Windows "Threshold" Tech Preview Coming Soon?

News
By Kevin Parrish
published

As expected, unnamed sources are now reporting that Microsoft will launch a preview of Windows 9 “Threshold” in early October 2014, or perhaps even in late September 2014. This release will be labeled as a “technology preview” and will require users to accept automatic monthly updates.

Microsoft is expected to launch Windows 9 “Threshold” to the masses in Spring 2015 and bring a set of improvements that should make life a bit easier for desktop customers. These include placing the Start Menu back where it belongs, windowed Modern UI apps on the desktop, virtual desktops, the removal of the charms bar and more. Heck, there’s even talk that Windows 9 may be free for those upgrading from Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8.

Previous rumors indicated that the Windows 9 platform will load in two separate ways. If the customer has a touch screen or tablet, Windows will boot to the Start Screen. Otherwise, Windows will boot to the desktop when there is no touchscreen connected and a keyboard and mouse is detected.

Although the Start Menu will supposedly return to the taskbar, leaks of recent Windows 9 builds have shown that the Menu will be quite different, containing both familiar Windows 7-style links and Modern UI apps in one list on the left and a list of live tiles on the right. The main taskbar aligned at the bottom appears to be unchanged.

Just last week, we reported that Cortana will be integrated into Windows 9. However, in one of the current leaked builds, Cortana is a standalone app that customers click to open. Unlike the Windows Phone 8.1 version, this desktop app merely takes up around 25 percent of the screen and resides in the middle. Users can type out a question to the virtual assistant, or if a microphone is installed, verbally ask the question.

Will Microsoft launch more than one preview of Windows 9? As previously stated, the version making its debut in September/October is labeled as a “technology preview,” which will be open to the public to use. There may also be another “consumer preview” for the not-so-adventurous customer at the end of 2014. As a point of reference, Microsoft distributed three “milestones” before taking Windows 8 to retail: the developer preview (Sept. 2011), the consumer preview (Feb. 2012), and the RTM version (Aug. 2012).

Microsoft seems eager to distance itself from the original Windows 8. The launch of Windows 8.1 and Update (1) made a vast improvement for the desktop user and seems to have invigorated the PC market. We can’t wait to see what Windows 9 will officially bring.

Follow Kevin Parrish @exfileme. Follow us @tomshardware, on Facebook and on Google+.

Kevin Parrish
29 Comments Comment from the forums
  • GPUPacman
    I just got Windows 8.1...
    Reply
  • FastGunna
    Might try this on a second HDD, if I like it and its a free upgrade I will do it when the time comes. The free upgrade would be more useful for people like my grand father who is still running XP and wants to upgrade.
    Reply
  • ickibar1234
    Will Explorer support file paths longer than 255 characters? Proper units for storage, showing MiB, GiB, TiB, etc when appropriate instead of just MB, GB, TB, etc?
    Reply
  • Shneiky
    The world says that a mebibyte is 1048576bytes and a megabyte is 1 000 000.

    In my world - megabyte = 1024 kilobytes and a kilobyte is 1024 bytes. Same for my father, my colleagues and well, basically all around me (with exception of some mac fanatics). I wish someone to get rid of MiB, GiB and whatever and just accept "mega" as a x1024. Mega is a human word designed to show a unit of measurement that is on a higher level. Just apply it as a 1024 instead of a 1000. The sense is the same. Would make the world a better place.
    Reply
  • none12345
    "In my world - megabyte = 1024 kilobytes and a kilobyte is 1024 bytes. Same for my father, my colleagues and well, basically all around me (with exception of some mac fanatics). I wish someone to get rid of MiB, GiB and whatever and just accept "mega" as a x1024. Mega is a human word designed to show a unit of measurement that is on a higher level. Just apply it as a 1024 instead of a 1000. The sense is the same. Would make the world a better place. "


    Technically kilo = 1000, mega = 1000000, etc. So, its not wrong when they use 1000 instead of 1024.

    Tho i agree, for me, in the computer world, everything will always be a power of 2, 2^10 = kilo 2^20 = mega etc. But, technically its incorrect, tho it makes more sense in the binary world of a computer.
    Reply
  • Shneiky
    That is not technically - it is linguistically. In human language we use kilo or mega for a power of 10. But also, linguistically, kilo and mega represent a higher tier unit. So, if we "technical" assume to readjust our linguistically proposed terms from human language to computer language or in other sense, just to use it as a higher tier of unit - kilo and mega can be 1024. Funny logic, isn't it ;)
    Reply
  • thor220
    "In my world - megabyte = 1024 kilobytes and a kilobyte is 1024 bytes. Same for my father, my colleagues and well, basically all around me (with exception of some mac fanatics). I wish someone to get rid of MiB, GiB and whatever and just accept "mega" as a x1024. Mega is a human word designed to show a unit of measurement that is on a higher level. Just apply it as a 1024 instead of a 1000. The sense is the same. Would make the world a better place. "


    Technically kilo = 1000, mega = 1000000, etc. So, its not wrong when they use 1000 instead of 1024.

    Tho i agree, for me, in the computer world, everything will always be a power of 2, 2^10 = kilo 2^20 = mega etc. But, technically its incorrect, tho it makes more sense in the binary world of a computer.

    It should be 1024, it's annoying having to constantly look these thing over to see which standard is being used.

    Related to the article, I wonder if the new windows is still going to have the mouse/overclock issues that windows 8 has/had. I also wonder if there are other compromises microsoft made to the OS that could affect desktop users.
    Reply
  • mikeangs2004
    do the MSDN Windows 8.1 Pro include media center?
    Reply
  • Roger Crouch
    Microsoft doesn't actually have anything new here, they're just trying to force a subscription-based OS onto a market that doesn't want one. They've forced Excel, Office et all to monthly subscription already.
    Reply
  • Roger Crouch
    The world says that a mebibyte is 1048576bytes and a megabyte is 1 000 000.

    In my world - megabyte = 1024 kilobytes and a kilobyte is 1024 bytes. Same for my father, my colleagues and well, basically all around me (with exception of some mac fanatics). I wish someone to get rid of MiB, GiB and whatever and just accept "mega" as a x1024. Mega is a human word designed to show a unit of measurement that is on a higher level. Just apply it as a 1024 instead of a 1000. The sense is the same. Would make the world a better place.

    If you're on an ADSL still (god help your soul) then a Kilobyte is 1272 bytes. The industry has been using the terms more as a scale than as a rating.
    Reply