Windows 8 app store screenshots leak, reveal download manager and demo apps

By Tom Warren, on 12th Dec 11 3:29 pm with 27 Comments

Windows Store in Windows 8 download manager

Images of Microsoft’s Windows Store for Windows 8 leaked to the Internet on Monday.

The images show off Microsoft’s Windows Store, part of the next-generation Windows operating system. Microsoft previously detailed its Windows Store efforts at its BUILD developer event earlier this year. The Windows Store is a Metro style application. The application is built on the same WinRT APIs that developers can use themselves across their Windows 8 Metro apps. Windows Store takes advantage of HTML5 and JavaScript to provide end users with a portal for secure, tested applications. Microsoft includes a spotlight section for the top Metro apps in the same way it does on Windows Phone. All applications include a brief overview, full detail page and reviews. The overview section will indicate the supported platform for the application (x86/64/ARM).

Winunleaked posted two images on Monday showing off the new store. Microsoft has reportedly altered sever side restrictions on access to the store. Outside IP addresses can now access the Windows Store and it is no longer restricted to Microsoft’s corporate domain name infrastructure. Windows Live ID users can access and download Metro style apps. The leaked images appear to show a number of Microsoft’s existing demo applications for Windows 8. The software maker previously revealed a number of new Windows Store details last week, including a partnership with Disney.

One of the more interesting aspects of the Store is the ability for websites to advertise their Windows 8 Metro application for download on their own site. Websites with an application will include a button for end users to launch or download the application. The launch surface will push the user straight into the Metro Windows Store experience and offer them the ability to download or trial the application. If the application is already installed then it will simply work as a launch surface for the existing app.

For more information on Windows 8 check out our dedicated section or the latest news below.

Windows Store Apps

  • http://twitter.com/williamtm/ WilliamTM

    I can’t really see what’s under that MASSIVE GIANT WATERMARK.

    • ITS Me

      It is so that Microsoft knows exactly which company to close.

  • Typhos

    Is it working with the developer preview ?

    • Beyercüst

      Not for me. I’m not a developer tho.

    • http://twitter.com/mcakins McAkins Online

      Still shows “Coming Soon” at this end!

    • Soulja3

      They said it will start working with the Beta

    • Emi Cyberschreiber

      Its for Beta.
      so you would have to wait for beta (like have been said) since its a leak for what is being included in recent build we dont have access to.

  • http://twitter.com/laserfloyd Lewis McCrary

    That’s less of a watermark and more of a landmark.  Can they make it a little more transparent? Geez!

    • Guest

      Yeah, those are the slide and the original content becomes the watermark.

  • http://twitter.com/laserfloyd Lewis McCrary

    I do like the ability to take users into the app store from a site.  Beats having to go into an entirely different program *cough* iTunes *cough. :)

  • Anonymous

    Let’s hope they will make the Store design look less dry and boring in the final version. I really miss the boldness of Metro in Zune HD’s interface or the Zune software.

    • http://twitter.com/lambdaXpression Jonathan Marston

      I agree. I love the interpretation of metro that they did in the Zune software and Zune HD, but the latest iterations in the Xbox dashboard and Windows 8 are kinda boring. It’s like they took the square colored box concept from the WP7 start screen and applied it to everything…it’s kinda bland and boring honestly…

    • Anonymous

      Exactly. And they are moving away from the core concept that made Metro useful: two-dimensional lists. This first appeared in Windows Media Center for XP, was than used in Zune soft- and hardware, the last Xbox dashboard and Windows Phone.

      But now they use these tiles everywhere: on websites, phones, TVs and soon desktops. At first look it seems good to have a consistent look and feel but maybe tiles aren’t the best solution for every interface.

  • Anonymous

    what is totally stupid of MSFT is to create these win8 HTML5 apps. seriously? they aren’t. deep in their guts they reference windows only javascript that targets the winrt meaning unlike real HTML5 apps which work on any platform, these are windows only…which is fine but why not just use XAML then. after all if your app is windows only, making it html5 for windows only is pointless and you have to put up with ancient HTML5, CSS and javascript which were designed for documents, not app UIs

    • Guest

      Probably a marketing decision, not a technology one.

