Microsoft's Windows ‘Threshold’ expected to add virtual desktops, drop charms
Summary: Microsoft is going to do more than reintroduce a Start menu as part of its plan to make Windows 9, a k a ‘Threshold,’ more appealing to Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 users.
Context & Ripple Effects
Threshold had already been framed as a desktop-focused Windows release, with a public preview reportedly planned for fall 2014 and release for spring 2015. Earlier reporting also tied the project to windowed Metro apps and a restored Start menu, indicating that Microsoft was revisiting interface choices associated with Windows 8.
The added reports of virtual desktops and the removal of charms sharpen that direction: Threshold is being positioned, according to unconfirmed reports, around keyboard-and-mouse desktop workflows and familiarity for users of Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7.
First-order effects
- For Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 users, the rumored Start-menu return would restore a familiar route to applications and system controls.
- If Microsoft drops charms as reported, desktop users would no longer rely on an interface designed around edge gestures; virtual desktops would add a new way to separate tasks on one PC.
Second-order effects
- Windows application developers would need to emphasize conventional windowed, desktop-friendly interactions as Microsoft reportedly shifts away from charms and toward familiar desktop controls.
- Microsoft's own Windows 8 interface strategy would face a practical reset: the company would be prioritizing migration from older Windows versions over preserving a touch-first navigation model.
Third-order effects
- If the reported design holds, Windows releases are moving toward a more adaptive model in which touch-oriented apps coexist with, rather than dictate, the desktop interface.
- Threshold would make the installed base of older Windows users a central constraint on platform design, making backwards-familiar workflows a competitive asset for PC operating systems.
The trend: Threshold is one data point in Microsoft's reported effort to reconcile Windows 8's touch-oriented interface with the desktop habits of its older Windows user base.