14 DAY TRIAL // A collection of customization capabilities will be an integral part of the Beta development milestone of Windows 8, even though they’re not featured in the Windows Developer Preview.
New options will enable the personalization of areas of the operating system which are currently locked, such as the Start Screen.
In Windows 8 Beta, early adopters will be able to leverage new functionality such as changing the background of the Start Screen.
Testers that took Windows 8 Developer Preview Build 8102 M3 out for a spin already know that such an option doesn’t exist in the first public development milestone of the operating system. They’re pretty much stuck with the green theme, including the background image, and there’s little they can do about it.
There are a number of hacks allowing early adopters to still modify some of the otherwise locked areas of the OS, but nothing official from the software giant.
This will change with the Beta Build, as the Redmond company delivers a more complete variant of the Windows 8 core user experience.
In the leaked screenshot included on the left, courtesy of Winunleaked, users can see the new ‘Choose a background’ option that’s been added in one of the latest pre-Beta Builds of Windows 8.
Softpedia readers have already been informed of similar options, such as the ability to ‘Choose a background color’ from a number of alternatives beyond the Windows Developer Preview green.
Personally, I believe it would be best for Microsoft to enable users to personalize Windows 8, including the Start Screen, with their own set of wallpapers, and not just with the background images from a pre-defined collection.
In fact, I see no reason why the software giant wouldn’t do just that, especially considering the obvious benefits of ensuring customers are kept happy. However, Microsoft has yet to confirm any official details about the upcoming Windows 8 Beta personalization features.
Windows 8 Developer Preview Build 8102 Milestone 3 (M3) is available for download here.
