Draw With Your Finger In OneNote

There is a new update in the Windows Store for the OneNote app that allows you to draw with your finger in the app if you have a touch screen. This gives you yet another new way of taking notes in OneNote. I've said before that this is one of the most valuable apps in Windows 8, and now it's even better. This should give you even more reason to go get this free app.

More Information: OneNote Blog
Windows Store Link: OneNote

Appy Geek

Are you a bit of a computer geek like I am? Appy Geek brings you all the tech news you crave into one place from many sources. You can read the default categories or make custom categories. I made a Windows 8 category so I can keep up with all my favorite Windows 8 news. What more could you want?

Price: Free
Windows Store Link: Appy Geek

Hearts Deluxe

Are you missing the Hearts card game from Windows 7? Microsoft decided not to make a Windows 8 version of the game, so we were left looking for an alternative. Thankfully Random Salad Games stepped in quickly to fill the void. Hearts Deluxe plays just like the old Windows 7 game, but with better graphics. I like it, and I think you will too.

Price: Free
Windows Store Link: Hearts Deluxe

YouTube Player/Downloader - MegaTube

You may have guessed that this app has something to do with YouTube. You can use this to browse and watch YouTube videos, but that's not all. My favorite part of MegaTube is that you can also use it to download whole videos as either videos or MP3s. This is a godsend for those who have an internet connection that is too slow to watch videos without them constantly stopping. This way you can watch the downloaded video all the way through and then delete it after. MegaTube does all you need for YouTube.

Price: Free
Windows Store Link: YouTube Player/Downloader - MegaTube

Slacker Radio

Slacker Radio is the best music solution I've found on Windows 8. You can listen to pre-made radio stations of the type of music you choose, or you can define your own stations and pin them to the Windows Start Screen. I used to listen to music I already owned on CD's, but I'm finding myself turning to Slacker Radio more and more to listen to all the music I like.

Price: Free, or you can subscribe to Slacker for a fee to get rid of commercials.
Windows Store Link: Slacker Radio

Windows 8's Big Mistake

Microsoft made a huge mistake when they created Windows 8. It's not the mistake that too many people believe it is. I've been reading the comments on various tech sites where so many people whine and complain -- yes, that's what I said -- that Microsoft took away their precious start button. They say the start menu was just perfect, and they hate that big start screen. I read complaints that the close button is gone and why does everything have to be full screen. Nothing but endless complaints about various little things that don't really matter.

These people are all stuck in the past. They don't understand that time marches on. Microsoft has to make changes to keep up with new trends and new technology, not to mention that they have to have something new so they can actually make a little bit of money. They are after all a business first. All of those old things that Microsoft took away have been replaced by equally good ideas. The only problem is that many users just don't want to give the new interface a chance.

But wait! I said, "equally good." Yes, I did. The new Windows 8 user interface is every bit as good as the old Windows 7 desktop interface. So, what's the problem? I said myself that Microsoft made a huge mistake. So, what is it? I already told you what the mistake is. The new interface is as good as the old one.

That's just it. It's as good, but it isn't better for many people. I think it's better, but that's just me. Microsoft should have made Windows 8 so much better than Windows 7 that everyone would want to upgrade. But they didn't, and now way too many people are confused and complaining. These people think the start screen is everything in this new operating system. They are unwilling to look past that and see that their old familiar desktop is still there. They didn't stop to think that they weren't really using the start menu very much anymore and that an improvement was needed.

So, why should anyone upgrade to Windows 8? Because even though it's not obvious, there are many improvements. First of all, the start screen, whether anyone likes it or not, is actually a huge improvement over the tired old start menu. You can put your shortcuts anywhere you want, and the computer boots right up to the start screen, where you can launch your apps or programs with one click of the mouse. It took two clicks to do it with the old start menu, and sometimes you had to dig down through folders to get what you wanted. Ugh.

