Windows 8 release in 2012 hinted at by Microsoft Netherlands

There have been rumblings about the arrival of Windows 8 in 2012 as far back as late last year, when bloggers noticed some interesting slides during Microsoft PDC 2009. At the time, Microsoft's Steven Sinofsky was pretty quiet about the whole thing, but someone over at Microsoft Netherlands has been a little more loose-lipped.

The final paragraph of the post is where the juicy bit is hiding -- even if you don't read Dutch you can certainly see Windows 8. While the text translated somewhat awkwardly in Google Translate (and just about every other online translator we tried) rendered a somewhat odd-sounding English rendition, we were able to track down a Dutch-speaking human for assistance.

The result: "But it will take about two years before Windows 8 will be for sale."

Anyone else picture Ballmer shouting, "Who's the GOLD MASTER?!" while he holds that disk?

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Facebook and Bing’s Plan to Make Search Social

Microsoft and Facebook have announced a new partnership that brings “Like” data and profile search to Bing. The deal marks a big leap forward in social search and also represents a new advantage for Bing –- which Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg declared the “underdog” in search during today’s press conference -– in its quest to take market share from Google.

Starting today, Bing (Bing) users now get an experience that’s customized using Facebook Instant Personalization. For now, that means searches (where appropriate) will feature a Facebook (Facebook) module that shows you what your friends have liked as it relates to that search, as well as a smarter people search results.

The Bing and Facebook teams offered a few examples of how that might be useful during today’s press event: surfacing restaurants that your friends like, pulling in movie likes from IMDB (imdb) or articles that have been shared about a car you might be eyeing. With the like button now being used by more than two million sites and Facebook passing 500 million members, there’s now enough scale to make that type of data surface on a regular basis in search.


Beyond that, Bing is trying to dramatically improve people search, which Bing’s Senior VP Online Audience Business Yusuf Mehdi said makes up about 4% of searches. Much like Facebook’s site, Bing will recommend new friends based on mutual relationships. Bing now surfaces that data when you search for a name (for example, a “Bob Smith” that five of your friends know will come up higher than a “Bob Smith” that none of them know). From search results, you can add people as friends or send them a message.

The future gets even more interesting though. Bing and Facebook said they’re working on including like data from friends alongside each search result. Further out, the companies see an opportunity to surface people who are experts in specific subjects.

At face value, Facebook integration certainly seems to make Bing search better in some instances. I know I’d be more inclined to click on a link in search results if one of my friends had liked it. Does that make me more likely to use Bing over Google (Google)? Not necessarily, though for the examples offered –- where opinion matters –- Bing’s “decision engine” differentiator starts to make a lot more sense.

Will Facebook integration make you more likely to use Bing? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

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Xbox Kinect's game launch lineup revealed

Seventeen Kinect-enabled games will be available when the device makes its debut next month.

Microsoft has just announced the 17 games that will be available on launch day with Kinect for Xbox 360, the tech giant's highly anticipated controller-free gaming system.

Kinect, which launches on November 4, is Microsoft's answer to the Nintendo Wii's motion controllers, which helped turn that console into one of this generation's most popular gaming devices.

Both Sony and Microsoft have been playing catch-up with the PlayStation Move and Kinect, respectively.

Seventeen Kinect-enabled games will be available when the device makes its debut next month. Here's the full list:

Kinect Adventures: This is the game that is included with every Kinect device. It helps introduce gamers to the Kinect interface, letting them transverse the rapids, float around in space and challenge their friends to races, among other minigames.

Kinectimals: Think Nintendogs, but with no controller.

Game Party: In Motion: This includes a collection of party minigames like Darts.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows -- Part 1 The Videogame: You can now control Harry's magic with your hands.

Your Shape: Fitness Evolved: A fitness game from Ubisoft that is similar to Wii Fit.

Dance Central: This game, made by the creators of Rock Band, tracks your dance moves. We've heard good things about this one.

The Biggest Loser Ultimate Workout: A game from THQ based on the TV show.

DanceMasters: Konami's version of getting your groove down.

EA SPORTS Active 2: A fitness game with body tracking, heart rate data and the ability to share workout data. EA has gone all-out with this game, which sort of explains its $100 price tag.

Zumba Fitness: See a pattern yet? This is a dance fitness game.

Kinect Sports: Microsoft's version of Wii Sports.

MotionSports: This game from Ubisoft includes live in-game commentary and 40+ sports challenges.

DECA SPORTS FREEDOM: While this game only has 10 sporting events, there is a focus on making it feel as real as possible. Figure skating should be interesting.

Kinect Joy Ride: Controller-free kart racing.

ADRENALIN MISFITS: This racing/battle game focuses on fantasy worlds.

Fighters Uncaged: Fulfill your Fight Club fantasy without the bloody concussions and stitches.

SONIC FREE RIDERS: Yup, Sega is bringing Sonic the Hedgehog to Kinect.

What do you think of Kinect's launch day lineup? Let us know in the comments.

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