Microsoft's next Lumia smartphone could be an Android.
While the two have previously released Android-powered devices, notably the Nokia X, the non-Windows Phone version of its flagship Lumia line would be a first for Nokia.
The new Lumia will supposedly be released under the Nokia by Microsoft brand, according to evleaks, which reported the rumor. The Twitter account, which has proved spot-on in past leaks, previously reported Microsoft would eventually rebrand all of Nokia's Windows Phone devices as "Nokia by Microsoft."
It's not clear whether the rumored handset would run a full version of Android or follow the same model as Nokia's X line, which are Android-powered but don't rely on Google services like the Play Store. Instead, the devices offer a selection popular Android apps through third-party app stores, along with the Nokia Store, similar to the approach Amazon took with its Android-powered Fire tablets.
The company recently added a new low-cost smartphone to the Nokia X lineup, the Nokia X2, slated to hit shelves later this month. Microsoft has used its Nokia X devices to lure feature phone owners in emerging markets.
Nokia was already one of Microsoft's closest partners for mobile when the Redmond-based company officially acquired Nokia's Devices and Services business in 2013 for $7.2 billion.
You can now add Zappos to the list of companies slowly making their way to Windows Phone.
The Las Vegas-based retailer launched its first Windows Phone app Tuesday. Zappos developed the app through a partnership with Microsoft.
Unlike some Windows Phone apps — such as the one recently launched for Pinterest — Zappos' app is a true native app, and not just a shortcut to its mobile site.
"Windows Phone doesn't have a lot of native apps," Aki Iida, Zappos' head of mobile, told. "When you build web apps, one of the main challenges that you have is you have to build the same experience for all devices. With native experience, you can build technology that allows you to make all the transitions much smoother and easier."
The Windows Phone app has the same basic functionality as Zappos' existing iOS and Android offerings, including free shipping on all orders placed through the app. However, it has fewer features overall. For example, the Windows Phone app doesn't allow users to initiate returns, track orders or manage their account information.
This highlights a much bigger problem with the Windows Phone platform. Companies are often reluctant to spend the time and resources developing native Windows Phone apps, and even when they do — as we've seen recently with Pinterest, Spotify and Instagram, which is still in beta more than a year after its launch — the apps are rarely on par with their iOS and Android counterparts.
China is banning the government's use of Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system, according to a notice posted on its website.
The Central Government Procurement Center is prohibiting government computers from installing Windows 8 or buying new devices with the software, Chinese news site Xinhua reports. The government posted the message announcing the change in policy late last week. The consumer Windows 8 market in China will not be affected.
Although details regarding the ban are vague, the government said it will only be purchasing energy-efficient IT products from now on, from desktop computers and laptops to tablets But the move is also said to protect computer security after Microsoft curtailed its support for Windows XP, which was largely used across the country.
Market firm StatCounter states that Windows XP systems make up 44% of desktops in China, while Windows 8 is only installed on 3.4% of computers.
The news comes as China emphasized to Microsoft that it should drop the price of its Windows products. Although Windows usage in China has been low, the Chinese government was a big customer for Microsoft.
Microsoft was reportedly surprised by the news. “We have been and will continue to provide Windows 7 to government customers,” the company said in an email, according to PCWorld. “At the same time, we are working on the Window 8 evaluation with relevant government agencies.”
Meanwhile, the company is gearing up for its "small" Surface event in New York City on Tuesday, when it will likely launch its first Mini tablet to compete against both Apple and Amazon's small-screen tablets.
Many of us pride ourselves on being able to text while walking or while out at a bar, but one teenager has the best brag of all — he is now officially the world’s fastest texter.
Using Fleksy, a keyboard app, Marcel Fernandes broke the old record and carved himself a place in history in the Guinness Book of World Records. And he did it while typing, not swiping.
Fernandes, a 16-year-old from Brazil, typed out a 25-word paragraph in 18.19 seconds on April 25. The previous record was set in January by Gaurav Sharma, a 15-year-old from Seattle. Sharma texted the same paragraph in 18.44 seconds using Microsoft’s newest Windows Phone 8.1 software, with the lauded Word Flow keyboard.
