Recommended Posts

Too true! I've seen people freak out about that at work on Windows 7. "OMG where'd it go?!? Stupid $%^&ing computer just lost my work!! Oh, there it is." :laugh:

AERO Peek would have been a better feature had Microsoft overhauled the desktop gadgets. Not sure why it's there when no one uses them.

AERO Peek would have been a better feature had Microsoft overhauled the desktop gadgets. Not sure why it's there when no one uses them.

It's the same on OS X really. The whole widget/gadget concept more or less failed if you'd ask me. While they were fun in the beginning, in the end they just weren't that practical in my opinion. Then there's the fact that both Apple and Microsoft stopped improving the build-in widgets and third-parties stopped investing in it too. The smartphone/tablet made it even more redundant.

These days I hardly ever use Dashboard anymore.

You only have to pin your favorites apps, not all installed items are showed on that list.

You are asking for group name in top, which can be an issue if you have many group. That's why you can zoom out and see the list of all your groups at once to select the one you are looking for.

I get that, i'm not saying it doesn't work the way it is, for the most part it does. All I'm saying is that there should be one or two more ways to do things and then people can go with what works better for them. I know pinning the stuff you want up front and so on is the best choice but the default behavior so far is that anything you install gets a tile slapped up there (would be nice to get a choice when installing apps ofc), and then how many people are going to bother to remove all of them? How many will even know you can name groups and move them around etc?

I just figure a good chunk of stuff (unless MS does a great job with it's tutorial) is going to go unused or unknown by the majority of future Win8 users until someone a bit more technical points it out.

Going off on another feature, since multimon was brought up yesterday, lots of people want the start screen to be able to take up all of the screens (as an option) and not just limited to one of them. Also they would like to be able to have different metro apps per screen as well, right now it seems like metro app(s) only open in the monitor you have set to open the start screen itself though you can pretty easily move the open app around.

I get your point :)

About multi-monitor metro apps/start screen, I don't think that it's going to happen, especially for apps. Because having 2 monitors doesn't makes it a single but larger rectangle. If the screen are different, it can do something like this :

----------------------

| |

| | -------------------

| | | |

|_____________| |___________|

(yes bad drawning is bad!)

Inside Windows CP, you can set where the corners match, it's not going to do a single rectangle, software wise. Hence it will be a NIGHTMARE for devs to supports this :D

edit : Neowin sux at matching post preview & final result :(

It'd also be easier for users to figure out, I question how many will find out about zoom out even when it's got it's own button in the UI.

Zoom isn't just for Start though, semantic zoom is meant to be a standard interface convention for all Metro style apps. So you should only have to learn it in one place and then use it anywhere, at least that's the hope.

Zoom isn't just for Start though, semantic zoom is meant to be a standard interface convention for all Metro style apps. So you should only have to learn it in one place and then use it anywhere, at least that's the hope.

That sounds good but have you seen an app yet that uses it? Outside of the start screen I don't know of any app that does.

I've seen most apps where it applies use it - Bing Weather/Finance, Photos, Store, etc. They don't have the button in the corner because the app frameworks haven't been updated to match the Start screen yet - they seem to be about a milestone behind in general - but you can do it with touch or via Ctrl-scroll.

Ribbon is actually good, metro is not, I wonder how one would fit all the functions of Autocad/Catia/Solidworks... into big tiles. A hint: Office 15 still retains ribbon albeit simplified interface... because that interface is really good, no metro tiles for office.

Answer: They don't. The desktop and desktop software are still going to be supported and encouraged for many uses, especially big complex productivity software. Microsoft aren't intending everything to become Metro, and all applications to become Metro applications.

Out of the first 2 dates Caputex makes the most sense instead of E3 (though they might show something at E3). Now if it's the 8th like Paul thinks then, I dunno, maybe MS will have it's own little Win8 event? It'd be pretty short notice, the press would probably have invites already, or maybe they'll go out a week ahead of time? Only time will tell though, either way June is going to be one busy month for MS in general. There's Xbox stuff at E3, Win8 RP, VS stuff as well iirc, and towards the end you have the Windows Phone 8 developer event on the 20th which should be huge.

