Windows 8

[MrBump]

It took a while to get used to but it's alright. If I need a progr...app that I've not shortcutted on my desktop I just hit the windows key and start typing the name of it. It finds it quick enough.

Yeah, and that's a fair point.  It's a different mindset to "old" Windows.  But some of the functionality is actually quite cool.

It just seems to have been done in a disjointed way.  For example, some apps will run in the metro view, but some won't - meaning that the system will switch between the 2 views depending on what you want to do.  An the metro view only displays certain app properties if you need to change something, and if it doesn't like what you are doing it'll force you to open it in the desktop mode!!!

So just give me the desktop mode!!!

Ah.  Still prefer MS to Apple.

[blue]

Personally, I've found windows 8 to be an absolute abomination.  People have been using Windows machines for over 20 years, and the changes to the user interface have been gradual and, generally, intuitive.  I disliked the changes they made to office when they scr@pped all the standard drop down menus, but i was able to get used to it.  Windows 8 is different.  I can't figure it out at all!  It's like if Ford suddenly brought out a new car with the clutch pedal hidden behind the passenger seat and the handbrake only available if you buy one from Honda.

[Jamie89]

I had a look at that "Vistart" Jamie mentioned, it looks OK but with things like that I worry that they're going to cause problems with Windows updates etc?

I'll probably just save some shortcuts to the desktop and then go straight to desktop from that stupid "apps screen" or whatever the hell they call it.

I have had Vistart from day 1 and never had any problems with windows updating.

I may just like Windows 8 more than previous versions, because it caters for my touch screen laptop better than 7 did. Also a lot of my old games and programs tend to work so much better on 8 in compatibility mode than they ever did on 7 and vista, some of which wouldn't work at all.

[Toe-Knee]

I've been using windows 8 since it was in the public beta stages.

Whilst the lack of a traditional start menu is annoying (fixable with one quick registry edit or at least it was) it is by far the most efficient version of windows released since XP.

The resource management is fantastic and the general speed of processes is a very welcome change after they slowed it to a crawl with every release since 98.

Initially i hated the new start screen but as i've used it more it has become really intuitive. However my PC does have a touchscreen monitor which would explain that.

The best thing though is the fact it cold boots to the desktop in about 10 seconds.

However one thing that is sorely missing is all of the lovely transparencies from vista/7

[bucketshred]

Had a play with this on a 65" Phillips Touch Screen yesterday.

AWESOME!!

Paddy

[MrBump]

Had a play with this on a 65" Phillips Touch Screen yesterday.

AWESOME!!

Paddy

Sixty five inches?  You're just bragging now...

[Philly Q]

I decided to "upgrade" from 8 to 8.1 yesterday.

Didn't cost anything, sounded simple enough - it even directed me to the free upgrade in the "Windows Store".... except I couldn't find it in the Windows Store (I did see hundreds of brightly coloured, utterly incomprehensible apps).  The Windows Store appears to have no search facility....?  :?

So, a bit of Googling to finally find a link to download Windows 8.1..... started the process then it said I'm not an administrator.  WTF???!!!  If I'm not the administrator on my computer then who the hell is?  I was absolutely furious by this stage, yelling at the screen and kicking things around the room (sorry neighbours). :x

More Googling and I found info showing this is not a unique problem, and offering various solutions... one of which worked.  Hooray.

So now I have Windows 8.1 and a start button, of sorts.  It's a little better, but I may still download a Windows 7 style start menu.

I think one of the things I find most frustrating is that in previous versions of Windows I was either on my C drive or on the internet, it was clear cut.  Now in Windows 8 it's much more of a grey area - you click on something which you think is on your machine, and you're in some bloody Xbox store.  Or you go somewhere else and it prompts you to download "updates" but it doesn't tell you what it is, if it's something already on your machine or something entirely new.  Everything is a little coloured box with a picture in it, I just want a boring old screen with some old-fashioned words to explain what the hell is going on.

And what's this thing about "cloud storage" for pictures and documents?  It sounds almost compulsory, is everything you do now copied into the "cloud" somewhere?  I don't want all my stuff floating around in the ether for someone else to nosey into.

[AndyR]

Yeah, Philly, bring back DOS, you knew where you stood in them days :D

(Actually this Windows 8 thing - only found out about it from this thread - sounds like a flipping nightmare!! What am I going to do when my XP box dies???!)

And don't get me started on the "cloud" - we are hastening towards what will seem like armageddon when it all goes tits-up... *sigh*

[bucketshred]

Had a play with this on a 65" Phillips Touch Screen yesterday.

AWESOME!!

Paddy

Sixty five inches?  You're just bragging now...

Yeah man! I work in AV sales and Phillips rocked up with a van full of digital signage goodies :D

Paddy