Windows Tools, Help & Guides

If the world ends, this will be our last iteration of Windows available to the public. Given that the world probably won’t end—and, by end, I of course infer “cease[s] to exist”—this will be a closer look into to the ever-changing future of “PC” technology.

Long story short, Ballmer refers to the next version of Windows and “Windows 8” and says it will be released “next year.”

Ballmer: Next version of Windows due out next year | neowin.net

Windows Forums member, Uvais, shares a skin pack made by DeviantArt user ~hameddanger. The package is designed to work with Windows 7 SP1 (download Service Pack 1–SP1–for Windows 7) and will work with both the 32 bit and 64 bit version.

Note: Before installing this skin pack, create a system restore point.

Here’s what it looks like on my PC (click to enlarge):

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Although many features included in early OS builds never make the final cut, this is one I hope will stay. Picture this: you log on to your PC at home and get it just the way you want. Now, when you go to a different PC, you can use these same settings just by logging in. I think this is a great feature and, although it’s something I’ve wanted for years, it’s not a simple feature to implement. If this one makes it to Windows 8, I hope it works and it works very well.

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Three videos of Windows 8’s most prominent new features in recent builds is available online. This video shows a user working with the touch screen interface of the latest build of Windows 8. Will your next PC be a tablet?

Video 1 | Video 2 | Video 3

Screenshots of the “metro” styled system settings in Windows 8 build 7955 are on windows 8 beta. To get the new system settings, you’ll need to use the RedPill patch. After patching, press CTRL+SHIFT+F9 to disable Aero. Now, when you open the system settings (type systemsettings in the Start Menu search box.)

Under the Wireless settings is a GPS option, which shows Microsoft is gearing up the system for more mobile use and the settings are definitely geared towards a touch, tablet interface.

Windows 8 Metro styled System Settings revealed | windows 8 beta

A spreadsheet is available online, which R27, Canouna, Zukona, and Razziatore (see the Credits tab) are maintaining to keep us updated with the current builds of Windows 8. The spreadsheet is accurate so I can only assume the information is coming from a chain that leads all the way back to Redmond. It would be nice to see a date/time column to track the progress of the builds against time.

Windows 8 – Build List | R27 on Google Docs