Microsoft Windows 8 (Eight) Released (1 Viewer)

[Mister CIA]

I think it's mostly dumb end users.

I think the only people that really like it are Microsoft evangelists and us Linux guys who are happy to see Microsoft dying a slow and painful death.

I die a slow and painful death every time I choose Linux for my desktop. Seriously, there's a lot to love about Linux, but Windows 7/8/8.1 >>>> than your favorite Linux desktop.

 

[Chaka]

I think it's mostly dumb end users.

I think the only people that really like it are Microsoft evangelists and us Linux guys who are happy to see Microsoft dying a slow and painful death.

Yeah because people who can't manage to survive the desktop mode from Windows 8, which is virtually identical to Windows 7, are going to be all over Linux when the time comes.

 

[Chaka]

I think it's mostly dumb end users.

I am willing to bet that demographic equals about 80% of their user base. It is kind of their job to make it as easy as possible to use for dumb end users.Fwiw I have been in IT for 15 years and, while I dont have a huge problem with it, I find very little benefit to it over 7. Tiles are essentially desktop icons that take up more screen real estate. Hovering your mouse over a screen corner is just dumb UI design, at least 8.1 helps fix that.

Anyway, it is a swing and a miss as an OS. Like vista, most businesses will not upgrade to it.

Here's the thing, Microsoft tablets are at a disadvantage to begin with because there are simply not enough apps and they are difficult to develop. The success or failure of their tablets will have nothing to do with Win8 or any other OS they create, it will likely be driven by apps, although full Office functionality could change that.

However for a desktop or laptop there is virtually zero difference between the desktop mode in Windows 8 and Windows 7. People keep harping on the scrolling into the corner for the start menu thing, my goodness how difficult is it to push the Microsoft icon, which brings up the start menu (which is exactly what that button did in Windows 7).

If people can't handle a single hot key they don't deserve to use computers.

 

[Chaka]

I'm really, really trying to adjust to the tiles, but I'm finding that I'm having to go to desktop mode still for things. For instance, I have a hybrid tablet/laptop that I can undock, but I can't figure out a way to do it in the tiles. I have to go to desktop mode to find the little thingy that lets me safely eject a device.

I will spend a lot of time on this after work this afternoon. Almost feels like I'm learning to use the computer again.

Don't bother adjusting to tiles. Think of it this way, your start menu is now a start screen, configure it to boot directly to your desktop (in 8.1) and just use it like you've always used Windows 7 but with better performance.

If you look at Windows 8 like that, it is pretty much a completely fine experience on a desktop/laptop. People that are on tablets/phones can use it like a touch OS...everyone else just have a nice (subjective) start screen to replace their start menu.

Couple tips:

• Don't "hover" for the start menu or side bar (charm's menu), just slam your mouse all the way into the corner and click.
• Don't "look" for your apps, click start and then just start typing the name - it will search automatically when you start typing and show you your program
• Right-click in the left bottom corner for the "power users" menu - quick access to things like settings, control panel, network connections, device manager, task manager, etc

Great tips!

 

[DrJ]

I think it's mostly dumb end users.

I think the only people that really like it are Microsoft evangelists and us Linux guys who are happy to see Microsoft dying a slow and painful death.

I die a slow and painful death every time I choose Linux for my desktop. Seriously, there's a lot to love about Linux, but Windows 7/8/8.1 >>>> than your favorite Linux desktop.

Desktop isn't the only way people are choosing to receive content these days, in fact most of your "dumb end users" don't need a PC for most of what they do and expect their applications and content to work on the device of their choosing. The days of the PC monopoly are over, and Microsoft making a crappy desktop experience will only help.Ubuntu closed bug #1 last year - not because most people are using Linux for their desktop, but because Linux actually powers the majority of devices today when you consider more than just PC's.

 

[DrJ]

I think it's mostly dumb end users.

I am willing to bet that demographic equals about 80% of their user base. It is kind of their job to make it as easy as possible to use for dumb end users.Fwiw I have been in IT for 15 years and, while I dont have a huge problem with it, I find very little benefit to it over 7. Tiles are essentially desktop icons that take up more screen real estate. Hovering your mouse over a screen corner is just dumb UI design, at least 8.1 helps fix that.

Anyway, it is a swing and a miss as an OS. Like vista, most businesses will not upgrade to it.

And now devices like tablets and these Chromebooks, etc are coming in and stomping on this territory by making it far easier for the end user than Microsoft has ever come close to doing. They tolerated it being a buggy resource hog that required constant attention, while not actually even being all that easy to use for many of them, for quite a while because no one offered a viable and inexpensive alternative. But that's changed and their share of computing devices is rapidly eroding as a result.

 

[Ignoratio Elenchi]

Install start menu replacement, never use metro interface, turn off gestures, don't use apps because you have to sign up for a microsoft account for most of them to work. basically, make it windows 7.

