We all know that Microsoft has ended its free upgrade to Windows 10 on the 29th of July. But its still not too late, there is still a way to still get a free upgrade click here to find out how
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How to get a free Windows 10 Upgrade after the deadline
August 3, 2016 by
Windows 10 is announced and its partly a blast from the past
January 22, 2015 by
Windows 10 has been announced. It is largely a departure from its recent versions, that is windows 8 and 8.1 which tried to bring together mobile touched based devices and traditional personal computers. But this move proved to be widely unpopular move on there part, because operating the touched based apps proved to be a clunky and unpleasant experience for the user also these versions of the os were highly confusing to navigate. The abolition of the start screen did not help matters. Microsoft a year later released Windows 8.1 as an attempt to win customers back, they made some navigational improvements such as giving the user the option to boot strait into desktop mode and by putting the Power and Search Buttons next to the start Start button. These subtle changes to the os and some other minor tweaks were not enough to effectively win people back. The poor user uptake was reflected in the poor interest from app developers.
Windows 10 is a departure from the previous two versions of the os.Its going to come with a newly named browser and it will bring back some of the best aspects of Windows 7 such as a start menu which makes navigating the os less of an headache. Windows 10 is also very intuitive it adapts to what device you are using, if for example you are using a tablet it will make the touch based tile apps centre stage but if your using a desktop or laptop it will make the desktop mode the centre point of the os like it did in Windows 7. Its worth noting that its the first os to port a voice assistant to its desktop os. Apples Mac os have not got around to it yet but expect it soon.
Windows 10 will merge all the competing software platforms into a single platform, so this means that every app will work on every device running the new os.This will make everything simpler for app developers and it will give the user a wider selection of apps to choose from. Windows 10 will be able to even run universal apps on the xbox that will also be able to run on all other newer windows devices. These apps will offer a sort of follow you anywhere computing experience across phone and PC: a mobile version of Microsoft’s Inbox app for email, using Outlook, Calendar, a Photos app, a People app, Maps, and more. Basically they’re core apps that will cover the entire bases for everyday communication and the bad news is that it looks like they are only going to work on the new Xbox One. Xbox users will also have the ability to stream the content of the xbox to your laptop in Windows 10 which will open up even more possibilities for the end user.
Microsoft have another thing up its sleeve its called HoloLens. Its a headset that allows you to see holograms overlaid in the real world, that will integrate with your physical places, spaces, and things
The good news is that previous customers going back as far as Windows 7 will get a free upgrade to Windows 10. But after a year if they don’t upgrade they will lose that privilege. In practice it should be offered free for all its customers like Apple does for its Mac os customers. This move could further alienate older users and it could even encourage them to move to competing operating systems such as Linux, Mac or Android.
Windows 10 will be released later this year. But if you want to try it now its available in beta mode, which means its has not had all its bugs ironed out of it and it has not been fully finished, so don’t expect everything to work,heres the link
Itv finally releases an app for Window 8 mobile digital devices
May 28, 2014 by
Itv finally releases an app for Window 8 mobile digital devices. The ITV Player app finally after some time joins the likes of BBC iPlayer, 4oD and Demand 5 app. The app went live yesterday in
the Windows mobile phone store. It will offer 30 days of catchup up from all the companies digital channels such as citv, itv 1 etc. With this app the user will be able to stream over 3g which will prove to be very useful when out and about. Also the app will be able to make use of an adaptive bitrate system that will help to reduce glitching when the bitrate becomes variable. This app also includes subtitle options and live TV streaming. ITV’s, Paul Kanareck, director of online and brands, said: “We are very excited to have launched the ITV Player app on Windows Phone 8 devices. Mobile is becoming an increasingly important route for audiences to access our content with over 50% of long form requests for the ITV Player coming from mobiles and tablets in 2013. We will continue to expand our reach across suitable devices going forward.” The good news is that its been launched just in time for the world cup, so now the Windows 8 mobile user will be able to catch up on all the action in the world cup. However this does not fully address the shortfall of apps that are available in the windows app store, Its still remains a distant third in the mobile world. Important apps such as Sky Go and Virgin TV Anywhere are not available on the Windows Phone platform and according to Virgin Media, TV Anywhere won’t be coming to the third biggest mobile platform anytime soon
Microsoft ends support for Win XP
April 8, 2014 by
Microsoft is from today (April 8th) ending its support for its Windows XP operating system which has lasted for 13-years.
This means that after this date technical support and security patches will no longer be issued by Microsoft for the software, although Microsoft will be offering an option for users to pay for continued updates.
