AP Photo

The biggest news of last week’s Consumer Electronics Show – that enduring altar at which the industry lays bare its sacrifices for the coming year – was not Ultra-HD televisions, censored satellite receivers, or even smart vacuums. Rather, it was the void left by one of the shows biggest stars. Microsoft, the anchor of the PC ecosystem, which since 1995 had given every keynote presentation at the event that had come to represent the ying to Macworld’s yang, was a no show. With Windows 8 just hitting its stride, it may seem like a funny time for Microsoft to drop off the CES map. But Microsoft knows what its OEM partners won’t admit: PCs are already dead, Windows 8 was never meant for them anyway, and the future lies in Microsoft-built hardware....