    • Jed Hubic

      You are aware that xaml is just mark up for Silverlight and WPF? It’s not an actual language, it’s basically expanded xml.

      The Silverlight community isn’t growing as fast as the HTML 5 one, so that could be a factor too.

    • Anonymous

      Your statement about XAML isn’t correct. XAML is not silverlight or WPF dependant so it isn’t just a markup for either one. Also you can’t just take XAML in WPF and SL and paste it in a winRT project since some of it won’t work even if the namespaces are changed. XAML isn’t about a single language or technology, it is a way to abstractly define UIs. More correctly, winRT apps aren’t WPF or silverlight apps, they are winRT apps. They may share some of the sintax but ultimately they are completely different code sets and technologies.

      The silverlight community size is irrelevant. these aren’t open source apps, they are windows apps. The decision to make them HTML5 + JS seems totally pointless. If anything they should be native to avoid depending on clumsy IE which the last time it was embeeded in the OS was with win95…and that worked out great! security wise.

    • AlokC

      When did HTML5 & CSS3 become “ancient”?  And Javascript / AJAX enables interesting web apps across browsers / platforms, though there are some JS incompat issues between browsers anyway.  HTML5, CSS3, Javascript is a string force to make powerful web apps with stunning UI, why would be considered for documents?

      Seems like a strange idea is being peddled here!

    • Anonymous

      HTML was originally created to display documents. totally not suited from the core to do what native apps need to do. how do you do photoshop in HTML? Why do you think we have hacks like DOM to try and make documents act like what GUIs have been doing in the desktop for decades? And then if you want do actually do anything that resemble native apps you have to hack away in 3 parts:
      HTML, CSS and JS.

      Again the problem is that HTML5 is putting lipstick on the pig. XAML + native code is a solution to the problem.

    • http://twitter.com/lordadamwalker Adam Walker

      I agree to a level. .Net runtimes like WPF and Silverlight are worlds ahead of html when it comes to flexibility and design speed, but at the same time you can’t fight HTML5. Don’t get me wrong I hate working in HTML. Cross browser compat is barely any better than it was in the IE6 days, so you still have to design for 3/4 browsers. HTML 5 and a solid server based backend + some ajax or knockout JS can pretty much do anything a desktop based piece of software can do, it just takes twice the effort. So unfortunately we’re going to have to get used to it. Bosses/CEOS around the world are addicted to ‘HTML5′ and ‘iPad compatability’, so it looks like xaml is a thing of the past :(

    • Anonymous

      I think you got it right. I have had this question for long time: the javascript used here is not real javascript. It doesn’t work anywhere else. Not even on Win7. So what’s the point for javascript? The only things web developer can get use to it quicker, but…

      The issue is not msft support HTML5/JS, issue is msft tend to promote it as a prefered way for devs. That’s bad. Most devs would like XAML/C#/C++ instead of a stupid scripting language.

    • Test1ngi23

      Yes, the DOM sucks. But JavaScript the language is very powerful once you quit pretending it’s some kind of C. Everyone I know that has taken the time to really learn the language loves it!

    • Anonymous

      I’m not sure if Microsoft said the Store app is done with HTML5. There are different ways to create a Metro style app. And I can imagine that HTML5 has the most limits for Microsoft to create “native” build-in apps.

    • Anonymous

      I’m merely pointing to what the article says. I agree with you 100%. doing HTML5 apps when you can do XAML is like choosing to have a root canal just to socialize with your dentist.

    • Test1ngi23

      I doubt Adobe is going to be writing Photoshop in HTML5/JS. HTML5 is most likely for lightweight, data driven apps. At least Microsoft is giving developers a choice.

  • http://twitter.com/Salem309 Ahmed Salem

    I would thank Apple for inventing the concept of the unified App Store! And I would thank Microsoft for bringing and enhancing this concept for the real world computing market!

  • http://www.jitutechnology.com/ Technology

    Yea, Windows 8 is one of the finest product by Microsoft, it must be appreciated!