The paragraph both record-holders had to write is strange and longer than most of us ever write while texting:
The razor-toothed piranhas of the genera Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus are the most ferocious freshwater fish in the world. In reality they seldom attack a human.
Fernandes, despite being a teenager and avid smartphone user, doesn’t believe he’s addicted to texting.
“Since I was a child, I always loved phones, and still love smartphones today,” he told CNN. “But I don’t consider myself addicted to using smartphones, as I don’t spend all day using them.”
As for the founder and COO of Fleksy, Ioannis Verdelis couldn’t be happier.
“It was in our business plan from day one to get our technology to beat the record,” Verdelis told.
To try to beat the record, the company held a contest that asked users to test their texting capabilities against the old record. They received hundreds of entries and found Fernandes through the contest.
The company, which exited out of its beta version in both Android and iOS in December 2013 and February 2014 respectively, beat out Microsoft’s much-hyped Word Flow keyboard for the record. Released in late March, the Word Flow feature was one of the most exciting new features for Windows phones.
Word Flow isn’t the first to use swipes for texting; Swype, another keyboard app that lets users glide across letters to text, held a previous record for fastest texting. Back in 2010, Franklin Page, a Swype employee, managed to type the same paragraph in 33.54 seconds.
Unlike Word Flow or Swype, Fleksy still employs a keyboard — it just also uses an algorithm to autocorrect and guess a user’s next word. A user can also customize its appearance, like hiding the space bar on the keyboard.
Fleksy, along with its fastest user Fernandes, have shown that swiping isn’t always necessary for speed.
"Though we like swiping as an input method, the vision is to make an awesome keyboard that everyone can use," Verdelis said. "My parents know how to tap type. Now they can be fast smartphone typists too, without having to learn swiping or any other alternative input method."
In honor of beating the world record, the company released an update to its Android app, including a World Record Challenge contest. Over the next two weeks, users are being asked to beat Fernandes' world record. The top scorer receives a new Nexus 5 and the 10 runners-up receive a copy of the latest Guinness Book of World Records. The app is currently free for 45 days and available on Google Play.
Apart from a few words at its latest developer conference, Microsoft has been more or less silent on wearables so far, probably dreading comparisons to its failed Spot platform. But a patent suggests its wearable tech might be a larger part of its strategy moving forward.
The patent, which Microsoft filed in 2012 but was granted this week, is clearly for a kind of smartwatch. The accompanying diagrams and description reveal it will be a sensor-laden device capable of measuring a "biometric parameter" (i.e., heart rate). The illustration shows the watch displaying a simple interface for a generic fitness app that measures distance traveled.
As shown, the band is separate from the "computing device," which can be easily removed, similar in concept to the Sony Core life-logging gadget from CES, which was essentially a small sensor device that could be part of a wristband, brooch or something else.
However, Sony's device was more of a tracker, whereas Microsoft's is clearly more interactive, equipped with a "touch display" and communications interface (presumably to connect with a smartphone) to transfer the data it logs.
Microsoft plans to charge the device via a dock, similar to Samsung's Galaxy Gear. The illustrations show the display rotating 90 degrees while in the dock, which also functions as a stand. Even though it hasn't said much about wearables themselves, Microsoft recently launched an initiative called Windows on Devices, which adapts the company's software for the "Internet of Things" — getting products that normally don't run Windows (or any OS) to run Windows. The first software development kit (SDK) is due this spring.
It's definitely possible Microsoft is planning its own hardware offering to kick-start the platform, similar to what the company attempted with the Surface and Windows 8. There's no telling when a Microsoft smartwatch might debut, but given that an upcoming event will be focused on the Surface Mini, it would probably be fall at the earliest.
How scary is the latest Internet Explorer security vulnerability? Even the U.S. government says not to use IE until the browser is fixed.
The flaw, which affects Internet Explorer versions 6 and up, allows bad guys to gain complete access to a PC via a malicious website. Dubbed "Operation Clandestine Fox" by the security firm FireEye, the threat is real. And dangerous.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security doesn't issue security alerts for computer software very often, but this time, it made an exception. Many agencies within the U.S. government use versions of IE.
