the birth of Windows 8...

Windows 8 is the next version of Microsoft Windows, a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablets, and home theater PCs. The release to manufacturing (RTM) is expected around July 2012 although Windows 8 will be available to users only after general availability is announced.^[2] Windows 8's server counterpart, Windows Server 2012, is in development concurrently with Windows 8. The most recent official pre-release version of Windows 8 is the Release Preview, which was released on May 31, 2012.
According to the Windows Design Team, Windows 8 has been "reimagined from the chipset to the user experience,"^[3] whereas Windows 7 was intended to be a more focused, incremental upgrade to the Windows line.^[4] Windows 8 features a new user interface based on Microsoft's Metro design language, similar to that in Windows Phone. The new interface is designed to better suit touchscreen input, along with traditional mouse and keyboard input. A version of Windows 8, called Windows RT, also adds support for the ARM processor architecture in addition to the previously supported x86 microprocessors from Intel, AMD and VIA.^[5]

Metro UI
Windows 8 will employ a new user interface based on Microsoft's Metro design language. The Metro environment will feature a new tile-based Start screen similar to that of the Windows Phone operating system. Each tile will represent an application, and will be able to display relevant information such as the number of unread messages on the tile for an e-mail app or the current temperature on a weather application. Metro-style applications run in full-screen, and are able to share information between each other using "contracts".^[39] They will be available only through Windows Store.^[40] Metro-style apps are developed with the new Windows Runtime platform using various programming languages (or in the case of HTML, a mark-up language) including: C++, Visual Basic, C#, and HTML/JavaScript.
The traditional desktop environment for running desktop applications is treated as a Metro app. The Start button has been removed from the taskbar in favor of a Start button on the new charm bar, as well as a hotspot in the bottom-left corner. Both open the new Start screen, which replaces the Start menu.^[41]
The boot manager, which is used at startup to select the operating system now uses a graphical interface that allows touch and mouse input. It can also be expanded via the settings menu.^[42]