windows 8 测试版本出来了！！！！

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http://www.theaustralian.com.au/ ... rgakx-1226378755963

Microsoft releases final Windows 8 test version
MICROSOFT has released a final test version of Windows 8 overnight, signalling its readiness to roll out its new operating system.

The software maker signaled the makeover is nearly complete by releasing overnight a final test version of Windows 8.

Windows 8 is considered to be the biggest change in decades to Microsoft's widely used operating system. The software displays applications in a mosaic of tiles and has been designed so it can run desktop, laptop,and tablet computers, as well as smartphones.

PC sales have slowed in the US as consumers delay replacements and instead buy mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. The versatility of Windows 8 is expected to spawn a new generation of computers that are part laptop, part tablet.

The latest test version of Windows 8 is available in 14 languages and includes several improvements from a less-refined version released three months ago. The upgrades include more ways to connect to other Microsoft services, more security controls and more touch-screen features.
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Microsoft hasn't announced when Windows 8 will go on sale yet. Most industry analysts expect the software will be available in September or October.

With Windows 8 looming, more prospective computer buyers may delay their purchases until the new operating system is available.

Microsoft is trying to discourage procrastination with a special promotion that begins Saturday in the US, Canada and more than 120 other markets.

The program allows buyers of computer running on Windows 7 to upgrade to Windows 8 Professional, when it's available, for $14.99.

"We're thrilled to be at this milestone with the Windows 8 Release Preview," said Windows and Windows Live division president Steven Sinofsky overnight.

Availability of Windows 8 Release Preview marks the final phase of development before the operating system becomes available to makers of computers and other devices.

A "consumer preview"' version of Windows 8 was downloaded more than a million times in the 24 hours after its release in February, according to Microsoft.

Microsoft's upcoming Windows 8 series -- featuring an upgraded cloud computing service -- marks a "rebirth" of its operating system, chief executive Steve Ballmer said last week at a gathering in South Korea.

Ballmer described Windows 8 as the "deepest, broadest and most impactful" Windows software ever created by the Redmond, Washington-based tech giant, after the current Windows 7 sold at unprecedented rates to businesses.

"It's really, in some senses, a dawning of the rebirth of MS Windows... It's certainly the most important piece of work we've done," he said in a speech to the Seoul Digital Forum.

Windows 8 allows users readily to store and share personal data among various devices under the "SkyDrive" cloud computing service. Rivals Apple and Google offer such services.

The new Microsoft system will support a wider range of devices, including touch- and stylus-based smartphones and tablet PCs as well as desktop and laptop machines, Ballmer said.

The software giant has been trying to expand its presence in the booming software market for smartphones and tablets, which is currently dominated by Apple and Google.

Ballmer predicted that the cloud computing market would become dominated by a few big players.

Cloud computing refers to the popular trend of using software as a service hosted online at data centres instead of downloading and maintaining programs in personal machines.

Web-based email services such as Gmail are common examples of "cloud" computing.

"The number of core (cloud) platforms, around which software developers will do their innovation, is not ever-broadening," he said.

"It's really a quite smaller and focused number -- Windows, various forms of Linux, the Apple ecosystem."

In three to five years from now, "there will be just a few ecosystems that really can get the critical mass", he said.

Ballmer estimated up to 500 million users will have Windows systems next year, promising the "best economic opportunity" for device makers and app developers.

Microsoft will also soon introduce Skype powered by Windows 8, Ballmer said. His company last year bought the leading Internet video and voice-calling service for $US8.5 billion ($8.78 billion).