The Metro user interface has always been my favorite since the day I got to know about it. This colorful and tiled interface makes the experience even more user friendly. Jose told me that Windows 8 has been highly optimized for finger-friendly navigation on a tablet—since the company believes in its commitment to offer everything mobile.

Here’s a download on the aspects Jose and I discussed about.

APPS
I believe that apps are an integral part of all the operating systems. Windows 8 Consumer Preview revealed that the OS will comprise pre-installed Metro apps to ensure a seamless dive and make its working easier.

STRUCTURE/APPEARANCE
Windows 8 tablets are ought to make the competitors go green with envy. Windows 8 definitely deserves to run on sleek and well-mould tablets. With the major manufacturers like Dell, Samsung, HP and many more, Windows 8 tablet designs will be one among the major reasons for its high sales. Jose seconds this thought of mine.

USAGE
I say this from my personal experience. Uses of laptops even at work have gone down. At work, I see people using tablets. It goes without saying that Windows 8 tablets will be a big hit for work and business related uses.

SkyDrive
By introducing SkyDrive, Microsoft has facilitated the usage of content anywhere and everywhere. This Cloud-based sharing service from Microsoft will be an add-on when used on Windows 8 tablets.

PRICE
Windows 8 tablets will be up against all its counterparts. Be it Android or iOS. The tablets will definitely be sold at a competitive price.

The multitude of features in Windows 8 tablets have made me go nuts about it. My next big buy will definitely be a Windows 8 tablet. These tablets have the potential to provide a uniform experience across various devices. The buzz is certainly worth it. I can’t wait for the official Windows 8 release by the end of this year.

I had been following up with the latest buzz and the news and I am also one of those tech-geeks who had been waiting for the release beta version of Windows 8. Although I do not have much insight about the features, but whatever knowledge I could gain was from over hearing the discussions of my co-workers. This beta version was recently introduced at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

I assumed that exploring the beta version of Windows 8, which is officially known as the Windows 8 Consumer Preview, would help me learn better. Hence, I downloaded the beta version.

The Metro Interface is the USP of Windows 8. This tiled based user interface is ideally compatible with smartphones, and works great with other touch-based applications as well.

However, the OS can be used on all the platforms since it is highly adaptable and responds differently, depending on the platform. The tile-based interface makes it easier to navigate. Personally, Metro is my favorite feature too.

I am a social media junkie and Windows 8 offers exciting features with various platforms. I used the native photo app of Windows 8 to select my photo log-in from my Facebook pictures.

My friend Lucy and I discussed about our experience with the beta version of Windows 8. We both loved the reincarnation; however, Lucy felt the need of some tweaks. We have been using Android as well as iOS. It seems that the new version is a direct competition to the mobile interfaces instead of the larger platforms.

There are a number of features to explore with Windows 8, and it will take me few days to gain complete insight into each. I like the features that I recently explored. Digging out more about Windows 8 beta has become my favorite pastime these days, both at work and back home. I am looking forward for the commercial release.

Hashtags are an immensely important part of Twitter. These are words/jargons, pre-fixed with a ‘#’ symbol. Hashtags include all the latest trending topics on Twitter. Anyone searching for a particular term and its information will find all the requisite information underneath these Hashtags.

Later in the night, post dinner, I logged on to my Twitter account to see the latest updates and found a Tweet from Nichole, a journalist from one of the renowned radio channels. She started following me through the Foxconn Hashtag that I added to my tweet and invited me to be a part of the radio show concerning the same issue. She asked me to message my phone number and that she will call the next morning.

I knew this is going to be a great experience for me. Next morning on my way to work I received Nichole’s call. We shared a brief introduction about each other after which she asked me to give my opinion on the Foxconn issue. Nichole also told me that I would be required to ask a question to the guest on the show. She wanted me to have a conversation using Skype later in the evening, at the time of the show.

My day was made with Nichole’s call early morning. My adrenaline was giving me rush every now and then and it was difficult to wait for the evening. I did my homework very well by doing more research about Foxconn and Apple issues. I decided to leave for home early since it was time for Nichole’s call. At sharp 6:00 PM, I was in my room with my MacBook, logged-into Skype, waiting for Nichole to call me. A while later I noticed that there was some glitch with my Skype. Nichole had already called me to tell me that the show will begin in half-an-hour.

