win8.1 Your observations on Windows 8.1 update 1 (a.k.a. Feature Pack)

[HawkMan]

It's probably intended because if you have them on the task bar you're probably a desktop user.

I never really use any metro apps right now so. Maybe when mail gets the ability to show all inboxes in one unified view like WLM.

[LaP]

we've also noticed that on desktop PCs without a touchscreen, pictures open by default in the Windows Photo Viewer, while audio files open by default in Windows Media Player. Pictures used to open in the Metro-style Photos app, and audio files used to open in the Metro-style Music app. On machines with a touchscreen, content opens in the Metro-style apps.

 

This should have been this way from the beginning and should be this way until we can run metro apps in a window and until the metro apps are greatly improved functionality wise. The photo app is a joke if you compare it to Photo Gallery. The video app is laughable. The mail app doesn't support pop3 for those who need it (and please i know pop3 ***** bla bla bla as far as i know it still works and it is still used by many consumers).

 

I don't mind the metro ui. I even think it is nice and i sorta like the change. But on a big high resolution monitor having to always work in fullscreen is simply not functional. Anyone saying otherwise is drinking some serious kool-aid.

 

If i'm in the middle of some coding and i want to open a video in the default viewer or a skype chat window i don't want it to be opened in fullscreen and hide everything i was doing. I have more than enough screen real estate to continue coding while watching the video on top in a small corner. Snapping apps is ok but it has its limits on a desktop. The more laughable is the fullcreen calculator. Really Microsoft ...

 

If Microsoft wants to fully blend the desktop and the metro experience together the metro apps will need to be a lot better, users will need to be able to run them in a window, microsoft will need to find a way to show the live tile info on the desktop (via systray or taskbar icons) and finally the ui will need to be adjusted depending on the input you are using (touch or mouse).

 

With a mouse the menu needs to be displayed close to where the user clicked. It has nothing to do with wanting change or not. It's not functional while using a mouse to click in the middle of the screen and to navitage to the bottom of it to select a menu item. Also it's nice that i can pin Skype RT to my taskbar but i still need to open it fullscreen to change my status (really Microsoft ...). I can't simply right click a taskbar icon to change the status of Skype RT via a menu like I can do with the Skype Desktop app. Same with the mail RT app.

[Kyang]

It's probably intended because if you have them on the task bar you're probably a desktop user.

I never really use any metro apps right now so. Maybe when mail gets the ability to show all inboxes in one unified view like WLM.

 

I am on a Desktop, but all I really want is the pop up Taskbar (Because that's just so much easier to switch between apps with, both Desktop and Modern.) while still having the Start Screen as the primary interface.  I didn't customize and set up Live tiles with running updates just to have them hidden away behind a useless, empty, desktop wallpaper that I'm shoved back into just because some apps I use are on the desktop.  :(  .

 

Would have been just fine if they could show desktop apps in the metro task switcher.

[DConnell Member]

I am on a Desktop, but all I really want is the pop up Taskbar (Because that's just so much easier to switch between apps with, both Desktop and Modern.) while still having the Start Screen as the primary interface.  I didn't customize and set up Live tiles with running updates just to have them hidden away behind a useless, empty, desktop wallpaper that I'm shoved back into just because some apps I use are on the desktop.  :(  .

 

Would have been just fine if they could show desktop apps in the metro task switcher.

 

This x1000.

[+DonC Subscriber²]

Internet Explorer has some improvements.

* WebGL is much better supported.

* It appears that the UI thread is not frozen when loading the main document. In fact, I've not been able to get the UI to lock up at all.

* Rendering is quicker. Holding down the space bar or using 'Home' and 'End' now manages to render during the whole scroll operation.

[lmaobox]

After installing Update 1 I can't longer get "Open command window here" in any "Libraries" folder and any subfolder there, for example when I do shift + right click in Libraries\Documents I no longer get "Open command window here", I had to move my projects outsite of Libraries folder because I use this feature quite often, can anybody else confirm this?

[Night Prowler]

After installing Update 1 I can't longer get "Open command window here" in any "Libraries" folder and any subfolder there, for example when I do shift + right click in Libraries\Documents I no longer get "Open command window here", I had to move my projects outsite of Libraries folder because I use this feature quite often, can anybody else confirm this?

 

Trying it directly to the Documents folder, there is no Open CMD option, but in the sub folders thre are.

[McKay]

How am I troll baiting?

 

It's inconceivable to him that anyone could possibly dislike the changes made, so he thinks you posted your opinion purely to cause a flame war.

[duoi Veteran]

It's inconceivable to him that anyone could possibly dislike the changes made, so he thinks you posted your opinion purely to cause a flame war.

 

Then its worth clarifying that I'm a huge fan of Windows 8/.1, but this latest update makes me want to claw my eyes out. I liked the two separate interfaces, but now they've been forcefully merged into this Frankenstein's monster hybrid that sucks at both environments. 

[George P Global Moderator]

You can, mostly undo all the changes in update 1 and go back to before, UI wise.  Though some things will still be there if you're using a mouse, like the right click menus in the start screen or the app title bar though honestly I don't see how that's a problem since, like the taskbar, it goes away unless you take your mouse all the way to the top etc.

 

Anyways, when they have windowed store apps in the next update I'm sure that if you set them NOT to be windowed that this mouse cross-over stuff they added now won't be there because at that point they'll know that you want them to run in their touch form when you have them take up the whole screen.  That's what I expect anyways, we'll know in 5-6 months or so.

