More Than 3 Out of 4 Enthusiasts Reject Windows 8

I don't think so.

MS want to move everyone to a phone style non personal computer.

It is the future MS is planning.

Most consumers probably do not fully understand what Microsoft is trying to do also, they want to increase our exposure to their marketing as much as possible, and many people (think someone may have said this) will buy something because it makes them look good, that's the psychological power of brands.

There is nothing that MS can do to make me purchase a software product whose end game is to force users on tablets and or smartphones.

Gary said:

There is nothing that MS can do to make me purchase a software product whose end game is to force users on tablets and or smartphones.

Agreed!

whs said:

Dell also blamed Windows 8 as one of the reasons why they are not selling their gear.

But what is really amazing is that Windows 7 is still growing.

Dell admits being a PC maker is a dead end in new SEC filing



...Among other things, Dell cites “decreasing revenues in the market for desktop and notebook PCs and the significant uncertainties as to whether, or when, this decrease will end”; “the overall difficulty of predicting the market for PCs...


...One big reason that Dell wants to go private is that it reportedly plans to reinvent itself by developing a computer the size of a USB stick that’s capable of giving users access to every major operating system, from Windows to Mac OS X to Google’s (GOOG) Chrome OS.

Dell PC industry analysis: OEMs face dead end | BGR

SIW2 said:

They dropped it to increase battery life. They are having problems with that on Surface Pro etc.

Windows is much less efficient than Linux.

Absolutely right. My friend recently got Windows 8 and is quite content with it. He says battery life seems to have almost doubled. He has an old battery which hardly gave 1.5 hrs with Windows 7, Aero on. With Windows 8, he can work for almost 3 hrs straight!

x BlueRobot said:

Most consumers probably do not fully understand what Microsoft is trying to do also, they want to increase our exposure to their marketing as much as possible, and many people (think someone may have said this) will buy something because it makes them look good, that's the psychological power of brands.

I think a lot of us may be projecting our "geekness" (my word) on others. We need to remember for the most part we are enthusiasts who like to tweak a poke at everything little thing on out computers. On the other hand most everyday users don't even know where the control panel is never mind the registry.

I'm in school pursuing my Computer Information Systems degree and it amazes me that quite a few of my school mates have no clue when it comes to working with Windows, even some of my professors seem lost at times. This has made me realize how small the enthusiast community really is. In short, it's put perspective on things.

When you look around you, you find you're the go-to person for computer help. And no matter how minor the task seems to you, it's a huge deal for those that don't dabble with computers.

Yes, more and more people are using computers, but that doesn't mean they delve as deep as we enthusiasts do. My daughters came up with computers, they don't know what it is to not have one, yet they know nothing about PC repairs, Windows tweaks, or the inner workings of a PC. Yeah they know the inner workings of everyday usage, but the enthusiast stuff, they leave that to me, the "geek".

So what's my point? Microsoft is only giving the larger masses (the general public) what they need, and want. This means they need to make sure the OS is easy to use, and not overly complicated. Yeah, this may seem dumberfied (my word) to us enthusiasts, but remember we are still the minority.

And though we the enthusiast community can, and do influence what most tech companies do, they in the end also have to consider the larger masses, which doesn't always match up with what the enthusiast community wants.

That said, Microsoft, nor anyone else, doesn't want to sell complicated because we are not overly complicated. In fact most societies are in, or are rapidly moving towards what I call the Microwave society - we want it fast, we want it now, we want it uncomplicated.

Windows 8 is a step in that direction... fast, easy, uncomplicated. And though it may seem like child’s paly as some have called it, I’m sure we’ll figure out a way to tweak and fix it to our liking. That’s what we enthusiasts (geeks) do. We tweak. I just installed the Windows 7 games package on 8, something Microsoft left out.

That said, before getting my Win8 laptop, I swore I was going to dump 8 (yeah, I was a H8ter) and put 7 on it. Instead I've decided to let things be and give 8 a go. It's been frustrating at times, especially trying to figure out how to close open windows on the fly (still having got that), trying to find stuff, or just navigating around the OS. But if I'm the "geek" I think I am, I'll eventually get it.

Would I have liked the option of getting W7? Yeah; on the other hand, here's an opportunity to give 8 a try. Since Microsoft is forcing this on the masses as others have cried, why not be ahead of the curve.

My two cents.

mjf said:

sygnus21 said:

I'm in school pursuing my Computer Information Systems degree and it amazes me that quite a few of my school mates have no clue when it comes to working with Windows, even some of my professors seem lost at times. This has made me realize how small the enthusiast community really is. In short, it's put perspective on things.

All I can say is that is a bit of a worry. Hopefully your teachers know the fundamentals of operating system theory even if they aren't super experts on Windows 7.

To be clear, since this is a 4 year school, I have many different courses, so not every professor is going to be computer savvy to the enthusiast level. However they are very competent in their area(s) of expertise, including those who teach computer courses.

That said, my point is/was is that even in a world of "higher learning" not all students and teachers are as computer savvy as we think. This obviously wouldn't include those professors who teach computer courses, or most of the students taking those courses.

When you look at the entire student body, again, we, the computer geeks, are in the minority. That's my point.