Am I the only exception or are there others?

strollin

Old Guys Rule!
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Reading this forum, I get the impression that my experience with Win 8.x is the exception rather than the norm. I have installed and run Win 8.x in VMs, on Desktops, laptops, netbooks and tablets and have had very few problems to the point that I don't even recall any. I install all updates and have never had issues caused by them. All in all, Win 8.x has been very clean and stable for me on multiple hardware platforms.

How about it, are there others out there who have had very few problems with Win 8.x?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    W10 Pro (desktop), W10 (laptop), W10 Pro (tablet)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home built i7-8700K, Hp Envy x360 EVO Laptop, MS Surface Pro 7
    CPU
    3.7Ghz Core i7-8700K, 11th Gen Core i7-1165G7 4.7Ghz, 10th Gen Core™ i5-1035G4 1.1Ghz
    Motherboard
    ASUS TUF Z370-Pro Gaming, HP, MS
    Memory
    16G, 8G, 8G
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon RX580, Intel Iris X Graphics, Intel Iris Plus Graphics G4
    Sound Card
    ATI High Definition Audio (Built-in to mobo)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dual Samsung U32J59 32 inch monitors, 13.3" display, 12.3" display
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160 (Desktop), 1920x1080 (laptop), 2736x1824 Pro 7
    Hard Drives
    500GB ssd boot drive with 2 & 10TB Data (Desktop), 512GB ssd (laptop), 128GB SSD (tablet)
    PSU
    Corsair CX 750M
    Case
    Antec 100
    Cooling
    Coolermaster CM 212+
    Keyboard
    IBM Model M - used continuously since 1986
    Mouse
    Microsoft IntelliMouse
    Internet Speed
    665Mbps/15Mbps down/up
    Browser
    FireFox, MS Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender on all
    Other Info
    Retired in 2015 after working in the tech industry for 41 years. First 10 years as a Technician, the rest as a programmer/software engineer. After 1 year of retirement, I was bored so went back to work as a Robotic Process Automation Consultant. Retired for 3rd (and final) time in 2019.
me. :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1.1 Pro with Media Center
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gateway
    CPU
    AMD K140 Cores 2 Threads 2 Name AMD K140 Package Socket FT1 BGA Technology 40nm
    Motherboard
    Manufacturer Gateway Model SX2110G (P0)
    Memory
    Type DDR3 Size 8192 MBytes DRAM Frequency 532.3 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI AMD Radeon HD 7310 Graphics
    Sound Card
    AMD High Definition Audio Device Realtek High Definition Audio USB Audio Device
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Name 1950W on AMD Radeon HD 7310 Graphics Current Resolution 1366x768 pixels Work Resolution 1366x76
    Screen Resolution
    Current Resolution 1366x768 pixels Work Resolution 1366x768 pixels
    Hard Drives
    AMD K140
    Cores 2
    Threads 2
    Name AMD K140
    Package Socket FT1 BGA
    Technology 40nm
    Specification AMD E1-1200 APU with Radeon HD Graphics
    Family F
    Extended Family 14
    Model 2
    Extended Model 2
    Stepping 0
    Revision ON-C0
    Instruction
    Browser
    Opera 24.0
    Antivirus
    Avast Internet Security
Only had one problem on three rigs, same problem on all three. :dinesh:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    ME, XP,Vista,Win7,Win8,Win8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    Notebooks x 3

    Desktops x 5

    Towers x 4
No problems. In fact, as I posted elsewhere, I often have difficulty recreating a problem, in order to offer help!!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    Use several different computers during a day, so specs are irrelevant.
No problems here either. I did have an issue on my wifes computer with the automatic repair loop...it turned out to be faulty RAM.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASRock 990FX Killer
    CPU
    AMD FX 8320
    Motherboard
    ASRock 990 FX Killer
    Memory
    32gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Gigabyte GTX 750i
    Sound Card
    Realtek (Stock on MB)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ASUS 27 HD Monitor & a 37" LCD HD TV Screen (For movies)
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    1 250 GB SS hard drive for OS
    1 1TB hard drive for data / mirrored to a second 1 TB hd.
    PSU
    650W
    Case
    No name tower
    Cooling
    Enermax Liqtech 240
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech
    Internet Speed
    Dnload 10.48 Upload .48
    Browser
    IE 11 and Chrome when IE doesn't work
    Antivirus
    F-PROT
I had WIFI issues after doing the Store Upgrade to 8.1. No such issues after doing a clean install of 8.1 though. Other than that not a whole lot to complain about. I didn't have any of the reported Windows update issues.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
On my main PC I installed Windows 8 Pro when it was first released and have it fully updated to 8.1 and have had zero problems.
I have a new Windows 8.1 laptop I bought in May and have had not problems keeping it updated.

