Microsoft still knows how to pack a room. The seats are filling up quickly.
by Roger Cheng
@Paolo Sanchez Sinofsky is a polarizing figure. He ships product, which is a huge deal at Microsoft. But he doesn't always make friends in the process.
by Jay Greene
Check out those pics from Sarah. The plethora of Windows 8 devices indicates both a renewed interest in innovation from manufacturers and a serious uncertainty about what's going to work for consumers.
by seth.rosenblatt
There's some bland house music playing in the background. Not offensive at all. I guess the ideal music to play for this kind of event.
by Roger Cheng
REMINDER: refresh the page for the live video stream. But note that it requires Silverlight (not Flash).
by john.falcone
Thank you, Sarah, for reminding me not to slouch...
by seth.rosenblatt
REMINDER: refresh the page for the live video stream. Embed requires Silverlight, Flash link also available.
by john.falcone
There's wonky Internet connection in the room. Each of us is flitting in and out. Hoping it's a bit more smooth during the presentation.
by Jay Greene
@Adam -- Our NY team is there in force; a bit too early for the SF team.
by john.falcone
And the screen goes dark. Cue the slick promo video.
by Roger Cheng
Ok, the music has stopped. This thing should kick off soon.
by Roger Cheng
Video showing Sinofsky in Shanghai, where he was earlier this week launching Windows 8 there.
by Jay Greene
Some more Windows launch history. Windows XP debuted in New York as well, just a few weeks after the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. There was some discussion about moving the event elsewhere. But then-New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani prevailed upon Bill Gates to keep the event in New York to help show the world that the city was bowed but not broken.
by Jay Greene
The video highlights various Windows 8 events all around the world with some thumping background music. I guess we're supposed to get pumped.
by Roger Cheng
Okay, video is over, and Steven Sinofsky is on stage now.
by Roger Cheng
Microsoft is highlighting how widely used Windows is worldwide. More than 1 billion machines runs some version of the Windows operating system.
by Jay Greene
Sinofsky: We are here to celebrate global availability of a new era of Windows PCs.
by Roger Cheng
Sinofsky welcomes the various PC and chip partners.
by Roger Cheng
Windows 8 is a major milestone in the evolution and revolution of computing, he says.
by Roger Cheng
Having surpassed 1 billion users, we are looking forward to the next billion, he says.
by Roger Cheng
Now on Windows 7 - it's the most widely used and widely praised OS ever, Sinofsky says.
by Roger Cheng
Sinofsky is the guy who took over Windows with the Windows 7 launch. He cleaned up the mess that was Windows Vista.
by Jay Greene
Windows 7 has sold 670M licenses to businesses and consumers, he says.
by Roger Cheng
That gets a lot of applause.
by Roger Cheng
Windows 7 has seen the fastest adoption by businesses ever, Sinofsky says.
by Roger Cheng
Sinofsky talks about cloud services and SkyDrive. Today, it has 11 million photos.
by Roger Cheng
14 petabytes of data in SkyDrive, people add 2 PB every month
by seth.rosenblatt
Sinofsky is building the foundation for the Windows 8 launch. But really, it's a lot of Windows 7 talk.
by Jay Greene
Compares it to Windows 95, which was the basis for Windows 7 with things like the Start Menu.
by Roger Cheng
No Internet, no email, no smartphones, Sinofsky says, it's like "we were living in caves," he said to laughs.
by Roger Cheng
Windows 8 is different, he says. We're connected all the time. People are at the center. Work and play are intertwined.
by Roger Cheng
PCs have been replaced by mobile devices at a fraction of the price, he notes.
by Roger Cheng
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