ComputerWorld - If the number of people using pre-release versions of Windows 8 are any guide, the new operating system may have a rocky launch and uptake, says new research from Net Applications.

Gregg Keizer reports that according to Net Applications, at the same stage of development, Windows 7 had four times the market share of Windows 8. In June, about four months before the expected launch of Windows 8, .2% of Windows PCs were using a version of Windows 8, Net Applications says. In 2009, four months before the launch of Windows 7, .8% of Windows PCs were using a version of Windows 7. (Software, Windows 8)