Windows 8 still has a long way to go to become mainstream

It appears that Windows 8 could be slowly carving out a slightly larger slice of the operating system market for today's personal computers.

However, at the pace that it's moving, it could take more time before some analysts call it 'mainstream'.

Microsoft's Windows 8 OS managed to capture about 3.17 percent of all desktop operating systems tracked by Net Applications in March. This was a small but respectable gain from the 2.67 percent share seen in the previous month.

Since its official debut in October 2012, Windows 8 has gradually risen up in the ranks, at least in Net Applications' Web traffic analyzis.

Starting with a 1.09 percent share gain in November, the OS carved out a 1.72 percent share in December. It then grabbed a 2.26 percent share in January, pushing it past Mac OS X 10.8 to take the fourth spot among operating systems.

Windows 7 remained ahead of Windows XP as the top operating system for March, though the respective shares of both barely nudged from their February numbers.

Windows 7 wrestled the top spot from XP last August, according to Net Applications. The unpopular Windows Vista stayed in third place with a small 5 percent share, a drop from the previous month.

Assuming Windows 8 keeps growing and Vista keeps falling, both at a consistent pace, Microsoft's new OS should steal third place sometime this summer.

On average, Windows' share of Net Applications' desktop OS traffic was a bit more than 91 percent, a number virtually unchanged over the past several months.

The share held by Mac OS X dipped slightly to 6.94 percent, while Linux came in third with about 1.27 percent.

HTC TO BE SOLD BY AT&T SOON

Overall, the HTC One smartphone was one of the hottest new devices to come out of Mobile World Congress, and now it looks like AT&T will be the exclusive U.S. carrier of the 64 GB version, at least for now anyway.

The HTC One is an LTE-ready, Android 4.2 smartphone with a 4.7-inch, full HD touchscreen.

It features front-facing audio speakers, a dedicated amplifier and HTC Sense, which adjusts call volume based on background noise.

The HTC Sense also accesses the cloud to show users what’s on TV and let them control many set-top boxes with their smartphones.

And HTC’s new 'BlinkFeed' app debuts soon on the HTC One. It integrates updates from the user’s selected news feeds and social networks.

BlinkFeed is meant to be the phone’s homescreen, but users who prefer a different homescreen can customize their own.

The Taiwanese smartphone maker says that the phone’s new ultrapixel camera lets in about 290 percent more light than other smartphone cameras, and it features an app that automatically creates a 30 second highlight video from sets of still photos taken together.

With just a few clicks the video can be shared across social media sites such as Twitter. The HTC One is expected to hit wireless carriers’ retail stores in the U.S. in 2 to 3 weeks.

The 32 GB version will be available through Sprint Nextel and T-Mobile USA, as well as AT&T. None of the wireless carriers have announced pricing for the new device as of today.

Samsung’s Galaxy S 4 will probably be HTC’s biggest rival, and it’s also coming to AT&T before month's end. Pre-orders start April 16, and AT&T will price the phone at $250 with a two-year contract.