Homeland Security recommends that users or administrators "enable Microsoft EMET where possible" and to "consider employing an alternative web browser until an official update is available."
That's good advice. Microsoft's next schedule "Patch Tuesday" isn't until May 13, although the company may push out an unscheduled update earlier. If you're using an unsupported version of Windows — like Windows XP — don't expect to get any updates.
For Windows XP users, the best course of action is to move to Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox now.
Microsoft issued a security advisory on Saturday warning users of a vulnerability in its Internet Explorer web browser that could allow malicious "remote code execution."
The vulnerability affects all versions of the browser and, as of this writing, there is no patch available to fix the issue.
Revealing the vulnerability on its website, Microsoft stated:
The vulnerability exists in the way that Internet Explorer accesses an object in memory that has been deleted or has not been properly allocated. The vulnerability may corrupt memory in a way that could allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code in the context of the current user within Internet Explorer. An attacker could host a specially crafted website that is designed to exploit this vulnerability through Internet Explorer and then convince a user to view the website.
FireEye, the security firm taking credit for finding the vulnerability, posted a notice on its website alerting users to the issue. "Threat actors are actively using this exploit in an ongoing campaign which we have named 'Operation Clandestine Fox,'” reads the statement on FireEye's website.
Security firm Symantec issued its own alert regarding the issue, highlighting the fact that Windows XP users are particularly susceptible, stating, " especially XP users are not safe anymore and this is the first vulnerability that will be not patched for their system."
This last point is no small issue as Microsoft officially ended support for Windows XP earlier this month, which means no more security updates for the millions still using the operating system.
According to NetMarketshare, Internet Explorer accounts for roughly 58% of the world's desktop browsers.
At present, the safest option might be to use another browser until Microsoft issues a security patch.
For its part, Microsoft says that at the completion of its investigation it will "take the appropriate action to protect our customers, which may include providing a solution through our monthly security update release process, or an out-of-cycle security update, depending on customer needs."
Microsoft has offered tech support by phone for decades, from guiding business customers through a tricky Windows installation to making sure grandmas successfully locate Solitaire on the Start menu. But this month, the company launched a new kind of hotline in India to help entrepreneurs navigate the minefield of starting their own business.
In a novel move, Microsoft Ventures, the company's startup investment and accelerator arm, opened JumpStart, a toll-free number where support specialists will field calls from Indian entrepreneurs. Microsoft insists there are no restrictions on the type of questions an entrepreneur can ask, but expects its dedicated call center staff to be mostly advising customers on legal, funding or marketing issues. Microsoft says workers will walk callers through the processes of registering a company, preparing taxes, tracking down an accountant and finding a good lawyer. They're also happy to suggest technology solutions. (Microsoft Azure, perhaps?)
These days, dial-in tech support seems old-fashioned to say the least, but Indians could use whatever help they can get. It's one of the toughest countries to start a business in, according to the World Bank. Part of that can be attributed to the 2012 "startup tax" that treats Indian investments as income, essentially penalizing companies that raise money locally. Amid complaints of over-regulation, last year was also the worst for Indian technology IPOs in more than a decade.
But investors there are optimistic, pointing to the increase in the number of startups and the growing interest from Silicon Valley giants, such as Facebook's acquisition of Bangalore, India-based Little Eye Labs in January. Satya Nadella, Microsoft's new CEO and a native of Hyderabad, India, is searching for ways to align the company with startups in his home country that could one day be big-budget customers.
The JumpStart 800-number is staffed Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in India. Microsoft Ventures, which has six accelerators worldwide, plans to use feedback gathered from the program to fine-tune its various Indian startup-centric efforts.
Microsoft is currently the dominant software provider for companies in India, with 31% of the market, according to research firm IDC. The overall value of corporate software in India is expected to swell to almost $45 billion this year, the researcher said. If data gathered as part of JumpStart's free hotline helps the company stay ahead of the competition, answering some phone calls won't seem like such a big effort.
As more U.S. schools look to incorporate the Internet into lesson plans, Microsoft is rolling out a program that lets students surf and search the web in the classroom through a filtered lens that blocks adult content and ads.
