Update: It looks like Windows 8.2 may
not even happen, with the company potentially jumping straight to
Windows 9, as far as title updates are concerned. See the details below!
With Windows 8.1, Microsoft addressed some of the problems that scuffed the original Windows 8
release, smoothing the cracks between desktop and touch UIs, improving
snapped apps, and allowing users to boot direct to the desktop, among
other tweaks and fixes.
For many, this is the software that Microsoft should have launched in 2012.
For others, Windows 8.1
simply makes Windows 8 slightly less terrible. The truth is that, while
Windows 8.1 improves Windows 8, the consensus is that it doesn't do
enough.
Cut to the chase What is it? An upgrade for Windows, to follow Windows 8.1 Update 1 When is it out? Probably late 2014 What will it cost? Nothing, it will be a free upgrade
The new update features improvements to the Start Screen including the ability to boot straight into the Desktop, the return of shutdown on the Start screen and a more familiar task bar to unify the old and new user interfaces.
Windows 8.2 release date
Most recently, Microsoft has confirmed
that it will not release a second title update to Windows 8.1, but
rather continue with its weekly cadence of smaller improvements and
security patches. At this point, it seems that Windows 9 would land
(supposedly this fall) before the company ever releases a Windows 8.2. WZOR,
a Russian leaker group, seems set on a fall release date based on
information it claims to have obtained. However, the collective isn't
sure of whether the release will be known was "Windows 8.2" or just
"Windows 8.1 Update 2."
Mary Jo Foley of ZDNet
fame, however, has been told by sources that this update could launch
as early as August 2014. She reports that Microsoft looks to speed up
its software update release cadence on the whole, starting with Windows
8.2 and possibly for future Windows Phone releases.
What Windows 8.2 might do
The
same group of leakers, WZOR, has reason to believe that Windows 8.2
will introduce the revamped Start menu that was teased during Build
2014. That means a return, or at least something similar, to the Start
menu found on Windows 7.
A major difference will be the
addition of integrated Live Tiles to the Start menu. This will dually
keep the Modern UI aesthetic of Windows 8 while including some of that
live-updating functionality.
ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley cites
sources that echo this sentiment. However, she reports that the
inclusion of Modern UI apps in the desktop UI as floating windows and on
the task bar might be tabled for a larger Windows 9 release in 2015.
What Windows 8.2 should do
While Microsoft listened to user feedback and reinstated the Start button in Windows 8.1, they didn't make it intuitive.
Clicking
the Start icon simply takes you to the Metro Start screen. You need to
right-click the icon to bring up a Start Menu, with more familiar quick
links to Task Manager, Control Panel and Shut Down. Even this menu isn't
strictly new: it's hidden in Windows 8 (press and hold the Windows key
and press X to open it).
Windows 8.2 could make the
Start Screen easier to access and it would be an ideal opportunity to
improve the discoverability of other useful options that are currently
buried in sub-menus.
While Microsoft is at it, Windows
8.2 should reinstate Libraries in File Explorer, which don't show by
default. Yes, you can turn them back on. But again, the option isn't
easy to find. Microsoft's fondness for labyrinthine menu structures is
frustrating, especially for inexperienced users.
3:15 PM
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