What are we waiting for?
At this point, Microsoft has finished the Windows 8 development cycle. So what's the holdup that we can't get it until October 26th? After spending a couple of days with the OS, I figured it out — it's abundantly clear how much work OEMs have to do in the intervening weeks between today and October 26th. Companies need to build drivers, developers need to test and ensure compatibility, and manufacturers need to figure out the best way for their hardware to support the new software. Plus, the Windows Store needs more and better apps if it's going to be compelling from day one.
Without that done, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon I used to test Windows becomes frustrating bordering on unusable. As soon as I installed Windows 8, the trackpad stopped supporting any multi-touch gestures, or even right-click. Palm rejection disappeared entirely, to the point I had to type with my hands perched above the keyboard to avoid the cursor randomly jumping all over the screen. What was only a few minutes earlier one of the best Windows trackpads I've used became utterly useless. The computer's sleep / wake procedures were thrown off, too, along with a host of other little things. That's what Lenovo and other manufacturers will be working on over the next two months, and it's a good thing.
On the one hand, it's tempting to say "Windows 8 is final, go get it now!" But unless you're a relentless beta tester willing to endure unusable trackpads, finicky keyboards, and buggy apps, you should wait for October 26th. Developers and manufacturers need that two-month head start, but by the end of October we're betting Windows 8 will be more than ready.
Currently installing VS2012 too.
