Windows 8, enough after about 2 hours

[patseguin Global Moderator]

Anyone else go right back to Windows 7 after playing with 8 for a little while? I think it's kind of a mess and definitely not ready for prime time.

[Lucas]

Totally, I was expecting it much more 'fluid' but I felt like I had to hard learn how to do weird mouse gestures just to go around my desktop, it's stressing.

[Azies]

Me, I gave it a chance and really like it, but being a beta it was a bit iffy with some apps, I don't like having to go to the Metro screen whenever I want to open Explorer, so I guess I ended up pinning it. They really need to allow people to enable the start menu, or this is going to flop hard.

[Andrew Lyle Global Moderator]

I hope they bring the start menu back. I believe they said metro will be disabled by default for desktops and non-touch screen laptops, so people can transition into it.

Well see though. I hear way too many requests to bring back the start menu.

[Evolution]

Yeah after a few hours I got tired of it.... whereas up until the CP was released I was using the developer preview which to me was better.... (boots were simple and didn't require a reset to switch OSes and they seemed to have taken away the ability to use the scroll wheel on the left side of the screen to switch between apps)

[patseguin Global Moderator]

Yeah I downloaded it and played just for a minute before work and was excited. After about an hour when I got home, it wasn't for me and I've spent the night reinstalling Windows 7. I guess that'll teach me to use a VM next time.

[motivr]

I think there should be two modes or verisons for Windows 8. On my non-touch laptop, everything is just so awkward. I have to scroll my touchpad or mouse up and down to scroll horizontally.. and I have to take additional steps to just go to Control panel or run Windows Updates. I think Microsoft has long long way to go on this one.

[Tekkerson]

Lol you guys got it all wrong. I haven't used my mouse for Windows 8 at all.

Windows explorer is Windows key + E (or if on the SuperBar it's Windows Key + top numbers on keyboard)

Anything I want to search for is the same as windows 7 albeit just full screen search now.

I don't know what you guys are complaining about.

The only chance I get to use metro is when my computer boots up, no search queries, just click & go.

After I'm on the Desktop I just do:

• windows key
  
• first few letters of program/settings from control panel to files and anything really
  
• enter key
  

Simple, fast.

Metro pops for a half a second and my program/file/setting is already loading.

Although I'm not used to the full screen search, just the little search box that windows 7 used to be. It's no different from it.

[kaotic]

I'm using it right now, and I really like it, but I'll probably go back to windows 7 tomorrow. I actually had no problem getting used to the metro UI and really like the apps that they have included. My only problem with it is that I wish it was all Metro and not Metro / Aero.

[Evolution]

Lol you guys got it all wrong. I haven't used my mouse for Windows 8 at all.

Windows explorer is Windows key + E (or if on the SuperBar it's Windows Key + top numbers on keyboard)

Anything I want to search for is the same as windows 7 albeit just full screen search now.

Windows key + search query + enter. The same for control panel settings, files and pretty much everything.

I don't know what you guys are complaining about.

Windows key + search query gives apps, you have to make an additional click if you want to get to settings or files, unlike in Windows 7.

[Omen1393]

2 hours is not enough time to judge an entire operating system. On the Developer preview I didn't really like it for the first 48 hours, but once I got used to how the OS worked and learned the gestures, I began to catch on and really enjoy the experience. Although my time is spent mostly in the desktop UI, the Metro apps really are much nicer than the apps that were around before. For example the mail app is much, much faster than Windows Live mail and the live tiles make it worth the switch.

[Tekkerson]

Windows key + search query gives apps, you have to make an additional click if you want to get to settings or files, unlike in Windows 7.

No you don't, to search settings it's Windows Key + W.

Windows + F is to search files. Easy.

[TruckWEB]

I gave it 1 hour and it was enough for me to NOT like it at all. I'm back to Win7 and I feel right at home. I much prefer OS X or Win7. MS wont get any money from me if Win8 stay that way. It may be fantastic for a touch screen, but it's crap for desktop use. And suddently, it's okay to learn new keystroke to do things? Wow, this seems backward in evolution.

