Gave windows 8 a proper try, still sucks

[GnatGoSplat]

Either I got some really crappy copies of windows 8 or some really awesome copies of windows 7 because there is no appreciable difference in speed, in anything. Not booting, not shutting down, not launching apps, not finding apps, nothing... Sounds like another one of those make-believe features.

You'll probably only see the difference in synthetic benchmarks.
In day-to-day usage, if something that normally takes 34 seconds now takes 32, you're not going to notice it.

 

[MTDEW]

I don't have as many complaints as others. I just wish they could have at least left aero as an option. Not enjoying the new look at all.

This for me also.
And i really never thought that would be the thing that bothered me the most, but it is.

Surprisingly, i didn't miss the start menu at all and got pretty used to where everything was in desktop mode.
Once you know the keyboard shortcuts and all, its just like learning any new OS.

But man, I don't see how Microsoft can honestly call Win7 with aero glass dated vs the single solid colored, flat and ugly scheme of Win8.
I mean the huge window border padding with no transparency and single solid color makes it look like i have solid colored squares open with text written on them, instead of a "window".
That is what really bothers me the most and i cannot help but notice on day to day use.

And if Microsoft wanted Windows Defender to be taken seriously, they should not have removed it from the right click context menus to be able to quickly scan individual files and folders.
I mean , you want to check suspect compressed files BEFORE opening them.
Instead, its basically set to just tell you AFTER you're infected...LOL
So Microsoft's version of antivirus is as useless as usual, nothing new here.

But other than those two things, I think Win8 is a good start.
The new task manager and file manager(explorer) are terrific.
And Little things like having an Optimize button instead of Defragment button for SSDs and mounting ISOs also shows refinement over Win7.(I still prefer and trust my Intel SSD Toolbox though)

And as for people's main complaint about the missing start menu, i actually prefer the menu options that come up when right clicking the the bottom left corner over the old start menu with all programs included.
They added the most useful Administrative tools by default now, and things like device manager are all now just easier to get to and it is less cluttered than a full-blown start menu.

Now as far as "the interface formerly known as Metro" .
You'll have to ask someone else, because for now I go directly to desktop mode upon boot.

I'm not ready to convert all my pcs to Win8, but i can see it simply turning out like Vista.
With Win9 being the refined version of Win8 like Win7 was of Vista.

 

[Tom]

That's the thing it's NOT really missing the start menu. Every choice from the start menu, plus some, are still there in the same basic spot. The only thing missing is the All Programs list.

The All programs list is the Start Screen.

As for Windows 8 Search, yes, it was present back in vista - the old 'Search Programs and Folders' box at the bottom of the start menu. Same basic thing. However, i think 8's approach for it works better. It's still in the start menu, the charms bar, the start screen, and via a windows key.

Does the new hidden Start menu have a recent docs option ? If I pin Notepad to it does it have a cascading recent docs menu ?

 

[gothamhunter]

I actually am enjoying the "Metro" interface. I generally just launch a program and then use the program anyways...my interaction is no different now.

 

[jhansman]

I actually am enjoying the "Metro" interface.

Blasphemy! Don't you realize you are supposed to hate it and roundly condemn MS in the bargain? Subversives....

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

So I bought the $15 upgrade for my Dell and after I installed Start8 and did some customization it works great. Seems to be a bit faster than Windows 7 when it comes to app launches and booting up.

One thing that's bugging me about the boot up process is that unlike Windows 7 it doesn't go straight to where you select your user and password, but instead shows a background image with the time which you have to slide upwards. Is there a way to disable that and just go straight to the user and password screen?

EDIT:

Also, for some reason the screen brightness seems to be much lower than on Windows 7. Set to max on Windows 8 equals when it was set halfway in Windows 7.

 

[gothamhunter]

So I bought the $15 upgrade for my Dell and after I installed Start8 and did some customization it works great. Seems to be a bit faster than Windows 7 when it comes to app launches and booting up.

One thing that's bugging me about the boot up process is that unlike Windows 7 it doesn't go straight to where you select your user and password, but instead shows a background image with the time which you have to slide upwards. Is there a way to disable that and just go straight to the user and password screen?

EDIT:

Also, for some reason the screen brightness seems to be much lower than on Windows 7. Set to max on Windows 8 equals when it was set halfway in Windows 7.

Taken from http://www.overclock.net/t/1240779/seans-windows-8-install-optimization-guide-for-ssds-hdds

If you like your PC to boot just as fast as possible then the new Windows 8 lock screen may not appeal. Don't worry, though, if you'd like to ditch this then it only takes a moment.

Launch GPEdit.msc (the Local Group Policy Editor) and browse to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Control Panel > Personalisation.

