Open the Windows... 8: Free trial around the world today as Microsoft revs up to battle Apple and Google

Microsoft is offering the public a free trial of its upcoming Windows 8 operating system from today.
The new operating system will run on tablets as well as desktops and laptops - and is a sea-change for Windows that is seen as a make-or-break opportunity for Microsoft.

Tablets and cloud computing have made Bill Gates' vision of ‘a computer on every desk and in every home’ seem quaint - Windows 8 aims to adapt the iconic operating system for life in the mobile world of tablets.
Windows 8 will come in two variations - one that works on desktops and laptops, and a new version for the ARM microprocessors in tablets, smartphones and other portable devices.
There is no set release date, but it's widely expected to be available in autumn - offering Microsoft Office free on tablets, which could be a 'killer app' that puts Windows 8 machines ahead of Apple devices.

In both versions, Windows 8 features a completely new interface, borrowed from what Microsoft calls the ‘Metro’ style of the current Windows Phone software.


The free trial version is available to download here.

It features blocks or 'tiles' that can be moved around the screen or tapped to go straight into an application.
The tiles update in real time, so you can see if you have emails, voice messages or Facebook notifications at a glance.
If PC and laptop users do not like the new format, they can revert to the old style with a click of the mouse.
The Windows 8 release has to be good, and soon, say industry experts.
More than 90 per cent of the world's PCs still run Windows, but while Microsoft remains profitable thanks to divisions such as Xbox, sales of Windows have slowed.
Rival Apple, with its command of the tablet market, has gained. Microsoft's market capitalisation is now $267 billion, less than half Apple's $535 billion.
‘Now that the tablet market is being defined by the iPad and the (Amazon) Kindle, if they come out with a buggy first version, they won't get a second chance,’ said Michael Cherry, a former Microsoft engineer who now works at independent research firm Directions on Microsoft. ‘They can't afford to disappoint customers.’
Microsoft has not put a timetable on the final release, but Windows unit head Steven Sinofsky has said new versions of Windows should be no more than three years apart, which would put a Windows 8 debut around October 2012.
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