BUILD 2012: Windows 8 off to roaring start...

[Brandon H Supervisor]

The button you are referring to is NOT the Start Button people are used to and, sir, there is NO start button on the classic desktop. The button you are referring to as the Start button, when clicked from the classic desktop, takes you to that ridiculous Metro UI.

it's still the "START" button, as it takes you to the "START" screen (formally known as the start menu)

sorry, but you can no deny the facts, just because it's not implemented in the exact same way doesn't mean it's not there

[jakem1]

Why does every Windows 8 thread have to degenerate into the same boring moaning about the Start Screen?

[PGHammer]

Nice to see a shift in MS approach. Even pirated copies of Windows7 can be upgraded for 40$ (iv tested myself) and you get a very own brand new Windows 8 Pro key. Its a fair price for common home Windows users, finally a realistic price for an upgrade.

FACT: Most people will buy Windows for the first time with this new realistic philosophy, its fantastic to see this new Microsoft rising again for the battle.

Let me be clear that i didnt buy Windows8 for the extra features because personlly i dont see that it does bring anything better than Windows7 but just in case its a cheap and clean upgrade.

That is four million UPGRADES. And it took less than a week. (Windows 8 has been available retail and online all of six days as of today.)

And that is despite the most radical UI change in practice (as opposed to principle) since Windows 9x and the birth of the Start menu.

That rather large number doesn't include new hardware sales/bundles. It doesn't include WindowsRT or SurfaceRT. It likely doesn't include a lot of the tech-heavy mid-Atlantic states or Northeast, which have been sat on by Sandy since basically the weekend.

Doesn't look anything remotely like "failure" to me.

[PGHammer]

Do you honestly believe what you're saying? It's sounding a bit delusional if you ask me..

He's a firm believer in the delusion that if it comes from the anti-change crowd, it must be so. (That would also explain his insistence that President Obama will be re-elected; voting for Mitt Romney represents a change.)

Yes - Windows 8 IS a change; however, despite how radical the UI change is, how radical is it for desktop users in reality?

Unless you're absolutely married to the Start menu (and you'd be surprised how FEW users actually are - even if not especially technically savvy users) the change is less jarring than you'd think.

That's where things will REALLY out - perception vs. reality.

[ArialBlue]

The new start menu is WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY better then the old "I can't find sh**" Start Menu.

Stop Whining.

You are like one of those people who can't drive automatic because you think it is harder than manual.

[Buttus]

my question about windows 8 is, can you run two programs in windows, side by side, each taking up half of the screen?

for work, i need 2 windows (actually 3 or 4, because i use 2 monitors, 2 side by side on each monitor) next to each other...

for home, it's not such a big deal, as long as you can alt-tab through different running full-screen programs...

[bandit_liberty_rumble]

my question about windows 8 is, can you run two programs in windows, side by side, each taking up half of the screen?

Desktop apps? Yes. Metro apps? No.