Windows 8 Consumer Preview Thread

supafly said:
On windows 8 cp do we need to install a firewall/anti virus like kaspersky internet security? Or is the built in windows defender now good enough on it's own?
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Really, Defender is just the older Windows Security Essentials renamed (and updated hopefully!) I have been running this on Windows 7 without any problems so I would assume that Defender will continue to do the job on Windows 8. It may not be quite as good as some anti-virus and firewall programmes but it seems to do its job
 
Windows Defender is a lot more simple on 7. On Win 8 it has the capabilities of Windows Security Essentials, and theres also the new SmartScreen filter and improved ASLR. I wouldnt bother with separate AV software. I dont even use AV software on 7 and i go to some pretty dodgy sites but never caught anything.
 
Microsoft tweeted last week that the consumer preview usage is double that of the Win7 beta usage at the same stage, which I thought was interesting since Win7 was almost universally liked whereas the feelings towards Win8 are generally mixed.
 
theheyes said:
Microsoft tweeted last week that the consumer preview usage is double that of the Win7 beta usage at the same stage, which I thought was interesting since Win7 was almost universally liked whereas the feelings towards Win8 are generally mixed.
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That is interesting but I suspect that after the Windows 7 beta more people were aware and interested in trying it. I just wonder if it will translate into sales. I have just reverted to 7 and am not missing anything from 8 at all.
 
prescott28 said:
That is interesting but I suspect that after the Windows 7 beta more people were aware and interested in trying it. I just wonder if it will translate into sales. I have just reverted to 7 and am not missing anything from 8 at all.
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On the flip side, is there anything that has make you feel "I'm glad to be back"?
 
theheyes said:
On the flip side, is there anything that has make you feel "I'm glad to be back"?
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That is a very good question. the obvious answer would be that I have my Start Button and menu back but that really isn't the answer at all. After all, these are available in Windows 8 using the free program Classic Shell.

I think my time with Windows 8 got me using things I had never really used before - like the Windows Explorer short-cut on the Quick Launch bar. I learned to navigate the computer and find programmes in a different way and I am still doing these things now I am back in Windows 7. I certainly use the Start Button a lot less.

I don't think that there is a anything I am glad to get back to but then there wasn't that killer feature that made me want Windows 8 either. I wouldn't mind the disk-pooling feature but it, alone, isn't enough to get me to buy Windows 8 ... unless there is a low price to buy it of course.
 
well after testing my views are this...

where is windows going in the work place? i don't know about you but i fail to see how this metro will work in the office environment

I like the speed and feel of windows8, but Microsoft REALLY need to add a windows7 type shell, this cool and funky 2 fingers up at apple approach is rather nice, fast flowing and somewhat original, but after the disaster of Vista MS came out with a rock solid windows7 and that is something that can be used in the work place, in schools, The whole Metro feel is for me geared up for home use and not the office, i work in ICT education covering 80 schools for a LEA and i can see how certain features would be great for kids and staff to use, and very easy to use but at the end of the day its a whole retraining exercise, i think its short sighted by MS not to give a way back to the start button that has shaped windows.
 
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prescott28 said:
I wouldn't mind the disk-pooling feature but it, alone, isn't enough to get me to buy Windows 8 ... unless there is a low price to buy it of course.
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I like the idea of disk pooling. I don't like the idea of backing up my 3tb HDD. Disk pooling will reformat my drive, and I would need to purchase a 2tb drive.
 
djkav said:
I like the idea of disk pooling. I don't like the idea of backing up my 3tb HDD. Disk pooling will reformat my drive, and I would need to purchase a 2tb drive.
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that's the whole problem - the need for blank disks. I haven't got much data so could manage with copying to a 1TB disk I have spare at the moment but it will take some time to do, especially getting everything back where it should be on the new drive pool. MS need to develop a tool to do this automically.
 
djkav said:
I like the idea of disk pooling. I don't like the idea of backing up my 3tb HDD. Disk pooling will reformat my drive, and I would need to purchase a 2tb drive.
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prescott28 said:
that's the whole problem - the need for blank disks. I haven't got much data so could manage with copying to a 1TB disk I have spare at the moment but it will take some time to do, especially getting everything back where it should be on the new drive pool. MS need to develop a tool to do this automically.
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Don't you guys have backups? What are you hoping to get out of pooling with so few disks?
 
backup.... there's the problem with modern computing. We have too much data of various sorts to make backing up everything a serious possibility. I back up my data - documents, databases etc using Mozy and use Windows Live mesh to cover some things, but I have a lot of material - like a music library of getting on for 12GB which I cannot realistically backup. I was going to create a Home server but just as I was, the floods in Thailand sent disk prices rocketing.

one day, when prices have fallen down I will probably do it.
 
prescott28 said:
backup.... there's the problem with modern computing. We have too much data of various sorts to make backing up everything a serious possibility. I back up my data - documents, databases etc using Mozy and use Windows Live mesh to cover some things, but I have a lot of material - like a music library of getting on for 12GB which I cannot realistically backup. I was going to create a Home server but just as I was, the floods in Thailand sent disk prices rocketing.

one day, when prices have fallen down I will probably do it.
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12GB? Not 12TB, check out SkyDrive instead of Mesh and claim your 25GB free. With the beta app, it's now a lot less painful to put things on to the Skydrive.

HTH.
 
prescott28 said:
I don't think that there is a anything I am glad to get back to but then there wasn't that killer feature that made me want Windows 8 either. I wouldn't mind the disk-pooling feature but it, alone, isn't enough to get me to buy Windows 8 ... unless there is a low price to buy it of course.
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And that's fair enough. If anything it shows that Windows 8 is not the unmitigated disaster on the desktop some make it out to be. I use both Win8 and Win7 almost every day and it's just automatic now, I hardly notice the transition. Although that might change in the next preview if the desktop UI looks a lot different.

I want a Pro version of Windows (on HP at the moment) so I'm buying regardless, but I think if you see yourself upgrading over the next couple of years it would be worth picking up a discounted copy at launch if they do it again.
 
I hope you can just upgrade to the new preview from the current one - don't really want to have to start from scratch.
 
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