Windows 8, Who Has It?

[Tony]

Just wondering who all has or has used Windows 8 before? I just finished downloading my $15 copy and installed it on my lappy. I will say this, it's very, VERY different!

I do like the task manager a lot better though, much more information at hand. However I'm not sure if I like the apps or not. I might if I was using a touch screen, but this is a standard i7 lappy.

So, who has W8 or who has used it? Got any pointers? If I keep up where I can't find anything, I"m going to put W7 back on it. I know how to navigate W7 lmao.

 

[Lee]

I have it on my Mac, but not used it yet. I only use it for my Flybarless programming software anyway. Why the lazy people can't just write it to work on Mac. I mean its not a huge program. Just tells the Unit what to set.

 

[Tony]

lol. Well I'm getting ready to format the HDD that I put 8 on and I'm going to put 7 back on it. I need more time when I'm awake to play with it. Just not in the mood right now. I should have been in bed 3 hours ago, but NOOOOOO. I have to go to the friggin range 150 miles from here in the morning... UGH...

 

[RandyDSok]

Don't wipe Win8 out yet until you've had a chance to tweak it to your liking etc...

First... get your start menu back by installing a program such as Classic Shell ... see http://www.classicshell.net/

You can setup the Start Menu to look like whatever you wish, bypass the start screen etc.

Now visit a website such as this one Tweaking with Vishal - Windows Tips, Help and Customization for additional tips and tweaks... They have one I really like that adds a shutdown menu to the rightclick menu... as well as many other things. They have tips for most versions of Windows.

If you actually have a touch screen... Win8 brings some much needed support for it... but if you are using the computer to be productive such as a student or business may need, they took away the start menu that made it productive for a touch-centric Start Screen instead... Third party programs such as Classic Shell can give you back that functionality and still allow you to take advantage of the slight speed boost they got by cleaning up the Windows coding.

 

[murankar]

Personally I feel win8 is not really meant for desk top application. It is geared for tablets and other Android based applications.

Microsoft is trying and I do mean trying to compete with the Android. I foresee Microsoft trying to sue people over copyright infringement.

Apple/Mac has already won a case against Samsung over this.

As with all windows products it will take a few months for things to iron out and work.

Linux rules!

 

[RandyDSok]

Once a Start Menu is put back... Win8 works much like Win7 only slicker and also adds support for simpler apps instead of just supporting standard programs.

What MS is doing ( which I believe is short sighted ) is trying to give all of their OS's ( desktop, tablet and phone ) the same look and feel. I'm not against them adding a touchscreen friendly shell... but taking away the more productive desktop start menu was a step backward for productive programs that students and business's need. As I mentioned though, its a non-issue if you use a third party application to replace that functionality.

Currently... Android has no full OS for desktop use yet that comes even close to what Windows can provide... they just have a simplified Linux tailored for tablets, netbooks and phones.

 

[Whirlybird]

I've looked at & studied it, but am not interest in 8

Linux OS's like Ubuntu & Mint are doing similar

I prefer at this time a good ole desktop enviornment

 

[RandyDSok]

I prefer at this time a good ole desktop enviornment

You mean like this one...

View attachment 4349

I'm telling you guys, but you apparently aren't listening... This is Win8 with Classic Shell running as the Start Menu...

 

[murankar]

I am all for the unified look but touch screen on a desktop? I have used 7 for almost 2 years and have to say that Microsoft finally made something that i enjoyed using.

Rdosk to support your view on the productivity side i agree with you. Users need something productive out of the box ready to go. We as and users should not have to jump through hoops to make a system easy to use. This is where Mac excels and Linux not to far behind.

Android as a desktop os does exist, Linux. Android was branched from the main kernel then adapted for palm devises.

Mint is Ubuntu with a different look. Mint has been trying to break free from Ubuntu base. Ubuntu is trying to break free of debian. That's a nice thing about open source. You are free to do what you want without violating the infamous "EULA".

 

[Whirlybird]

Randy, I know it can do that, I've read plenty of reviews. It just doesn't interest me to upgrade at this point
I immediately went to W7 because There were things I did not like with Vista. But the 64bit Windows 7 I am using now, does it all for me

 

[RandyDSok]

I just don't care for such exaggerated statements to make a point when they aren't valid...

Stating that you just need a "good ole desktop" .... or that one would need to "jump through hoops"...

