Windows 8 thread

[TorqueDog]

Décor8 looks nice.

[Hemi-Cuda]

so i switched my computer at work over to Windows 8 last week (working in IT infrastructure has it's perks) and so far with Start8 i'm really liking it. boot times are ridiculously fast, noticeable performance increases, nice features like the redesigned Task Manager and File Transfer dialog, and having Hyper-V built-in is fantastic for someone like me who does a lot of work with their own VM's. plus being able to sync a domain account with your online Microsoft login is pretty sweet, letting you sync up multiple machines running Windows 8 so all the preferences and settings carry over for each device (especially if you've also got a Windows 8 tablet)

honestly if Microsoft could just get over the fact that desktop users don't want to use the new start screen and put the Start Menu back on the desktop, this OS could be a huge hit in the business sector. having a tablet running Windows Pro, fully domain joined with a corporate image running direct access (always-on VPN) completely blows away what you can do with an iPad or Android tablet for work

[chemgear]

Ouch.

http://www.computerworld.com/s/artic...straight_month

Windows 8's initial uptake trajectory also makes it more likely that the new operating system will be labeled as an even bigger flop than Vista, which was largely rejected by users, who stuck with the older XP until Windows 7 arrived.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by chemgear

Ouch.

http://www.computerworld.com/s/artic...straight_month

Windows 8's initial uptake trajectory also makes it more likely that the new operating system will be labeled as an even bigger flop than Vista, which was largely rejected by users, who stuck with the older XP until Windows 7 arrived.

Makes sense. Vista sucks, but people were moving to 64-bit. Whereas today, there's no major reason to move away from 7. The move to 7, of course, was driven by Vista's suckiness.

[chemgear]

Originally Posted by SebC

Makes sense. Vista sucks, but people were moving to 64-bit. Whereas today, there's no major reason to move away from 7. The move to 7, of course, was driven by Vista's suckiness.

Windows 8 is already done like dinner. Windows 9 will be awesome!

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by chemgear

Windows 8 is already done like dinner. Windows 9 will be awesome!

hopefully Microsoft will learn from their mistake and stop trying to force a tablet interface on desktop users

[ricosuave]

windows 8 is great if you shut off metro

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by ricosuave

windows 8 is great if you shut off metro

yep, all Microsoft had to do was put a toggle in place that asked if you would like to be in tablet mode or desktop (with start menu) and they would have had a real winner. but since most people can't get past the start screen stuff, all of the improvements over Windows 7 get ignored

[Brannigans Law]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

yep, all Microsoft had to do was put a toggle in place that asked if you would like to be in tablet mode or desktop (with start menu) and they would have had a real winner. but since most people can't get past the start screen stuff, all of the improvements over Windows 7 get ignored

I mean also voting with my wallet. I don't support metro ui and lots of other users don't either. This way sales suck and hopefully Microsoft will smarten up for Windows 9 or patch win 8

[TorqueDog]

Originally Posted by ricosuave

windows 8 is great if you shut off the start menu

Fixed.

Sorry, but I still don't get this complaint. It's just a start menu with apps growing out of it. All your crap runs on the Desktop just like Windows 7, and there is really nothing forcing you to use the modern interface. Only time I use the modern interface apps is when I use my Windows 8 tablet. Otherwise, I'll still hit the Windows key, type "Word" and hit [Enter] and it's STILL faster than the old Windows 7 start menu.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

I'll still hit the Windows key, type "Word" and hit [Enter] and it's STILL faster than the old Windows 7 start menu.

Yeah, but that works on Win7 too. Hence, no reason to upgrade.

[nwflamesfan]

Classic Shell is a free program that will bring your Start Menu back as well as the classic Explorer I've been using it for the last few months and highly recommend it.

http://www.classicshell.net/

Edit: Forgot to add that there is a setting to boot directly into desktop mode bypassing the new Start Menu completely

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by nwflamesfan

Classic Shell is a free program that will bring your Start Menu back as well as the classic Explorer I've been using it for the last few months and highly recommend it.

http://www.classicshell.net/

Edit: Forgot to add that there is a setting to boot directly into desktop mode bypassing the new Start Menu completely

Classic Shell is a decent free fix, but if you're willing to spend $5 Start8 is far superior. It looks and operates exactly like the Windows 7 start menu, not a hacked in job that Classic Shell is

[TorqueDog]

Originally Posted by SebC

Yeah, but that works on Win7 too. Hence, no reason to upgrade.

