The direction Microsoft took with Windows 8  

855 members have voted

  1. 1. Do you like the direction Microsoft took with Windows 8?

    • Yes I love it, i'll be upgrading
    • No I hate it, i'll stick with Windows 7
    • It doesn't bother me
    • I will use Windows 8 with a start menu hack program


Recommended Posts

Due to Metro, Windows 8 Is basically a crippled version of Windows 7.

But why?

You still have everything from Win7 and on top of that we get a whole new app platform that creates a consistent UI for the PC/tablet/phone

What's not to like?

Who says they're not? I guarantee Windows 9 concepts are already on the board, and a dedicated team of developers are weighing options.

How do you know the next version of Windows will be called Windows 9? It may have a different name. Andrea Borman.

Would you feel better if he would call it Windows.next?

Well there was Windows NT(I don't know what NT stands for,) then there was Windows 95,made in 1995,I presume. And then Windows 98,made in 1998,Windows 2000,Windows ME,made at the end of 2000.

And then there was Windows XP made in 2001.But instead of calling it Windows 2001,they called it Windows XP. Then came Windows Vista, then Windows 7. Because I presume it's the 7th edition of Windows or the 7th modern edition. And now there is Windows 8. Andrea Borman.

Well there was Windows NT(I don't know what NT stands for,) then there was Windows 95,made in 1995,I presume. And then Windows 98,made in 1998,Windows 2000,Windows ME,made at the end of 2000.

And then there was Windows XP made in 2001.But instead of calling it Windows 2001,they called it Windows XP. Then came Windows Vista, then Windows 7. Because I presume it's the 7th edition of Windows or the 7th modern edition. And now there is Windows 8. Andrea Borman.

Stoffel's point (as I understood it) was that it really doesn't matter what they call it - for now we're referring to it as Windows 9, and all of us understand that that means the version of windows that comes after Windows 8. We all know that different versions of Windows have used different naming conventions

How do you know the next version of Windows will be called Windows 9? It may have a different name. Andrea Borman.

I don't. But you can pick from any number of names for the next version of Windows. Coming from Windows 7 and now Windows 8, Windows 9 just "fits".

How do you know the next version of Windows will be called Windows 9? It may have a different name. Andrea Borman.

That's just stating the obvious. As we're not psychic and cannot predict the next name of Windows if it deviates from the current tradition it's entirely reasonable to refer to it as Windows 9. If and when a new name is announced people can change how they refer to it. Obviously nobody here has a clue what the next version of Windows will be called, especially when Microsoft probably hasn't even decided that itself. Happy now?

I'm already using Windows 8 as my default operating system. I don't like all the changes - especially the implementation of Metro - but overall I consider it an improvement over Windows 7 and therefore "like it". But I really hope that Microsoft responds to the criticism over the design decisions for the next version of Windows, especially relating to how Metro and the desktop operate and integrate.

no grudge toward windows 8, but is mean for touch device and not for desktop.

No it's not. It's meant to be used on desktops and laptops and tablets. Not JUST tablets, and not JUST touch screens.

For us power users, nothing has changed. We still have our powerful desktop, and we simply have a better start menu (which displays more search results and has a "All Programs" list that is actually functional)

  • Like 1

I personally love Windows 8... but I have just gone back to Windows 7 because of the lack of compatibility for programmes I use everyday. For example, the installation for Sony Vegas didn't run, and I couldn't mount some of my games with PowerISO. Hopefully, they will fix this in the future and this won't be another major OS failure like Windows Vista...

Of course, they wouldn't run. The proof is in the pudding! Windows 8 is a tablet-centric OS. Why would you need to run PowerISO on a tablet?

If I can get rid of "WinRT / Metro" and use a Start Menu hack, I will use Windows 8 for the desktop enhancements. Otherwise, I will stick with Windows 7. I don't give a f*** about WinRT, and I don't need a fullscreen colorful launcher to run useless apps like Angry Birds on my Desktop computer.

