Microsoft is finally bringing desktop apps to the Windows Store

Microsoft is finally bringing desktop apps to the Windows Store ,

Microsoft's Windows Store originally launched alongside Windows 8 nearly four years ago. Instead of listing existing desktop apps and useful Windows tools, the Windows Store has always been used as a way to push Microsoft's new universal apps. Microsoft is finally changing the way the Windows Store works this week, allowing third-party developers to easily bring their existing desktop apps and games over to the universal app platform.

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Evernote, Arduino IDE, doubleTwist, PhotoScape, MAGIX Movie Edit Pro, Virtual Robotics Kit, Relab, SQL Pro, Voya Media, Predicted Desire, and korAccount are all available in the Windows Store this week, and many more are expected in the coming months. It's a change that could mean the Windows Store will be a useful way to truly roam PCs and quickly install your favorite apps. We'll have to wait on developers to take advantage of the Desktop Bridge tool to actually convert apps, but this conversion should make it easier for existing desktop apps to move over to Microsoft's universal platform.

Unfortunately, this won't mean the Windows Store will be full of all the desktop apps you know and love like Chrome, Photoshop, or the millions of useful productivity tools available on Windows. It will take time for developers to adjust and convert their apps, and some might argue that Microsoft would be best served allowing regular desktop apps to be listed in the Store in the interim. Until universal apps really catch on, a true, trusted, and secure Windows Store full of millions of desktop apps would benefit everyone.