Windows 8 predictions

[nickmannawar]

I know windows 8 is relatively young. It wasn't too long ago it became beta! Anyway I heard microsoft has some... "differant" ideas for it. I mean like not just the usual new looks and better accessability, but like whole new ideas. To the point though, I was wondering if anyone had heard some cool possobilities that might be on it?

[Talyor]

Windows 8 looks like more for tablets but to me i hate it, I like windows 7 just like it is and probally wont upgrade to windows 8

[Lexluethar]

If you've used the windows phone it has the same feel and the same panel layout where you can group certain panels (apps) into different groups . If you aren't using it on a tablet (which i am) you'll hate the new interface. I'm using it on a dell tablet and love it. It's fast, the touch screen is awesome, accurate (more b/c of the hardware), and has a very Droid OS feel to it (the keyboard layout).

You can turn off the new interface and just use windows like you normally would if you want. Oh and it has a super small footprint - only 9 gb installed.

[MindoverMaster]

You won't know until you try it, Taylor.

[KSoD]

Actually the version of Windows 8 out right now is only a Developer Preview that was demoed at the BUILD conference. It isnt that actual Beta. They have made a lot of changes to the UI since then. If you want to read about the many changes, check out the Building Windows 8 Blog. There they discuss the many changes that have been made that are not yet available.

Yes this version of Windows is going to be different. They are taking the approach to unify the Windows devices to have a common interface. So you can go from your PC to your Tablet to your phone and get the same experience no matter which device you use. This way there is less of a learning curve for users since they will have the same experience no matter which device they use.

So for some it will be a blessing. I used a Windows Phone 7 for a period of time and I liked the Metro UI. It allowed me to do some things that I cant do on Android. The biggest issue was lack of App support. But the big difference while there may only be 30,000 apps in the Windows Marketplace, there are more quality apps available that I have found than on iOS or Android. Doesnt mean I left my Android device for the WP7 device. I have over 140 different apps installed on my Android phone and I find myself using upwards of 50 a day if not more depending how work goes. Most of these apps are not available for me to use on WP7 so it wasnt worth me keeping the device.

Yes I know everyone's biggest complaint is about the interface being built for touch screens. Yes that is a flaw in the logic as touch screen monitors are not main stream, yet. So using the mouse can see over bearing and the size of the icons are much larger and most of us like to keep smaller icons. But from what I was reading, there will be a way to get the Start Menu back. If they live up to that claim is yet to be seen but the promise is nice.

I have used Win8 DP for a long period of time. It was my main OS for almost 2 months. I only left cause the support for some apps that I needed are not completely there yet. I wasnt able to burn CD's or DVD's properly. Something that will be fixed with the newer builds but right now is a major stepping stone for the DP being a daily driver for people like me. Other than that the whole aspect of the Metro UI is something that can be troublesome, but you can ignore it by using a normal desktop just like you would in Win7. you can have all of your icons and shortcuts like you have them now. The only flaw is the lack of the Start Menu forcing you to go into the Metro UI if you need to access a specific app. But if your like me and know where the executable files are for those programs, you can add them to your normal desktop and access them without touching the Metro interface at all. All in all in the 2 months I used Win8, I seen the new interface only when I had to reboot and that was the first thing that came up. After that I clicked on the desktop and never seen it again.

So for those who say that they wont upgrade cause of the new interface, I saw you dont know what your missing. Cause while Metro can be bothersome, so was Aero when it was first released compared to XP. but we got used to it and wanted to find ways to get it on XP. The same will be said once this comes out. There are things you can do to make it work for you, you just have to take 10 minutes of your time to figure out what is best for you. Something that has had to of been done with every new version of Windows released. XP was different than the versions before it, Vista was different than XP. Win7 was still different than Vista. So yeah there will be some learning, but nothing that can be worked around.

[35g700]

So for those who say that they wont upgrade cause of the new interface, I saw you dont know what your missing. Cause while Metro can be bothersome, so was Aero when it was first released compared to XP. but we got used to it and wanted to find ways to get it on XP. The same will be said once this comes out. There are things you can do to make it work for you, you just have to take 10 minutes of your time to figure out what is best for you. Something that has had to of been done with every new version of Windows released. XP was different than the versions before it, Vista was different than XP. Win7 was still different than Vista. So yeah there will be some learning, but nothing that can be worked around.

