"10/18/2012--Bellevue, WA, USA..At Microsoft's store at the Bellevue Square Mall in Bellevue, WASH., employees made Windows 8 available for customers to see and use on a tablet in the store. ..HERE: Store employee Chris  San Mateo  explains the new operating system to Fred (right) and Rochelle (left) Casserd...NOTE: THE TABLET HAS BEEN CONNECTED TO A LARGER MONITOR, IT IS NOT RUNNING ON A DESKTOP COMPUTER...Microsoft's new Windows 8 operating system is the most radical change to the look of the software most people use on their PCs since the late 1980s. The ""Start"" menu is gone. Programs like the Web browser no longer have traditional menus. Everything looks much more like what you might see on a smartphone or tablet. Microsoft is making the change in part because it is desperate to catch up with Apple and its iPad. But the boldness of the changes could cause headaches among consumers and businesses that buy Windows 8 computers.  ..©2012 Stuart Isett. All rights reserved."