Long after Donald Rumsfeld has died, he will be known (sic) for one of the worst quotes ever:

There are known knowns. These are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say, there are things that we know we don’t know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we don’t know we don’t know.

Now although information about Windows 8 will eventually become available, rather than the lack of information to this day about WMDs, Windows 8 details still remain sketchy.  Here are Windows 8’s Known Knowns:

1. It will be called Windows 8 and there’s even a Windows 9 in the pipeline
2. It will be released no earlier than 2012 – it is unlikely it will be released in 2011
3. It will have new networking features
4. It will include 128 bit support and will see the end of 32 bit Operating Systems
5. It won’t be Microsoft’s last client based OS - Steve Ballmer says that won’t happen for 10-20 years.

Hopefully soon we will unravel Windows 8’s known unknowns and unknown unknowns!

Related posts:

1. Windows 8 Will Have New Networking Features
2. Microsoft Hiring For Windows 8
3. Windows 8 Feature Wishlist

To celebrate the launch of Windows 7 and (hopefully) the start of some news from Microsoft on Windows 8, Windows 7 Themes have pulled together a mega pack of 1250 Windows 8 Wallpapers:

The wallpaper package includes a lot of different wallpapers: dual-screen, panorama (ultra-wide wallpaper), firefox, mac, windows vista and 7, cars, nature, underwater scenes, gaming, 3D, CG, sexy babes, etc.

1250 Windows 8 Wallpapers takes up quite a lot of filespace, so the authors have pulled together a torrent to make it easier to download the wallpapers.

More: Wallpaper Download Link

Related posts:

1. (Unofficial) Windows 8 Wallpapers
2. Windows 8 Transformation Pack

Have you visited the Windows 8 Forum?  If not, then maybe you should today.  There are nearly 4,000 active users in the forum that we share with our sister site Windows 7 News, and a number of Windows 8 posts and rumours are starting to appear.

Register Now!

Related posts:

1. Welcome To Windows 8 News!
2. Design A New Logo For Windows 8 News And Win $200

Who could have imagined over even the last ten years that the PC, a business device, would be welcomed with such open arms into the home.  That huge sections of our living rooms and spare bedrooms would be devoted to huge beige, then black, boxes.

Windows 8 is due in beta 2011 for release in 2012.  This will mark 30 years of the home computer revolution of the ZX81, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64 and BBC Micro.  Three whole decades since Sir Clive Sinclair launched the ZX81 to such huge acclaim.  His previous home computer, the ZX80, had failed to make inroads in the home, but the £99 ZX81 was remarkable for its time.  It was the first home computer to be widely available on the high street, and the first computer that households could actually afford, with an Apple II or IBM PC costing around £2,500.

I remember fondly getting my first ZX81 and I consider myself very privileged to have been born when I was, and to have been growing up through the most exciting part of the home computer revolution.

I had initially wanted a colouring book but my parents had seen the ‘educational value’ of the Sinclair machine and were determined I was getting one.  I remember vividly the trip to WH Smith that resulted in a very bemused few days for me while I tried to come to terms with what this thing was.  Once I had it though I was hooked!

Back then you joined a camp and developed a loyalty that seemed to take on a life of its own.  If you were serious about computing you were in one of three.  Either Sinclair, Commodore or Acorn (BBC).  The Sinclair fans were the the fun people who enjoyed life on a shoestring and, at least publicly, considered the machine’s foibles endearing, even if we were all privately fuming that it took 45 minutes to load a game of Horace Goes Skiing.

The Commodore people had more money and, thus, a proper keyboard.  They clearly had the better machine but the Sinclair crowd would never let them win that argument.  The BBC crowd were the ones you knew would end up doing advanced degrees at University.  That was the way it was back then.

I was firmly in the Sinclair camp.  After my ZX81 I owned a Speccy, a Speccy+2 and a Sinclair QL.  I am one of a great many people who consider the ZX Spectrum to be one of the finest computers ever created.  It brought about the home computer revolution pretty much on its own and, consequently, was copied right around the globe.

