Portrait Mode
One of the more important changes to the Windows 8.1 update for Windows 8 and RT is its pervasive support for portrait mode. This feature, primarily aimed at 7- and 8-inch mini-tablets, portrait mode works across the OS and the built-in app and is aimed primarily at reading scenarios.
Internet Explorer 11
The Windows 8.1 update ships with Internet Explorer 11, an evolutionary update to the web browser that shipped with the initial versions of Windows 8 and RT. Here’s what’s new in the Modern version of this web browser.
Smart Search
While many think of Windows 8.1 as a massive collection of small fixes, this release does in fact offer two major new features. One is its deep SkyDrive integration, which I write about elsewhere. But the other is deep Bing integration, which results in a truly innovative and useful new feature called Smart Search.
Boot to Desktop
When Microsoft started publicly discussing the Windows 8.1 update for Windows 8/RT, they promised that users who wished to stay primarily in the desktop environment would be able to skip past the Start screen on boot. Well, it’s true: You can boot directly to the desktop with Windows 8.1. Here’s how to configure it.
Use Desktop Wallpaper on the Start Screen
With Windows 8.1, Microsoft is finally giving users the option to use their desktop wallpaper as their Start screen background, easing the transition between the two environments. Of course, the trick is finding out how to enable this useful feature.
Start Button
Microsoft is awfully sensitive about the term Start button, but make no mistake: The Start button is making a huge comeback with the Windows 8.1 update. Indeed, the suddenly new-again Start button is in fact available all over Windows 8.1, in the desktop and in all Metro experiences … including, oddly, the Start screen.
Power User Menu
As you may know, Windows 8/RT ships with a hidden power user menu that puts often-needed tools right at your fingertips. This menu works as before after the Windows 8.1 update, but it’s been enhanced with additional tools.
This PC
With the Windows 8.1 update, Microsoft is simplifying the default view users see in the File Explorer, replacing the previous Computer view with something called This PC. But while the ongoing attempts to simplify the desktop are understandable, the biggest shocker here may be the sudden de-emphasis of libraries.
Desktop Display Scaling
Thanks to a proliferation of mobile devices with super-high-resolution displays and a continued reliance on desktop applications, Microsoft is attempting to fix longstanding issues with desktop display scaling as part of the Windows 8.1 update. In the Preview version, however, these changes appear to be only partially implemented.
SkyDrive Integration
With the Windows 8.1 update, Microsoft is integrating SkyDrive with Windows more deeply than ever. This includes more settings sync, document save integration, camera roll integration, and of course file syncing between the cloud service and your PC or device, handled in a more sophisticated way than ever before. The best news? It all works with Windows RT too.
Start Screen
With the Windows 8.1 update, the much reviled Start screen in Windows 8 and RT is more useful, more attractive, and more configurable than ever. As important, it now adapts more easily to device screens of all sizes and resolutions.
Apps View
The All Apps view has been greatly enhanced with the Windows 8.1 update, adding new sorting and search capabilities. But the big news here is that desktop users can almost completely replace the Start screen with All Apps, and configure it so that desktop applications are listed first.
Photos App
Curiously absent from the list of Windows 8/RT apps that were updated this spring, the Photos app has now received a major update with the Windows 8.1 Preview. It’s a mixed bag, though. On the one hand, the app picks up some decent photo editing functionality. But it’s lost the online service integration that made the original version of the app interesting.
Xbox Music App
Anyone who believed that Microsoft was prepping a major update to the Xbox Music app as part of the Windows 8.1 update for Windows 8 and RT is going to be disappointed with the result. Rather than a complete do-ever as was obviously required, the new app offers simpler navigation but no major new features at all.
New Bing Apps
While the Metro-style apps included with the initial release of Windows 8/RT were generally unimpressive, one set of apps stood out: The Bing apps like News, Finance, Sports, Travel and Weather. With Windows 8.1, the Bing team is back with two more apps: Food & Drink and Health & Fitness. Guess what? They’re beautiful too.
PC Settings
Users who wish to stay in the Metro environment while using Windows 8 or RT tablets and hybrid devices will appreciate the many additions Microsoft has made to its Metro-based PC Settings interface. No longer will you need to switch between PC Settings and Control Panel to find the most frequently-needed settings.
New Utility Apps
Small but useful utility apps were notably absent from the initial release of Windows 8/RT, forcing tablet and hybrid device users to retreat to the desktop to accomplish certain tasks. This issue has been somewhat fixed with the Windows 8.1 update, which adds new Metro-style Calculator, Help & Tips, Reading List, Scan and Sound Recorder apps.
Coming soon...
I'll be writing many more hands-on articles about Windows 8.1 soon. Here are some of the topics I'm currently working on:
Touch Keyboard
Lock Screen
SkyDrive App
Hands-Free Mode
Play
see I still don't get Win8 but I use it everyday and it's my OS of choice, Metro still fucks me up and like I said I don't even know how to close the apps, I usually alt-tab out or use Windows key 
