Educators Across the US Adopt Windows 8

ManofGod said:
WOW! Such a compelling argument, I guess you just won me over. :D Not!
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Turn on your sarcasm radar while driving through the [H] :-D
ManofGod said:
You must have said something very similar when Windows XP came out as well, eh? Well, enjoy using your computer any way you want and I will do the same. :)
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I would have, except I was blown away by two things. #1 the world's most stable version of Windows #2 it was the world's best operating system after I figured out how to disable grouping. Baby Blue is nowhere near as infantile/retard inferring as Duplex Lego Tiles (imho).
ManofGod said:
Amazingly enough, My machine is working great getting real work done with Windows 8. Oh well, guess I just do not understand. :D
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Windows 8 is fine (imho) if you rip out Metro and don't mind the times where you get a Metro interface when you clearly DID NOT want (aka networking/wifi/shutting down/restarting and the countless times IE nags you because it's not the "default web page handler" and thus feels the need to randomly popup the alert "There are new applications to handle ..."
Under the hood it's just Windows 7 missing some stuff that you may or may not use. (kind of like how Duplex Legos and Legos would sort of work together in rare situations where you used a real lego like a duplex lego)

However it's been removed from all of the latpops and VMs that I've installed it on because it ran noticeably slower (even as reported by Windows Resource Monitor vs % of IO used) and there is no real use in developing "apps" in a Microsoft proprietary crippled HTML/CSS/JS that can't be viewed/run anywhere else in/on the world.
 
Congrats Microsoft for penetrating .0000624% of the education market. What a HUGE milestone!
 
odditory said:
I personally find it 'selective facts and not the whole story' every time MS press releases that some organization is 'adopting Windows 8' when in reality all that's happened is a renewal of their existing Enterprise License Agreement which grants them access to MS's entire catalog by default, including Win8. Case in point the press release about the DoD renewing their ELA was spun similarly "The Department of Defense is buying Windows 8 and Office 2013 whoo hoo!" so understand the skepticism theyve created.


The fact is if Win8 wasn't in trouble - especially in Enterprise - we wouldnt be having this conversation and desperation tactics and doublespeak on MS's part wouldn't be required.
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Pretty much this.

Our university had a tech meeting today and it was asked if anyone was moving to win8. Not one person raised their hands. We have windows 8 licensing as part of our agreement but no one wants to implement it.
 
Fort_Major said:
I think you're thinking of Wikipedia, not free software maintenance.
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What? No, I'm talking about the cost of support and maintenance (and re-education in most cases) running Linux and open source software in large quantities.
 
rudy said:
But apples are super cheap?
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Ipad's are more or less compared to text books. They also have kick ass battery life are lightweight, cool, quiet and dead easy to keep running. Apple has been crushing it in schools with Ipad's almost since they were released. Microsoft has almost no chance in this arena, only because no one makes a Win8 tablet that has the features a school would like. If they can convince someone to make a Nexus 7 sized device, a 10 hour battery, no fans and sell it at the $350 range they got a chance with having an actual Office app. Remove any of those and win8 tablets are a non starter for most schools.
 
There are plenty of comparable tablets with windows or android, what exactly are the features that the iPad has? lol, last I checked it was a rectangle with a display. Is that retina display the killer feature? School day is less than 8 hours which most tablets do. lets compare apples to apples schools around here mostly buy desktop computers, they don't need kids stealing $500 a pop ipads. And apple doesn't make any desktop under $800 and I think that's only the box. I think the reality is schools are choosing shit because they don't know anything about computers and they are just in on the hype. Of course I make that same argument for computers in general in schools since the majority of them sit unused or are waste of time internet surfers in the library.
 
