Windows 8 Developer Preview Available For Download Tonight [UPDATE: Available Now!]
Today we finally were able to see what Microsoft has been working so hard on, and that is Windows 8. With the Microsoft BUILD keynote going today there should be plenty of Windows 8 details and we've already received some good news. For those waiting for an official version instead of those iffy leaked builds the wait is finally over.
Today Microsoft has announced that starting tonight, users will be able to download the official developers preview right from Microsoft. The downloads will all kick off live tonight at 8:00 PM PDT and will come in both 32bit(x86) 64 bit(x64) versions without developer tools and also a 64bit version with developer tools. Being able to get access to versions both with and without developer tools is much appreciated and I'm sure many will be happy to hear that.
For all of you who patiently waited and passed on those leaked builds the wait is almost over and like mentioned above they'll be available starting at 8 PM tonight. The preview builds will be in ISO form and you can download them at http://dev.windows.com. Microsoft also made clear the builds will come with a variety of sample applications that are merely for fun and illustration purposes and not what we will see on final shipping versions of Windows 8.
There has been tons of excitement over Windows 8 and we are live at BUILD and even have some hands-on with the Windows 8 Tablet — here is the video below. While this isn't exactly what you'll be seeing in the preview it's worth a watch either way. Don't forget to also check out our Windows 8 Complete Guide.
Windows 8 Tablet hands-on:
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You can now check out the downloads as they exist here at the beginning of Windows 8:
Windows Developer Preview with developer tools English, 64-bit (x64)
DOWNLOAD (4.8 GB)Sha 1 hash – 6FE9352FB59F6D0789AF35D1001BD4E4E81E42AF
All of the following come on a disk image file (.iso).
64-bit Windows Developer Preview
Windows SDK for Metro style apps
Microsoft Visual Studio 11 Express for Windows Developer Preview
Microsoft Expression Blend 5 Developer Preview
28 Metro style apps including the BUILD Conference app
Windows Developer Preview English, 64-bit (x64)
Sha 1 hash – 79DBF235FD49F5C1C8F8C04E24BDE6E1D04DA1E9
Includes a disk image file (.iso) to install the Windows Developer Preview and Metro style apps on a 64-bit PC.
Windows Developer Preview English, 32-bit (x86)
Sha 1 hash – 4E0698BBABE01ED27582C9FC16AD21C4422913CC
Includes a disk image file (.iso) to install the Windows Developer Preview and Metro style apps on a 32-bit PC.
If you're unaware of how to work with these files head back to Microsoft for full instructions. You can get all the support you need from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/home/