Windows 8, I’m warming up to you

The following isn't the sentiments expressed by many note.

Windows 8, I’m warming up to you

By Ken Hess
March 26, 2012, 10:00am PDT


Summary: Windows 8 and Server 8 sport the new Metro interface. You might hate it now but you’ll get used to it and you’ll like it.



Windows Server 8 Server Manager

It’s going to take a little time to find everything in Windows 8’s new interface but I think I’m warming up to Metro and its idiosyncrasies. I finally successfully installed Windows Server 8 into a XenServer 5.6 hosted VM. I gave my new Server 8 VM 2 CPUs and 2GB RAM. Alternatively, Windows 8 Desktop installed easily into VMware Workstation 8. I also installed Windows 8 Desktop onto a physical system so that I could test on real hardware as well.


I think I might actually like the Metro interface now that I’ve had a chance to test it, be mad at it, curse it to Hell and then to try it again with a sense of “this is the way of the future for MS operating systems.”


It’s time, as I once told a coworker about 15 years ago, “Put on your big boy pants and learn to use this system.” I was referring to his resistance at learning Windows NT 4.0 after I upgraded his system from Windows NT 3.51. My attitude was soon dampened by the sound of a Director informing my Domain Admin group that we had to stay every night until all of the desktops had 64MB RAM in them. Most of our NT 3.51 systems had 32MB RAM.

more

 

[Vince53]

Permit me to re-clarify, Crawfish. There are advantages to touchscreens, and yet you don't lose the ability to use a mouse and keyboard. Therefor, a touchscreen is better than a regular screen. Mass production lowers costs, so companies will stop manufacturing nontouch monitors and only manufacture touchscreens.

You are correct in stating that there are times when a mouse is better, and you will still be able to use one.

 

[whs]

I can see advantages of a smaller touchscreen that is lying flat on my desk. But e.g. a 24" screen that stands up and is 2ft away from me would probably be tiresome for my arms.

 

[crawfish]

Permit me to re-clarify, Crawfish. There are advantages to touchscreens, and yet you don't lose the ability to use a mouse and keyboard. Therefor, a touchscreen is better than a regular screen. Mass production lowers costs, so companies will stop manufacturing nontouch monitors and only manufacture touchscreens.

You are correct in stating that there are times when a mouse is better, and you will still be able to use one.

You've once again just restated what you've already said twice. It was clear the first time you think there are "advantages" (Otherwise, why do it?), yet you won't give even one. OTOH, I've given an example of when they're genuinely useful, which doesn't apply to ordinary desktop use, and I've given a couple of reasons why they don't help with ordinary desktop use, and also mentioned they would be awkward and messy to use. It seems to me something like Kinect has far more potential for desktop usage than a touch screen.

 

[thatmanbrian]

Well you two, I think touch screens on my desk alongside my keyboard and mouse would be fun.

 

[Vince53]

We had them at the paper mill. Most of us preferred touching the screen to using the mouse.

 

[Night Hawk]

It all depends on how the computer is used. At a company where things are always routine a fast touchscreen approach for simply entering an order complete or quantity information would be a repeat item.

For the average typical desktop user however it could become quite awkward at times especially with any need to keep returning to the Start screen for each thing when moving about and trying to keep multiple windows open.

Vista saw the sidebar and new gadgets, 7 saw the new taskbar with pin option and gadgets on the desktop, and now 8 will be seeing a touch all gui. But like I have mentioned previous with 7 being a desktop OS success overall MS now has time to "experiment" a little with some other ideas.

 

[thatmanbrian]

You say need to keep returning to the Start screen Night Hawk but in my home environment I very rarely see it, I'm on my desktop for the whole session. Is this some business thing that you think requires you to use Metro on a desktop?

 

[Vince53]

I just read a tech article on touch screens. MS says that the Win 7 touch screens will work pretty well with Win 8, but you really need a Win 8 touch screen. The areas on the edge of the screen are the hardest to get working right, and Win 7 screens actually have a vacant area near the edges.

 

[thatmanbrian]

That's daft. Why would MS design Metro so it doesn't work well on current hardware but requires special ones!?!?

 

[lehnerus2000]

OEMs

That's daft. Why would MS design Metro so it doesn't work well on current hardware but requires special ones!?!?

So the OEMs will buy it from MS.

If the OEMs won't buy it, how will MS sell it to anyone?

 

[Vince53]

That's daft. Why would MS design Metro so it doesn't work well on current hardware but requires special ones!?!?

Bryan, I don't know anybody who uses a touch screen with Win 7. The technology at the time made it difficult to use programs on the edges of the screen. Win 8 will work pretty well on Win 7 touchscreens, but it assumes that the edges now work. So if you buy a touchscreen for Win 8, you need to make sure it is designed for Win 8.

 

[thatmanbrian]

I notice on my desktop monitor that the start hotspot on my task bar is very very tight to the edge of the screen. One option would be to underscan the monitor a bit maybe. Although I don't actually use that I use the windows key anyway!

 

[crawfish]

I notice on my desktop monitor that the start hotspot on my task bar is very very tight to the edge of the screen. One option would be to underscan the monitor a bit maybe. Although I don't actually use that I use the windows key anyway!

Underscanning a monitor to deal with hotspots? I get it now. Every day is April Fool's day with the "Metro" thing.

 

[thatmanbrian]

LOL! I wasn't being serious!

 

[whs]

Hotspots are serious business that should not be fooled with.

 

[crawfish]

I was talking about the idea of underscanning, which combined with hotspots, would be multiplying stupid. Then again, maybe he writes drivers for ATI. To this day, that company thinks 15% underscan is just right for HDTVs. I've always wondered how many cards have been sent back due that ridiculous default and the difficulty of finding the option to correct it.

 

[thatmanbrian]

I said "One option would be to underscan the monitor a bit maybe." so the words 'option' and 'maybe' indicate I was thinking aloud about possibilities and NOT advocating it! And my name is Brian not 'he'.

 

[Night Hawk]

I notice on my desktop monitor that the start hotspot on my task bar is very very tight to the edge of the screen. One option would be to underscan the monitor a bit maybe. Although I don't actually use that I use the windows key anyway!

The two hot spots are lower left and lower right. I keep the taskbar on the top and avoid any problems with the Start, right click menu, and Crawler over on the right corner at the bottom of the screen. If you go to right click for the menu with the taskbar at the bottom you likely will end up with the taskbar properties instead.

That's one of the failings they made with knowing that the default setting sees the taskbar on bottom not side or top of screen.

 

[GMan]

In Firefox, try hitting Ctrl+F to find something, then go to click the x to close the find bar. haha