Setting the record straight: watch this Windows 8 demo



Windows 8 CP nimble interface in action. Click to watch.

This Windows 8 Consumer Preview demo is definitely the most eloquent way to show what this OS can do and in the process counteract ungranted criticism, spread, as usual, by bloggers who either don't have taken the time to objectively review the product or are just jumping to conclusions based on the endless anecdotal information that circulates in the Web. This demo is presented by Jensen Harris, Director of Program Management for Windows User Experience. Whether you have already installed the CP or not, watch this show-and-tell video which will put a lot of misinformation to rest without even trying.

Two ways of shutting down Windows 8 CP

Normally, in Windows 7, to shutdown the computer, one selects the Start button and then clicks on the shutdown button, or, if using the keyboard, WinKey, right-arrow key, Enter. In Windows 8 Consumer Preview there are two basic ways of doing it, depending on the display mode. 1) In Metro UI mode, click on the right-bottom corner of the screen to get the "charms", the core functionality icons of Windows 8: Search, Share, Start, Devices and Settings. Click on the latter, then on "Power" and, finally, select "Shutdown". 2) In Desktop mode, touch the taskbar or anywhere on a clear spot on the Desktop (this action will give the "focus" to the operating system). Then, press ALT+F4 (a key combination since the times of Windows 95!) to see the dialog box shown here, where one of the choices is "Shut down". Select and press Enter or click on OK.

What do you need the Start button for?

A number of users of the Consumer Preview keep complaining about the absence of the Start button (which is no more than a bunch of shortcuts). In my experience I have noticed time and again that not everybody knows about the Windows Key —or WinKey, or Win-key— a magic key that among other things serves as a substitute for a mouse click on the Start button. However, there is, indeed, another cool way of accessing applications while you are in the Metro UI mode. You simply start typing and the "Apps" menu will pop up on the right hand side of the screen (as shown here). Here, for the Calculator you just type "c" and all the applications that start with that letter will show up on the left side of the screen; then, just click on the desired application which, in turn, will open up in (traditional) Desktop mode (and if you want to go back to Metro UI, press WinKey again). This is more or less tantamount to using the Start button and then start typing and, as you can see, you have three types of searches: Apps, Settings and Files. There, the functionality of the Star button still there, and then some. Read also the Windows 8 Keyboard Shortcut keys combinations  and this excellent article about Windows 7, to learn about these cool keyboard shortcuts which play well for both operating systems.

Windows 8 Consumer Preview up and running!

On the first day of the third month of 2012, in a beautiful New York winter afternoon (there are those too) I downloaded the ISO image, burned a CD and installed in a separate partition my new tech playground: Windows 8 Consumer Preview. Like a kid in a candy store I felt as though that simple experience justifies the name of this blog. What I've seen so far makes me think how biased and prejudiced a number of bloggers and their readers are in assuming that the Metro interface is a substitute of the traditional Desktop and making a fuss over a non-issue. On the contrary, Windows 8 has both and you can switch between them to your heart's content. Using the Windows Key (yes, that key to the left of the ALT key with the logo) you simply press it as a toggle key. However, initially, when the OS has just loaded (which, by the way, takes less than 30 seconds), in order to get the Desktop, you need to press press WinKey + E (Explorer). In general, all the keyboard shortcuts remain; for instance: WinKey + D (Desktop, to clear it), WinKey + F (Find, to search), WinKey + R (Run, to start programs: control, notepad, wordpad, cmd, etc.). And I am not even talking about the all new touch interface, which makes it a new Windows for new devices. Take a peek to all you, consumer, developer, artist, you name it, can do. Oh, the possibilities...