I'm hoping there'll be an easy upgrade route from the Consumer Preview to the Release Preview, and not specifically

need a clean install. I've got the W8CP running almost exactly how I like it now. I'd rather not have to go all the way

back to square one, having to reinstall all my programs/apps, and reconfigure all my custom settings!

I'm hoping there'll be an easy upgrade route from the Consumer Preview to the Release Preview, and not specifically

need a clean install. I've got the W8CP running almost exactly how I like it now. I'd rather not have to go all the way

back to square one, having to reinstall all my programs/apps, and reconfigure all my custom settings!

According to MS FAQ for WCP, you can upgrade from XP/Vista/Win7/WDP to WCP, I guess there is a good chance for upgrade to WRP

. http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/faq screen982.jpg

However, forget about the win7 trick of editing sources\cversion.ini, it's a dead-end for win8

screen986.jpg

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Posts

    • I'm still on Windows 10 22H2 because I didn't want to deal with all the issues in Windows 11, so I waited almost a week before installing the latest Patch Tuesday update (KB5094127), I went ahead and did it, and it was a huge mistake—ever since then, my File Explorer has seen a performance drop of about 30% when transferring large files... Once again, Microsoft has outdone itself! This update cannot be uninstalled, either through the Control Panel (via Settings) or by accessing Advanced Startup Options. The only possible alternative would be to use system restore points, but I’d have to reinstall all app and driver updates (and there’s no guarantee it would work). Or there’s the “nuclear option” of a in-place repair without losing files or apps, but even then, all my customizations would be lost! Microsoft just can’t help but mess everything up! Way to go, Microsoft! But I still don’t want your c****y Windows 11!
    • Microsoft: Windows 11 could finally solve a major issue across AMD, Nvidia, and Intel GPUs by Sayan Sen While Microsoft has been trying to improve it, Windows 11 is definitely not flawless, as even today some issues are taking a year to publicly acknowledge. However, one area of trouble that may finally see much better results soon is graphics driver crashes. Work on graphics driver timeouts, also called Timeout and Detection Recovery (TDR), is not new as the latest WDDM 3.2 also has specific improvements regarding it. Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM) version 3.2 is supported on Windows 11 24H2 and 25H2. However, with the upcoming version 26H2, TDR crash diagnosis could go to the next level as Microsoft is introducing a new DirectX 12 API feature called "DirectX Dump Files". Similar to how system memory dump files work when a system crashes or freezes or encounters any such major issue, DirectX Dump Files (DDF) will essentially record a snapshot of the GPU execution right at the moment a graphics-related crash or hang or freeze occurs, so that developers can better understand and diagnoze these TDR and timeout detection errors. The dump will be available as a .dxdmp file for analysis and it will be a comprehensive dump file generated with detailed insights about the hardware, drivers, Windows, as well as the affected application. This should be another welcome change in this department. Earlier at GDC 2026, when the technology was first debuted, Microsoft had shared more details regarding it. The company had explained how DDF is designed to gather data from every layer of the graphics stack into a single file, eliminating the need for developers to manually correlate logs from multiple tools. As mentioned above, the dump can contain a lot of useful details like GPU hardware state information such as register values, shader program counters, page fault virtual addresses, shader memory data, and command buffers. Alongside that, it also captures DirectX runtime and kernel information, including D3D objects, pipeline state objects, device error data, adapter details, and CPU call stacks. Microsoft says the feature has been built around two primary use cases: retail device removals and local device removals. The former allows developers to collect crash information from end users' systems in the field, while the latter helps QA teams and developers investigate issues on test machines. Developers will also be able to include up to 2 MB of custom application data through new D3D12 APIs, providing additional context for troubleshooting. In addition, Microsoft is introducing three dump collection modes ranging from zero-overhead capture, which has no runtime performance impact on supported hardware, to higher-detail modes that collect more vendor-specific debugging data. On