 

[Cliff Clavin]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

 

[Slapdash]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

I really like 7, outside of how awful some programs I use at work are at using a 64 bit OS.

 

[Keerock]

Quick question - I have a friend that has Windows 8 and he hates it.

Is there a way to reformat his machine with Windows 7? Or does he need to purchase Windows 7 to do so?

Maybe there's a Windows 7 mode in Windows 8 he can use if this costs money to switch?

Thank you--

What does he hate about it? You can make it look/feel/work just like W7, no?

 

[DrJ]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

Windows 95 was pretty spectacular and blew 3.X crap out of the water. There really hasn't been all that much change from a UI perspective since that point either, they haven't needed one. Most of their OS'es have been rejected from the start not because of UI issues, but because they're buggy as hell out of the box and most of the stuff they dump on users behind the scenes isn't ready for prime time.

This time they happened to rework the UI as well and it isn't ready for prime time. Especially on desktops. They're trying to use the PC monopoly they've enjoyed to force you into their ecosystem on the tablet side as well and fight back some of the wave, but in the process they're not really doing anything particularly well.

 

[Chaka]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

Windows 95 was pretty spectacular and blew 3.X crap out of the water. There really hasn't been all that much change from a UI perspective since that point either, they haven't needed one. Most of their OS'es have been rejected from the start not because of UI issues, but because they're buggy as hell out of the box and most of the stuff they dump on users behind the scenes isn't ready for prime time.

This time they happened to rework the UI as well and it isn't ready for prime time. Especially on desktops. They're trying to use the PC monopoly they've enjoyed to force you into their ecosystem on the tablet side as well and fight back some of the wave, but in the process they're not really doing anything particularly well.

As a desktop user of Win8 I fail to see the problem with the desktop mode on Win8 relative to Win7.

 

[SacramentoBob]

I'm really, really trying to adjust to the tiles, but I'm finding that I'm having to go to desktop mode still for things. For instance, I have a hybrid tablet/laptop that I can undock, but I can't figure out a way to do it in the tiles. I have to go to desktop mode to find the little thingy that lets me safely eject a device.

I will spend a lot of time on this after work this afternoon. Almost feels like I'm learning to use the computer again.

Don't bother adjusting to tiles. Think of it this way, your start menu is now a start screen, configure it to boot directly to your desktop (in 8.1) and just use it like you've always used Windows 7 but with better performance.

If you look at Windows 8 like that, it is pretty much a completely fine experience on a desktop/laptop. People that are on tablets/phones can use it like a touch OS...everyone else just have a nice (subjective) start screen to replace their start menu.

Couple tips:

• Don't "hover" for the start menu or side bar (charm's menu), just slam your mouse all the way into the corner and click.
• Don't "look" for your apps, click start and then just start typing the name - it will search automatically when you start typing and show you your program
• Right-click in the left bottom corner for the "power users" menu - quick access to things like settings, control panel, network connections, device manager, task manager, etc

Yup. Been using 8 for over a year now, and once I learned how to work the interface I like it better than 7 in most things.

 

[DrJ]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

Windows 95 was pretty spectacular and blew 3.X crap out of the water. There really hasn't been all that much change from a UI perspective since that point either, they haven't needed one. Most of their OS'es have been rejected from the start not because of UI issues, but because they're buggy as hell out of the box and most of the stuff they dump on users behind the scenes isn't ready for prime time.

This time they happened to rework the UI as well and it isn't ready for prime time. Especially on desktops. They're trying to use the PC monopoly they've enjoyed to force you into their ecosystem on the tablet side as well and fight back some of the wave, but in the process they're not really doing anything particularly well.

As a desktop user of Win8 I fail to see the problem with the desktop mode on Win8 relative to Win7.

I've installed it twice, both times I went back to Windows 7 in a couple of days. It takes me longer to do the things I need to do without offering any actual benefit. My needs: an email client, a bunch of browser sessions, a bunch of putty sessions. That takes care of about 70% of my needs. The other 30% is some random clients for pieces of hardware where they don't make a Linux client, PowerGUI for putting together PowerShell scripts, etc. I don't see the point of even using Windows 8 to meet these needs, if I wanted a tablet experience I'd use my tablet. I see no compelling reason to waste time learning a new UI that isn't even any better at doing any of this - even the annoying desktop mode which is similar but still not the same.

I have several Windows servers in my lab as well, I used 2012 for my Veeam server so that I could take advantage of deduplication, and I find the new interface annoying on that end as well. I'd have no problems with these if they actually made it easier to do what I want, but it's actually quite the opposite. They get in the way of things and make me slower while offering no actual benefit. I want deduplication enough that I'm willing to deal with it though. On the desktop end there is really no compelling reason whatsoever for me to learn to deal with it.