Because that's the only change from Windows 7 to Windows 8.

[Brannigans Law]

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

Because that's the only change from Windows 7 to Windows 8.

Windows 8 is an unnecessary service pack for Windows 7 with a hideously designed interface that tries to combine a tablet OS with a desktop OS UI. Why should I pay 100+ dollars to then have to patch the thing to look like Windows 7?

I used 8 and 7 on my old computer and suggesting it's a vast upgrade for performance is utter balogne. Want a performance upgrade? Get an SSD drive.

[TorqueDog]

Originally Posted by Brannigans Law

Windows 8 is an unnecessary service pack for Windows 7 with a hideously designed interface that tries to combine a tablet OS with a desktop OS UI. Why should I pay 100+ dollars to then have to patch the thing to look like Windows 7?

I used 8 and 7 on my old computer and suggesting it's a vast upgrade for performance is utter balogne. Want a performance upgrade? Get an SSD drive.

Complete drivel, and you're showing you really have no idea what's changed.

- Boot/wake times are much faster on 8. (Source.)
- Windows 8 is far more secure. (Source.)
- You can pause file transfers now (I don't care how trivial that is, it's awesome.) And it groups file transfers so you don't have to hunt around when doing multiple, separate copies.
- Better power management.
- Storage pools (called 'Storage spaces') allows the combining of internal and external storage as a single space.
- Better multiple monitor support. Yes, really. The taskbar now spans all monitors and the Start Menu and charms are available from any monitor.
- The Task Manager is improved.
- File History (similar to 'Previous Versions' that you get when you are accessing a Windows-based file server.)
- Desktop Hyper-V.
- Using a Microsoft account for your desktop login allows you to sync your settings across multiple PCs. Desktop backgrounds, lock screens, etc. I have a collection of thirty or so Aston Martin DB9/DBS backgrounds that my desktop cycles through... I set it on my desktop PC at home, and I get them on my tablet.
- Picture passwords.
- Easier reinstalls. Kid downloaded a virus? Or was it you browsing questionable websites? Click a button and you remove and re-install Windows. No fussing around with booting from a DVD or USB stick.

... and more. You can even just Google 'Changes from Windows 7 to Windows 8' and get TONS of information on the subject, but it seems you haven't bothered.


To claim that Windows 8 is "an unnecessary service pack" demonstrates a fundamental lack of understanding on your part of just how much has changed between the two OSes, and you should do a bit more reading before propagating your uninformed opinions to the impressionable masses.

[Brannigans Law]

lol torque what are you the Windows 8 dev team rep? take it easy bro, you put someone in front of a windows 8 and 7 machine and the difference between them is virtually invisible and the sales of windows 8 show that. pretty much end of story. im glad you like it but dont try and act like its a ferrari vs a ford.

It boots faster? My computer with windows 7 goes from power to being able to use the Windows interface in around 12 seconds. That's including BIOS being loaded. I'm going to spend a hundred dollars to shave off 2 seconds? If that?

Windows 8 is more secure? Great but as the article mentions if you use anti virus you're already ahead of the game. I can spend 100 dollars for "built in anti virus support" or I can get it from from MS with MSE.

Better power management? Says who? What kind of savings will I get? Fluff.

Task manager is improved? How many times does anyone use it and what are said improvements?

File history is a completely worthless tool for 99.5% of PC users including myself. Fluff.

I googled hyper V and after reading about it on google and then waking myself up I decided that yes, I still don't care what it is and neither does anyone else.

The MS account sync is actually a big turn off and I'd never use it in a million years because google is where I put everything in the cloud. I also have 1 PC and an android tablet so this feature is also useless for the vast majority of people.

Picture passwords? Ok yes now we're talking. This is definitely worth the upgrade.

And more? And how!

