Spec Ops The Line Windows 8-8.1-10 Crack Fix
Kasey Finkenbinder
Windows 8 is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was released to manufacturing on August 1, 2012, and was made available for download via MSDN and TechNet on August 15, 2012.[6] Nearly three months after its initial release, it finally made its first retail appearance on October 26, 2012.[7]
Windows 8 received a mostly negative reception. Although the reaction to its performance improvements, security enhancements, and improved support for touchscreen devices was positive, the new user interface was widely criticized as confusing and unintuitive, especially when used with a keyboard and mouse rather than a touchscreen. Despite these shortcomings, 60 million licenses were sold through January 2013, including upgrades and sales to OEMs for new PCs.[10]
Microsoft released Windows 8.1 in October 2013, which addressed some aspects of Windows 8 that were criticized by reviewers and early adopters and also incorporated various improvements.[11] Windows 8 was ultimately succeeded by Windows 10 in July 2015. Support for RTM editions of Windows 8 ended on January 12, 2016, and with the exception of Windows Embedded 8 Standard users, all users are required to install the Windows 8.1 update. Mainstream support for the Embedded Standard edition of Windows 8 ended on July 10, 2018, and extended support ended on July 11, 2023.
Development started in 2009 while Microsoft was finishing work on Windows 7.[12] At the Consumer Electronics Show in January 2011, it was announced that the next version of Windows would add support for ARM System-on-chips alongside the existing 32-bit processors produced by vendors, especially AMD and Intel. Windows division president Steven Sinofsky demonstrated an early build of the port on prototype devices, while Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced the company's goal for Windows to be "everywhere on every kind of device without compromise."[13][14][15][16] Details also began to surface about a new application framework for Windows 8 codenamed "Jupiter", which would be used to make "immersive" applications using XAML (similarly to Windows Phone and Silverlight) that could be distributed via a new packaging system and a rumored application store.[17]
The build was released for download later that day in 32-bit and 64-bit variants, and a special 64-bit variant which included SDKs and developer tools (Visual Studio Express and Expression Blend) for developing Metro-style apps.[31] The Windows Store was also announced during the presentation, but was not available in this build.[32][33] According to Microsoft, there were about 535,000 downloads of the developer preview within the first 12 hours of its release.[34] Originally set to expire on March 11, 2012, in February 2012 the Developer Preview's expiry date was changed to January 15, 2013.[35]
On February 17, 2012, Microsoft unveiled a new logo for Windows 8. Designed by Pentagram partner Paula Scher, the Windows logo was changed to resemble a set of four window panes. Additionally, the entire logo is now rendered in a single solid color.[36]
On February 29, 2012, Microsoft released Windows 8 Consumer Preview, the beta version of Windows 8, build 8250. Alongside other changes, the build brought over the big change from build 8195: removing the Start button from the taskbar for the first time in a public build since its debut on Windows 95; according to Windows manager Chaitanya Sareen, the Start button was removed to reflect their view that on Windows 8, the desktop was an app itself, and not the primary interface of the operating system.[37][38] Windows president Steven Sinofsky said more than 100,000 changes had been made since the developer version went public.[38] The day after its release, Windows 8 Consumer Preview had been downloaded over one million times.[39] Like the Developer Preview, the Consumer Preview expired on January 15, 2013.[citation needed]
Many other builds may exist or were released until Japan's Developers Day conference when Sinofsky announced that Windows 8 Release Preview (build 8400) would be released during the first week of June.[40] On May 28, 2012, Windows 8 Release Preview (Standard Simplified Chinese x64 edition, not China-specific variant, build 8400) was leaked online on various Chinese and BitTorrent websites.[41] On May 31, 2012, Windows 8 Release Preview was released to the public by Microsoft.[42] Major items in the Release Preview included the addition of Sports, Travel, and News apps, along with an integrated variant of Adobe Flash Player in Internet Explorer.[43] Like the Developer Preview and the Consumer Preview, the release preview expired on January 15, 2013.[citation needed]