 

[DrJ]

And maybe a very technical user than enjoys Windows desktops can play around with it enough and get it to be similar to a Windows 7 box. I haven't played with it enough or done enough research to say - I've just installed it twice and quickly rid myself of it. Because Windows 7 does everything I need on my desktop just fine, it wasn't immediately apparent how this would actually improve any of what I do, and I have far better things to worry about like supporting mission critical systems. "Dumb" end users don't really want to have to worry about this sort of thing either. We all have work to do and disrupting that so someone can try and force this OS down our throats in order to try and push their tablets just isn't high on most people's list of things to do.

 

[Cliff Clavin]

And maybe a very technical user than enjoys Windows desktops can play around with it enough and get it to be similar to a Windows 7 box. I haven't played with it enough or done enough research to say - I've just installed it twice and quickly rid myself of it. Because Windows 7 does everything I need on my desktop just fine and I have far better things to worry about like supporting mission critical systems. "Dumb" end users don't really want to have to worry about this sort of thing either. I have work to do and disrupting that so someone can try and force this OS down my throat in order to try and push their tablets just isn't high on my list of things to do, and these "dumb" end users are in the same boat.

How/who is forcing this OS down your throat?

 

[DrJ]

And maybe a very technical user than enjoys Windows desktops can play around with it enough and get it to be similar to a Windows 7 box. I haven't played with it enough or done enough research to say - I've just installed it twice and quickly rid myself of it. Because Windows 7 does everything I need on my desktop just fine and I have far better things to worry about like supporting mission critical systems. "Dumb" end users don't really want to have to worry about this sort of thing either. I have work to do and disrupting that so someone can try and force this OS down my throat in order to try and push their tablets just isn't high on my list of things to do, and these "dumb" end users are in the same boat.

How/who is forcing this OS down your throat?

I said trying. And that would be Microsoft, by making this their desktop platform in order to push their tablets.

 

[Cliff Clavin]

And maybe a very technical user than enjoys Windows desktops can play around with it enough and get it to be similar to a Windows 7 box. I haven't played with it enough or done enough research to say - I've just installed it twice and quickly rid myself of it. Because Windows 7 does everything I need on my desktop just fine and I have far better things to worry about like supporting mission critical systems. "Dumb" end users don't really want to have to worry about this sort of thing either. I have work to do and disrupting that so someone can try and force this OS down my throat in order to try and push their tablets just isn't high on my list of things to do, and these "dumb" end users are in the same boat.

How/who is forcing this OS down your throat?

I said trying. And that would be Microsoft, by making this their desktop platform in order to push their tablets.

So any company that releases a new product is "trying" to force it down your throat?

 

[DSP]

Why did you spell out "(eight)"?

If someone can read it wouldnt they also understand numbers?

 

[Keerock]

Why did you spell out "(eight)"?

If someone can read it wouldnt they also understand numbers?

You know...dumb end users and all...

 

[DrJ]

And maybe a very technical user than enjoys Windows desktops can play around with it enough and get it to be similar to a Windows 7 box. I haven't played with it enough or done enough research to say - I've just installed it twice and quickly rid myself of it. Because Windows 7 does everything I need on my desktop just fine and I have far better things to worry about like supporting mission critical systems. "Dumb" end users don't really want to have to worry about this sort of thing either. I have work to do and disrupting that so someone can try and force this OS down my throat in order to try and push their tablets just isn't high on my list of things to do, and these "dumb" end users are in the same boat.

How/who is forcing this OS down your throat?

I said trying. And that would be Microsoft, by making this their desktop platform in order to push their tablets.

So any company that releases a new product is "trying" to force it down your throat?

Not all companies, but this is a pretty typical Microsoft tactic.

 

[Cliff Clavin]

And maybe a very technical user than enjoys Windows desktops can play around with it enough and get it to be similar to a Windows 7 box. I haven't played with it enough or done enough research to say - I've just installed it twice and quickly rid myself of it. Because Windows 7 does everything I need on my desktop just fine and I have far better things to worry about like supporting mission critical systems. "Dumb" end users don't really want to have to worry about this sort of thing either. I have work to do and disrupting that so someone can try and force this OS down my throat in order to try and push their tablets just isn't high on my list of things to do, and these "dumb" end users are in the same boat.

How/who is forcing this OS down your throat?

I said trying. And that would be Microsoft, by making this their desktop platform in order to push their tablets.

So any company that releases a new product is "trying" to force it down your throat?

Not all companies, but this is a pretty typical Microsoft tactic.

What tactic? Releasing a new piece of software?

 

[DSP]

What is an "end user"?

 

[TheAristocrat]

And maybe a very technical user than enjoys Windows desktops can play around with it enough and get it to be similar to a Windows 7 box. I haven't played with it enough or done enough research to say - I've just installed it twice and quickly rid myself of it. Because Windows 7 does everything I need on my desktop just fine and I have far better things to worry about like supporting mission critical systems. "Dumb" end users don't really want to have to worry about this sort of thing either. I have work to do and disrupting that so someone can try and force this OS down my throat in order to try and push their tablets just isn't high on my list of things to do, and these "dumb" end users are in the same boat.