© Microsoft
Microsoft’s Windows XP operating system
Reports have suggested that the UK government has paid Microsoft £5.5 million for ongoing security updates to Windows XP, Office 2003 and Exchange 2003 on public-sector computers.
However it worth pointing out that many companies are still using the old os. AppSense appears to indicate as much as 77% of organisations across the UK were still using the old OS. It is believed that as a result of Microsoft ending its support, it will be putting some British businesses at a greater risk of hacker intrusion. Although the amount of machines running the software is said to be relatively small within a particular company. However security experts warn that it just takes one vulnerable PC within an organisation to put an entire network at risk.
The ending of the os is expected to have the greatest impact upon the banking industry which is due to the fact that the vast majority of the world’s cash machines are currently being powered by the software.
Windows 9 is to be released on April 2015
March 27, 2014 by
Windows 9, the next operating system from Microsoft and the successor to Windows 8 is to be released on April 2015. Previously it went under the code name “Threshold” which Microsoft wanted ditch in favour of the name Windows 9. This will mark a departure from the previously unsuccessful Windows 8 and 8.1. It is even speculated that Windows will not be offering Windows 9 for free. Even Apple has changed from charging for upgrades to offering free upgrades. So this move by Microsoft is surprising, the official statements from Microsoft states, how realistic it is to give away the cash cow Windows, it is not. This move could prove to be counterproductive for them.
The company could announce further details about the os at its Microsoft BUILD conference, which will be held from the 2nd until April the 4th in San Francisco. It’s also rumoured that the company could announce a schedule for the rollout of the new Windows 9 os to developers, which still exists to this date in Alpha mode that is not runnable. In addition there are three milestones planned for the new operating system. There is likely to be soon a trial version to download for end users however its still unclear at the moment whether it will happen or it will happen at all. Previously, the website Win8China had claimed a preview of Windows 9 would be distributed by Microsoft in the second half of 2014. There is also speculation that Windows 9 will come with a substantial revision of the Metro interface that Microsoft is now calling the Modern UI.
Windows certainly needs Windows 9 to be successful. Its thought that the windows 9 os will be a hybrid between windows 7 and 8 that has the best bits of the both os’s in it. If Microsoft can pull off a Windows 9 release with significant improvements over Windows 8 then that may be able to relegate Windows 8 to a Vista-like release in the minds of consumers. At the moment there is going to be further tweaks to Windows 8.1. Then next year Windows 9 will be on its way.
Microsoft reveals its new Xbox console
May 25, 2013 by
Microsoft has revealed its new Xbox console, it is to be called the Xbox One. This console is going to be a complete upgrade in terms of hardware specifications compared to the current model, that will feature an inbuilt camera to make Skype calls, improved voice recognition and a better kinect sensor that will have a 60% wider field of view and a 1080p resolution that will improve the sensors tracking during game play. The Xbox one will also get a blue ray player, a beefier processor and a partly redesigned game pad. These changes will all help to make game playing more immersive.
The Xbox One is also being packed with:-
- 8 Core x86 AMD CPU
- 8 GB System Memory
- 500 GB HDD
- 802.11n Wireless with Wi-Fi direct
- Gigabit Ethernet
- HDMI in/Out, 1080p, 4K support, Optical out
- USB 3.0
With all these improvements Microsoft claiming that the new Xbox will be the one-stop entertainment solution for your home that will be able to integrate all types of multimedia such as games, live TV, movies and web services like Skype, that will all be controlled by the improved voice recognition feature that is part of the newly improved Kinect.
Microsoft has not revealed any pricing at the moment, but expect this when there is an official confirmation of the release dates. But there are various rumours around concerning the pricing and the release date, but who knows which ones are correct. One rumours claims that it will sell for $299 (£190) which sounds too good to be true. However there are other rumours that are suggesting that it is going to cost more. According to the website hypable there was a leak from an online retailer Zavvi that is stating that the price will be £399/$399 and the release date will be on the November 30.
Who knows what the reality is. We will however officially confirm the price and release date when Microsoft announces the details.
For a more in depth analysis of the Xbox One go to techradar.
Rumours of a 7 inch Windows tablet intensify
April 19, 2013 by
The outgoing chief financial officer of Microsoft Peter Klein has hinted that the
firm could be soon entering the burgeoning 7-inch tablet market.
firm could be soon entering the burgeoning 7-inch tablet market. He says that during the firm’s third-quarter earnings call that ”smaller touch screen devices running the Windows operating system are due to arrive on the market “in the coming months”.