In fact, I still don't understand the advantage of using WinRT apps on a desktop computer. Most of the time, the website is a better choice than the WinRT app. For example, the Netflix app... the website works well, why would I bother using a fullscreen ugly app when I can simply open a new tab in my browser?!

If I can get rid of "WinRT / Metro" and use a Start Menu hack, I will use Windows 8 for the desktop enhancements. Otherwise, I will stick with Windows 7. I don't give a f*** about WinRT, and I don't need a fullscreen colorful launcher to run useless apps like Angry Birds on my Desktop computer.

In fact, I still don't understand the advantage of using WinRT apps on a desktop computer. Most of the time, the website is a better choice than the WinRT app. For example, the Netflix app... the website works well, why would I bother using a fullscreen ugly app when I can simply open a new tab in my browser?!

The fact you think WinRT is just capable of angry birds type apps demonstrates how out of touch you really are, and therefore renders your opinion entirely worthless.

I am ultimately ambivalent about Metro on the desktop. While I understand that this part of a larger move by Microsoft to unify interfaces between devices, the current implementation on the desktop leaves much to be desired. For example, is a file manager even available as a Metro app yet?

The fact you think WinRT is just capable of angry birds type apps demonstrates how out of touch you really are, and therefore renders your opinion entirely worthless.

The point is: What can WinRT do that we can't already do? Netflix application? There's a website. Mail application? There's Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, etc. Yelp application? The website works pretty well. IMDb app? Website. Weather app? There's tons and tons of websites...

WinRT doesn't bring anything new that we can't already do on a desktop PC, in a modern browser like Firefox or Chrome...

Stop drinking the Microsoft Koolaid for 10 minutes, prove me wrong and show me only ONE "must-have" WinRT app I MUST have on my desktop PC! I'll say it again: WinRT apps are dumbed down versions of already existing apps, or simplified apps that could very well run in a Chrome/Firefox tab.

The point is: What can WinRT do that we can't already do? Netflix application? There's a website. Mail application? There's Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, etc. Yelp application? The website works pretty well. IMDb app? Website. etc.

WinRT doesn't bring anything new that we can't already do on a desktop PC, in a modern browser like Firefox or Chrome...

Prove me wrong and show me only ONE "must-have" WinRT app!

There's also one other big selling point for me. When you do most of those things in a desktop app like a browser it doesn't take your entire screen over.

The point is: What can WinRT do that we can't already do? Netflix application? There's a website. Mail application? There's Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, etc. Yelp application? The website works pretty well. IMDb app? Website. Weather app? There's tons and tons of websites...

WinRT doesn't bring anything new that we can't already do on a desktop PC, in a modern browser like Firefox or Chrome...

Stop drinking the Microsoft Koolaid for 10 minutes, prove me wrong and show me only ONE "must-have" WinRT app, for a desktop PC

what can iOS apps do that we can't already do? Netflix app? theres a website (which would work on iOS if they allowed Silverlight). Mail application? there are mobile versions of Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, etc. Yelp app? The mobile website works pretty well. IMDb app? Mobile Website. Weather app? Bing Mobile!

iOS apps don't bring anything new that we can't already do on a mobile OS, in a modern mobile browser like Safari, Firefox, or Chrome.

(sorry if this sounds like trolling or something, this is just the best way I could think of to get my thoughts across)

  • Like 2

what can iOS do that we can't already do?

Your question doesn't make sense. You're talking about a phone/tablet OS running on a phone/tablet. I'm talking about an OS that wants you to run phone/tablet apps on a desktop PC.

Am I running iOS apps on my MacBook Pro? Nope...

Your question doesn't make sense. You're talking about a phone/tablet OS running on a phone/tablet. I'm talking about an OS that wants you to run phone/tablet apps on a desktop PC.

Am I running iOS apps on my MacBook Pro? Nope...

