Windows 8 RC To Get Flatter Explorer UI, Other Changes

[Dot Matrix]

are they going to finally fix the scroll bar too? in the CP the only place that has the new flat scroll bar on the desktop is IE

I believe this answers your question. :D

More flat UI elements. Flat buttons and the flat scrollbar has found its way to Explorer.

Looks awesome. I can't wait for someone to turn this into a Win7 theme.

[Dot Matrix]

And I'm upset because most likely it's a high level decision for Metro and Aero to go on the same OS. No good designer will chose to make that decision. It looks forced and if you ask me, a little desperate (as far as timeline and money go together). It just feels that the need to compete with Apple was driven by economics and not passion for quality as far as the UI and integration is concerned, the back end is almost rock-solid for Windows 8 especially because Intel AMD and Nvidia develop for it.

It'll eventually become one OS. For right now, you'll get the best of both no matter what device you are using.

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

What we've seen thus far are only bits and pieces of what will be the new desktop theme for Windows 8. I fully expect more of Aero to make room for a Metro-like theme by the time the RC rolls around.

[guru]

i'm loving the flatter Ui... wish they went grey instead of lightblue on menu backgrounds with colored icons.

[George P Global Moderator]

Unless MS changes it's stance on service packs now that Windows 8 will also be on ARM devices then the next merging of the, for now, two different UIs will come with Windows 9. By that time most, the majority, of users will have wrapped their head around the new start screen so that desktop changes on a bigger scale can happen next.

It's a step by step process and not one big leap with Windows, it's the nature of it's market to be that way. Things like the systray and even the taskbar in some form I expect will change in Windows 9.

[Guest]

I like the flat stuff overall but I hate the new scrollbars. I'm hoping they replace them with something like you see in iOS and Lion. What are WP7 scrollbars like? I thought they were more or less the same?

[George P Global Moderator]

You don't really see a scroll bar in WP7, once you start scrolling a small bar to the side does show up letting you know more or less where your position is but once you stop scrolling it fades away.

[Guest]

Yeah, like iOS then. Some Windows 8 scrollbars function in the same way when you use a scroll wheel, but as soon as you move your mouse, the big clunky version overlays it. Kinda annoying really, the new style is much more elegant.

[Anthonyd]

More flat UI elements. Flat buttons and the flat scrollbar has found its way to Explorer.

Looks awesome. I can't wait for someone to turn this into a Win7 theme.

Looks like aerolite, nothing new here. IIRC, you can have the same scrollbar since the DP.

But I wonder why they don't use the accent color for some UI element such as the scrollbar instead of a neutral color (grey).

[Jan Veteran]

IE 10:

[PGHammer]

While I do understand your statement from a cost point of view and corporate business point of view, I would have kept and improved upon Windows 7 which wast good for the Desktop production enviroment and develop the ARM version with the Metro UI in mind, on the tablet. Why put "finger precision" on a production terminal that has a mouse with a cursor that can get you 1x1 pixel precision? And mixing two concepts that have nothing in common on the same machine.... It's like using two operationg systems at the same time. Metro is good for finger precision. The conceptual model vs the mind model of the UI in Windows 8, that intuitively describes how you work on the machine and expect it to behave is just wrong from that point of view. Shadow, constrast and color are poorly used in what will became the "next" version of Windows. (And let me tell you, I have my share of succes in the IT design and engineering industry. No more to add on that line.)

Basically, doing that repeats the same thing they did with XP Tablet PC Edition - which was an unmitigated disaster.

XP TPE had two unredeemable flaws - the default UI was too different from the other XP SKUs, and there were too many applications it could NOT run from the most popular of the XP SKUs - XP Professional.

Windows 8, on the other hand, goes the route of the more (far more) successful XP Media Center Edition. XP MCE used the XP Professional default UI and (except for AD support) was a true superset of the mainstream XP Professional. XP MCE could also run applications intended for XP TPE (which is why quite a few TPE users blanked their boot drives and installed MCE instead). Also, unlike TPE, MCE was quite usable on desktops - especially desktops with features NOT supported by XP Professional out of the box (such as TV tuners). It is XP MCE that could be said to be the *father* of the Ultimate SKUs of Vista and 7 for this reason.

Outside of emerging markets, there are four Windows 8 SKUs that we would normally deal with (however, only two will be sold retail outside of emerging markets)

1. Windows 8 - this replaces both 7 Home Premium and Basic Edition outside of emerging markets. The one feature it will lack out of the box that the Consumer Preview has today is Media Center - however, Anytime Upgrade (which continues from Vista/7) enables this feature to be added.

