I'm willing to bet that Microsoft is only doing this out of necessity. It's more of the smart device, apple and google that is driving things this direction.  I truly hope that PCs and Laptops never become extinct.  I like having the ability to upgrade my computer's components if I so chose.  While I would like it if desktops could shrink is size, I would not want them to go away. 

redbarchetta


I'm willing to bet that Microsoft is only doing this out of necessity. It's more of the smart device, apple and google that is driving things this direction.  I truly hope that PCs and Laptops never become extinct.  I like having the ability to upgrade my computer's components if I so chose.  While I would like it if desktops could shrink is size, I would not want them to go away. 

Yeah, all joking aside, that's exactly how I feel. 
 
I just spent a fair bit of money upgrading my hardware, latest Ivy bridge core I7, SSDs, new motherboard & RAM etc. - It was only when I started the upgrade to Win 8 that I looked at the Metro GUI and then seen all the reams of stuff on the net about the demise of the windows desktop and it just made me stop and think, crap I've just gone out blindly and spend a whack of money on new hardware and now you're telling me that you're taking away the OS I need to run my DAW. 
 
Well, as others have said probably won't happen and we can, at the end of the day, only use that tools that's available, I probably will give 8 another try when I get a chance and who knows, I may learn to live with it.
 
Some helpful stuff coming out of this discussion though - appreciate all the info.  Must learn to control my sense of humour though until you guys get to know me a little better at least....lol 
 
 

While I would like it if desktops could shrink is size, I would not want them to go away. 

There will always be demand for high-performance machines.
The desktop PC (and UI for that matter) isn't going anywhere...


If you migrate early to Win8 (it's still relatively early), your odds of encountering an issue are higher than if you'd wait another 6 months.  This is especially true if you're not using the absolute latest hardware.


Win8x64 is running well here... but there's not a major performance increase over Win7x64.  


If you go Win8x64, make sure your core hardware and software are known to work.  Otherwise, go with Win7x64... as it's a proven rock-solid platform.

If you're using a multi-touch monitor, you have no choice but to use Win8x64.

Jim Roseberry


There will always be demand for high-performance machines.
The desktop PC (and UI for that matter) isn't going anywhere...  

Deep down inside I don't think so either... At least not for a good long time.  There is a ton of buzz about smart phones, tablets and what not right now, and I think those things are fine for personal use, but, as a software developer, I can't imagine having to work off of a tablet.  Talk about gag me with a spoon. 


Bet ya havn't heard that in a while. 

see I do see a performance increase, its most obvious in copy/paste.
pasting time has been cut by 1/3 to 1/4 the time.

boot time is almost cut in half.

programs open a tab bit faster.

I do think windows 8 is a faster os, im not the only one to say this as well.  :)
 
***as far as the start button, you guys need to check out the start page.
your start button is still there, its just a whole page now with more options.
imagine if microsoft took the start menu and boosted it with 10 more options,
that's what they did.
 
use you windows key and start typing.
 
just try it now, hit the windows key/start typing any file or app on your computer.
I don't like any mods on my daw, I don't want any registry values played with using third party appz.
as harmless as they seem, its one more thing for a possible conflict.

Jim Roseberry



Win8x64 is running well here... but there's not a major performance increase over Win7x64.  

Win 7 is working for me just now, I'll get back to Win 8 in due course.
 
Here's a quick question for all you guys currently running Win 8 on your DAW.
 
What apps are you finding best to test DPC latency?  I initially thought that I'd just be able to run DPC checker (which runs great on Win 7), but there's a disclaimer on their website saying that although it runs on Win 8 the results are not calculated correctly.
for reference:  http://www.thesycon.de/deu/latency_check.shtml
A new version is being worked on for Win 8 apparently!
 
I ended up using the app from resplendence here: http://www.resplendence.com/latencymon
 
The resplendence one doesn't really give a graphical representation like DPC checker but I still found it pretty useful to see what was going on in my system.
 
Are there any other good tools out there that all you Win 8 guys are using to test your performance?
 
