Videos of the two keynotes yesterday, in case you guys want to watch them (first is Windows keynote, afterwards is Surface keynote):

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/news/presskits/windows/liveevent2.aspx

Now if only they reveal the price for the Pro system builder package. Grrrr! :)

@GOG, you're missing a huge market (like the biggest ever) by ignoring feedback and not certifying your packages for Windows 8.

I'm expecting Windows 8 support on GOG very soon...

I'm expecting it, like, never, honestly. :) Why? Because 4 years since their existence, they still haven't fixed the packages for Windows 7. I somehow doubt they will send every package through the certification system (if they do, the GOGs will be available in Windows Store, exposing every single Windows 8+ user to the games, not just a folk that randomly types the website's URL).

Please tell me that you're going to fully support the OS, not just add a single line that the game works on it.

Well, their pricing shows two things:

1. Windows 8 is absolutely crucial for Microsoft's strategy for the next few years. The can't afford another flop like ME or Vista.

2. They _are_ very concerned that customers might resist the switch, that's why they are selling it for a dumping price (for now), and have reinforced their marketing.

Edit: Also, I think GOG is well-advised focusing their limited resources on Mac integration while waiting how Win8 pans out. It's currently impossible to tell how well Win8 will be adopted. The low price certainly will boost sales, but the much more important question is whether people will actually _use_ it, especially on their desktops.

Don't know what you mean by 'margin'. But you don't sell desktop stuff through the Store, but actually list your games there, and when an user clicks on your game, it takes them directly here. You still get 100% of the money that users spend. Costing you just ~100 EUR per year (per account, not per game, pretty sure 100 EUR is nothing for a company). :)

Cant believe the price is only £25 for upgrade version although was going to say to my boss then i saw the if you have windows 7 pro then you will have to reinstall all software i think that screws my job up as the unofficial/official office it guy. Too much bloody hard work damm you microsoft.

Take a look at the screens. You must not miss out on this. No other digital distributor (relative to gaming) has done this yet, be the first!

The users are directly exposed to your games, no need for them to search anywhere on the Internet, they just search directly through their Start screen.

The release event was underwhelming, IMO. No surprises, just repeating the same stuff that we've known for ages. And I still don't see Win8 as a viable option for business users, no matter how much they repeated how well it works from platform to other.

With Stardock's Start8 utility installed, Win 8 is actually a pretty slick OS. It's not a big enough step forward to justify upgrading from Windows 7 as far as I'm concerned, but that's considered common knowledge at this point.

As said in my previous post, they really, really _need_ Win8 to be a success. Their whole business strategy depends on it. A flop would hurt Microsoft much more than the ones of Windows ME (because back then, disappointed users just migrated to another Windows) and Windows Vista (because back then, users just went back to Windows XP). Windows 8 is designed with a 100% focus on allowing Microsoft to catch up in the mobile market, where they performed abysmally so far. If it backfires, then they won't only stay a nobody in the mobile market, they might also lose customers in the desktop market (since there is more competition in this market now).

Anyway. My girlfriend has Windows XP 32bit on her machine, and I'll have to check if the 30€ upgrade offer would allow her to run a double-boot machine with WinXP 32bit and Win8 64bit. She does have a few applications that would benefit from 64bit, and for the limited times when she's using those, she might be able to endure the horrible interface.


These screens look incredibly ugly ...

Where's the advantage compared to shopping in the GOG shop, where GOG has much more control over the presentation?