Metro PuTTY is the specialized but well-known PuTTY client program that allows users to create SSH-2 connections from their Windows PCs, bringing almost all of the program's features to the Windows 8.1 start screen.
Its features include options to use PuTTY for fast private key authentication, full or adjustable screen size support, UTF-8 compatibility, support for saving single connection settings, and an on-screen keyboard.
In the application description we read: “Metro PuTTY is a version of the popular desktop application PuTTY. It allows you to create SSH-2 connections to any device that supports SSH-2 and has many of the same features as PuTTY. It allows you to save connection settings that are synchronized with your Microsoft account and supports key authentication.”
The application is not available for free, but for a fee of $3.99 (€2.10), and for free you can only download a trial version of Metro PuTTY for Windows 8.1 to try out some of its features.
This news impressed us and we are writing about it, as PuTTY is a completely free application for both Windows and Linux. You can download it from here.
What we didn't understand is where things are headed with Metro apps, which are usually inferior to their regular desktop counterparts and while they should all be completely free (which they aren't), even those that are free in desktop form (like PuTTY) have started charging. Are Metro apps aimed at naive and bored users?
