I don't understand Windows 8

dt3887

phoneguy wrote: »

What is 'Windows'?

what you see the "beautiful" british weather through.....

smos585

Richie-from-the-Boro wrote: »

-- the iPhone generation and touchscreen fans seem to love it, the remainder hate the Metro interface

MS are making a mistake....there is a burgeoning number of older users who are just becoming comfortable with the traditional Windows desktop. Its fine to have a standard setup, but like traditional values, it would be good if the installation had the option for the metro screen or the traditional screen.

Incidentally successful companies evolve how their products appear, a couple of examples: Apple, BMW (when new models appear they have a similar appearance to the previous, but over time they are very different). This new appearance of Windows 8 may be pandering to the younger tablet users, but is unnecessary and backward step for those using PCs.

prowla

I think that the tablet-orientated start screen looks like something produced in a kindegarten school.

I mean - look at that and then look at an iPad; which one will catch your eye?

robmar0se

smos686 wrote:

Incidentally successful companies evolve how their products appear, a couple of examples: Apple, BMW (when new models appear they have a similar appearance to the previous, but over time they are very different). This new appearance of Windows 8 may be pandering to the younger tablet users, but is unnecessary and backward step for those using PCs.

MS are risking alienating a large number of PC users - also an opportunity for Apple to to introduce a directly competitively priced product to capture some of the traditional Windows users.

We'll see, guess that MS may decide to introduce optionally an alternative traditional startup screen in the final version of 8...

Marmite comes to mind, love it or hate it.............

OGR

I think Metro is going to be here to stay and people are going to have to get used to it or move to a different OS.

M$ see this as the next step, you can tell because it is already part of WM 7.5, Win 8 and they even make you use it with Server 12 unless you install in core mode! To push such a big update into the server world is a big gamble unless you think it is here to stay. Then you have Surface which is designed almost completely around Metro.

Saying that I can kind of understand where they are coming from. They probably see the future as being one where everything has a touch screen, even your desktop and laptop PC's, as Bill Bailey put it we will all evolve one long finger. From that point of view it makes sense, I don't know how many of you have tried to use touch screens with Windows NT through 7 but the small icons and start menu make it a pretty infuriating experience and the big simple buttons of Metro will really help out.

At first I hated the fact that they took away my start menu but then I realised I NEVER use it and haven't done since XP. In 7 I pin everything I use regularly to my task bar which is no different to having a big button in Metro for it and anything I don't have I hit the start key and type its name and press return. For example 'Windows Key, Word, Return', it takes seconds and is probably quicker than hitting start, all programs, Microsoft office, Microsoft office word.

Dave_C_2

OGR wrote: »

I think Metro is going to be here to stay and people are going to have to get used to it or move to a different OS.

Not quite the best business plan for any company, driving customers to rivals.

They probably see the future as being one where everything has a touch screen, even your desktop and laptop PCs.

Whoa! I don't want or need a touch screen on a desktop. A touch screen will NEVER be as good as the keyboard and mouse. On a desktop a touch screen will be awkward to use, especially if the screen is set-up under DSE regulations.
Don't forget that a large part of the MS business is industrial use.

From that point of view it makes sense, I don't know how many of you have tried to use touch screens with Windows NT through 7 but the small icons and start menu make it a pretty infuriating experience and the big simple buttons of Metro will really help out.

You are aware that windows 7 allows you to resize icons

At first I hated the fact that they took away my start menu but then I realised I NEVER use it and haven't done since XP.
In 7 I pin everything I use regularly to my task bar which is no different to having a big button in Metro for it and anything I don't have I hit the start key and type its name and press return. For example 'Windows Key, Word, Return', it takes seconds and is probably quicker than hitting start, all programs, Microsoft office, Microsoft office word.

Several points:

• Oh, so you use a keyboard, not the touch screen keyboard, for typing
• Isn't this what the classic desktop layout is for, you know, click/tap an icon and you are there without typing anything. I guarantee that clicking/tapping on a word icon is much quicker than your method. Of course you can organise the desktop into separate folders and increase the number of clicks/taps required to two for rarely used programs.

Already being slagged off as being on a par with Vista.


Dave

OGR

Not quite the best business plan for any company, driving customers to rivals.

I quite agree but that doesn't change the fact that M$ seem to think Metro is the future. Putting it into Win 8, Server 12, Surface and WP 7.5/8 shows that they are committed to using this.

Whoa! I don't want or need a touch screen on a desktop. A touch screen will NEVER be as good as the keyboard and mouse.

I didn't say everyone did, I think that M$ think this is the future and they are trying to make sure they are ready. Look how many all in one touch screen PC's litter the shelves in PC world and Currys.

You are aware that windows 7 allows you to resize icons

Yes I am but 7 wasn't built with touch screens in mind, 8 is being built IMO for touch screen first, KB/mouse second. Metro is pretty bad with a mouse I agree but as I said before I think M$ think that more and more people will move to touch screen devices.

Surely task bar = start menu?

Not really too sure what your getting at here, they are 2 seperate things. One is a bar, one is a menu.

Oh, so you use a keyboard, not the touch screen keyboard, for typing

I am not a fan of on screen keyboards and I can't see them replacing actual keyboards any time soon. Wouldn't work for me or anyone who works here infact.

Isn't this what the desktop is for

Very rarely use my desktop if I am honest. I pin everything I use regularly to my task bar as I already said and I usually have 10+ things running so minimising them all to get back to it is a pain. I know I can create shortcuts to minimise everything but then I need to bring everything back up again. Hitting the start button on my keyboard, typing a short name and pressing return works for me.

boxst

I fall into the "Don't like it" camp. It will be really good on a Windows based tablet but for the desktop it is just annoying.

Perhaps they will tweak it just before release so that you can revert to 'normal' windows if it is a desktop/laptop computer.

Dave_C_2

OGR wrote: »

I quite agree but that doesn't change the fact that M$ seem to think Metro is the future. Putting it into Win 8, Server 12, Surface and WP 7.5/8 shows that they are committed to using this.

Who are we to question the inner workings of Microsoft?

[in response to my start menu=task bar comment]
Not really too sure what your getting at here, they are 2 seperate things. One is a bar, one is a menu.

You are quite correct, I removed this in my edit. I tend to post too soon:(

The quip about using the keyboard did have a smiley and was just meant as a joke.

I note that there are "after market" programs available to make Windows 7 look like Windows XP. No doubt the same will be done for Windows 8 to look like Windows 7

Dave

Mista_C

I'm another one falling into the not liking it category. The first thing that came to mind on seeing Metro was this...



...the old school notice board.

I'm a regular to touchscreen devices and it really didn't feel as intuitive as MS claim it to be. Within a few days I'd modified the registry entry to remove Metro and within a week I'd switched back to my Win7 drive.