Windows 8 Bible

Chapter 1

What’s New in Windows 8

IN THIS CHAPTER

New platforms

The Windows 8 Interface

The Windows store

Cloud synchronization

Messaging

Other new features

In some ways, Windows 8 is a radical departure from Windows 7, as well as the other versions of Windows that preceded it. In other ways, Windows 8 isn’t much different from Windows 7. Both possibilities are good ones, both from a technology standpoint and for the user. The differences mean an expanded set of features, richer experience, broader platform support, performance improvements, and much more. The similarities mean that if you are familiar with previous versions of Windows, you can put Windows 8 to work right away without a steep learning curve.

In this chapter, we focus not on those familiar features, but rather on many of the new and changed features in Windows 8. You’ll find an overview here of those features, with deeper explanation in other chapters. We can’t cover every new feature here, but we hope to give you a good overview of the key features and conceptual changes introduced in Windows 8.

So, whip out that new Windows 8 tablet or PC, start reading, and start taking advantage of the great new features that Windows 8 has to offer.