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Windows 8
#1410715
13/02/2013 14:18
13/02/2013 14:18
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ninja
Unregistered
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ninja
Unregistered
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After upgrading from XP on my home PC, with a clean install (easiest way to get from 32 to 64 bit). i thought i'd give my views. the metro guestures take some getting used to (with a mouse), and the layout to begin with seems a bit counter intuative, but after a bit of research, a few 'tips', and a bit of setting up. my recommendations to make life easier; boot straight to desktop - a quick shcedule will bypass the start screen on boot up/log in. (simple but effective) recylce bin properties - as default it does not ask you to confirm deletions, but you can turn this back on. VLC - win 8 does not have DVD playback facility, but VLC is Free (and prefered anyway) Classic shell program (or similar) - this will re-introduce a start button if desired, but you can pin you favourite programs/my computer to the task bar, and or shortcut them to the desktop and the search charm easy enough to use, so you can live without it. i do find however its a bit hit/miss with program driver support. downloads that ask you for your operating sytem dont generally have windows 8 on the list?! the apps for social media stuff make life easier for getting on face book etc, rather than having to go to website and log on. also the live tiles update too. But its worth checking/altering your privacy setting, as default they are pretty open. Also, some program also have apps, and generaly the app not as good as the actually program so dont see the point. If you running RT then fair enough, but you dont need these particular apps on a desktop. Apps also run in background unless you turn them off! other than that, the dual monitor set-up is very good. allowing menus/gestures/program list charm on both screens. Its seems to load faster/ run smoother than XP, i know XP was dated, but the price difference between 8 and 7 is massive, and with support running out for XP next year, i thought i would take the plunge any else one running it? how do you find it? Ninja
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Re: Windows 8
[Re: ]
#1410730
13/02/2013 15:38
13/02/2013 15:38
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ninja
Unregistered
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ninja
Unregistered
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it takes a bit of getting used to, its not something you can pick up and play with striaght away due to the UI changes that have been made, but underneath it is essentially 7 so it cant be that bad i agree the metro stuff is a bit gimmicky, and doesnt really suit a desktop but i can see its advantage on tablet/touch system. You can work without the start screen, i kinda see it as a big start menu now anyway. Rich
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Re: Windows 8
[Re: ]
#1410851
14/02/2013 10:22
14/02/2013 10:22
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 8,485 Lightwater, Surrey
DaveG
Club Treasurer Member 311
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Club Treasurer Member 311
Je suis un Coupé
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 8,485
Lightwater, Surrey
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Like hyperlink says, people don't like change, and like paulw, my employer is changing to Win7 later this year, but mostly because support for XP is being discontinued. Once I figure out how to get Win7 file explorer to behave like the one in XP then I might grudgingly upgrade the two pc's at home that still have XP.
1996 Portofino 20vt & 2000 Pearl White Plus 2008 Ferrari F430 & 2017 Fiat 124 Spider
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Re: Windows 8
[Re: bockers]
#1411209
16/02/2013 07:42
16/02/2013 07:42
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 33,677 Berlin
barnacle
Club Member 18 - ex-Minister without Portfolio
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Club Member 18 - ex-Minister without Portfolio
Forum Demigod
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 33,677
Berlin
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At the moment is is a rushed mess and Windows 9 will be the solution to this. There is not a single reason to upgrade for the standard desktop user, but there are plenty of reasons to stay on Win7 Windows 9 *may* be a solution to a problem which no longer exists. Microsoft's business methods seem to have bitten them in the foot... their policy of requiring computer sellers to provide all their machines with windows on if they want to license windows at all has made it effectively impossible to purchase machines without paying the windows tax (which has annoyed a lot of people over the years) but also means that there is no choice for a purchaser to decide which version of Windows they prefer: had this machine been available with W7 on it I would have left it installed; instead W8 was the only option and now it is simply unused and invisible. One the remaining stock of W7 machines are gone - and that's a matter of no more than days or weeks - then there is simply no option but to use what MS offer, other than the few of us who can cope with the idiosyncrasies of installing another OS past the (MS mandated) secure boot system, or who will pay twice the price for an Apple machine. So now MS have an OS that isn't at all suited to a desktop and which has removed major components upon which people rely; which works best on a tablet that is considered over-priced and is not suited for any work beyond 'media consumption' and games; and which has made a lot of their fans very very angry. They've bet the company on this. I'm glad I don't have any MS shares...
