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

[gohpep]

The icons are still ass ugly. Seriously? This is extremely unprofessional looking.

 

Untitled-1.png

Maybe something is hiding behind the folder. :)

[Dot Matrix]

Also, Dot Matrix, I'm testing stuff in the registry, but it doesn't seem to be that simple, so I'm not sure if the team put in a registry entry for that, but I'll have to see if that will be included in the final release.

 

Is the titlebar really that disruptive on metro apps?

[+Eternal Tempest MVC]

Is the titlebar really that disruptive on metro apps?

 

With me personally, no.

It shows up then auto hides.

If you hover at the very top, it will show back up. 

[PUC_Snakeman]

Sigh.

 

Yeah, to close an app completely, you still have to drag it from the top to the bottom, then hold it at the bottom until it flips over, and then release. But you should ideally just let Microsoft tombstone the app when it deems it necessary, since that's better, performance-wise.

 

 

That doesn't close an app it restarts it.

http://winsupersite.com/windows-8/windows-81-tip-restart-app

 

To close an app, just drag it to the bottom and let go.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows-8/how-close-app

 

Did you actually try all of that, though.

I still claim that, if you drag it to the bottom, and wait until after it flips over, and only then release the mouse button.... it will close the app.

Watch Task Manager's Processes tab, and prove it to yourself!

 

Edit: I see you fessed up to your mistake. Good. But thanks for teaching me about restarting an app, by dragging it to the bottom, waiting for it to flip, then dragging it back upward. It's neat that you can restart an app this way, but very very unintuitive :)

[snaphat (Myles Landwehr) Member]

Did you actually try all of that, though.

I still claim that, if you drag it to the bottom, and wait until after it flips over, and only then release the mouse button.... it will close the app.

Watch Task Manager's Processes tab, and prove it to yourself!

the MS link he linked says exactly what you are saying:

 

To completely stop all processes associated with an app, drag the app to the bottom of the screen, and hold it there until the app flips over

 

In order to restart it, you drag it to the bottom, wait until it flips, and then drag it back up. Just dragging, waiting until flip, and letting go will close it.

[Obi-Wan Kenobi]

nvm, about to reinstall 7 to get rid of this laptop, and buying a new touch screen 8.1 machine.

[0nyX]

The icons are still ass ugly. Seriously? This is extremely unprofessional looking.

 

Untitled-1.png

I have lost hope about Microsoft even remotely thinking about changing all the vista - 7 icons. I am starting to believe that for some weird reason they do not know these icons still exist in their own OS.

[chrisj1968]

Does that work to remove the taskbar from metro apps?

 

actually after my install, all I had was the store icon on my taskbar. it is pinned just like others that you want to. So a simple "unpin from taskbar" was all it took.

 

only real noticable difference is IE11 is much faster, modern UI looks about the same. the desktop too. *shrugs*

[Andre S. Veteran]

And the very reason it IS that way is because there is no desktop application that does the job at the time. 

There is, like there always has. Windows Media Player is a desktop application, and Windows Photo Viewer is a desktop application. These still exist in Windows 8. There is no reason they shouldn't be the default to open files from the Desktop. I don't understand why you bring user choice in this: I'm talking about having sensible defaults.

[Andre S. Veteran]

In other words, you want to decrease choice by requiring a desktop applicaiton to be the default, as opposed to letting it be user-choice - as it always has been.

Um, defaults are defaults, i.e. how Windows behaves out of the box before user customization. No one's suggesting that customization be removed, simply that the defaults be different. You are completly missing the point.

[chrisj1968]

Um, defaults are defaults, i.e. how Windows behaves out of the box before user customization. No one's suggesting that customization be removed, simply that the defaults be different. You are completly missing the point.

 

strange because my system always alerts me to modern UI versions of apps that can open videos or photos and more.

[Denis W. Veteran]

The icons are still ass ugly. Seriously? This is extremely unprofessional looking.

 

Untitled-1.png

 

That surfaced starting in 8.1... I think?

[George P Global Moderator]

The icons always come up when a new version of Windows or a update to it comes out, they're never going to fix/change the icons in this type of update.  If they ever do it'll be with a major release like 9, but who knows? 

[theyarecomingforyou]

Um, defaults are defaults, i.e. how Windows behaves out of the box before user customization. No one's suggesting that customization be removed, simply that the defaults be different. You are completly missing the point.

Exactly. There was no reason for desktop users to be forced into the Metro environment with the bundled apps, not when desktop apps are better for most users. The converse is true for tablet users, where Metro is preferable to desktop apps.

[bandit_liberty_rumble]

No one's suggesting that customization be removed, simply that the defaults be different.  

 

And, as far as I am aware, they are different in Windows 8.1u1...

 

 

 

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.

 

http://www.theverge....ktop-ui-changes

[Dot Matrix]

Anyone able to crate a tool to bring back the context bar on the Start Screen?

[gawicks]

Personally I like the changes. I am used to the dichotomy in 8/8.1 but I can see people having a lot of trouble with it. It makes sense that they did this.  

[gohpep]

Is the titlebar really that disruptive on metro apps?

No, it goes away pretty much after the app loads.

[gohpep]

Anyone able to crate a tool to bring back the context bar on the Start Screen?

If you press space instead of right clicking, it brings the context bar.

 

So you can press space, and then select the tile you want, and then deselect the tile space selected.

You probably don't want that solution, so I'll keep looking, and I might be able to create tool.

[+therealDamien Subscriber¹]

can apps run in window mode with audio while using desktop programs without the need of using stardock modernmix?

[Dot Matrix]

No, it goes away pretty much after the app loads.

That's what I thought. In all honestly, I think that's one of the more positive changes in this update (a la Media Center).

 

If you press space instead of right clicking, it brings the context bar.

 

So you can press space, and then select the tile you want, and then deselect the tile space selected.

You probably don't want that solution, so I'll keep looking, and I might be able to create tool.

This was the second biggest change that I don't like. To make things worse, it doesn't even match the other context menus on the Start Screen, or Metro IE creating quite an eyesore. Glad to hear the space key still works to bring up the context bar.

[theyarecomingforyou]

This was the second biggest change that I don't like. To make things worse, it doesn't even match the other context menus on the Start Screen, or Metro IE creating quite an eyesore. Glad to hear the space key still works to bring up the context bar.

Yeah, I definitely don't like the new system for selecting multiple tiles. Yet again for every positive change we get another arbitrary and unintuitive one.

 

This update is a step in the right direction but it certainly doesn't eliminate the quagmire that is the Metro-Desktop integration.

[gohpep]

That's what I thought. In all honestly, I think that's one of the more positive changes in this update (a la Media Center).

 

This was the second biggest change that I don't like. To make things worse, it doesn't even match the other context menus on the Start Screen, or Metro IE creating quite an eyesore. Glad to hear the space key still works to bring up the context bar.

 

I really want MS to make it like the right click menu in search. It looks more fitting than the aero style context menu! Just looked, they changed it the context menu to be more flat, but I would rather them put that context menu on the desktop, instead of the vista context menu, and then have the metro style right click to be on the start screen.

 

[hagjohn]

The 2 systems still don't have a combined look that compliments each other.

[macoman]

Has anyone know if these settings will apply to Windows Server 2012 R2? since is the same kernel and build number as Windows 8.1