Win8 Charm Bar Share - I get it, just untapped ...


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I finally have seen a meaningful use for the Charms Bar Share functionality.

The Package Tracker app by ITECTURE supports every Win8 feature I've heard of, well. And now it has added Share support.

So, now when I get a tracking number in an email, I highlight the tracking number and click the Share charm where Package Tracker is now an option. Clicking share with Package Tracker opens the app and passes the highlighted tracking number for which the app automatically picks the carrier and creates a tracking item for that package. Nice, very nice.

Unfortunately, it will only work if you use the Modern (or a Modern) app Mail program. Probably works with Modern IE if you read your mail in a browser too.

If it worked with Outlook 2013, that would have been great. So for those wondering, that is the vision for the Share charm. There just aren't anywhere near enough Modern apps worth using it. No interaction between Win32 and WinRT hurts right now as does the complete dearth of meaningful Modern apps. If there's any feature they should have allowed to cross that boundary, it's the Share feature.

Anyway, it definitely has potential, just no meaty apps to work with it.

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I use it all the time on my Windows Phone, sharing articles to email etc, great on a tiny screen with limited ways to send things, but on a PC with a mouse its fairly easy to copy / paste something already

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I use it all the time on my Windows Phone, sharing articles to email etc, great on a tiny screen with limited ways to send things, but on a PC with a mouse its fairly easy to copy / paste something already

Yea c/p is easy on a desktop, but depending on the app, using this case, eliminates opening the tracking app, pasting, selecting carrier, creating tracking entry. Share and you're done, the app knows what and why you're sharing so it can do all the work. Definitely case dependent, but if the app is built smart, the little automation can save a ton of time and tedium.

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There's plenty of apps using it, you just need to know which ones. :p

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I didn't say it doesn't have any apps, just no meaty ones, which his subjective. You've got 2 or 3 share with Twitter apps (I tweet but not enough to use applets, not even one, but many do I suppose.), three note taking apps, though OneNote is king but the desktop version has this and works with Win32 apps, Wikipedia and the in much need of fixin' Mail app, which sharing isn't enough for me to use.

For this thing to take off on more than a tablet, Modern UI needs meaningful (subjective) apps, that lots of people will see the value in. Unfortunately, those don't exist right now. The current Office/Outlook is Win32 :/

I suppose the real problem comes down to lack of meaningful Modern UI apps and such a usable feature doesn't work with Win32 so few ever see the value In it. You and I makes two of us ...

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The share charm is easily my favorite. Though I don't quite get the larger app side window sizing when selected. (Or more importantly, why that isn't a usable snap size)

:Holy App Redundancy:

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As a desktop user I have found no compelling reason to use Metro apps, especially given the inherent limitations. There are some worthwhile features, like the Share functionality, but they're not enough to make me put up with the usability issues and disruption to my productivity. I still despise the Charm Bar and the Switch List, which I frequently trigger accidentally during my typical workflow.

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Have they fixed that ridiculous 'feature' to the fans, and 'bug' to us normal people, where the charms bar is still on the right of the main display even when you have another extended display to the right ?

Meaning you can no longer just throw your mouse to the top right, you have to carefully aim pixel perfect to get it to appear ?

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As a desktop user I have found no compelling reason to use Metro apps, especially given the inherent limitations. There are some worthwhile features, like the Share functionality, but they're not enough to make me put up with the usability issues and disruption to my productivity. I still despise the Charm Bar and the Switch List, which I frequently trigger accidentally during my typical workflow.

While I don't like the App Switch List at all either, I do like the Charm Bar, though devices is generally wasted. I also agree with you on the state of Metro apps. I feel that's MS' responsibility, they should have had devs on board before RTM, and in the past, always did just that.

Have they fixed that ridiculous 'feature' to the fans, and 'bug' to us normal people, where the charms bar is still on the right of the main display even when you have another extended display to the right ?

Meaning you can no longer just throw your mouse to the top right, you have to carefully aim pixel perfect to get it to appear ?

I'm hoping MS is listening to criticisms constructively and this gets fixed in the upcoming update. Not 9, but the 8 update.

