Windows 8, it’s fair to say, did not make the kind of impression on users that Microsoft had hoped, and although the Windows 8.1 follow-up has been generally well received, it goes without mention that the preceding Windows 7 is considered by most to be the strongest release to date. It should come as very little surprise, then, that Windows 9 – or Windows 8.2 as we like to call it here – looks set to arrive next year in 2015, and according to a report by Paul Thurrott, we’ll be getting an official word on it at April’s BUILD 2014 dev conference.
In what will undoubtedly go down as a win for an overwhelming portion of Microsoft Windows users, the Redmond company is apparently looking to restore some of that Windows 7-esque user satisfaction, and although there will be some remnants of the Metro interface that the software maker has largely failed to push, familiarity and usability should prevail.
There’s no need to fix things that aren’t broken, as the saying almost goes, and after the calamitous Windows Vista – something that sends a chill down the spine of almost every Windows user – Microsoft seemed to finally get things right with Windows 7. The company’s desire to push things forward resulted in something of an alienation, with many left bamboozled by the new tiled interface of Windows 8, and although, with touch screen-enabled devices in its roster, the company had to make some changes, 2012’s release felt like too much, too soon.
Adoption rates of both Windows 8 and 8.1 have been far from exciting, and Microsoft knows it needs to change things up if it is to turn its fortunes around. According to the report, the company is looking to push Windows 9 / 8.2 out in early 2015, perhaps in April, with the announcement being made at this year’s BUILD conference. Considering that these big releases hit the scene around once every three years, this projected time frame could be right on the money.
As well as containing elements of the traditional desktop and the more contemporary Metro / Modern UI, Microsoft also plans to completely rethink and redesign Metro from the ground up. At this point, there’s very little else to tell with regards to specific features, but once BUILD comes around on the first week of April, we’ll hopefully learn a great deal more.
(Source: Winsupersite)
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