*Official* Tablets thread

[Sphinx]

To nitpick, this isn't Windows Mobile. There's Windows 8 and Windows Phone 7 and 8. Windows Mobile is an entirely different, now-defunct OS that looks like this:



As for how Metro is used, I'm not sure you're understanding. It's not like there are two different ways to do everything you'd want to do and you just choose to use whichever you like better. There's no way to avoid the Metro-themed start screen. That's because the metro-themed start screen replaces the start menu that you open with the Windows button in Win 7. You hit the start key (or the touchscreen equivalent) and you bring up your Metro-themed start screen. Depending on the app you launch, it either stays within the Metro-themed setup or launches onto the desktop.

Windows 8 will be the same OS on PCs and tablets, but that doesn't mean that a tablet with an ARM CPU will be able to run programs designed for x86 CPUs. Many programs will be written to be compatible with both ARM and x86 CPUs, but some will be x86-only (as will most legacy programs from Win 7). So you won't be able to do every single thing you can do on a Win 8 tablet that you can do on a Win 8 computer...it's just that the barrier will be individual programs' compatibility with the CPU, not a different OS for the two devices.

Yeah I made the mistake of saying windows mobile as opposed to the new name. Habit from having sever win mobile phones from CE to 6.1 on my htc mogul.

As for the metro deal I was told that it is able to be disabled completely and use a standard desktop and UI. For a cell phone its fine. For a tablet not too bad, for a full blown computer its TERRIBLE. Ill just have to do more research on the metro deal.

All Im looking for is the ability to run something like VS and compile or sublime and code on my tablet where I dont want to or cannot use my workstation. This should be possible with high level languages as the OS should be the same save for the kernel which does hardware calls and so on. Same basic idea of compiling code on an x64 architecture and having it work on a x86 system. Sure if Im working with some hardware specific code or applications it will not work as the kernel calls will be different, but higher level coding (c#, .net) should be fine to compile and run applications on an arm based or x86/x64 system if the OS is the same save for the kernel.

[Mitlov]

As for the metro deal I was told that it is able to be disabled completely and use a standard desktop and UI. For a cell phone its fine. For a tablet not too bad, for a full blown computer its TERRIBLE. Ill just have to do more research on the metro deal.

Whoever told you that is wrong and/or never spent much time in Win 8 Consumer Preview. However, it's not like you fear where you're stuck in a phone UI when you're trying to get serious work done.

Let me try to explain. Basically, if you don't use any Metro apps, the start screen (aka the Metro UI) is nothing more and nothing less than a full-screen graphical substitute for the start menu. Tap the start button on your keyboard to pull up the start screen instead of clicking on the start button on-screen to bring up the start menu, select the program you want to launch or the directory you want to open, and it'll dump you back out of the Metro UI onto the desktop, with that program or directory open.

Really, it's not all that different from the current setup in terms of serious productivity work. The differences are:

(1) "start" is now full-screen instead of a quarter of the screen;
(2) it's launched with a keyboard button instead of an on-screen button;
(3) it's organized as a series of user-rearrangeable tiles instead of subdirectories and menus.

This video gives you a little taste of what it's like, though there's no reason you need to move the cursor so slowly or play such painfully-inane music in the background while you work.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/w...rted?page=vid2

I can work quite rapidly typing in a Word or Excel document, hit the start key, click the directory I want to open (I've pinned frequently-used directories to the Start screen), and a Windows Explorer window opens on the desktop. I double-click the Word document I want to open, and it comes open. I tap start again, click powerpoint's tile, and I'm back on the desktop with my current windows open and Powerpoint is booting up as well.

[Sphinx]

For a tablet thats fine. Going to test it out on my laptop to see how I like it. Still loving the idea of a full blown OS on a tablet.

[Step666]

As for the metro deal I was told that it is able to be disabled completely and use a standard desktop and UI.

Whoever told you that is wrong and/or never spent much time in Win 8 Consumer Preview. However, it's not like you fear where you're stuck in a phone UI when you're trying to get serious work done.

