Windows 8 Developer Preview
- Windows 8 Developer Preview is available for you to try now: Download it here.
Note: This is the pre-beta version of Windows 8 for developers and cannot be uninstalled. - Learn more about building apps, visit forums, and get the latest news at Windows Dev Center.
Personalized lock screen
The tiles of the Start screen
Touch keyboardGet the Windows 8 guide
Download the Windows Developer Preview Guide to learn about new features for developers, consumers, and businesses.
Download XPS 
Download PDF
Download XPS Download PDFOfficial announcements during 2011
At the Microsoft Developer Forum in Tokyo on May 23, 2011, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced that the next version of Windows would be released the following year.
| “ | And yet, as we look forward to the next generation of Windows systems, which will come out next year, there's a whole lot more coming. As we progress through the year, you ought to expect to hear a lot about Windows 8. Windows 8 slates, tablets, PCs, a variety of different form factors. | ” |
However, Microsoft quickly amended Ballmer's words in a statement issued that afternoon:
| “ | It appears there was a misstatement. We are eagerly awaiting the next generation of Windows 7 hardware that will be available in the coming fiscal year. To date, we have yet to formally announce any timing or naming for the next version of Windows. | ” |
On June 1, 2011, Microsoft officially unveiled Windows 8 and some of its new features at the Taipei Computex 2011 in Taipei (Taiwan) by Mike Angiulo and at the D9 conference in California (United States) by Julie Larson-Green and Microsoft's Windows President Steven Sinofsky. The main feature that was shown was the new user interface.
On August 15, 2011, Microsoft opened a new blog called "Building Windows 8" for users and developers.
