videos.

The Camera app is the first time Windows could natively use your PC's camera hardware The People app of Windows 8 revisited earlier ideas; the notion of consolidating and updating various contacts goes back to the WinFS days

Windows 8 introduced a new lock screen which shows the date and time, network status, and power status. It also features customizable backgrounds and customizable — yet optional — application notifications to alert users of items such as new instant messages, unread emails, and upcoming appointments. Previously, only Windows XP showed notifications of unread email when it was locked.

The new lock screen of Windows 8 showing the date and time, battery status, Wi-Fi status, and application notifications Historically, only Windows XP showed notifications when it was locked, but only for unread email

Of course, new applications such as those introduced in Windows 8 call for a new method of distribution. Windows 8 introduced the Windows Store, a repository for applications built on the new platform. This represented a completely different distribution method than those of previous versions of Windows, which most frequently required users to install applications from external websites. Users sign in to the Windows Store with a Microsoft account to make purchases and download applications.

The Windows Store in Windows 8

Despite being a nascent platform with few applications at launch, Windows 8 did provide features that were not available in offerings from competitors. Windows 8 introduced the ability to control the individual permissions of specific applications to access hardware or software resources such as cameras, microphones, and locations. Android did not have this capability until Marshmallow in 2015.

File transfers on the desktop in Windows 8

Although Windows 8 introduced a new experience, interface, paradigm, and platform, the desktop itself received a lot of attention in this release. An overhauled boot experience and a revised setup experience were introduced. The Ribbon was introduced in File Explorer (formerly Windows Explorer). File transfer conflict resolution dialog boxes were revised. File transfer operation dialog boxes were overhauled with enhanced progress details, heat maps, and the option to pause or resume file transfers. Task Manager was overhauled with advanced and simplified view modes, enhanced category separators, enhanced process details — you can now search online for details of unknown process names directly from Task Manager — heat maps, and improved process visibility on PCs with 64+ logical processors. ISO and VHD files could be mounted directly from within File Explorer.

Other new desktop features included enhanced CHKDSK, family safety, fast startup, File History, Microsoft SmartScreen, improved support for multiple monitors, ReFS, Storage Spaces, UEFI Secure Boot support, and Windows Defender as an anti-virus solution. Even the option to roam settings when signed in with a Microsoft account could sync desktop settings such as wallpapers (desktop wallpaper roaming is no longer available to users in Windows as of Windows 11).

Despite these benefits and changes, Windows 8 was not well received by consumers — a core audience — with the most common criticism being that the dichotomy between the two experiences and interfaces was confusing. Critics often regarded it as 'the next Windows Vista', but at least for a while, Microsoft regarded it as the next Windows 95, and it is the last time Microsoft dared to be bold.

November 28, 2024 -

Windows 8.1 is one of the most awesome and useful OS for both PC's and Tablets. It is basically a combination of Windows 7 and 10 but it is still great. The Start menu gives a modern look and the system sounds are very calm. Do you love Windows 8.1?

June 30, 2020 -

Hello all!

Just installed Windows 8.1 after a long time of using Windows 10 and 11.

SPECS:

CPU: 2500k

RAM: 8GB

GPU: GT 1030

SSD: MX500

1 - Make sure to install Open Shell to get rid of the Metro start menu ( GitHub - Open-Shell/Open-Shell-Menu: Classic Shell Reborn. )

2 - Update the system (officially supported until January 2023)

RAM usage? - way lower than Windows 11 ( Lr1pp8r.jpg (3840×2160) (imgur.com) )

CPU usage? - screenshot ( Lr1pp8r.jpg (3840×2160) (imgur.com)

BOOT time? - ~4 seconds

Overall snappiness - perfect!

This is just a great OS and I'm really stunned how fast it is.

For anyone who has never tried it, I really would like you to try it and see for yourself.

EDIT: The only drawback I see is that HW acceleration of VP9 video decoding is not available in 8.1.

January 20, 2025 -

I am just curious if anyone is still using Windows 8/8.1 in 2025 and what’s the experience like?

April 22, 2025 -

Fujitsu Lifebook A512
Satellite C50 A 16C
Compaq*
Doesn't have the Specifications underneath it*