How do you close/quit a Metro app? Do they stay open all the time?

And why do I feel like I'm dealing with 2 OS at the same time: Metro and Desktop? What does Win8 want to be?

[scumdogmillionaire]

I installed it on a VM, and on my wife's laptop early this morning. We both used it for our normal stuff all day long. We also both have (and absolutley love) Windows Phone 7.

Reverted the laptop to a Windows Home Server backup from last night, so it's back to normal.

The biggest issues for her were:

1) No ability to print in Mail

2) No Favorites in Immersive IE

3) No Search from Address Bar in Immersive IE

4) Not great for multi-tasking. She usually has multiple brower windows open, Windows Live Messenger and Windows Live Mail. While the multiple browsers can be addressed on the regular desktop, in that view there is no way to know if you have new instant messages or emails.

Overall it was not a great experience.

From my point of view (as a .NET developer) I was also disappointed. Doing simple things (like printing) seemed impossible and the apps are far from beta quality in my opinion. Switching back and forth between the start screen and the desktop (again, in Visual Studio all day long) seemed unnatural. I instant message with my wife all day long (even though we're in the same house, I'm in my office upstairs, so it's just easier) and switching between Visual Studio, to the start screen to get a new IM was a mess. I couldn't stand it.

[simplezz]

Gonna give it a try later when I have time to download/install it. It looks surprisingly good on that 82 " screen. I didn't think it would work on larger screen devices, but it looks like I might have been wrong.

How does the performance compare with Windows 7?

[y_notm]

Windows key + search query gives apps, you have to make an additional click if you want to get to settings or files, unlike in Windows 7.

or just hit down arrow a couple of times.

[Tekkerson]

And why do I feel like I'm dealing with 2 OS at the same time: Metro and Desktop? What does Win8 want to be?

Like I've been saying in the thread, you're using it wrong. You're not supposed to stay in the metro interface, as a desktop user it's just an extension of Windows 7's orb that makes searches except it's fullscreen.

If you spend more than literally one second on metro you're doing it wrong. The search feature is fantastic, much better improved to find what you need. I don't use the mouse whatsoever on Metro. People just don't know how to use Windows 8 yet.

[Evolution]

No you don't, to search settings it's Windows Key + W.

Windows + F is to search files. Easy.

While I didn't directly state it I was hoping that I implied it.... that having to learn 3 different shortcut commands to search quickly, which you don't have to do in Windows 7 is the main problem I was getting at. The average user is going to be making the extra click to get to what they want. For me they're adding more steps to do something... :/

[Colin McGregor]

I actually removed Windows 7 and my linux partition. Only OS on my pc now is win8

[Tekkerson]

While I didn't directly state it I was hoping that I implied it.... that having to learn 3 different shortcut commands to search quickly, which you don't have to do in Windows 7 is the main problem I was getting at. The average user is going to be making the extra click to get to what they want.

If anything Windows 7 has all those result types mixed together. It's so nice to have them separated so that you can find what you want. Not sort through each type files/windows settings and take a few seconds to click on what you actually want.

Then again that will only benefit power users, the only people that it's not benefiting is people who can't adapt to changes when there's actually tools to get what you want faster. The latter not being an opinion, but dare I say that having more shorcuts (tools) is a fact.

[Eric Veteran]

I installed it on a VM, and on my wife's laptop early this morning. We both used it for our normal stuff all day long. We also both have (and absolutley love) Windows Phone 7.

Reverted the laptop to a Windows Home Server backup from last night, so it's back to normal.

The biggest issues for her were:

1) No ability to print in Mail

2) No Favorites in Immersive IE

3) No Search from Address Bar in Immersive IE

4) Not great for multi-tasking. She usually has multiple brower windows open, Windows Live Messenger and Windows Live Mail. While the multiple browsers can be addressed on the regular desktop, in that view there is no way to know if you have new instant messages or emails.

Overall it was not a great experience.