I disagree that Metro apps are "phone/tablet" apps, I use them quite successfully on my laptop daily. But, I do admit that I hadn't thought of your post in that manner until you corrected me. Sorry if I missed your point in the original comment (:

I disagree that Metro apps are "phone/tablet" apps, I use them quite successfully on my laptop daily. But, I do admit that I hadn't thought of your post in that manner until you corrected me. Sorry if I missed your point in the original comment (:

You can use Metro apps on a desktop for sure... but, and it's a personal opinion, I don't see the point considering html5 websites you can simply launch in a browser tab give the same result ;) (Netflix for example...)

I guess WinRT apps will get better in the future, but right now, I struggle to see what they can bring that a website using new technologies can't. When I launch a Metro app, the feeling I get is that I'm using a "metroized" html5 website.

I'm a fan of WinRT on tablets though... just can't figure what it brings to a desktop PC.

You can use Metro apps on a desktop for sure... but, and it's a personal opinion, I don't see the point considering html5 websites you can simply launch in a browser tab give the same result ;) (Netflix for example...) I guess WinRT apps will get better in the future, but right now, I struggle to see what they can bring that a website using new technologies can't. When I launch a Metro app, the feeling I get is that I'm using a "metroized" html5 website. I'm a fan of WinRT on tablets though... just can't figure what it brings to a desktop PC.

this is exactly in one regard how I feel about Metro apps. Some apps just don't work with Metro design, eg: photo manipulation, emulation or pretty much any serious or production software. Metro apps are just another Gadgets Titanic platform, a big fuss now, then everyone loses interest. A bunch of unneeded, duplicated functionality apps, which most of us can get from your browser. Metro apps waste screen estate and limit functionality. Who wants to swipe constantly to make toolbar and menu's for serious apps pop up in a productive environment.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Posts