Ghettobox said:
Ipad's are more or less compared to text books. They also have kick ass battery life are lightweight, cool, quiet and dead easy to keep running. Apple has been crushing it in schools with Ipad's almost since they were released. Microsoft has almost no chance in this arena, only because no one makes a Win8 tablet that has the features a school would like. If they can convince someone to make a Nexus 7 sized device, a 10 hour battery, no fans and sell it at the $350 range they got a chance with having an actual Office app. Remove any of those and win8 tablets are a non starter for most schools.
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Depends on what the school is looking for. If we're talking about a device that's only for text books then the iPad has a significant advantage. As a more complete tool that's for both production and consumption, Windows 8 tablets might fit the bill better. Creating documents, note taking, writing and developing software, etc.
 
rudy said:
There are plenty of comparable tablets with windows or android, what exactly are the features that the iPad has? lol, last I checked it was a rectangle with a display. Is that retina display the killer feature? School day is less than 8 hours which most tablets do. lets compare apples to apples schools around here mostly buy desktop computers, they don't need kids stealing $500 a pop ipads. And apple doesn't make any desktop under $800 and I think that's only the box. I think the reality is schools are choosing shit because they don't know anything about computers and they are just in on the hype. Of course I make that same argument for computers in general in schools since the majority of them sit unused or are waste of time internet surfers in the library.
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Yes they are, but at the end of the day the iPad battery is fucking awesome as Ryan Lewis/Macklemore would put it..

Simply on battery and weight alone the iPad is a no-brainer. And the fewer recharges a battery requires the longer it's life.
 
heatlesssun said:
Depends on what the school is looking for. If we're talking about a device that's only for text books then the iPad has a significant advantage. As a more complete tool that's for both production and consumption, Windows 8 tablets might fit the bill better. Creating documents, note taking, writing and developing software, etc.
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Hah, You think schools teach/promote any of the latter? Most schools as a whole are tax-payer funded glorified babysitters with access to a bit of information.

That statement has slightly better luck being true/applicable at college level, but at that point it's a BYOD. And way too many professors frown/ban devices claiming they are distracting/detrimental.
 
Seelenlos said:
Our university had a tech meeting today and it was asked if anyone was moving to win8. Not one person raised their hands. We have windows 8 licensing as part of our agreement but no one wants to implement it.
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Then as far as Microsoft PR is concerned you're adopting Windows 8 since you technically have license keys. Ring da alarm
 
ManofGod said:
Sorry, no going away here at all. Whenever I or someone with a positive outlook on Windows 8 would post, a majority of the posts after that would be derogatory against that person.
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So you try and balance the universe by trolling the other way? Sounds like a solid plan you have there :p News flash, people who like W8 are dismissive of people who don't like it and people who don't like it are dismissive of people who do :eek: That's probably a more significant news article than the MS one.
I am pleased to see that Microsoft is making strides in the education sector with Windows 8. We do not however know how much more inroads they have made since we do not have that information. (Or not.)
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You are pleased to see MS is making strides in the education field yet then admit we actually have no idea what inroads they are making :p

Less than half a percent of students and faculty is not "making strides". I'd hazard a guess and say Linux has greater impact than that. As you say, we don't actually know what strides MS are making in education, this article is not one of them.

I'm not jumping up and down saying W8 sucks and/or W8 fans are idiots in this thread (I don't deny that I'm not a fan of MS's choice to make it a hybrid OS, but that's a discussion for another time). I'm just keeping it real and pointing out that 540k students and faculty having access to W8 in the US is hardly making "strides" and is in fact below par if that's all they've managed. They should have higher impact than that from schools upgrading old crusty computers, and hey, they might, in fact I think they probably do... but that's not what this article is about.
 
Microsoft must have made the educators one hell of a deal for them to let go of the money in these tight times.
 
AceGoober said:
Microsoft must have made the educators one hell of a deal for them to let go of the money in these tight times.
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It is rather shocking that people in education aren't smart enough to stick with Windows 7 :)
 
ManofGod said:
Hypocrisy is only there if I claimed that I did not in anyway at least partially troll. (Partially since I also posted on the topic as well.) Go learn the proper definition of that word and then get back to me.