Cheers for now.
 

chuckebaby


see I do see a performance increase,

OK credit where credit's due; For the relatively short period of time I had Win 8 installed, I did see some of the speed increases you mention - boot time was faster and in fairness the whole thing did seem quite snappy disk access etc..  But in my case I had DPC spikes from somewhere and I did manage to narrow things down a little but got tired of trying to debug drivers and services, I'm not saying I couldn't have fixed it given time, just that I'd spent long enough trying to fix it.
 
What compounded matters for me was not only was I seeing regular seriously high DPC spikes within my DPC tools, but those spikes were also being heard in Sonar in terms of either click/pops and/or random polyphony reduction on VST instruments.  Not good to have to make adjustments within ASIO that increased latency in order to stop this.  Especially, considering that now I'm back on Win 7, I'm running on lowest ASIO settings without artefacts or degradation of polyphony. 
 
But opening Apps, startup/shutdown etc., yep that is one area that I was impressed by.
 
Huge thumbs down for the GUI though, even if I had a touch VDU, I'll bet that I'd still be reaching for the keyboard and mouse.  
 
If I could debug the DPC issues, I could probably get some benefits from Win 8, assuming I immediately go straight into Desktop mode and ignore the Metro part of it. 
 
 

Well, I guess an option would be something like we had with DOS, but better. It would be great to have a very basic OS and let the programmers actually create user experience. Yeah, I know DOS was rough in comparison to what we have now, BUT it was efficient from a resource viewpoint. The code HAD to function with memory measure in kilobytes not megabytes or gigabytes. It seems that with every new OS incarnation things get more sloppy. A new media-friendly OS would be great. I've just recently purchased a computer from the Dark Side (Apple) just to see if their OS is any better. I know that in the few months I've had it, there are far fewer updates being pushed. I haven't done any real recording yet, but I'll get there eventually. It seems OS2 was supposed to be the solution, oh, but then there was that other OS somewhere between Win95 and Linux. When will computer nirvana actually arrive?!?!

gbarrett


 When will computer nirvana actually arrive?!?!

It very nearly arrived with windows 7 and then Microsoft attempted to Appletise it and introduce the mighty Metro (although they've renamed it again..lol). 
 
Some of the Linux distros that are coming out look absolutely stunning, but alas the big software houses aren't gonna take a gamble on such a fragmented OS, too many fingers in the pie and not enough standardisation.  So bang goes my Cakewalk and Photoshop.
 
I even briefly looked into running OSX on my PC, but the Hackintosh does look like it might be a real headache to get trouble-free operation and it wouldn't let me run Cakewalk natively.  So yeah, jump to Apple hardware/software or place your trust in Microsoft and hope they get it right.  I'm invested in PC/Cakewalk so I'll see how things transpire with windows 8.5/9 before making any longer term plans.
 
In the short term I need to set aside some more time to try another windows 8 install and debug the DPC issues, although I'm really in no hurry to do this at the moment as Win 7 is running like a charm.

After running Vista 64 successfully for many years I chose Windows 8 over 7 for my new DAW, I saw no point in buying into obsolescence. But still being a bit of a Luddite I use classic shell which seems to work very well, one thing I will agree with Chuckebaby on however is its one more thing that could cause a conflict.

If you are not going down that route the metro page can be improved by unpinning all the social media, news feeds, eCommerce and other crap that litters it up and just pin you commonly used programs. My next step is to look at how to uninstall most of those apps altogether. I am not paranoid about having my DAW on line, its connected, but I don't want apps I have no interest in pulling data from the internet. I have a separate PC for browsing and email.
 
It will however remain IMHO the ugliest interface that has ever appeared on a computer screen. The great thing about classic shell is you never see it, I don't see why Microsoft could not offer the option to boot into metro or desktop, if I put my cynic hat on I guess then their eCommerce stuff would be less prominent.
I can't comment on preformace improvments, the spec of the new DAW is way above the old one, its much faster, but what's down to hard ware and whats down to software cannot be determined.