ZDNet Flame Bait Taken

So ZDNet's Linux/Open Source blogger thinks that Windows 8 is DOA. I don't think it's DOA. I guess I could end my post there, but I'm just going to respond to the author's reasons.

1. No One Needs Windows 8 on the Desktop

"Name one thing about Windows 8 that they don’t already get from Windows 7-or a great desktop Linux like Mint or Mac OS X Lion? I can’t."

I agree with the headline, no one needs Windows 8. Just like no one needs an iPhone. Windows OS updates have been fairly incremental since Windows 95. No one ever needed to upgrade from one version to the next. OK, maybe people who had Windows ME needed to upgrade when XP came out, but Windows 98 was still solid.

So, what do users get? The biggest thing users get is an app store. What made the iPhone awesome? I'd argue it was the app store that truly set it apart from its peers. I'm a techy guy and when I want an app for Windows, I hunt one down. The rest of my family on the other hand, they have no idea how to find an app for Windows, or to tell if the app they are looking at is legit. But on their iPhones, they know just what to do.

I don't keep up with Mac news, but I think they have an app store already, obviously they have one for their tablet (aka the big phone that can make calls). So what makes Windows8 better than Mac OS? You can still run traditional Windows applications (aka desktop apps).

2. Metro: An Ugly, Useless Interface

"In short, even if Metro was the best thing since sliced bread, which it isn’t, it will still require users to learn a new way of doing the same old thing. That’s a failure of an idea right here. Sure, you can use the ‘Classic’ desktop experience instead.."

If he thinks it's ugly, I won't argue with that, a man is entitled to his opinion. Useless on the other hand, it definitely has its use. Have you ever tried to use a touch screen with a traditional Windows app? It's infuriating. Everything about a traditional Windows app is designed around the mouse. Everything around Metro is designed around touch (you can of course still use a mouse). That right there is your use.

Last I heard it took a change to the Registry to make the desktop interface the default, and once you do that, you lose the Metro interface completely. I'd like to see that changed so there was a UI setting to switch the default, and so you would have access to Metro from the desktop interface.

Is the Metro style going to take a bit of learing? Sure, but I honestly don't think I'll be getting calls from my family asking how to get around the Metro side of Windows 8. It's not a groundbreaking change, it's very similar to how an phone OS works.

3. Where are the Windows 8 Applications?

"Windows 8 will probably be out by this fall and we still don’t know jack about its apps? Not even Microsoft’s own flagship office application?"

I have the developer preview tablet they handed out at the Build conference (thank you MS), and I really do wish they had the app store up an running. It'd be nice to have more than the dozen apps their interns built. But as Steven says, Win8 isn't due out until fall. The public beta isn't due out until the end of February, and Microsoft has said that its app store will also be in beta in February. Coincidence?

As for whether or not Office will make it to Metro. The full version of Office almost certainly will not be in Metro. The reason? Metro is a touch optimized interface, and Office is not. If you want the full Office, go to the desktop. That being said, they have a version of most Office apps on Windows Phone 7 (also touch based in case you live under a rock), and there is no reason at all they can't easily port that to a Metro style app.

How easily can they port it? Keep reading...

4. Vexed Windows Developers

"Windows programmers .. spent years learning .NET, Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) and Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), and now they have to learn WinRT and Jupiter/XAML."

I'm guessing Steven isn't a Windows developer. Actually, I'd go further and guess that he doesn't really understand the Windows development stack.

The difference between .NET and WinRT is so minor as to be laughable. For many Silverlight/WPF applications, all that will need to be done is to change a few references from System.* to WinRT.*, and poof, you'll have your app running on WinRT. It won't be Metro styled, you'll have to do that yourself of course by modifying the XAML.

So, learning WinRT isn't going to be hard for .NET developers. It will take some work for C++ developers, but I would expect they should be thrilled to be first class developers again, they had been left behind so long while Microsoft focused on .NET.

As for learning Jupiter/XAML, well, this is where Steven's ignorance is most clearly visible. If you are a developer and have invested time in learning WPF, what have you really learned? XAML. That's right, if you know WPF, you know XAML. If you know Silverlight, you know XAML. Jupiter as best as I can tell (I tried Googling, but couldn't find anything definitive) is the code name for the project to improve XAML by allowing the graphics processor to handle the rendering. From a .NET/WinRT developer, this is an improvement, but one that we have no control over or interaction with.

WCF is the only real "casualty" here. I don't believe (I may be wrong), you are aloud to host a WCF service from a WinRT app. The reason for this is simple, when a Metro app is running, it nothing else is. Apps in the background are paused, and may be shut down at any time to free memory. So, if nothing is running in the background, then who would be contacting the WCF service?

The other thing Microsoft has done that is going to be fantastic for its developer community is to make JavaScript and HTML5 first class languages in Metro. You can access all of the power of the WinRT framework from JavaScript, and HTML5 will be rendered without a browser. That means you can, with very little knowledge of Windows development create an app for Windows. This greatly expands the number of developers who can develop apps for Metro.

5. Too Little, Too Late for the Smartphone/Tablet Market

"It’s Microsoft’s last gasp attempt to be a player on tomorrow’s computers: smartphones and tablets."

Steven basically contends that it's too late for Microsoft to be a player in the Phone/Tablet market. The same could be said for others at various times. When Blackberrys were first introduced, Windows Mobile ruled. When the iPhone came out, it was a battle between Windows Mobile and Blackberry. When Android was released, it was a battle between iPhone and Blackberry.

Has Microsoft been having trouble with its attempts at tablets and phones? Certainly, Windows Mobile just didn't work in a touch world. You needed a stylus to be able to use it. Same goes for any attempt to put out a Windows based tablet.

Is it too little, too late? I don't know, but I hope not. But here's the thing, if they can get you to install Win8 on your desktop, when you go looking for a tablet or a phone after that, you're going to be more likely to at least consider a Win8 tablet or phone. Why? Because the interface is familiar. But what about apps?

One of the problems facing Windows Phone is the lack of high quality apps from the companies you're already using. I own a Windows Phone, and that is probably my only complaint. I'll see that someone offers an mobile app for their service, go to their website and find that the app is available only for iPhone and Android.

And here is where I think Microsoft is showing their foresight. They have a common technology stack between Windows 8 for PC, Tablet and Phone. If you're going to write an app, you're going to write it for Windows 8's Metro because Windows PC have such a dominant share of the market. So, that gets you the PC and Tablets with one app. To port it to Windows 8 phone, you'll just need to change the UI a bit to fit on the phone's screen (and possibly make a few minor changes within the app itself). For very little effort, you pick up Windows Phone's tiny market share.

So, now you have the same user interface across PC, Tablet and Phone, and you have the same apps across all 3. Your data is easily shared across all 3. Not to mention the fact that XBox has already has a Metro style interface, I'm sure it won't be long before the same apps we write for PC, Tablet and Phone can also be written for XBox aka TV.

I think that the future of having a house full of devices sharing the same interface, apps and data is a compelling reason to believe that Windows 8 is going to a success in the long run.