Windows 9...

Lodmot

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I wasn't exactly sure where this should go..... but I felt like sharing it somehow. Please excuse me if this is not in the appropriate forum...

So let me start off by saying that I'm one of them Windows 8 haters.... Yeah, you guys probably love me already. xD

Honestly though, there are good things about Windows 8, but the problem is that its flaws overshadow its strengths. The only way I can see its flaws being fixed is Windows 9. So I actually came up with some concept images of how I believe Windows 9 should look and behave. I really think this is the only way Microsoft could quell a good amount of the confusion associated with Windows 8. Not only would this concept be easy for consumers to understand, but it would be compatible with Modern UI apps. So, let's take a look...

526321_10200103007598429_423377066_n.jpg


So when you first boot up Windows 9, you're immediately brought to the traditional desktop just like in Windows 7. As you can see, the Start button has been re-instated into the desktop, and this time it's nice and large, making it very touch-centric for tablets. The task bar has also been slightly enlarged to work better on touch screens and tablets. Windows 9 would look like this on every device, whether it's a tablet or a full-sized PC. No more compatibility confusion between different platforms.

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When you click the start button in Windows 9, this happens. As you could see, it looks like the Metro UI shrunken down into a window. You'd be able to scroll through all your tiles just like in Windows 8, but there's a few changes here. You've got an easily-accessible power button and settings button at the top of the start menu. You also have your user name at the top right, and a search bar at the bottom, which allows you to search for anything on the computer. At the top left, you see "Windows 9" proudly reminding you that you're free of the havoc caused by Windows 8. So, let's see what happens when you click on a Metro app... Does it still work?

windows9concept_5_censored.png

Ah, yes it does. And it doesn't fill up the entire screen. Metro apps would be completely compatible with Windows 9. The only difference is they'd be scaled down in an area like this. If you click outside the area, it disappears along with the metro app. However if you click on the Start button, it will pop up with the Metro app right where it left off. It can also run in the background as well. Also, you still have access to the Settings and Power buttons no matter what app you're in. Now while you're in an app, two arrow buttons are added near the bottom of the "Start window", as I'd like to call it. The arrow button pointing left will actually take you back to the new Metro UI. Hmm..... Let's see what the arrow button pointing to the top right does.....

windows9concept_6_censored.png

Well look at that. It just took my Metro UI app and placed it in its own window on the desktop. In Windows 9, Metro UI apps can now be treated as regular Desktop apps. You can minimize them, close them, maximize them, or even have multiple Metro apps on the screen at once. (Yes, more than two this time!) This not only allows for easier multitasking with Metro apps, but it also allows you to access the Metro UI tiles without having to take your apps off the screen. :)So.... that's my concept idea for Windows 9. I really believe this is something Microsoft ought to look at if they want to see better success for Windows 9. What do you guys think?
 

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I'm what you call, a Windows 8 supporter. :)

But I have to ask, what happens in two years when people have figured out how to use Windows 8 and its touch gestures on laptops and ultrabooks with their touchpads, learned how to use it with touch, and find using a mouse just fine with a desktop? What happens to the people that are using tablets and touchscreens to use the new metro apps that will have expanded greatly in the Windows Store, along with the Desktop, and don't see a purpose for having a start menu anymore as the Start Screen and Charms already do that? Or, what if you want to see five or more rows of live tiles to see things like new messages, emails, news articles, weather updates, stock updates, or other information update? How do you search from the Music app to Internet Explorer to the Windows Store? What happens when you open a news reading app? You'd need to make it into a separate window and make it larger, which almost seems pointless as Windows 8 would just open it full screen, as there would be very little left to actually see if that news app were open.

Windows 8 already looks the same across different platforms regardless of touch or mouse input.

I can't help but to notice that the start menu ends up taking about 2/3 of the Desktop already, so anything that is being worked on will be covered up regardless. That, and there are only three rows of tiles, which at very most can hold about 15 tiles, which incidentally, is more or less closer to how much you could see with the old start menu in 7 by default in the MFU portion of it. The thing about the Start Screen is that it's resolution dependent, so the higher resolution, more tiles are seen by default whereas that wasn't the case with the start menu.

There is a Settings charm that has the shutdown options. You can already type to search for something when you go the Start Screen, as it's something that's been pretty innate that it doesn't really need a UI element, as well as the Search Charm.

I like windowing for the apps themselves, but I can't help to think that UI design for certain apps will end up accommodating a full screen by the use of a panorama style, where the metro Taskbar in Windows 9 will accommodate a bit better for app switching, like being able to dock the Taskbar on the side so it doesn't hide, or maybe allowing it to be moved to the bottom of the screen. I will take 50/50 app snap as the current 30/60 doesn't work except for a few types of apps.

I have to say, but the transparent Aero design on the windows paired with the clean modernist style design REALLY clashes and honestly are an antithesis of each other: faux design versus digital design. I don't know, but this seems more like taking it back to Windows 7 and keeping the traditional UI of Windows that was on desktops for desktops; which probably might be the reason why you might not like Windows 8 so much? ;)
 

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Lodmot, some good ideas there.

