Windows 9 preview could materialize as soon as next month

"Threshold" preview rumored for a late September or early October release.

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[Jim Salter]

The real question, obviously, is "will it be good enough / non-irritating enough that people will stop demanding Windows 7 downgrade installs?"

 

[DarkSkyForever]

Here's to hoping W9 is a worthy successor to W7, and it won't attract the same sort of vitriol that W8 did.

 

[NucularHolyWarrior]

Re we on the way to establish the cadence of odd releases being good and even ones being rubbish?

 

[zuviel]

NucularHolyWarrior[/url]":3iwp29yd]Re we on the way to establish the cadence of odd releases being good and even ones being rubbish?

The anti Star Trek rule.

I'll be trying the preview out - want to see how much they've been able to improve high-DPI support if nothing else.

 

[loombot]

Rooting for MS on this one... good chance to wipe away the sins of Windows 8.

WTF is a "Charms bar" anyway? Sounds like a breakfast cereal-themed pub.

 

[Alyeska]

Virtual desktop support integrated with multiple monitors could be interesting. Each monitor has its own quasi independent desktop where you can customize each depending on what you are doing or need.

 

[flunk]

I hope they build something better than Windows 7, I'm sick of hearing how everyone just wants to revisit the past. I want better, damnit!

 

[DarkSkyForever]

flunk[/url]":2e85kr7w]I hope they build something better than Windows 7, I'm sick of hearing how everyone just wants to revisit the past. I want better, damnit!

Everyone wants something better, what people do not want is change for the sake of change. Windows 7 works well, so they better improve upon it. It sounds like W9 is moving in that direction.

 

[lewax00]

zuviel[/url]":651zrn27]

NucularHolyWarrior[/url]":651zrn27]Re we on the way to establish the cadence of odd releases being good and even ones being rubbish?

The anti Star Trek rule.

I'll be trying the preview out - want to see how much they've been able to improve high-DPI support if nothing else.

It's ok, every time an even-numbered Windows comes out, you can just watch an even-numbered Star Trek instead.

 

[cardboard]

I know people love to sh*t on Windows 8 and 8.1 but I have never had a problem with it. I do HATE the metro start screen but it took all of five minutes to install Classic Shell and problem solved. Windows 7 was great and 8 improved on it (Aside from the start screen). I have high hopes for 9. Hopefully they don't f it up.

 

[dieselpunk]

Pretty happy with Win 8, but I do wish that they unflatten some of the controls (especially in the browser) a bit. The plain black & white boxes for menus and buttons are a bit too lo-fi for me. Keep the start screen but make organizing it not be the crazy flow layout it is now where removing one icon cause the downstream ones to fill in the gap and potentially reorganizing your entire screen.

 

[Solidstate89]

Maybe I'll finally find a use for Hyper-V on my desktop!

 

[fritter7]

loombot[/url]":382ymsek]Rooting for MS on this one... good chance to wipe away the sins of Windows 8.

WTF is a "Charms bar" anyway? Sounds like a breakfast cereal-themed pub.

Yeah, I don't seem to remember these in Windows 8...

 

[McDeath]

flatlanderwomen[/url]":2cnr76s3]

Windows 2000 was actually really good. IMO, better than the original release of Windows XP.

Both Windows 95 and 98 were good as well... also missing in your graphic is the complete NT line prior to Win2k.

 

[Locoman]

flatlanderwomen[/url]":20kzp0je]

I dunno, I thought that Win 95 and Win2k were both good. Wasn't Windows ME between Win98 and Win2k?

 

[wallinbl]

McDeath[/url]":qop2tqr2]
Windows 2000 was actually really good. IMO, better than the original release of Windows XP.

Both Windows 95 and 98 were good as well... also missing in your graphic is the complete NT line prior to Win2k.

Windows 2000 was the successor to NT 4, not Win98. In that respect, it was great.

 

[Ace]

flatlanderwomen[/url]":3q4jiez9]...

Where's Windows NT4 Workstation, Windows 98SE and Windows ME?

 

[breze]

Last time I had to use windows, the lack of virtual desktops made the machine feel really 'small' in a weird way. I never actually noticed how useful they are in Linux, but when they were gone it became really obvious. Honestly that is enough of a feature to justify a new windows. It is a massive productivity improvement to be able to throw all the stuff you don't really need to interact with into another desktop, or to have one up for each project.

Maybe this will contribute to the death of those giant "do everything' programs like eclipse. The ability to chuck a set of unconnected tools into a desktop and just flip to it when you need to use them really points out how clunky these behemoth programs are.

 

[usamaahmad]

I adapted to Windows 8 fairly quickly (was using it since Developer Preview), but I can completely understand those that had difficulty. It was a bold decision by Microsoft and they've paid for it, I think.