The Hate 8 is strong with this one. :D I am sorry but I cannot take it seriously anymore since most of you guys only want to bash Windows 8. Windows 8 is working fine and definitely could use some improvement but, the start menu is gone and will probably not be coming back. (No, it is not the year of Linux for the desktop and the Mac will never have the market share that Windows has.)

It is good to see that schools are adopting a new standard and moving forward.
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Don't worry, we never took you seriously anyhow.

Back on topic.

Non news really, not sure why it was even announced. Also it is just K-12 and people that are going to learn computers in those grades are going to with a dumbed down UI or not. The rest will continue to be the ones who pay us to fix it for them. I am perfectly fine with the general population being made less capable. It simply serves to make those of us who are actually intelligent and capable stand out more. Honestly I would be more concerned that we have no federal standards of education that prevents states like Kentucky from refusing to teach scientifically accepted facts in lieu of camp fire stories from sheep herders.
 
Revdarian said:
http://www.cracked.com/photoplasty_...mpanies-one-thing-about-their-products_p21/#3

I just lolled.
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LOL! Definitely clever. I find if amazing the number of times that people say the new UI is dumbed down for two year olds and then at the same time complain how it's so different and unintuitive.

I've seen kids as young as 5 pick up the new UI like that and become totally immersed in it. Of course there are issues with the integration of the desktop and Metro, yes things are different. But what some are calling unintuitive is really unfamiliar. Unfamiliar is still a problem but a fundamentally different one than unintuitive.
 
heatlesssun said:
LOL! Definitely clever. I find if amazing the number of times that people say the new UI is dumbed down for two year olds
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Actually, only Hardcore W8 proponents such as yourself and Microsoft make this assertion.
heatlesssun said:
I've seen kids as young as 5 pick up the new UI like that and become totally immersed in it. Of course there are issues with the integration of the desktop and Metro, yes things are different. But what some are calling unintuitive is really unfamiliar. Unfamiliar is still a problem but a fundamentally different one than unintuitive.
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Kids as young as 4/5 have been learning to use PCs (and an onslaught of other devices that are prevalent in today's tech-filled life) for as long as the PC has been around and in everybody's home. Windows 8 brings nothing new to this table. Your point could be said about just about every single toy/device that a kid has access to that they may not have had access to 5, 10-30 or 50 years ago (because it didn't exist).
 
But in all fairness your post is the exact same type and in the exact same spirit as the press release that this thread is about.
 
Fort_Major said:
Actually, only Hardcore W8 proponents such as yourself and Microsoft make this assertion.
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Really? From the beginning of that Start Screen joke:

"Dear Microsoft, I do not own a tablet. I do not need pretty colors or simple shapes to amuse me, as I am not a two-year old."
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The whole reason why this funny, even to Windows 8 proponents like myself is just how pervasive the "dumbed down for two year olds" statements are from Windows 8 opponents.

Fort_Major said:
Kids as young as 4/5 have been learning to use PCs (and an onslaught of other devices that are prevalent in today's tech-filled life) for as long as the PC has been around and in everybody's home. Windows 8 brings nothing new to this table. Your point could be said about just about every single toy/device that a kid has access to that they may not have had access to 5, 10-30 or 50 years ago (because it didn't exist).
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I was specifically talking about Windows. Case in point. The kids loved Puzzle Touch, especially being able to take a picture and turn into a puzzle and then solve it on the touch screen. No, this isn't new but it is new to Windows, at least at this level. Being able to interactive with such a light and thin device is more visceral than just pointing and clicking with a mouse on something that's not nearly as portable.
 
heatlesssun said:
I was specifically talking about Windows. Case in point. The kids loved Puzzle Touch, especially being able to take a picture and turn into a puzzle and then solve it on the touch screen. No, this isn't new but it is new to Windows, at least at this level. Being able to interactive with such a light and thin device is more visceral than just pointing and clicking with a mouse on something that's not nearly as portable.
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Kids were playing Reader Rabbit and Frogger on the Apple IIe 20 and 30 years ago, which for those who are too told to remember was a tablet but fixed buttons.

