The Lock screen is something you should be seeing as new in a new desktop version much like you saw Vista with a new side bar and gadgets for the first time. 7 advanced that further by no longer needing the side bar to run gadgets on the desktop. That was progression of Windows as far as the desktop platform in regards to "eye candy" features to appeal to the desktop user to upgrade into the newer version.
What happened besides that in 8 is the new look for the task manager that was much needed, and the overall improvement in security with MS actually putting in something that works for a change was at the cost of other features that had been included in different versions until now. The Windows core was stripped down on the features and options sides to put working items in showing some progressions there while not maintaining the idea of an updated desktop theme to replace Aero but instead stripped Aero out entirely to substitute with the RT gui? not designed for the desktop platform to begin with.
Can you still get around in 8? That you can do while for everyone the entire process is awkward and clumsy at first! I have someone I know dyslexic with a reading disability that can find IE to check the mail. Whoopie! For the repetitive tasks and opening more then one app at the same time you then need items pinned to the taskbar, have something like RocketDock, CircleDock in use, or do what i have been doing since Vista of adding additional tool bars that serve as jump menus from the main task bar and keep the Start orb for searching for a service with a command in the search box, run something at the Start>Run command line, open Accessories or System Tools, or simply right click to copy or create a new shortcut I then add to one of the jump list type menus.
When stripping away the Start menu to substitute the Touch & Swipe RT type gui however MS took everything you could readily find with ease in the traditional Start>All Program and even Accessories, System Tools, Settings off of Start plus the Run and simply spread and hid things all over the place. The Crawley hides away not only the shutdown options but Apps and a limited number of settings not all settings and no Control Panel to find there.
Down where the new popup for Start screen appears you right click to bring up hopefully a new menu other then the Personilzations screen from the desktop when hitting just the right spot that is. You find some settings and finally the Control Panel in that hidden menu. Gee wasn't that seen in Start>Settings where you could get right at it in two steps instead of scratching your head not knowing about hidden right click menus without formal instructions provided?
This will be the one for the books in years to come when people look back and realize that MS could have done a better job for the non tablet platform and worked out a new form of Desktop with tuochscreen capability that still met the desktop needs and not simply toss the Tablet type gui on and call it a day. That's the harsh reality people!
The Start screen itself while the Start>All Programs could have easily seen a revision is big, awkward, clumsy, and as most have found contains "large ugly buttons' and scrolls endlessly off the screen when you add a few extra programs on! Search and Discovery mission as you scroll endlessly to the right will far more then just the single would have been desktop shortcut found but the help.doc becomes more clutter for each program install as well as seeing the uninstall button taking up even more desktop space since the "Modern" approach(or reproach as some would call it) takes up the entire screen while the little old Start menu came up or dropped down on one sides of the screen only!
With 7 the "most used frequently" apps had a separate place on the Start menu there for ease of access. In 8 you might have to scroll a long way through several screen fulls in order to get at the same if loading a good number of programs on with the exception of the catagory option to somewhat group things together. Then and only then once you find something you still may pin it to the taskbar just the same as you would have in 7. Only this time it's a bit more cumbersome when going to do that having to go through a bit more effort in first locating some button while the lost Start>All Programs keep it together!
Well gee if you have a touchscreen on your desktop(which one friend got sick of fast and reverted back to 7) you can swipe the screen fast to find the app you want to pin on the task bar. But for those of us still using point and click plan a full day ahead!
