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The installed base of 64-bit (x64) Windows 7 has reached 46% in June 2010, vs. 54% for 32-bit (x86) Windows 7, according to statistics released by Microsoft. It is clear from the data shared by the Redmond company that end users are starting to choose x64 systems and equivalent Windows 7 editions over older x86 architectures. The software giant underlines that this is an increasing trend, and that it expects 64-bit Windows 7 to become the norm, and 32-bit Windows 7 the exception. Of course, the question now is, what will the future hold for Windows 8?

Microsoft does have a few options. It could of course continue to serve both 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Windows 8, just as it did with Windows 7 and Windows Vista. Or it could drop the x86 flavors of Windows 8 altogether, and produce only x64 Windows 8 SKUs. This would certainly be a bold move for the software giant, but Microsoft is sure not to come to a conclusion in this regard without carefully considering the overall impact.

In June 2010, just 1% of all Windows XP machines were running a 64-bit copy of the OS, and just 11% of Vista computers had the x64 version installed. The vast majority of XP users, 99% are still running 32-bit systems, and the same is valid for 89% of Vista customers.

Only now, a little over eight months since the advent of Window 7, does 64-bit computing appear to be on the brink of becoming ubiquitous, and making 32-bit architectures a thing of the past. x64 processors have been available for a while now, but only 64-bit Windows 7 seems to have gained sufficient traction, in concert with new OEM computers shipped worldwide, to push x86 processors onto their shelve in history.

There already is a precedent. In 2009, Microsoft offered the first x64-only Windows operating system. With the introduction of Windows Server 2008 R2 (Windows 7 Server), the software giant dumped support for x86 processors completely. Could a similar move be considered for Windows 8?

End users are certainly behind the x64 adoption wave. 64-bit platforms and modern CPUs pave the way for parallel processing, mean more RAM (up to 192 GB for Windows 7), better security etc. But it seems that the entire world is slowly arriving to a consensus, as far as 64-bit is concerned.

There are factors outside of Redmond to take into consideration

“OEMs today have fully embraced 64-bit. We have seen many OEMs convert entire consumer lines of PCs to 64-bit only – which can be seen quite a bit today in North America. According to Stephen Baker at NPD, 77% of PCs sold at retail in April 2010 in the U.S. had a 64-bit edition of Windows 7 pre-installed. And businesses are adopting Windows 7 64-bit as well. According to Gartner, by 2014 75% of all business PCs will be running a 64-bit edition of Windows. Intel recently migrated to 64-bit Windows 7,” revealed Brandon LeBlanc, Windows Communications Manager on the Windows Client Communications Team.

“As I mentioned previously, there are more compatible hardware and software for PCs today thanks to the amazing work from our partners (ISVs and IHVs) making their products compatible with 64-bit. Through the Windows Logo Program (the “Compatible with Windows 7” logo today), hardware partners are required to develop 64-bit drivers for their devices and software partners are required to have their applications compatible with 64-bit Windows 7. This groundwork was laid with the Windows Logo Program for Windows Vista and carries through to today with Windows 7,” revealed Brandon LeBlanc, Windows Communications Manager on the Windows Client Communications Team,” LeBlanc added.

Of course it is still too early to ask Microsoft in which direction it will go with Windows 8. And too early for the company to start sharing its plans with the public. The unconfirmed schedule for the delivery of Windows 8 indicates that Windows 7’s successor will be offered in mid-2012. In this context, by the summer of 2011, when the first Beta of Windows 8 should drop, we can also expect the company to reveal whether its next Windows client will be x64-only or not.

There are aspects independent from Microsoft that will undoubtedly influence this decision. If the adoption of x64 PCs and Windows 7 continues at the same rate, then a x86 flavor of Windows 8 will be less likely. But if a high uptake rate works in concert with original equipment manufacturers also dumping 32-bit, and with the ecosystem of hardware and software solutions around Windows shifting the focus to 64-bit entirely, then a 32-bit Windows 8 would simply no longer make sense. It’s worth noting although that just 2 years ahead of the reported delivery date for Windows 8, Adobe still has to produce a 64-bit version of Flash, although the plug-in is ubiquitous, and x64 Internet Explorer has been available for quite some time. And Adobe are by no means not alone.

What do you think? Should Microsoft make Windows 8 exclusively 64-bit, and continue selling 32-bit Windows 7? Or should the company deliver both x86 and x64 flavors of Windows 8, per the Windows 7 and Windows Vista model?


Source: Softpedia News

The next iterations of the Windows client and Office productivity suite have been cooking for over a year now. Of course, for the vast majority of this period, the two products have been in planning stage, meaning that no actual coding was done. Still, it is critical to note that Microsoft has started focusing on the evolution of Windows and Office, even before Windows 7 and Office 15 were finalized. Specifically, the Redmond company has been planning the Windows 8 and Office 15 releases.

 

Ken Johnston, the Group Manager for the Microsoft Office Internet Platform & Operations team, offered proof of this in June 2009. At that time, Windows 7 was in Release Candidate (RC) stage, and Office 2010 was approximately over half a year away from the Beta milestone. And yet, the software giant was already looking ahead, and discussing what was next, after Windows 7 and Office 2010, formerly codenamed Office 14.

“More than one hundred senior engineering managers and architects along with a few executives gathered this week to discuss some of the evolving ideas around Office 15 for a one day offsite focused on improving the Office engineering system. One of the key elements of the meeting was to bring in new thinking from outside of the Office organization. The first guest presenter was Mike Kelly who had been part of the Office organization before joining the Microsoft core engineering strategy team Engineering Excellence. In his presentation he shared some really amazing prototypes of new collaboration and build system tools as well as some industry analysis. The second presenter was Craig Fleischman, also a former Office manager who was now working on Windows. Craig presented some of the plans the Windows team has for Windows 8,” Johnston indicated at the time.

“Right about now most readers are probably hoping I’ll spill some information about Windows 8 and Office 15 but sorry, I can’t do that. All I can say is that while neither Windows 7 nor Office 14 have shipped, we are hard at work developing plans for the next versions. Craig finally got to a slide about Windows 8 and services,” he added. (emphasis added)

Speculations reveal that Windows 8 might have already hit the Milestone 1 (M1) stage of the development process. Of course, Microsoft is completely mum on the Windows 8 project, and the company is expected to remain that way until the Beta drops, sometime in mid-2011. If all goes well, Microsoft could release Windows 8 around the summer of 2012.


Source: Softpedia News