Windows 8.1: Close, but no cigar

I took my time kicking the tires of the public preview build of Windows 8.1. I thought that after the Windows 8 fiasco surely Microsoft would get it right the second time around but I wanted to make sure.
It didn't.
Don’t get me wrong, Windows 8.1 is better than Windows 8. But that's not saying much. In my opinion, Windows XP was--and is--better than Windows 8.

First, the good news.
Microsoft has integrated SkyDrive cloud storage even deeper into the operating system. If you trust the cloud with your files, the 7GBs of free storage is handy.
Of course, other personal cloud storage services, such as Amazon Cloud Drive, Dropbox, and Box also work well with Windows 8.1. None of these work with it hand-in-glove the way SkyDrive does, or the way Ubuntu One does with Ubuntu, or Google Drive with Chrome OS.
Still, I think building SkyDrive into Windows 8.1 is the single most significant improvement Microsoft has brought to this new version of Windows.
One real user-interface improvement is the down-arrow at the bottom of the Metro screen that takes you to the Apps view. It's not as easy as getting to your programs from the old Start menu, but it certainly makes it easier to access applications.
Windows 8.1 also gives you much more power to easily customize the desktop. In particular, it's much simpler to rearrange and customize tiles on the Metro interface. I'm still not sure why you'd want to be using Metro as your PC interface, but that's another matter.

The best new desktop today: Linux Mint 15 (Gallery)

Windows 8.1 is still a two-headed monster. On one side is the tile-based Metro, aka Modern, interface. On the other is the desktop interface, which is, kind of, sort of, like Windows 7's Aero interface, but not quite.
You're faced once more with two different ways of doing the same jobs. It's not only annoying, it's confusing.
Microsoft still would prefer you to use Metro, and the Metro screen is what you first see when you start Windows 8.1. Microsoft finally has made it possible to start from the desktop. But that don't make it easy.

Windows 8.1: Close, but no cigar | ZDNet

 

[Cr00zng]

...The new Win8.1 Smart Search -- invoked by default through the Windows 8.1 Search charm -- not only searches your computer for the string you specify. It also, all by itself, gathers up the terms and runs them through a Bing search. Making this cool new feature all the more lovable, Microsoft has officially announced that advertisers will be able to dish up advertising to your computer, based on the searches you perform on your computer.

The referenced article also states, quote:

You can turn Smart Search off by bringing up the Settings charm, clicking or tapping Change PC Settings, then choosing Search and Apps, and moving the Use Bing to Search Online slider off.

And if you do that, clearing search gives this message:

http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/27645-search-online-bing-turn-off-windows-8-1-a.html

 

[PaulGo]

A look at the black underbelly of Windows 8.1 'Blue'

Pieces of Windows 8 inexplicably didn't survive jump to Windows 8.1, and new feature allows Microsoft to track your local searches

As Windows 8.1 Milestone Preview testers push and prod their way into the dark corners of Windows 8.1 "Blue," they're finding a bunch of things that go bump in the night. From new and likely unwelcome features, to nudges into the Microsoft data tracking sphere, to entire lopped-off pieces of Windows 8, it looks like Microsoft is changing Windows to further its own agenda.


...The new Win8.1 Smart Search -- invoked by default through the Windows 8.1 Search charm -- not only searches your computer for the string you specify. It also, all by itself, gathers up the terms and runs them through a Bing search. Making this cool new feature all the more lovable, Microsoft has officially announced that advertisers will be able to dish up advertising to your computer, based on the searches you perform on your computer.

A look at the black underbelly of Windows 8.1 'Blue' | Microsoft windows - InfoWorld

Truly interesting. . .albeit what is your point (just curious).

Article shows some of the changes made to Windows 8.1 plus it shows where Microsoft appears to be going with Windows - to an environment where we have very little privacy.

 

[jimbo45]

Hi there
I can't believe that "Apps" are the way to go for a DESKTOP OS. For a tablet or phone perhaps -- for example I can see a use for say SAT NAV type of app but normally most phone apps are simple single type transactional apps that don't need the USER to create content or do complex processing.

Desktop apps - by Desktop I don't mean necessarily a physical Work station - but any "Classical" computing device such as a laptop too - are essentially very different -- I'd hate to design a shopping mall on a small mobile phone screen -- note it's not only the physical drawing - you'd also need concurrently to have access to many other applications - such as properties of the materials you are using, quantities, weights, availability, suppliers etc etc.

In any case as far as Apps are concerned I haven't found A SINGLE ONE that I've ever paid for - There's NOTHING in the Ms store that I could conceivably want and on my phones I have never PAID for a single app. There are enough FREE ones that do the job.

I'm sure I'm not alone in that either.

As for things like Bing taking info from me to send me unsolicited commercials later -- No thanks.

Windows 8.1 -- afraid it's a FAIL. Windows 8 was an interesting experiment -- there are some things in W8.1 that have improved but the whole desktop experience in using W8.1 has not improved

It's not that it's hard to create some sort of proper desktop environment --it's just that it's too much of a hassle -- I'm prepared to do some work if I choose Linux -- it's always been like that so I know what to expect - but Windows should be as it has been in the past in that it essentially "Works straight out of the Box" and here W8 and W8.1 resoundingly fails.

Cheers
jimbo

 

[chrisa]

It would be fine if the app ran in a chromed window on the desktop at a tablet resolution. But with 8.x trying to make the monitor and desktop LOOK like a tablet, its borked.

That's the default behavior for the installed apps, but not for the desktop applications. The latter one starts up in the, well, desktop, where you can re-size the window any way you like it.

