I just don't get Windows 8?

[reggiep]

We have bought one of our governors a laptop and it came with Windows 8 pre installed.

This is the first time I have had a chance to play with it and sor far it has me flummoxed!

There doesn't seem to be any control on the main menu where you have all the tiles, sometimes i try to view the all apps icon but it appears randomly and then disappears. I can't always get a menu to control the order of the tiles.

I'm not convinced I could give it to the governor without it coming back in a week asking for it to be changed for Windows 7.

 

Is anyone a convert yet?

[RabbieBurns]

Im running windows 8 my desktop and on my tablet.

 

on my desktop i have had to install a 3rd party app, and use it solely in desktop mode, never entering the Metro interface.

 

On the tablet, i use it in metro mode, and never drop to the desktop

 

IMO they have messed up by not offering a toggle switch to set which mode to work in.

[RabbieBurns]

Hasten to add, that I love it now ive 'fixed' it.

[bwestlake]

I hate it! .

[tech_guy]

I went from hating it to loving it and now I'm hating it again.

 

[sted]

you cant control the start screen. If you want to view all installed programs then right click view all shows everything. As to ordering them abandon hope all ye who enter here i asked about this at a recent ms event and you cant. I have a script that will pin programs so they show on the "normal" start screen but it just adds it where it wants to (so i cant create say a literacy section or even just sort by name) its designed for the end user to put whatever rubbish they want there and not to be managed.

 

as a home os i like it. AS a managed os its a home os aimed at people who want constntly reminding when their "friends" post stuff on twitter/facebook

Edited December 5, 2012 by sted

[reggiep]

on my desktop i have had to install a 3rd party app, and use it solely in desktop mode, never entering the Metro interface.

 

What would that app be?

[FN-GM]

I love it until i cant find something!

[sted]

I love it until i cant find something!

 

start typing its name and it shall appear lol

[3s-gtech]

On a touch screen, I think it's pretty good. Can't stand it on anything else though, and I found it to be a nightmare on a domain. It will improve, but until SP1 or at least some major fixes, it's not going near this network.

[Gibbo]

I'm doing a "Vista" and not even going to bother looking at it and will wait for the next one.

 

Speaking of Windows 8, isn't that TV advert annoying? Apple got a cutesy catchy upbeat song - Handstands - for their advert. Windows have used awful annoying music and very odd video:

 

Windows 8: Lenka - Everything At Once (TV Spot) | Microsoft - YouTube

[RabbieBurns]

What would that app be?

 

StartIsBack.com - real start menu in Windows 8

 

it says it doesnt install any runtimes or services like the other alternatives suck as the stardock start8 etc, i tried to run procmon to see if it just modifies registry or settings etc but it logs you out as soon as it installs so i cant tell.

 

It doesnt seem to be free but its the best one ive tried so far for sure.

[BassTech]

Used the RTM for a few months on my desktop gaming PC at home - Never, ever using Windows 8 again for personal use! Windows 7 is now back on running nicely

[RabbieBurns]

It doesnt seem to be free but its the best one ive tried so far for sure.

 

just checked, its $5 for a 5 pc license... Ill defo be buying this

[detjo]

Simple fact is (IMO) Windows 8 should have been called Windows Touch - coz it's made for touch screen. It just doesnt work well with a mouse.

I'm sure i read somewhere that MS has already acknowledged they don't think it will be received by commerce very well. Says it all, really!

 

These start menu options may be of interest:

http://lee-soft.com/vistart/windows-8-start-menu.html

 

http://www.stardock.com/products/start8/

 

 

And this:

http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/software-and-web-apps/how-to-make-windows-8-look-like-windows-7-50009546/

Edited December 5, 2012 by detjo

[rich_tech]

I just couldnt handle metro when I tried it, wife went beserk too when I stuck it on her laptop for a try, the non-permanence of the start menu also is VERY frustrating and the "hover on part of the screen and hope that the menus display", we are also using Server 2012 as a test on one machine here and RDP is a royal pain in the a*se because of the vanishing "will it, wont it appear" start menu icon on it.

 

I really do not get who the hell thought that this was such a great idea at M$ to do that to the interface, it is a shame, because the OS does have some other neat features, such as proper ISO integration, which people will skip over I reckon because of that god awful interface.