From my point of view (as a .NET developer) I was also disappointed. Doing simple things (like printing) seemed impossible and the apps are far from beta quality in my opinion. Switching back and forth between the start screen and the desktop (again, in Visual Studio all day long) seemed unnatural. I instant message with my wife all day long (even though we're in the same house, I'm in my office upstairs, so it's just easier) and switching between Visual Studio, to the start screen to get a new IM was a mess. I couldn't stand it.

Metro IE has the same Windows key shortcuts that IE9 has: Win-E for search, Win-L for address entry.

[TruckWEB]

Like I've been saying in the thread, you're using it wrong. You're not supposed to stay in the metro interface, as a desktop user it's just an extension of Windows 7's orb that makes searches except it's fullscreen.

If you spend more than literally one second on metro you're doing it wrong. The search feature is fantastic, much better improved to find what you need. I don't use the mouse whatsoever on Metro. People just don't know how to use Windows 8 yet.

Sorry, you're wrong. That "new" full screen start menu, Metro, is not just a new start menu. Metro apps are going to be around and you'll have to deal with Metro apps and Desktop apps and it's not gonna be pretty. And they don't seem to integrate all that well. If you're in the desktop and you get IM message in a Metro app, unless you have that apps on the "side" of your desktop screen, you have to switch over. It's crazy. The desktop seems to be for "old stuff" and Metro is going to be "futur stuff". But for now, it's a mess.

[Tekkerson]

Sorry, you're wrong. That "new" full screen start menu, Metro, is not just a new start menu. Metro apps are going to be around and you'll have to deal with Metro apps and Desktop apps and it's not gonna be pretty. And they don't seem to integrate all that well. If you're in the desktop and you get IM message in a Metro app, unless you have that apps on the "side" of your desktop screen, you have to switch over. It's crazy. The desktop seems to be for "old stuff" and Metro is going to be "futur stuff". But for now, it's a mess.

If you don't like to use the mouse on the Metro screen, then learn to use it as a search box.

So with that, try to use just your keyboard and it's not a mess to get from desktop to metro and vice versa. It only takes a couple of keystrokes and you don't lose momentum. If you want to complain the only thing that you could really complain is for the few moments for metro to load for you to type what you want (if you're not already in

So no, I'm not wrong.

Everybody just has to get rid of whatever they used to think they knew and learn to adapt and see that it's actually better than they thought.

[+LogicalApex MVC]

If you don't like to use the mouse on the Metro screen, then learn to use it as a search box.

So with that, try to use just your keyboard and it's not a mess to get from desktop to metro. It only takes a couple of keystrokes and you don't lose momentum. If you want to complain the only thing that you could really complain is for the few moments for metro to load for you to type what you want.

So no, I'm not wrong. You're just arguing because you don't like it, and we all get that. Everybody just has to get rid of whatever they used to think they knew and learn to adapt and see that it's actually better than they thought.

Why is this the prevailing mindset? that we should just accept whatever a company puts out and be happy with it? The world today is really bizarre...

[Tekkerson]

Why is this the prevailing mindset? that we should just accept whatever a company puts out and be happy with it? The world today is really bizarre...

No, but do you really think a company like Microsoft is dumb enough not to know what the difference is between Desktop users and Tablet users?

I don't know why people complain about Metro when you don't have to use it the majority of the time. Sure, you can bring up settings, but who really stays in settings longer than a few minutes? Your desktop experience will mostly be on your desktop and that's where you'll stay the biggest percentage of your time. Metro doesn't get in your way (once you used to it you'll only see that screen for quick moments). The only reason Metro would get in your way is if you didn't know how to use it. But the same can be said about any OS which people have no experience with.

It's not that I have a prevailing mindset. But I also want my point of view to be heard, backing it up with facts and tips. All I hear is opinions, but I don't see anyone trying to provide solutions or ways to make the switch easier for past pre-windows 8 users. I'm trying to help and at the same time try to explain to people that it's not as bad as they think or hear it is. Isn't that what a tech community is supposed to be about?