Holidays = Back Home = Tech Support? Win8 = Hell!

[GTaudiophile]

So we get to mom's house last night. We have a great "mom cooked" meal (yum), sleep soundly (without city noise and light pollution) and what does she want me to do the moment (the absolute fucking moment) I wake up? Well, first she gives me coffee...but the next thing is the task to install Windows 8.1!!!

So I sit down with her more or less brand new Acer S7 laptop with Windows 8:

It's only my second time ever using the OS.
First I have to find Windows Update. Where is it? I find it. Error. Can't run. Random error code.
How does one install Windows 8.1?
It's through the damned MS Store.
I find the store. Find the 8.1 download icon.
Error. It won't download or do anything.
WTF!?!
(I do have an Internet connection.)

The whole entire OS is designed to piss people off and make life difficult. It feels like it's designed to keep the user away from any sorts of nuts and bolts. It feels like living hell for the administrator. Just as with my first Win8 experience, I am about to throw it out the window.

FUCK YOU MS!

/Rant

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

 

[lxskllr]

If you loved your mother you'd put GNU/Linux on her machine. ElementaryOS or Mint would be nice. You're a bad son.

 

[marvdmartian]

1. find bootleg copy of Windows 7 online, save to flash drive or burn to dvd
2. wipe atrocity called Windows 8 off mom's hard drive, using free utility (Darik's Boot Nuke is a good one)
3. Install awesomeness on hard drive. Most drivers provided by awesomeness, so easy to deal with.
4. Eat pie. Win!! :awe::thumbsup:

 

[ImpulsE69]

If you loved your mother you'd put GNU/Linux on her machine. ElementaryOS or Mint would be nice. You're a bad son.

Contrary to most Linux lovers beliefs, it is not exactly something you want to just put on anyones system. Sorry. I've tried, it is just as annoying as Windows when it comes to the computer illiterate. The whole point is NOT having to constantly go to their house to fix their stuff. At least with Windows, you can pawn them off on others too

 

[Gillbot]

Contrary to most Linux lovers beliefs, it is not exactly something you want to just put on anyones system. Sorry. I've tried, it is just as annoying as Windows when it comes to the computer illiterate. The whole point is NOT having to constantly go to their house to fix their stuff. At least with Windows, you can pawn them off on others too

This ^

I tried "upgrading" a few family member's machines to Ubuntu and it was just so painful I put WinXP on them and walked away.

 

[lxskllr]

Contrary to most Linux lovers beliefs, it is not exactly something you want to just put on anyones system. Sorry. I've tried, it is just as annoying as Windows when it comes to the computer illiterate. The whole point is NOT having to constantly go to their house to fix their stuff. At least with Windows, you can pawn them off on others too

I put Ubuntu on my mother's machine, and all my hassles stopped. I log in through Teamviewer every so often to update if I haven't been there in awhile, but otherwise it takes care of itself. No AV to update, no Malwarebytes, no worries about fwd fwd fwds from her friends... It's bliss.

 

[Kaido]

1. Install StartMenu8. It skips the Metro lego-block menu and boots directly to the desktop. It also adds a Start Button. And it's free: (make sure to disable the Metro sidebar in settings as well)

http://www.iobit.com/iobitstartmenu8.php

2. Download the Windows 8.1 preparation update, reboot, and then go into the Store and you should see a large purple icon for the Windows 8.1 update:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2871389

3. Disable UAC & Action Center, then setup Windows Defender:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2325766

 

[edro]

I worked on my sister's computer the other day, which was my first experience with Win8.
WTF, I felt like it was the first time ever using a PC.
It's nifty looking, but I had no idea how to do anything.

 

[PottedMeat]

1. find bootleg copy of Windows 7 online, save to flash drive or burn to dvd
2. wipe atrocity called Windows 8 off mom's hard drive, using free utility (Darik's Boot Nuke is a good one)
3. Install awesomeness on hard drive. Most drivers provided by awesomeness, so easy to deal with.
4. Eat pie. Win!! :awe::thumbsup:

can you use one of those digitalriver win7 links and the win8 key?

 

[Jodell88]

Contrary to most Linux lovers beliefs, it is not exactly something you want to just put on anyones system. Sorry. I've tried, it is just as annoying as Windows when it comes to the computer illiterate. The whole point is NOT having to constantly go to their house to fix their stuff. At least with Windows, you can pawn them off on others too

My Mom been using Linux for a couple of years now. She's never had a problem with it. She has called me for a few programs she got confused with for some reason (I still don't know how she mixed up a picture viewer with a file manager. lol).

