I attended the CMAP meeting tonight. The presentation was on Windows 8 and Metro. It was good to see the new version of Windows live -- up to now I have only read about it.
Windows 8 is a compromise between classic Windows and the new world of touch/swipe apps. I'm not sure that "compromise" is the right word -- it seems to be two distinct things bound with duct tape. The new Windows Metro UI is quite attractive and very different from the classic UI. Windows 8's classic UI is close to Windows 7's UI; only the "Start" button is absent. Switching between the two modes is abrupt and not always expected.
The push for Metro and a touch-screen interface shows the success of Apple and its iPhone and iPad products. I'm sure that Microsoft had a plan for touchscreen devices and interfaces (the "Surface" technologies) and has accelerated and changed that plan to meet the competition.
Most disturbing with the new Metro UI (and its underlying WinRT API) is the loss of lots of tools and packages. Flash is not available, nor is Silverlight. Developer tools such as Entity Frameworks are not available.
Lots of Windows fans are upset -- and I understand. A lot of their hard-won knowledge has been invalidated with Windows 8 and Metro. While the classic side of Windows 8 still allows for these technologies, one can clearly see that their lifetime is limited. (And therefore the lifetime of the knowledge is limited.)
Yet there is no escape. Microsoft is just as trapped on this treadmill of evolving technology. We are all running as fast as we can to stay in place.
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