Windows 8 on Tablet
Windows 8 is a much anticipated upcoming version of Microsoft Windows operating system that is going to change the outlook of Windows operating systems. One major reason for the change is using the new operating system in mobile devices, in particular tablets. But are the Windows 8 plans going to be helpful for the users or will it create troubles for them?
Windows operating systems run on a particular form of processor called x86. This is from the Intel processors developed earlier for the IBM PCs that installed Microsoft OS. And then over years, the architecture expanded and it has been included in Microsoft’s successive operating systems. Though processors are showing good performances, they often have efficiency issues. Tablets, on the other hand, are built on ARM processor architecture having high efficiency, which is critical for mobile devices. This would mean that tablet devices may not be able to run existing Windows operating systems.
Desktop vs Metro UI
The default UI on a standard Windows 8 computer would be the new, sleek, and efficient Metro. Legacy applications written before this don’t use this. Windows 8 also has an option to activate the desktop mode, so that all those applications that run in Windows 7 can be run on Windows 8 also. The tablet version of Windows 8 for ARM will have desktop UI built into it but, will be for a limited set of applications only.
Install and update Windows 8 Tablet
In x86 architecture, drivers are fairly universal as the processor architecture is, but ARM chips are a bit more complicated. As it is a
Windows 8 on Tablet
licensed design for manufacturers, it can make numerous changes such as the graphics engine that will be put into the system on a chip that goes into the tablet. To function properly, each installation of Windows 8 for ARM will have to be customized for the hardware in question, which means that generic Windows 8 installation can’t be done in any old ARM tablet. If you thought you can get a cheap Android based tablet with an ARM processor, and perform a Windows 8 installation in it, let me remind you that it won’t be possible.
Microsoft wants a unified OS mane across all their different product types, but, unless retailers do the same, consumers may end up having products that will not work as they expect. Ciao!
