I'm using 8 for 3 months now (RC, will change to RTM 90-day trial soon) on my new PC. With Classic Shell it feels like a faster Windows 7. Compatibility with older (XP-Vista-7) games seems to be OK, briefly tested some 95 games (C&C, Red Alert) and they also work. I'll probably buy it when it comes out, unless something horrible happens. For me the good changes in 8 are inclusion of Hyper-V and really fast boot times.

Classic Shell, finally some good news.

I still wonder :

1. Will Windows 8 be the next short-lived version like Windows Vista?

2. The desktop UI looks like the Android/iOS based tabs/smartphones which youngsters and teens nowadays seem to carry everywhere. Is Microsoft tempted to just follow the latest Android/iOS hip-hop trends?

3. The controversial Microsoft "store" or "market" - closed platform gaming? And Microsoft trying to get a 30% share from Windows 8 soon-to-be "apps"?

And any comments about the following post - http://kotaku.com/5936535/windows-8-is-not-good-for-gamers?

I still have no problem with 8.

1) drivers are all there and performance is a bit better then 7 so its not going to be the same story as vista (perhaps a different one)

2) the metro/modern ui desktop looks a bit like that but the desktop ui is the same as windows 7 + a few improvements - start menu

3) 30% is only for metro/modern ui apps i belive but for desktop apps they have to be hosted elsewhere because there are way too many of them for microsoft to run a store for those as well

The article is interesting but irrelevant to me at least. I uninstalled all the metro apps and just use it for launching stuff when I choose not to search, no one forces you to use them, if you dont the experience is much the same as 7 or you can use classic shell or a million other things to give you a start button back

So you can skip the Metro front end entirely, and use it simply as a computer? I have yet to download/use mainstream apps for W7 [CPU-Z, CCleaner etc. are not "apps" in modern talk right?] - will such app freedom still apply to W8?

The only time I used the formerly called Metro interface is when I reboot the computer and click on the "Desktop" tile or if I search for something.

Sadly the search is worse than the start menu search since you now have to use two seperate shortcuts to search. windows +f for files or windows and then start typing for "apps".

That's the only time I ever see it. I've only every tried the Metro Apps during the RC phase and I wasn't impressed.

I will stay with W7 until W9 comes out or W8 SP1.

I'm sure Win8 will have it's fans but I personally hate having to relearn things...not saying it's bad though! Just different. I have the same problem with Unity on Ubuntu, so my linux boxes all run Mint now.

Newell and Carmack are complaining that W8 is going to be a closed system. Every piece of software written must be approved by Microsoft and be sold through the Microsoft store. That will put services like Steam and EA's Origin out of business. It also means you won't be able to go to the store and buy boxed software anymore, either. So if you want to write software that runs under Windows 8, or use software that runs under Windows 8, you have to bow down and kiss Ballmer's hairy, sweaty butt because there will be nowhere else to go.

Oh, and Microsoft changed the terms of all their EULA's recently, as well. All of their EULA's now state that you are bound to mandatory arbitration in a court of their choosing if you should ever have any complaints. You can't sue either independently or as part of a class action anymore because you give up your legal rights as a precondition of using their software. Live on the East Coast and have a problem? You have to go to Redmond to work it out. You can't sue locally because you gave up that right the moment you clicked "I agree" when the software booted up. So if you don't like the fact that Microsoft has locked you into their closed system, there is nothing you can do about it because once you use the system you no longer have any legal rights.

Well, after much cogitating on the subject of W8, I finally upgraded my home/hobby rig to *W7* a few weeks ago after a great run with XP 2005-2012. Skipping Vista was a good idea [as was skipping ME and 2K] and I'm getting a similar vibe from W8 - actually a worse vibe. I'm not looking for a "lifestyle" OS in my game/hobby rig, or something that make's it easier to "connect" - I'm just looking for a power plant.. So unless performance is demonstrably better under W8, or there are must-have game related capabilities [performance], I don't see a reason *not* to pass on it for now.

People love their FUD don't they.
http://www.withinwindows.com/2012/09/28/notch … -just-confused/

Windows 8 is no more closed than Windows 7. It just has an additional option for software distribution called the Windows Store. That's it. It's fun to bash Microsoft when all they are doing is copying everyone else.

🤣 You don't give up any rights by clicking a button. A EULA means nothing until it is tested by the court.

Just today one of the lawyers at our company wanted the legal disclaimer in his signature for some dumbass reason. (Every other lawyer is doing it) I joked I'm going to add a "Upon receipt of this email you agree to send me $1,000,000 dollars" signature to mine. heh

as for EULA its already tested with AT&T vs one of its consumer.