How/who is forcing this OS down your throat?

I said trying. And that would be Microsoft, by making this their desktop platform in order to push their tablets.

So any company that releases a new product is "trying" to force it down your throat?

Not all companies, but this is a pretty typical Microsoft tactic.

I bought a laptop over the summer that had Win8 on it. I wiped it and put Windows 7 on it. Wa-La. Look at me avoid the "Microsoft tactic."

 

[Mario Kart]

Call me a dumb user but I really see no difference between the two.

the only thing I want is for my Windows 8 tablet to sync up to my Window 7 laptop so I can use them in my classroom. That's all I want. Or, give me a product similar to AppleTV that I can use my tablet with.

 

[Chaka]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

Windows 95 was pretty spectacular and blew 3.X crap out of the water. There really hasn't been all that much change from a UI perspective since that point either, they haven't needed one. Most of their OS'es have been rejected from the start not because of UI issues, but because they're buggy as hell out of the box and most of the stuff they dump on users behind the scenes isn't ready for prime time.

This time they happened to rework the UI as well and it isn't ready for prime time. Especially on desktops. They're trying to use the PC monopoly they've enjoyed to force you into their ecosystem on the tablet side as well and fight back some of the wave, but in the process they're not really doing anything particularly well.

As a desktop user of Win8 I fail to see the problem with the desktop mode on Win8 relative to Win7.

I've installed it twice, both times I went back to Windows 7 in a couple of days. It takes me longer to do the things I need to do without offering any actual benefit. My needs: an email client, a bunch of browser sessions, a bunch of putty sessions. That takes care of about 70% of my needs. The other 30% is some random clients for pieces of hardware where they don't make a Linux client, PowerGUI for putting together PowerShell scripts, etc. I don't see the point of even using Windows 8 to meet these needs, if I wanted a tablet experience I'd use my tablet. I see no compelling reason to waste time learning a new UI that isn't even any better at doing any of this - even the annoying desktop mode which is similar but still not the same.

I have several Windows servers in my lab as well, I used 2012 for my Veeam server so that I could take advantage of deduplication, and I find the new interface annoying on that end as well. I'd have no problems with these if they actually made it easier to do what I want, but it's actually quite the opposite. They get in the way of things and make me slower while offering no actual benefit. I want deduplication enough that I'm willing to deal with it though. On the desktop end there is really no compelling reason whatsoever for me to learn to deal with it.

Your comments seem to be directed at the Metro interface (the tiles) and not the desktop mode. The Metro interface is designed for tablets and the desktop mode looks and acts like pretty much every Microsoft OS sind '95 only it works better. They are separate entities.

 

[Chaka]

Win 7 was a little different than XP but people still took the 24-48 hours to figure out the differences. Why shouldn't Microsoft expect their end users to be able to do the same here? I mean the difference between the Win8 desktop and the Win7 desktop are minute.

I guess I am shocked that so many people are having so much difficulty adjusting to something so intuitively simple.

Is every product supposed to be frozen in time to the exact time that an individual was most comfortable using it?

 

[Fennis]

Call me a dumb user but I really see no difference between the two.

the only thing I want is for my Windows 8 tablet to sync up to my Window 7 laptop so I can use them in my classroom. That's all I want. Or, give me a product similar to AppleTV that I can use my tablet with.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/skydrive/web

 

[Mario Kart]

Call me a dumb user but I really see no difference between the two.

the only thing I want is for my Windows 8 tablet to sync up to my Window 7 laptop so I can use them in my classroom. That's all I want. Or, give me a product similar to AppleTV that I can use my tablet with.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/skydrive/web

I know about SkyDrive but I'm not sure if that can mirror what is on my tablet onto my smartboard. If I had an AppleTV equivalent, I can link my tablet into that piece which would then show up on the board. Will have to test unless you know of a way to do so with SkyDrive.

 

[DrJ]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

Windows 95 was pretty spectacular and blew 3.X crap out of the water. There really hasn't been all that much change from a UI perspective since that point either, they haven't needed one. Most of their OS'es have been rejected from the start not because of UI issues, but because they're buggy as hell out of the box and most of the stuff they dump on users behind the scenes isn't ready for prime time.

This time they happened to rework the UI as well and it isn't ready for prime time. Especially on desktops. They're trying to use the PC monopoly they've enjoyed to force you into their ecosystem on the tablet side as well and fight back some of the wave, but in the process they're not really doing anything particularly well.

As a desktop user of Win8 I fail to see the problem with the desktop mode on Win8 relative to Win7.

I've installed it twice, both times I went back to Windows 7 in a couple of days. It takes me longer to do the things I need to do without offering any actual benefit. My needs: an email client, a bunch of browser sessions, a bunch of putty sessions. That takes care of about 70% of my needs. The other 30% is some random clients for pieces of hardware where they don't make a Linux client, PowerGUI for putting together PowerShell scripts, etc. I don't see the point of even using Windows 8 to meet these needs, if I wanted a tablet experience I'd use my tablet. I see no compelling reason to waste time learning a new UI that isn't even any better at doing any of this - even the annoying desktop mode which is similar but still not the same.

