Microsoft Telemetry data shows that majority of Videos user watch on their Screen are from Online Sources like YouTube, Netflix, Hulu etc. Traditional DVD, Blu-ray optical media consumption are declining day by day. Based on these research, Microsoft has decided not to include DVD playback support in Media player any more. Instead of media player, Windows Media center will be capable of providing DVDs, Blu-ray and other media experience.

Unlike Windows 7, Windows Media center won’t be pre-installed in Windows 8. The User who are still interested in Windows Media Center can Install Windows Media Center addon pack  via ‘Add features to Windows 8 Control panel or Windows Anytime Upgrade’.

There will be two ways a user can acquire Media Center pack:

In the starting, Media Center won’t be pre-installed in Windows 8 Editions.  An End user upgrade will be required to install Media Center Pack on Windows 8 PC. Windows 8 Pro users can directly upgrade to Windows 8 Media Center Pack whereas Windows 8 editions user will be require to install Windows 8 Pro pack which will also include Media Center pack.

Windows Media Center will support all previous features including including DVD playback (in Media Center, not in Media Player), broadcast TV recording and playback (DBV-T/S, ISDB-S/T, DMBH, and ATSC), and VOB file playback. Media Center Pack pricing details is not yet announced.

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Microsoft Account is Re-imagined or updated version for Windows Live Services (announced on November 2005) which didn’t met the Microsoft Expectation of  a truly Connected Experience. Users will be able to use Microsoft Account for various Microsoft Product and services including Windows Login Authentication, Xbox Live, Zune or App Store, Mail, People, Photos, Messaging  etc.

Windows Live services and apps were built on versions of Windows that were simply not designed to be connected to a cloud service for anything other than updates, and as a result, they felt “bolted on” to the experience. This created some amount of customer confusion, which is noted in several reviews and editorials.  The names we used to describe our products added to that complexity: we used “Windows Live" to refer to software for your PC (Windows Live Essentials), a suite of web-based services (Hotmail, SkyDrive, and Messenger), your account relationship with Microsoft (Windows Live ID), and a host of other offers. 

Unlike Windows Live services, there won’t be any separate Microsoft Account brand to access same services on different platform. Microsoft Account will be deeply integrated with Windows 8, Windows Phone, Metro Style apps and other web platform services. So that user can have seamless  Windows Experience on any platform you choose. For Example, when you add a contact in one place, it shows up in the cloud and shared across Windows Phone, Windows 8, Hotmail, Messenger, and SkyDrive so on.

Once you are login to Windows 8, you are already connected to the cloud. Your PC setting roam along with you. So you can log in to a new PC and get start from where you left.Along with a Microsoft account, everyone gets a SkyDrive, which is cloud storage for documents, photos, your phone’s camera roll, and settings from your PC.

The chart below breaks down Microsoft’s software and services in the new world of Windows 8:

Some of these Applications powered by cloud services include Mail, Calendar, People, Photos, Messaging, and SkyDrive are now available in Windows 8 Consumer Preview and also  Windows Phone comes with the same set of apps, powered by cloud services, and connected to your Microsoft account.

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Windows 8  is intend for basic Windows users. Windows 8 will include all core Windows 8 features plus update Windows Explorer, Task Manager,better multi- monitor support, VPN client, Start Screen, Internet Explorer 10 etc.

Windows 8 Pro is designed for Tech Enthusiasts and business,  technical professionals and will be including all features in Windows 8 plus additional capabilities for Encryption for system file, ability to boot from VHD, BitLocker and BitLocker to go, PC Management and Domain connectivity.  Windows Media Centre users need to Install an Economical ‘Media Pack’ add-on which will be available for Windows 8 Pro only.

Windows RT aka Windows On ARM or WOA will be available as  pre-installed on Tablets and PCs powered by ARM processors. Windows RT will include touch-optimized desktop versions of the new Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote.

In addition to these Editions, there will be a Windows 8 Enterprise Edition for Enterprise customers containing everything  in Windows 8 Pro  with additional features like PC Management and deployment, advanced security, virtualization, new mobility scenarios and much more.