It wasn’t until Amstrad came in with more of a business focus did things begin to change.  The Spectrum and Commodore 64 had given birth to the first generation of dedicated games consoles and that left the market open for something more serious.  Back then everybody was still talking about the paperless office, a concept we’d never really trust these days, and Amstrad brought to market products to help small businesses and individuals become more productive at home and at work.  They lit the way and showed the likes of Dell and Compaq how to produce mass-market PCs for under £500.  It was at this time that Compaq created a compatible clone BIOS for the IBM PC.  From that moment on the home computer revolution was over!

It had lasted only five short years but they were a truly exciting time.

So just how the hell does my personal nostalgia trip fit in with Windows 8 I hear you ask?  It’s actually Windows XP that started the ball rolling with this but Windows Vista and Windows 7 have both grasped the bull by both horns and Windows 8 will, I think, complete the picture.

This is the excitement we feel about how it works and operates and how we interact with the next version of Windows.  After the first PC clones began to appear we became bogged down with performance.  The important thing was the next development in technology and not the operating system itself.  Windows 95 got tongues wagging, but all too quickly the excitement died down to be replaced again by talk of the next big hardware revolution.  Finally we have OS interfaces that excite and engage people on a daily basis and that can actually maintain that level of enthusiasm.  The fact that modern hardware has for a few years now provided all that we need has obviously helped this conversation to flourish.

This revolution really started, nay exploded, in 1982 with the ZX Spectrum, BBC Micro and Commodore 64 changing the face of childhood forever.  The clones came flooding in, everyone with their own ideas.  Innovation and excitement were the order of the day and you couldn’t go anywhere or speak to anyone without the home computing revolution coming into the conversation.

It makes me remember spending Saturday mornings in my local high street electronics shops.  There were always large crowds of kids gathered around the computers.  We’d compare the different interfaces and the way the machines operated.  Each one brought something exciting to the mix but it was never the hardware that excited us.  Okay so the keyboard had a thing or two to contribute.  You either loved or hated the squidgy keys of the Speccy and most people hated the blister’inducing keyboard of the Oric 1, even though the machine itself really impressed.  Generally though it was how we interacted with the machines that made them successful or reduced their developers to tears when the receivers were called in.

Back then this was essential because, in order to own one of these machines, you had to program it yourself.  The user interface as everything.  This is where the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64 and BBC Micro excelled.  All three had interfaces that people could actually use.

You have to have been born during a few short years in the late 1960s and early 1970s to appreciate the magic of that time.  It was truly, the most exciting period of my childhood, and something that no child born before or since will ever be able to share.

This is something we take for granted now on modern PCs.  But it’s still not always that way.  Windows 7 may offer great leaps forward in how we interact with our PCs, but any trained eye will be able to point out all the places it fails.

I can only hope, and look forward, to the way we interact with Windows 8, whatever it is, causing enough excitement to commemorate this 30th anniversary appropriately.

Related posts:

1. Windows 8 to support 32, 64 or 128-bit?

Recently there have been rumours that the next version of Windows will move the whole platform completely over to 128-bit architecture, dumping 32 and 64-bit compatibility completely.

This first came about because of a news story broken by Microsoft Kitchen a few days ago in which Robert Morgan, a senior research and development officer at Microsoft posted the following on his LinkedIn profile.

Experience
Senior Research & Development
Microsoft
Public Company; MSFT; Computer Software industry

January 2002 – Present (7 years 10 months)

Working in high security department for research and development involving strategic planning for medium and long-term projects. Research & Development projects including 128bit architecture compatibility with the Windows 8 kernel and Windows 9 project plan. Forming relationships with major partners: Intel, AMD, HP and IBM.

Since then the sweaty masses have, frankly let their imaginations run away with themselves so I thought we needed to look at the situation more objectively, fact by fact.

It’s true that AMD and Intel are working on 128-bit chips, this is something that’s been out there for a while now.  But Windows 8 can’t possibly be 128-bit only.  The reasons for this are as follows.

Windows 7 is still, sadly, saddled with 32-bit compatibility.  This is despite the fact that almost every modern processor supports true 64-bit computing.  This is purely to maintain compatibility with older software (primarily in Microsoft’s most important market, business).  XP Mode, the virtualisation plug-in that allows you to run older software in a licensed copy of XP, goes some way towards addressing this and many people are hoping that 32-bit support will be dropped from Windows 8 completely.  Sadly though, it can’t happen.

