Jerry Nixon @Work: 30 questions about Windows 8 that I get asked all the time

Jerry Nixon on Windows

Thursday, July 19, 2012

30 questions about Windows 8 that I get asked all the time

imageAs a developer evangelist, I interact with a lot of developers. Many developers are just meeting Windows 8 for the very first time. Some developers have started to tinker. And, others are deep into their first application – on target for the store. The common thread between them are a set of recurring questions that I get over and over. I thought I would document a few of them.

Note: since Windows 8 has not been released some of these answers are subject to change. At time of writing (June 19, 2012) these answers are correct.

  1. Does Windows 8 run Windows 7 software? Yes
  2. Does Windows 8 support .Net 4.0? Yes
  3. Does WinRT replace the .Net framework? No
  4. Can users re-enable the start button in Windows 8? No
  5. Can enterprises disable Metro on their Windows 8 desktops? No
  6. Will Metro be part of the server version of Windows? Yes
  7. Do developers need two apps in the Windows 8 store to support ARM? No
  8. Can apps have a hidden URL in the Windows 8 store? No
  9. What is the revenue split with Microsoft for the Store? 80/20
  10. Do developers need a developer account in order publish an app? Yes
  11. Can developers use payment systems other than Microsoft? Yes
  12. Is HTML5 and JavaScript (JS) supported in Metro development? Yes
  13. What is the HTML rendering engine in HTML-based Metro apps? IE10
  14. Is IE10 Metro the same engine as IE10 desktop? Yes
  15. Can desktop applications create live tiles? No
  16. Can desktop applications use WinRT? Yes
  17. Can desktop HTTP end point be accessed by Metro apps? No
  18. Can metro applications access a local SQL server? No
  19. Do metro applications have a local database solution? Yes, Sqlite
  20. Can metro applications access the internet while the pc is in standby? Yes
  21. Can metro applications access SkyDrive? Yes
  22. Can metro applications iterate through the user's hard drive? No
  23. Is there a metro version of windows file explorer? No, see above
  24. Can metro applications detect other metro apps? No
  25. Can more than one metro application run at one time? Yes, two
  26. Can push notifications execute client code? No
  27. Are there background tasks in metro? Yes
  28. Is the performance of HTML5 Metro applications comparable to XAML? Yes
  29. Is native code (C++) supported in Metro development? Yes
  30. Is metro C different than traditional CPP? Yes

Corrections? Comment.
Got questions? Comment.

Read the follow-up: 30 more questions