Check out the Windows 8 features comparison chart  that Highlights key features on three main edition: Windows 8, Windows 8 Pro, Windows RT (this list should not be considered an exhaustive list of features). Pricing and other promotional details to be revealed in upcoming months, till then you can download and check out Windows 8 Consumer Preview.

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You can download Microsoft Office mobile app using Nokia Software Update tool on your smartphone or also you can do it by connection your device to the Nokia Suite on your PC. Office Mobile apps will also be available from the Nokia Store in just a few weeks.

Last year we have blogged about the Microsoft apps to Join Symbian smartphone, few of them mentioned apps like OneNote, Lync 2010, Document Connection and PowerPoint Broadcast were debut in February this year for Symbian Smartphones. Now applications like Microsoft Word mobile, PowerPoint mobile and Excel mobile are the latest apps to join the suite of Microsoft Apps built for Symbian Smartphones.

Microsoft Office mobile apps will be also made available for Nokia N8, Nokia E6 or Nokia 500. he Nokia 808 PureView will also come with all these apps when it begins selling.

Via Nokia Conversations

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Hari, Sreekant , Shreyas, Harish (Director Technical Evangelism), Mayank, Kunal, Pratik, Nawaz

The Camp was organized in Hyderabad, India from March 2nd – 3rd, 2012 at the Park Hotel.  Primarily, the event focused on introducing Windows 8 and guiding the  principle of building a ‘Metro Style’ app to a chosen set of technical/developer audience. During the Camp, Microsoft Experts shared exclusive content related to metro Style App development on Windows 8.

The Amazing part of the camp was 24-hours-no-sleep-just-code session i.e Hackathon. Within 24hrs, We had to build an Metro Style application based on our suggested Idea.  Microsoft team were guiding us step by step and helping us by reviewing and suggesting more ideas to built our app. The Guidance were so clean, simple and quite easy to learn the development process of Metro Style application. Most of the audience including me were succeeded in building our first Metro Style Application.

While participant were showcasing their app idea on 3rd march morning, i got a chance to premiere my new short film i.e. I Love Windows Phone in front of  that huge audience.

Overall the camp was awesome, Informative and would like to thanks to the Microsoft Windows 8 Camp India team and media agency for all their efforts to make this event a huge success.

Images uploaded over here

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Nokia Lumia 610 features 800 MHz single CPU powered by Windows Phone 7.5 Operating System, 3.7 inches Screen Size with resolution of 800 x 480 pixels, Corning Gorilla Glass TFT Display, internal storage 8 GB, Ram memory 256 MB.

In multimedia, Lumia 610 comes with 5.0 Megapixels camera with 4x Digital Zoom LED Flash, Video recording at 1280 x 720 pixels, 30 FPS plus 3x Video Digital Zoom.

Connectivity wise its good, you may use social clients like Facebook Flickr, Picasa etc. for sharing. It sports Blutooth 2.1 +EDR micro USB, WLAN support, HSDP connectivity at 7.2 mbps / GPRS.

The Nokia Lumia 610 will be available somewhere in Q2 of 2012 for around approximate expected price $200. *Nokia has not yet announced the pricing details.

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In current Windows system, users can add additional display language through Windows Update or Microsoft Download center, which make no sense. In Windows 8 Microsoft has added new Language preference section in the control panel, which means no more need to look for the languages  around the websites. You get list of available languages in one place i.e New Language preference section.

The main view of Language preference section display the list of languages enabled on your system. In above Screenshot, Hindi and English languages are enabled on Windows 8 system. You may add or change, switch to another languages if you want. To add new language click on Add a Language tab.

Select the language you want to use. Once selected, language is added to your list but does not download and install the display language until  you choose.

In addition to this, Microsoft has added English UK as a standalone language plus 14 new additional  languages for Windows 8 , generating total count to 109 languages for Windows 8.

Microsoft also broaden their language support with the addition of 13 new Language Interface Packs includes  Punjabi (Pakistan), Sindhi (Pakistan), Central Kurdish (Iraq), Uyghur (People’s Republic of China), Belarusian (Belarus), Kinyarwanda (Rwanda), Tigrinya (Ethiopia), Tajik (Tajikistan), Wolof (Senegal), K’iche’ (Guatemala), Scottish Gaelic (United Kingdom), Cherokee (United States), Valencian (Spain).