Installing one add-on program is not what I'd call "jumping through hoops" ... and doing so give a user a very workable desktop.

I understand it if someone isn't in need of an update... but don't make up outragious reasons just to justify it. The comments to this point was from others that have obviously little experience with it and are making unsubstantiated claims that are simply unfounded in any reality.

 

[BOKI]

I just upgraded to windows 7 professional & the computer shop that did it said I would like it better! They said it was a faster operating system than Vista Home Premium which I had on before! So far it seems to operate faster & its not hard getting around on it!

 

[RandyDSok]

I just upgraded to windows 7 professional & the computer shop that did it said I would like it better! They said it was a faster operating system than Vista Home Premium which I had on before! So far it seems to operate faster & its not hard getting around on it!

Hey Boki...

The shop did you a favor by recommending Win7 over Vista for both performance and compatibility reasons... When MS made Vista, they focused more on "prettying it up" instead of focusing on optimizing the code... so they ended up with a lot of bloat which really hurt the OS more than adding to it.

With Win7, they focused on cleaning up the redundant code and worked on compatibility issues that were found in Vista and really came out with a winning OS in the end. In many cases, with the right hardware behind it... Windows 7 even out performs XP, which was quite a feat. In Win7 Pro... you also have an option to add XP mode to in order to support older legacy applications if you wish. XP mode is basically WinXP that is running in a virtual machine ( VM ) and it is able to do it almost seamlessly to the user. XP mode is a free download/add-on only for the Pro version... If a Win7 Home user wants it, they need to own a copy of XP in order to do something similar.

With Win8... Microsoft really went through and cleaned house, optimizing the code even further. Of course, as I mentioned, they also added more of a touch screen interface and sacrificed the desktop mode which I believe is a mistake student/business-wise... but this issue is easily addressed. Win8 starts up or shuts down on my systems I'm running it on almost twice as quickly as Win7... and probably close to four times faster than XP.

I'll recommend to my clients Win7 or Win8 based on what software they already own... If they have little software investment or are planning on upgrading a lot of it... I recommend Win8 for the performance and security reasons... If they have a lot of older software they don't plan on upgrading... I recommend Win7. Just one example of software that may make a difference... MS Office 2003 runs on Win7 but not Win8 where the oldest version it will support is MS Office 2007.

So there are very valid reasons to choose to go with ( or stay with ) Win7 vs Win8... but at the same time Win8 has a lot of attractive new features, runs a little faster and is more secure.

 

[murankar]

Windows 7 is one of the better versions in the windows family.

Rdosk
My only gripe is that i don't think its a great desktop os. Tablet or phone sure maybe. I do not have an issue with tweaking the desktop, on the other had some do.

I have a feeling this will be another me or vista. I was fortunate that my upgrade cycles allowed me to miss both of those. I went from 98se to xp then to 7. If this is not a flop this would be the first back to back success out of the last six.

In the end I still have a very small need for windows and that can be served well in a VM.

 

[RandyDSok]

My only gripe is that i don't think its a great desktop os.

murankar...

And I'm saying that statement is unfounded and not based on actual experience. It is an assumption only. I saw the same type of statements when XP came out... I've been running Win8 since the end of last October at both my home and my business. I have it setup to work like Win7 and I did that with one simple install... The toughest part of that, deciding which way I wanted the Start Menu to look and work like ... nothing else. I'm simply saying that peoples impressions of Win8 are being skewed by that touch screen interface... take that away and it's an improved Windows all around.

I began repairing workstations that interfaced with a Unix server back in 1978 while I was working in the accounting dept of SW Bell ( local AT&T )... Later I switched to working on PC's in 1985 and started my own computer repair business in 2001. I also agree with you that WinME and Vista both were flops... Win8 isn't, the code is cleaner which makes it run better and the few interface changes are only skin deep.

If you look at my ( large ) attached screen shot in my earlier post... you will only see a Windows desktop you are already familiar with ( behind the open browser window )... I even have the Start Menu opened up so you can also see what that provides... Some desktop shortcuts on the left... and I added back some gadgets on the right even. I'm not a big gadget freak, I've only got a clock, calendar, radar and weather... info ones basically.

 

[murankar]

I guess I am Leary of such a quick release. With 7 being what it is I don't see myself going past 7 until eol unless the army forces men to stay current. I have a real minimal need; I need a cac card interface, sign docs digitally, run lotus forms viewer and log into cac access sites for the army. I can do all of that except lotus forms viewer and sign digitally in open source.

