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Got your hands on the Windows 8 beta and want to dual boot it alongside Windows XP? If youre dying to try out Windows 8 but arent ready to give up your installation of XP or Vista, lets take a look at how to

The next big OS from Microsoft is almost ready and we’ve been anticipating its arrival for a while now. So, the final release is still sometime away, from release but the second major preview that was expected early this year is here. MWC 2012 is almost over and Microsoft has gone ahead and opened up the gates for users to download and try out the new platform.

The first open build - the Windows 8 Developer Preview was made available for download in September 2011. The Windows 8 Consumer Preview is a more refined build and is something that should be functional till early 2013. So, let’s quickly look at how to download and install the operating system on your PC. We’ll start by first explaining how to install Windows 8 on a clean system and then, also how to upgrade your Windows 7 operating system to Windows 8 without losing too many settings.

However, before starting, we suggest you backup any important data and applications just in case.

Download Windows 8 Consumer Preview
The first step is of course, to download the operating system. Microsoft has setup a download page from where you can download a tool that will check your hardware and software to see if they’re compatible with Windows 8. If you want more information on the system requirements for Windows 8, head over to one of our news story on the official availability of the preview. The tool then downloads Windows 8 for you. You also have the option to download disc images (ISO images) and burn them on a disc and install it. There are 32-bit and 64-bit builds available on this page. Microsoft has also provided a serial key that can be used to install the operating system.

Burn a copy of Windows 8 on a DVD
Once you’ve downloaded the ISO file, burn it using a disc burning software. If you don’t have one installed, you can always use the default Windows Disc Image Burner that’s part of Windows 7, for example. If you don’t have one, you can download a copy of CDBurnerXP  for free. Microsoft offers other options for installing Windows 8 off a USB stick using their USB/DVD tool. Once you’ve chosen how you want to install Windows 8, the process is pretty common and straight forward. In fact, many of the initial steps are similar to Windows 7.

In the case of a clean install, the entire hard drive or at least, one partition ought to be free. Microsoft recommends 16GB of free space if you’re installing the 32-bit version and 20GB if you opt for the 64-bit version.


Setup from an existing Windows installation
If youre doing a clean install of Windows 8, skip this. But assuming that you have Windows already installed, simply insert the burnt DVD and open Windows Explorer. If you have Autorun enabled, the installation setup should start automatically. If it doesnt, double click on the setup.exe in the DVD. The installation will ask you whether youd like to update the installation before it begins. If you dont want to do this, you can click the Skip button.

Next, enter the product key provided by Microsoft on their download page. The next step is to choose which items from the existing Windows installation you’d like to keep. Choose one of the following and click Next. The user has the option to save Windows settings and personal documents or just personal documents. If you do not want to save anything, you have the option to do that too. The installation will then begin.

Ashampoo WinOptimizer 8 v8.13-TE - TE group bring us newest version of well known WinOptimizer. The completely new interface of Ashampoo WinOptimizer 7 combines newly developed modules with optimized tried-and-tested modules to create a perfect synthesis of system tuning, maintenance, and reliable protection. The latest generation of Ashampoo WinOptimizer has a fresh look and feel that is inspired by the user interface of Windows� 7. The all-in-one interface allows fast access to the integrated function groups. There�s no need to get frustrated with your PC or give up on your system. Just sit back and relax. Ashampoo WinOptimizer 7 is the maintenance specialist for your computer.

Notes:

Over 13 years of experience in system maintenance and

optimization of operating systems by Microsoft stand for modern

technology, efficiency, security as well as intuitive user

guidance.

Over 100 improvements were incorporated into the new Ashampoo

WinOptimizer 8 by contrast to its predecessor Ashampoo

WinOptimizer 7. This results in more speed and therefore improved

efficiency especially within system maintenance and the

adjustment of Windows. The cleaning modules registry optimizer,

Internet cleaner and drive cleaner , for example, reach a plus of

up to 500% in results.

