A Well Reasoned Windows 8/Surface Article: The real work of Windows 8 lies ahead

[kristalsoldier]

Yes, but... why lose all the extra functionality if you don't have to? Even if 90% of the people aren't using a PC to its full capacity it is better to have the capacity than not. I think that is the much stronger human nature than the to accept change because you have no other choice. After all, how many people need the performance of modern cars? How about 4K TVs? I can't even tell you how many people I know still use RCA cables or tune into non-HD channels on HD TVs and are happy with the picture and think they are watching HD. Yet they all still want more.

I have a hard time seeing the majority of people choosing a lower performance restricted device over one that offers everything when all other things are equal (if Intel power use comes down to ARM levels and Core chips get 8+ hours battery life). Already people are clamoring for Tegra 4 RT's and way more powerful top shelf gaming power Pros

JP

In part, I agree.

However, the only reason we make this distinction - like the one you make in terms of extra functionality, lower/ higher performance etc. - is because we know about the alternatives. But just think - in a few years, this distinction, which is already being blurred, will be further eroded and then there is the question of economics. For example, a Bentley is a fine car to have. But in my hands, it will do the same thing as, say, a low-end Buick or Kia (or whatever). The only difference is that the Bentley costs many times more than the low-end affairs. Today, I may be able to afford to rent the Bentley for a month, but with the same money I can probably own the Kia! This type of a scenario will get further exacerbated as the global financial situation stumbles from one crisis to another. And with it, our collective earning power will decline. I see this happening here in the UK (and in certain parts of Europe). This will compel us to look for the best bargain.

And then there is the paradigm. I think what is eventually going to happen is that there will be a convergence of the tablet and the computer - what MS calls the 'hybrid'. I really think this is the short-to-medium term future of personal computing devices. For this, a unification of the OS has to take place - Windows Blue is an example (allegedly) of MS working towards this end. It is clear that the Win 7 type OS interface will not work on an ultra-ultra light platform - otherwise MS would have made a killing with their convertibles a long time back, isn't it. Win 8 works to move the PC paradigm in this direction and Windows Blue is supposed to be (again allegedly) that which takes that even further. Now, what is the device that is most amenable to this emerging state of affairs? I'd argue the RT. It has the least legacy-related baggage and it forces the user to think differently. Not so, in the case of the Pro - as I mentioned earlier. This is the reason I think that the RT is the more revolutionary of the two devices.

My caveat? Hey...I am just a normal run-of-the-mill user who is speculating on this stuff. I have no real insights into this industry and can only report anecdotally on the stuff that I see and hear happening around me, which is very limited in many ways. So, I stand to be corrected.

Cheers!

 

[J515OP]

He he. I see it as the opposite as far as which device is the future though I agree with the convergence. Windows RT is Windows 8 just made to run on ARM, not some future super MS OS. It is only slightly altered and slimmed down. There is always a need for some legacy support as clean breaks are rarely helpful and was a problem with Windows Phone. There should be more of an evolution than a sudden stop/start. Windows RT is actually far more of an evolution than not. Otherwise we would be at Android and iOS all over again. The benefits of a Windows RT over those non legacy supporting devices is well known (usb device support, built-in RDP, Office, traditional file management and networking, etc.).

The car price points are sort of irrelevant in this case. Since we are dealing with the same relative price in this case (RT and Pro aren't meaningfully different in price like a Kia and Bentley ) Really the analogy is more about performance (even if unused). If a Kia and a Bentley cost within a couple of percent of one another which would you take? Particularly if they got the same gas mileage.

On the price discussion there will certainly be price tiers and corresponding performance tiers. What we are really talking about is for any price or performance tier you have one car or device that can do everything and one that can only do a fraction for about the same cost. Why would most people be convinced to take the lesser in that case?

MS should in fact build on their legacy going forward. They have put far too much into Windows to abandon it for a stripped down version of itself. There are reasons Windows is everywhere and it isn't just because it is the only choice. Linux, Apple and many others have given full OSes a go and they each have their good points but over all none has been so good it knocked Windows out. It is definitely possible and Android coming in to overtake the mobile OSes when there was Windows CE, Palm, Blackberry and iOS shows that it can be done.

In reality what tends to happen is the hardware advances so that the OS doesn't have to be stripped down (not that it should be bloated though). Already we are seeing this with ARM getting evermore powerful and the Intel chips getting evermore power efficient. They will meet in the middle and be capable of running a fully blown OS.

In the case of technology more always trumps less and I think it is going to be hard to convince people to take less as things progress. Windows RT clearly offers less than full blown Windows. Mobile OSes are more likely to become powerful to the point of full OSes than full OSes are to be reduced to stripped down ones. We will have to see what history says but my guess is that Windows RT (even though it is absolutely great for its moment of existence) is going the way of Windows CE (Edit 2: I can see Windows RT becoming a full blown version of Windows that runs on ARM. Essentially the unlocking of the desktop which would make it full blown).

JP

Edit: How about this to make it simple and summarize: Windows 8 is the revolution, RT is only a limited subset of that. Whatever Windows 8 evolves into is going to be the future of both traditional and mobile OSes. I don't believe that will be a limited version of what Windows 8 Pro currently offers (i.e. Windows RT).

 

[kristalsoldier]

Edit: How about this to make it simple and summarize: Windows 8 is the revolution, RT is only a limited subset of that. Whatever Windows 8 evolves into is going to be the future of both traditional and mobile OSes. I don't believe that will be a limited version of what Windows 8 Pro currently offers (i.e. Windows RT).

Lol!!! Why not! The only thing, I was specifically talking about the Surface RT (where the OS is of minor significance). My basic point was that the Surface RT compels a user to do things differently (i.e., operate in a different space) as a prelude to the convergence that we are referring to. Anyways, your point is well taken!

Having said that, I just posted a question in a thread about Win 8 Pro and Office 365. When you get a chance, do take a look at it and share your opinion. Thanks.

 

[J515OP]

Lol!!! Why not! The only thing, I was specifically talking about the Surface RT (where the OS is of minor significance). My basic point was that the Surface RT compels a user to do things differently (i.e., operate in a different space) as a prelude to the convergence that we are referring to. Anyways, your point is well taken!

Having said that, I just posted a question in a thread about Win 8 Pro and Office 365. When you get a chance, do take a look at it and share your opinion. Thanks.

Posted Yes, I think Windows 8 itself is the driver to see and do things differently. Sure it has a desktop to stick to if you want but the genie is out of the bottle. Ask yourself this, would you be disappointed with MS and Windows RT if MS unlocked the desktop and allowed for the porting, compiling and installation of legacy apps on the RT for ARM? (Basically Edit #2 above).

 

[kristalsoldier]

Thanks! No, I would not be disappointed. I think the Surface RT form factor plays a big role and the hope is that MS is able to embed the full capabilities of Win 8 on the Surface RT platform (and not the Surface Pro).