So if you don't like the fact that Microsoft has locked you into their closed system, there is nothing you can do about it because once you use the system you no longer have any legal rights.

off the meds I see. Let me pass you a tinfoil hat...

Dominus wrote:

So if you don't like the fact that Microsoft has locked you into their closed system, there is nothing you can do about it because once you use the system you no longer have any legal rights.

off the meds I see. Let me pass you a tinfoil hat...

http://www.gamepolitics.com/2011/04/28/atampt … e-class-actions

Such EULAs have already been held up by the Supreme Court of the US.

In your face.

DosFreak wrote:

People love their FUD don't they. http://www.withinwindows.com/2012/09/28/notch … -just-confused/ […]
Show full quote

People love their FUD don't they.
http://www.withinwindows.com/2012/09/28/notch … -just-confused/

Windows 8 is no more closed than Windows 7. It just has an additional option for software distribution called the Windows Store. That's it. It's fun to bash Microsoft when all they are doing is copying everyone else.

🤣 You don't give up any rights by clicking a button. A EULA means nothing until it is tested by the court.

Just today one of the lawyers at our company wanted the legal disclaimer in his signature for some dumbass reason. (Every other lawyer is doing it) I joked I'm going to add a "Upon receipt of this email you agree to send me $1,000,000 dollars" signature to mine. heh

Newell spread FUD and Notch repeated it regarding w8 being closed. Theytre afraid the win8 store will be really a game changer.

Slide, you live in a sad country which allows contracts to be true that were not presented before buying...

Then MS is fully in their right to do whatever they want. You just have toprevent "signing" a contract with them... 😉

I don't know whether or not this alarmist sort of talk about Windows 8 has any truth to it. All I know is how we've gotten to today's sad state of affairs: through people repeatedly ignoring the ongoing erosion of their rights as users because it's more convenient to assume "business as usual", and dismissing any indication of the opposite as "FUD" or some sort of laughable paranoia. I've been defending Microsoft's practices for ages, since their way of doing things has always seemed a lot more benign and harmless (despite all the counter-propaganda), but now that they've started "copying everyone else" that very fact could be a legitimate cause for concern.

In this case, whatever the restrictions are (real or imagined), I'm sure someone will find a way around them. I don't value the business interests of Valve or the Minecraft guy any more than I do Microsoft's. But the case still remains that this whole "metro/desktop" duality is looking more and more like a huge misstep - a completely schizoid operating system that can't reconcile its own incompatible ideas of what exactly it's trying to be. Still a "pass" for me.

I do recall some claim problem with current microsoft is "copying everyone else" more currently known as Apple-envy & Google-envy.

While this copying is not exactly new to microsoft (Windows accused copying Mac which then accused copying Xerox), but perhaps only in last few years that MS began "copying" Google & Apple bussines models.

MS see that Apple being successful with its Walled Garden style, then MS want to make one for itself too.
MS see that Google being successful colecting huge profiles base for targeted advertising, MS want something like that too, so MS bought some obscure search engine, rename it as "Bing".

Using win8 as momentum, MS launched "Microsoft Advertising SDK for Windows 8".
OS sponsored ADWare!!

Those who know live-channel, active-desktop in win98, will know what they'll see as it re-emerged in Metro Style.
Happy window shoppings.

Is "Bing" still the default search "engine" in IE in Windows8?

Usually the first thing I do when I re-install (when the need arises) Windows 7 in my systems, is to change the default search engine provider to Google.

For me, MS looked the bad sport, when it started kicking away google to oblivion, when it developed problems with google. Even the ie gallery made it difficult to add google as the default search engine - had to keep on scrolling until it was found. Now, it's still not easy to navigate the gallery, but at least, Google has come to the forefront on the category display page. And the so called rating of the provider has improved from 2 or 3 stars previously. A far cry from the days when google was the default search engine for IE.

Saying all that, I'm still using Windows OSs. I just hope the overhaul of Windows 8 wont screw up. (As an example, the so called Windows 7 Search is absolutely useless to me. I always disable the Search process in the Group Policy Editor to prevent it from constantly trashing my hard disk. I prefered the Windows XP's Search - Simple and Functional.)

This time, I'll wait for at least one good year or so before upgrading. I made a mistake with Vista last time.

@ Malik - disabling W7 search sounds interesting, but what do you use instead? A thrid-party utility, or is there a simpler process buried somewhere in there? Unless you mean disabling Indexing, which I did right away... along with Hibernation, System Restore etc...