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I own a gaming PC and a Macbook Pro, and I actually think the Windows 7 Explorer is superior to the Finder in OSX. Other than that point, I agree that OSX is a superior OS. I agree Microsoft does need to move forward, but forcing a tablet/smartphone interface on a 30" monitor while breaking multitasking and customization is not my idea of moving forward. Metro is so embedded in Windows 8 that you absolutely can't get away from it without hacking it. Imagine if Apple decided they were going to sell all their Macs with iOS 5 rather than OSX.
Vista, for all its problems, WAS a step forward for Microsoft. Had driver compatibility and hardware efficiency been more finely tuned (keep in mind at Vista's launch, the average budget PC still came with 512MB of RAM), it would have been a success. Windows 8 is a step forward for mobile devices, but NOT for the desktop or for practical business usage.
The only reasoning I can think of behind this insanity is Microsoft is wanting to finish off something they hinted at long ago during the Vista era...killing off the desktop PC.
How did they break multitasking? It works just like Windows 7. You have a taskbar and multiple windows. Alt+tab, Windows+tab, etc all work. Metro is just a big start menu. It doesn't take any more time to navigate with a mouse and keyboard. It just uses the entire screen rather than a 5th of it in a corner and is a lot easier to navigate with touchscreen.
In Win8, the desktop is just there for compatibility. The push is toward Metro. GIANT FULL SCREEN METRO APPS, used one at a time like on a tablet, which makes zero sense on a big desktop screen. Sure, you can still alt-tab or win-tab between them, but 99% of people have no idea those keystrokes even exit and won't suddenly discover task switching with Win8.
well, I just took a look at it on youtube and the Metro interface is hideous. Why is Microsoft compelled to take something that works and is comfortable and people are happy with and changing up into something that requires a big learning curve. Busy people don't have time to dink around with their computers for hours trying to figure out how to navigate it.
Hopefully, the OS that is geared toward the business side will be more "professional" and less geared to the mindless commercial end-user.
In Win8, the desktop is just there for compatibility. The push is toward Metro. GIANT FULL SCREEN METRO APPS, used one at a time like on a tablet, which makes zero sense on a big desktop screen. Sure, you can still alt-tab or win-tab between them, but 99% of people have no idea those keystrokes even exit and won't suddenly discover task switching with Win8.
Agreed. For the desktop, we are basically going back to the DOS days.
Like I said before, there needs to be a huge public outcry against this and Microsoft needs to know we don't want to turn our powerful desktop machines into tablets!!!
Hopefully, the OS that is geared toward the business side will be more "professional" and less geared to the mindless commercial end-user.
I wish this was the case, but the "Pro" version of Windows 8 is identical to the consumer version with the exception that the Pro version can join a domain and has features like BitLocker and group policy. The Pro version still just as much tries to turn the desktop into a tablet.
Microsoft doesn't get the hint there are a lot of people out there still running desktop and laptop computers using a keyboard and mouse. While one day we may get to a point where tablets and smartphones are the dominant form of computing, we aren't there yet.
In Win8, the desktop is just there for compatibility. The push is toward Metro. GIANT FULL SCREEN METRO APPS, used one at a time like on a tablet, which makes zero sense on a big desktop screen. Sure, you can still alt-tab or win-tab between them, but 99% of people have no idea those keystrokes even exit and won't suddenly discover task switching with Win8.
I haven't heard of Metro becoming the primary mode of Windows on PCs. Even if Microsoft wants this, it won't happen. Metro works really nicely as a giant start menu that's incredibly functional.... but the desktop interface will still be the primary interface. Metro cannot replace the desktop experience. And I think that's how the OS will be received.
You still have the task bar for those who don't alt-tab.
well, I just took a look at it on youtube and the Metro interface is hideous. Why is Microsoft compelled to take something that works and is comfortable and people are happy with and changing up into something that requires a big learning curve. Busy people don't have time to dink around with their computers for hours trying to figure out how to navigate it.
Hopefully, the OS that is geared toward the business side will be more "professional" and less geared to the mindless commercial end-user.
20yrsinBranson
The beauty of Metro is that it's so simple that there's minimal learning curve. Someone who has never used a start menu before will find it much easier to learn Metro over a start menu.
I don't get why you guys think there's a huge change to Windows here. All they did was take the start menu and make it full screen. When you launch your app (unless it's a metro app), it goes back to the normal desktop mode. If you're using a metro app, then it stays in metro mode.... but metro apps suck right now and make no sense on a desktop/laptop... so I doubt you'd even use those.
The beauty of Metro is that it's so simple that there's minimal learning curve. Someone who has never used a start menu before will find it much easier to learn Metro over a start menu.
I don't get why you guys think there's a huge change to Windows here. All they did was take the start menu and make it full screen. When you launch your app (unless it's a metro app), it goes back to the normal desktop mode. If you're using a metro app, then it stays in metro mode.... but metro apps suck right now and make no sense on a desktop/laptop... so I doubt you'd even use those.
Microsoft's clear goal here is to push everybody toward Metro apps. Thus far, Microsoft's biggest downfall in the tablet market has been the lack of tablet-specific applications available for platforms like Windows Phone 7 as compared to the thousands available for iOS. Microsoft thinks if they can force a tablet interface on everyone, developers will be required to write tablet apps, allowing Microsoft to make further inroads into the tablet market. This is a big gamble but that is the direction MS is going right now. Office 2013 is going to be partially in Metro and I imagine the next office, if Windows 8 is a success, will be entirely in Metro.
And yes, this is the biggest change to Windows since Windows 95, and not change in a good way unless you have touch screen. Windows 8 NEEDS to fail, forcing MS to release Windows 9 making Metro optional or even a service pack to Windows 8 allowing you to disable it. So what if its easier for grandma who has never touched a computer to figure out, Metro is a HUGE fail with a keyboard and mouse for business users or anybody who has had any computing experience. Under the hood, Windows 8 is an improvement and if it wasn't for this horrid, all-encompassing interface thats impossible to disable, I might consider upgrading.
Microsoft had to do something. Windows 7 and earlier interfaces are garbage compared to OSX. I think it could be better.... Outside of metro you still have the ancient interface...
Users spend so little time interfacing with the OS. We launch applications (taking less than a second if you are familiar with any OS), then spend hours (days) interfacing with the application.
W7 and pinning apps to the task bar is a great way to launch apps and easily launched via the keyboard, or mouse for the slave to the GUI. The less used apps, I launch with the keyboard, just a few keystrokes.
What I do expect from an OS, managing all hardware resources, file storage, memory management, etc., W7 does very well. Add any new hardware installed or connrected (internal or external) it is recognized, configured and becomes available.
W7 is a efficient and rock solid 'foundation' to run my apps. An upgrade or OS change merely replaces the foundation, to run the same apps, not worth the $$ or the time to do so.
Somehow I have a feeling this may be a push for more PC users to go with Linux as their main OS. I know I will use Linux before win8, in fact last night after being totally disgusted with my preview copy of windows 8, I decided to go ahead and try out Linux, something I have been meaning to do for years. Got pclinuxos KDE, and am actually impressed with how smoothly it runs on here, granted only currently thru a virtual machine, but still nicely useable none the less.
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