Only 5 months ago I said this about Metro:
Installed it on a laptop at work. Hate the metro interface.
I hate Metro from the bottom of my heart. Nuff said
Then when Consumer Preview was released I started to think how I bashed those conservative "I hate change, give my XP back" geeks back when Seven was published. How I, among other geeks including some quite senior members of our own Seven Forums openly showed our contempt when some other geeks where only complaining, asking how Microsoft can be so stupid they replace XP with this totally different OS.
Let's be honest, some members were even banned basically because they voiced their negative opinion about Seven too loud and aggressively.
What has changed? An OS will be replaced with quite different one. No, wait. It has not changed from those days, it's the same story now. As with XP and Seven, also today with Seven and Eight the basic functions of the former can be found on the latter. As Eight looks at the moment, it is not so different when you think of it. OK, Start Menu is quite different and Metro totally new but you already have tools on interweb to get back the former and get rid of the latter.
After testing, searching, digging and reading almost everything about Eight I have found, I have grown to like it. Flexible and innovative Metro let's me pimp my Start screen as I wish, with direct access to my mail, media and friends. With a six button scroll mouse I can do wonders with just a few clicks. My rigs are synced, settings transferred without none whatsoever input from my side. Powerful Hyper-V takes now care of my virtualization needs, allowing me to install a virtual machine only once and then use it from any of my computers.
I share the opinion that the server version should be more traditional, that Metro GUI does not suit server. That being said, I like almost everything else on Eight, using Consumer Preview now as my main OS on all but one rig where I still have dual boot 7/8 system.
As older members already know, I am an egocentric vain narcissistic man, loving to quote myself
, so here's something I posted a few days ago as response to
This will be Microsofts biggest ever flop, far bigger than Vista on
The Eight Forums:
Just my 2 cents:
I'm reading all these complaints about how difficult it is to find something, or how something works on Windows 8 CP. "I am an experienced Windows veteran since version XXX and I can not find this and can not do that", that seems to be a common nominator.
OK. I am an experienced Windows user, since absolute beginning of Windows. When I first saw Win 8 CP it was clear it is so different than previous versions that even experienced users might need to consult manuals and other written instructions.
I did so. And now I have absolutely no problems to navigate deeper and deeper on Win 8 CP, find what I need. The point is we should forget now the fact we are "experts" and start instead reading manuals. I know it's cool to brag that "only n00bs read manuals, I do not need them for I am a pro", but it's wrong attitude.
Control Panel cannot be found:BS! Can not hibernate: BS! Can not change this or that: BS!
Stop complaining. Read.
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Windows 8 Consumer Preview
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Windows 8 Consumer Preview Guide (pdf)
Remembering how aggressively I behaved and responded here not three years ago when XP lovers criticized "my beloved Seven", I promise this time not to judge if you decide to stay on Seven or wait the Nine. However, I would like to recommend it and ask you to give it a change, to try, to understand that world and everything on it changes. Maybe time is now right to make these fundamental changes to our way to think how an OS should be, feel and look.
I have always been a Microsoft fan boy and do not shame it. I am happy they will give us this magnificent new OS; after my initial negative reaction I was afraid I would have to move over to Mac :)
Very sincerely, a happy Eight user.
Kari