More Than 3 Out of 4 Enthusiasts Reject Windows 8

[XweAponX]

This is sad, because I think the Windows 8 Desktop is the next logical step for the Desktop OS, despite the removal of the things we liked like Transparency for all windows. I wish Windows 7 had that Auto Colour feature where it changes the taskbar and Explorer colours to match the colours of the Desktop Wallpaper. I don't understand how that feature could be implemented and not cause the speed of the OS to suffer. I have been pushing my customers to try Windows 8 but it has been a solid refusal down the line, but mostly they are all businesses and they fear what they do not understand, they fear they will not be able to do their work.

I've tried to showcase my own PCs which all run Dual Boots 7 and 8, and even when they see with their own eyes the speed increase of launching apps like Office and their Database apps, they still refuse.

I wish Microsoft would consider making a Service Pack 2 for Windows 7, in which they could introduce of the the things in the Desktop of 8 which speed it up- I also like the way Windows 8 shows you the speed of which a Copy or Deletion process is running - I never considered that the speed fluctuates so much.

But this news also makes me happy and relieved that with this high demand for Windows 7 now, that MS will continue to support it. I have just spent 3 months updating all of the workstations of Windows 7 to SP1- I lost a few activations doing this but I was able to get them back easily.

 

[Night Hawk]

8 seemingly runs faster from having half of the features seen in 7 and previous versions removed! They, your customers, are looking at a stripped down OS as well as one having a "Tablet" not "Desktop" touch & swipe type gui on it which is the furthest away from any progressive desktop trend.

The move by MS is quite obvious as far as 8 is concerned where the efforts were focused not on desktop but mobile type goals to jump in late on the Fruit company, Google-itis rivals. The MS ads are strictly comparing an 8 tablet next to an Android or IPxx(x) showing the direct intent to take them head on. The problem for us "desktop users" is that MS isn't that worried about straying off the beaten path with a new version going flop in order to grab at the mobile side of life.

The actual sad part of some of the efforts that went into 8 are not those developed by the gui team but the hidden away items as well as a few more innovative changes finally seeing light at the same time the OS was being stripped down to be more suitable for CE(Compact Edition) embedded and tablet application.

The new Lock screen was a change as well as seeing a new look for the traditional Task manager. Sound familiar? A new look when wanting to check the performance for example and no longer looking at the same old drab background seen in each version for some years now.

And what about those annoying updates for a useless item in 7 known as the Windows Defender as well as a not so good to begin MS Security Essentials for Vista/7? In 8 the WD is now the MS SE with a new name! And it actually does something and remains in hibernation as long as your usual av protections are inplace. Once there is no protection finally MS stuck in something that works! It's a shame they trashed the gui to satisfy the Tablet ambitions however.

 

[PaulGo]

Can Microsoft's U-turn stop the Xbox 360 becoming another XP? ? The Register

 

[x BlueRobot]

I'm certainly staying with the Xbox 360, I still have a perfectly working PS1, and one of my best friends still has a perfectly working PS2.

 

[gregrocker]

Defender is MSE in Win8. They kept the Defender name because it had already cleared anti-trust lawsuits from Big AV's when it didn't do much. So they just swapped in MSE and kept the Defender name. Have they changed it again?

 

[Night Hawk]

Defender is MSE in Win8. They kept the Defender name because it had already cleared anti-trust lawsuits from Big AV's when it didn't do much. So they just swapped in MSE and kept the Defender name. Have they changed it again?

I am not surprised a bit at the name being kept the same since it was already an established component name in the last few versions being a familiar item to all. The one thing different this time however was in every other freebie MS hands out as far as av or antimalware/antispyware they fumble the ball!

All of a sudden in 8 you see a working form of Security Essentials that actually does something?! The freebie for 7 and Vista? is a free joke and not an actual effective protection against any real nasties I would say. I had to dump the MS SE here to go back with AVG until being pointed at a much better software back in 2010.

But MS isn't really any different with freebie anti-bug apps then just about any others found that often want to see a tool bar install or home page and search change during the install. What MS did to be one of the few plus factors in 8 was incorporate a sleeping av program in that comes to life until system protections(3rd party) go on to cover the bases to an extent. When looking at the CP build the new WD did actually bag a few bugs for a change!

 

[jimbo45]

Hi there

MSE / Windows defender.

"...If it LOOKS like a Duck, Quacks like a Duck and Waddles like a Duck ......"

Actually in W8 it works very well and is just as GOOD or just as USELESS depending on your point of view of any computer AV system designed for HOME (Non Corporate) use.

I don't think it's too bad and is far superior to McAWEFUL (Mcafee) or symanetec etc.