I have several Windows servers in my lab as well, I used 2012 for my Veeam server so that I could take advantage of deduplication, and I find the new interface annoying on that end as well. I'd have no problems with these if they actually made it easier to do what I want, but it's actually quite the opposite. They get in the way of things and make me slower while offering no actual benefit. I want deduplication enough that I'm willing to deal with it though. On the desktop end there is really no compelling reason whatsoever for me to learn to deal with it.

Your comments seem to be directed at the Metro interface (the tiles) and not the desktop mode. The Metro interface is designed for tablets and the desktop mode looks and acts like pretty much every Microsoft OS sind '95 only it works better. They are separate entities.

Server 2012 is essentially desktop mode, right? As I said, I dislike that too. It's especially annoying when remoting into the thing either via RDP or a VMware Console.

 

[SlaX]

The only thing I hate about Windows 8 is that I can't play Battlefield 2 on it. Once I took a day or two to learn to use it, I've had no issues (other than the BF2 thing).

I do agree that I the Metro interface sucks, but I see it a couple of seconds a day at most.

 

[Fennis]

Call me a dumb user but I really see no difference between the two.

the only thing I want is for my Windows 8 tablet to sync up to my Window 7 laptop so I can use them in my classroom. That's all I want. Or, give me a product similar to AppleTV that I can use my tablet with.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/skydrive/web

I know about SkyDrive but I'm not sure if that can mirror what is on my tablet onto my smartboard. If I had an AppleTV equivalent, I can link my tablet into that piece which would then show up on the board. Will have to test unless you know of a way to do so with SkyDrive.

no sky drive will just sync your files. I'm not really following what you want to do, sorry.

 

[DrJ]

Win 7 was a little different than XP but people still took the 24-48 hours to figure out the differences. Why shouldn't Microsoft expect their end users to be able to do the same here? I mean the difference between the Win8 desktop and the Win7 desktop are minute.

I guess I am shocked that so many people are having so much difficulty adjusting to something so intuitively simple.

Is every product supposed to be frozen in time to the exact time that an individual was most comfortable using it?

Maybe not, but giving users an interface they don't seem to like and telling them the reason they don't like it is because of their lack of intelligence doesn't seem like a winning strategy. Though I'm not surprised that Microsoft or their evangelists would actually employ this strategy, mind you.

 

[Mario Kart]

Call me a dumb user but I really see no difference between the two.

the only thing I want is for my Windows 8 tablet to sync up to my Window 7 laptop so I can use them in my classroom. That's all I want. Or, give me a product similar to AppleTV that I can use my tablet with.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/skydrive/web

I know about SkyDrive but I'm not sure if that can mirror what is on my tablet onto my smartboard. If I had an AppleTV equivalent, I can link my tablet into that piece which would then show up on the board. Will have to test unless you know of a way to do so with SkyDrive.

no sky drive will just sync your files. I'm not really following what you want to do, sorry.

I want a file on my phone/tablet to sync up to something that is hooked up to my projector thus allowing me to use my phone/tablet with the students in a hands on way.

 

[DrJ]

Call me a dumb user but I really see no difference between the two.

the only thing I want is for my Windows 8 tablet to sync up to my Window 7 laptop so I can use them in my classroom. That's all I want. Or, give me a product similar to AppleTV that I can use my tablet with.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/skydrive/web

I know about SkyDrive but I'm not sure if that can mirror what is on my tablet onto my smartboard. If I had an AppleTV equivalent, I can link my tablet into that piece which would then show up on the board. Will have to test unless you know of a way to do so with SkyDrive.

no sky drive will just sync your files. I'm not really following what you want to do, sorry.

I want a file on my phone/tablet to sync up to something that is hooked up to my projector thus allowing me to use my phone/tablet with the students in a hands on way.

Sounds more like you're talking about wanting the display to be mirrored, like an iPad does over AppleTV. If you want a file synced, you just use SkyDrive...

 

[Cliff Clavin]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

Windows 95 was pretty spectacular and blew 3.X crap out of the water. There really hasn't been all that much change from a UI perspective since that point either, they haven't needed one. Most of their OS'es have been rejected from the start not because of UI issues, but because they're buggy as hell out of the box and most of the stuff they dump on users behind the scenes isn't ready for prime time.

This time they happened to rework the UI as well and it isn't ready for prime time. Especially on desktops. They're trying to use the PC monopoly they've enjoyed to force you into their ecosystem on the tablet side as well and fight back some of the wave, but in the process they're not really doing anything particularly well.

As a desktop user of Win8 I fail to see the problem with the desktop mode on Win8 relative to Win7.

