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[Ars] - Windows, reimagined: A review of Windows 8

post #1 of 80
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Windows 8 is a study in compromises. Do its two halves form a coherent whole?
Quote:
After months of anticipation, Windows 8 is here. It launches today and goes on sale globally tomorrow. For the last year and a half, we've tracked its progress across three betas and the final release, exploring the ins and outs of Microsoft's most ambitious product launch in two decades.

Over the next few days we'll be publishing a barrage of Windows 8 coverage. Today we'll have the main review, which concentrates on Windows 8's radical new user interface and asks if Microsoft has at last managed to realize its dream of a true tablet PC.

Source.

It's a great read!

From the review, it seems that, while Windows 7 may not have an SP2, Windows 8 will need quite a few feature improvements in the near future.
Edited by tpi2007 - 10/25/12 at 3:19pm
 
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post #2 of 80
And we shall see
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post #3 of 80
Quote:
Windows 8 is a study in compromises. Do its two halves form a coherent whole?

This quote alone encompasses my biggest problems with Windows 8.

They half-way changed Windows, but in the mean time forcibly removed the ability to go back. So now we essentially have this strange two-UI operating system that leads to frustration and confusion.

If you are going to do something, commit to it. This is true for everything, Microsoft!
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post #4 of 80
Windows 8 is awesome, I can't wait to see what new improvements they edge in between now and its first service pack. My only grudge is the default applications handling. You have to go in and set WinRAR for example by hand in the default applications manager. Other then that rock solid OS, fast and very powerful power user OS.
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post #5 of 80
Quote:
Originally Posted by tpi2007 View Post

Source.
From the review, it seems that, while Windows 7 may not have an SP2, Windows 8 will need quite a few feature improvements in the near future.

Agreed, it's not perfect, but I highly doubt it's going to be a disaster either.

During installation there needs to be an ability to set the default programs as either Metro or desktop. There are a few other quirks that annoy me, but none of which that I can recall at the moment.
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post #6 of 80
for $39 upgrade price to win8 pro and free media center add-in I consider getting it and doing a fresh install to see how it runs. worst thing worst, I can restore win7 from backup and return to win8pro after SP1 gets released.
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post #7 of 80
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by SectorNine50 View Post

Quote:
Windows 8 is a study in compromises. Do its two halves form a coherent whole?

This quote alone encompasses my biggest problems with Windows 8.

They half-way changed Windows, but in the mean time forcibly removed the ability to go back. So now we essentially have this strange two-UI operating system that leads to frustration and confusion.

If you are going to do something, commit to it. This is true for everything, Microsoft!

Exactly!

There is one paragraph that sums it up nicely and says what I and many others here on OCN who have tried Windows 8 in the last months have been saying:
Quote:
Right now, though, it's a big pain point. Until this gap is closed, it leaves Windows 8 feeling like two separate operating systems poorly grafted together. You can never avoid the join entirely, but your happiness with Windows 8 will depend heavily on just how often you have to cross over. The more you try to treat the two worlds as equal, integrated peers, the worse Windows 8 gets. The more you stick to one paradigm or the other, the better it is.
 
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post #8 of 80
God I know it's big news but I'm genuinely tired of hearing about it.
post #9 of 80
Quote:
Originally Posted by tpi2007 
There is one paragraph that sums it up nicely and says what I and many others here on OCN who have tried Windows 8 in the last months have been saying:
Quote:
Right now, though, it's a big pain point. Until this gap is closed, it leaves Windows 8 feeling like two separate operating systems poorly grafted together. You can never avoid the join entirely, but your happiness with Windows 8 will depend heavily on just how often you have to cross over. The more you try to treat the two worlds as equal, integrated peers, the worse Windows 8 gets. The more you stick to one paradigm or the other, the better it is.

I think the problem is that people actually can't get their heads around the fact that it really is essentially two seperate environments and they expect different.

One environment is intended to give a new experience and the other is intended to provide familiarity.

For that reason, I disagree with the gap that the reviewer asserts needs closing.

I also disagree for the reason that old and new can be blended together via the ability to "snap" applications.

For instance, I am right now updating a Samsung Galaxy S2 to ICS. When updating firmware, Samsung Kies always keeps the update window "on top" of every other windows you have open. To get around that, I simply opened the metro version of my web browser and snapped my desktop to the left side of my screen. Now I have both an unhindered view and the ability to see all the open windows on my desktop listed and monitored in real time (which comes in handy for checking the progress of an installation progress bar without doing basically anything).

I think the biggest thing (at least for me) is being able to come to terms with the fact that the two areas are somewhat segregated, but also being able to understand when and why (depending on your current task), as well as being able to blend them together to create advantageous situations that couldn't exist previously.
Edited by GrizzleBoy - 10/25/12 at 3:58pm
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post #10 of 80
My Windows 8 configuration has Start8 with WinKey or Ctrl+click on the start menu to bring up the start screen. The start screen honestly isn't too bad. Anyone judging Windows 8 off of the Developer Preview is a dolt.
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