After previous revelations about Windows Threshold, a release we might think of as .2, some more information has emerged about Microsoft plans for the future. And if you were worried that Windows 8.1 didn't go far enough in appeasing desktop users on traditional PCs, I think I have some good news for you. I first discussed Windows Threshold last week in Microsoft to Take Windows to the Threshold. According to Mary Jo Foley, Threshold is a wave of updates that will bring Windows 8.x, Windows...

Read More

As Ive blogged previously, while Microsoft is moving toward a One Windows vision, that vision is more along the lines of one Windows core, but multiple SKUs, or versions, according to my contacts. SKU actually stands for stock keeping unit, for those wondering. This new strategy doesnt necessarily mean there will be a different SKU for every kind of Windows form factor out there. Instead, as Microsoft moves forward with its Threshold Windows wave, there might be just a few Windows SKUs built on...

Read More

Good news for those that have already purchased Halo: Spartan Assault for Windows 8 or Windows Phone 8 – anyone who purchases the game on one of those platforms before December 15th will be eligible to purchase the Xbox One version of the game at the discounted price of $4.99. As an Xbox One title, there are 1000 Achievement Points up for grabs, which means new Achievements and higher values to gun for. In case you missed it, Halo Waypoint published the full, updated Halo: Spartan Assault...

Read More

Hey, folks! Im Jared Neuss, the Producer for Peggle 2 here at PopCap Games. Were incredibly excited to announce that Peggle 2 will be coming to Xbox One next Monday, December 9! The team and I cant wait for you to meet the brand new Peggle Masters, learn their magical powers and, well, just have a great time. Weve got tons of new levels, hundreds of objectives to complete and a whole bunch of ridiculous surprises lined up for you. We think youll love it. Recently, our friends across Lake...

Read More

The long, slow march toward end of life of Microsoft currently most popular operating system is underway. As of October 30, 2013, Microsoft ceased selling boxed copies of Windows 7 at retail. ZDNet Ed Bott posted back in April of this year about the pending October 30 cut off date, but a few stories have popped up this week about it, so this is just a reminder. This October 30 cut off date mean that OEMs or retailers are no longer selling PCs with Windows 7 preloaded. I can verify after a trip...

Read More

A couple of my contacts have confirmed that Microsoft Executive Vice President Terry Myerson recently mentioned the Threshold codename in an internal email about plans for his unified operating system engineering group. If all goes according to early plans, Threshold will include updates to all three OS platforms Xbox One, Windows and Windows Phone that will advance them in a way to share even more common elements. The codename Threshold, for those wondering, derives from the planet around which...

Read More

Microsoft’s Larry Hryb Major Nelsontook to Twitter on Friday to warn gamers to avoid the trick and reaffirm that there’s no backwards compatibility on the Xbox One. While it surprising to see Microsoft leave such a powerful menu exposed in a consumer console, it not the type of setting youll easily stumble upon. It’s not clear how many have fallen for the trick, but given one British teenagerpaid £450 $735 for a picture of an Xbox One on eBay earlier this week we...

Read More

As you build new apps or improve existing apps, its important to understand as much as possible about the store where your apps will be offered. We frequently get questions about the best categories, the best markets, top languages, and so on.We started sharing information in the Explore Store Trends section of the Windows Store Dashboard, including some user demographics and catalog information. Very few developers used these reports, and we received feedback that the presentation was not...

Read More