This is because in order for XP Mode to work you need hardware virtualisation support on the motherboard and nowhere near enough motherboards yet support this.  By the time Windows 8 comes out it’s possible that all motherboards will, but Microsoft have to get started on Windows 8 code now, and they can’t guarantee this will happen.

It is for exactly the same reasons why Windows 8 can never be 128-bit only.  By the time the technology is mature enough Windows 8 will be ready to launch but the cost of the chips will still be extremely expensive.  They will, I predict, only be used in server farms for hard-core virtualisation tasks on servers.

It’s much more likely that Windows 8 Server will offer full support for 128-bit architecture and that the feature will then be ported to the business and consumer editions of Windows for Windows 9.

The move to 128-bit in itself isn’t such a big job, but it becomes a nightmare when you consider that you also have to maintain compatibility with 32-bit applications.  I can’t foresee a situation where we can have an operating system that supports 32, 64 and 128-bit code simultaneously while still remaining stable.  The only reason that Windows 8 Server could support it is because the 32-bit legacy support has already been dropped from Windows 7 Server.

For all the people who want to see 128-bit support in Windows 8, forget it.  Frankly you wouldn’t get any benefit from it at all anyway.  No software will be written to support it for years to come, full 64-bit support in software is only beginning to appear now, and it will offer the average user or gamer no additional benefits over the 64-bit architecture you already have.

Unless and until the whole computing experience we use in our daily lives demands a move to such technology, it will remain in the server farms of the future.

Related posts:

1. Windows 8 To Be 128 Bit?
2. Microsoft Hiring For Windows 8
3. Windows 8 To Launch In 2012?
4. Windows 8 Feature Wishlist
5. Unofficial Windows 8 Concept Video

Windows 7 when it launched on October 22nd will include versions for both 32 bit and 64 bit users.  It’s successor Windows 8 expected in 2011 was expected to only come in a 64 bit version, because Windows Server 2008 R2 was released in 64 bit form only and the next Windows OS was expected to follow suit.

However it is now believed that Windows 8 might ship in 64bit AND 128 bit versions, based on the linkedin profile of Microsoft employee Robert Morgan:

Working in high security department for research and development involving strategic planning for medium and longterm projects. Research & Development projects including 128bit architecture compatibility with the Windows 8 kernel and Windows 9 project plan. Forming relationships with major partners: Intel, AMD, HP, and IBM.

Robert Morgan is working to get IA-128 working backwards with full binary compatibility on the existing IA-64 instructions in the hardware simulation to work for Windows 8 and definitely Windows 9.

Whether or not Windows 8 will support 128bit remains to be seen, but at this stage Microsoft are at least considering it.  I’m not sure how likely this will be though; 64 bit adoption is still low and although this will increase by 2011 I just fear that adding 128bit to Windows 8 will create a poor customer experience like Vista 64 bit, where driver availability was poor.

Eight Forums have manged to track down Robert via linkedin and they claim that he’s agreed to give them an interview  and he’s letting their readers ask questions.  Questions have to be submitted by October 11th.  If he really has agreed to do the interview, I’d be amazed if he still had a job at Microsoft on October 12th as news on Windows 8 is clearly embargoed at the moment.

Related posts:

1. Windows 8 to support 32, 64 or 128-bit?
2. Windows 8 Will Have New Networking Features
3. Why Windows 8?
4. Microsoft Hiring For Windows 8

There’s been no sign of any official news or Windows 8 media, but that hasn’t stopped talented designers pulling together their own.  Rajesh Patel has created six Windows 8 Wallpapers that are available for download:

[View with PicLens]

More: Tweaking Windows

Related posts:

1. Download 1250 Windows 8 Wallpapers
2. Unofficial Windows 8 Concept Video

There have been a number of fake Windows 8 leaks over the last couple of weeks, most of them probably packed with viruses and spyware which I’d advise readers to steer well clear off.  As soon as a verified leak appears, you will hear about it first on this site.

My money is on a Windows 8 leak appearing in November after Windows 7 has been launched.