Double-click 'Do not display the lock screen', select Enabled and click OK.

Restart and the lock screen will have gone.

If you can't easily find GPEdit.msc by searching in the Start screen, search for 'mmc', and then press Enter. On the File menu, click 'Add/Remove Snap-in', then in the 'Add or Remove Snap-ins' dialog box, click 'Group Policy Object Editor', and then click 'Add'.

In the 'Select Group Policy Object' dialog box, click 'Browse'. Click 'This Computer' to edit the Local Group Policy object, or click 'Users' to edit Administrator, Non-Administrator, or per-user Local Group Policy objects, then click 'Finish'.

 

[Maximilian]

start8 from stardock.. gets rid of metro 100% and turns windows8 into a much faster version of Windows7. and costs only 5 bucks

windows 8 is far superior across the board to 7 in pure speed.

It hardly "sucks"

The only upgrade that improves a PC's speed significantly is an SSD over a traditional hard drive.

If installing windows 8 improves your day to day tasks to the point it is "far superior" to windows 7 then your windows 7 installation was likely a virus infested mess of bloatware or had some serious issues.

Whatever...it's a damn lot better than Windows 7 at certain things. That's enough.

Yeah it confuses and frustrates 25% more effectively than windows 7 ever did :whiste:

 

[Mem]

I personally find Win8 faster on all my upgraded Win8 PCs that have been upgraded from 7, two have mechanical HDs and one is only week old fresh install of Win7,Win8 is easy to learn IMHO glad I upgraded.

I don't even miss the start button anymore.

Can't wait for Win9 .

 

[CVSiN]

The only upgrade that improves a PC's speed significantly is an SSD over a traditional hard drive.

If installing windows 8 improves your day to day tasks to the point it is "far superior" to windows 7 then your windows 7 installation was likely a virus infested mess of bloatware or had some serious issues.



Yeah it confuses and frustrates 25% more effectively than windows 7 ever did :whiste:

Nice try but no..

I do this for a living for the last 26 years.. My systems are always top notch hardware and are always kept refreshed and healthy as I never let a windows install sit for longer than 5 months before I reload fresh to keep that freshly imaged OS speed and a super clean registry.

Windows 7 even on an SSD takes much longer to boot and be ready for operations. and overall use of apps is much snappier.
Windows 8 is overall a MUCH faster OS on the same hardware.

This is an MSDN Copy Ive had since they released to companies in August.

And on top of that have been testing on a personal and corporate level for the past year.

This is not a "new" thing to us anymore in IT most companies and IT Pros have been testing and playing with the OS for quite some time.

My hardware that was tested on was.

Corporate:
HP EliteBook 17 with an i7 32 gigs of ram and Nvidia Quadro graphics.
Seagate Momentus 750 Hybrid Drive.

Home:

Asus g75VW i7 SB 16 gigs GTX 670M 3 gig and a Crucial 256 SSD

and Desktop
I7 SB 2600K 4.6ghz watercooled 32 gigs of ram 2x ATI 6950s and 3x 22inch mons.
with regular 7200 Seagate main OS drive.

All 3 showed improvements in speed in day to day use and especially booting.

using Stardock Start8 to bypass metro 100% on all machines.

 

[GnatGoSplat]

One thing that's bugging me about the boot up process is that unlike Windows 7 it doesn't go straight to where you select your user and password, but instead shows a background image with the time which you have to slide upwards. Is there a way to disable that and just go straight to the user and password screen?

That bugged me too, and you're in luck because there's a pretty easy solution. It's just a Group Policy setting.
http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/window-on-windows/disable-the-lock-screen-in-windows-8-forever/6257
Skip down to "Disabling the lock screen".

 

[2is]

Nice try but no..

I do this for a living for the last 26 years.. My systems are always top notch hardware and are always kept refreshed and healthy as I never let a windows install sit for longer than 5 months before I reload fresh to keep that freshly imaged OS speed and a super clean registry.

Windows 7 even on an SSD takes much longer to boot and be ready for operations. and overall use of apps is much snappier.
Windows 8 is overall a MUCH faster OS on the same hardware.

This is an MSDN Copy Ive had since they released to companies in August.

And on top of that have been testing on a personal and corporate level for the past year.

This is not a "new" thing to us anymore in IT most companies and IT Pros have been testing and playing with the OS for quite some time.

My hardware that was tested on was.

Corporate:
HP EliteBook 17 with an i7 32 gigs of ram and Nvidia Quadro graphics.
Seagate Momentus 750 Hybrid Drive.

Home:

Asus g75VW i7 SB 16 gigs GTX 670M 3 gig and a Crucial 256 SSD

and Desktop
I7 SB 2600K 4.6ghz watercooled 32 gigs of ram 2x ATI 6950s and 3x 22inch mons.
with regular 7200 Seagate main OS drive.