compatible Tier 2 hardware, zero-overhead dumps will be enabled by default, meaning developers may begin receiving useful crash diagnostics without making any code changes. The table below explains the three tiers: Tier Description NO_OVERHEAD Enables crash capture with no runtime cost and is suitable for broad deployment MEDIUM_OVERHEAD Provides a balance, capturing additional diagnostic data with moderate impact HIGH_OVERHEAD Collects the most detailed GPU and driver state available, enabling deeper investigation at the cost of higher runtime overhead In terms of availability, the company expects broader release to be around the fall of 2026, which should be right around the time when Windows 11 version 26H2 lands. Right now, DirectX Dump Files are available as a preview and currently, only AMD has the compatible AgilitySDK Developer Preview driver version 26.10.07.02. You can find the official announcement post here on Microsoft's website.
    • And with SO much better perf than the laggy mess that is Files.
    • BrowserOS 0.46.0 by Razvan Serea BrowserOS is a free, open-source Chromium-based browser that runs AI agents natively, offering a smarter, more productive browsing experience. It supports Chrome extensions and integrates AI agents to automate tasks, fill forms, and streamline workflows. Your data stays on your computer: you can use your own API keys or run local models via Ollama, making it a privacy-first alternative to tools like Perplexity, Comet, or Dia. With built-in productivity tools and app integrations, BrowserOS boosts efficiency while keeping control firmly in your hands. Being Chromium-based, BrowserOS lets you effortlessly import your bookmarks, passwords, and Chrome extensions in just a few clicks. BrowserOS works with OpenAI GPT models, Anthropic Claude, Google Gemini, and local AI models via Ollama or LMStudio. You can use your own API keys and effortlessly switch between providers. BrowserOS Agent Your AI productivity assistant that organizes and manages your browsing effortlessly Quickly list, group, or close tabs Save and resume browsing sessions Search your history and organize bookmarks Switch instantly to the tab you need BrowserOS Navigator – Automate web tasks with ease Navigate websites and search automatically Interact with pages without manual effort Handle repetitive tasks in seconds What makes BrowserOS special Feels like home - same familiar interface as Google Chrome, works with all your extensions AI agents that run on YOUR browser, not in the cloud Privacy first - bring your own keys or use local models with Ollama. Your browsing history stays on your computer Open source and community driven - see exactly what's happening under the hood MCP store to one-click install popular MCPs and use them directly in the browser bar (coming soon) Built-in AI ad blocker that works across more scenarios! BrowserOS 0.46.0 changelog: Run Claude Code & Codex right in your browser — We've extended the agent harness to bring full coding agents into BrowserOS. Claude Code and Codex now come bundled and plug straight into the assistant, so you can drive your browser with the agent — and the subscription — you already use. A brand new experience — A redesigned new tab, a calmer composer, and a rebuilt command center for switching between agents. The whole assistant is cleaner, faster to reach, and easier to live in. New MCP tools — We rebuilt the browser tool surface from the ground up — a tighter, more reliable set of tools for agents to drive the browser. Plus one-click install of BrowserOS as an MCP server into the agents you already run, with automatic URL sync. Chromium 148 — Updated to the latest Chromium base with all recent upstream fixes and security patches. Streamlined — We've pulled back a few features that weren't getting much use — Skills, Soul, and Memory — so we can focus and ship better versions of them soon. Download: BrowserOS 0.46.0 | 181.0 MB (Open Source) Download: BrowserOS for macOS | 485.0 MB Links: BrowserOS Homepage | Github | Screenshot Get alerted to all of our Software updates on Twitter at @NeowinSoftware
  • Recent Achievements

    • First Post
      BizSAR earned a badge
      First Post
    • Week One Done
      Jordan Smith earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Reacting Well
      BizSAR earned a badge
      Reacting Well
    • First Post
      AndreaB earned a badge
      First Post
    • Week One Done
      Huge Trailer earned a badge
      Week One Done
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      596
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      188
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      80
    4. 4
      Michael Scrip
      76
    5. 5
      Steven P.
      67
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!