paulo

Maybe I'm missing something here, but the desktop is still there just as it always was if you prefer to work that way. Mine still looks identical my previous one, as my intial reaction was to try and make evrything like it used to be, though I find myself hardly using it now . I also don't understand why amyone would be staring at the metro screen for long periods - it's just a big start button so that you can navigate to what you really want to do isn't it ?  I don't know how toggling between open apps works on a desktop mouse, but on my laptop it's a simple swipe of the mouse and to close and open app is just a question of pointing the mouse anywhere along the top of the screen and click/dragging it down to the taskbar and it closes. Seems quite simple to me.
 
I'm not trying to be antagonostic or anything here, just don't understand some of your issues.

+1     Like several here I have many many years of experience of different OS's and for many years DOS was the only way to interact with a PC with no mouse, decent graphics or touch in sight.  As I recall it was Apple's 'Lisa' that changed all that.  


For me, W8's Metro I/F doesn't get in the way of productivity at all.  I have an X2 tile on the metro screen and clicking it drops to exactly the same i/f of X2 that I used  under W7.  I don't have a touch screen so X2 works exactly the same as it did before.  The 'ALT+TAB' keystroke still works to switch between open apps/programs as does 'ALT+F4' to close them.  WIN+TAB displays a list of open apps/programs to switch between.  All the programs that would be on the start menu are accessible via the metro screen as are My Documents, Devices and printers etc.   Any legacy software can be installed via the Desktop.

The integration of other apps such as e-mail, photos, facebook etc. are really slick and make using them very intuitive, but of no value if your DAW PC is not connected to the internet of course!


It may be my imagination but performance seems much 'snappier' even though it's basically the same 'engine' under the hood, and any app/program/live tile that may be using system resources can be quickly turned off, permanently if required, just as it could in W7.  


The more I use W8 the more I am liking it.

drewfx1

 

True, they are available.

If you're willing to scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll to get to them.

how difficult is it to hit the windows key and type the first 4 or 5 letters of the program you want?
that's how easy it is in windows 8. :)

@paulo - Indeed you are missing something.

I clearly stated I am using classic shell to "repair" the menu structure. That is one thing that should not have to be done if Microsoft did not forced the Metro screen upon the user, but gave the user an choice.

And no - as a result of the above I'm not staring at the metro screen, as you could have read in my post.

And lastly - I also said it was a matter of personal taste. I just do not like that metro stuff. It just should not be present/forced on a workstation/PC (a tablet is another matter). I do not like the work-flow that it generates as a result. I also said I do not like the windows decorations and the lost of "Air". As said - it's just a matter of personal taste. And taste is important for me (as being a graphic artist too). I never said Windows 8 is not usable, but only that I do not like it in it's present form! That's my opinion (as I also stated) and I really hope I am allowed to have one.

@fireberd - ah 3.12. Good memory's at that one. Installing that version was my first bigger IT job. No too long after that the 4.2 version came out, and that was big improvement (although 3.12 stayed strong in many places, and not everyone agreed with that). I also liked the ZEN suite. That was a real convenient piece of software ;-).

My last job (before I decided to become a free-lancer) was in a mixed environment where Netware, Windows and UNIX servers had to be "tied together". There also was a big mainframe running, but luckily we only had to maintain the client software for that one. 

drewfx1

LordElpus

All the programs that would be on the start menu are accessible via the metro screen as are My Documents, Devices and printers etc. 

True, they are available.

If you're willing to scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll, scroll to get to them. 

The truth is the Start Menu and Task Bar are very efficient ways to get to things quickly, particularly with nested folders in the Start Menu and the ability to pin documents as well as programs to the Task Bar (starting in W7) - everything is right there and compact and you don't have to move the mouse a mile to get to anything.

But I think one of the main problems is whether or not Metro is "nice" or "attractive" or "usable" or whatever, many people don't want to have to waste time learning a %#*&&@#*$ new interface when they already know the old one, which already worked very, very well for them. 

I actually like the idea of one OS that could work well on tablets as well as conventional machines, but I think they made a mistake of compromising the conventional interface too much in the process. But again, installing Classic Shell fixes most of that.

I hear you :-)  I agree it was a pain to scroll until I realised I could create a tile on the start screen of all the programs I use regularly, as well as documents, just like on the Start Menu, Task Bar or shortcut on the desktop.  I guess MS thought this could replace the Start Menu but it does seem illogical to give users the choice of the traditional desktop as well as Metro but then take away the Start Menu.