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Re: Windows 8
[Re: barnacle]
#1411229
16/02/2013 09:57
16/02/2013 09:57
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Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,244 Watford, Herts.
Hyperlink
Forum is my life
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Forum is my life
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,244
Watford, Herts.
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or who will pay twice the price for an Apple machine. Are we really trotting out this again?
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Re: Windows 8
[Re: barnacle]
#1411289
16/02/2013 15:45
16/02/2013 15:45
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richydraper
Unregistered
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richydraper
Unregistered
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i used 8 for about 2 weeks at the tail end of last year... its back compatability for programs is poor the aero theme from 7 is non existent and the sidebar features aren't there (that i could find). its tile feature is smart but a little clunky and not what i expected it to be at all. its menus are too different for my liking too. i personally dont like 8 as a desktop/laptop OS although for mobile touch devices i think its perfect. its very touch orientated and i can see why they have done it, to keep the transition time between PC and mobile to a minimum. for me its a dog to use on desktops/laptops... ive never been disappointed by any of the advances made my MS from 3.1-95-98-ME-XP-Vista-7 but 8 i felt severely let down. it promised a whole host of things that sounded good but when i came to use it i found it hard to navigate and not actually what i wanted at all. maybe im old skool, maybe im scared of change all i know is im 28 and never been a fan of (cr)Apple. IMO their machines and devices are overpriced and in a lot of instances under-spec'd. im a Nokia and Windows man and it will have to be one HELL of an iOS/OSx that makes me want to change. anyway im back on 7 now and couldn't be happier with my choice
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Re: Windows 8
[Re: ]
#1411298
16/02/2013 16:06
16/02/2013 16:06
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Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 2,617 SE Essex
charlie_croker
I need some sleep
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I need some sleep
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 2,617
SE Essex
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Personally I am not a fan of Windows 8, I can just about tolerate Windows 7, (work kindly supply me with a new Dell Laptop every year). Though I still hate the palaver I have to print a document in word. Why have a tab and then a big button? While the Apple/Windows debate has been done to death, I find that I am far more productive on OS X than on Windows. I run Parallels (vitrualisation) which means I can run any OS I choose, (Currently a few distros of Linux, Xp, Win 7, Win 8, Android & Chromes OS). Windows 8 is a bit of a dogs dinner, it's almost as if MS realising that Apple were making a fortune with iOS, decided to jump ahead by trying to draft a mobile OS onto the desktop. My new Dell runs Win 7 as according to our IT support "We don't have the time to retrain people to use Win 8!". Says it all really. Personally I think the whole desktop metaphor for an OS and WIMP is due a change, it suited when we moved away from Control Line Interfaces but it's not really relevant a couple of decades down the line. One of the things I do like about iOS is that I don't have to worry where files are stored in the device (in terms of folder structures), the device takes care of that for me. I use http://www.noodlesoft.com/hazel.php to attempt to do that for me on the Mac and 99% of the time it works fine. I did try to use http://www.raskinformac.com but even though it showed promise, it wasn't always intuitive , something Jeff Raskin would have wanted I bought both my daughters Samsung ChromeBooks and they love them, and at £200 each I wasn't as worried as if I had bought them Macbook airs, the browser based OS is surprisingly capable. My mother in law has tried the Chromebook and was so impressed has bought one too, to replace her...... Windows 8 desktop, (Selling that on a local facebook group) I am hoping someone and I really don't care who, comes up with a new OS and interface which is better suited for today's "post PC age"
Last edited by charlie_croker; 16/02/2013 17:18.
Happy
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