Cheers
jimbo

 

[mjf]

Might agree with the McAfee comment but I run Norton Internet Security on 2 PCs and MSE on a 3rd. I also have the free version of Malwarebytes which I run regularly. I think there are quite a few informed members who are happy with NIS. I find Norton's site advisor along with WOT (Web of Trust) useful. At the end of the day you can still catch a cold and a number of system images made over time should stop the sniffles.

 

[gregrocker]

The solution I've found for my Typhoid Mary's and Harry's who get chronic infection is to keep MSE but add the paid version of MBAM, after reinstalling it as a Trial for a free month to see how it agrees with them. No more infections.

 

[Night Hawk]

Norton has seen some excellent improvements over the last several years compared to the old bloatware rep that one had. I'm in contact with one of their chief security analysts on occasion here and share notes at times. Having effective web filtering is actually about the best possible solution since you keep the bad stuff off especially when bugged sites are filtered out!

No one has to go anywhere near McAFail to how that one is! That was one of the first I had here back in the 90s and it stunk as much back then as apparently it still does now! Foobar alley rep!

The one thing about the MS SE in 8 is it actually flagged and removed a few bugs typically only VIPRE Internet Security would even detected being present. When first getting the CP on that situation came up rather fast when simply running a web search without any protections inplace of course since VIPRE is on 7. If it had been 7 with the 7 version of SE forget it! VIPRE in the meantime besides a new development that came up lately will find things hidden in zip and rar file downloads all other programs have missed so far including Malwarebytes, Avast, AVG, and some others put to the test.

When first trying that out back in 2010 it was finding bugs left and right in old XP downloads for utilities that were either forgotten about or used shortly before a drive wipe like a new larger drive or new build. VIPRE immediately spotted the adwares, spybot, even trojan downloaders that some sites packed into their freebies. These days VIPRE would simply block those sites out when any question is raised about web tracking privacy concerns or malicious coding in any form.

 

[Lone Browncoat]

HA! I found the one thing I hate about Windows 7.
M$ sought not to include the classic colour schemes of XP/2000!
Found this out while on a friends' machine, if they allow you to turn off
Aero and the other gpu hogging clutter, they could have just let the classic
colour choices remain as part of the package, just as they still allow one to use
their own choices for sound events on the desktop.
I either will have to use IownAmoneyPit's method...
http://www.sevenforums.com/themes-styles/41105-themes-windows-7-a-32.html
or try to import from the W2kP backup I have on the work drive that is going into the
new build. The only thing is I didn't have time to find out where W7 stores its' theme
packages [you know, like, try before you buy]. I assume its' the same path as always.

 

[whs]

LOL, My new Mercedes does not have a crank in the front for starting the engine - like the Ford model T used to have. Progress is terrible.

 

[Layback Bear]

LOL, My new Mercedes does not have a crank in the front for starting the engine - like the Ford model T used to have. Progress is terrible.

Wolfgang have you contacted Mercedes and informed them of this gross error. Whats the automotive world coming to? What's next, padded seats.

 

[Lone Browncoat]

Well, smartasses, I happen to like the clean uncluttered look of the classic desktop, with the only "newfangled" bit being window transparency added.
I prefer text only, no damn icons or pictograms, in fact I've preserved not only the mozilla profile folders from day one but migrate the .ini files as well. My Firefox 22 still looks like FF 3 or 4, indeed some, using the guest account, have to do a double take and go to the "about" tab to see what version I'm running. I like what I like, isn't that the point vis a vis W8? Choice?

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/77626-convert-windows-xp-style.html

& I want my "Maple" scheme for the brown shades, not the IBM colours of the 95/98 desktop.

Is that too much too ask for?:huh:

 

[whs]

It is not too much asked for and it is available - in XP.

 

[Lone Browncoat]

It is not too much asked for and it is available - in XP.

W7 still has that holdover called the pagefile, what do you need that for when 4GiB now costs less than 1GiB of a few years ago?

"This makes you think what the use of the pagefile is anyway these days. It is an "obsolete" technology from the Win 3.1 era but we have to live with it. Even if you are using 64 bit versions of the Windows OS."
https://sites.google.com/site/tweakradje/windows/windows-tweaking

 

[whs]

If you have enough RAM, you do not need the pagefile or can set it to a small number. I set mine to 1GB with 8GB of RAM.

 

[HammerHead]

Pagefile

Open System
Left pane -- Advanced system settings
Advanced tab under Performance Settings
And I believe under system protection you can turn the page file off. If you have enough ram you won't notice it be off.

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

I set mine to 800MB per the warning message when I set it lower. I'm worried though. With only 32GB of RAM, I'm afraid I might need it and it won't be there.

 

[HammerHead]

Ram

"With only 32GB of RAM"

I don't think you need to worry.