Jim :cool:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 HP 64bit, Windows 8.1 Pro w/Media Center 64BIT
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS - Home Built
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X6 1100T
    Motherboard
    ASUS M5A99X EVO
    Memory
    Crucial Balistic DDR-3 1866 CL 9 (8 GB)
    Graphics Card(s)
    MSI R6850 Cyclone IGD5 PE
    Sound Card
    On Chip
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ASUS VE258Q 25" LED with DVI-HDMI-DisplayPort
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Two WD Cavier Black 2TB Sata 6gbs
    WD My Book Essential 2TB USB 3.0
    PSU
    Seasonic X650 80 Plus GOLD Modular
    Case
    Corsair 400R
    Cooling
    Antec Kuhler H2O 620, Two 120mm and four 140mm
    Keyboard
    AVS Gear Blue LED Backlight
    Mouse
    Logitech Marble Mouse USB, Logitech Precision Game Pad
    Internet Speed
    15MB
    Antivirus
    NIS, Malwarebytes Premium 2
    Other Info
    APC UPS ES 750, Netgear WNR3500L Gigabit & Wireless N Router with SamKnows Test Program,
    Motorola SB6120 Gigabit Cable Modem.
    Brother HL-2170W Laser Printer,
    Epson V300 Scanner
Only problem here was getting wifi to work properly. After finding the right driver, very stable.

Only criticism I might have is MS pushing driver updates that may actually end up buggering things for some people. Even though they are usually flagged as optional many folks go ahead and install anyway. With drivers the old "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" adage definitely applies.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer V3 771G-6443
    CPU
    i5-3230m
    Motherboard
    Acer VA70_HC (U3E1)
    Memory
    8GB DDR3 PC3-12800 (800 MHz)
    Graphics Card(s)
    HD4000 + GeForce GT 730M
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17" Generic PnP Display on Intel HD Graphics 4000
    Screen Resolution
    1600x900 pixels
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250 GB
    ADATA SSD SP900 128GB
    PSU
    90 watt brick
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Antivirus
    Comodo
    Other Info
    Asus RT-AC56R dual-band WRT router (Merlin firmware). Intel 7260.HMWWB.R dual-band ac wireless adapter.
Forum posts are not an accurate indication of peoples experiences with Windows 8, or any other OS for that matter. I expect that most people will have few problems with Windows 8. But inevitably there will be numbers that do, many of whom will come to this or some other forum for help. Human nature being what it is, some will be very vocal about their problems. Few people (relatively speaking) would even consider joining a forum such as this until they have a problem.

Edit: My experiences with Windows 8 are limited, confined to a trial version on a virtual machine with limited resources available. Even so there were few problems.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
No problems with my x86 install of Win 8.1 but tried a dual x64 dual boot and lots of driver problems with peripherals. Now running x86 version as main rig.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    MSI MS7360
    CPU
    Intel E8400 (Wolfdale)
    Motherboard
    MS 7360 P35 V1.0
    Memory
    4 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    MSI Geforce GT610
    Sound Card
    Realtek Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell 19" Widescreen
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    3 x 500 GB Hitachi and Seagate Drives
    PSU
    Corsair 500W
    Case
    Generic
    Cooling
    2 case fans, Artic CPU Cooler
    Keyboard
    Logitech G19
    Mouse
    MS Comfort 4500
    Internet Speed
    19 mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    MS Defender
I haven't had any problems with Win 8/8.1. I do have the "Start8" program that restores the Start Menu and primarily use the desktop rather than the Metro.

All my recording studio programs and equipment work OK in Win 8 (which is my main application). I did have to install my Frontier "Tranzport" (wireless control surface for my recording program) in a Vista compatibility mode, but that was the only device that did not install in native Win 8.

