So which view is right? Is Microsoft changing course in a bid to fend off catastrophe as its flagship product threatens to crash and burn just six months after its release, or is it simply getting ready for a routine update that includes a few tweaks made in the light of customer feedback?All we know for sure is a woman called Tami Reller, Microsoft's chief marketing and financial officer, has clearly had a busy time briefing journalists in the past day or two - and some of those journalists have seized on this contact as an opportunity to repeat and amplify already widely reported whispers that Windows 8 has got off to a less than stratospheric start.
There's no doubting the pressures on Microsoft. Windows 8 was designed with touchscreens and tablet computers in mind, in an attempt to keep the company relevant and boost its presence in software for highly portable devices - the most rapidly growing segment of the market, which is dominated by Google's Android and Apple's iOS platforms.