Many people just don't want to look into the future. I do. I think I can see the direction they're going with Windows 8, especially with all the leaks of the next version of Windows floating around out there. Windows will get to the point where it really is a lot better than windows 7 is now. People will not only need it , but they will want it bad so they can have the best possible experience there is.

There are already great changes that are almost hidden in Windows 8. For instance, many of you like playing games with Windows, right? You start the game up and your windows controls are now all gone. No task bar. No windows close button. It's all full screen with only that one program at a time. You can't just do a quick switch to your email or web browser. To get to other programs you have to completely close down your game to get back into Windows. How many clicks does that take?

That's not the way it works with Windows 8 apps. And I have seen some impressive games as Windows 8 apps. Sure, they're all full screen, but your Windows controls are all there. All you have to do to switch to your email is go to the top right corner of your screen to access the app switcher. Quick and painless. And your app pauses for you so you can come back to it right where you left off. You can also go to the top or bottom right corners to reach the Charms bar, where you can do anything your app lets you. The bottom left will reveal your Start screen every time. This also works with full screen video when shown in any video app. I'd like to see you do that with windows 7.

These and many more improvements are there waiting for you in Windows 8. Even more of these improvements are coming next summer with Windows 8.1. Windows 8 probably isn't better than Windows 7 yet for many people, but it will get that way with an update or two. Windows 8's only real mistake is not being much better than Windows 7 quite yet. It will get there. I'd rather be running
Windows 8 now so I can get used to the changes that are coming. Like I said, it's just as good as any older operating system already. I'll talk about my take on some of the other current improvements to Windows in future posts.

Microsoft Minesweeper

Most of you know about Microsoft's popular game Minesweeper, but they have updated it for Windows 8 and now you have to go get it in the Windows Store. It's still that same old Minesweeper that you love, but they've also added exciting new features like different themes, daily challenges, and wildly different Adventure mode. Click the link below to be lead to its page in the Windows Store.

Price: Free
Windows Store Link: Microsoft Minesweeper

OneNote

I believe this might be the most useful app in the store. I never thought of using a note taking app until I got Windows 8. I never knew how useful OneNote could be. Now I use it whenever I need to take a quick note for anything. I mostly use it for saving quick internet links that I want to go to later, but you can even put in pictures and video in OneNote. The best thing is that my notes are saved on all of my computers at the same time through SkyDrive.

Price: Free
Windows Store Link: OneNote

YouTube RT is Free For 1 Week

YouTube RT is reportedly on sale for free for one week in the Windows Store, starting today. The normal price is $2.99. I haven't personally tried this app yet, but it is highly rated in the store. You can use it to browse YouTube and watch videos. It works well for both touch and mouse use. If you like free apps and sales then you should go and get this app for free before time is up.

Windows Store Link: YouTube RT

Introduction

When Windows 8 was released I was pretty excited about the idea of the apps and the Windows Store. Having all the apps in one store had the potential to make it so much easier to find them than hunting all over the web for new and interesting programs. This makes things so much more convenient, especially for novice computer users.

Only one thing ruins that idea though. There are so many apps that I wasn't sure which ones would be best to try out, even with the small number of apps that first appeared in the store. So I began searching for websites that could advise me on a few good apps that I might like to try. I imagined that somebody would showcase a few good apps on a regular basis that I might like. But of course I never found a site that might want to do something like that though, so I became kind of frustrated.

I've been blogging and doing other similar things for several years, but I never thought to write about my love of technology before. I just figured other people had it covered pretty well up till now. But now I've discovered that there is a need for someone to spotlight Windows 8 Store apps. Since nobody else seems to want to do that, then I guess I'll do it myself.

I'm going to bring you recommendations of apps I think are worth trying out, and I'm also going to bring you news of events and sales I find involving Windows 8 Store apps. There have been many times I've discovered paid apps go on sale for free, and I wished I could share that information with someone. Now I have a way of doing that kind of thing and more here at Windows 8 App News.