10 things to love about Windows 8

By Justin James

Link:

http://www.techrepublic.com/blog

Takeaway: After spending a couple of months kicking the tires on the Windows 8 Developer Preview, Justin James can cite a number of promising features and positive changes.

Now that the Windows 8 Developer Preview has been available for a while, it is easier to take a step back and evaluate it without the powerful emotions that strike most people the first time they deal with it. Looking at it from a long-distance perspective, there’s a lot to like about Windows 8, especially if you are ready to cut the cord from an installed desktop application base and transition to Web applications and Windows 8 native applications. Here are 10 things I think are great about Windows 8.

1: It’s designed for tablets and touch

Microsoft is working hard to make Windows 8 work well with tablets and the touch UI paradigm, to the point of alienating traditional desktop users. It remains to be seen how Microsoft will respond to criticism over the Metro UI. But I can tell you that after using a phone with the Metro UI for well over half a year now, I think it is extremely effective for touch, and I would love to have a tablet running Windows 8.

2: Apps “share” data

One of the big changes in the application development model is that native Windows 8 apps (those using the new Metro UI and WinRT API) really do not directly communicate with each other, even through the file system, except via carefully defined interfaces. While this handcuffs developers a bit, it means that when applications do share data, Windows is aware of how they do it and makes it easy. For example, you could have an application that handles images and use it to share the pictures with, say, an application to upload them to Facebook. That unleashes a lot more power for developers because it means that applications from different vendors will work together seamlessly, and the developers do not even have to write anything specific for the application theirs works with.

3: The apps can be integrated into the OS

Just as the applications can “share” with each other, they can do the same thing with Windows itself. Again, this allows some really neat integrations to be done without much work by application makers. You can see things like a new social networking application come out and within weeks, Windows will be able to use your friends who are on it in its contact list, or the pictures can go into your picture gallery. The possibilities are endless.

4: It offers ARM support

While the ARM CPUs may not be for everyone or every purpose, lots of mobile vendors have a deep commitment to that platform and understand it well. The ARM devices will not be able to run legacy Windows applications, but they will run the Windows 8 native apps without a hitch. That’s great news for hardware makers, software developers, and users.

5: It beefs up security

The new programming model for Windows 8 native applications is extraordinarily secure. While I am sure that exploits will be found, it will be difficult for the native applications to break free of their chains. Microsoft has really flipped it around. Instead of allowing everything and slowly adding restrictions over the years (and breaking applications in the process, like XP SP2 and Vista did), it’s starting from an “allow nothing” stance.

6: App markets will benefit developers and users

Application markets are nothing new. Even Vista had one (although no one seems to remember it). With Windows 8 native applications, Microsoft is making the application market the primary way of getting apps onto the computer, much like Windows Phone 7. That’s great news for developers who need to get some more visibility for their applications and who do not want to deal with payments processing and such, especially for low-priced apps. And the application market is great for users, too. As we’ve seen, app markets encourage lower prices, and Microsoft will surely apply the same strict quality control that it has to the Windows Phone 7 app market.

7: System restore is easier

Microsoft has built new utilities into Windows 8 that makes it much easier than ever to send the system back to “out of the box,” while preserving your data. Providing a more appliance-like experience is critical for the typical user, and the help desk will appreciate it too.

8: Cloud sync is everywhere

While not everyone is in love with the cloud as an idea, Windows 8 has great facilities for allowing applications and users to automatically sync data between devices using the cloud. That’s great for users who can seamlessly transition between their tablet and desktop PC (and perhaps their phone), as well as for tech support, who can just replace a broken device instead of worrying about data loss.

9: It offers simplified administration and configuration

The Control Panel has been stripped down to the bare essentials, and you can’t even think about tasks like registry editing, defragging, etc., from the Metro UI. (You can do these tasks through the legacy desktop, if needed, but that won’t work for ARM devices.) Throughout Windows 8, a primary theme has been giving the user a more appliance-like “It just works” experience. Power users might howl about it, but the truth is, the Windows experience is still far more complex than the average user wants to deal with. Windows 8 is a great move in the right direction for those users.

10: System stability is improved

Windows 7 has really set the standard for system reliability. Short of hardware or driver problems, the old blue screen of death is almost never seen anymore. Windows 8 takes this to the next level. The same changes to the application development model also improve system stability. Applications can’t run over each other’s data easily, and the new WinRT API just does not allow the kinds of shenanigans that have caused unstable systems over the years. If you stick with native Windows 8 applications, reboots (other than for patching) and crashes should be extraordinarily rare.

Photos of Computer and peripherals of 1970's

Images from:
http://www.techrepublic.com

Top IT skills wanted for 2012

Takeaway: A new Computerworld survey indicates the nine IT skills that will be in demand in 2012.

Nearly 29 percent of the 353 IT executives who were polled in Computerworld’s annual Forecast survey said they plan to increase IT staffing through next summer. (That’s up from 23% in the 2010 survey and 20% in the 2009 survey.)