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Hell, I'd even settle for just throwing the mouse in the corner like Start. Clearly most Metro apps won't replace their older Desktop cousins for quite a while (if ever). I just don't think there is a good solution in regards to the Desktop though if accommodating touch is the reason d'etre. The overlay is cludgy and only draws attention to the sacrifices. I don't see any solution but specialization.

On RT though, its loverly.

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While I don't like the App Switch List at all either, I do like the Charm Bar, though devices is generally wasted.

Part of the problem is that I am running multiple monitors. I have a 30" 2560x1600 display for my main monitor and a 42" 1080p display off to the right, which means that when I launch the Charm Bar and go to click an icon my mouse often disappears onto the other display and if I go too far then the Charm Bar disappears. It means I have to be relatively precise, unlike the Start Corner which is fine. I find the hot-corners quite irritating.

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Part of the problem is that I am running multiple monitors. I have a 30" 2560x1600 display for my main monitor and a 42" 1080p display off to the right, which means that when I launch the Charm Bar and go to click an icon my mouse often disappears onto the other display and if I go too far then the Charm Bar disappears. It means I have to be relatively precise, unlike the Start Corner which is fine. I find the hot-corners quite irritating.

Yeah, my secondary is on the left and I had so many problems with the app switch bar I went back to a single monitor. Jealous of that 30" 2560x1600, want!

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Jealous of that 30" 2560x1600, want!

Yeah, I love the amount of space I have to work on it - it's massive in comparison to my old 24" monitor. But that's another reason that I find Metro apps so constricting, as most apps aren't designed for monitors that big and are either filled with empty space or make everything appear larger - both are undesirable. Normally I snap two browser windows to each side of the monitor but you can't do that with Metro.

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Yeah, I love the amount of space I have to work on it - it's massive in comparison to my old 24" monitor. But that's another reason that I find Metro apps so constricting, as most apps aren't designed for monitors that big and are either filled with empty space or make everything appear larger - both are undesirable. Normally I snap two browser windows to each side of the monitor but you can't do that with Metro.

How dare you criticise Microsoft, the way YOU work is wrong, not Windows 8.

Windows 8 is perfect OS handed down by god himself.

there are no bugs no flaws, its perfect for multitasking, its designed exclusively for keyboard and mouse users.

(/sarcasm)

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How dare you criticise Microsoft, the way YOU work is wrong, not Windows 8.

Windows 8 is perfect OS handed down by god himself.

there are no bugs no flaws, its perfect for multitasking, its designed exclusively for keyboard and mouse users.(/sarcasm)

I think both extreme views are coming close to the middle now as reality sets in and lackluster sales are irrefutable. Microsoft's growing chatter about Windows Blue/9 and Windows Phone 9 appears to be as much concessions as we'll get that they know they dropped several balls.

Now is a good time to praise what is good, and constructively criticize what is bad, broke, or simply missing.

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I didn't say it doesn't have any apps, just no meaty ones, which his subjective. You've got 2 or 3 share with Twitter apps (I tweet but not enough to use applets, not even one, but many do I suppose.), three note taking apps, though OneNote is king but the desktop version has this and works with Win32 apps, Wikipedia and the in much need of fixin' Mail app, which sharing isn't enough for me to use.

For this thing to take off on more than a tablet, Modern UI needs meaningful (subjective) apps, that lots of people will see the value in. Unfortunately, those don't exist right now. The current Office/Outlook is Win32 :/

I suppose the real problem comes down to lack of meaningful Modern UI apps and such a usable feature doesn't work with Win32 so few ever see the value In it. You and I makes two of us ...

Yeah, those Twitter apps have all gone away though since downloading the official app.

The major missing apps are Facebook, and Skype (Why the **** does that not have a share option?!)

How dare you criticise Microsoft, the way YOU work is wrong, not Windows 8.

Windows 8 is perfect OS handed down by god himself.

there are no bugs no flaws, its perfect for multitasking, its designed exclusively for keyboard and mouse users.

(/sarcasm)

There is nothing wrong with my mouse OR keyboard, and I have been using various builds of Windows 8 for over a year now. Drop the FUD. ;)

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