All 3 showed improvements in speed in day to day use and especially booting.

using Stardock Start8 to bypass metro 100% on all machines.

Nice try but no. I also do this for a living and know many people that do the same, none of us do clean installs every 5 months. That's just ridiculous. And none of us have noticed these massive speed improvements you'd have us believe are actually there.

 

[Mem]

Nice try but no. I also do this for a living and know many people that do the same, none of us do clean installs every 5 months. That's just ridiculous. And none of us have noticed these massive speed improvements you'd have us believe are actually there.

I would say Win8 is snappier and faster,I'm not saying its "massive " as you call it but it does boot up faster etc...benchmarks seem to prove it too http://www.techspot.com/review/561-windows8-vs-windows7/page2.html ,

My three PCs range from 3 years old,6 months old and one week old , all upgraded from 7 to 8.

 

[HeXen]

Either I got some really crappy copies of windows 8 or some really awesome copies of windows 7 because there is no appreciable difference in speed, in anything. Not booting, not shutting down, not launching apps, not finding apps, nothing... Sounds like another one of those make-believe features.

I noticed the differences right away. The question is, which one of us can be proven right? I would say neither, therefore its a moot opinion, judged only by each individual. However the comparison is essentially a version 1.0 vs version 2.0. W7 is more mature, W8 is just starting out...wait for SP1 then compare again.
Trying to force your opinion that its not faster doesn't really do anything.

none of us do clean installs every 5 months. none of us have noticed these massive speed improvements .

quite an assumption. You speaking for all of us, that is.

 

[2is]

quite an assumption. You speaking for all of us, that is.

Read it again then, and quote me in my entirety instead of mid sentence. I was speaking for myself and the people I personally know. I wasn't speaking for you or anyone else on this forum. So no, it's not quite an assumption, it's not an assumption at all. And since you're intelligent enough to try and be deceiving, you're probably smart enough that you don't need to do clean installs every 5 months either, so even though I wasn't speaking for you, you likely fit the bill anyway. You just want to be disagreeable because you're a W8 fan and I'm not.

For the simple fact you're intentionally skewing what I said, I'd say my opinion is more trustworthy than yours and I doubt you're noticing a speed improvement as dramatic as you're pretending. Based on your post, you're likely skewing that as well.

 

[zephxiii]

This for me also.


But man, I don't see how Microsoft can honestly call Win7 with aero glass dated vs the single solid colored, flat and ugly scheme of Win8.
I mean the huge window border padding with no transparency and single solid color makes it look like i have solid colored squares open with text written on them, instead of a "window".
That is what really bothers me the most and i cannot help but notice on day to day use.

You can enable transparency in the theme...........

 

[ViRGE]

You can enable transparency in the theme...........

Er, Aero wasn't removed until the release version of Windows. Try that and then see if your trick still works.

 

[zephxiii]

Er, Aero wasn't removed until the release version of Windows. Try that and then see if your trick still works.

I bought and installed 8 on my HTPC, I have transparency enabled.

EDIT: At least i thought i did. I don't recall seeing that option missing anyways.

 

[GnatGoSplat]

I bought and installed 8 on my HTPC, I have transparency enabled.

EDIT: At least i thought i did. I don't recall seeing that option missing anyways.

I did look for the option you mentioned, but couldn't find it.

I tried replacing the aero.theme and aero folders with those from Win7, but got nothing but black screen. I wonder if aero.theme and aero folders from one of the preview versions of Win8 could work?

I actually liked the entire look of Win7's windows better than Win8, not just the transparency. I hope some 3rd party is able to clone it to Win8 soon.

 

[cboath]

Does the new hidden Start menu have a recent docs option ? If I pin Notepad to it does it have a cascading recent docs menu ?

It doesn't have a recent option, no. At least I don't think so, i've not attached an actual program to it myself yet.

If you pin the items to the taskbar, there is a recent option.

 

[Golgatha]

Ive gotten windows 8 pro for free through dreamspark premium so i thought i would give it a proper try and use it as my main OS, doing all my day to day things on it and see how it fares. I tried windows 8 CP on a VM a while ago and didn't like it but maybe if i gave it a proper go for a few days it may change. Well i was wrong, its just worse in every way than windows 7, the improved task manager and pausing file transfers and all that additional jazz is nice don't get me wrong but it isnt worth squat if the UI is garbage which is the thing you spend most of your time with.

Its not like avoiding metro will work either because metro effectively is the start menu, so if you install something and no desktop icon appears theres two options C:\program files\folder\yourprogram and make a fkin shortcut yourself which sucks, or navigate metro and find it in that mess then pin it to "start" and go back to metro every time you want to open it. The UI has absolutely no advantages over windows 7 and that is what damns this OS to failure.

