A decade ago Bill Gates, founder and former chief executive of Microsoft, presented a new class of computing to the world: a tablet PC that offered a fully functional computer with the “intuitive aspects of pencil and paper.”
Since then, Microsoft has struggled to gain traction with a slate-like device, yet each year the company announces new products, software or operating systems that try to promote a world of Windows-based slate computers.
Next month, at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Microsoft will give it another try, presenting a slew of new slates that it hopes will offer some competition to the Apple iPad, which has quickly become the leader in this market.
A person who works at Microsoft said the company was encouraging partners to build applications for these devices that use HTML5, the Web programming language. This person said the applications would not be sold in an app store, as with the Apple iTunes model, but Microsoft will encourage software partners to host the applications on their own Web sites, which will then be highlighted in a search interface on the slate computers. It is unclear if these applications will be ready for C.E.S. as most are still in production.
Another person with knowledge of Microsoft’s plans said Steve Ballmer might demonstrate a tablet and other companion devices running the next operating system, Windows 8.
So how does the HTML5 app development work when CR-48/Chrome OS does not support Web SQL Database specifications. Two different apps, oh, apple, three different apps. Interfaces, data storage delivery system, architecture. What crap.
Why does this even signify? “A person who works at Microsoft…” and then “Another person with knowledge of Microsoft’s plans said…”? Everyone look up “corroboration”, “rumor”, and “speculation” in your dictionaries. The entire report is worth less than a three-dollar-bill.
Just think about it. The Zune was as close as Microsoft has come to matching an Apple product.
“Give it another try…”
BWA-HA-HA-HA!
These Windows Slate launches seem to be yearly event.
This sounds like a load of BS to me. The Windows Phone 7 apps are built using Silverlight and/or XNA. Windows apps are built using C++ or .NET. Now they are going build apps for a third platform with HTML5 (the web programming language? snort) in an entirely different way? Somebody got fed a load by an over eager MS drone who works in building 18 or something.
In more important news, this is the hottest news today in the world of Microsoft development.
I have looked at the iPad. Don’t really like it. Have a Kindle II, and after a year reading tens of thousands of pages on it, decided I don’t like it, either.
I have an original 30GB Zune, I got it off of Woot for $80 a few years back. (I got to experience the big freeze up on New Year’s day a couple years ago as well) That was interesting as hell. It works great, and does everything I want it to do. Actually, I have two or three more in my safe, still unopened, since I figured I needed more storage. I don’t. Zune software works great, and I listen to NoAgenda on it regularly.
I don’t like Apple’s snobby approach to business, and if I ever get sent to Yerba Buena Gardens again on assignment, and I have to sit through another of Job’s stuck up, skinny ass, sycophant laced, black turtlenecked, product rants, I will throw up.
So, I will look at Microsoft’s tablet if one ever appears.
I loved Microsoft, since the early DOS 2.x days. They were evil, wrt CP/M, but together with IBM, made respectable computers on every desk a reality.
They have no business being in business any longer.
It started when NT 5.0 was delayed, and delayed further. Finally 2000 came out, and it was OK. XP really saved their bacon, that, combinded with the extremely poor quality of Mac OS 7,8, and 9 (when it should have been world class), kept Microsoft in the game.
But Office seems to have changed little since Office 95, and I’ve never used Win Vista or 7.
The future, if there is one, belongs to Linux, BSD, etc. I’m afraid.
#7 Be very afraid because still, after all these years, linux is not ready. Not by far.
Still a lot of undocumented apps that may or may not work by itself let alone for you particular distro.
Unless some company takes the reigns of linux and does something about it, linux will still forever suck
So is Microsoft still a hated company for the denizens of this site, or is that old hat?
Why is Dvorak suddenly being a spokeshole for Microsoft? Do they need to be visible on the site?
I fail to see why yet another doomed-to-fail product from Microsoft deserves any mention at dvorak.org/blog
Disturbing.
