NEW YORK (AP) - Microsoft is celebrating the imminent release of its revamped Windows operating system after two years of work.
Windows 8 is the most dramatic overhaul of the personal computer market’s dominant operating system in 17 years.
Microsoft Corp. redesigned it so it will run on increasingly popular tablet computers, as well as PCs. Another version of Windows 8 is being released for smartphones next week.
The system for PCs and tablets will be available to consumers on Friday. Microsoft executives hailed the occasion at an event in New York on Thursday.
Microsoft says more than 1,000 PCs have been certified to run Windows 8. In a departure from its usual strategy focused exclusively on software, Microsoft is also selling a tablet called Surface that runs on Windows 8.
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