The graphical user interface in the Windows client is multifaceted since it needs to be tailored to all built-in components of the operating system.
This is why the evolution of Windows 7’s UI with the introduction of Windows 8 involves much more than Windows Aero itself, reverberating across the platform’s entire surface.
An illustrative example in this regard is the new look and feel of the next generation Windows Explorer.
Windows 7 users are undoubtedly already familiar with post-Vista changes to some of the core default applications in Windows such as Paint and Write, which were overhauled to reflect the Office 2007 UI innovations.
It appears that Microsoft will only integrate the Ribbon / Fluent GUI even further into
Windows 8, revamping a core component of the operating system: Windows Explorer.
The screenshots included with this article, courtesy of
Rafael Rivera and
Paul Thurrott, show the new Windows Explorer in Windows 8 which already features the Ribbon / Fluent UI.
The images are from a very early development milestone of Windows vNext, and as such, the implementation of Ribbon in Windows Explorer is incomplete.
It’s clear that, after saying goodbye to the old and frankly obsolete File and toolbar menu in Office 2007, Office 2010, Paint and Write, Microsoft is working to make Ribbon ubiquitous across Windows 8.
As it was the case with Office 2007, I expect many users to be resistant to the UI change. It’s human nature after all.
But I for one welcome it. Ribbon, once you get the hang of it (which doesn’t take as long as you might think), is much more logical, enhancing discoverability, touch-friendly, and simply more aesthetically pleasing than its predecessor.
Sure there’s a learning curve, but the Ribbon is capable of delivering benefits impossible with the old UI, such as dynamically changing to adapt to contextual situations.
Personally, I’d love for Microsoft to make Ribbon a part of all editions of Windows 8, and not limit it to the flavor of the operating system tailored to Tablet PCs / slates or other NUI-capable form factors.
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