On August 1, 2012, Windows 8 (build 9200[44]) was released to manufacturing with the build number 6.2.9200.16384,[45] and Microsoft planned to hold a launch event on October 25, 2012[46] before releasing it for general availability the next day.[47] However, only a day after its release to manufacturing, a copy of the final version of Windows 8 Enterprise N (a variant for European markets which lacks bundled media players to comply with an antitrust ruling) was leaked online, followed by leaks of the final versions of Windows 8 Pro and Enterprise a few days later.[48][49] On August 15, 2012, Windows 8 was made available to download for MSDN and TechNet subscribers,[50] and was made available to Software Assurance customers on August 16, 2012.[51] It was made available for students with a DreamSpark Premium subscription on August 22, 2012, earlier than advertised.[52] Windows 8 became generally available for download to all MSDN and TechNet customers on August 15 and for retail purchase on October 26, 2012.[citation needed]
Relatively few changes were made from the Release Preview to the final version. These included updated versions of bundled apps, the renaming of Windows Explorer to File Explorer, the replacement of the Aero Glass theme from Windows Vista and 7 with a new flat and solid-color theme as seen in build 8432, and the addition of new background options for the Start screen, lock screen, and desktop.[53] Prior to its general availability on October 26, 2012, updates were released for some of Windows 8's bundled apps, and a "General Availability Cumulative Update" (which included fixes to improve performance, compatibility, and battery life) was released on Tuesday, October 9, 2012. Microsoft stated that due to improvements to its testing infrastructure, general improvements of this nature were to be released more frequently through Windows Update instead of being relegated to OEMs and service packs only.[54][55]
In May 2013, Microsoft launched a new television campaign for Windows 8 illustrating the capabilities and pricing of Windows 8 tablets in comparison to the iPad, which featured the voice of Siri remarking on the iPad's limitations in a parody of Apple's "Get a Mac" advertisements.[58][59] On June 12, 2013, during game 1 of the 2013 Stanley Cup Finals, Microsoft premiered the first ad in its "Windows Everywhere" campaign, which promoted Windows 8, Windows Phone 8, and the company's suite of online services as an interconnected platform.[60][61] Microsoft also announced that it would partner with electronics store chain Best Buy to convert PC departments at locations in the United States and Canada into a Windows-branded store-within-a-store that would showcase Microsoft products, services, and Windows devices.[62][63][64]
New features and functionality in Windows 8 include a faster startup through UEFI integration and the new "Hybrid Boot" mode (which hibernates the Windows kernel on shutdown to speed up the subsequent boot),[65] a new lock screen with a clock and notifications,[66] and the ability for enterprise users to create live USB variants of Windows (also known as Windows To Go).[67][68] It also includes native support for USB 3 devices, which allow for faster data transfers and improved power management with compatible devices,[69][70] and hard disk 4KB Advanced Format support,[71] as well as support for near field communication to facilitate sharing and communication between devices.[72]
Windows Explorer, which has been renamed to File Explorer, now includes a ribbon in place of the command bar. File operation dialog boxes have been updated to provide more detailed statistics, the ability to pause file transfers, and improvements in the ability to manage conflicts when copying files.[73] A new "File History" function allows incremental revisions of files to be backed up to and restored from a secondary storage device,[74] while Storage Spaces allows users to combine different sized hard disks into virtual drives and specify mirroring, parity, or no redundancy on a folder-by-folder basis.[75] For easier management of files and folders, Windows 8 introduces the ability to move selected files or folders via drag and drop from a parent folder into a subfolder listed within the breadcrumb hierarchy of the address bar in File Explorer.[76]
Task Manager has been redesigned, including a new processes tab with the option to display fewer or more details of running applications and background processes, a heat map using different colors indicating the level of resource usage, network and disk counters, grouping by process type (e.g. applications, background processes and Windows processes), friendly names for processes and a new option which allows users to search the web to find information about obscure processes.[77] Additionally, the Blue Screen of Death has been updated with a simpler and modern design with less technical information displayed.[78][79]
New security features in Windows 8 include two new authentication methods tailored towards touchscreens (PINs and picture passwords),[80] the addition of antivirus capabilities to Windows Defender (bringing it in parity with Microsoft Security Essentials).[81] SmartScreen filtering integrated into Windows,[82] Family Safety offers parental controls, which allows parents to monitor and manage their children's activities on a device with activity reports and safety controls.[83][84][85] Windows 8 also provides integrated system recovery through the new "Refresh" and "Reset" functions,[86] including system recovery from USB drive.[87] Windows 8's first security patches would be released on November 13, 2012; it would contain three fixes deemed "critical" by the company.[88]
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