The nice thing is, this Microsoft (as in Microsoft over the last 2-3 years) has not been completely oblivious, silent or arrogant (not that they could afford to be!). I've been playing with Windows Phone 8 and its successors and that, combined with Windows 8.1 and the expected changes in Windows 9 are proof that Microsoft is listening!

I had switched to OS X over the last 3 years as my primary OS but I'm definitely going to be installing Windows 9. I'm hoping that it will make things less confusing for my mom and dad. (They did not want to switch to OS X).

EDIT: oh and virtual desktops, FINALLY!

 

[ncgmac]

Ace[/url]":1dy56q68]

flatlanderwomen[/url]":1dy56q68]

Where's Windows NT4 Workstation, Windows 98SE and Windows ME?

and also Windows for Workgroups. There's also a couple versions of Windows NT missing.

 

[McDeath]

I use virtual desktops extensively on Linux and OSX. It would be a very, very welcome addition on Windows.

 

[Jims1973]

flatlanderwomen[/url]":iqdw9qv0]

You forgot Windows ME

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

What I'm really hopeful for is a seamless upgrade process. Upgrading OSes is something that Microsoft still hasn't got 100% right. It at the very least isn't simple. I get that OS upgrades are pretty complex, but in this day and age of agile programming and fast releases, it's getting really old having to wipe your computer to install the next Microsoft OS (there are some upgrade paths, but to be honest I'd rather give myself Lasik with a 2W Wiked laser).

 

[McDeath]

I have a soft spot for NT4.

 

[HungryBadger]

Ace[/url]":186s4d6h]

flatlanderwomen[/url]":186s4d6h]...

Where's Windows NT4 Workstation, Windows 98SE and Windows ME?

If you don't miss out a few versions here and there, the whole "alternate versions" meme breaks, obviously.

 

[Tom Brokaw]

I think I'll grab a used HDD offa CL and give this a shot. I couldn't stand the non-keyboard-centric usage expectations of Win8, and didn't even last the week I have given myself to try out that demo. Windows Phone 8 and 8.1 are pretty sweet though, and indicate that MS is interested in making a useful product.

 

[caywen]

Why was Windows 2000 bad?

 

[HungryBadger]

Jims1973[/url]":6bel0v13]
You forgot Windows ME

Everyone wants to forget Windows ME....

 

[smallmj]

Yeah, the good/bad really started with 98 and ME on the consumer OS branch. Before 98 nothing was very good, but there was definite improvement from 3.11 to 95 to 98. I don't know if the NT branch had any bad releases, since I barely saw NT and win2k was very good. The branches merged with XP and the good bad cycle really took hold.

To be honest, there is very little wrong with Vista since SP2 came out. As long as the machine is fully updated and has at least 2 GB of RAM, Vista is now a good OS. The release copy was terrible, and most of the hardware that it was sold on was not powerful enough to run it. It was just insane that manufacturers sold Vista machines with 512 MB of RAM at release. Windows 8.1 is becoming usable as all of the backtracking updates keep coming. The core OS is solid, but the Start Screen gives me sensory overload.

 

[SilverSee]

Looking forward to this. I only hope they have had enough time to build something that feels fresh. Beyond a return of the Start Menu, the Windows desktop (and in-box desktop apps) could really benefit from new theming and iconography at the least.

 

[allwrong]

Since the 8.1 upgrade Windows 8 has been working for me. Best Windows ever. Never enter the "start menu" though (shrudder). I wish they'd fix right- or left-side docking: useless fat borders remain. It should be as in fullscreen mode, except less wide.

 

[arcadium]

Jims1973[/url]":13l6uwqz]

You forgot Windows ME

This image should come with a trigger warning.

 

[Shinzakura]

Jims1973[/url]":32wk0c7h]

flatlanderwomen[/url]":32wk0c7h]

You forgot Windows ME

I'm sure Windows Me would prefer that.

 

[Hinton]

Jim Salter[/url]":98iiveu0]The real question, obviously, is "will it be good enough / non-irritating enough that people will stop demanding Windows 7 downgrade installs?"

Yes it will. And those people will then compare Windows 8 to Vista, as to somehow justify them being "right all along".

 

[scottwsx96]

flunk[/url]":tllkk4sz]I hope they build something better than Windows 7, I'm sick of hearing how everyone just wants to revisit the past. I want better, damnit!

They did. It is called Windows 8.1, though admittedly only if you buy Start8 as well.

 

[Ralf The Dog]

From a future history perspective, the nice thing about Windows 9, it made people look back with fondness at the good old days of Windows 8.