Windows 8

[SimpleS14]

I'm really surprised no one has made a thread about this topic.

On Monday, Microsoft demoed quite a bit on their on-going development of Windows 8. While the conference is mainly focused on developers, there's a lot for the general public to take note of on the direction Microsoft is taking the Windows OS.

Keynotes: Home - BUILD | September 13 - 16, 2011 | Anaheim Convention Center (http://www.buildwindows.com/)

Simply put, they are combining both a desktop centric and tablet centric OS into a single platform. There are some significant changes to the UI and some rework on the backend to effectively use memory and power (battery life).

They released a developer preview which is kind of in-between an alpha and beta build (if that makes any sense).

You can download it here: Windows Dev Center (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/home/)

I have it installed on a spare drive and I must say it's very snappy on my Core 2 quad PC. Some instances, it's even better than Windows 7. I can't say I'm a fan of the "Start Page" which replaces the start menu. Finding newly install applications seems like a PITA, however searching is much easier and seamless. I'm a big fan of the ribbon and like the integration they done with Windows Explorer. Liking the metro style IE (using it right now). There are some other things I'm liking and I look forward to getting the final product next year. :)

Has anyone given the developer preview a try? Anyone interested in what they've seen about Windows 8?

[Yellow4g63]

I'm so out of it I didn't even know Windows 8 was so close.

[RJF]

Windows still exists? :rolleyes:

I lost track after Vista. Still have an old Sony Vaio laptop running Windows XP.

[Agamemnon]

Windows still exists? :rolleyes:

I lost track after Vista. Still have an old Sony Vaio laptop running Windows XP.

My Vaio is still running 98.

[s14canyoncity]

moved to Unix (Linux/Mac OS)

[HyperTek]

sorry to hear you guys are still XP.. lol

vista was good, 7 is better imo... With each windows release comes more stability and less likely to get cluttered up with junk like XP did (I remember reformating my windows 98/me/xp systems like all the time)

Yeah i heard about this windows 8 developer trial.. I ran windows 7 beta and release candidates on my rig all the way til it came out.

[Future240]

I am on 7 now. I have to say it was a vast improvement over vista. I wouldn't go back to XP or vista. I had seen a few articles on 8 but didn't know it was in beta already. How time flies.

[K_style]

Vista was like Windows Me. fail ones

I using 7 right now after using Mac OSx for 2years. miss XP sometimes but can't be happier.
I am looking forward to see and try Windows8 and hoping it is not another Win Vista/Me.

[drift freaq]

Windows 7 its like the first Windows operating that did things half way right oh and it was completely look we copied OSX. Those commercials saying I am a PC used to crack me up because everything they touted had been around in OSX already for several years. LOL

I guess XP was ok but Vista sucked donkey balls.. Don't know about Windows 8 . Use Mac OSX Snow Leopard about to upgrade to Lion.
Have used OSX for years.

[atom]

Is windows really that bad for everyone? I must be weird cuz I never really had a major problem with Windows since they switched to NT kernel. It's been pretty hassle free since XP.

I used to be on a "Tralalala windows sucks, linux rules." kick for a bit but then I just stopped giving a shit. Windows has the games and apps I use so.....whatever. Still use linux but not as fanboyish about it.

Anyways, I don't like the new metro UI. At least not on a desktop. I just switched to a windows 7 phone recently and it works nicely there but I don't see it as better on a PC. It's like GNOME 3.0 which i also don't really like, if you're gonna change the whole usability paradigm of your OS you better make sure it's way better than what it was before, and I don't think they did that. At least MS let's you switch the desktop.

[sephiroth99]

I looked at a couple of videos, and from what I can see, they completely changed the start menu. In fact, the start menu doesn't exist anymore, when you press the start button (or your windows key), it pops up the metro interface....:facepalm:

For a tablet, that's ok, but when I'm on a desktop, I still want my windows explorer like it was..... I hope this will change, or I fear I will have to stay with win7 for my desktops...

Also, here's a good look at win8 from Engadget: Windows 8 on a laptop in-depth preview (video) -- Engadget (http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/16/windows-8-on-a-laptop-in-depth-preview-video/)

[Yellow4g63]

Yeah I feel the same way, I don't want my desktop to be some new fad of the year tablet look.

[Tantwoforty]

Im running on Windows 8 developers preview right now.. its pretty.. different..
like if android and windows had a baby.. but android had the dominate gene...
There is still a normal Windows 7ish desktop you can acess.. but the main heart of the OS is the metro UI.. quite odd to use lol

You guys should try it out.. you can download it off Microsoft's site..
I can help anyone who needs it with the install or whatever..
This has some info
d9AdL1aBp8w
^I cant tell if that works or not.. because IE is crappy no matter what OS its on.

[anton1o]

Really digging Windows 8, I work in I.T aswell and were only going to switch the Organisation to Windows7 from XP but i will definetly be going to Windows8 for my home machine.

Loving the new features of it, not the biggest fan of the new 'Metro' styling but i guess im old and love the normal Windows desktop :P

[TheWolf]

I'm really not seeing any staying power in the metro UI. And that all the apps have to be written for it will be painful. I really want to know nitty gritty stuff like, will windows 8 x64 run stuff like my 2002 era lotus suspension analyzer program or my fav autocad edition. How well does it do legacy stuff? win7x64 said it would do it but it didn't on anything that really mattered. I really think they need a "rosetta" type sublayer for legacy apps because I can guarantee stuff like our medical programs, and our engineering programs are not going to be re-written in "metro" so it's just going to look disjointed. On one side you've got sliding, ribbons, touch, metro ui, docking and then you hit an app that's 2 years old and oh.. now I need to use only keyboard and mouse.