Windows 7 isn’t out the door yet, but Microsoft seem to be making good progress with Windows 8.  A roadmap slide from Microsoft’s Italian subsidiary has Windows 8 penciled in for a 2012 release:

Note though that Windows 8 is down as approximately 2012.  Even still, it looks like Microsoft are sticking to their 2.5-3 year release cycle, with Windows Vista launching Jan 2007 (it was late), Windows 7 in October 2009 and Windows 8 in 2012.

Windows 8 is also denoted as ‘codemane Windows 8′ – does this mean that ‘Windows 8‘ will not be called Windows 8?

I’m expecting big things from Windows 8.  Although Windows 7 is a great release and adds several much needed improvements to Windows Vista, it’s still too familiar for me and doesn’t feel ‘new’ enough and I’m looking forward to getting a new OS to get my teeth into!

Related posts:

1. Windows 7 One Step Closer To Launch
2. Windows 8 Feature Wishlist
3. Why Windows 8?

Windows 8’s name was chosen because it will be the 8th version of Windows. Double-checking this isn’t as easy as you may think and trips up many people. Here are the Windows versions that preceded Windows 8:

1. Windows 1.0
2. Windows 2.0
3. Windows 3.0
4. Windows 95 (Windows 4.0)
5. Windows 2000 (Windows 5.0)
6. Windows Vista (Windows 6.0)
7. Windows 7 – Launching October 22nd 2009
8. Windows 8!

Now, some of you who are paying attention will notice that Windows NT, Windows 98, Windows 98 SE and Windows Millennium. This is because:

• Windows NT was actually treated asw Windows 3.1
• Windows 98, 98SE and Windows Millennium shipped as 4.0.1998, 4.10.2222, and 4.90.3000

Now, to make matters even more confusing Microsoft have versioned Windows 7 as Windows 6.1. However, they are still treating it as ‘Windows 7′ because of the significance of the release.

There you go – hope that makes sense now!

Related posts:

1. Windows 8 To Launch In 2012?
2. Windows 8 Will Have New Networking Features

We have our first set of Windows 8 Wallpapers! The Windows 8 Transformation Pack is from the same team who pulled together some of the early Windows 7 Wallpapers.

Within the pack are are Windows 8 Wallpapers and Windows 8 Login Screen backgrounds.

More: Windows 8 Transformation Pack

Related posts:

1. Download 1250 Windows 8 Wallpapers

You only have 2 days left to enter the $200 competition to design a new logo for Windows 7 News and Windows 8 News.  There’s 2 days left to go and we need to pick a winner from the 190 entries so far.

Because there have been so many entries we need your help selecting a winner.  Some of the entries are pretty awful, but some have potential.  I’ve added some of my favourites below, but all of the entries can be seen at logomyway.  If you’re a budding designer there’s still time to enter.

[View with PicLens]

1234...8910►

Related posts:

1. Design A New Logo For Windows 8 News And Win $200
2. Windows 8 will mark 30 years since the home computer revolution
3. Why Windows 8?

Eagle eyed Stephen over at techwoo spotted the following in the LinkedIn profile of a Microsoft PM, which seems to indicate that Windows 8 will have some new networking features:

Evaluating and collating technical and business requirements for developing new networking features in Windows 8.

Designing features, functional specification and prototype for Windows 8.

I can only hope that Microsoft improve Windows 7’s HomeGroup capabilities, which mean well, but don’t quit deliver for me.

Related posts:

1. Windows 8’s Known Knowns
2. Microsoft Hiring For Windows 8
3. Why Windows 8?
4. Windows 8 Feature Wishlist

The following video was not created by Microsoft, but by a UI team in Copenhagen.  It nevertheless still shows some amazing new user experience features that would really make Windows 8 an amazing advance in the Windows series.

Check it out below!

Copenhagen User Experience from Copenhagen Concept.

Related posts:

1. (Unofficial) Windows 8 Wallpapers
2. Windows 8 to support 32, 64 or 128-bit?
3. Design A New Logo For Windows 8 News And Win $200
4. Why Windows 8?

To celebrate the launch of Windows 8 News we’ve decided to run another competition! We need two logos, one for Windows 7 News and one for Windows 8 News, that will look amazing in the header and also as a thumbnail image. The competition offers any budding designers not only an opportunity to win $200, but to also display their talents to a large base of users, as all entries will be displayed on the site because readers will choose the best logo and the winner.