Kids have been playing and learning on the iPhone for several years and the iPhone +iPad are probably outselling WP/W8 on a 40 to 1 scale no less.

I think it's far more amazing that not only can very young kids play and learn on the iPhone but that they do. And this is something that everybody has.

You don't have to go out and spend 800 bucks on an overweight paperweight that will not handle a 4-5 year old's abuse (because yes one of the bigger complaints surfacing about the Surface is the shoddy mfr and it affected the casing).
 
heatlesssun said:
All I did was recount the real world experience of some kids using a Windows 8 tablet.
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And I'll recount the time (several years ago) I went to going away party. Over half of us were married and brought our kids. Almost all of the kids were running around playing games on iPhones. And a majority of the games they were playing were all games aimed at teaching young kids.

8+ kids learning on devices that were already prevalent in every day use several years ago. That is truly amazing.
 
Fort_Major said:
Kids were playing Reader Rabbit and Frogger on the Apple IIe 20 and 30 years ago, which for those who are too told to remember was a tablet but fixed buttons.
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Huh?

Fort_Major said:
Kids have been playing and learning on the iPhone for several years and the iPhone +iPad are probably outselling WP/W8 on a 40 to 1 scale no less.
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Ok, not that this really had anything to do with pointing out something that's new to Windows. And in referring Windows 8, you much mean only tablets. The iPad isn't outselling all Windows 8 devices 40 to 1.

Fort_Major said:
I think it's far more amazing that not only can very young kids play and learn on the iPhone but that they do. And this is something that everybody has.

You don't have to go out and spend 800 bucks on an overweight paperweight that will not handle a 4-5 year old's abuse (because yes one of the bigger complaints surfacing about the Surface is the shoddy mfr and it affected the casing).
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I'd love to see two kids sit a table and solve a 100 piece puzzle together on something the size of an iPhone, even the big iPad is a bit on the small side for that. Not all Windows 8 tablets are the Surface, the one in question here is the Samsung Ativ 500, which is roughly the same thickness as the current big iPad and about 3.5 ounces heavier. Not a retina display but at 11.6" the screen size makes working with something like a puzzle pretty cool even two people.

As for durability of this particular device, I've dropped it a couple of times on carpet, one was a bit of a rough fall on harder carpet, some scratches on the side but fine other than that. Unless it's ruggedized, not many tablets will take a much of beating.
 
heatlesssun said:
...the one in question here is the Samsung Ativ 500, which is roughly the same thickness as the current big iPad and about 3.5 ounces heavier. Not a retina display but at 11.6" the screen size makes working with something like a puzzle pretty cool even two people....
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Samsung's tablets are pretty disappointing equipment. I understand they're marketed largely as consumer-oriented devices and CE hardware is made to be disposable junk for the masses, but the Clover Trail-based tablets they've been selling have a very cheap in-hand feel compared to an iPad or even many budget Android tablets. I'm pretty sure the Ativ series, as it sits now, is a marketing miss. Then again the iffy digitizer in the Surface Pro is a huge disappointment as well for something that's supposed to have Wacom branding. :(

I would love to seem Microsoft put a better foot forward if they have a second iteration of Surface hardware. Understandably, 3rd party vendors like Samsung are going to do whatever they can to be cost-effective. It's shameful Acer-level workmanship, but what can you do?
 
heatlesssun said:
The iPad isn't outselling all Windows 8 devices 40 to 1.
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. I'm comparing Fuji to Lady Gala. Note how I said iPad + iPhone and in case it wasn't clear enough I was referring to WP and W8 tablets.
[/quote]
I'd love to see two kids sit a table and solve a 100 piece puzzle together on something the size of an iPhone, even the big iPad is a bit on the small side for that. Not all Windows 8 tablets are the Surface, [/QUOTE]
Everything that you're talking about started being done mainstream by kids years ago. This is like the Family Guy clip where Peter is amazed by the leaf blowing and God yells at the TV asking him if he has any idea how complex his Cardiovascular system is. But your head is too far up Microsoft's snatch to see how silly a lot of what you're saying is "new" is.
 