    • @Sayan...I have defended you at various points as I hope you know. This headline however is utter trash...shame on you sir!
    • An actual cosmic "Eye of Sauron" had been looking straight at us all along by Sayan Sen Image by Kovin P. Vasquez via Pexels | Not representative An international team of researchers has solved a long-standing mystery surrounding a distant blazar known as PKS 1424+240, helping explain why it produces some of the brightest high-energy gamma rays and cosmic neutrinos ever observed despite appearing to have a relatively slow-moving jet. The findings were published on June 6 in Astronomy & Astrophysics Letters. The study addresses a broader challenge in astrophysics: understanding how extreme cosmic objects accelerate particles to very high energies and produce very high-energy (VHE) photons and neutrinos. PKS 1424+240 is located billions of light-years from Earth. It has attracted attention for years because it is both a powerful source of VHE gamma rays and the brightest known neutrino-emitting blazar in the sky, according to observations by the IceCube Neutrino Observatory. It is also associated with one of the strongest peaks in IceCube's nine-year neutrino sky map A blazar is a type of active galactic nucleus powered by a supermassive black hole that pulls in surrounding matter and launches jets of plasma moving close to the speed of light. What makes blazars unique is their orientation. One of their jets points almost directly toward Earth, making them appear exceptionally bright across the electromagnetic spectrum and allowing scientists to study some of the most extreme physical processes in the Universe. The scientists exclaimed it's like the 'Eye of Sauron' in deep space. Usually, the brightest gamma-ray-emitting blazars are expected to have jets that appear to move very quickly. However, radio observations of PKS 1424+240 suggested that its jet was moving much more slowly, creating a contradiction that became part of a long-running problem known as the "Doppler factor crisis." To investigate, researchers analyzed 15 years of observations from the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA), a network of 10 radio antennas spread across the continental United States, Hawaii and St. Croix. Using a technique called Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI), astronomers combine signals from widely separated radio telescopes to create a virtual Earth-sized telescope capable of revealing extremely fine details. The team combined 42 polarization-sensitive radio images collected between 2009 and 2025, creating a much deeper and more detailed view of the jet than had previously been possible. The observations were carried out as part of MOJAVE (Monitoring Of Jets in Active galactic nuclei with VLBA Experiments), a long-running program that studies the brightness, polarization and magnetic field structures of jets produced by active galaxies. The project aims to better understand how activity near supermassive black holes is linked to high-energy radiation and neutrino emission. “When we reconstructed the image, it looked absolutely stunning,” said Yuri Kovalev, lead author of the study and Principal Investigator of the European Research Council-funded MuSES project at the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy. “We have never seen anything quite like it — a near-perfect toroidal magnetic field with a jet, pointing straight at us.” The image revealed an unusual geometry. The researchers found that Earth lies almost directly in line with the jet, with a viewing angle of less than 0.6 degrees. In simple terms, astronomers are looking almost straight down the jet. This turned out to be the key to the mystery. Because the jet is aimed almost directly at Earth, a relativistic effect called Doppler boosting dramatically increases its apparent brightness. The study found that this effect boosts the emission by a factor of about 30 while also making the jet appear slower than it actually is. “This alignment causes a boost in brightness by a factor of 30 or more,” said Jack Livingston, a co-author at the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy. “At the same time, the jet appears to move slowly due to projection effects — a classic optical illusion.” The nearly head-on view also gave scientists a rare look at the jet's magnetic field. Using polarized radio signals, they detected a clear toroidal, or doughnut-shaped, magnetic field component. The observations suggest the jet carries an electric current and that its magnetic field helps launch, shape and stabilize the flow of plasma. Researchers believe this magnetic structure may also play a key role in accelerating particles to energies high enough to produce both gamma rays and neutrinos. “Solving this puzzle confirms that active galactic nuclei with supermassive black holes are not only powerful accelerators of electrons, but also of protons — the origin of the observed high-energy neutrinos,” Kovalev said. The research was conducted under the MuSES (Multi-messenger Studies of Energetic Sources) project, which investigates how active galactic nuclei accelerate particles and generate different cosmic signals, including light and neutrinos. Scientists say understanding how protons are accelerated and linked to neutrino production remains one of the major unanswered questions in astrophysics. The findings help explain why some blazars can appear to have slow jets while still producing extremely bright high-energy emissions. More broadly, the study strengthens the link between relativistic jets, magnetic fields, gamma rays and high-energy neutrinos. Researchers say the results provide new clues about how some of the Universe's most powerful natural particle accelerators work and offer important insights for multimessenger astronomy, which combines different types of cosmic signals to study extreme events in space. Source: European Research Council, EDP Sciences This article was generated with some help from AI and reviewed by an editor. Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, this material is used for the purpose of news reporting. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing.
