Windows 8 has quite a learning curve, especially for those finally making the move from Windows XP. Windows 8.1 adds a bit more polish to the operating system but the learning curve is still quite steep.
To help with that, Microsoft has announced the availability of Windows 8.1 end-user readiness content. The documents available today include a Windows 8.1 Quick Guide for Business, the Windows 8.1 Power User Guide for Business, and Windows 8.1 how-to tutorial videos.
You can find the documents linked from the Windows Springboard blog article that announced the user readiness content. They are also available on the Windows Resources and Tools site. The Quick Guide for Business gives a fast run down of using Windows 8.1, the basics of some of the new interfaces. The Power User Guide dives into more 8.1 details like the new task manager, IE11, and other features. The video tutorials cover both the quick guide and the power guide topics.
Microsoft plans on providing more of these guides as time goes on. Their next one is focused on empowering IT departments to “sell” Windows 8.1 to end users.
This is only the start of the end-user readiness content we will be releasing over the coming months. In February, we will be releasing a THRU-IT End User Support Toolkit which enables IT departments to communicate, educate, and evangelize the Windows 8.1 experience to end-users. The toolkit will include in-house trainer kits to help IT organizations efficiently deliver Windows 8.1 trainings to users, as well as end-user tip sheet, email template library, posters and flyers designed for IT to create user awareness and excitement to facilitate adoption in Windows 8.1 deployments.