I've installed it twice, both times I went back to Windows 7 in a couple of days. It takes me longer to do the things I need to do without offering any actual benefit. My needs: an email client, a bunch of browser sessions, a bunch of putty sessions. That takes care of about 70% of my needs. The other 30% is some random clients for pieces of hardware where they don't make a Linux client, PowerGUI for putting together PowerShell scripts, etc. I don't see the point of even using Windows 8 to meet these needs, if I wanted a tablet experience I'd use my tablet. I see no compelling reason to waste time learning a new UI that isn't even any better at doing any of this - even the annoying desktop mode which is similar but still not the same.

I have several Windows servers in my lab as well, I used 2012 for my Veeam server so that I could take advantage of deduplication, and I find the new interface annoying on that end as well. I'd have no problems with these if they actually made it easier to do what I want, but it's actually quite the opposite. They get in the way of things and make me slower while offering no actual benefit. I want deduplication enough that I'm willing to deal with it though. On the desktop end there is really no compelling reason whatsoever for me to learn to deal with it.

Your comments seem to be directed at the Metro interface (the tiles) and not the desktop mode. The Metro interface is designed for tablets and the desktop mode looks and acts like pretty much every Microsoft OS sind '95 only it works better. They are separate entities.

Server 2012 is essentially desktop mode, right? As I said, I dislike that too. It's especially annoying when remoting into the thing either via RDP or a VMware Console.

It also has a minimal inferface mode to try and appease the cool linux kids.

 

[DrJ]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

Windows 95 was pretty spectacular and blew 3.X crap out of the water. There really hasn't been all that much change from a UI perspective since that point either, they haven't needed one. Most of their OS'es have been rejected from the start not because of UI issues, but because they're buggy as hell out of the box and most of the stuff they dump on users behind the scenes isn't ready for prime time.

This time they happened to rework the UI as well and it isn't ready for prime time. Especially on desktops. They're trying to use the PC monopoly they've enjoyed to force you into their ecosystem on the tablet side as well and fight back some of the wave, but in the process they're not really doing anything particularly well.

As a desktop user of Win8 I fail to see the problem with the desktop mode on Win8 relative to Win7.

I've installed it twice, both times I went back to Windows 7 in a couple of days. It takes me longer to do the things I need to do without offering any actual benefit. My needs: an email client, a bunch of browser sessions, a bunch of putty sessions. That takes care of about 70% of my needs. The other 30% is some random clients for pieces of hardware where they don't make a Linux client, PowerGUI for putting together PowerShell scripts, etc. I don't see the point of even using Windows 8 to meet these needs, if I wanted a tablet experience I'd use my tablet. I see no compelling reason to waste time learning a new UI that isn't even any better at doing any of this - even the annoying desktop mode which is similar but still not the same.

I have several Windows servers in my lab as well, I used 2012 for my Veeam server so that I could take advantage of deduplication, and I find the new interface annoying on that end as well. I'd have no problems with these if they actually made it easier to do what I want, but it's actually quite the opposite. They get in the way of things and make me slower while offering no actual benefit. I want deduplication enough that I'm willing to deal with it though. On the desktop end there is really no compelling reason whatsoever for me to learn to deal with it.

Your comments seem to be directed at the Metro interface (the tiles) and not the desktop mode. The Metro interface is designed for tablets and the desktop mode looks and acts like pretty much every Microsoft OS sind '95 only it works better. They are separate entities.

Server 2012 is essentially desktop mode, right? As I said, I dislike that too. It's especially annoying when remoting into the thing either via RDP or a VMware Console.

It also has a minimal inferface mode to try and appease the cool linux kids.

I figured they did that for a useful reason like reducing the bloat and minimizing the attack surface, but it does sound like Microsoft to do something just to appear "cool". And now that you mention it, it does still take like 2 hours to patch a machine... I actually made the mistake of trying to patch 3 x Server 2012 VM's at the same time that I had running on my laptop. It overheated with the way it was abusing my CPU. Good times.

 

[DrJ]

Is that why they made PowerShell too? To appear cool to Linux users? And here I was going to actually give Microsoft some credit for making a relatively useful command line interface that allows for some real automation.

 

[Cliff Clavin]

Is that why they made PowerShell too? To appear cool to Linux users? And here I was going to actually give Microsoft some credit for making a relatively useful command line interface that allows for some real automation.

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

Windows 95 was pretty spectacular and blew 3.X crap out of the water. There really hasn't been all that much change from a UI perspective since that point either, they haven't needed one. Most of their OS'es have been rejected from the start not because of UI issues, but because they're buggy as hell out of the box and most of the stuff they dump on users behind the scenes isn't ready for prime time.

This time they happened to rework the UI as well and it isn't ready for prime time. Especially on desktops. They're trying to use the PC monopoly they've enjoyed to force you into their ecosystem on the tablet side as well and fight back some of the wave, but in the process they're not really doing anything particularly well.

As a desktop user of Win8 I fail to see the problem with the desktop mode on Win8 relative to Win7.