Here are the skills that the IT executives say they will be hiring for:

1. Programming and Application Development–61% plan to hire for this skill in the next 12 months, up from 44% in the 2010 survey. This covers the gamut from website development to upgrading internal systems and meeting the needs of mobile users.
2. Project Management (but with a twist)– The twist is that they’re not going to just be looking for people who can oversee and monitor projects. They also want people who can identify users’ needs and translate them for the IT staffers-the increasingly popular business analysts.
3. Help Desk/Technical Support–Mobile operating systems have added a new dimension to help desk and tech support.
4. Networking-This demand is being fueled partially by virtualization and cloud computing projects. The survey also revealed that execs will be looking for people with VMware and Citrix experience.
5. Business Intelligence-Computerworld interprets this uptick to a focus shift in many companies,  from cost savings to investing in technology. That will be nice if it pans out that way.
6. Data Center-Virtualization and the Cloud could also be behind the increased need for IT professionals with backgrounds in data center operations and systems integration.
7. Web 2.0-Tech skills centered around social media will be in demand, with .Net, AJAX and PHP as key back-end skills, with HTML, XML, CSS, Flash and Javascript, among others, on the front end.
8. Security-Although down from 32 percent in the 2010 survey, security stays a top concern of IT executives.
9. Telecommunications-The survey indicates a demand for people with IP telephony skills, and for those familiar with Cisco IPCC call center systems.

Article from:

http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/

Japan computer smashes speed record

A Japanese supercomputer has broken its own record as the world's fastest machine by performing 10 quadrillion calculations per second, its developers announced.

The "K Computer", which has more than 88,000 central processing units -- the computer's "brain" -- compared with the fewer than four in the average desktop, smashed its own record of just over 8 quadrillion calculations during an experiment in October. A quadrillion is a thousand trillion.

Supercomputers operate roughly 10,000 times faster than ordinary personal computers.

Among other things, supercomputers are used by scientists investigating the effects of seismic waves and tsunamis to predict what effect they may have on buildings.

Ryoji Noyori, president of Riken, the company that jointly developed the machine alongside Fujitsu, said it was a landmark achievement in computing.

"The K Computer is a key national technology that will help lay the foundation for Japan's further progress," he said on Wednesday.

"I am delighted that it has achieved its major objective, demonstrating our strong technical power."

The year the tablet market grew up

If 2010 was the year of iPad, then 2011 was the year of the tablet.

When Apple introduced the iPad in April 2010, it convinced consumers that they wanted — even needed — tablets in their lives, as competitors scrambled to come up with their own version of the "magical" device. Running its own software, iOS, on its own hardware, Apple quickly solidified its place at the top of the market.

Fast-forward a year and another generation of the iPad. Apple is still king of the tablet world — with 68 percent of the market, according to research firm IDC — but it faces a growing number of increasingly credible competitors.

Android tablets have emerged in all sizes, niches and price points. Competitors are seizing opportunities to target customers who don't fit the one size Apple is offering.

In some ways, it's parallel to what happened in the smartphone world. Apple's iPhone popularized the idea of the smartphone from its introduction in 2007, but smartphones running Google's Android system have taken off since then. Android phones make up more than half of the world's smartphone market, thanks in part to niche targeting and manufacturers' efforts to go after lower price points. Tablet prices haven't quite followed the same pattern, but analysts predict that Apple will lose ground to competitors that go after the lower end of the market.

This year's lineup of gadgets has the potential to redefine the tablet market because it shows a deeper understanding of how people use the devices.

After all, what do we use tablets for, really? According to a March survey from Google's AdMob team, the top five things tablet owners are doing are: gaming, surfing, e-mailing, reading the news and accessing social networks. Most tablet use is at home on weeknights in place of traditional computer use. In other words, people use their tablets to veg out.

So although Android-based Kindle Fire can't compete with the quality and processing power of the iPad 2, the $199 device doesn't need to. All it has to do is replace whatever is on the average nightstand or coffee table.

Amazon is particularly well positioned to fill that void because it also happens to be one of the world's most popular bookstores. The company is betting that its low-cost device will be a hit with the tablet crowd, who might just want to replace that stack of bedside books with a paperback-size gadget that lets them read, get in a couple levels of Angry Birds during commercial breaks and finish their e-mail before bed.

Only 28 percent of the tablet owners Google surveyed said that they are using tablets as their primary computer, which would require the top-notch processing power.

There's no doubt that the iPad 2 is still a dominant device. Bolstered by Apple's smooth and fluid iOS, its extensive app store and access to the company's iCloud services, it's not likely to come down from the top spot in the market anytime soon. Google's Android is fantastic but suffers from having to accommodate the quirks of several manufacturers that want to put their own spin on the system. Unlike devices running iOS, Android devices don't all have the same menu options or layout, which can be frustrating for customers trying to make comparisons. But Google is cooking up a more unified version of Android for its tablets and smartphones — code-named Ice Cream Sandwich — which might address complaints that the system is too fragmented.

Once the tablet market's trailblazer, Apple should be looking in its rearview mirror. The company is likely to stay at the top of the market for a while, but competition means it will have to avoid getting too comfortable. To stay ahead, Apple will have to continue to innovate, and consumers will reap the benefits.