<p>Microsoft expects to finish Windows 8.1 the successor to the controversial operating system that radically changed the Windows interface by the end of August, a company executive said today at its Worldwide Partner Conference here.</p><p>Tami Reller, Microsoft corporate vice president and chief marketing officer for Windows, said Windows 8.1 will be handed off to hardware makers and should be available on PCs and tablets in time for the holiday buying season. And she reiterated that it will be a free upgrade for all existing Windows 8 users.</p><p>The conference, which is the company's largest annual event, is the software giant's opportunity to touch base with a group of resellers and hardware vendors who worry about increasing competition from Microsoft. CEO Steve Ballmer, who kicked off a 3 hour and 16 minute keynote address, reiterated that Microsoft is remaking itself into a "devices and services" company, which encroaches on the territory of many attending.</p><p>For example, a lineup of executives appearing onstage on the floor of the Toyota Center touted a variety of product announcements aimed at information technology practitioners, each earning at least a smattering of applause. But when Jon Roskill, Microsoft's corporate vice president of its Worldwide Partner Group, announced that the company would start selling its Surface Pro tablets in 28 more countries, there was dead silence. Microsoft getting into the hardware business has drawn the ire of many who sell their own PCs and tablets.</p><p><a href="http://blog.seattlepi.com/techblog/2013/07/08/liveblog-microsoft-ceo-steve-ballmer-in-houston/">Keep reading...</a></p><p>Read also:</p><p><a href="http://seekingalpha.com/article/1538662-forecasting-microsoft-s-q4-and-share-price?source=google_news">Forecasting Microsoft's Q4 And Share Price</a> (Seeking Alpha)</p><p>Explore: <a href="http://news.google.com/news/more?ncl=dnhYTD_7S99eEnMUUK5hY4_n1H5KM&ned=us">180 additional articles.</a></p>