He also pointed out that “a new suite of small touch devices powered by Windows” will be competing soon with the likes of the iPad mini and the Google Nexus 7, according to CNET.
His comments seem to appear to support a recent Wall Street Journal report claiming that Microsoft has already begun work on a tablet device with a 7-inch display.
It worth pointing out it not been officially confirmed whether Microsoft will develop the product itself, its recent move into the tablet hardware market with Surface indicates that this could indeed be a possibility.
Microsoft needs to bring out a 7 inch tablet as soon as possible, because that’s where the consumer demand seems to be coming these days. Just look at the success of the iPad mini Kindle fire Nexus 7 for evidence of this. Its vital that Microsoft crash that party soon.
The bbc iplayer will be launching soon on the windows phone
March 5, 2013 by
The bbc has posted today on it’s blog that it intends to launch the bbc iPlayer soon on the Windows phone. This is great news for the users of the OS, the iPlayer has been on the other most popular OS’s 
such as Android and iOS for some time. At the moment users can access the iPlayer via the phones web browser, but when the new app is released it will provide Windows users with an option to access the iPlayer via the tile interface on the home screen. This will be most welcomed by Windows users.
The BBC Future Media head of business development Cyrus Saihan sayin a blog post,: “We will be releasing a shortcut to BBC iPlayer in the near future which will be available in the Windows Phone Store, enabling the BBC iPlayer website to work on Windows Phone 7.5 and 8 via a live tile.
“This shortcut will wrap the BBC iPlayer mobile website together with our media player. Hopefully these and other developments will help to expand our online reach further.”
He also points out that: “Our latest figures show that over 650 different device types can access BBC iPlayer. Working with the industry in ways like this helps our digital services reach more of the UK’s online population and gives our audiences ever increasing ways to access BBC services.”
It was inevitable that the BBC would eventually support the OS, because the Windows OS is growing fast within the UK. According to the popular website Digitalspy, it has grown by as much as 250% within the past year. They also claim that the OS has now over 6% of the UK market share and they say that it is set to grow further in the years to follow.
Windows tablets will only have 10.3% of the market in 2016
February 23, 2013 by
A recent IDC report about tablets concludes that Windows tablet sales will only command 10.3% of the market in the next three years. But on the lighter note the market will see an explosion of tablets sold in 3 years time, according to report by 2016. The IDC expects a whopping 282.7 million tablets to be sold. This explosion in the use sage of tablets could be attributed to the cheaper availability of tablets and the improved performance and capabilities of tablets.
However they go on to state that Windows tablets are only expected to grow from a mere 2.9% market share which it has now to 10.3% in 2016. But in terms of actual shipments, Windows tablets will see a 69.2% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), while Apple will see a 20.9% CAGR and Android a 21% CAGR.
While that 69.2% CAGR appears to be impressive on paper, but you need to keep in mind that Microsoft has just started shipping tablets, so it’s very easy for them to be able to rack up these high numbers. In real terms Apple’s 20.9% and Android’s 21% is much more impressive.
Apple will continue to be the dominant player in the field rule for years to come, but their market share will continue to see a gradual erosion in the coming years according to the IDC report. For example Apple in 2012 had around 53.8% of the market, and by 2016 it will have 49.7% of the market according to the report. Interestingly they also state that Android’s market share is likely to suffer from erosion too. For example their market share is expected to fall from 42.7% to 39.7% in 2016.
In conclusion it is not surprising that Apples market share is slowly being eroded, which is largely due to the market becoming an ever more crowded place. However if these 2016 figures turn out to be true for Microsoft then it not good news for Microsoft. It would have clearly demonstrated that the Windows 8 experiment of designing a tablet operating system for PCs as a way to get people used to the tablet interface in order for them to purchase tablets has been a failure.
The Windows store now has 12,895 apps
November 21, 2012 by
The new Windows 8 os has now 12,895 apps in it’s store. This is 
amazing considering it was launched about a month ago.
Wes Miller, the Research VP at third-party analyst company Directions on Microsoft, confirmed via WinAppUpdate’s Twitter account that theWindows Store currently provides access to nearly 13,000 apps, with figures expected to grow even more in the next few days.
Of course, we’re still far from Microsoft’s optimistic forecast of 100,000 apps in the Store by February, but at least people who bought the Surface have a few more options when it comes to apps to be installed on their tablets.
The games section of the store seems to be the most popular area of the store at the moment. The store also has on offer more free apps than paid apps which is good news for consumers.
You can read more of this article at the website softpedia.
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