Called Bing in the Classroom, schools can now sign up for the free service that populates Bing search results with content that is appropriate for students. The concept is part of a larger effort to promote digital literacy in the classroom.
Last year, the company ran a pilot program with five of the largest schools in the U.S. and has since introduced the program to 5,000 schools. Now, Bing in the Classroom is open to all K-12 schools.
During a demo in Brooklyn, New York on Wednesday, former teacher Jenna Bush Hager — daughter of President George W. Bush and contributing correspondent for the "Today Show" — showed how Bing's vision could be used in education. At Public School 205, Bush led a 30-minute lesson plan in front of a classroom of 25 third-grade students about Shakespeare. She encouraged the students to use the Microsoft Surface tablets on desks to search for inquiries she gave related to famous playwright, such as who he is and when his works were written.
"With budget cuts these days, not all schools have the same access to technology," Bush said during the event. "But research shows how vital it is for students to be literate in technology in order to compete in today's workforce. As a correspondent for 'Today,' I've seen the rapid evolution of technology — it literally changes every day — and we must provide access and keep up."
Bing also supplies lesson plans each day for teachers based on the Bing homepage image. In addition, teachers who use Bing in the Classroom are awarded points for each search and activity they do, similar to a frequent flyer program. Points go toward earning Microsoft Surface tablets for students to use during lessons. Any Bing user can also earn and donate points for the school of his or her choice.
It's the end of the line for Microsoft's Windows XP: as of today, the company will no longer release security updates for the 12-year-old operating system.
"Microsoft has provided support for Windows XP for the past 12 years. But now the time has come for us, along with our hardware and software partners, to invest our resources toward supporting more recent technologies so that we can continue to deliver great new experiences," wrote Microsoft in an announcement.
Microsoft's Office 2003 is another product that will not get security updates after this date.
Launched on October 25, 2001, Windows XP is one of the most successful Microsoft products ever; its successor, Windows Vista, was quickly replaced with Windows 7, and it took as long as September 2012 for Windows 7 to overtake XP as the most popular desktop operating system.
Microsoft released three Service Packs for Windows XP; the last one, SP3, was launched in May 2008. In April 2009, Microsoft ended Mainstream Support for the OS, meaning it stopped providing free technical support and accepting warranty claims. Up until today, the company provided Extended Support, which included paid technical support and security updates.
What does it mean for the end user? Simply put, you can continue to use Windows XP and Office 2003, but as time goes on, they will be more and more vulnerable to malware and other security risks.
For users still running Windows XP, Microsoft recommends upgrading their PC to a model that can run the latest version of Windows, 8.1. For instructions for moving your data from Windows XP to 8.1, go here.
Microsoft showed off the new Nokia Lumia 930 at Microsoft's Build developer conference in San Francisco Wednesday. The new handset will have a 5-inch display, a 20MP PureView camera and support wireless charging.
Nokia's latest flagship device will feature a 2.2 GHz Snapdragon 800 processor and will ship with the new Windows Phone 8.1 update that includes Microsoft's new personal assistant Cortana. The news comes just hours after images of the new Nokia Lumia 930 were leaked on Twitter by evleaks.
"We have built the Lumia 930 for absolute speed and performance," said Microsoft's Stephen Elop, who showed off the handset on stage at Build.
The handset will go on sale globally, beginning in Europe, this June and will sell for about $599, before subsidies.
Microsoft also showed off two new lower cost Lumia handsets— the Lumia 630 and 635. The Nokia Lumia 630 will come in single and dual SIM varieties and be the lowest cost Windows 8.1 device.
T-Mobile and Metro PCS will be the first carriers to sell the Lumia 635 in the U.S., which will be the first new device to ship with Windows Phone 8.1 in the U.S.
Early tech fans might remember the good 'ol days of Microsoft MS-DOS, the company's first operating system from the 1980s. Now, with the help of the Computer History Museum, Microsoft is making the source code for DOS available to the public for the first time ever. Get excited, hackers.
The Computer History Museum, based in Mountain View, Calif., is making MS DOS 1.1, 2.0 and Word 1.1a available to help fans and technologists better understand the history of computing.