Some people cite "getting used to it" well thats difficult when you know theres a much better UI in windows 7 that wont cause issues, other say "fear of change" which IMO is also bollocks, change is great when its for the better and this unfortunately is not one of those occasions. In fact the reason im so ticked at this is because i was looking forward to a change, i like new things im always updating applications/drivers/BIOS etc and plenty of them come with new UI's, XBMC and the asrock UEFI are recent examples, i also liked the ribbon they added in office 2007. These examples have better UI's than the previous versions windows 8 does not and i think it will be a fail on the scale of vista however this time its entirely microsofts fault, nothing to do with 3rd party's crummy drivers etc.

tl;dr
- windows 8 is balls
- tablet OS sucks on desktop
- i anticipate massive amounts of backpedaling with windows 9
- you probably already know this but hey ho i felt like sharing

I'm going to 2nd your review. I've played with Windows 8 enough now to have an informed opinion. My opinion is this is primarily a tablet operating system, it has no business on a non-touch screen laptop, and is certainly, absolutely a step backwards as a desktop OS. I appreciate some of the under the hood changes, but the new UI is a horribly unproductive change for the worse. A simple setting to default to the desktop at login without user created workarounds would solve this issue on the desktop, but MS seems hell bent on putting the new UI up in your face.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I'm going to 2nd your review. I've played with Windows 8 enough now to have an informed opinion. My opinion is this is primarily a tablet operating system, it has no business on a non-touch screen laptop, and is certainly, absolutely a step backwards as a desktop OS. I appreciate some of the under the hood changes, but the new UI is a horribly unproductive change for the worse. A simple setting to default to the desktop at login without user created workarounds would solve this issue on the desktop, but MS seems hell bent on putting the new UI up in your face.

And here it is again. "The new UI sucks" the new UI is not the OS

 

[Mem]

I'm going to 2nd your review. I've played with Windows 8 enough now to have an informed opinion. My opinion is this is primarily a tablet operating system, it has no business on a non-touch screen laptop, and is certainly, absolutely a step backwards as a desktop OS. I appreciate some of the under the hood changes, but the new UI is a horribly unproductive change for the worse. A simple setting to default to the desktop at login without user created workarounds would solve this issue on the desktop, but MS seems hell bent on putting the new UI up in your face.

I disagree,Win8 is hybrid OS however its still a good desktop OS IMHO,I've upgraded three computers to 8 from 7 that I use primary as a desktop user.
I've no interest in using Win8 on a tablet mainly because I'm happy with my Android tablet,however for PC gaming and general use happy to use Win8.

I'm happy with the extra speed,security,stablility and other features Win8 has,pricing is also icing on the cake.
I've seen changes in Windows and layout over the decades ie Win3.1 ,Win95 etc...Win8 is just another new change.

 

[zephxiii]

I bought and installed 8 on my HTPC, I have transparency enabled.

EDIT: At least i thought i did. I don't recall seeing that option missing anyways.

Ok it is different in the final version with no transparency setting. However you can make the taskbar transparent, just not windows.

 

[CVSiN]

Read it again then, and quote me in my entirety instead of mid sentence. I was speaking for myself and the people I personally know. I wasn't speaking for you or anyone else on this forum. So no, it's not quite an assumption, it's not an assumption at all. And since you're intelligent enough to try and be deceiving, you're probably smart enough that you don't need to do clean installs every 5 months either, so even though I wasn't speaking for you, you likely fit the bill anyway. You just want to be disagreeable because you're a W8 fan and I'm not.

For the simple fact you're intentionally skewing what I said, I'd say my opinion is more trustworthy than yours and I doubt you're noticing a speed improvement as dramatic as you're pretending. Based on your post, you're likely skewing that as well.

Who said "you or anyone else has to reimage every 5-6 months?" I didn't.. I said I do because it is as easy as pressing 1 button and walking away.

I only even mentioned that because you seem to think other people are stupid and cannot maintain a PC properly..
Sorry I didn't just fall off the Apple Wagon at the Genius Bar or the Geek Squad..

I prefer to do this as windows gets slow due to registry clutter and inefficiency at uninstalling programs.

a clean install keeps the OS speedy and fast and a top notch performer at all times.

and anyone in IT especially Windows Administration knows this.. even the best registry cleaners and uninstaller leave crap.

My Point was... on a healthy top notch rig windows 8 screams.. and it does.
period no argument needed nor warranted..

We have done extensive benchmarking and tests during Corporate OS Evaluation trials over the last 6 months and it does for sure show an increase in performance.

end of story.