The Future of Windows

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://technologizer.com/2010/03/08/future-windows/' target='_blank'>http://technologizer.com/2010/03/08...future-windows/</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>"Over the past quarter century, Windows has evolved many times, and it will change again in light of Microsoft's investments in cloud services, mobile platforms, and other new technologies. And as the way people compute and communicate morphs faster than ever, the challenges ahead for Windows are huge. With that in mind, Technologizer asked some of the industry's big brains about what Microsoft needs to do to keep its operating system relevant in the years to come."</em></p><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/dht/auto/1269322544.usr1.jpg" style="border: 1px solid #d2d2bb;" /></p><p>It took me a while to read this article in bits and pieces, but it was worth it - there are some really interesting opinions about the future of Windows as a platform. Some of the suggestions are old and crusty ("Throw it all out! Start over!"), but some are interesting. The implementation of Project Natal technology in a Windows environment would bring with it some really cool possibilities. What do you think about the future of Windows?</p>

[Hooch Tan]

In some ways, I think that Microsoft is already doing what it needs to keep Windows relevant. How I see it is that they need to focus on and ensure three key parts.

First is infrastructure. This goes beyond Windows, but to provide multiple platforms from which to develop. For desktops, they have Windows, which provides an abstraction layer above hardware. Handhelds and homes, they have, or will have Windows Phone 7. For the living room, they got the XBox, which is probably the most successful of the bunch. But they need to provide a consistent infrastructure across all platforms as a base for everything else.

Then there's integration. They need to make sure that development is easy across platforms. Developers! Developers! Developers! They're what are really important since they will be who create the interesting programs, games and social applications that everyone will want to use. On top of that, they have to make sure that they integrate the cloud much more. A blend to make both locally run and cloud run applications seamless and transparent to the user.

Last, there's distribution. I believe that people like simplicity, and having a central distribution channel is key to making the experience easier. If someone needs to find a program or service to organize and play their music, it should be easy to search, find and install a program that ideally would work across all platforms.

I think that Apple has gone a long way towards this and whether it is the ideal model, they are slowly working towards a all-in-one solution, at least for their mobile devices. I think that in order for Windows to keep its lead, Microsoft has to look at the whole picture and makes sure that EVERYTHING works together, instead of treating the computer like an isolated device.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

I just read the first page, and I have to agree the most with Robert Scoble. Having to deal with disparate bits of information everywhere is a pain.