 

Glad I am using Fedora/Win7Pro at home

[EduTech]

I have been using Windows 8 for sometime to be honest, you don't get forced to use metro really i hardly ever touch the metro UI everything I do on a daily basis I can do from the desktop anyhow... :-) I don't know what all the fuss is about.. it's there but you don't HAVE to use it really!..

 

James.

[AndiMarv]

I have been using Windows 8 on my Office laptop for a while now and have been delighted.

I find Windows 8 to be much faster than windows 7 was on my machine and I love the handy little tools (like winkey and x or the native ISO mounting) I don't use any Metro apps at all but I do prefer the Metro start menu to the wordy windows 7 one.

it used to be me every time thinking now which company published that program and having to search through the all programs list, which was about a mile long - now I've got handy little icons which I find easier to recognize.

 

Like EduTech says there is nothing forcing you to use the Metro apps if you don't want to - I surely don't.

 

The main problem I have found is that I can't centrally pin apps to students/staff Metro start menu on shared computers.

Some of my adventurous staff have had Win8 installed on their work laptops and love it and I think I will stick to installing it on laptops as management of suites is a bit tricky right now.

Individual staff can manage their own start menu just as the used to manage their own desktop icons (and still can if they don't like the Metro start screen)

Besides anything I am in the process of moving our ICT suites to Multipoint Server 2011 which I have found infinitely easier to manage than win8/win7 suites anyway.

 

Marv

[Michael]

Correct me if I'm wrong though, but when Windows 8 boots, you're presented with Metro by default. This means all those desktop and notebook users will be forced to switch to the 'normal' desktop everytime!

[mattx]

The search on it is seriously broken too.

[Michael]

In a way I'm kind of glad if Microsoft don't bring out Windows 7 SP2, but just continue with patches. At least they're not going to 'Windows 8 ify' a good OS like Windows 7.

[RabbieBurns]

Correct me if I'm wrong though, but when Windows 8 boots, you're presented with Metro by default. This means all those desktop and notebook users will be forced to switch to the 'normal' desktop everytime!

 

Correct, but with a 3rd party tool like Start Is Back i mentioned earlier that I found from another thread here, it lets you go straight to desktop. Its unfortunate indeed that it requires this addition and isnt part of the OS options.

[AndiMarv]

You are not at all wrong.

 

When I boot up in the morning the first thing which comes up is the Metro interface I always open Outlook first so I click on the handy Outlook Tile/Icon and it transfers me to the desktop with Outlook open.

from that point on I only open Metro when I want a new program opened - It might just be convenient for me because of the way I like to work though.

I like to have an entirely clear desktop with as few icons as possible so flipping to Metro to open apps is great for me.

 

I know not everyone here has this same compulsion as some users have the most horrendous mess of icons plastered over the desktop - including several folders and files they 'can't afford to loose'

I don't redirect the desktop folder here so anything stored there is not backed up - staff know this but like to ignore the fact until it is too late >_<

[Roberto]

We have bought one of our governors a laptop and it came with Windows 8 pre installed.

This is the first time I have had a chance to play with it and sor far it has me flummoxed!

There doesn't seem to be any control on the main menu where you have all the tiles, sometimes i try to view the all apps icon but it appears randomly and then disappears. I can't always get a menu to control the order of the tiles.

I'm not convinced I could give it to the governor without it coming back in a week asking for it to be changed for Windows 7.

 

Is anyone a convert yet?

 

I ran it for a few months, up until the other week when I gave up on it and went back to Windows 7.

 

There are some nice ideas in Windows 8 but there's a lot that's broken too, starting with that god awful start menu.

 

It appears to be very divisive; everyone seems to be saying either "it sucks" or "it's great". I've seen very few "meh, whatever" posts about it.

[m25man]

I have just had to flatten and rebuild our 1st Windows 8 HP Probook with Win 7 as the clubs CMS system (Hosted by Sapient) doesnt support it. For some reason they only support Windows 7 with Chrome which is crazy as it looks to be built on Sharepoint!

 

Anyway after a week of struggling our press guy said get rid of it... its a crock!

 

Rebuilt with Win7 and he's happy again

 

Its definately Marmite, I will persevere a while longer on my desktop but patience is wearing thin. Im sure it will be great on Surface Pro and for that reason alone Im going to ride it out a bit longer but for the time being Im sticking to Win7 on the rest of our desktops.