Rules:

1. No limit to the number of entries
2. Entries to be submitted via logomyway
3. Thumbnail logo must be 120×120
4. Main logo must be no bigger than 250 x105
5. Must work on white background
6. Decision of the editors will be final

If you’re not a designer, then don’t forget you’ve still got a week to enter our competition to win a funky $200 beanbag.

Related posts:

1. $200 Logo Competition Ends In 2 Days
2. Welcome To Windows 8 News!
3. Join Windows 8 Forum Today For More News
4. Windows 8 To Be 128 Bit?

Microsoft will start taking pre-orders tomorrow for Windows 7. Users who place Pre-orders for Windows 7 before the end of the special offer could save up to $100 off the full list price.

If you live in the US, Canada or Japan you can now pre-order Windows 7 for a limited time, so hurry and place your order now to save up to $100:

• Windows 7 Home Premium: Usually $120 now $50 for a limited time
  
• Windows 7 Professional: Usually $200 now $100 for a limited time

As Windows 7 ’s launch on October 22nd draws nearer, all eyes will start turning to the next development release, Windows 8.  Don’t worry, we’ll keep you up to date with all the latest Windows 8 news and rumours right here on this site.

Related posts:

1. Windows 8 To Launch In 2012?
2. Why Windows 8?

Although Microsoft don’t intend to make a big splash when launching Windows 7, it will probably be Microsoft’s finest release yet if the feedback from testers and readers on our sister site Windows 7 News is anything to go by.

There’s still plenty of room for improvement in Windows 8.  Mike from the Windows 7 News editorial team has published a series of posts detailing what he’d like to see in Windows 8:

• Looking Forward To Windows 8 Part I
• Looking Forward To Windows 8 Part II
• Looking Forward To Windows 8 Part III
• Looking Forward To Windows 8 Part IV

Features Mike would like to see improved in Windows 8 include a better explorer, improved libraries and game support.  Personally I would like to see more options for organising multiple windows.  Aero Peek helps, but I don’t want to go over to the sidebar everytime I want to locate one of the many windows I have open.  There has to be a better solution that ALT+TAB and Aero Peek.

What features would you like to see in Windows 8?

Related posts:

1. Windows 8 will mark 30 years since the home computer revolution
2. Windows 8 To Launch In 2012?

Windows 7 is almost complete and due to be launched on October 22nd, and Microsoft are already turning their attention to creating Windows 8.  To some this may seem premature, but putting together a new OS takes a considerable amount of work and much longer than the 3 years gap between Windows releases.

A recent  job posting on the Microsoft job site gives some hints as to what we can expect in Windows 8:

For the upcoming version of Windows, new critical features are being worked on including cluster support and support for one way replication. The core engine is also being reworked to provide dramatic performance improvements. We will also soon be starting major improvements for Windows 8 where we will be including innovative features which will revolutionize file access in branch offices

We are looking for a strong lead who has the right blend of technical passion, leadership skills and testing experience. From a technical standpoint, we are looking for a candidate having an understanding of and a passion for large scale distributed systems. From a leadership point of view, you will need to be able to build the vision for the team, work with your development and PM counterparts on engineering excellence and effectively drive the quality of the component. In terms of testing experience, the ability to define and deliver test solutions affecting all release criteria (functionality, scalability, performance, stress, longhaul, security, etc.) is a must.

As more details of Windows 8 features become available, you’ll find them first on this site.

Related posts:

1. Windows 8 to support 32, 64 or 128-bit?
2. Windows 8 Will Have New Networking Features
3. Windows 8’s Known Knowns
4. Windows 8 To Be 128 Bit?

Dedicated to bringing you all the news & rumours about Microsoft’s new operating system Windows 8, which will replace Windows 7 in 2012/13. New to the site? Check out the Windows 8 FAQ. We also recommend:

• The Archives to search all posts, checking out the latest Windows 8 Screenshots, Windows 8 Wallpapers & Windows 8 Videos
• Visiting our sister site, for the latest Windows 7 News

Need help with Windows 7? Then join the Windows 7 & 8 Forum (over 3,500 members) for expert advice.