New
#1
I do heavy technical documentation and software development. Trying to do that by voice and touch would be worse than stupid. It simply would not be sufficiently productive by a factor nearing a hundred.
For example, I once was required to write an embedded system software driver in assembly language using a KSR 33 teletype as my only IO device. The editor, the compiler, the source code, and the object code had to pass through a 15 bytes/sec paper tape interface for each cycle of the development. It took me a month to write, test, and validate a mere 100 byte portion (~10% of the estimated total). A functional driver was due to be mated with the rest of the software and hardware in three months. After demonstrating the inadequacy of a KSR 33 for the purpose, a high speed paper tape reader and punch was ordered and delivered. I completed the driver in less than two weeks afterward. Yes, this is ancient history (ca 1972). However, it demonstrates the necessity of using the right tools for the job.
There are things for which voice command and touch are absolutely wonderful but there are many other things for which they are not in the same ballpark let alone marginally useful. Hence, different people with different needs will require different combination of IO devices to be effective and productive. Up till now, that was the strength of MS Dos and Windows. You could pick and choose and generally make it work. Now, by decree from on high, we are to be restricted to a toy of a touch user interface and a very crippled keyboard-mouse interface - both of which I find visually and functionally offensive to the point of being not worth trying to use for any purpose.
In case you wish to accuse me of not trying it out, don't. I actually did try very hard. I spent a lot of time over abut a week trying to make it work for my technical writing and a 275K line software development project. I was even able to make it work sort of. If I had had a gun to my head, I might have been able to live with it for a short while before asking the trigger to be pulled. But why do it when Windows 7 does everything I want and need the way I want to do it? The Windows 8 system is no longer and never to return to my venue until Microsoft wakes up and starts serving its customer base as actual customers rather than as mindless captives without will or independent purpose.
From my perspective, I do not exist to serve Microsoft in any capacity. Microsoft is merely a source of paid for capabilities that fit MY purpose for a lower cost and effort than to develop the capabilities myself. Otherwise they are welcome to go down any path to hell they wish to follow.