Microsoft's biggest mistake was naming the "Surface RT". First off, "RT" is meaningless and second it shares the name with the Surface Pro which is a completely different product. It also compounded the problem that they released the RT and Pro at different times which added fuel for all the naysayers who (mostly unjustifiably) hated the RT. The RT is a great product but Microsoft did a horrible job of communicating that it's primary competitor was an iPad. Everyone complained you can't install software on the RT but nobody complains you can't do that on an iPad. Threshold will be key if Microsoft can get meaningful convergence between each platform (XBOX, x86, RT and Phone). It's something that Google can't touch right now and Apple doesn't have either.
RT has seen a resurgence thanks to Windows 8.1. Truthfully the first Surface RT (and other RT devices) didn't run all that well with Windows 8, and the fact that they initially limited flash to only approved sites was the wrong move. Windows 8.1 changed all of that though, and Surface RT devices run like a dream on 8.1. The sales of Surface 2 (and especially Surface 2 Pro) have been very strong. The climb with the Surface devices will be a lot like Windows Phone, they are coming in to the game several years late so getting forward momentum has taken some time, but they are rolling now. Just like with Windows Phone, everyone I know with a Surface (RT, 2, Pro or Pro 2) loves it. Even if they don't quite have Apple scared, they know they are on track to get to that point within 2-3 years. As I stated earlier, RT (or at least the concept of sandboxed apps featured in RT) is the future of Windows. Once the consumers know the difference and understand the forward vision, it'll make more sense. I'm interested in hearing more about Threshold at Build, because I think they've learned their lesson on market confusion. The latest Surface, Windows 8 and Windows Phone apps are a tremendous improvement over initial ads (like those damn dancing ads).
Any resurgence is mostly due to people finally understanding the difference between Surface 2 and Pro. When I say "people", I mostly mean online critics who have stopped bashing Microsoft for putting out a product that doesn't run PhotoShop or PC games. It also helps that Instagram has published an official app. The general consumer has no idea what a sandboxes app is nor do they care.
On a desktop/laptop computer I find sandbox apps annoying as hell. Hassle with zero advantage. Makes sense on the phone or tablet.
They have tremendous advantages, mainly with things like power consumption, resource usage, security and various other aspects. When you use a "modern" app on Windows 8, if it isn't in the foreground, it is "tombstoned" and thus saving your battery when on a laptop by not utilizing resources it doesn't need running in the background. Not on a laptop? That tombstoned app also isn't eating up unneeded resources affecting your other apps that are running like games or Photoshop, or other resource intensive applications. As far as security goes, each app that is published to the app store is thoroughly checked to make sure it passes more than a hundred verification checks to make sure that it won't crash machines, that it works across countless devices and resolutions. They are also checked to make sure malicious or backdoor code isn't in place, and on and on. Tombstoned apps have countless advantages. Power savings is just one of them. AnandTech did a breakdown of the comparing Netflix running on Windows 7 to Netflix Running on Windows 8 and then running in the Windows 8 app. The app is able to deliver higher quality video, while saving 15 W of power consumption. http://www.anandtech.com/show/6674/...an-ivy-bridge-htpc-windows-8-madvr-and-more/3 Metro apps have an amazing SDK and are an extremely robust platform that insures app developers write the best apps they can. If they try to cut corners, their app fails the certification process. x86 apps have no checks and balances in place, and that has been a major issue since the dawn of the PC. Windows RT would end viruses, spyware and adware completely. And that alone should make it worth the pain it takes to adapt.
Didn't see this in the original article sorry if I missed it. http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/...2015-as-windows-8-tanking-20140114-30rlg.html Windows 9 slated for 2015 as Windows 8 'tanking' "Windows 8 is tanking harder than Microsoft is comfortable discussing in public, and the latest release, Windows 8.1, which is a substantial and free upgrade with major improvements over the original release, is in use on less than 25 million PCs at the moment," wrote Thurrott. Thurrott claimed Microsoft will release more details about its Windows-related plans at its Build developer conference in April this year. Of course, these plans could change. But it's almost certain that Microsoft isn't too happy with the adoption rate of Windows 8.1, which stood at just 3.6 percent this month.
Cybercrime (read viruses, spyware and adware) cost enterprises on average of $11.56 million per year (source). It costs untold billions to individuals. Viruses, Spyware and Adware are useless on Windows RT devices. The Windows core runs in a segregated sandbox while Windows 8 apps run in individual sandboxes. Like it or not, that is the future of computing.
Perhaps, but it seems somewhat silly to state - in an ever evolving landscape - the Surface (or it's sandboxing) is the death knell of spyware, viruses, etc.