I was afraid since I didn’t want to let go of this opportunity. All I had was 30 minutes to get the Skype working and fixed. I knew who will provide me a quick relief. I called my tech doctor – Marc. He has become our family tech doctor now, after helping us with so many tech issues at home. Marc took a remote connection and using his magical fingers, he fixed my Skype issue in no less than 15 minutes.

I was connected to Nichole through Skype now and the show went on for 45 minutes. I was confident in expressing my views. The conversation was interesting. Since it was LIVE, I could not hear it. I was waiting for the show’s Podcast next morning.

I was late to office and was welcomed by cheers and claps of my colleagues. My seniors congratulated me for being a part of such a renowned show. I never knew that I had done a great job until I reached office, received applauds, and listened to the show’s podcast.

It is Twitter that made all this possible since the journalist located me using the Hashtag on this social media platform. Once again the power of social media is proved. Being a part of the news show was a feather in the cap for me. Twitter has a position higher than Facebook now. I got fame via Twitter and I am drooling over it. I learnt that the power of social media should never be underestimated.

It was Friday and I had decided to go late to work, sometime in the afternoon. Pinterest was the only thing that was making me curious and I had intentions to dig out complete information at work. I knew Suzy would be the best person to ask this since she always has answers to all my tech queries.

I had finished my work by evening with an aim to fully concentrate on my new POA for the day. I asked Suzy to explain me all the details of Pinterest. She was surprised to know that I was unaware of this much talked-about social networking platform.

From whatever Suzy explained me, I inferred that Pinterest is a photo sharing social networking platform. She told me that Pinterest is immensely popular among the fairer sex and currently it has created a lot of buzz by its skyrocketing number of users.

I learnt how to create my own pinboard and Pin the things that interest me. My interest to learn more of Pinterest was increasing, and hence I decided to stay back in office late night and explore.

Suzy had sent me an invite to create an account. After creating my account, I started accessing and visiting various pinboards created by other people. I was highly impressed by the creativity of the users. The way things were brought together and pinned on the pinboards fascinated and encouraged me to come up with a creative and unique pinboard.

I was skeptical about showcasing what was on my mind but then I remembered what Suzy told me. “We can add any random thing (Content/Photo) that interests us, to our pinboards.”

I went through my collection of photographs on Flickr and decided to Pin some. There were some photographs of last year’s fashion show at office get-together. I had adorned the best of outfits then. Those photos were also added to my pinboard.

I also chose my interests from a wide spectrum of genre available and my list included Food, Fashion, Photography, Travelling and Books. These are the elements around which my life revolves.

It was already 23:45 hours and I was still at work. Mom called me to acknowledge my whereabouts. I told her that I will be reaching home shortly.

Half an hour later, I was at home and through with my dinner, post that I was back to my room and then it was just my notebook, me and Pinterest. I again indulged into the wonderful world of Pinterest. Mom came to say goodnight and found me hooked onto my notebook. She also inquired of what I was busy doing. I gave her a brief explanation and I could sense that she too seemed to be quite interested. I knew what was coming next morning.

It’s been a week that I started using Pinterest and I love it. My Pinboards have been appreciated by my friends and others who also follow me (Mom is one of them). I am highly thankful to Suzy who introduced me to Pinterest.

My love for social media platforms increases with each coming day and I find myself indulging in the phenomena all over again. Pinterest is my latest crush.

In the evening, I was busy checking some mails since I had to leave for a party post that. Dad had come back and after a while I saw him trying to connect his SLR camera with my notebook. He said he had clicked some photographs and wanted to upload them on Facebook. Dad told me that Uncle uses Facebook extension on his Google Chrome Browser for a quicker access. He said tonight he will install it and will upload photos post that. Uncle is teaching many new things to my Dad it seems.

