Thursday, December 5, 2013

I’m not sure Microsoft appreciates how much some users hate Windows 8

"I’m not sure Microsoft appreciates how much some users hate Windows 8" is the title of an online opinion piece that can be fond here: http://bgr.com/2013/12/04/windows-8-hatred-explained/

When I came upon this paragraph, I laughed out loud: "Take two of my friends who recently made the upgrade to Windows 8.1 from Windows 7. Upon installing the software, one of them said that “the only way they could make it worse is if the right mouse click [would] be replaced by smashing your right thumb with a hammer.” Another one simply said that he “took my CPU back because of that crap” and switched back to Windows 7."

For the record, I am neither a lover nor a hater of Windows 8 after my first few days on my new PC which came with Windows 8 (not Windows 8.1). Re-confirming my plan I am going to upgrade to Windows 8.1 after I get a little more experience.

What I have come to realize so far is that most of the new stuff in W8 has to do with the user interface. MOST of what we had gotten used to is still there, typically down a level or two. However, what irks the most is that the old "START/ALL PROGRAMS" method we all got so used to does not seem to have an acceptable replacement, and the old way is definitely gone and I have not figured out a way to get to the old familiar list. Instead, this, which I consider a major disppointment at best, is the replacement for START/ALL PROGRAMS:

This new ALL PROGRAMS list goes on and on to the right, and since I have a touch screen, I can easily scroll to the right with a simple swipe of my index finger.

So, bottom line, I like what I see but one must be prepared for some disappointments in the new user interface, especially after I/we have spent so many years getting used to and accepting of the old versions of Windows.

Stay tuned for more updates as I move forward with my W8 experience.

Monday, December 2, 2013

Biting, NO, Bit the Bullet

I have been struggling for a very long time about when or whether I should buy my next PC. I did NOT want to rush into Windows 8. Then along came Windows 8.1, and I gave a little. W8.1 supposedly fixed a lot of the issues that were complained about in W8. I will find out soon enough.

And then there was my concern for my PCDOC customers and students I am teaching. Some, now many many of you, have purchased or will soon purchase, new PCs,

Then there is my stubbornness about making Windows XP last. I have been (publicly) determined to have my XP systems last well beyond the end of support for XP in April of 2014. So my current status is that I have 2 machines that are running Windows XP. One of these has been my workhorse, but for the last 2 months it has been slowly dying on me, and I knew it wouldn't last forever. So it would be more correct to say I have one and a half XP machines!

The new machine I bought is a Dell Inspiron 15R. It has Windows 8 (not 8.1 - yet). It has a 1TB disk drive, 8GB of RAM, and a touch screen. It has an Intel Core i5-4200U CPU. This should last for a few years. Initially I will use it to document (in class handout form) a Windows 8 supplement to my growing library of student materials (now XP, Vista, and W7).

Once I am comfortable with W8 I will upgrade to Windows 8.1 - a free upgrade. At that point I will feel current. I have been falling behind.

After just an hour or so on my new machine I am playing music that lives on my W7 machine. I am also quite surprised at how easy it is to switch back and forth between the fancy W8 desktop and the traditional Windows desktop. I have added 2 photos below, one of each desktop window.

Much more to come - obviously, as I gain experience, but so far, so good!