Keeping up with schedule, Microsoft has reportedly finalized the build of Windows 8, with which the company will launch the operating system to the public. After releasing several internal and some public pre-launch builds (such as Beta, Release Preview), the company is ready with the RTM (release to market) build, which is fit for commercial release. Windows 8 RTM, in its various variants, will be available first to enterprise customers and industry partners starting August 15. The commercial launch is on course for October 26, 2012.

In related news, the threat of trademark litigation by German retail giant Metro Group has forced Microsoft to trash the codename "Metro" to refer to its new tiled user-interface (UI), which makes the OS optimized for touchscreens, but is also the primary UI for non-touch computing platforms (such as desktop PCs). According to reports, Microsoft will merely stop referring to Metro UI as such. Metro UI invited criticism from some evaluators of pre-launch Windows 8 builds, particularly from the desktop PC and non-touch notebook platforms.

In June, Microsoft will unveil the first Release Preview of Windows 8, its next major version of the Windows (client). Some of the latest screenshots of the teething operating system made it to the web, and reveal some significant changes to the UI, apart from the Metro UI. With its Desktop workspace, Windows 8 embraces a new UI design, that does away with the glassy Aero design that was introduced with Windows Vista. What we have instead, are minimalist titlebars with centered window titles, flat window control buttons, and a blending of the titlebar's color with that of the other menubars. Microsoft justifies the design change by calling the older Aero UI "dated and cheesy." Microsoft assured users that it will assist in the transition between the two UIs, apart from the major change that Metro is.

Welcome to the TechPowerUp 2011 PC technology Christmas special. We hope that you will enjoy reading it while tucking into your turkey, Christmas presents and a little too much wine... In this article, we go through the technology of 2011 that has had the most significance, the most impact and was generally the most talked about. It's not necessarily the best tech of 2011 which is the most significant though, since lemons can be just as significant as the ground-breakers in how they fail to deliver - and the backlash that goes with it.

January: Intel Sandy Bridge i5 & i7

Released on January 9th, the new Intel Core i5 & i7 processors were based on Intel's second generation Core architecture built on a 32 nm production process (HEXUS review). They included an IGP (Integrated Graphics Processor) physically on the same piece of silicon along with HyperThreading. These new dual and quad core processors soundly beat all previous generations of Intel processors in terms of processing performance, heat, power use, features and left AMD in the dust. Therefore, Intel badly needed some competition from AMD and unless you have been living under a rock, you will know how that turned out in October with the launch of Bulldozer. Sandy Bridge was a sound win and is generally considered to be the only architecture worth considering at this point. The i5-2500K is currently at the sweet spot of price/performance. It comes at a stock speed of 3.3 GHz, but typically overclocks to an amazing 4.5 - 5 GHz with a decent air cooler and without too much difficulty in getting there. Models in the budget i3 range were released at various times later. See this Wikipedia article for details.

Sometime in 2012, Microsoft is expected to announce its next major version of Windows for the client platform. It has the working name "Windows 8", and was previewed to developers at the BUILD Conference, this September. A member of Chinese tech site PCbeta community got to play with a newer build of Windows, build 8172. Screenshots of its most common user interface elements, such as desktop, Windows Explorer, PC Settings (control panel), etc., were posted. Engadget notes that these screenshots don't reveal much else from the Windows Developer Preview shown at the BUILD Conference.

Futuremark, the world leader in performance benchmarking software, today announced development of a new version of 3DMark, the company's flagship benchmark for gamers. 3DMark for Windows 8 (working title) is designed for gaming performance measurement and comparison across all Windows 8 devices from tablets and notebooks to high-end desktop gaming systems. The announcement was accompanied by an atmospheric concept image for the new benchmark showing an elemental rock warrior brandishing two blazing swords.

Jukka Mäkinen, CEO of Futuremark said, "With Windows 8 gamers will be able to enjoy their games on a wide range of devices from lightweight tablets to heavy-duty desktop rigs. Faced with so much choice it will be hard to work out which devices offer the best value for money. Fortunately 3DMark for Windows 8 will be our most wide-reaching 3DMark ever, able to accurately measure and compare gaming performance across all devices and graphical feature sets available with Windows 8."

For those of you trying out the Windows 8 developer release who already hanker for the old Windows 7 look, help is now at hand! Enter Metro UI Tweaker from The Windows Club. From the screenshots below, you can see that things like the Explorer Ribbon and the Metro Start menu can be turned off. It can do a lot more, however.