I've installed it twice, both times I went back to Windows 7 in a couple of days. It takes me longer to do the things I need to do without offering any actual benefit. My needs: an email client, a bunch of browser sessions, a bunch of putty sessions. That takes care of about 70% of my needs. The other 30% is some random clients for pieces of hardware where they don't make a Linux client, PowerGUI for putting together PowerShell scripts, etc. I don't see the point of even using Windows 8 to meet these needs, if I wanted a tablet experience I'd use my tablet. I see no compelling reason to waste time learning a new UI that isn't even any better at doing any of this - even the annoying desktop mode which is similar but still not the same.

I have several Windows servers in my lab as well, I used 2012 for my Veeam server so that I could take advantage of deduplication, and I find the new interface annoying on that end as well. I'd have no problems with these if they actually made it easier to do what I want, but it's actually quite the opposite. They get in the way of things and make me slower while offering no actual benefit. I want deduplication enough that I'm willing to deal with it though. On the desktop end there is really no compelling reason whatsoever for me to learn to deal with it.

Your comments seem to be directed at the Metro interface (the tiles) and not the desktop mode. The Metro interface is designed for tablets and the desktop mode looks and acts like pretty much every Microsoft OS sind '95 only it works better. They are separate entities.

Server 2012 is essentially desktop mode, right? As I said, I dislike that too. It's especially annoying when remoting into the thing either via RDP or a VMware Console.

It also has a minimal inferface mode to try and appease the cool linux kids.

I figured they did that for a useful reason like reducing the bloat and minimizing the attack surface, but it does sound like Microsoft to do something just to appear "cool". And now that you mention it, it does still take like 2 hours to patch a machine... I actually made the mistake of trying to patch 3 x Server 2012 VM's at the same time that I had running on my laptop. It overheated with the way it was abusing my CPU. Good times.

Your Windows hate is off the charts. Keep it up

 

[Chaka]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

Windows 95 was pretty spectacular and blew 3.X crap out of the water. There really hasn't been all that much change from a UI perspective since that point either, they haven't needed one. Most of their OS'es have been rejected from the start not because of UI issues, but because they're buggy as hell out of the box and most of the stuff they dump on users behind the scenes isn't ready for prime time.

This time they happened to rework the UI as well and it isn't ready for prime time. Especially on desktops. They're trying to use the PC monopoly they've enjoyed to force you into their ecosystem on the tablet side as well and fight back some of the wave, but in the process they're not really doing anything particularly well.

As a desktop user of Win8 I fail to see the problem with the desktop mode on Win8 relative to Win7.

I've installed it twice, both times I went back to Windows 7 in a couple of days. It takes me longer to do the things I need to do without offering any actual benefit. My needs: an email client, a bunch of browser sessions, a bunch of putty sessions. That takes care of about 70% of my needs. The other 30% is some random clients for pieces of hardware where they don't make a Linux client, PowerGUI for putting together PowerShell scripts, etc. I don't see the point of even using Windows 8 to meet these needs, if I wanted a tablet experience I'd use my tablet. I see no compelling reason to waste time learning a new UI that isn't even any better at doing any of this - even the annoying desktop mode which is similar but still not the same.

I have several Windows servers in my lab as well, I used 2012 for my Veeam server so that I could take advantage of deduplication, and I find the new interface annoying on that end as well. I'd have no problems with these if they actually made it easier to do what I want, but it's actually quite the opposite. They get in the way of things and make me slower while offering no actual benefit. I want deduplication enough that I'm willing to deal with it though. On the desktop end there is really no compelling reason whatsoever for me to learn to deal with it.

Your comments seem to be directed at the Metro interface (the tiles) and not the desktop mode. The Metro interface is designed for tablets and the desktop mode looks and acts like pretty much every Microsoft OS sind '95 only it works better. They are separate entities.

Server 2012 is essentially desktop mode, right? As I said, I dislike that too. It's especially annoying when remoting into the thing either via RDP or a VMware Console.

No idea. I don't user Server 2012.

 

[Cliff Clavin]

Has Microsoft ever released an OS that wasn't initially despised?

They could drop the best OS ever and the same people would ##### and complain.

Windows 95 was pretty spectacular and blew 3.X crap out of the water. There really hasn't been all that much change from a UI perspective since that point either, they haven't needed one. Most of their OS'es have been rejected from the start not because of UI issues, but because they're buggy as hell out of the box and most of the stuff they dump on users behind the scenes isn't ready for prime time.

This time they happened to rework the UI as well and it isn't ready for prime time. Especially on desktops. They're trying to use the PC monopoly they've enjoyed to force you into their ecosystem on the tablet side as well and fight back some of the wave, but in the process they're not really doing anything particularly well.

As a desktop user of Win8 I fail to see the problem with the desktop mode on Win8 relative to Win7.