I was happy to learn that Dad loves Facebook so much and is excited to learn more and more new things. I left for my party and came back late night only to find that Dad was still glued to the notebook. He told me that he wasn’t able to upload photographs due to some glitches and is hence upset. I could see that kid in him who was desperate to upload his photographs. I love these idiosyncrasies of Dad. I told him to go and sleep and that I will ask Marc, my colleague for resolving the issues.

Marc is a certified techie and has been resolving tech problems of many people, simply over-the-phone. I call him a Tech Doctor. I knew he would surely have answers to Dad’s Facebook problems. Marc came in by 11:00 hrs. I told him about the issues Dad faced and asked him for a solution. He told me that there are times when one might face issues while installing extensions on the browser and all these minor issues can be solved easily.

I reached back home and found Dad busy in the kitchen. He had cooked chicken for me in dinner. I loved the meal. Post dinner I sat with Dad to resolve his Facebook issues as per the information provided by Marc.

I wanted Dad to learn everything so I asked him to just follow my instructions and go about it accordingly. As per Marc’s suggestions, I asked Dad to upgrade his Google Chrome Web Browser and re-install the Facebook extension. I also asked him to keep a tab on the size and resolution of the pictures that he is uploading so that he might not face the issues. Dad had a big smile on his face since he was able to upload all those brunch photographs successfully. He called Marc over the phone and thanked him for his assistance.

Dad is becoming more tech-savvy with each new day. He is learning new things every day. His next question to me was-“What’s with this Twitter?” Dad, I suppose is becoming another social-media savvy man. I only wish he doesn’t become a junkie like me!

Dad had come to pick me up and on our way I asked Dad about Facebook since I too wanted him to join. Dad said Facebook is a networking website for youngsters but I changed his notion and convinced him to join the social networking platform. Facebook is intergenerational I said. Even animals have their profiles.

Convincing Dad took a lot of time. I told him the benefits of Facebook that how he can connect to his childhood mates, with whom he had lost touch, spread his network, make contacts for business, and share the new product launches in his organization. The list just went endless. Dad always misses Uncle Edward. I told him that he can connect with uncle by searching him on Facebook and also upload their childhood photographs.

I am a great Facebook tutorial… must say!

Dad and I were up the whole night. I know he only uses computer for work and managing all the utility bills, so this was a refreshing experience for him. I helped him create his account. Next was the turn for a perfect profile picture. He has one in a black tuxedo holding a cigar. I just love it. My Dad is a classic gentleman. I know women drool over him whenever he dresses his best. Alas! That profile picture best suited his Facebook profile.

I then told him about the security features, how to post content on his as well as others’ wall, how to share content, chats and messages, how to search a person and send friend requests. I also taught him how to create a work-related Facebook page and connect with the potential clientele. He seemed to like this feature a lot.

I know dad’s excitement was burgeoning. We then searched for “Edward Dylan”, Uncle Edward and the results showed around 50 odd profiles bearing the same name. Dad was quick to recognize his uncle and sent him a friend request.

We slept off at 4:00 AM and I know dad was waiting for the morning to get up and see Uncle Edward in his friend list.

We discussed some serious business too!

I got up at 10:00 AM and saw dad glued to the computer. He was exploring Facebook and also chatting with uncle. I was happy to see him picking up so fast. Facebook IPO is out and the idea of investing was circulating in my mind since the day I heard it. This was the right time when I could ask dad about helping me with the investments. After all he is my ATM machine and he also loves investing.

I told dad about Mark Zuckerburg – the 27 year old, young and promising entrepreneur who made Facebook a huge success. I also asked dad to watch the movie “The Social Network” that is inspired from Mark Zuckerburg.

Finally, I started with the IPO agenda. I told him that the social networking giant is seeking to raise $5 billion in their initial funding and that it is the biggest technology IPO until now. Dad was amazed to know that the number of Facebook users is above 800 million and is growing with each coming day. He told me that he will study the IPO investment and will sit with me at night to chalk out further plans.

I am happy that Dad is using Facebook and taking interest in knowing more about the social networking platform.

Since I can’t sit glued to my TV set to get Grammy insights owing to work, I have downloaded the GRAMMY Live app on my iPad to get all the latest happenings and nominations. I can now get information about Grammy any time while on-the-go with this app.