Image credit: Microsoft

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“The Windows logo is a strong and widely recognized mark but when we stepped back and analyzed it, we realized an evolution of our logo would better reflect our Metro style design principles and we also felt there was an opportunity to reconnect with some of the powerful characteristics of previous incarnations.”  said Sam Moreau, Principal Director of User Experience for Windows.

The new redesigned Windows logo is a Window not a flag. If we trace back the evolution of Windows Logo, Microsoft Logo designing team has bring back Windows Logo to its  original meaning – reimaging the Windows Logo as just that, A Window.

How ITs Re-Designed

• Microsoft wanted the new logo to be both modern and classic by mixing International Typographic style using bold flat colors, clean lines and shapes based on Metro Style design philosophy.
• Microsoft wanted the new logo carries Metro principle of being “Authentically Digital”.  It means it does not try to emulate faux-industrial design characteristics such as materiality (glass, wood, plastic, etc.). It has motion – aligning with the fast and fluid style you’ll find throughout Windows 8.
• An last goal was for the new logo to be humble, confident. Welcoming you in with a slight tilt in perspective and when you change your color, the logo changes to reflect you. It is a “Personal” Computer after all.

The New logo is modern, metro style, reimagined – what do you think ? tell us below in comment box.

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With New Facebook for Windows Phone you can easily update your status, check news feed review upcoming events, connect ,share information among friends and family while on move.

Highlighted features for Facebook v2.3 release:

• News feed performance improvements
• New panorama design.
• New profile design.
• Banner Images.
• Improved navigation.
• Pages
• Groups
• View “likes”.
• Feed filters.
• Posting privacy.
• Bug fixing

App will use:

• location services
• data services
• movement and directional sensor
• push notification service
• camera

To update the app, tap open Marketplace on your phone, then tap open the update queue. (It might take a few hours for the update notification to hit your phone.)

This App is available for free.

Download Facebook for Windows Phone

Image Credit: Facebook

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Last year Microsoft had announced that Windows 8 will be build for ARM processor architecture too. Since then Microsoft has never intimated how they are doing it, whether its going to be same like traditional Windows or new approach to follow, what kind of application would be available.

But now we got something, and here’s few Highlights:

Microsoft is building Windows on ARM (WOA), a reimagined windows for the ARM Processor architecture to cover wider range of form factors and designs.

Windows on ARM (WOA) is a new member of the Windows Family, much like Windows Server, Windows Embedded or Windows Phone. WOA are still Under development, Microsoft targeted to ship them the same time as PCs designed for Windows 8 on x86/64 architecture.

It’s being build on foundation of Windows, and will feel just like using Windows 8 on x86/64 architecture.

Metro style apps in the Windows Store can support both WOA and Windows 8 on x86/64. WOA does not support running, emulating, or porting existing x86/64 desktop apps. Code that uses only system or OS services from WinRT can be used within an app and distributed through the Windows Store for both WOA and x86/64.

WOA can support all new Metro style apps, including apps from Microsoft for mail, calendaring, contacts, photos, and storage. WOA also includes industry-leading support for hardware-accelerated HTML5 with Internet Explorer 10.

WOA includes desktop versions of the new MS Office 15 including Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote many more. These new Office applications, codenamed “Office 15”, have been significantly architected for both touch and minimized power/resource consumption, while also being fully-featured for consumers and providing complete document compatibility.

WOA Includes File Explorer, Internet Explorer 10 and most other desktop features which have been significantly architected for both touch and minimized power/resource consumption

With WOA you can look forward to integrated, end-to-end products—hardware, firmware and WOA software, all built from the ground up.

Around the next milestone release of Windows 8 on x86/64, a limited number of test PCs running WOA-specific hardware will be made available to developers and hardware partners in a closed, invitation-only program. But its would not be a sample or hints for forthcoming PCs.

The Windows Consumer Preview, the beta of Windows 8 on x86/64, will be available for download by the end of February. This next milestone of Windows 8 will be available in several languages and is open for anyone to download.

You can read more  about Engineering for ARM at Building Windows blog.

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