2. Windows 8 Pro - the upgrade from both 7/Vista Professional and Ultimate (and, in the x32 flavor, likely XP Professional as well). If Media Center is detected during the OS upgrade process, it will be kept and upgraded as well; if not, it can be added later via Anytime Upgrade.

3. WindowsRT - the official name for Windows On ARM - this will only be available preloaded on ARM hardware.

4. Windows 8 Enterprise - sold via Software Assurance and other multi-license agreements for enterprises.

[floopydoodle]

More flat UI elements. Flat buttons and the flat scrollbar has found its way to Explorer.

Looks awesome. I can't wait for someone to turn this into a Win7 theme.

Great, it's looking better. But why don't they use the same style buttons of the metro interface?

This would be my ideal desktop interface. Mockup:

[migo]

I like that. Incidentally, that's pretty much ICS' design language.

[encarta]

I like that. Incidentally, that's pretty much ICS' design language.

ICS'?

[Dot Matrix]

Great, it's looking better. But why don't they use the same style buttons of the metro interface?

This would be my ideal desktop interface. Mockup:

I actually like that. You got my hopes up for a second until I realized it's a mockup.

[BajiRav]

I like that. Incidentally, that's pretty much ICS' design language.

Well Google is ripping off metro while their designer calls metro as toilet signs on phone. Its no surprise that ICS looks likE metro.

[George P Global Moderator]

I actually like that. You got my hopes up for a second until I realized it's a mockup.

Unless something changes though, which I doubt, I see no reason why desktop side themes can't work for Win8 if/when people decide to make them.

[efjay]

Well Google is ripping off metro while their designer calls metro as toilet signs on phone. Its no surprise that ICS looks likE metro.

QFT.

[McKay]

Great, it's looking better. But why don't they use the same style buttons of the metro interface?

This would be my ideal desktop interface. Mockup:

I would love Aero to look like that.

[ViperAFK]

Wow, I thought metro was supposed to be simple. It looks like they are making Aero overly busy and strange looking to make people WANT to use full Metro apps. It's like they are trying to make the Desktop so ugly to work with you just want to get away from it.

Right click and minimize the ribbon

???

Profit!

[pack34]

Right click and minimize the ribbon

???

Profit!

It's minimized by default :p

[George P Global Moderator]

I really wonder what they'll do after this, as far as the desktop goes. I've posted before how I expect the systray to be replaced/dropped in favor of a central notification area etc but now I wonder what they'll do with the taskbar itself. I wonder if they'll have a "taskbar" area in Windows 9 that will pin live tiles instead of the normal icons we have now in Win7. I think that'd be pretty interesting, specially with the ability to get more info on them.

But I'm thinking 2-3 years from now so who knows.

[Dot Matrix]

I really wonder what they'll do after this, as far as the desktop goes. I've posted before how I expect the systray to be replaced/dropped in favor of a central notification area etc but now I wonder what they'll do with the taskbar itself. I wonder if they'll have a "taskbar" area in Windows 9 that will pin live tiles instead of the normal icons we have now in Win7. I think that'd be pretty interesting, specially with the ability to get more info on them.

But I'm thinking 2-3 years from now so who knows.

No, no. Windows 9 will be nothing like that. I heard Microsoft plans to resurrect Windows XP with a SP4, and will call that Windows 9. They're planning on enabling the "Classic" theme by default. I've heard they're also meeting with OEMs and planning on bringing back heavy, beige boxes and PS/2 ports, because it's what people want. :/

/s

[winlonghorn]

I really wonder what they'll do after this, as far as the desktop goes. I've posted before how I expect the systray to be replaced/dropped in favor of a central notification area etc but now I wonder what they'll do with the taskbar itself. I wonder if they'll have a "taskbar" area in Windows 9 that will pin live tiles instead of the normal icons we have now in Win7. I think that'd be pretty interesting, specially with the ability to get more info on them.

But I'm thinking 2-3 years from now so who knows.

That actually sounds like a fairly decent idea. It would allow us to see the live tiles that are most important to us at all times! :)

No, no. Windows 9 will be nothing like that. I heard Microsoft plans to resurrect Windows XP with a SP4, and will call that Windows 9. They're planning on enabling the "Classic" theme by default. I've heard they're also meeting with OEMs and planning on bringing back heavy, beige boxes and PS/2 ports, because it's what people want. :/

/s

Yep! If people get what they want, there will never be another "real" new version of Windows again! lol :s

[~Johnny]

It's minimized by default :p

Which honestly, it really shouldn't be. The people who need the ribbon the most won't know how to keep it open. The ones who need it the least will know how to close it. Simple logic then says it should be open by default :p