The nominations have been announced and my favorite Adele is topping the charts. I know she will win. At work, I have been flaunting all the Grammy information that I have on my fingertips now. I even told Lucy, my co-worker about GRAMMY Live app, after which she also downloaded it on her iPad.

GRAMMY Live app – A Grammy encyclopedia on my iPad
With the GRAMMY Live app, I am able to access the latest news, photos, videos and trivia related to Grammy on my iPad. The app can also provide me complete three days live stream coverage of music’s biggest night, along with a complete information about the who’s who of the music industry.

There is a GRAMMY Radio as well, using which I can listen to the nominations of almost 20 categories. What’s more, with the Guess feature, I can also speculate and guess winners of the most coveted music title.

The best part is that The Recording Academy, the developer of GRAMMY Live app is offering the app free on iTunes Appstore. Here’s where I downloaded it from.

Grammy Live offers me complete music-tainment on my iPad while on the go. My colleagues now call me a GRAMMY encyclopedia. Thanks to the app. I can flaunt my knowledge to all and sundry.

P.S. – Do not forget to catch the live action of music’s biggest night on 12 February, 8pm ET/PT on CBS.

I just can’t stop thinking about my trip. I have been talking to my friend Gary about Italy almost every minute. But as wise men say, “Every day is not a Sunday.” True to the statement, every vacation comes to an end. With everyday life, going to office becomes a priority. But thank god, our ‘Apple Whiz’ Calvin had asked me to download three apps from the Apple App store for my iPad 2 to make my professional life easy.

Evernote

This app can prove as a lifeline for many. Personally it is saving me from a lot of pain. This app has become my every day habit now. I am a part of the creative team of my company. I have to be coming up with new ideas and thoughts almost every day. Ideas do come, but to remember them each time becomes difficult. Therefore, this app is a boon for me. It helps me to create notes that I just jot down to use later. I can also add photos and audio notes with the help of it. When I am driving the car or working in the office, I just use the audio notes. While working on a new idea a lot of research goes into it. This app helps me to research, take notes, to design my ideas and mark favorites. And, above all this app makes everything easy to search.

I downloaded this app from here for free.

Bento for iPad

This app is another life saver for me. The moment I step inside the premises of the office, I switch into this app. This app acts like a personal assistant of mine. I can track the progress of the projects I am working on, plan my daily events and coordinate my day’s program. It is powered with 25 ready-to-use database templates that can be easily customized and organized. If any change occurs, all I need to do is tap the screen once and edit information in all marked areas: media, date, ratings, choice and checkboxes. This app also gives me the option to browse Safari without leaving it. Bento is one app that keeps my busy schedule going in perfect order. I downloaded this app from here for US$ 4.99.

Penultimate

With my busy schedule it’s impossible to carry a pen and paper everywhere. Even if I do, keeping those huge loose sheets of paper at one place is nothing but a risk of losing it to the wind or a spilled cup of coffee. And being a part of the creative team, I continuously need to draw things. It was only yesterday when I had to explain a logo that we were planning to create that this app came to my rescue. I can easily use it as a pen and paper to draw. Taking notes and sketching has never been such easy. Not only this, I can even draw diagrams and graphs which becomes most handy when it comes to the meetings with the marketing team. The interface is so clean and easy to use that it takes only some time to get used to it. I found this app here and downloaded it for US$ 0.99.

Now, I wonder what I will do without these fantastic apps on my iPad 2. For me these apps have become my second office. It will be almost impossible to work without them.
After a fantastic vacation, I am back to my office. I love what I do, but in some fleeting moments my mind wanders to the streets of Italy. But within seconds I get back to reality. Work or vacation, life is beautiful. Today I promised Dad to take him out for dinner. It’s my way of saying ‘Thank You’ for the wonderful vacation. But, I wonder can I ever thank him enough for everything he has ever given me? May be never.

