Computers: Is Windows 8.1 worth it?

Windows 8.1 will please longtime Windows users who never got comfortable with Windows 8’s tablet-like interface.

Windows 8.1 has arrived, said Mat Honan in Wired.com. If you’re using Windows, then run, don’t walk, and download the latest upgrade. It’s not only free, but “it’s a solid, necessary update” that will please longtime Windows users who never got comfortable with Windows 8’s tablet-like interface. The new version makes some “cosmetic concessions” to those users, including reinstating the Start button. But Microsoft’s latest offering is primarily “a recommitment to the touch-based future” and is “even more cloud-focused” than ever. Search is a major function in 8.1, giving users graphics-heavy results “designed to make it easy to find what you need at a glance.” And the new version “pushes you to save everything” in the cloud, allowing you access to your data from any device.

The new operating system “looks and feels mostly the same,” said Tom Warren in TheVerge.com. But it does help “bridge the gap between old and new,” with Microsoft clearly taking a second try at “ushering in the touch-friendly, tablet-filled future.” The 8.1 system “allows for a lot more personalization across the board,” giving you more built-in backgrounds and color schemes to pick from. But the biggest draw is Microsoft’s new approach to search. Microsoft’s Bing search engine “is deeply integrated into 8.1,” giving users an easy way to search local files and the Internet at once.

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