I also agree the Metro Interface is a matter of taste and it's not to everyone's liking, but the 'old' interface is still there, just not the Start Menu.  I too have Classic Shell installed but I find I don't use it as much as I thought I would or as much as I used to, but who am I?  It looks like with Windows Blue you will get your wish and most people will be happy.

The Start button is coming back in "Blue" but from the reports I've seen it will not be a complete restoration and have all the features that were in Win 7 or that you can get with add ons such as "Start8".

Fom one report:

"...the button will act as a method to simply access the Start Screen, and will not include the traditional Start Menu. The button is said to look near-identical to the existing Windows flag used in the Charm bar."

fireberd


The Start button is coming back in "Blue" but from the reports I've seen it will not be a complete restoration and have all the features that were in Win 7 or that you can get with add ons such as "Start8".

Fom one report:

"...the button will act as a method to simply access the Start Screen, and will not include the traditional Start Menu. The button is said to look near-identical to the existing Windows flag used in the Charm bar."

Have they missed the point? An alternative way of getting back to the start screen will do nothing to appease those missing the start menu. Its not so much the button as the the menu it launches that is missed. If however it enables the disabling of the charm bar they may go some way to appeasing gamers who apparently find the cham bar popping up during game play to be an issue.
 
John's tip about grouping tiles on the start screen sounds like the first really good idea I have heard, now, does anyone know if you can reduce the size of the tiles on the start screen so it does not look like a two year old kid's toy computer?
 
For the time being I work much the same as I always did. Shortcut icons for the most common programs on the desktop and those used occasionally launched via Classic Shell's start menu.

Ok, I guess I'll be in the center of a ****storm for saying this but. Overall I like Windows 8. There are parts that I dont like and there are things that I really do like.

The good stuff:
1. Using my Roland Quad capture card I get better performance than on the exact same computer running Windows 7. Both 64 bit.
2. I'm a sucker for fast start up times. It delivers. 
3. The desktop-part of Windows 8 feels much more polished and faster than the Windows 7. The new taskmanager etc is great.

4. Remote desktop is faster (at least on my machines)

The bad:
1. "The Metro"-part clearly was rushed and isnt finished. The default Metro apps is a joke.
2. They have focused to much on touch. Things makes sence when using touch. But if you are stuck with a mouse and have to do the same gestures as you would have done with your finger it doesnt.

Yes, I do think that Microsoft DID f*ck Windows 8 up. But not because that the product is bad but because they totally screwed up in educating the users about the things that had changed. They could easily have solved that part with some sort of video-tutorial during the installation. Basically, Windows 8 is Windows 7 with some really neat features thrown in but sadly some really poor ones as well.

Windows 8 has given me some more performance out of Sonar X2 and the computer is somewhat faster overall. That's good enough for me.

/M 

My local computer store said, they have had lots of customers come in and ask to downgrade their computers from W8 to W7.   That spoke volumes to me :)

As far as touchscreen.  Bahumbug, I hope the technology fades away.  It's messy, it's not fun, and can actually be painful.  I use touch screens combined with keyboards in the car, at work.  I find only a couple of actions are worth reaching up to the screen for.  SmartPhones....texting sucks with touchscreens.  Texting and driving is even worse, you actually have to look at your phone, because there is no 'feel', no wonder everyone crashes!

Probably 80% of my texting is "voice activated" texting these days.  About the only time I actually key it in, is if it does n't understand a word.

mike_mccue


I think I'll just skip touch entirely.

I'm holding out for a voice activated DAW.

I'll wait just a little longer than that until I can get one that actually hurts when I start hurling abuse at it, just so it knows not to pull a stunt like that ever again!
 
It should be interesting to call support only to find out I've caused my machine to have self-esteem issues.

AT


Windows 8 was rather stupid to have a touch screen come up first - when most screens ain't today.  If they had simply made the older interface come up andswtich to tiles people wouldn't complain.  It is like X1 - nobody knew where anything was.

But touch is coming.  Just got a new windows phone today and it ain't bad.  Of course, I ahven't had time to do much but charge it and transfer my old numbers etc.  It seems to work pretty well but nobody has thought through the whole touch experience.  Windows phone imported my other accounts, including an ancient juno account from my wife.  YOu'd think it would be easy to delete one email from her page but I still ain't figured it out.  I guess it is time to watch the online demo....

@

But touch is coming.

 
 
"But touch is coming. "  Disagreed.  My arm would be screaming if I tried to replace my mouse with a touch screen.  Touch is great for a phone or tablet.  Horrible for a desktop.