    • Gotenks98 is right... Outlook (new) is absolute trash. Doesn't Mozilla have an Enterprise Version of Firebird?
    • Microsoft Weekly: Surface Laptop Ultra, Windows 11 context menus, Build 2026 recap, and more by Taras Buria This week's news recap is here, with Microsoft announcing the new Surface Laptop Ultra, fresh chips from NVIDIA for Windows on ARM, a no-build week, fixes for Windows 11's context menus, gaming news, reviews, and more. Quick links: Windows 10 and 11 Windows Insider Program Updates are available Reviews are in Gaming news Great deals to check Windows 11 and Windows 10 Here, we talk about everything happening around Microsoft's latest operating system in the Stable channel and preview builds: new features, removed features, controversies, bugs, interesting findings, and more. And, of course, you may find a word or two about older versions. At Computex 2026, together with NVIDIA, Microsoft announced the Surface Laptop Ultra, its most powerful laptop to date, powered by NVIDIA's RTX Spark processor. Details about this computer are currently scarce, as Microsoft has only revealed certain parts of its specs. So far, we know that the computer has a 15-inch mini-LED display, a rich set of ports, a powerful processor, and all-day battery life. It also comes with a new wallpaper, which you can already download here in full resolution. The Surface Laptop Studio is not the only NVIDIA-powered Surface, which Microsoft unveiled this week. At Build 2026, the company also debuted the Surface RTX Spark Dev Box, an odd-shaped desktop with a 20-core NVIDIA Grace CPU and an NVIDIA Blackwell RTX GPU with 6,144 CUDA cores and fifth-generation Tensor Cores with FP4 precision, connected via the NVIDIA NVLink-C2C chip-to-chip interconnect for high performance. According to Microsoft, it can run models with up to 120 billion parameters locally without relying on cloud GPU infrastructure. These two new Surface devices are likely to cost quite a lot, and for those who need a more affordable device, Microsoft is preparing the next-gen Qualcomm-powered Surface Pro and Surface Laptop. This week, details about these two devices leaked in plenty of detail. Other announcements at Build 2026 include the following: Microsoft unveils new security tools for IT admins and developers building AI products Microsoft announces Scout, an OpenClaw-powered personal agent for enterprise customers Microsoft unveils MAI-Thinking-1 reasoning and MAI-Code-1 coding models Microsoft announced a new Windows 11 native command-line utility Microsoft unveils Majorana 2 quantum chip, accelerating commercial timeline to 2029 Microsoft believes that AI agents will eventually replace apps through Project Solara Microsoft introduces Web IQ, a Bing-powered search system built for AI agents Last week, Microsoft released a new Experimental build, which introduced a major Start menu upgrade. It now lets you toggle off specific parts of the menu without affecting other features, resize the menu, and hide additional UI elements. We published a closer look here, so if you want to know what Microsoft is cooking without enrolling in the Insider program and installing unstable builds, check it out. Speaking of new features, many users are very annoyed about the way Microsoft delivers them. Recently, a frustrated user shared their experience with gradual rollouts, and even Microsoft engineers admitted there is a flaw in the system that prevents new features from applying properly. One of those new features includes the ability to uninstall AI models in Windows 11 with a single click. Windows 11 is finally getting fixes for its slow context menus. Marcus Ash from Microsoft confirmed that the company is working on fixing Windows 11's context menus. Reworked context menus are going to be faster, simpler by default, and "configurable to what you use most." According to Marcus, Microsoft will share more details soon. Windows Insider Program Windows 11 preview builds, released last week, are now available for download as standalone ISO files. These days, Microsoft regularly pushes new images, allowing users to clean-install its recent Windows 11 preview builds faster and easier. If you want to try the latest Windows 11 features without jumping through the Windows Update hoops, get those new images here. Sadly, Microsoft did not release new Windows 11 preview builds this week. Come back next time. Updates are available This section covers software, firmware, and other notable updates (released and coming soon) delivering new features, security fixes, improvements, patches, and more from Microsoft and third parties. Microsoft is preparing new features for Teams. Later this month, the messenger will receive a new download manager with auto-dismissing notifications, reducing clutter and making the overall experience less annoying when dealing with downloads. Mozilla released Firefox 151.0.3, a new bug-fixing update for the browser. It is a small release, which