Microsoft announced the move in a blog post on its website and detailed the early beginnings of the iconic software.
In 1980, IBM approached Microsoft to work on a project code-named “Chess.” What followed was a significant milestone in the history of the personal computer. Microsoft, at the time, provided the BASIC language interpreter for IBM. However, they had other plans and asked Microsoft to create an operating system. Without their own on hand, Microsoft licensed an operating system from Seattle Computer Products which would become the foundation for PC-DOS and MS-DOS.
IBM and Microsoft developed a unique relationship that paved the way for advancements in the nascent personal computer industry, and subsequent advancements in personal computing.
Following the first DOS-based version of Microsoft Word in 1983, Word for Windows launched in 1989 and become a huge hit for the company. It generated over half the revenue of the worldwide word-processing market, according to Microsoft.
"Thanks to the Computer History Museum, these important pieces of source code will be preserved and made available to the community for historical and technical scholarship," a company said in a statement.
It's enough to make us want to find our old 5.25-inch floppy drives and green CRT monitors.
Microsoft released a Mac version of its cloud-based note taking platform OneNote, Monday.
The company also announced it would be offering both Mac and Windows versions of the software to users for free.
Previously, the full Windows version of the app was only available to users who paid for the full Office Productivity suite of software, though mobile and web versions were already free.
"It’s designed for personal and school use, it’s totally ad-free and there’s no limit on how long you can use it because it’s not just a trial," Microsoft said in a blog post detailing the news. "Everything you create in the free PC and Mac clients are synced to OneDrive, so you can access them from your phone and tablet too."
Outlook integration, SharePoint support and other premium features will still only be available to paid subscribers.
The Mac app is the first time a native version of OneNote has been offered to Mac users, who were previously limited to the web version of the app.
Microsoft also announced it was launching a cloud API that will add support for other Microsoft apps and apps from third-party developers, including Brother, Doxie Go, Epson, Feedly, Genius Scan, IFTTT, JotNot, Livescribe, Mod Notebook, News360 and Weave.
The OneNote team will also be conducting a webinar, Twitter Q & A and a Reddit AMA later this week to answer questions from users and discuss the new features.
Dropping the other shoe on one of tech's worst-kept secrets, Microsoft has officially unveiled the cellular broadband-ready Surface tablet, officially called the Surface 2 (AT&T 4G LTE) .
The update comes more than a year after Microsoft first launched the Surface tablet (originally called Surface RT), a few months after Microsoft's own Surface lead Panos Panay promised the mobile broadband option, and potentially puts it on more equal footing with Apple's iPad, which has had mobile broadband support since its launch in 2010 and Amazon's Kindle Fire HDX 4G.
Little else is changed in the Surface 2. At 10.81 inches x 6.79 inches x 0.35 inches, its dimensions are virtually unchanged, though Microsoft said the addition of a cellular radio makes it a couple of grams heavier. I held both the original Surface 2 and the 4G model and could not feel the weight difference. The Surface 2 4G ships with Windows RT 8.1, Office and Outlook 2013 RT and comes with 200GB of OneDrive cloud storage (free for 2 years).
For now, Microsoft isn’t talking about Surface Pro 4G availability. The Pro model runs an Intel mobile CPU and offers the full-blown version of Windows 8.1. Some business users prefer this model because it can run standard x86 software.
Even though Microsoft selected AT&T as its 4G launch partner, the Surface 2 is actually unlocked and is capable of accepting any micro-SIM on 2G GSM, 3G UMTS and 4G LTE networks. Microsoft claims the new broadband radio does not impact battery life, which was previously rated at 10 hours of video playback.
The new mobile-broadband-ready Surface is available now on Microsoft's website and Best Buy in one configuration: a 64GB model listing for $679. When asked about the limited SKU options, a Microsoft spokesperson wrote back in an email: "Our customers have told us that 64GB is the ideal configuration for a mobile broadband-enabled device and our goal was to tailor Surface 2 (AT&T 4G LTE) to our customers’ wants and needs."
New leaked photos of the long-awaited Windows Phone 8.1 update reveal Windows Phone users may soon be getting a notification center, similar to the one in iOS and Android.
