Microsoft has been quiet. A little too quiet. With all the talk about Apple, Google, and Facebook, it’s often easy (fashionable, even) to forget about Microsoft.
But not for long.
With the impending release of Windows 7’s successor, creatively named Windows 8, Microsoft is making some big changes, and they’re banking that these changes will be helpful enough to overpower the learning curve people will have getting used to the changes.
The most obvious departure from what you’re probably used to is the new user interface that relies heavily on Live Tiles. Live Tiles are blocks that live in your desktop area and stay connected to various things. You might have a Live Tile that has your email inbox account or the weather, etc. They also can be simple shortcuts to programs.
Microsoft is hoping you’ll find this workflow much more useful than the old school start menu. You’ll still be able to use a start menu if you jump through some hoops, but Microsoft really wants you to embrace Live Tiles.
The Live Tile bet is a part of a larger initiative to merge their device interaction into one unified experience. By this, I mean that using a Windows tablet, phone or computer should feel largely the same. It’s the same direction that Apple has been going in for a few years now, and Microsoft just couldn’t ignore the push any longer.
I’m a little torn on whether to be excited. I’m a Windows user (don’t shoot me, Apple fans), but it’s been so long since Microsoft has done anything to wow me that I don’t know how this will go. Will this be a Windows Vista-level bomb, or will Microsoft finally earn some respect in this “post-PC era?”
In truth, they may not care. While it’s a big bet, the ability to take a risk seems more important than the actual result. If it’s a failure, Microsoft can always pull a Coca-Cola and relaunch “Windows Classic.” And in that scenario, even annoyed consumers would rather buy a new $100 operating system than a new $1,000 Mac computer. Even a failure might not hurt their market share much.
So should you run out and buy the Win8 upgrade on Friday when it’s released? I’d hold off until some real public reviews come in (not just the ones from the beta-testing nerds out there). Software compatibility is always a question with these upgrades, so you’ll want to get a few months to see Win8 in the wild if you’re nervous.
Aside from that, it’s great to see Microsoft pushing the envelope a little. Competition is so important to keep that innovation engine churning, and if Microsoft hits a homerun with Windows 8, they’re big enough to make a real impact and push others forward as well.
Jesse Bushkar is the CEO of Sysconn New Media Inc. He can be contacted at 912-356-9920 or jesse@sysconn.com.