In real time the new live tuner pools all available resources in

exactly those places where they are urgently needed. Existing

processor cores, Windows priorities and assigned usages of

applications are customized, in order to ensure a trouble-free

workflow. The resource-saving live tuner runs in the background

just a mouse click away.

Its so easy to tune Windows Just answer a few special

questions about your personal requirements concerning your

Windows system and our tuning assistant will automatically

choose all suitable options.

The concept of the all-in-one user interface has been developed

further for the Ashampoo WinOptimizer 8. Via the clearly

structured main window you can immediately access all six

function groups, in which over 20 modules with hundreds of

options and functions are assembled.

One aim, one tool, a perfect result

System maintenance

Optimal system maintenance through efficient cleaning and

defragmentation

One-Click Optimizer: Quick system optimization with just one

click

Drive Cleaner: Finds and deletes redundant files

Registry Optimizer: Finds and deletes unnecessary or faulty

entries in the registry

Internet Cleaner: Traces left behind when surfing the Internet

are erased

Defrag 3: Defragmentation of hard drives (pro-active

defragmentation and boot-time defrag

System analysis

Transparency and comparability with the help of information and

diagnosis tools

System Information: Comprehensive and clear information on

installed hardware and software (operating system, processor,

chip set, drives, etc

DiskSpace Explorer: Analysis of file groups, e.g. audio or

video files, and information on their space consumption

System Benchmark: The performance of the main memory is

determined and the processor is tested. The results can be

compared online with the ones of other users

Disk Doctor: Hard drives are checked for errors and faulty

files can be restored

Improvement of performance

Get rid of unnecessary droppings in performance with integrated

management and tuning modules

Service Manager: Optimization and management of installed

services and own rating of services

StartUp Tuner: Management of applications that are launched

when Windows starts

Internet Tuner: Automatic or manual optimization of the system

settings for the hardware and bandwidth of the Internet

connection

Process Manager: This module gives an overview about all

currently running processes

UnInstall Manager: Uninstalls applications and faulty entries

successfully

File tools

A set of tools to delete and encrypt files and folders as well as

to restore and send files

File Wiper: Irrevocable and safe deletion of files and folders

File Encrypter & Decrypter: Encrypt and decrypt files

File Splitter & Joiner:Splits a file into several small ones,

in order to, for example, send them by e-mail and merge them

again afterwards

Undeleter:Restores accidentally deleted files

Windows customization

Perfect configuration of the Windows operating system and

adjustment to own requirements

Tweaking: The access to a lot of hidden system settings enables

a detailed customization of the system and frequently used

applications

AntiSpy: Adjustment of interfaces and hidden options in

Windows, in order to disable undesired data transmission

File Associator: Management of installed data formats as well

as repairing or deletion of faulty data formats

Context Menu Manager: Manages context menus of the Windows

explorer and helps with the adjustment to individual

requirements

Icon Saver: Saves the icon positions on the desktop and

restores them, if necessary

General

Comfortable backup management and customization of modules

Backup Management: Management of existing backups

Tuning Assistant: Helps new users to optimize their system

Task planner: Planning of tasks and their automatic execution

at an appointed time

Settings: Settings for this software and single modules can be

adjusted.

Requirements

Operating System

Computer

Any computer that runs one of the above operating systems at a

reasonable speed

Main Memory (RAM

The size of the main storage is insignificant for the

employment of the program. We refer to the recommendations of

the operating system in use from Microsoft.

Hard Drive Space

60 MB for the program files plus some additional space for

backup files (minimal

Features:

* New all-in-one interface for intuitive operation and efficient workflow

* Automatic system analysis on start of the program

* Disc Doktor for hard drive maintenance

* Service Manager including online connection

* StartUp Tuner including online connection

* File Associator for automatic checking and repair of faulty file associations

* Improved scan algorithms for better cleaning results and greater security