So is Windows 8 so much better than Windows 7, that it really deserves a new version number. I mean Windows-98 had it first and second editions. And then Windows ME, which was Win-98 dressed up a bit, and had System Restore added. But it was all Windows 4, right? Then Win-XP came out, which was Windows 5, last time I checked. And then Vista, which must have been Windows 6. But Microsoft didn’t like marketing it’s OS product by simple numbers, until Apple did it. Waiting until Windows got beyond version “Six”. Probably because it sounds a little like you’re saying “Windows Sex”. Suddenly “Seven”, and now “Eight”, are all marketable names for Windows. But apparently ONLY whole numbers. Not fractions. So just as IE has been jumping up by whole version numbers. The Windows OS has been changing by whole version numbers. But not really changing radically, at the kernel level, to justify this. Apparently M$ decides OS version numbers by marketing committee. Blasting thru the version numbers, faster than ever. There ought to be a law.
PS, I think the Windows 8 logo is dumb. It looks more like it’s “Wind g ws” The “8″ appearing as a lower case “G”. The “8″ is either replacing or covering the letter “o” in Windows. Why?! What so clever about that? Shouldn’t the bottom loop of the “8″ be over the “o”, rather than the top loop? It seems a klutzy ad marketing decision.
Glenn, they can call it Windows Scratch Between My Shoulder Blades if they want. If they would just get rid of that damned registry system and maybe set a limit on how old legacy gear can be and still be supported. If you’re still using an old six pin thermal printer from 1975, maybe it’s time you invested in something a little more modern…
Funny how Microsoft comes up with great ideals like the Tablet. But Apple polishes and grooms them and makes them successful. Obvioulsy Apple knew people wanted a Tablet,but they wanted one that worked smoothly. Microsoft keeps making the same mistake trying to use a OS that really does not work with a Tablet’s hardware limitations.
jescott418, Apple succeeded and Google/Partners will succeed with tablets because they came at it building on a modern smart phone platform. Microsoft is struggling because they are coming at it with a desktop platform.
The guts of Android and iOS may be Linux/Unix but the UI’s are touch focused, streamlined and goal directed. Microsoft has to toss the Windows 7 UI over the side for tablets and build on the Xune/Windows Phone platform. I doubt they’ll do that though.
Remember everyone saying the iPad is just a big phone? Ironically they actually got it.
#8 Actually Linux is ready. The product in some versions is as good as an OS gets but people aren’t changing because there is no compelling reason to change when several other more popular OSs are as good.
That means people are free to use the one they like best or runs the software they like best and if you disagree you are being irrational.
The demands made by a computer OS mean that at least for now sticking one of them on something like an Ipad is foolish. It will significantly degrade performance on machines that are being pushed to the max already.
In other words the product is going to be non competitive for obvious reasons.
The disadvantages of Chrome as a OS are to serious to even be worth discussing besides noting that if you aren’t on line this OS is worthless.
What do you get that having Chrome on a netbook/notebook wouldn’t get you? Nothing.
# 16 deowll said, “Actually Linux is ready… people aren’t changing because there is no compelling reason”
Those are wise words. I’ve used Linux off and on since ~1995. I work with various government and international institutions who pretty much demand all my work be done in MS Office. (Yes, I’ve tried Open Office but, IMHO, it just isn’t prime time ready.) What it comes down to is, I have all my software and it comes to a fairly hefty expense in money and learning. There is just no compelling reason for me to switch over. There are reasons for me to stick with what I have.
Re linux.
How many people use Android? It’s the first time a vendor and hardware manufacturers have committed to the Linux. Animby, people just hate to change. Hence the hegemony of Office. Windows is just a platform for running Microsoft Office.
foobar. Good point. BTW, I use Android – 2.2.1
The registry hasn’t been a problem in 13 years. it serves a purpose and does it well.
Linux and OSX stores those same settings in thousands of files in hundreds of folders, sometimes with no apparent rhyme or reason.
I’ll take the registry over the alternative.