I've installed it twice, both times I went back to Windows 7 in a couple of days. It takes me longer to do the things I need to do without offering any actual benefit. My needs: an email client, a bunch of browser sessions, a bunch of putty sessions. That takes care of about 70% of my needs. The other 30% is some random clients for pieces of hardware where they don't make a Linux client, PowerGUI for putting together PowerShell scripts, etc. I don't see the point of even using Windows 8 to meet these needs, if I wanted a tablet experience I'd use my tablet. I see no compelling reason to waste time learning a new UI that isn't even any better at doing any of this - even the annoying desktop mode which is similar but still not the same.

I have several Windows servers in my lab as well, I used 2012 for my Veeam server so that I could take advantage of deduplication, and I find the new interface annoying on that end as well. I'd have no problems with these if they actually made it easier to do what I want, but it's actually quite the opposite. They get in the way of things and make me slower while offering no actual benefit. I want deduplication enough that I'm willing to deal with it though. On the desktop end there is really no compelling reason whatsoever for me to learn to deal with it.

Your comments seem to be directed at the Metro interface (the tiles) and not the desktop mode. The Metro interface is designed for tablets and the desktop mode looks and acts like pretty much every Microsoft OS sind '95 only it works better. They are separate entities.

Server 2012 is essentially desktop mode, right? As I said, I dislike that too. It's especially annoying when remoting into the thing either via RDP or a VMware Console.

No idea. I don't user Server 2012.

Really? Microsoft isn't trying to force it on you?

 

[Chaka]

Win 7 was a little different than XP but people still took the 24-48 hours to figure out the differences. Why shouldn't Microsoft expect their end users to be able to do the same here? I mean the difference between the Win8 desktop and the Win7 desktop are minute.

I guess I am shocked that so many people are having so much difficulty adjusting to something so intuitively simple.

Is every product supposed to be frozen in time to the exact time that an individual was most comfortable using it?

Maybe not, but giving users an interface they don't seem to like and telling them the reason they don't like it is because of their lack of intelligence doesn't seem like a winning strategy. Though I'm not surprised that Microsoft or their evangelists would actually employ this strategy, mind you.

I think it is very fair to say that the reason some don't like it is due to impatience. It seems as if something takes more than 30 seconds to adapt to then people freak out and quit.

I worry that there are people who might actually die or become complete shut-ins when Microsoft stops support for XP in March.

 

[Chaka]

What should Microsoft do when they want to improve their OS with changing technology?

 

[Slapdash]

What should Microsoft do when they want to improve their OS with changing technology?

Besides actually improving it?

 

[Chaka]

What should Microsoft do when they want to improve their OS with changing technology?

Besides actually improving it?

Any actual advice or should I expect nothing but sarcasm?

 

[StrikeS2k]

What should Microsoft do when they want to improve their OS with changing technology?

Improve is a relative term. The fact that Windows 8 is so unpopular suggests that it's not considered an improvement. Most people like Windows 7. I would consider it an improvement over the previous versions of Windows. I don't believe their goal was to "improve" anything with Windows 8, except maybe their bottom line.

 

[FBG26]

Win 7 was a little different than XP but people still took the 24-48 hours to figure out the differences. Why shouldn't Microsoft expect their end users to be able to do the same here? I mean the difference between the Win8 desktop and the Win7 desktop are minute.

I guess I am shocked that so many people are having so much difficulty adjusting to something so intuitively simple.

Is every product supposed to be frozen in time to the exact time that an individual was most comfortable using it?

Maybe not, but giving users an interface they don't seem to like and telling them the reason they don't like it is because of their lack of intelligence doesn't seem like a winning strategy. Though I'm not surprised that Microsoft or their evangelists would actually employ this strategy, mind you.

I feel like we heard the same type of comments when MS first rolled out the Ribbon back in Office 2007 or whenever that came out. I don't hear anybody clamoring for the old menu system anymore. I wonder if it'll eventually gain enough acceptance that people look back and wonder what the fuss was about.

 

[SacramentoBob]

I agree that managing Server 2012 via RDP is annoying as ####. They should have kept the Metro interface completely off of that.

 

[SacramentoBob]

Is that why they made PowerShell too? To appear cool to Linux users? And here I was going to actually give Microsoft some credit for making a relatively useful command line interface that allows for some real automation.

They definitely considered the *nix community when they designed it since aliases like "man" exist by default.

 

[Chaka]

What should Microsoft do when they want to improve their OS with changing technology?

Improve is a relative term. The fact that Windows 8 is so unpopular suggests that it's not considered an improvement. Most people like Windows 7. I would consider it an improvement over the previous versions of Windows. I don't believe their goal was to "improve" anything with Windows 8, except maybe their bottom line.

The functionality of the Win8 is improved but the interface (not Metro) is slightly different than Win7 which seems to be the real source of the problem. Should Microsoft have implemented the improvements and tried to keep the desktop 100% identical to Win7? From my perspective that is the only thing that would make some users happy (others are still holding onto XP for dear life) because the 5% of the interface that it different seems to be causing some people fits.