Gaming OS: Win7 Ultimate or Win8.1?

Cannibal Corpse

Cannibal Corpse

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Sep 22, 2002
Messages
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I am about to reformat my current hard drive (on my gaming machine, see my sig for specs) containing Windows 7 Ultimate (almost 4 years old, with tons of stuff installed, and uninstalled, kind of bloated) and I need to know if I should re-install Windows 7 again, or go with Win8.1?

I already own a sealed copy of Win8 and though maybe I install that, and of course install the free 8.1 on top of that and give it a go.

Questions:

1) Should I go with Win81. or stick with Win7 Ultimate?

2) Is there a good Win8.1 START Menu supplement? which one do you recommend? (free or preferably commercial ones)

3) Does 8.1 allow a complete boot into desktop, instead of the crappy UI?

Thanks!
 
As I've said in numerous threads, it's really up to your own personal preferences. However, since you already have 8, I would go with 8.1.

There are plenty of free alternative UIs out there, ranging from actual replacements like ClassicShell to completely different UIs altogether like Rainmeter. I don't use any of them because I like the customizing options I get with using Oblytile and Windows 8 Start Screen Customizer.

Most good Start Menu replacements have always had the boot to desktop and disable charms menu options. 8.1 adds that ability natively.
 
Cannibal Corpse said:
1) Should I go with Win81. or stick with Win7 Ultimate?
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Since you're going to go through the trouble of a reinstall anyways, you might as well go with Windows 8.1 so that you get the advantages of the newer, better OS. After all, you claim this is for a gaming machine, so I would assume a large amount of time will be spent playing games, where you won't be looking at the 'subjectively polar' UI anyways.

Cannibal Corpse said:
2) Is there a good Win8.1 START Menu supplement? which one do you recommend? (free or preferably commercial ones)
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These modifications are of no interest to me, so I have not tried any of them. But, I have heard praise for several different options, so in all likelihood you should be able to find one you like.

Cannibal Corpse said:
3) Does 8.1 allow a complete boot into desktop, instead of the crappy UI?
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This website seems to think so. I haven't tried it out myself, though.
http://boottodesktop.com/
 
Most good Start Menu replacements have always had the boot to desktop and disable charms menu options. 8.1 adds that ability natively.
Click to expand...

How would I do this?

Thanks!
 
Right click the task bar, go to properties, click the navigation tab, and check the relevant options.
 
Windows 8.1, duh.

Install 'startisback' and you're done. Why don't people get this yet?
 
Everything is personal choice, so up to you in the end.

I use Windows 8.1 Pro and there isn't any perceivable difference (unless I benchmark it) between playing on 7 Ultimate before and on 8.1 Pro now.

However, keep this in mind: If there is a game that uses the extra features of DirectX 11.2 such as tiled resources, only 8.1 (and future versions of Windows) will be compatible. Windows 8, 7 and lower will not.

(Short end of it: Tile resources is a way to use very large textures generally for terrain while utilizing a low amount of memory and retaining high details of it.)

Other features mentioned here: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/dn312084(v=vs.85).aspx
 
octoberasian said:
Everything is personal choice, so up to you in the end.
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This. If you can handle the new Windows 8 UI, go with that. If not, try a start menu replacement. That should help with 99% of the issues people have with Windows 8/8.1. For the other 1%, stick with Windows 7.

I have Windows 8.1 on my PC's. My work laptop came with a Start menu replacement, and I took it off. Found it more trouble than it was worth. It does act like Windows 7, and I've been using Win8 for a while, so I get the Win8 vibe, but the Win7 start menu. It isn't doing what I have been expecting, so I dropped it.

I'd say go with Windows 8.1 and use a start menu replacement if you need it (or not if you don't mind Modern UI/Metro).
 
Excellent, then that it what I would do then. I have a sealed copy of Win8 Pro, and I am thinking about installing that and immediately upgrading to 8.1, enable direct boot to desktop and install a Start menu add-on.
 
I'm a bit confused on the stress in the topic for a "Gaming OS" but then one of the best gaming features of Win8/.1, the idea of a simple tiled screen PERFECT for just slapping game icons on.. F THAT NOISE START8 HERE I COME! WINDOWS ARGH M$$$$ GATESSSSS!!!!

I dunno, I have 8.1 and my desktop is a gaming rig, I just have tiles of all my games, click n' go. Wheee
 
Cannibal Corpse said:
Excellent, then that it what I would do then. I have a sealed copy of Win8 Pro, and I am thinking about installing that and immediately upgrading to 8.1, enable direct boot to desktop and install a Start menu add-on.
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Yes - that should do exactly what you want it to do. The games explorer in Win 8.1 is unloved at best, so I'd recommend either making shortcuts to all of your games, or using Steam as a catch-all launcher.
 