CreepyUncleGoogle said:
I would love to seem Microsoft put a better foot forward if they have a second iteration of Surface hardware. Understandably, 3rd party vendors like Samsung are going to do whatever they can to be cost-effective. It's shameful Acer-level workmanship, but what can you do?
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Same. It would have been nice to see Microsoft put together a premium hardware lineup that had durability comparative to Legendary Lenovo/Thinkpad and an "Optimized for Windows".

But the Microsoft that brought us the legendary Hardware of old, and the innovative "do whatever you want on 'your' OS, however you want to do it" is long gone.
 
heatlesssun said:
I was specifically talking about Windows. Case in point. The kids loved Puzzle Touch, especially being able to take a picture and turn into a puzzle and then solve it on the touch screen. No, this isn't new but it is new to Windows, at least at this level. Being able to interactive with such a light and thin device is more visceral than just pointing and clicking with a mouse on something that's not nearly as portable.
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I would also expect the kids won't like Windows 8 as much "pointing and clicking with a mouse on something that's not nearly as portable" for exactly the same reasons that everybody else does. :p
 
CreepyUncleGoogle said:
Samsung's tablets are pretty disappointing equipment. I understand they're marketed largely as consumer-oriented devices and CE hardware is made to be disposable junk for the masses, but the Clover Trail-based tablets they've been selling have a very cheap in-hand feel compared to an iPad or even many budget Android tablets. I'm pretty sure the Ativ series, as it sits now, is a marketing miss.
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The Ativ 500 certainly isn't the best made tablet out there but overall I've been pretty happy with two things about it's construction. I slide it across tables all of the time, no case or skin and the plastic is quite scratch resistant. Secondly, it's incredibly cool running, an iPad will get much warmer on the back than the 500.

But yes, improved build quality is needed here. As for the sales numbers, Samsung was complaining about the sluggishness of sales of Windows 8 and pretty much nixed its Windows RT devices except in limited markets I believe. But of course Samsung didn't really say anything specific about it's own sales. But Samsung did launch their tablets on day one, the 500 was about the only Clover Trail at launch and it is sold in brick and mortar retail and they just launched the 700T on AT&T with LTE. The reviews of the devices are decent on Amazon with most people coming to the same conclusions.

CreepyUncleGoogle said:
Then again the iffy digitizer in the Surface Pro is a huge disappointment as well for something that's supposed to have Wacom branding. :(
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Overall I've heard mostly positive things about the Wacom digitizer in the Pro. Yes, there is the issue of WinTab pressure sensitivity in Photoshop, which I'm surprised hasn't been addressed by now but this for whatever has been a common problem in Wacom based Windows 8 tablets.

CreepyUncleGoogle said:
I would love to seem Microsoft put a better foot forward if they have a second iteration of Surface hardware. Understandably, 3rd party vendors like Samsung are going to do whatever they can to be cost-effective. It's shameful Acer-level workmanship, but what can you do?
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Well a lot of it has to do with Intel and they are much like Microsoft, in the middle of the mobile transition. But if Haswell and Bay Trail are close to in real life what they look like on paper, Windows 8 tablets are going to be significantly better than they are now.
 
Fort_Major said:
Everything that you're talking about started being done mainstream by kids years ago. This is like the Family Guy clip where Peter is amazed by the leaf blowing and God yells at the TV asking him if he has any idea how complex his Cardiovascular system is. But your head is too far up Microsoft's snatch to see how silly a lot of what you're saying is "new" is.
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No, kids were not putting together puzzles on an 11.6" 1.6 lbs 1/3" thick Windows x86 tablet years ago. I never said any of this was new, I said it was new to Windows and certainly x86 hardware. However when the kids are done playing they could take that same tablet and do their math homework on it with a pen or even stick in in a keyboard dock and write a report for school using Word. And this isn't entirely new either but it's also not very common today with tablets and an important key to the success of Windows 8 and beyond I believe is just how common hybrid use becomes.
 
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