I feel in love with Linux during red hat 5 and suse 6 time frame. That was pre enterprise versions.

 

[RandyDSok]

I typically don't recommend a user upgrade from Win7 to Win8... performance is better but not enough to answer to an increase in software upgrade costs normally. I needed to upgrade my work system because it was still on WinXP and was being bogged down with everything I needed to run on it... So first, I bought and tested Win8 at home ( which was running Win7 ) ... before I upgraded the work system. I knew immediately after installing it on the home system, that it would be fine for work.

Windows 7 was released in 2009... Win8 in 2012 which at 3 years, is one year earlier than their usual time table... But Win8 is actually just a continuation of the code cleanup process that they started on with Win7. In fact, they already had 8 mapped out and were well on their way when they released 7. They even had leaked pics of and their plans for it almost immediately after the Win7 release. I'm not sure when they decided to add the touch screen based ui on... I suspect it was late in the design process but that is just an educated guess.

I can't remember what all Linux systems are being run at work... There are currently 8 all are running either web, email, dns or Asterisk pbx servers. Each a different 'nix flavor or version since they all went up at different times... Most are in terminal mode since a pretty gui isn't really needed for them.

I like Linux desktops just fine, but they are limited on the business application end which is why most business' like my own, run Windows anyway. Macs are also have great hardware, but their application approval requirements makes the software for them pricey ( not to speak of the price of the Mac's themselves )...

Androids and tablets are in a different class... but I will mention that I use my Bionic, a dual core 1Ghz smartphone, along with it's netbook doc to remote into my main Win8 work computer and I can access all of my programs on that, invoice and even do some system testing just fine... but still this is a different class than standard desktops, so it only deserves a minor mention at best.

I'm not a fanboy of any one type or OS... they each have their own merits, strengths and weakness'... Even as we "speak"... I'm trying to find a good business use to add-on a Android 4.x.x dongle to my 40" LCD flatscreen at home... still working on that justification

 

[Westy]

Windows 8 is really trying to morphe .... a tablet with touch screen with a lappy ..... too be honest .... (sorry if I offend the windows lovers out there....) I feel Microsoft is forever chasing ideas that Apple have already done .... which dates right back to the first apple GUI .... that Microsoft "Stole" as they were using MSDOS ... puely text based OS ... and Mac invented the windows concept..... but Microsoft .... used "Marketing" and became superior.....

Just like the old Video Recorders .... (just giving another example of the inferior product getting traction and the best product ... disappearing into the cobwebs of history.)
BETA came first and was far far better ... I remember you could choose either Beta or VHS at hte video store .....

VHS .... was rubbish in comparison ..... but got marketing traction and blew away its opposition.


Just like in Music. the old 8 track cassette tape was really really pure sounding .... compared to the cassette tapes we all bought and loved (Pre CD for all you younger folk).


anyway .... lost my train of thought .... that is my tens cents worth ... I am on top of my technology game as I am a qualified Comp Tech and Cisco Network engineer.... but for now I am happy (reaonsably) with windows 7 Ultimate.....

But I do have VMWARE ... and run different Os's in that all the time .... do tutorials and stuff .... and also if I am having issues with something that used to run well in Xp ... I simply run XP on firmware and use it!!!!

I test heaps of linux products on it too .... you can load anything on it really to test. and I use Sandboxie for loading and testing new Programs and apps ... then I can simply delete it without having to strip down the registry trying to get all the entries out of it.

 

[Tony]

Holy crap, I leave you guys alone for 12 hours and ce back to the classic computer war lol.

When I have more time I will put 8 back on it NAND install that shell and give it a shot. Thanks for the info guys.

 

[Jolly-Swagman]

Yeah I had Win8 during Testing, and as far as I concerned its for Tablets or HTPC's not the Desktop Enviro' like Westy, I have Both Win7 Ultimate and Pro machines here, and even the Wife told me where she would stick the PC if I ever installed Win8 on Her PC,, lol

I have VMware too for running versions of WinXP ( For programs that Dont Run under Win7 64bit), or Linux distros for testing and keeping up to date with, Although havent had time to even test Ubuntu 12 yet

Even the Wife's Daughter didnt like Win8 on the PC I built for there Family at Christmas, back to Win7 Pro 64bit , it went.

Pluss there is still allot of issues with Drivers on Win8 too, just like with Vista when it came out,