[SimpleS14]

This thread kind of derailed there for a second lol

I'm really not seeing any staying power in the metro UI. And that all the apps have to be written for it will be painful. I really want to know nitty gritty stuff like, will windows 8 x64 run stuff like my 2002 era lotus suspension analyzer program or my fav autocad edition. How well does it do legacy stuff? win7x64 said it would do it but it didn't on anything that really mattered. I really think they need a "rosetta" type sublayer for legacy apps because I can guarantee stuff like our medical programs, and our engineering programs are not going to be re-written in "metro" so it's just going to look disjointed. On one side you've got sliding, ribbons, touch, metro ui, docking and then you hit an app that's 2 years old and oh.. now I need to use only keyboard and mouse.

With the implementation of Hyper-V in Windows 8 at the consumer level, I can see virtualization taking a bigger role with addressing legacy applications. Existing applications (and the ones you mentioned) do not need to be re-written for Windows 8. The Metro UI is just another variant for introducing applications that want to take full advantage UI elements designed for full screen usage and/or touch.

[tgd89]

This thread kind of derailed there for a second lol



With the implementation of Hyper-V in Windows 8 at the consumer level, I can see virtualization taking a bigger role with addressing legacy applications. Existing applications (and the ones you mentioned) do not need to be re-written for Windows 8. The Metro UI is just another variant for introducing applications that want to take full advantage UI elements designed for full screen usage and/or touch.

Yeah I dont see the api changing much, maybe stuff for the new UI aspects, but I would assume the kernel is pretty much 7 besides that. Looks like this could be cool for a media center/general use.

[sephiroth99]

Windows 8 still has full support for "legacy" apps, the same support as Windows 7. The new metro interface is a new runtime, totally different from the usual "win32" runtime or the .net framework. (see image)

http://i.imgur.com/Vbqwu.jpg

As for Windows 8, I tried it and the new Start menu (the metro interface) is not that bad actually. Maybe it will work in the end... let's hope so!

[TheWolf]

well windows 7x64's legacy "virtualization" system sucks for many of these older apps. You can install acad2009 on windows7x64 with a patch but acad2k11 won't run if you've got acad2k11x32 installed on a x64 machine. Acad2k7 and prior are just screwed.

Dragon medical just came out with x64 support but allscripts doesn't play nice in x64. If 8 is just 7 with a fancy new start menu and some graphic upgrades then our IT dept will have no desire to upgrade from xp.

[tgd89]

Windows 8 still has full support for "legacy" apps, the same support as Windows 7. The new metro interface is a new runtime, totally different from the usual "win32" runtime or the .net framework. (see image)

..

As for Windows 8, I tried it and the new Start menu (the metro interface) is not that bad actually. Maybe it will work in the end... let's hope so!

I stand corrected, that's interesting. I guess that makes sense, though I'm not sure how I feel about the gap between metro and desktop apps as it sounds intercommunication is not possible or at least limited.

[EDacIouSX]

So all this metro talk... there's no way to just make your desktop like windows 7? I remember xp had a classic UI that you could enable through settings, it made the xp ui look like a windows 98 ui. I was curious about this since I am not interested in the metro?/Tile UI at all.....

[lucky7]

Windows 7 its like the first Windows operating that did things half way right oh and it was completely look we copied OSX. Those commercials saying I am a PC used to crack me up because everything they touted had been around in OSX already for several years. LOL

I guess XP was ok but Vista sucked donkey balls.. Don't know about Windows 8 . Use Mac OSX Snow Leopard about to upgrade to Lion.
Have used OSX for years.

i'm running OS X Lion on my iMac, and my macbook pro. if i were doing it over, i probably wouldn't have installed it on the iMac. the difference is the mouse vs the trackpad. if i had a magic trackpad for my iMac, it might be better. the trackpad just allows for more shortcuts. aside from that, it's been a little bit buggy, but with frequent updates, i'm not too concerned with the long term.

the last MS OS i had was XP, and i really liked it. vista was horse shit, and i've only used 7 a handful of times, but it somehow felt very similar to snow leopard.

[axiomatik]

well windows 7x64's legacy "virtualization" system sucks for many of these older apps. You can install acad2009 on windows7x64 with a patch but acad2k11 won't run if you've got acad2k11x32 installed on a x64 machine. Acad2k7 and prior are just screwed.

Dragon medical just came out with x64 support but allscripts doesn't play nice in x64. If 8 is just 7 with a fancy new start menu and some graphic upgrades then our IT dept will have no desire to upgrade from xp.

My coworker is running Autocad2005 LT without problems in Win7 64-bit. His copy of Windows has some sort of "XP Mode", whatever that does.

[SimpleS14]

So all this metro talk... there's no way to just make your desktop like windows 7? I remember xp had a classic UI that you could enable through settings, it made the xp ui look like a windows 98 ui. I was curious about this since I am not interested in the metro?/Tile UI at all.....

It's still a work in progress. I can see this being disabled through options or registry edits. I can't see enterprises and certain schools going for the Metro UI portion of Windows 8.

My coworker is running Autocad2005 LT without problems in Win7 64-bit. His copy of Windows has some sort of "XP Mode", whatever that does.


XP Mode is a virtual Windows XP machine that allows you to run legacy apps (not available on all editions tho). It's streamlined enough that you can simply launch programs from the start menu vs. booting up the virtual machine and launching from within. I can definitely see improvements in that area for Windows 8.