Gates: New Windows 8 system is ’very exciting’

NEW YORK - The Associated Press

AFP photo

Microsoft founder Bill Gates says the new Windows 8 operating system scheduled for release next month is "a very exciting new product" and "a very big deal" for the world’s largest software maker.

Gates said in an interview Thursday that he’s already using Windows 8 "and I’m very pleased with it."
 He said it has "a lot of new form factors, a lot of touch, a lot of new applications."

"Hardware partners are doing great things to take advantage of the features," Gates said. "It’ll be a big deal."

Microsoft Corp. will release the major overhaul of Windows on Oct. 26 along with a new version of Internet Explorer.

Gates responded to a question about Windows 8 during an AP interview on a new global campaign to eradicate polio.