According to the screenshots, the notification center, which will be called "Action Center," will display customizable shortcuts to the device's system settings and collect notifications from apps installed on the phone.
The photos were first leaked by Winphollowers, and were later confirmed to be authentic by The Verge, who reported the photos came from an internal Microsoft presentation.
Rumors of a notification center in the 8.1 update first surfaced in June, when screenshots of an early version of Windows Phone 8.1, nicknamed "Blue," were leaked. Those photos, which reportedly came from an internal Windows Phone build, also showed a notification center and were also reported to be authentic by The Verge. Subsequent photos leaked in September on an XDA-developer's forum also included what appeared to be a notification center, though both earlier leaks look different than those revealed Monday. Further details about the Action Center, and other 8.1 updates, are expected to be revealed in April at the Build Developer's Conference in San Francisco. IMAGE: WINPHOLLOWERS
Before Nokia closes on its mobile business sale to Microsoft, the Finnish device manufacturer is reportedly launching an Android-based smartphone later this month. The phone is expected to launch at the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona, which kicks off in two weeks.
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Nokia has been developing an Android device while Microsoft worked out details of the transaction. In September, the companies announced Microsoft would be acquiring Nokia's mobile division and patents for $7.4 billion.
The Android device will target emerging markets and won't promote some of the key features typically seen on Google's Android platform, including the Google Play app store, the report said. Instead, think of this as an Android version of Nokia's low-cost Asha brand.
Nokia previously agreed to abandon its software efforts and use only the Windows Phone platform after the company was offered billions of dollars for marketing and development.
The news comes as Satya Nadella was named the CEO of Microsoft, replacing Steve Ballmer who announced last year he would be stepping down from the company. It might seem like an unlikely move, but the partnership could show how Microsoft will be flexible in how it aims to boost hardware sales.
If you've ever hosted a videoconference, you know that they can be a pain. Even after you navigate the dangerous waters of incompatible services and unreliable equipment, you often see the same Brady Bunch-style windows — usually a mix of chattering heads along with a single main feed of a crowd surrounding a conference room table.
Polycom thinks it has a better solution with its CX8000 videoconferencing room system. The system has simple interface powered by Microsoft Lync, and it supports an optional 360-degree panoramic camera that can see an entire conference room, finally giving a meeting's "primary" feed the prominence it deserves.
"Video is really ready for the consumerization of the enterprise," says Laura Marx, senior director of alliances marketing at Polycom. "We're taking that one-click video experience into the conference room. And the 360-degree camera is really a unique experience. It's what you would see if you were in the room."
The CX8000 also supports the latest version of Lync, which debuted last year with Office 365.
With Lync's touchscreen support, the Polycom system can turn any participant's screen into a collaboration tool using a feature called Virtual White Boarding. The system also supports app sharing as well. Conference participants can adjust the layout of the video screens to their liking via Lync's gallery view.
The bad news: The system starts at $15,000, meaning it's essentially an enterprise-only tool. Although, with Lync being part of the deal, that's pretty much expected. Nevertheless, using the system, any individual will be able to dial into a conference via Lync on any device and enjoy the full suite of features, including contact lists (with Outlook integration), IMing, document collaboration and HD video support.
Polycom will bring the new features to its other Lync-powered systems via a software update (Polycom RealPresence Group Series 4.1.3) coming in February.
While Polycom's system makes sense for corporations where Lync and Microsoft's software are part of the established workflow, there are plenty of alternatives for those on a budget. Both Google Hangouts and ooVoo boast many of the same features at a fraction of the cost (although you'll have to do without that panoramic camera).
Polycom is taking orders on the CX8000 starting today, with the product scheduled to begin shipping in March.
Have you been gazing longingly at a Microsoft Surface Pro, but can't bear to fork over the $899? Best Buy has a sweet deal for you: It's discounting the price by $400, making the device just $499.
The deal, reported by The Verge, is for the original Surface Pro with 128 GB of memory. There are no strings attached.
Best Buy is likely trying to clear the Surface Pro off its shelves after the new version, the Surface Pro 2, came out in October 2013.
