Windows 8 who's buying/upgrading

Moeks said:
No I wont be buying it, I was just playing with it on a new laptop actually (not mine), getting it set up for someone and really I just found it annoying, took me several minutes of faffing about to get access to the control panel and the command line, I can do it fairly quickly now I know how to, but it's still much slower than just having the start menu there.

I don't like the metro interface at all, it slows me down and to be quite honest ...I don't like the design or the concept even on a desktop computer, I'm sure it works fine on a tablet, I have a Windows phone and the tiles work very well on that, but not with a traditional mouse and keyboard. I don't particularly like the theme used by the desktop portion of it either when it comes down to it, but that's hardly an issue really.

The only thing I have found that I do like, is the new task manager, that's a nice addition. Really it is just Windows 7 with a Micky Mouse interface added the start menu removed and a whole heap of annoyances where previously there were none.

I only keep Windows 7 around because I like to play games, although W7 is very good in my opinion, otherwise I would be completely in the Linux camp now, however due to to my love of certain games I have been 2/3rds in and 1/3rd out for years now ...I don't see that changing anytime soon though. If it wasn't for a few games that I can't get running under Wine either at all or aswell as I would like ...I wouldn't need Windows for anything to be honest. And no I am not a Microsoft hater at all, I actually like most of their products and have done for years, I just don't like what they have done with Windows 8 ...then again I do not like what Gnome did with version 3 or what Canonical did with Ubuntu and the ghastly Unity interface. I've always considered myself as a very progressive person when it comes to technology, I like to embrace new ideas .... but when it comes to my desktop operating system, I am rather traditional, I know what I like and I like what I know. I do like new ideas ...but only when I feel they improve my experience and none of this new interface guff we have been seeing lately has, all it's really done for me and many, many others is slow us down.

I do not believe that Windows 8 will take off in the business sector very well at all. I have no evidence to say one way or the other yet but knowing the industry as I do and the types of people involved ...I don't think it will be much of a hit for Microsoft there. With the ability to boot straight to the desktop and a traditional start menu included (there is no reason they couldn't do this really, so you can bypass metro entirely) it would have easily stepped into Windows 7' shoes ...or more likely XP's actually.
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Right click, bottom left corner of desktop and all your problems will be solved....

Also once you have set Start up with what you find important, and remove stuff you don't its MUCH easier to get to stuff you use daily.
 
I have Win 7 Ultimate and have a few days left to activate and enter a key, but I don't have one. If I buy Win 8 for £25 via the download, do I have to enter a Win 7 key or will it just install/upgrade it without one?
 
the_jetsetwilly said:
Any idea of install path?

I have a blank hard disk.

I have my legal windows XP professional Product key.

Do i need to install XP with sp3 onto my blank Harddisk and then do the upgrade ?

or is there a way to input my product key online and get the win8 key and ISO?

thankyou.
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u can install win 8 upgrade on a clean HDD without any previous OS installed.

u just may need to phone activate.

u only need a physical previous OS license for basically for proof if MS ever asks
 
morguk said:
I have Win 7 Ultimate and have a few days left to activate and enter a key, but I don't have one. If I buy Win 8 for £25 via the download, do I have to enter a Win 7 key or will it just install/upgrade it without one?
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it would work has it doesn't ask for a previous OS license key.

but even tho it'll work u haven't got a physical valid previous OS license to upgrade from.
 
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Anyone know how to make the Start Screen not show "all your programs" to the right? I only want it to show stuff that I have explicitly pinned there and not all the "kitchen sink" stuff that was recently installed etc.
 
kitch9 said:
Right click, bottom left corner of desktop and all your problems will be solved....

Also once you have set Start up with what you find important, and remove stuff you don't its MUCH easier to get to stuff you use daily.
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With respect to you and Elevon, I know how to do it now, I figured it out after a few minutes and after playing with it for an hour or so I can do what I did before ...I'm not a moron. I just don't like the new style, weather or not it is easier is a matter of opinion, I can see how some people might find it easier but personally I do not really consider it in such terms ...more a case of which is more convenient for me, faster for me and which do I prefer, the answer in this case, is not in the new Start screens favour I'm afraid. I just prefer the traditional cascading menu layout, a lot of people do, sure it's less modern and shiny but for a desktop computer, it's also more efficient in my opinion.

