Can't wait to give Windows 8 a test drive? Well, you can take a 90-day trial version for a spin.

The "Windows 8 evaluation for developers" is available via the Microsoft Developer Network Evaluation Center (at the link above), and the company says it's "intended for developers building Windows 8 apps and IT professionals interested in trying Windows 8 Enterprise on behalf of their organization."

The company doesn't provide any technical support for this trial version. Below, you'll find more details from the MSDN post (and you can read CNET Reviews' take on the OS here). … Read more

Last week I reviewed Lenovo's IdeaCentre A720, a Windows 7-based all-in-one desktop with a 27-inch touch screen. 27-inch displays are relatively new for Windows all-in-ones, but as the largest screens for the category they represent the ideal scenario for using Windows 8's touch (nee Metro) interface via desktop. As a follow-up to that review, here are my impressions of the Windows 8 desktop touch experience, facilitated by that Lenovo all-in-one and the Windows 8 Release Preview Build 8400 (you can also check out our review of a newer build, Windows 8 RTM, released today).

Disclaimer: The frustrations of … Read more

You may be familiar with the TouchWiz shortcuts on Samsung Android devices -- well Quick Launch is similar in how it works, but not how it looks. Instead, this lock-screen replacement is bit more modern than TouchWiz, which means it pairs nicely with the Ice Cream Sandwich/Jelly Bean design style.

Since you're going to be using the lock screen each time you pick up your phone, it may as well be something you like to look at. In addition to looking good, the lock screen should have added functionality that compliments the many features of your actual device.… Read more

After a seeming naming dispute with a European partner (cough... Metro Group... cough), Microsoft has decided to switch rather than fight over the name of its Metro design language.

The new substitute terminology upon which the Softies have decided is -- drumroll -- "Windows 8," according to my sources.

Here's the official guidance, my sources say: Anything currently/formerly known as a "Metro-Style application" (with or without a hyphen) will now be known officially as a "Windows 8 application." References to the "Metro user interface" will now be replaced by "… Read more

If you were one of those business users counting on being able to circument the new tiled Windows 8 start menu, you may be disappointed.

The final release-to-manufacturing (RTM) builds of Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 have been leaking to the Web for last few days. Those with access to the final builds are discovering the final tweaks Microsoft made to the product since the last public test build, Windows 8 Release Preview, was delivered.

One of those tweaks is the decision to block users from setting up their Windows 8 machines to boot straight to the Desktop, circumventing … Read more

Is Hewlett-Packard quietly showing off a new tablet it plans to launch in the coming months?

For the second time in three weeks, a tablet has cropped up in a company ad that doesn't appear to be any of the slates it has already launched. This time around, the tablet is shown in a "Make It Matter" section of the company's site. A doctor at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital in Stanford is holding the mystery device. We can only see the back of it in the picture.

The tablet appears to have the same design … Read more

With Windows 8 general availability less than three months away, the race is on for Microsoft to get more applications into its the Windows Store that is part of the new Windows 8 operating system.

I haven't seen an official tally from Microsoft, but Jose Fajarado, a Silverlight and XAML developer who blogs at http://advertboy.wordpress.com, said at latest count he believes there to be about 450 or so Metro-style apps in the Store. (Metro-style apps are those developed from scratch using Microsoft's WinRT programming interfaces. Nothing but Metro-style apps will work on ARM-based Windows RT … Read more

Windows has a set of programs that it will always use by default when you're opening certain file types. Movies, for example, open with the new Videos app in Windows 8. Most of the time this is fine, but you might prefer a different program to do the job, such as VLC Media Player.

To change the default program, right-click on the file you want to open and select Open with > Choose default program.

This will open a new dialogue in Windows 8, with this Metro-style interface (curiously, it opens within the traditional desktop), where you can select … Read more

Microsoft announced today that Windows 8 has been released to manufacturing (RTM'd). (The final build number is 9200.)

At the same time, Microsoft's Internet Explorer 10, Windows Server 2012 and Visual Studio 2012 also have reached the RTM milestone, given all of these products have been developed in lockstep with Windows 8. (I am not 100 percent sure if Windows RT also RTM'd simultaneously and do not believe Microsoft officials ever promised this would be the case.)

Microsoft officials said earlier this month to expect Windows 8 to RTM in the first week of August. (I modified … Read more