release

Skype for Windows Phone gets minor enhancements and fixes

Skype for Windows Phone received an update today that makes some minor improvements to smooth the experience for users of the VoIP service Microsoft acquired last year.

The changes to the app include enhancements to the contact list, which now displays all contacts that have at least one phone number in the list. You'll also now be able to edit a phone number using the dial-pad before making a call.

The release comes with some minor bug fixes as well. An issue that would end a Skype call if another incoming call or a calendar notification came up has … Read more

Microsoft Office first desktop app to hit Windows 8 store

Dominated by Metro apps, the Windows Store has landed its first desktop program.

Office 2010 is now available through the online store, making good on Microsoft's promise that it would offer both desktop and Metro apps for Windows 8 users. But there is a key difference between the two.

Users can download both the free and paid Metro apps directly from the store. A simple Install button downloads and then installs the app in the background. An alert flashes on the screen once the app is fully installed.

The listings for desktop software serve more as pointers to external … Read more

How to turn Windows 8 Metro live tiles on and off

One of the benefits of the Metro Start screen are live tiles, which can display the latest info from your e-mail, calendar, contacts, and other apps. How do you enable that feature?

You first need to open and potentially set up the app for which you want to see a live tile. Among the apps in the new Windows 8 Release Preview that can tap into this feature are Mail, People, Calendar, Photos, Weather, News, and Sports.

Just opening certain apps will turn on the live tile feature. For example, open the News and Weather apps and then return to … Read more

What to do if Windows 8 Release Preview won't install

Have any of you tried to install the new Windows 8 Release Preview only to face the message: "Your PC's CPU isn't compatible with Windows 8."

If so, the solution to the problem may lie in your computer's BIOS.

Several perplexed users chiming in on Microsoft's Answers forum have all reported similar errors when trying to install the new Release Preview. I myself ran into issues when I tried to install the RP as a virtual machine on one of my laptops.

The first step suggested by Microsoft is to see if the following … Read more

Windows 8 Release Preview: How to download and install it

Those of you who want to try out the new Windows 8 Release Preview can install it from an ISO file or run a full setup that guides you through the upgrade process.

If you want to skip to the chase and just download the ISO file, you can find it at Microsoft's own site or through CNET's Download.com.

Microsoft provides both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows 8 RP across a variety of languages. After you download the ISO file, you can burn it onto a DVD using the Windows Disc Image Burner in Windows 7 … Read more

Windows 8 Release Preview puts gadgets in the backseat

Nothing is as fascinating as the thing you can't have yet. Between Windows 8 Release Preview and a deafening cavalcade of iPhone 5 rumors, the current gadget crop didn't stand a chance this week.

This week's roundup of top-rated gear includes everything we've awarded three-and-a-half stars or above in our rating scale, and you can browse all of them in our slideshow. But first, read through our unrated Windows 8 Release Preview, written by Seth Rosenblatt. Seth has spent a lot of time with the new Windows preview, and he's played with the two-screen, app-centric … Read more

How to add Media Center to Windows 8 Release Preview

Microsoft has followed through on its promise to remove Media Center from Windows 8. But you can still install it in the new Release Preview.

Those of you who downloaded yesterday's Windows 8 Release Preview will notice that Media Center is missing from the list of apps on the Start screen and Apps screen. A new Windows FAQ page explains how to grab it for free via the following steps:

From the Metro Start screen or Apps screen, hover to the upper right or left corner of the screen until you see the Charms bar. Click on the Search … Read more

Windows Store, you're still clumsy, despite Windows 8 boost

Yesterday's Windows 8 Release Preview brought a few tweaks to the Windows Store, but shopping at the virtual store still doesn't feel user-friendly.

Those of you who download the new Release Preview will find changes scattered around the Windows Store. Navigation seems to head the list, as described in a new Microsoft blog.

The Windows 8 beta version of the store offered a breadcrumb, a path that shows you where you've been so you can return to a previous page. Microsoft felt that users didn't see or use the breadcrumb, so it removed that in favor … Read more

Windows 8 due 'for the holidays,' but will biz bite?

Microsoft dropped some hints today that the commercial release of Windows 8 could come sooner rather than later, but critics are worried that it's not very business friendly.

Announcing the Windows 8 Release Preview, Microsoft's Steven Sinofsky wrote today in the Building Windows 8 blog that the final version is, at the very least, on track.

"If the feedback and telemetry on Windows 8 and Windows RT match our expectations, then we will enter the final phases of the RTM (release to manufacturing) process in about 2 months," Sinofsky wrote. (Windows RT refers to the version … Read more