I am finding I am slowly but surely becoming more resistant to change in operating systems and interfaces in other pieces of software, sometimes I wonder if it's just me getting older ...but looking at things as objectively as I can ...I'm not so sure it is, I do feel that in several regards things change to suit an 'evolving' user base with 'evolving' demands ...where my demands, other than for more power have not really changed in a decade, if not more. I guess I tend to fit the typical OcUK computer enthusiast mold, indeed I generally consider myself to be a technology enthusiast ...yet still with these new changes, I'm not feeling it ...or seeing the benefit, to me at least. To put it bluntly in that oh so wonderful OcUK way ...slapping a fisher price interface on a 'serious' computer does nothing for me other than annoy me ...all said and done. Of course I realise Windows is not designed with 'me' and those like me in mind exactly, after all we will always find a way to make things happen the way we like, or close to it, however I have noticed in other areas I am finding the design of things is moving away from what I would prefer, where as for a while it was moving towards it.

I am straying off topic a bit now anyway, I was't really intending to give my own personal commentary on the changing face of technology and how we use it, hell I could write a great deal about that actually.
 
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Still using windows 8 it's grown on me now so much I won't be installing windows 7 again.

The tweaks are excellent. Even set up the new start menu how I like it
 
Moeks said:
With respect to you and Elevon, I know how to do it now, I figured it out after a few minutes and after playing with it for an hour or so I can do what I did before ...I'm not a moron. I just don't like the new style, weather or not it is easier is a matter of opinion, I can see how some people might find it easier but personally I do not really consider it in such terms ...more a case of which is more convenient for me, faster for me and which do I prefer, the answer in this case, is not in the new Start screens favour I'm afraid. I just prefer the traditional cascading menu layout, a lot of people do, sure it's less modern and shiny but for a desktop computer, it's also more efficient in my opinion.

I am finding I am slowly but surely becoming more resistant to change in operating systems and interfaces in other pieces of software, sometimes I wonder if it's just me getting older ...but looking at things as objectively as I can ...I'm not so sure it is, I do feel that in several regards things change to suit an 'evolving' user base with 'evolving' demands ...where my demands, other than for more power have not really changed in a decade, if not more. I guess I tend to fit the typical OcUK computer enthusiast mold, indeed I generally consider myself to be a technology enthusiast ...yet still with these new changes, I'm not feeling it ...or seeing the benefit, to me at least. To put it bluntly in that oh so wonderful OcUK way ...slapping a fisher price interface on a 'serious' computer does nothing for me other than annoy me ...all said and done.
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With respect nobody here called you a moron,you have to remember Win8 is hybrid OS so caters for everything however I find it very easy to use as a desktop user,could not think of going back to Win7 now,its just faster in general,solid and did not take me long to adjust,I look forward to Win9 ,end of the day each to their own.
 
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NathanE said:
Anyone know how to make the Start Screen not show "all your programs" to the right? I only want it to show stuff that I have explicitly pinned there and not all the "kitchen sink" stuff that was recently installed etc.
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AutoPin Controller can block shortcuts installing, at least when its running, so it is possible. I guess it wont be too long before somebody figures out how to do it permanently.

http://winaero.com/download.php?view.41
 
gareth170 said:
u can install win 8 upgrade on a clean HDD without any previous OS installed.

u just may need to phone activate.

u only need a physical previous OS license for basically for proof if MS ever asks
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Why this then? http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showpost.php?p=23168776&postcount=6

As I had to do that with my SSD since XP 32bit was on a mechanical. Is that not legit? Microsoft's way for Windows 8 is the daftest way I've ever seen lately. OS X was so simple. Upgrade or clean install, the end. None of this 32bit to 32bit path, 32bit - 64bit downloads or previous OS activated to go forward and mechanical to SSD paths. It seems Microsoft never thought out all the options in simplifying things.
 
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To be fair, going from XP to Windows 8 would be like going from (taking the architectures out of the equation) Jaguar to Mountain Lion. Apple would still be laughing now of you suggested that upgrade path when ML came out. :p
 
theheyes said:
To be fair, going from XP to Windows 8 would be like going from (taking the architectures out of the equation) Jaguar to Mountain Lion. Apple would still be laughing now of you suggested that upgrade path when ML came out. :p
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I was referring to the upgrade procedure. Snow Leopard, Lion and Mountain Lion has been the same for upgrading or clean installs unlike the number of routes to go with Windows and installers or drives to install on.

gareth170 said:
that's so you don't need to phone activate

MS does allow a clean install, using the upgrade.
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I see, I just assumed when the term "registry hack" was used it wasn't quite legit and some grey area... I mean there's no problems going to occur in the future?
 
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