[xrobwx71]

Windows Media Player is largely despised - even in Windows 7; in fact, it has been largely despised since XP.  Name one group of post-XP users tha still uses WMP as tthe default for ANY file format - audio OR video.  The same applies to Photo Viewer - or even MSPAINT (both of which are also still around, and have gone nowhere).  I still use both, because they are very simple, and thus quite suitable for simple tasks (primarily screen-captures and editing thereof - largely cropping in Paint's case) - however, while I WAS a heavy user of WMP with XP, that was only until I could replace it with a lighter application that suits my needs better (and wound up replacing it with multiple applications, because, as much as I wish, there is no single application that suits my needs for every audio and video file).  The ModernUI versions exist BECAUSE the desktop applications are so heavily despised.

I used winamp through the 9x years and some WMP. Now i use VLC or iTunes.

I've updated, and all of those open normally to the right for me. :s

Does it do that on any account?

Same here...to the right.

[Dot Matrix]

Just for the record, Microsoft, "Windows Store apps" is a HORRIBLE name.

[Louisifer]

Anyone know how to stop the screen edge catching the mouse when switching between monitors? It only happens while the mouse is moving slow between screens, which I apparently do a lot and its starting to get annoying >.<

[zhangm Supervisor]

Anyone know how to stop the screen edge catching the mouse when switching between monitors? It only happens while the mouse is moving slow between screens, which I apparently do a lot and its starting to get annoying >.<

 

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\MouseCornerClipLength

Set to 0; default is 6.

[Louisifer]

Thanks, that worked perfectly :D

[ViperAFK]

For me its been like, Windows 8.1 update 1 (a.k.a. for dummies). The power and search icon, the close / minimize buttons on metro apps, Metro apps on the taskbar (they were efficiently placed for toggle on the left hand top click) . Its a mess (for me).

It makes a lot more sense on the desktop to have a unified task switcher, having the seperate one was messier.

 

The left hand switcher makes sense on a tablet, and its still used if you are using a touch device. But on a desktop it makes sense to keep everything integrated with the superbar, the changes are mostly for the best IMO (although it still needs some work it feels like they rushed the update a bit).

[JayPhi]

Several things I've noticed so far:

 

- When your default browser was set to any other browser than Internet Explorer, for example Firefox (in my case), and you want to open the Modern IE it will open the desktop version instead. Even in the browser option you couldn't specify which version you want to set as default, because it was greyed out. Only after making your Internet Explorer your default browser you could open Modern IE and set the option.

 

- Another thing was that some standard picture files, like jpg, png, tif, bmp, was reset to open with the standard Windows picture viewer instead of what I had as my default viewer (IrfanView).

 

- The taskbar in the Modern environment actually only re-appears if you make a swipe move further down after your mouse pointer reached the edge already (tested with a mousepad, and Lenovo's red mouse stick), even with the mouse, you kinda have to move the mouse pointer further down as well. If you only drag the mouse to the bottom edged it won't do nothing, make sure you move your mouse a little further down for the taskbar to re-appear. I'm not sure if this is the way it was before but i was wondering why in some cases the taskbar wasn't showing up and in some cases it did.

 

- Another small change was that I had my Documents folder added to Favorites on the left side of the explorer pre-update, after the update it was gone.

[DConnell Member]

It makes a lot more sense on the desktop to have a unified task switcher, having the seperate one was messier.

 

The left hand switcher makes sense on a tablet, and its still used if you are using a touch device. But on a desktop it makes sense to keep everything integrated with the superbar, the changes are mostly for the best IMO (although it still needs some work it feels like they rushed the update a bit).

 

I'd prefer the left hand switcher be the default. It makes no sense to make the taskbar the default and have it cover up some of the app controls. It also just looks plain ugly superimposed on the Metro side.

[ViperAFK]

Several things I've noticed so far:

 

- When your default browser was set to any other browser than Internet Explorer, for example Firefox (in my case), and you want to open the Modern IE it will open the desktop version instead. Even in the browser option you couldn't specify which version you want to set as default, because it was greyed out. Only after making your Internet Explorer your default browser you could open Modern IE and set the option.

This has been the case since windows 8.0 afaik...

[HawkMan]

You can, mostly undo all the changes in update 1 and go back to before, UI wise.  Though some things will still be there if you're using a mouse, like the right click menus in the start screen or the app title bar though honestly I don't see how that's a problem since, like the taskbar, it goes away unless you take your mouse all the way to the top etc.

 

Anyways, when they have windowed store apps in the next update I'm sure that if you set them NOT to be windowed that this mouse cross-over stuff they added now won't be there because at that point they'll know that you want them to run in their touch form when you have them take up the whole screen.  That's what I expect anyways, we'll know in 5-6 months or so.

I wouldn't bet on it, some mouse users like to run their programs maximized, and the title are is probably how you make them windowed anyway

[George P Global Moderator]

I wouldn't bet on it, some mouse users like to run their programs maximized, and the title are is probably how you make them windowed anyway

 

I mean a default setting for store apps only, desktop win32/WPF apps would work the same way they've always worked.  Basically a setting that says, "show store apps windowed"  or "show store apps in full screen", as options.

[Dan~]

I was massively let down, after thinking the start menu was going to return.

 

All the news articles especially neowin's said "future update" well 4 days late Update 1 come out, which was a future update in that respect.

 

Only thing I care about in the new update is the power button of the start screen

[bandit_liberty_rumble]

I like how MS seems to acknowledge that certain UI elements should remain visible on screen so that you don't have to constantly right-click, e.g. the address/tab bar in IE or the playback control bar in the Music app

[Night Prowler]

Oh thank goodness. I was dreading having to do manual data backups for OneDrive.

Using Skydrive I updated and added files. I had to reimage to the previous day, and all the files added, and changed To the skydrive folders were lost. Is this still how OneDrive works?

 

If this is the case, what's the best solution to capture the current Onedrive's added, and changed files?

[Rickkins]

I installed it yesterday, and it did not screw up any of my settings. :)