Classic elements such as the Start Button are gone, and the Start Menu and desktop have been unceremoniously shoved into the background by the newer 'Metro UI' Start Screen. While Microsoft has tweaked and refined this design with subsequent releases, the user interface paradigm largely remains unchanged in nearly two decades, right up to the release of Windows 7.Ĭlick here to view the Windows 8 installation walk-through galleryīut with Windows 8 things are changing, and they're changing in a big way. Back in 1995 Microsoft seriously revamped the user desktop and added a set of user interface elements that have persisted to this day, many of which have become iconic. Elements such as the Start Button (or orb), the Start Menu, and a desktop on which users can store files and folders all make up what people think of as 'Windows.' Windows hasn't changed that much since the release of Windows 95 nearly 17 years ago. Let's take a look at the two approaches and see how they differ.
And one thing is clear: Apple is benefiting from having a mature mobile platform. Following yesterday's unexpected release of the OS X 10.8 developer preview (code-named 'Mountain Lion') we're now in a position to see the different approaches being taken by Apple and Microsoft in how they are developing their next-generation operating systems.
