Windows 8 ‘levels the playing field’

SOFTWARE

Tarsus Technologies says Windows 8 will act as a massive leveler between the developed and developing world.

With the more transparent beta testing process Microsoft has been pursuing with its much-vaunted Windows 8 operating system, more users than ever are getting their hands on the pre-release version of what the Redmond software company is touting as the next big revolution in computing.

And even though it does represent quite a significant step forward, it’s not for the reason that many think.

“It’s true, Windows 8’s Metro interface is quite a departure from what came before it, presenting applications and the information housed within them in a new and interesting way,” says Traci Maynard, general manager of the software division at Tarsus Technologies.

“For me, however, the most exciting part of the Windows 8 value proposition is not its new look and feel, but rather its ability to act as a massive leveler between the developed and developing world,” she says.

More specifically, Maynard is making reference to the presence of the Windows 8 marketplace, which allows developers from all over the world to build applications for the new operating system and market them to users across the globe.

“That swings both ways, however,” she continues.

“Not only does it allow Windows 8 to act as a springboard for developers in the third world to put their ideas into action and expose them to a sound commercial marketplace, it also allows users the world over to discover applications at the exact time they are released,” she says.

With specific relevance to this last point, Maynard says a problem the developing world has faced in a big way over the past decade has been delayed availability to technology, regardless of whether it resides in the hardware or software realm.

“Windows 8 is therefore a massive leveler,” she says, “and places the developing world on the same playing field as the developed world, which can only be a good thing.

“It’s a great place to be, both for the community and for Microsoft,” she adds.

“After all, the developing world is one of the most vibrant and encouraging market spaces to be involved in right now,” she concludes.