Here is article publish today from TechRepublic describing much of what I'm talking about, the confusion about what RT means. "The reduced functionality of RT apps just makes it worse (nobody complains about this on an iPad). Customers are also confused over the difference between RT, Modern Apps, Windows Phone Windows 8.1, etc. Both Apple and Google have found the sweet spot for bringing consumer technologies to the work world..." http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/te...-windows-rt-vanishes-its-spirit-will-live-on/ Threshold will be key for Microsoft because it can re-address this perception problem (besides all the technical advances).
It would be death blow to the vast majority of them, and "script kiddies" and spam bot farms would be up a creek. Sure legacy machines would still be vulnerable, but as time goes on they'll be fewer and fewer. How many viruses does iOS have? Over 700 million iOS devices have been sold, the marketshare is there for virus and spyware writers to hit the jackpot, but they haven't because of the closed iOS platform. The same thing goes for Windows Phone and Windows RT. Windows RT segregates the OS core services from apps and limits app access to core services via extremely strict APIs. Those APIs are so strict, that a team of VLC engineers have been working over a year on a Windows 8 VLC app, and only with help directly from Microsoft have they gotten close to an approved app on Windows 8 x86 versions. They are still months, and maybe years away from a Windows RT version. TL;DR - Virus, Spyware and Adware writers focus on easy targets - Windows RT devices are far from easy targets.
Paul Thurott is the Woj of the Windows World. Great insight on trades and news, horrible and over-dramatic when it comes to editorials.
Put Mary Joe Foley on that list too. I used to listen to the Windows Weekly podcast on TWiT and would cringe for over an hour as both of them talk out of their asses. And since Leo LaPorte is an Apple/Google guy he'd never call them out on their bull****. Mary Jo is an "enterprise expert" yet has clearly never set foot inside of an enterprise environment.
Windows 8 licenses sold are equally on pace with Windows 7 at this point it it's release cycle. Thurrott was referring to Windows 8.1 patches in place since it was released, which is a bit strange... Windows users aren't know for keeping their machines up to date, especially since Windows 8.1 is an OPTIONAL install. Thurrott is known for being the Chicken Little of the Windows world, because he gets the fanboys like myself in an uproar to defend Microsoft - while getting the Microsoft haters "HA!HA!'ing." He makes a living creating non-controversies like many tech blogs. He even goes so far in taking the time to block every single person that calls him out on Twitter.
Please provide sources. Windows 8 is pretty bad in marketshare: http://www.zdnet.com/windows-8-continues-to-fail-7000016222/
Same site, but from the actual source (Microsoft), not a market research company... A research company that also had Apple ahead of Android. http://www.zdnet.com/microsoft-more-than-100-million-windows-8-licenses-sold-7000014957/ Meanwhile Gartner and IDC (the two most respect names in the business) say Windows 8 is showing resilience. Remember, when Windows 7 launched it wasn't worried about competition from tablets and smart phones - all computer makers are now. http://blogs.computerworld.com/wind...nes-amid-shrinking-pc-sales-apple-get-whacked The Surface 2 and Surface 2 Pro have also flown off of shelves while the Surface RT did as well at discounted prices. The market share numbers are there, and in three years Windows 8 will be at 350 million devices. Blogs can write about how terrible the numbers are, but that 300+ million devices isn't terrible.
I'm picking up what you're putting down, but eventually that will change. Technologies are continually evolving and today's security is tomorrow's weakness. Once upon a time the Mac platform was considered near bulletproof compared to the PC, but today there is greater focus on Macs (blame trend setters and a growth at the Enterprise level) and plenty of holes to be exploited as a result. The more popular RT becomes the more likely exploits will be found.
I don't understand how MJ is an expert at anything. She barely even has internet out in NY. Constantly the podcasts are stopped because she lost the connection, it's a joke. Leo is 2-faced. Around Paul and MJ he pretends he doesn't hate MS, then on any of his other podcasts he blasts them for the most mundane reasons. Windows Weekly is basically carried by Paul Thurott. Heck, I've been listening to more WPCentral over WW. We need a decent podcast about Windows, WP and Surface IMO.
The thing is, the reason tech enthusiasts are quick to dismiss Windows 8 is the pricing. Time and time again people say that even though Windows 8 is on the same pace as 7 was, the fact that it was offered so cheap (in some cases it was only $30) it should be far ahead of 7 at the same time points. They are also saying licenses sold does not equate to users present. Case in point, HP will buy x million licenses but that in no way means that x million Win8 users are present, in fact it is <= x million. There is some validity to this argument, but it isn't to the extent that tech writers would have us believe. The truth is somewhere in between all this...
