Thoughts on Windows 8.1 in schools

[dwalsh24]

What are everyone's opinions on Windows 8 being used over Windows 7 in schools?

[Joanne]

I want to use it, but I'm struggling to get it configured just how I want with Server 2008 R2. Mainly the start screen. I've installed start shell, just need to get settings to apply for all users who log on.

[X-13]

What are everyone's opinions on Windows 8 being used over Windows 7 in schools?

 

For staff or students?

 

What key stage?

 

Touch or non-touch?

 

We talking desktops, laptops or tablets?

 

 

So many questions...

 

[Win8 on a desktop, connected to a giant multi-touch screen in EYFS, using multi-touch apps, would probably be the most glorious thing ever...]

[LeMarchand]

Got it deployed to all pupil machines on one site. The only real problem so far has been with some old software not working. (Obviously I sent out "test" machines first to staff for testing with any programs they might REALLY need. Just as obviously, they didn't bother and I've had a couple of "this function doesn't work any more on software X" calls when they come to use a broken bit of software in a lesson).

 

The Start Menu order was built into the image, but I do need to have a look at a way to alter that as more stuff needs adding on!

 

Primary, Server 2008 R2, non-touch laptops (mainly ancient HP NX6325s bumped up to 1GB RAM - have had to use MS default video rather than ATI? for some reason).

 

Would be happy with it at all 3 sites if there was a) capable hardware - which, as you can see, doesn't have to be spanking new - and b) staff could find replacements for some of that old software they are stuck on. Be even happier if we could get rid of all 16 bit programs and afford enough RAM to go x64!

Edited September 12, 2014 by LeMarchand
Extra info

[Garacesh]

We've recently got a set of Win8.1 tablets here and, if truth be told, with redirected desktops, start menus and documents they're honestly not much different from W7 machines. They have office and IE (which is 90% of what they'll be used for) so that's pretty well sorted. There was initially a bit of a problem with profiles but Microsoft have actually pushed out updates to fix that so that's no issue.

 

We haven't fully tested program compatibility yet but unless the software is pre-XP I don't see why it wouldn't work on W8.

 

Honestly the main concern I have regards the form factor, rather than the OS. The tablets don't have stands with them, so kids are either going to be holding them all lesson and having hand pains (or dropping them!) or having them flat on the desk and leaning over them all lesson and getting neck cramps!

 

Haven't tried W8 on any of the desktops yet, though.

[robinhood1]

I find Windows 8.1 okay, now that you can desktop mode... Windows 8 was a problem with metro only interface. Starting to be a good alternative to IOS?.

[dhicks]

What are everyone's opinions on Windows 8 being used over Windows 7 in schools?

 

Installed on all (well, most) machines over the summer, working better than I'd dare hope - remarkably little grumbling about the new interface and so on (we did do a quick bit of training first thing at the start of term just to show everyone where the off / logout buttons are), performance is fine, most software seems to run. We're on 64-bit all round, so we lost a couple of very old 16-bit applications, but everything else seems okay.

[hardtailstar]

Just rolling out 8.1 in one school at the moment, Heres my findings which could probably be resolved with enough time.

 

Bad

 

- Promethean active driver v5.10 does not work with 8.1 we had to roll back to v5.7 for the active driver to work and connect automatically

- most old software (pre XP as said above) does not work but

- for some reason themes don't stay saved per user

 

Good

 

- quick

- easy to use for staff (we have IT illiterate staff and they can use it!)

- finds all drivers!

[robjduk]

full 8.1 site here.

 

Speedy

Not one student has ever asked how it works

surprisingly hardly any problems with older software

[Zourous]

Just W7 here except for 1 tablet that came with it on. I can't see the point of doing all the work to get it working for very little benefit when I've got tons of other stuff to do. For us W8 is just going to be another Vista that we miss out and with W9 just around the corner....

[SYNACK]

Just W7 here except for 1 tablet that came with it on. I can't see the point of doing all the work to get it working for very little benefit when I've got tons of other stuff to do. For us W8 is just going to be another Vista that we miss out and with W9 just around the corner....

 

 

Even 8.1 has been out for almost a year now, there has been plenty of time to upgrade and see the benefits but if 7 is working for you all good. This long wait approach is getting less tenable a position as the release cycle is speeding up, we hopefully won't be having any more decade old OSs like XP lulling everyone to sleep.

[Roberto]

Even 8.1 has been out for almost a year now, there has been plenty of time to upgrade and see the benefits but if 7 is working for you all good. This long wait approach is getting less tenable a position as the release cycle is speeding up, we hopefully won't be having any more decade old OSs like XP lulling everyone to sleep.

