Microsoft releases test version of Windows 8

File photo: Steven Sinofsky, president of Windows and Windows Live, gives the keynote address and a preview of Windows 8 at the Microsoft Build Windows conference.F

Microsoft on Thursday released the final test version of its straightway-generation Windows software crafted to power devices ranging from tablets to desktop computers.

The Windows 8 Release Preview

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

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

“consumer preview” version of Windows 8

A “consumer preview” version of Windows 8 was downloaded more than a million times in the 24 hours afterwards 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.

The “deepest

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

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

Windows 8 allows users willingly to store and share personal data among various devices pursuant to this agreement 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 so then 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.

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

Ballmer estimated up to 500 million users will have Windows systems straightway year, promising the “best economic possibility” for device makers and app developers.

Microsoft will also before long introduce Skype powered by Windows 8, Ballmer said. His company last year bought the leading Internet video and voice-calling service for $8.5 billion. - AFP