I'm a retired computer geek and have worked in computers in one capacity or another since 1962 (in the Air Force) and my last 23 years was as a LAN/WAN Network and Hardware Help Desk Manager. Change is a constant given in computers and after a while you take whatever change comes around and just use it. You don't think about whether its good, bad or somewhere between.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Built
    CPU
    i7 6700K
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus VIII Hero
    Memory
    16 Gb G Skill TridentZ DDR4 3400
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel (i7 CPU)
    Sound Card
    RealTek Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    27" Dell SE2717HR
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080
    Hard Drives
    500GB Samsung 850 SSD, 3TB for backups
    PSU
    EVGA Supernova 750 G2
    Case
    BeQuiet Silent Base 600
    Cooling
    Deepcool Captain 120EX
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    Cable - 100MB Downlink
    Browser
    Edge/Firefox
    Antivirus
    Microsoft
    Other Info
    Sonar Platinum 64 bit recording studio software with MOTU 896Mk3 Hybrid recording interface unit.
Yup, perfectly reliable here. :D

Untitled-1.jpg


Although in fairness most of those are due to IE. I find running Internet Explorer in Enhanced Protected Mode with 64-bit processes for Enhanced Protected Mode enabled is not very stable at all and never has been. And it seems whenever they fix one problem, a new one usually replaces it. So although I find Windows 8 reliability OK in the main, I think they need to get on top of issues reported with the 64-bit version of Internet Explorer and provide quicker fixes. Probably why they resorted back to not having it enabled by default.

And although I've never had a problem with Windows updates, now-a-days there does seem to be a lot more Windows Updates being pulled by Microsoft not long after they've been released, which I can't remember happening much before.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 8 64-bit
The odd glitch here and there but nothing drastic!
You don't hear from the users that DON'T have problems, just the ones that DO! :)
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 7 Home Premium
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavillion
  • PC2
    Tablet - Windows 10 Home
It seems like many had problems with 8/8.1 even BEFORE they tried it. I did have few problems, mainly GPU driver when I upgraded to 8.1 but that got fixed by AMD shortly after. Other problems that I didn't cause by experimenting were with updates, actually more like with cleaning their backups but that got fixed too. Few BSODs here and there, attributable to badly or non-supported HW but not Windows' fault. Speaking of drivers, there were some changes, poorly documented, to how some drivers or "hooks" for them work mainly graphics and printers but altogether surprising number of HW devices were found and installed automatically. Going from XP to Vista, that segment was really frustrating comparing to W8/8.1. Keep in mind that I started from alpha version when there were problems in the beginning because of I almost gave up on W8 but curiosity got better of me. RC edition was almost perfect and didn't have to do much different when I switched to retail. I thought that W7 was almost perfect but 8.1.1 is even closer. Let's see what W9 will bring and hope for best.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home made
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen7 2700x
    Motherboard
    Asus Prime x470 Pro
    Memory
    16GB Kingston 3600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus strix 570 OC 4gb
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 960 evo 250GB
    Silicon Power V70 240GB SSD
    WD 1 TB Blue
    WD 2 TB Blue
    Bunch of backup HDDs.
    PSU
    Sharkoon, Silent Storm 660W
    Case
    Raidmax
    Cooling
    CCM Nepton 140xl
    Internet Speed
    40/2 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    WD
Nothing major here, gone from 8.0 with all updates installed as they come out

I don't remember anything happening that stopped me using my PC

*if I check the reliability monitor (as above) then yes I have some crashes and it could be better
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 3521
    CPU
    i5
    Memory
    4 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon
    Browser
    IE
Most of my issues were driver issues with the preview releases. I also had some app issues, now that I think about it. Again though those were when running one of the preview releases. They don't count in my book. I didn't like 8.0 all that much so more often than not, I went back to windows 7. The changes they made in 8.1 changed all that for me. There is no going back to 7 for me now.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
I've had next to no problems with my windows 8.0 boxes and 8.1 boxes that I have rolled out at work. I'm in the middle of upgrading the 8.0 boxes to 8.1 at work via The Store and that's working out just fine (just time consuming). My upgrades from 8.1 to 8.1 with update 1 and the latest Windows updates has been smooth sailing as well.