 

I can't imagine keeping any other system going for as long as we supported XP. Not only because of the impossibility of getting worthwhile support from Microsoft for products like that again but because the reason operating systems are moving to a more rapid release cycle is because peoples needs are changing so fast.

 

Having said that, I can see moving to an 'every other release' cycle for Windows. We're happy enough with Windows 7 here (though we have a windows 8.1 build of our system that works well too, which is in use on @Norphy's pc, mine, and a few others in the IT department) and we're targeting Windows 9 for our next big update. Having said that, with the current uncertainty over release dates, we might well end up producing Windows 7, 8.1 and 9 builds of our base system for next academic year, even if we only deploy one of them to the users.

[unixman_again]

W7 here and that's what we'll be sticking with until W9 or maybe even 10. We see no advantage in 8x over 7. The users are familiar with 7 and our most of our hardware isn't due for replacement for 3 or 4 years.

[SYNACK]

W7 here and that's what we'll be sticking with until W9 or maybe even 10. We see no advantage in 8x over 7. The users are familiar with 7 and our most of our hardware isn't due for replacement for 3 or 4 years.

 

 

Why would hardware refresh cycle matter, 8 is faster on hardware that would run 7.

[disk]

We upgraded from 8.0 to 8.1 over the summer and it has been well received. As mentioned by a few others, we offered a brief training session and posted a small printout with some keyboard shortcuts at every instructor station.

 

For the start screen we looked at using group policy using powershell to export the layout:

 

Start Screen Cmdlets in Windows PowerShell

 

But ultimately we ended up using a combination of USMT in some areas and a third party solution in others. The third party solution was by a company called Forensit.

 

Ultimately we are running Windows 8.1 on ~1400 machines though and all is well!

[AlexisK]

Has anyone tried 8.1 on older hardware? It's on my long list of things to try but I'm thinking more about the old Core 2 Duo PCs (2GB RAM) and, dare I say, Pentium D PCs (2GB RAM). Windows 7 is okay on the Core2Duos but crawls on the Pentium D machines. I've heard that it might be faster on the same hardware than Win7 so that's got to be a good point.

[dhicks]

Has anyone tried 8.1 on older hardware?

 

Yes - several older laptops, I think the oldest being a 7-ish-year-old Dell with 2GB of RAM that used a PATA interface harddrive (I don't remember the processor). With a new SSD (yes, you can still (just about) get PATA interface SSDs) it worked fine - nothing fancy, but it booted quickly enough and was useable for a bit of light web browsing.

[LeMarchand]

Has anyone tried 8.1 on older hardware? It's on my long list of things to try but I'm thinking more about the old Core 2 Duo PCs (2GB RAM) and, dare I say, Pentium D PCs (2GB RAM). Windows 7 is okay on the Core2Duos but crawls on the Pentium D machines. I've heard that it might be faster on the same hardware than Win7 so that's got to be a good point.

 

Got it deployed to all pupil machines on one site (mainly ancient HP NX6325s bumped up to 1GB RAM - have had to use MS default video rather than ATI? for some reason).

 

In my trials, bumping it up to 2GB RAM didn't make much difference for the extra cost on that hardware - obviously it would be better with 2GB, but the laptops generally had 512MB in to start with... SSDs probably would be a better bet to improve the laptops further in that school as I suspect that the hard drives are trashed by now.

 

Typing this on a Dell Optiplex 740: AMD Athlon 64 Dual Core 2.50 Ghz with 4GB scavenged RAM and W8.1 x64 and the only problem I have is the rubbish video card (NVIDIA Quadro FX 540 pulled from an old 2nd hand machine). If I didn't want dual monitors I'd just use the built-in VGA port and it'd be fine.

 

Have also installed on HP dc7700s here and an Acer laptop and Advent 4211s(!)at another site. I've found that if the OS installs in the first place (and I can only recall a couple of "no way!" instances) W8.1 is nippier than XP and 7 on the same hardware. Occasionally I've had to go with the MS default video drivers as there seems to be some incompatibility with older video chips/cards and some of the built-in apps want higher resolutions than some hardware can provide. Unfortunately most of the older machines I've experimented on tend to have hard drives that have probably seen way too much use; I'm sure that with a new/er HDD or - even better - SSD and 2GB+ of RAM they'd be a marked improvement on XP/7, even with the same improved hardware. (In terms of boot and operational speed before the "W8 is rubbish!" brigade start).