I'm pretty certain that was circulated before the preview was released.

I thought that what I read said it could only be disabled on PCs/laptops though, that tablets would be forced to use Metro.
And I don't think it specified that every element of Metro would be done away with, merely that you would be able to get the traditional Windows taskbar/desktop/start menu UI.



Of course, it may never have been true or MS could've decided to change tack and try and make the user experience more consistent across all devices.

[Mitlov]

I have Windows 8 Consumer Preview installed on a virtual machine on my laptop. I was really worried about having to do everything via live tiles. But once I got working with it, I quickly learned that you can use the Start screen as a tablet-like experience for casual use (email, facebook, news apps) or you can use the Start screen as a full-screen start menu for serious work. In the latter case, I personally found it to be not all that different from using the start menu in Windows 7. I liked it more, some Win 7 users like it less, but it's more similar than you'd think at first glance.

[booboo12]

To nitpick, this isn't Windows Mobile. There's Windows 8 and Windows Phone 7 and 8. Windows Mobile is an entirely different, now-defunct OS that looks like this:

*Windows Mobile Nerd* Actually, technically Windows Mobile is called Windows Phone Classic */Windows Mobile Nerd* :P

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Technically only Windows Moblie 6.5 is renamed Windows Phone Classic. Everything before that (even 6.1) is still Windows Mobile.

[Step666]

I was doing a bit of reading-up on Win8 and I found myself confused by one point that someone here might be able to shed some light on.

MS have said that Secure Boot can be disable-able on x86 hardware but that it must not be possible on ARM hardware.
However, it also says on Wikipedia that Secure Boot is only a requirement if a manufacturer seeks optional certification from MS.

So basically I'm just wondering which takes precedence - or, in other words, can Secure Boot be disabled on ARM hardware if the OEM doesn't seek MS certification?

[H.A.L. 9000]

I was doing a bit of reading-up on Win8 and I found myself confused by one point that someone here might be able to shed some light on.

MS have said that Secure Boot can be disable-able on x86 hardware but that it must not be possible on ARM hardware.
However, it also says on Wikipedia that Secure Boot is only a requirement if a manufacturer seeks optional certification from MS.

So basically I'm just wondering which takes precedence - or, in other words, can Secure Boot be disabled on ARM hardware if the OEM doesn't seek MS certification?

From my understanding, if it runs WoA then the bootloader WILL be locked. No exceptions. Otherwise Windows won't boot. The WoA kernel looks for specific flags at boot from the UEFI, and with secure boot disabled or not-active it refuses to boot. Just like the Blackberry PlayBook, it does an Integrity Check on boot. From MSFT's Windows 8 Hardware Certification Requirements:

10. MANDATORY. Verify Signature of all Boot Apps and Boot Loaders. Upon power-on, the platform shall start executing boot firmware and use public key cryptography as per algorithm policy to verify the signatures of all images in the boot sequence up-to and including the Windows Boot Manager.

Also from the same PDF...

Disabling Secure MUST NOT be possible on ARM systems.

And as far as secure boot goes, it's time-based authentication from a 2048-bit RSA key stored in secure ROM. On boot it's hashed with SHA-256 bit cryptography. I don't think there'll be any hacking it.

[Rodster]

So I took delivery of a 32GB iPad 3rd Gen the other day. Honestly I don't see what all the fuss is with the iPad? I mean it's a quality piece of kit but it's not like Samsung builds crap. Also while the App Store supposedly has a ton of Apps so does the Android Market...err Google Play.

*What I like about the iPad, fast loads, gorgeous screen, cute UI, App Store.

*What I dislike is the lack of real customization like with Android, does get VERY WARM, no joke even just messing with the UI.

So am I glad I got one? Yeah, it's nice and it's my first iOS device but even if I started out with iOS and messed with Android, I would still prefer Android over iOS. I like the Android UI layout better.

Now bring on those Hi-Res Sammy Windows 8 Tablets.