Look Ma! Windows on Linux! (and MAC)
Windows within Windows
So, did you know you can run windows on a MAC? okay, a little joke since you have been able to do this for years using something like Parallels, and of course you can RDP (remote desktop or equivalent) to a remote virtual machine.
What makes this new Microsoft Windows App interesting?
Well, right now, this seems to be a gateway to all things Azure (Microsoft’s cloud monster) for remote environments like virtual PC’s.
Microsoft released the Windows App as a preview this week. The application is available for Windows, macOS, iOS and web browsers at the time of writing. No word yet on an Android version, but it is almost certain that one is in development.
The Windows app enables users to connect to "Windows 365 Cloud PCs, AVD Desktops/RemoteApps, RDS, Remote Desktop, or Microsoft Dev Box" according to Christiaan Brinkhoff, Principal Product Manager, Community Director, Windows 365 + AVD at Microsoft.
In other words, it enables users to connect to remote Windows PCs from any of the supported device types.
It feels like what Citrix has been doing for ages (as well as VMWare and others) i.e. providing a client to access remote resources.
But even though this has been in the realm of enterprises, the personal cloud PC is going to be “something” you might need (or not!). You login to your cloud PC from a Windows device, but then later you connect from a MAC or Linux machine or even a tablet (iOS / Android) - you pick up exactly where you left off.
With so many options out there, this isn’t really anything that new, but if you live in a Microsoft-centric world, it might be a way of having your PC wherever you need it, not to mention being able to dynamically upgrade or downgrade as required.
I guess everything is going SaaS (online, subscription), but would you? Given the streaming TV/movie, music and games services these days, would having your PC on a monthly or yearly subscription make sense?
Until next time, take care!