After clicking a few portrait-like photographs, I decided to explore the city as per the itinerary that I had chalked out during the flight. By then I was already experiencing hallucinations of Imperial Forums, Vatican Museums, Colosseum, and not to mention – the old-school Roman dining at its best. Visiting all these places alone in an unknown city was not as easy as pie. How could I forget that I had with me my best companion whom I had been relying upon since I embarked on this journey. I took the help of a smart traveler app that was installed on my iPad2 to guide me through the streets of Rome city.

City Maps 2Go – My perfect travel mate

I used the iPad2 app City Maps 2Go to locate everything in and around the city. It is one of the top most apps for smart travelers and works even in the offline mode. The app helped me access all the narrow lanes and streets of Rome. The passive GPS worked effectively and helped me in reaching my destination easily. With its bookmark feature, I even added bookmarks to the places I wanted to check in during my trip. The app features 100% coverage of Italy, and hence I was able to access maps and other content without any hassle. The best thing about this app is that it offered me a seamless access with Wi-Fi as well, without any problem. City Maps 2Go helped me discover the city in the best possible way.

Photogene app enhanced my photos

I was in love with Rome and had clicked the best of shots with my camera. However, I wanted to upload only the best pictures on my Facebook account. For this, I used Photogene app. This photography app can enhance the effects and make my photos look better by adding sharpness and adjusting the colors. Red-eye correction and other editing tools can also help in enhancing the quality of photos. I even added text to the photos. With Photogene installed on my iPad2, Photoshop is a passé. I have already uploaded some of the trip photographs on my Facebook account. My Facebook friends have seen them and liked them too.

I can do so much with my iPad2 even while I am travelling. It goes without saying that iPad2 has so much to offer me and with each new day, I get to discover an exclusive feature. I loved my stay in Rome. It’s time for me to bid adieu to you all now. Thanks to Dad for gifting me iPad2, without which my trip would not have been so exciting.

As I love sharing my life with my friends and family who are far off, one of my biggest addictions is social networking sites. There is a joke amidst my friends circle that if I do not share something on the social networking sites, it has not happened. Of course to some extent it’s true. Now that I will be travelling to Italy, how can I keep my hands off these sites? Being the addict that I am, I have already downloaded these four apps, and they all for free.

Facebook
My day does not begin if I don’t log into Facebook first. I know it’s a bit funny but that’s how it is. This Facebook app on my iPad 2 is my lifeline. The first app that I downloaded on my iPad 2 was Facebook. It’s an easy to use app with all the features including the Timeline. Since the time Dad has gifted me the iPad, I have been uploading all my photos, messages and everything through it. For me it is my ‘must have’ app. And now that I will be going to Italy, I would need it more. The moment I see something beautiful, I need to shout it out.

If anyone hasn’t downloaded this app yet (which is strange for an addict like me), here is where it can be downloaded.

Twitter
If Facebook keeps me closer to friends, Twitter helps to keeps me abreast with the world. Following celebrities, trends, news or even a stranger, is interesting, and more when I am being followed by fans. I must say that Twitter gives me my Adeline rush after a long and tiring day. It’s always interesting to note that how everyone has an opinion about everything. Once in Italy, I know I will be using it every five minutes.

To everyone who loves tweeting, here is where you download it from.

AIM
I so love this app. It brings everything together. Wherever I am in, I can add locations to my posts and directly post my status on Facebook, Twitter, Lifestream and MySpace. The best part is that I can chat with my friends on Facebook or Google Talk with this app. Gary is one of my closest buddy, (and a Facebook addict) who is settled in a new town and is not very traveled. We both keep on chatting or messaging throughout the day. With Italy on the cards, I would need to tell him more. So, AIM is where I will hit every time when I need to say something to Gary.

Here is where this app can be downloaded from.

Localmind
This is an app that Gary introduced me to. And these days I am using it heavily. It helps me to form Localmind community for a specified location. It allows me to ask questions to local experts about the locality and the experts from that particular locality help me back. It also connects me to someone who needs some information if I become the local expert. It’s the easiest way to find out new places and activities. With Italy just a week ahead, I am sure that I will be using it more than ever.

I downloaded this app from iTunes.

My tickets have arrived, my hotels are booked; all I need to do is pack my bags. With iPad 2 as my travel companion, Italy here I come.