Microsoft explained Win8 support for various screens

How does Windows 8 perform under different screens? Microsoft today introduced Windows 8 support for various sizes of screens in the Windows 8 blog, all kinds of devices are Get the best display.

Microsoft categorizes devices running Windows 8 in three ways:

— Screen size

— Screen resolution

— Pixel density

When designing Windows 8, developers pay great attention to screen size, screen resolution and pixel density. . When talking about the screen, you need to know its size and resolution. For example, a 13-inch screen may use multiple resolutions, which means multiple pixel densities (DPI), and its aspect ratio also has different values. The following picture shows the diversity of common widescreen screens:

Minimum resolution

Many people ask about the lowest resolution of Windows 8, before Microsoft made Metro The limit of the application is 1024X768. Microsoft said that the lowest resolution of 1024X768 was chosen to help developers create applications that fit all screens. It is a benchmark that allows developers to ensure navigation, control and content fits the screen.

The lowest resolution for Metro applications is Microsoft 1024X768

Why choose 1024X768 as the lowest resolution?

Microsoft said that 1024X768 is selected as the Metro application. There are three reasons for the lowest resolution:

— It is large enough to support the rich and beautiful design layout of the Metro application, and the 800X600 is too small;

— The website usually has 1024X768 as the minimum. (or only) resolution, because web developers are also based on this;

— Looking at the devices on the market today, only 1.2% of Windows 7 active users have lower resolutions than 1024X768. If you want to design a platform for modern and future devices, you should choose today's mass equipment.

The world without the lowest resolution

Some people ask why Microsoft wants to limit the minimum resolution. Isn't it better to suggest content? Microsoft said that the restrictions are required. In order to reduce the workload of application developers, they do not need to consider the development work of lower screen resolution. If Microsoft sets more relaxed requirements, then many developers need to develop/test for lower resolution platforms, which is a very large workload and does not make much sense.

In addition, developers can choose the lowest possible resolution as the development standard, which will reduce the user experience and the quality of the application.

If the app can run on a 1024x600 resolution device, the bottom will be truncated to the lowest resolution and alignment

to support all Windows 8 features. The minimum resolution is 1366X768, including the multi-tasking feature that drags the application to the snap display, which provides 320px of space for drag-and-drop applications without affecting the main application's 1024px display.

Here is an example of how high the drag and drop application is on the left and the main application is on the right.

Is there a maximum resolution limit?

Do you still want to ask if Windows 8 has the maximum resolution limit? Microsoft's answer is no. Because the higher resolution provides more space, the application does not suffer from clipping or full display. You can run the Metro app on a 30-inch resolution 2560X1600 screen. However, even though there is no danger of the application being truncated, developers should pay attention to these high-resolution screens to ensure that their applications look good on such screens.

The larger the screen, the more pixels it can provide, and the more content it displays:

Windows 8 provides developers with built-in typesetting control technology for development An application can directly meet a variety of different sizes of screens, avoiding the following diagrams

Windows 8 applications can adopt adaptive layout, automatically adjust to adapt to spatial changes, the larger the screen , the more content is displayed.

For example, a news app can display more news items on a larger screen notebook than on a tablet.

With this responsive layout, the same app will automatically adjust to a larger size on the big screen.

Different pixel densities

Pixel density is a new concept for many users. Simply put, it refers to the number of pixels in a certain physical range. The description is the dots per inch, which is the DPI. As the pixel density increases, the fixed pixel occupies a smaller physical area.

On a higher pixel density screen, the physical area of ​​the same object becomes smaller without scaling

If you do not scale, the higher the pixel density of the screen, the less convenient the touch operation, as shown below:

To ensure that applications, text, and images are also on the screen with high pixel density. Perfect for display, Windows 8 will automatically zoom in on the object, but since many applications use bitmaps, they become blurred after zooming in. Therefore, Windows 8 uses a predetermined scaling to ensure that the display is normal. Windows 8 scaling:

— 100% display without scaling at standard resolution

— In HD resolution, zoom 140%;

— Scaled by 180% at quad-XGA resolution.

After scaling in Windows 8, the physical dimensions of text and content on high-pixel-density devices remain the same, only to become clearer.

Testing Applications on Different Screens

Although Windows 8 makes application development easier, developers are better off implementing applications on multiple screen sizes. test. Considering that most people don't have the right to have multiple devices, Microsoft provides a Windows emulator in Visual Studio 11, and developers can simulate the application's operation on multiple sizes, aspect ratios, and pixel density screens. Adjustment.