It has been a while since the W8 Launch but the buzz has still not worn off. This is long overdue but I just wanted to list my thoughts down about what Windows 8 means to me.
It is quite easy to be enamoured by glamorous lights and a presentation. But Windows8 left an impact on my mind because this is where technology should head - Unification!
Before you scratch your head and say, "What?", allow me to explain.
If you are a techie then the term "Unified Communications" should not be new to you. If you are not, then this is a term where all communication to you can be seamlessly transferred without losses and in complete continuity without losing track or chain of thought because you have to change a device (this is the short version - it is actually a lot more complex - not complicated).
Well long before Unified Communication came into play, there was something known as the "three screens" - which was essentially - the TV, the Computer, and the Mobile Phone - this was a long time ago (read 8 odd years ago) when Mobiles started being smart.
Unified Communications wanted to bring a unification of communication across these three screens and so developed technology to make it happen. Which is why it was so complex.
When in reality it is not that difficult as I have been made to understand recently. This is because it is a matter of the applications you use and Microsoft understands this better than anyone given that it is in the OS business for a long time now. It did not or could not address it completely for whatever reason, but now it has.
Before I move on, let me just add that the "three screens" is now more like "four screens" with the addition of the tablet. Alright, moving on.
Microsoft launched Windows 8. Why is this so significant? They launch an OS almost every other year. This is significant from the point of view that there is now a Unification element being implemented across the four screens. They have been beaten to this by Apple, but let us face this fact, there are more general users of Windows than there are of Apple.
Windows 8 essentially brings the Unified aspect of productivity or just being to life through their SkyDrive and other cloud driven services. On the phone, they just launched amazing handsets with the HTC 8X and the Nokia Lumia 920; the tablets also feature Windows 8 - MS launched the Slate and Surface in addition to a lot of OEM devices from Asus, Acer, Sony and so on; the Computers also get Windows 8 although it works best on touch interface, it is still extremely awesome; and the TV through the XBox which now functions as much more than a gaming console with so many internet applications for music, movies and so on.
This is extremely appealing to me. This is why I am so happy that I was invited to the Windows 8 launch and could experience the software first hand, and try it's first version of Windows on the Go.
That is a whole different blog post now!
