<p>Over the last few days, I've been spending plenty of quality time with Microsoft's Windows 8.1 Preview. In multiple respects, it's been a positive experience. As my colleague Jared Newman noted, the new features in this upcoming revisionwhich will be free to Windows 8 users when Microsoft rolls out the final version later this yearmake it much easier to spend most or all of your time in the new-wave Metro interface and apps that use it. From more powerful management of multiple on-screen windows to a comprehensive Control Panel to a more customizable Start Screen, Windows 8.x is beginning to feel more like a full-featured operating system and less like a toy bolted on top of old-school Windows.</p><p>As the decimal point in its name suggests, Windows 8.1 doesn't aim to be a game changer; it's a more polished, complete version of Windows 8 rather than a whole new experience. If you already like Windows 8, you'll like 8.1 even more. But the question remains: What will get non-Windows 8 users excited about making the investment of time and money required to move to Microsoft's radical new version of its extremely venerable software? What, in other words, is its killer app?</p><p>That's been a surprisingly tough question to answer for Windows 8 all along. As I've used the update and tried to figure out its potential impact, I've been mulling over possible factors that could help Windows 8.x catch on in a way that it hasn't yet done.</p><p>Such as"No Compromises."</p><p><a href="http://techland.time.com/2013/07/03/even-with-windows-8-1-windows-8-is-still-searching-for-its-killer-app/">Keep reading...</a></p>