Microsoft is nothing if not tenacious, and that’s a good thing when it comes to Windows 8’s baked-in apps.
Those modern-style apps might be eye-catching, but they’ve been disappointments in terms of pure usability. In fact, Windows co-chief Tami Reller has admitted that Windows 8’s default apps need some hardcore tinkering before they can truly compete with top-tier alternatives. But rather than sitting still and waiting for the big release of Windows Blue later this year, Microsoft’s engineers rolled up their sleeves and created a series of updates for Windows 8’s core communication apps—Mail, People, and Calendar—which will begin rolling into the Windows Store late Monday or early Tuesday.
None of the updates reinvent the proverbial wheel, but each app is receiving numerous tweaks designed to improve basic usability. Windows tablet owners will be especially happy with the new-look apps.
“If you used the apps before on Windows RT systems like Surface, you’ll notice a pretty significant improvement in responsiveness and overall performance (in the updated apps),” Gabriel Aul, Microsoft’s director of program management, told PCWorld during a demonstration. Common functions such as creating new messages and moving or deleting information benefit greatly from the speed boost, he says, and this greatly enhances the general feel of the apps.
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Source: FULL ARTICLE at PCWorld