I'm running it on a variety of hardware too

  • Microsoft Surface Pro Gen 1
  • Dell e6430 laptops
  • Dell e6430u laptops
  • Dell e7440 laptops
  • Dell XPS 18"
  • Acer 23" All-in-One
  • Samsung Series 7 Ultra
  • Dell XPS 13

Aside from an initial lack of choices in 8.0 (no boot to desktop, no classic start menu, non-intuitive way to close full screen Windows 8 apps), I've found it to be just fine. I'm still hesitant to say it's a worthwhile to pay for upgrade though for most people on Windows 7 who aren't having problems.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self-Built in July 2009
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 2.83Ghz OC'd to 3.40Ghz
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R rev. 1.1, F12 BIOS
    Memory
    8GB G.Skill PI DDR2-800, 4-4-4-12 timings
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA 1280MB Nvidia GeForce GTX570
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC899A 8 channel onboard audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    23" Acer x233H
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Intel X25-M 80GB Gen 2 SSD
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Black, 32MB cache. WD1001FALS
    PSU
    Corsair 620HX modular
    Case
    Antec P182
    Cooling
    stock
    Keyboard
    ABS M1 Mechanical
    Mouse
    Logitech G9 Laser Mouse
    Internet Speed
    15/2 cable modem
    Other Info
    Windows and Linux enthusiast. Logitech G35 Headset.
Hi there

No probs at all with W8.1 - but I really detest the Store method of update -- give me an ISO any day.

Cheers
jimbo
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Linux Centos 7, W8.1, W7, W2K3 Server W10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Monitor(s) Displays
    1 X LG 40 inch TV
    Hard Drives
    SSD's * 3 (Samsung 840 series) 250 GB
    2 X 3 TB sata
    5 X 1 TB sata
    Internet Speed
    0.12 GB/s (120Mb/s)
Hi there

No probs at all with W8.1 - but I really detest the Store method of update -- give me an ISO any day.

Cheers
jimbo
Of course, with ISO, at least you are not at internet and their FTP's mercy and can do it at your leisure.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home made
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen7 2700x
    Motherboard
    Asus Prime x470 Pro
    Memory
    16GB Kingston 3600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus strix 570 OC 4gb
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 960 evo 250GB
    Silicon Power V70 240GB SSD
    WD 1 TB Blue
    WD 2 TB Blue
    Bunch of backup HDDs.
    PSU
    Sharkoon, Silent Storm 660W
    Case
    Raidmax
    Cooling
    CCM Nepton 140xl
    Internet Speed
    40/2 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    WD
Unfortunately, Microsoft didn't make the ISO upgrade route very friendly. I've tested upgrading with an MSDN based copy of Windows 8.1 and via the Store and they take around the same time.

With the ISO and my Dell with an embedded Windows 8.0 key in the BIOS, here were the issues
1). When you run the setup from the ISO, it won't load without you having to insert a key as the embedded 8.0 BIOS key doesn't suffice
2). So, you have to grab the OEM key, then put in a dummy key to install, and then run slmgr.vbs to reimport back the BIOS key.
3). Once you finish the upgrade to 8.1, you then have to manually turn around and install update 1.

With the store upgrade, it not only does the 8.0 to 8.1 upgrade, but it also brings you up to 8.1 with update 1 at the same time. So, 1 less step that you have to run above.


In both cases, my total upgrade time was ~90 minutes.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self-Built in July 2009
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 2.83Ghz OC'd to 3.40Ghz
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R rev. 1.1, F12 BIOS
    Memory
    8GB G.Skill PI DDR2-800, 4-4-4-12 timings
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA 1280MB Nvidia GeForce GTX570
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC899A 8 channel onboard audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    23" Acer x233H
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Intel X25-M 80GB Gen 2 SSD
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Black, 32MB cache. WD1001FALS
    PSU
    Corsair 620HX modular
    Case
    Antec P182
    Cooling
    stock
    Keyboard
    ABS M1 Mechanical
    Mouse
    Logitech G9 Laser Mouse
    Internet Speed
    15/2 cable modem
    Other Info
    Windows and Linux enthusiast. Logitech G35 Headset.
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