Looks a lot better than we have at the moment.


faux design versus digital design

What on earth are you talking about
 

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I'm what you call, a Windows 8 supporter. :)

But I have to ask, what happens in two years when people have figured out how to use Windows 8 and its touch gestures on laptops and ultrabooks with their touchpads, learned how to use it with touch, and find using a mouse just fine with a desktop?
The point of this concept is to accommodate to those who don't like the way Windows 8 looks and want to see something that's not only somewhat familiar to them, but is easy enough to understand. The current Windows 8 UI doesn't work well with a mouse at all, and there are definitely many UI controls that are not self-explanatory to figure out.

What happens to the people that are using tablets and touchscreens to use the new metro apps that will have expanded greatly in the Windows Store, along with the Desktop, and don't see a purpose for having a start menu anymore as the Start Screen and Charms already do that?
My response for this question is pretty much going to be the same as my first one. The charms menu is not really self explanatory to figure out. When I first used Windows 8, it took me a good 20 minutes to figure out how it's activated. I think one of the most important things about having a computer is being able to pick it up and use it without needing to read a big manual.

Or, what if you want to see five or more rows of live tiles to see things like new messages, emails, news articles, weather updates, stock updates, or other information update?
Good question. If you're using Windows 9 on a desktop, having the Metro UI would work fine in a sectioned out box like in the picture. But there could also be a switch in the settings to expand the Metro UI to take up the screen like it did in Windows 8. The only difference is that you'd see the glassy transparent background underneath the tiles, which would instinctively let people know that they're just in a maximized "Start window", and they haven't lost their desktop.

How do you search from the Music app to Internet Explorer to the Windows Store?
You would be able to search for music and stuff on your computer using the search bar at the bottom of the "Start Window" and the results would appear in that area as you type. If you've used Ubuntu's Unity Dash interface, it would work much like that. However I just checked the Store app and there doesn't seem to be any search function in it, which is very strange and not really intuitive at all. Perhaps this is something they can correct in the new store version for Windows 9. As for Internet Explorer, the Metro app for Internet Explorer should be done away with completely to avoid confusion between the two versions, and the tile for IE would take you to the desktop version. The address bar in the desktop version can also be used as a search bar.

What happens when you open a news reading app? You'd need to make it into a separate window and make it larger, which almost seems pointless as Windows 8 would just open it full screen, as there would be very little left to actually see if that news app were open.
Sometimes while I'm working I like to overlap windows because I can get away with just seeing 3/4 or 1/3 of the window. The idea is that rather than being locked to only viewing your metro apps in a certain way (side by side) and being limited to two on the screen at once, you can have as many metro apps as you want on the screen at once and organize them freely the way you want them on the screen.

Windows 8 already looks the same across different platforms regardless of touch or mouse input.
You're right, it does. But Windows RT lacks the desktop (correct me if I'm wrong, I haven't used the tablet version, but this is what I've heard). Because Windows RT does actually look similar to Windows 8 on a desktop computer, some people will get the impression that they can open up their desktop apps on a tablet, when in reality they cannot. This could frustrate some users. You've got two OS's-- Windows 8 and Windows RT, which look very similar to each other, but under the hood they behave very differently, and that can be confusing.

I can't help but to notice that the start menu ends up taking about 2/3 of the Desktop already, so anything that is being worked on will be covered up regardless. That, and there are only three rows of tiles, which at very most can hold about 15 tiles, which incidentally, is more or less closer to how much you could see with the old start menu in 7 by default in the MFU portion of it. The thing about the Start Screen is that it's resolution dependent, so the higher resolution, more tiles are seen by default whereas that wasn't the case with the start menu.
This is true, but who says Windows 9 can't have a setting to change the size of the tiles in the start window? Or maybe there could be a setting to show the tiles in a more hierarchical way. Or better yet, for the people who don't have touch screens, have a setting to allow them to go back to the old start menu format. Windows 9 could allow that kind of customization to be made. Or, like I said before, if you're running on a tablet you could do just the opposite and actually span the Start window so that it is in full screen. You'd still see a transparent glass background to let you know that the start window is within the desktop environment and not its own entity.

There is a Settings charm that has the shutdown options. You can already type to search for something when you go the Start Screen, as it's something that's been pretty innate that it doesn't really need a UI element, as well as the Search Charm.
Yeah, but when I first used Windows 8, I was really baffled to see the Shutdown option located in the Settings section. A basic function of the computer like that doesn't belong under Settings-- the Control Panel does. You should be able to find the shutdown button of your computer without having to put your mouse pointer on this one magic pixel in the corner to reveal a charms bar and clicking shutdown from a settings submenu.

As for the search feature, some people wouldn't even think to just start typing for something if there's no text box to type in. It's a UI feature that's well hidden, and unnecessarily so. That's why I put a search bar at the bottom, to let the average consumer know that you can search there.
 
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Search isn't as good as it was.

MS will try and fix it , I expect.
 

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