Look I didn't mean to take such a hard line stance against your post. But really 8 is a bigger flop than Vista and really an necessary expense. I'm pretty computer affluent, as a lot of us are, and I've spent a lot of time with Windows 8. When I built a new computer I spent extra money on Windows 7 instead of saving a few bucks and getting Windows 8. That should tell you something about Win8. My GF's laptop is a touchscreen Win8 Sony and it's just utter garbage to use. I found myself lost and confused just trying to turn the thing off. Wtf? I have an easier time using a Mac at the Apple Store than I do my GF's windows laptop. And that's messed up because I never used Mac's and I've been a life long Windows user.

MS tried to re-invent the wheel because they wanted to sell apps and turn peoples home computers and laptops into mobile devices and rake in on the cash with a MS App store. It's failing and people are voting overwhelmingly no with their wallets.

[Ashartus]

I've started using it a bit, in most cases I don't see much difference. I wasn't thrilled to discover that it no longer includes a free DVD driver and that I'd have to pay for an add-on to watch DVDs on my computer though.

[photon]

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

- Windows 8 is far more secure. (Source.)

I think having AV on by default is HUGE. Not for sophisticated users, but for the general public, that is great.

As for the other security updates, given that I have lots of information from many different clients on my computer and network, this is quite important to me and is a compelling reason to upgrade from 7 to 8.

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

- Better multiple monitor support. Yes, really. The taskbar now spans all monitors and the Start Menu and charms are available from any monitor.

This by itself convinced me that I'll upgrade to Windows 8 soon, I use a 3rd party app to do that kind of thing now and it's not that great.

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

- File History (similar to 'Previous Versions' that you get when you are accessing a Windows-based file server.)

From a work point of view this is awesome, another compelling reason to upgrade.

Given even just those things, Windows 8 has moved from "When I have to" to "When I can" priority for my main computer.

[TorqueDog]

I had a pretty sizable reply typed out to Brannigans Law, but after I read the portion of his post about Hyper-V ("I googled hyper V and after reading about it on google and then waking myself up I decided that yes, I still don't care what it is and neither does anyone else"), I deleted the whole thing, finally concluding that it would be more fruitful to smash my head into a brick wall so I could see what my own brain looks like than talk to someone this wilfully ignorant on a subject.

There really is no amount of information that would change your mind because you simply don't care to consider things outside your own little bubble. Statements like "I also have 1 PC and an android tablet so this feature is also useless for the vast majority of people" show the extent of the problem, you think that if a feature doesn't matter to you, it can't possibly matter to anyone else.

I'm not even sure why you're in this thread except to fling poo on the subject matter. Do you care to learn anything?

Anything at all?

I mean, it's quite obvious from your post that you don't have a clue what you're talking about.

Originally Posted by photon

I think having AV on by default is HUGE. Not for sophisticated users, but for the general public, that is great.

As for the other security updates, given that I have lots of information from many different clients on my computer and network, this is quite important to me and is a compelling reason to upgrade from 7 to 8.

This by itself convinced me that I'll upgrade to Windows 8 soon, I use a 3rd party app to do that kind of thing now and it's not that great.

From a work point of view this is awesome, another compelling reason to upgrade.

Given even just those things, Windows 8 has moved from "When I have to" to "When I can" priority for my main computer.

Definitely agreed. And while third-party antivirus is all well and good, with such a wide variety of options to choose from with each of them having their own failings, I definitely appreciate that - out of the box - Windows 8 is significantly improved in the security department over its predecessor. You just can't count on end users having a good antivirus or even installing one at all, unfortunately.

The multi-monitor stuff is huge for me. I have dual monitors at home and at the office. I've never been a fan of the third-party bolt-on tools for this (I tried MultiMon). And file history, if you're that "computer friend" that everyone knows at least one of, how many phone calls/texts have you gotten where you hear "I accidentally saved over a copy of a file I didn't want to, how do I get the old one back"? When I worked for smaller firms where you'd have less mature infrastructure and things were very much break-fix, done on the cheap, and "Backups? LOL", enabling Shadow Copies for Previous Versions functionality was the first thing I did usually, and it saved me plenty of times.