More in Windows

Microsoft this week began aggressively courting the developers who currently target Apple’s iPhone and iPad, offering them Windows 8 Pro and a Mac-based virtualization solution for next to nothing. The offer is called Windows QuickStart Kit and is aimed at pulling developers out of their current comfort zone. And it was so popular it sold out in just hours....More

When Microsoft released its new generation platform releases in late 2012 and early 2013—Windows 8 and RT, of course, but also Windows Server 2012, Windows Phone 8, the newly-renamed Windows Services (what used to be Windows Live), Office 365 and Office 2013, Visual Studio 2012, and more—it wasn’t just iterating new versions of these products as it had in the past. Instead, Microsoft was undergoing a company-wide restructuring of how it delivers software solutions to its customers. And part of that restructuring involves changing how it services and updates these solutions going forward. This year, we’re starting to see how that’s going to work....More

Reports suggest that a revision to Microsoft’s Windows 8 certification program points to a new generation of smaller Windows 8/RT tablets, perhaps in the 7-to-8-inch size used by popular consumption devices like the iPad mini, Nexus 7, and Kindle Fire HD. But the revised specs don’t actually address the size of the screens on devices that device makers can create. Instead, the new specs expand the screen format types that Windows 8 supports....More

An often irreverent look at this week's other news, including non-news about smaller Windows tablets and real news about a smaller Surface, Microsoft’s plans to make Office a lot more agnostic in 2013, Microsoft’s Surface connector patents may stave off iPad ripoffs, Microsoft publishes a list of 41,000 patents, nerds attack each other and take down TV night on Netflix, and Amazon kills off—sorry, “buys”—a book reviewing service....More

After months of silence and inactivity, the Windows division at Microsoft is finally churning to life: This week, Microsoft finally delivered the first substantial updates to the core mobile apps it includes with Windows 8 and RT, delivering new versions of Windows Mail, Calendar, People, and Xbox Music. Meanwhile, a leaked build of the next Windows 8 version shows an increased reliance on the controversial Metro interface....More