The Surface Pro 2 isn't all that different from the original, though. It's a little lighter, has a better processor and a longer-lasting battery — but has nearly identical design and the same 1080p screen. The price, however, is vastly different. The Surface Pro 2 with 128 GB of storage will set you back $999 at Best Buy. We've seen tougher choices.
It looks like Microsoft is ready to cry uncle on Windows 8. Since its launch in fall 2012, Windows 8 (and later 8.1) has defaulted to show the Start screen — the touch-friendly modern environment — first. Now, a pair of reports suggests Microsoft will soon update Windows to launch into the traditional desktop.
Screenshots of the supposed Windows 8.1 update for 2014 appeared on a Russian website, reported by Business Insider, and the person who posted them claims that, after installation, the new OS boots into the desktop. The Verge claims to have confirmed the findings, with sources revealing the forthcoming update will indeed make the desktop the default.
If true, the move would represent an about-face on Windows 8/8.1, if not an altogether surprising one.
Even before it officially launched, Windows 8 has been criticized for its bifurcated approach to computing, delivering both a traditional computing environment for mouse-and-keyboard setups as well as touch-friendly interface on the same machine.
In Windows 8.1, Microsoft introduced new features intended to appease critics, such as the option to make the desktop the default, the ability to share the same desktop background between the desktop and modern environments, and the infamous return of the Start button.
Critics still hammered Microsoft for misguided strategy, and the update did nothing to slow the the decline of the PC market, which fell 6.4% in the fall quarter. By comparison, Apple's Mac sales have increased 19% year-over-year.
While Microsoft isn't throwing out its new operating system with the bathwater, changing the default to the desktop is essentially an admission that it moved too fast in blending touch into its traditional Windows OS. After the change, many will watch closely how it affects interest in Windows 8 as a platform.
Although Windows RT isn't mentioned in either report, it's unlikely the change would apply to those devices. In the Windows RT 8.1 update, Microsoft even took away the desktop icon on the Start screen for Windows RT tablets, emphasizing their touch-first nature. That wouldn't make much difference to the platform, since most manufacturers apart from Microsoft and Nokia (which will soon be the same company) have abandoned Windows RT.
It's unclear if Intel-based Windows devices that are considered "tablets first" would be affected by the change.
Microsoft is renaming SkyDrive as OneDrive. The company's cloud file-storage service, which launched in 2007, will soon be rechristened with the new name, and all SkyDrive products will eventually migrate to OneDrive.com.
The name change comes months after Microsoft agreed to rebrand SkyDrive after a legal dispute with UK-based Sky Broadcasting. Microsoft says "OneDrive" reflects its intention to recast its cloud service as the "one place for all your documents." Microsoft has been increasingly steering its customers toward using SkyDrive, giving away 200GB of free storage for two years to anyone who buys a Surface tablet as well as making SkyDrive the default place to store documents in apps like Word and Excel in Windows 8.1.
"We believe the new OneDrive name conveys the value we can deliver for you and best represents our vision for the future," Ryan Gavin, Microsoft's general manager of consumer apps and services, said in a blog post. "Expect to be able to experience the new OneDrive soon."
"Soon" is the only timeline that Microsoft gave for the migration to OneDrive, and so far, all SkyDrive products retain their names and domains. SkyDrive.com is still active, and OneDrive.com shows a preview site, with just an email sign-up for people who want to know when the site will be open for business.
Functionally, OneDrive will work the same as SkyDrive, Gavin wrote, and users of SkyDrive and SkyDrive Pro shouldn't notice any changes apart from the name. SkyDrive Pro, a the business-focused arm of the service, also gets a new name: OneDrive for Business, mirroring the naming convention established by other cloud services, such as Dropbox.
In Windows 8.1, Microsoft added new features to SkyDrive to ease users' transition from saving locally to storing documents in the cloud. SkyDrive keeps placeholder files on the local drive that take up a minuscule amount of space but enable the PC to treat the files as local files — complete with thumbnail previews — up to the point when opened. Working in Office documents saved in the cloud, which introduced noticeable lags in Windows 8, was also improved.