 

[KeithP]

So you are saying upgrading your OS without preparation or research is bad? I will have to remember that.

-KeithP

 

[Nintendesert]

So you are saying upgrading your OS without preparation or research is bad? I will have to remember that.

-KeithP

ROFL.


All the lintards are hilarious though, good luck doing anything with those OS's without teaching yourself to a much higher degree than how to Google the 8.1 update.

 

[Jodell88]

ROFL.


All the lintards are hilarious though, good luck doing anything with those OS's without teaching yourself to a much higher degree than how to Google the 8.1 update.

If you have to Google how to update your installation then you're doing it wrong. That stands for any OS.

 

[SearchMaster]

I feel your pain, OP. We bought a Win8 laptop for my elderly neighbor, and it took me nearly two weeks (not consecutive hours, of course, but 30-60 minutes at a time) to get her email working. Turns out I had to generate and download a cert file for it...documented NOWHERE and only discovered through a blog post by a guy having the same issue. Unbelievably frustrating, not to mention whenever you would be on a particular screen if you accidentally moved the cursor a bit then what you were working on would go away and some other POS menu or screen would pop up.

I will never own a computer with this O/S, and if MS doesn't go back to the "old way" I'm done with them. I've been on a MacBook for just over a year and would be happy to stay there if needed (though Apple certainly does enough things to piss you off as well).

 

[Raduque]

I bought a new laptop running Windows 8. It's not as bad as everybody makes it out to be. The biggest problem I had with it was getting 8.1 installed. It took two or three tries and one reboot to get it installed.

Otherwise, I don't have any problems with it. There's a learning curve, but there would be with any OS that's this different from previous Windows versions. I also turned off the hot corners and only use the trackpad gestures.

People are having problems you might have with any OS, but are blowing them way the fuck out of proportion because they can't stand something as different as the Modern-style Start screen.

 

[Markbnj]

My Dad had a working Dell laptop with Windows 8, and since the 8.1 upgrade it has been freezing, requiring a battery pull to get going again . MS obviously still has some work to do on this turd.

 

[Raduque]

My Dad had a working Dell laptop with Windows 8, and since the 8.1 upgrade it has been freezing, requiring a battery pull to get going again . MS obviously still has some work to do on this turd.

Yes, it's such a turd, a turd that's working flawlessly on my $230 Toshiba laptop.

 

[GTaudiophile]

Yeah the entire touch screen combined with a track pad that tries to do million things depending on the swipe or gesture is just nuts. The whole OS is no longer a platform for doing anything but rather a way foraadvertisers to shove their shit in the form of a tile in front of your face.

 

[Balt]

Unfortunately I think MS is planning to continue along this Win 8 desktop/tablet/phone integrated OS path with their future operating systems. I don't know how/why they think that makes sense, given the number of corporate/govt PCs that need something more like XP/Win 7, but there it is.

I think it's conceivable that Linux COULD actually become more popular/mainstream with the average joe if MS abandons them. Valve is planning to run a version of Linux on their Steam Box, right? Seems like they are already assuming that Microsoft will abandon the PC as a gaming platform.

 

[zoiks]

This ^

I tried "upgrading" a few family member's machines to Ubuntu and it was just so painful I put WinXP on them and walked away.

I've been using Linux and use it to power 2 30" monitors. No pain at all. Love it in fact. No issues or problems of any kind.

 

[RossMAN]

I've been using Linux and use it to power 2 30" monitors. No pain at all. Love it in fact. No issues or problems of any kind.

Which distro are you using?

 

[The_Dude8]

1. find bootleg copy of Windows 7 online, save to flash drive or burn to dvd
2. wipe atrocity called Windows 8 off mom's hard drive, using free utility (Darik's Boot Nuke is a good one)
3. Install awesomeness on hard drive. Most drivers provided by awesomeness, so easy to deal with.
4. Eat pie. Win!! :awe::thumbsup:

i google awesomeness software, dont see it. you got a link?

 

[deanx0r]

MS cares about your experience.

 

[ImpulsE69]

I've been using Linux and use it to power 2 30" monitors. No pain at all. Love it in fact. No issues or problems of any kind.

I would imagine you are a bit more "able" when it comes to computers, than the types of people we are referring to. I run 3 different flavors without issue as well...doesn't mean I want to have to teach everyone when 99% of the internet is made around people using Windows.

 

[Printer Bandit]

if you were a good son, you'd buy her a mac.