But the change to Aero wasn't all that drastic compared to what the change to Metro will be. Heck, we really haven't seen a change to the user interface this big since Windows 95 was released.

I for one don't care for the Metro interface but as a technician I know that I'll be upgrading as soon as I can so I can learn the new interface. I've also heard that Windows 8 will utilize multi-core processors far better than Windows 7 does, which to me is a huge reason to upgrade regardless of the new interface changes.

[nickmannawar]

Hmmm thanks for the replies! Sounds a little like what I thought. I kinda feel like they're taking some measures that apple did too. Like with launchpad trying to be like the ipod. I wonder if they're predicting like tablet-takeover or something...

[avocadobeer]

Microsoft has always released a new OS roughly every 2-3 years. The only exception was the gap between XP and Vista, which was due to the fact that XP was so badly written that they had to jettison the code base, retrain their programmers and start over from scratch. They obviously want to get back to their old schedule. Windows 8 will arrive around late 2012-2013.

[KSoD]

But the change to Aero wasn't all that drastic compared to what the change to Metro will be. Heck, we really haven't seen a change to the user interface this big since Windows 95 was released.

I for one don't care for the Metro interface but as a technician I know that I'll be upgrading as soon as I can so I can learn the new interface. I've also heard that Windows 8 will utilize multi-core processors far better than Windows 7 does, which to me is a huge reason to upgrade regardless of the new interface changes.

The change to Metro isnt that drastic. If people read my entire post you dont even have to use Metro, at all! You have to see it for no more than 3 seconds to click the Desktop link. So how in the world is that a drastic change when you will still see everything you see right now. Aero and all?

People are blowing this completely out of proportion thinking that the Metro UI will be the only way to operate. It isnt! I can tell you this all from personal experience and not just looking at pictures.

If you think Aero wasnt that drastic, then I dont know where you were when Vista was first released and people were asking how to disable it and go back to the XP Style. Cause I had more questions on how to get rid of it than compliments about it on every site I was on. More people hated Aero and the new hardware requirements than liked it. Now people cant live without it.

So yes it was a drastic change. It still is for some. My wife just finally made the jump to Win7 and she hates it. Guess what, she was on XP for the last 5 years. Guess what she wants back? Yup again, XP instead of Win7. So dont tell me that Aero isnt a drastic change when for the common user, it is. Just cause Metro is more of a change for the so called "elite" users doesnt make it more drastic.

Yet again I state for the record that Metro is just a place holder that you can bypass within 3 seconds! I even can show you that Win8 still looks exactly the same when you bypass the Metro UI. Just look at my post in the Desktop Screenshot thread.

Click me

The 2nd Image I posted is what you get when you click the Desktop Link from the Metro UI. Looks familiar dont it? Look at my Metro screen closely. The 3rd button down on the far left. Under Windows Explorer and Control Panel. That is the Desktop button. All you have to do is click that and BAM. You are right back to the look you know and love without having to ever touch Metro again.

So I seriously fail to see how this is being considered such a drastic change and people are having such a fit over it when you dont even have to use it! Stop judging the OS by the pictures you see and install it and figure it out yourself. This goes for everyone. You get nothing about the experience from looking at pictures! Everyone shows off the Metro cause that is the newest thing. How many pics do you see of the regular desktop within Win8? Exactly. You can still have the same exact look. So no it is not drastic, no it is not something that will take people years to learn. It takes literally 3 seconds to get back to what you know and like. Giving you time to mess with Metro when you want and learn it on your own time while still being able to do exactly what you know, how you know how to.

[35g700]

I installed The Windows 8 preview about three months ago, when I went to the desktop it was very similar to Windows 7. However when I clicked the start button instead of bringing up the start menu it brought me back to the Metro UI. Windows 8 may have an option to enable the start menu that I missed or the newer build may have changed the start menu button, but in my opinion getting rid of the start menu is far more drastic than any of the changes Aero brought to Windows.