75ZT Community

I've been warned that Windows 8 is dreadful unless you have a touch screen.

Before I decide to buy it, does anybody have any experience of its use on a PC other than touch screen please?

I put a pre-release version on a PC to try and ran it for about 3-4 days trying to get on with interface (metro I think it's called) and gave up. I think with a touch screen it might be ok. But personal feelings are that it's going be ok if you are a simple user (ie. Internet, email) but if you use it for anything else then I think Microsoft have got it wrong. Just my feelings.

Much the same views as elsewhere Richard.

Been running Win8 on a desktop for the last few weeks and slowly getting used to it. I think underneath its a much better OS than 7. If you put a "tile" of your desktop on the initial start screen then its dead easy to switch into the more traditional interface. As you can completly customise the start page, you can put all your mostly used progs on there. I would say go for it.

same here Paul, just bought a deesktop with windows 8, and i quite like it, still getting used to it in some respects but your traditional desktop view is still there and is one click away from the start screen, shutting down is about 3 clicks, and ok when you know how , i say go for it too

I am also running Windows 8 and it did take a lot of getting used to without the start orb but if you really like that there is a programme you can download that will give you that back.

@Trebor You can put a shutdown button on your start menu.

At £14.99 I suppose it would be a shame not to

Great, let's all buy the latest thing then spend days making it work just like the old one. Love it.

Similar happened when Mac OSX came out and loads of people were making it look as much like OS9 as possible.

I found what looked like a really good touch screen monitor from Ilyama which was to work with Windows 8, but the reviews claim only full operation with 7 otherwise I may have been tempted to swap OS.

OK - installed quickly and I'm using it now.

It's great, install a hack here, a workround there, edit this, modify that and it now works... just like Windows 7

What is it like over Windows 7 Paul? Worth the upgrade?

At the moment, I'm ordering a book on Windows 8 from Amazon

It looks and functions like W7 at the moment David

I'll let you know how I get on with it.

Cheers Paul. I don't think 8 will offer me anything over 7 at the moment but as I have a NUS card its always good to pick up the software cheap if needed

Mick wrote:Great, let's all buy the latest thing then spend days making it work just like the old one. Love it.

Similar happened when Mac OSX came out and loads of people were making it look as much like OS9 as possible.

I think there's a bit more to Win8 than the interface

stevemac wrote:

Mick wrote:Great, let's all buy the latest thing then spend days making it work just like the old one. Love it.

Similar happened when Mac OSX came out and loads of people were making it look as much like OS9 as possible.

I think there's a bit more to Win8 than the interface

Agreed.
FYI Mac OSX is a BSD based system (A flavour of Unix) with Next Step as the original GUI, Mac OS9 and earlier were Apples proprietary systems.

Well after a few weeks now with windows 8 on my new desktop, my initial enthusiasm is starting to wain and cant say i am that impressed , finally got the correct drivers for my new printer which came with a disc without them and am trying to get used to the new features but having to use hot keys just to close down whats on the screen, no back button, start button, hidden desktop, seems like i have gone backwards instead of forwards !

Its all there but if there are more clicks to master than i had to with previous systems doesnt seem like progress

Mick wrote:Great, let's all buy the latest thing then spend days making it work just like the old one. Love it.

I'm using Vista and still have it looking/working as much like XP as possible!

And as for the "ribbons" in MS Office programs.... Pah! I still have 2003 versions running so am dreading the day when these are no longer compatible

(I don't like change, just more speed and power!)

I have seen more than one report in the media from 'respected' pundits suggesting that the desktop PC has had it's day and is rapidly on the way out. Maybe this is just a nail in the coffin.

If such a thing should tomorrow, I suspect the MoD react with characteristically glacial speed and pension off all desktop computers by roughly 2055

One of the computers I regularly use for fluid dynamics demonstrations runs Windows for Workgroups 3.11.

XP is still a good workhorse, but on 8 April 2014 things will change. It will be the very last patch day, no more security fixes thereafter. So it's important to be prepared in time.

Dave wrote:And as for the "ribbons" in MS Office programs.... Pah!

Ribbons?!? Don't get me started with this ribbon thingy ... Nothing seems to be where it used to be ...

Hello guys!!!,long time since I dropped in.Now this thread is very apt,I have been using this coal fired laptop for years(500mb memory..........like mine!!!) and decided to go "modern".So off to P.C World (I can hear you all coughing already) and came away with a very nice bit of kit.After much searching reveiws etc bought an HP one with a memory upgrade (8mb/1TB H/D and Intel i5/lovely HD screen etc).Now my ignorance shows,I have been using good old XP all this time,lovely and simple.I should have smelt a rat when I put my usb stick into demo model in showroom,they had a struggle to get pictures up and flick through them.I can do that now,as for a touch screen,well obviously the new laptop does not have one but I have nearly touched it a few times with my fist.Its the W8 O.S. I am having severe adaptation problems with,I am sure I could get on with W7 but this new OS cannot be uninstaled, not only that P.C.W refuse to refund(its still in all the stick on protective wrapping etc.A very nice Laptop but not so nice O.S.So,what to do?I could sell it on at work at a relatively small loss or try and adapt to it,you can change the start up screen via Classic Shell etc,or I sell it and get a W7 Laptop.The Irony is that since W8 went on sale the sales of W7 have gone through the roof!! My lad who is very versed in this binary trickery had a real job even KEEPING KEEPING HIS TEMPER. Pete..........soon off 400 miles North of the Arctic Circle to try and
photo the Aurora!!