With the preview of Windows 8 today we can see that the new version of Windows is going to have fantastic potential for developers and I think we are going to see some great new modern applications. Microsoft showed that Windows 8 apps can be created with HTML 5/Javascript as well as .net languages like Visual Basic. The apps are going to immersive, modern and be great for a wide range of systems, from a 7 inch slate to a 50″ TV.
We also know what Windows Media Center is going to be included in Windows 8 at some point in the future but not in the current previews, however you do have to question Microsoft long term plans for Media Center, in fact I suspect Windows 8 will see the sun set on Windows Media Center. Today former Windows Media Center Program Manager and old friend of TDL Charlie Owen tweeted that its time to move on:
For addins like the great new Recipe app for Windows Media Center I can see that Charlie is probably right, a developer can target a much wider audience and have the application work on tablets, slates, desktops and the TV, yes I know Media Center already runs on all these form factors but its low adoption means 3rd party apps do not get that much exposure.
However I do not want to go back to a world where TV tuner manufactures develop PVR applications independently of Windows, I remember the horrible clunky user interfaces made by the tuner manufactures and I would not want them anywhere near my TV so abandoning the Media Center model would be a step back. When I tweeted this to Charlie he said:
@isdixon Agree. There is a difference between the Windows Media Center feature (product) and developer platform.
I would like to see the core TV components of Media Center be moved over to native Windows 8 apps, so that the TV tuner and DVR features would be native apps and tuner manufactures could just work on the drivers as they do now. Other Media Center features like music and pictures should be in Windows 8 anyway.
So as far as 3rd party Windows Media Center development goes it is probably time to move on and start targeting Windows 8, I expect the UI tools will be more extensive that the Windows Media Center UI development tools were in the past and having a Windows app store will mean there is more chance for developers to get their apps out there.
I would be interested to hear from other Windows Media Center developers, do you agree?
Ian Dixon
Founder of The Digital Lifestyle.com and host of The Digital Lifestyle Show. Started podcasting in 2005, Windows Entertainment and Connected Home MVP. Lover of gadgets from the Raspberry Pi to the iPad, Android to Windows Media Center.
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I agree that there are some Windows Media Center apps that are definitely better suited for the new Windows 8 UI. However, if Live TV, Guide, etc (tuner based tv) is not accessible via the Windows 8 standard UI, I don’t see as much incentive to program my Recorded TV HD app for the new Windows 8 UI because it is based on the tuner based tv model as well.
It also depends on whether the new Windows 8 UI will be navigable via remote control. We should know the answer to that later today (unless they add support later on).
I guess it just depends on what type of app you have and what we will be able to do with the new Windows 8 UI when it comes to tuner based tv.
I agree with the above, it would be pretty crap to have to launch media center (like the one we have in w7) just to use TV.
I personally can see this UI working for media center, be great for things like tv, from a tile you could see what the last program recording is, was etc. Or for addins like mymovies, could see last titles added. Plus when the apps start pouring in we can have tiles for youtube, revsion, facebook etc without having dodgy 3rd party apps.
I’m staying positive with this, i think we could inadvertently have a great 10 foot ui out of this.
…any news on the remote control side of things.
it could be great as a mce interface(metro). live tv videos etc layout may look great. But what about extenders so you can watch tv in other rooms via a xbox
I think the question becomes will Microsoft open up the infrastructure enough to allow others, like Mark, to add the functionality he wants without having to duplicate a lot of what Microsoft has already done (which is the case currently).
Will they allow the remote control to be opened up, so that we can define our own applications for music and pictures et cetera?
I for one will not miss MCML, XAML is so much better.
…Stefan
I agree with the above comments. What todays demo of Windows 8 has shown me more than anything is that Media Center will (should?) be going away, which is perfectly OK since the Metro UI will be able to do everything Media Center does and more. I think the Metro UI is a terrific platform for media center usage; it would be such a shame if they invested so much into the touch-screen functionality without considering the 10-foot experience as well. Unfortunately, Microsoft has been pretty slow on the Windows Phone 7 updates; this could make me question the completeness of Windows 8 when it launches, specifically whether we’ll be able to see things like the Guide and even if we’ll be able to use TV tuners out of the box, or if those will come in additional (delayed) service packs. I’m sure we’ll find out in the next few months. What I’d really like to see is direct integration of Media Center’s biggest features (TV recording especially) advertised as a key feature of Windows 8; this should attract more media companies to create plugins that showcase their content.
Hasn’t the eHome team been disbanded, some time ago? If so, surely that suggests that Media Center will not feature in future Microsoft OSs.
Also, I heard suggestions that what *is* the current Media Center will eventually become an embedded version (eg built into TVs, etc).
@anon
I think this is kinda what the guy that tweeted and a lot of people are saying now. Basically if within the tiles we can use the remote and there is a guide we basically have media center.
It’s then up to developers to get on board and add apps etc.
Charlie has made some great/promising tweets since..
charlieo Charlie Owen
@
@scott_ish I would say _everything_ we dreamed of in a platform for Windows Media Center is embodied in the Windows 8 Metro Style platform.
charlieo Charlie Owen
@
@babgvant @geektonic I wouldn’t disagree with you. MCML is totally awesome — but costly. That’s why I’m pretty stoked about HTML5 for Win8.
http://twitpic.com/55wdas
No doubt that W8 is opening a tremendous opportunity to make WMC what we all have been dreaming about – part of the OS. In the world of the traditional desktop, WMC has revolutionize the UI. however with W8 it looks like WMC can broken down to standalone applications and finally become part of the OS rather than an app running on top of the desktop.
I definitely see the Tuner TV section becoming a standalone app as part of the W8 OS, as well as Music, videos, pictures, which were already demoed as such.
In addition, add a Kinect to the party and you end up with real revolutionary user experience in the living room.
I agree with you guys 100%. I am a avid MCE7 user and one of my biggest issues is the lack of or the difficulty of finding great 3rd party apps. I’m sure that Microsoft didn’t design metro UI with the 10′ experience in mind, but I think that it will present itself for the living room in ways we have not thought of as yet. Grouping apps such as recorded TV, guide, my movies, netflex, etc + actually having a app store will open up a totally new and exciting 10′ world. Also, lets not forget what possibilities we will have with touch screen remotes, kinect and other peripherals to compliment the living room. I will not miss MCE.
Agreed. Break up Windows Media Center into separate Metro apps: One for Music, one for Pictures, one for Video, one for TV and radio (Live, Guide, and Recorded). Of course, you actually don’t *need* Music, Picture, and Video apps as they’re included in Windows 8. Since Metro apps are supposed to work across all devices (desktop, xbox, tablet, phone) the TV app would–in addition to doing a guide and live & recorded TV–serve as an extender so that any device could pull a signal from any computer on the network that has a TV-tuner (or ideally from a network attached tuner array like the HDHomeRun). That’s my dream setup… go straight into TV on my Xbox without having to switch UIs. Plus to have the TV guide integrated into the Xbox’s federated bing search.