The desktop does not need to look like a tablet; if that's not your cup of tea, then boot Windows 8.1 directly to the desktop. Most of the apps that come preloaded on the start screen should be treated as OEM crap; uninstall or remove it from the start screen, and replace them with your the desktop applications...

My understanding of 8.1 is that running an app from the desktop or wherever causes it to go fullscreen(as if the monitor were a tablet).. no?

What i'm saying is that you should be able to run an app from the desktop, and when you do so.. it'll run inside of a chromed window. This isn't hard to do, they do a variation of it with the visual studio simulator. What does it say when I'm playing with developing an app and it feels better to run it out of the simulator when i'm developing on the desktop, than to run it regular?

Heck, if they simply took the Visual Studio Simulator and turned it into a chromed window with a ribbon down the outer right side containing the nifty rotation controls and resolution changing button, then took and wrapped all apps that launched from the desktop in that and allowed you to create icons on the desktop for them, that would be awesome.

Of course, if you started such things from the start screen, then they would display at full screen and you could use the split screen controls. As I've said before, if in the desktop motif you should never leave it. If in the modern motif, you then go modern. But never the twain shall meet. DONT CROSS THE STREAMS.

 

[jimbo45]

Hi there
SPLIT SCREEN CONTROLS -- what an imbecellic idea -- with modern hardware I want INFINITELY RE-SIZEABLE WINDOWS not a fixed number of pixels which can look absolutely dreadful on a 42 inch LED screen (or bigger).

The whole concept has gone absolutely BONKERS. The trend is even for TABLET users to have larger and larger monitors at home or even in the work place these days. I suspect even the most uncritical tablet user would look aghast at some of the results their images would look like when plugging their tablet into a 42 inch screen (assuming the tablet was running Windows 8).

Here's a challenge for you -- Draw and design a complete small shopping mall only using ONE application a time and only working in FULL SCREEN.

You'll soon get fed up switching between applications. This type of stuff is far better done with multiple monitors and CONCURRENT applications -- you are bound to need things like EXCEL and perform loads of calculations for the various material properties you will use in your construction.

Incidentally to the PC naysayers -- the sales of Larger monitors is actually going through the roof -- more and more people are going in for multiple monitors too (often with TV's incorporated into them or Smart TV's being used as monitors).

This implies that classical desktop computing is FAR from dead or dying -- it's just that people don't need to buy new computers so often these days. However the pre-installation of W8 on new computers isn't actually helping.

I'm hoping that the impending re-org at Ms will lead to some more sensible strategy in the future.

Cheers
jimbo

 

[labeeman]

The rumored reorganization of Microsoft, which could be revealed as soon as tomorrow, will go unnoticed by customers in the near term, analysts said today. "This will take years to work out," said Patrick Moorhead, principal analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy, with a just-as-long timeline before customers see a significant difference. "A company the size of Microsoft is perpetually reorganizing. They're never done."

Why the coming Microsoft reorg won't matter to you | The Industry Standard - InfoWorld

This article kinda shoot that down I am afraid.

 

[Cr00zng]

My understanding of 8.1 is that running an app from the desktop or wherever causes it to go fullscreen(as if the monitor were a tablet).. no?

What i'm saying is that you should be able to run an app from the desktop, and when you do so.. it'll run inside of a chromed window. This isn't hard to do, they do a variation of it with the visual studio simulator. What does it say when I'm playing with developing an app and it feels better to run it out of the simulator when i'm developing on the desktop, than to run it regular?

Heck, if they simply took the Visual Studio Simulator and turned it into a chromed window with a ribbon down the outer right side containing the nifty rotation controls and resolution changing button, then took and wrapped all apps that launched from the desktop in that and allowed you to create icons on the desktop for them, that would be awesome.

Of course, if you started such things from the start screen, then they would display at full screen and you could use the split screen controls. As I've said before, if in the desktop motif you should never leave it. If in the modern motif, you then go modern. But never the twain shall meet. DONT CROSS THE STREAMS.

The desktop application windows can be re-sized; here's a capture of my desktop:



The size of the application window opened, from the start screen and/or desktop, depends on the size of the window, when the application was saved. That's pretty much the same "old" windows behavior. In the image above, the application windows had been re-sized.

The normal/full size of these applications close to full screen, but they do not cover the gadget sidebar. The desktop applications can be opened in the start screen, or in the desktop, and it opens up in the desktop with any size you'd want.

Pressing the "Windows" key switches between the start screen and desktop. I find it easier to open some of the application from the start screen than from the desktop. Press the key, click on the application, and it opens up in the desktop. The "charms" on the other hand I don't use and yes, I cannot stand when the charm turns my desktop into a tablet...

 

[KarterJK]

A look at the black underbelly of Windows 8.1 'Blue'

Pieces of Windows 8 inexplicably didn't survive jump to Windows 8.1, and new feature allows Microsoft to track your local searches

As Windows 8.1 Milestone Preview testers push and prod their way into the dark corners of Windows 8.1 "Blue," they're finding a bunch of things that go bump in the night. From new and likely unwelcome features, to nudges into the Microsoft data tracking sphere, to entire lopped-off pieces of Windows 8, it looks like Microsoft is changing Windows to further its own agenda.


...The new Win8.1 Smart Search -- invoked by default through the Windows 8.1 Search charm -- not only searches your computer for the string you specify. It also, all by itself, gathers up the terms and runs them through a Bing search. Making this cool new feature all the more lovable, Microsoft has officially announced that advertisers will be able to dish up advertising to your computer, based on the searches you perform on your computer.

A look at the black underbelly of Windows 8.1 'Blue' | Microsoft windows - InfoWorld

Microsoft has just taken the Personal out of the our home computers, the company has become as "whacko" as Ballmer.