fixes problems with pasting into text fields and the oversized VPN button on the toolbar. The update is now available for all users in the Release channel. Here are other updates and releases you may find interesting: VS Code 1.123 introduces massive upgrades for persistent AI developer workflows Microsoft OneDrive is getting a simple yet much-needed feature Microsoft faces heat after quietly blocking promised Office features on Apple systems Microsoft resumes forced Copilot app installation on some Windows PCs Browser vendors pen an open letter to Microsoft, saying "enough is enough" Here are the latest drivers and firmware updates released this week: AMD Radeon Software 26.6.1 with optimizations for F1 25: 2026 Season, World of Tanks: HEAT, and various bug fixes. Reviews are in Here is the hardware and software we reviewed this week Steven Parker dropped more mini PC reviews this week. GEEKOM Air12 2026 Edition is a low-power, affordable computer with an Intel Tiger Lake Pentium Gold processor, up to 16GB of memory, and 512GB of storage, costing just $349. It is light, quiet, energy efficient, and has modern ports on the front. However, the front-facing USB Type-C is data-only, and there are some quirks with the computer's memory, so check out the full review. The AMD RX 9070 GRE has been released worldwide, and we published a benchmark review comparing this powerful graphics card to the RX 9070 XT, 7800 XT, the NVIDIA RTX 5070, and RTX 4070. It has solid, balanced performance, plenty of RAM, and low temperatures, but watch out for mediocre ray tracing performance and not the best efficiency. Also, we reviewed the Cuktech 10 Ultra, a compact, high-power charger with four ports and a big display full of various stats. This tiny charger can pull nearly 120W and spread that power according to each connected device's needs. It also comes with a high-quality 240W cable, three power modes, and retractable prongs. The best part? It is quite affordable, just make sure you have an outlet placed in the right spot to benefit from the built-in display. On the gaming side Learn about upcoming game releases, Xbox rumors, new hardware, software updates, freebies, deals, discounts, and more. Do you remember the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally, Microsoft's first handheld console designed in partnership with ASUS? This week, ASUS revealed a new version of the device to celebrate twenty years of its Republic of Gamers brand. The new ROG Xbox Ally X20 features an OLED display, a transforming D-Pad, TMR sticks, and other changes. However, the chip inside the console is still the same. Forza Horizon 6 launched last month to critical acclaim, but the game will soon have a new rival made by those who used to work on Forza Horizon titles. Mike Brown from Maverick Games announced Clutch, an upcoming racing game with a story-driven campaign, deep car customization, and rich multiplayer. The game is coming to PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5 in Spring 2027. The next update for Minecraft now has a release date. This week, Mojang announced that Chaos Cubed will be available on June 16, 2026. In addition, Mojang published a teaser of the next Minecraft movie. A Minecraft Movie Squared has now been confirmed for a release somewhere in 2027. NVIDIA GeForce Now is getting 18 new games in June. Those include Jurassic World Evolution 3, Fatekeeper, GOALS, Gothic 1 Remake, NTE: Neverness to Everness, and more. If you are a Game Pass subscriber, you can also get new games soon: Persona 5 Royal, Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions, and more are coming to the service this month. Sumer Game Fest 2026 happened this week, where we saw plenty of new games, including Alien Isolation 2, Final Fantasy VII Remake Part 3, Gen Atlas from the Shadow of the Colossus creator, a new Cuphead game in 8-bit style, a new expansion for Mafia: The Old Country, and more. Finally, here are this week's Weekend PC Game Deals, full of discounts and the latest freebies from the Epic Games Store. Other gaming news includes the following: God of War Laufey announced, introducing Kratos' wife as the new protagonist Ori studio's No Rest for the Wicked 1.0 release and console plans announced Microsoft launches Godot Sample to streamline Xbox PC game development on the engine Great deals to check Every week, we cover many deals on different hardware and software. The following discounts are still available, so check them out. You might find something you want or need. Samsung 990 PRO SSD 2TB NVMe - $389.99 | 39% off Sonos Sub 4 - Wireless Subwoofer - $759 | 16% off Logitech MX Creative Console - $159.99 | 20% off This link will take you to other issues of the Microsoft Weekly series. You can also support Neowin by registering for a free member account or subscribing for extra member benefits, along with an ad-free tier option.
  • Recent Achievements

    • Reacting Well
      X-No-file earned a badge
      Reacting Well
    • One Month Later
      pestcontrol46 earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Week One Done
      pestcontrol46 earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Week One Done
      JKR earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Rookie
      moog19 went up a rank
      Rookie
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      510
    2. 2
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      273
    3. 3
      Skyfrog
      75
    4. 4
      +Edouard
      71
    5. 5
      FloatingFatMan
      68
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!