Anyone deploying Windows 8 now?

[sted]

Okay clever clogs - until they have fixed some bits and pieces!

Windows 7 and Office 2010 were, as @Michael says, a big change for users - and they do what is wanted so why rush to change?
IMHO Windows 8 is great for mobiles and tablets - not so good on a PC in a school environment....yet...

with the possible exception of having big obvious buttons for foundation stage kids or the visually impaired. After using it since release (and to an extent before) i actually like metro even on my laptop it shows the progs i use mainly on the screen and stuff i use once a blue moon like windows dvd-usb tool or access is hidden from site as i just dont need it 95% of the time. But in a managed environment its a pita but as ive said before ms expects everyone to go byod and use vdi for any corp stuff

[robjduk]

got a test classroom working with 8 this week. The students love it and we plan a full summer roll out to all student desktops and administrative staff. The thought of having a bloody big button with "SIMS" plastered on it appeals to me as most my staff struggle with the old start menu.
SIMS works fine with it but you need to put the whole UNC path over a mapped drive for some reason now.

[twin--turbo]

No, no point in our opinion.

It's ( dos (4,6) Windows (Me, Vista ) ) all over again...

Had MS on the phone during the week asking about 8 deployment and he was struggling to defend it.

Run paint from Metro... what happens, it still opens the ancient crap 16bit thinly disguised app.. and it does it as a desktop app.

Total waste of time.

Rob

[Arthur]

It's (dos (4,6) Windows (Me, Vista) all over again...

A bit of an exaggeration. It's nowhere near that bad!

Run paint from Metro... what happens, it still opens the ancient crap 16-bit thinly disguised app.. and it does it as a desktop app.

You know Microsoft make a Metro app called Fresh Paint, don't you?

Also, when have Microsoft's built-in apps ever been good? Even with XP and 7, most schools install third-party alternatives like Paint.net, GIMP or Photoshop.

[SYNACK]

As soon as the start screen is managable I'm going to be pushing it to a proportion of the systems, it is sooooo much quicker on all sorts of hardware.

[Michael]

It is somewhat daft Microsoft have given practically no GPOs to manage Metro or being able to re-enable the Start Menu.

I believe Microsoft need to look at my formula:

Lots of GPO goodness = happy admins = lots more Win 8 deployments

Instead we keep seeing articles about how many licenses sold. Does anyone really care Microsoft?

[sted]

It is somewhat daft Microsoft have given practically no GPOs to manage Metro or being able to re-enable the Start Menu.

I believe Microsoft need to look at my formula:

Lots of GPO goodness = happy admins = lots more Win 8 deployments

Instead we keep seeing articles about how many licenses sold. Does anyone really care Microsoft?

im not sure ms care about corporate anymore its not "sexy" like tablets and byod. if they did there would be gpos to manage libraries in win7 and however useful gpp is it could be seen as a lazy way to get people to write policies themselves. i think ms are betting the farm on byod and cloud going back to dumb terminals and few real pcs. unless a 3rd party does metro management util i dont see it happening

[truebluesteve]

I quite like Windows 8 but we only upgraded to 7 and Office 2010 18 months ago and I don't to traumatise staff all over again :-) however I am going to equip a small room with around 5 PCs for 6th form study use to I may well trial it and Office 2013 in there and see how it goes.

I have seen a few iterations of Windows and when something changes radically, everyone throws their arms up in the air and complains that its all terrible. However after a few months it all settles down and we get used to it!

[sted]

I quite like Windows 8 but we only upgraded to 7 and Office 2010 18 months ago and I don't to traumatise staff all over again :-) however I am going to equip a small room with around 5 PCs for 6th form study use to I may well trial it and Office 2013 in there and see how it goes.

I have seen a few iterations of Windows and when something changes radically, everyone throws their arms up in the air and complains that its all terrible. However after a few months it all settles down and we get used to it!

its not using win8 thats the issue its managing it

[zag]

im not sure ms care about corporate anymore its not "sexy" like tablets and byod. if they did there would be gpos to manage libraries in win7 and however useful gpp is it could be seen as a lazy way to get people to write policies themselves. i think ms are betting the farm on byod and cloud going back to dumb terminals and few real pcs. unless a 3rd party does metro management util i dont see it happening

Thats exactly what is happening. The corporate landscape is changing and its all coming from Apple's threat.

[rich_tech]

We have decided to ignore it for now where I work I think as a consensus and stick with 7 and office 2010, I like it though and I use it and I also use Office 2013 and like that a lot, but I can see a nightmare for us support wise with the start menu change, its just too radical for a desktop environment, I don't get why M$ rolled that out to everything, in my mind Metro should have been their mobile version (iOS compared to the OSX of the main product).

The fact that the consensus of people I talk to about it, have a major instant dislike to it, even talking to a few pupils at the school I work, they tell me that they hate it themselves those who have it on their new laptops, thats never a good sign for an OS I think, mass market hating the product.

[RowlandoGloom]

We are currently trailing it in a couple of the ICT Suites. Surprisingly staff and students are liking it.

I have 2 networks, a CC4 and Vanilla - both with Win8 - working great.

I have managed to convince RM to allow me to field trial it for CC4 and it managed the same way as other clients. The Start Screen is controlled through the Program Sets as usual.

I created a custom WIM, removing all "featured" apps via DISM - plus deploying with WDS and a custom answer file.

Working fab.

Just a shame Office 2013 is so slow, ie Excel and navigating spreadsheets etc.

Paul

[RabbieBurns]

Just about to roll out 100 new convertible style laptops with win 8

[alexbillbridgnorth]

I don't understand where all this hate is coming from on Windows 8. It's actually very well made with hardly any bugs the only problem I'm having is with IE10 and compatibility with certain websites, but apart from this I can't fault it. The apps are a good idea, though it is a touch interface and for this reason I see no use for it unless you have a touch screen computer or tablet. I have the Asus VivoTab Smart ME400c and it's great can't fault the device personally I think all the Apple stuff that schools seem to buy because Apple are good at marketing are rubbish. The fact that these tablets are cheaper and run Windows desktop with all group policies, AD mapped and students able to access home drives. It's so much easier to implement and it won't take Microsoft long to get to where Apple is. Before you strike me down we do have iPads though these were implemented into the network before I came

[squeeky]

don't understand where all this hate is coming from on Windows 8. It's actually very well made with hardly any bugs the only problem I'm having is with IE10

Can you tell me if you have found a way to make all sites run in compatibility mode because I cant find an option for this anywhere is GPP or GP