Microsoft took a bold step at its recent BUILD conference for Windows developers by releasing a public preview of Windows 8. It makes perfect sense to give developers advance access to the new software, so they have plenty of time to write the juicy apps that will help drive the new platform forward.

The unusual part of Microsoft's plan is that they also allowed regular members of the public to get their sticky mitts on the software. Officially described as  'Windows 8 Developer Preview', this software is far from complete. We expect Windows 8 to be released in Q3 2012 - in time for next Christmas - which means the new Operating System will probably be finished by mid-2012.

Go get it
At present, the software has reached the Alpha or Pre-Beta stage, which means that Windows 8 is still work in progress. Nonetheless it is worth following this link to the site where you'll find a choice of three versions of Windows 8 for download.

The 32-bit version comes in at a 2.8GB download, the 64-bit version is 3.6GB and the 64-bit version with developer tools is a hefty 4.8GB. We selected the basic 64-bit version, downloaded the ISO file and burnt it to DVD. The only snag we encountered was that the DVD wasn't bootable, so we bunged a fresh installation of Windows 7 on a test PC and then ran the Windows 8 installer on the machine.

The installation was quick and simple - but in fairness to Microsoft, the company had already got this down to a fine art with Windows 7.

Windows 8's Metro interface resembles that of the mobile-specific Windows Phone 7.

So what's it like?
With Windows 8 installed, we were immediately faced with a request to sign in to a Windows Live profile, which is meant to assist with the process of synching your PC to your Tablet or Windows Phone.

Once that was out of the way, we were able to take a good look at the Metro user interface (UI) - at which point it becomes clear that Windows 8 is a radical departure from Windows 7. The desktop has been renamed the Start screen, with icons for the various widgets and pieces of software - or, if you prefer, apps.

Windows 8 comes with a lock screen that resembles those of smartphones and tablets.

Company: Microsoft

Website: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/apps/br229516

Tags: metro interface build developer conference preview os windows 8 operating system microsoft