SuperSubZero said:
I dunno, I have 8.1 and my desktop is a gaming rig, I just have tiles of all my games, click n' go. Wheee
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IIRC, there is an app in the Store that adds live tiles of your Steam games, too. Haven't tried it yet, though. Also, there is an app that you can make custom tiles. Someone made some game ones on here, looked pretty damn awesome.

I say use it for a week, even with boot to desktop, but try the tiles. I know not everyone will like them, but I see a lot of people just go straight to the start menu replacement without even touching a tile.
 
I like Windows 8.1. Some people don't realized that it was optimized for touch devices so there is a little bit of a learning curve when navigation it the traditional way. It runs well.
 
Brahmzy said:
Windows 8.1, duh.

Install 'startisback' and you're done. Why don't people get this yet?
Click to expand...

It's a head scratcher for me too. The hours and hours people spend bitching about the lack of a proper Start Menu when they could literally take 30 seconds to install something like Startisback and be done with it.
 
maw said:
It's a head scratcher for me too. The hours and hours people spend bitching about the lack of a proper Start Menu when they could literally take 30 seconds to install something like Startisback and be done with it.
Click to expand...

l can understand the desire to have the Start Menu in the box because if it isn't in the box and provided by 3rd parties, it's not officially a part of Windows and has become legacy.
 
SuperSubZero said:
I'm a bit confused on the stress in the topic for a "Gaming OS" but then one of the best gaming features of Win8/.1, the idea of a simple tiled screen PERFECT for just slapping game icons on.. F THAT NOISE START8 HERE I COME! WINDOWS ARGH M$$$$ GATESSSSS!!!!

I dunno, I have 8.1 and my desktop is a gaming rig, I just have tiles of all my games, click n' go. Wheee
Click to expand...

Yeah the mouse lag must be just wonderful with games, especially FPS lol.
 
8.1 is fine, the full screen "start menu" thing is still meh IMO. However it works fine, it's mostly a minor annoyance. I use search 100% of the time anyway, which was facilitated just fine by the built in start menu search that has been around for a while now.
 
heatlesssun said:
l can understand the desire to have the Start Menu in the box because if it isn't in the box and provided by 3rd parties, it's not officially a part of Windows and has become legacy.
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Yeah, but there are lots of things that do come in the box with Windows that people have no problems replacing with a third-party solution. E.g. Chrome instead of IE, Notepad++, registry cleaners, uninstallers, multi-monitor utilities, etc...

Hey, I'm no fan of the Start Screen either, but once it became clear it was here to stay and so many free and easy solutions existed, it just became another one of those things I switched to a third-party solution for.
 
Bluesun311 said:
Startisback is cool but... Aeroisback is not going to happen. Sucks.
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I'd rather have Aero Glass back than the Start menu. Not sure if it's my vision, but with Aero, it was easier to tell which window was active.
 
maw said:
Yeah, but there are lots of things that do come in the box with Windows that people have no problems replacing with a third-party solution. E.g. Chrome instead of IE, Notepad++, registry cleaners, uninstallers, multi-monitor utilities, etc...

Hey, I'm no fan of the Start Screen either, but once it became clear it was here to stay and so many free and easy solutions existed, it just became another one of those things I switched to a third-party solution for.
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I agree with what you're saying here the controversy of the new UI is much more than just about usability. There's issues of aesthetics, misgivings about the hybrid approach and Windows Store and just a general dislike of the philosophical approach that Microsoft is taking.

One of the great things about Windows is its great 3rd party support but when it comes to something as old and ingrained as the Start Menu, reliance on 3rd party tools unfortunately doesn't make everyone happy. But I imagine that the Start Screen is going to evolve considerably over time. It will be interesting what it looks like in Windows 9. I believe that it is a superior concept over the Start Menu and is mostly lacking options to customize it that would make it more appealing to certain old school desktop users.
 
maw said:
It's a head scratcher for me too. The hours and hours people spend bitching about the lack of a proper Start Menu when they could literally take 30 seconds to install something like Startisback and be done with it.
Click to expand...

Because we shouldn't have to install Startisback and blah, blah, blah. Fuck MS - no choice. Blah, blah.

I don't know either. Windows 8.1 so far has been a great gaming OS. Also, DX 11.2 will give it an advantage too.
 
You know I listened to the naysayers about windows 8. Then i bought this really fast 3k laptop that came with windows 8. I hate it for about a week. Now i get on windows 7 and get pissed because it doesn't have all the neat little features windows 8 has. Fuck, just the firewall settings alone and way they present the task manager was awesome
 
Ur_Mom said:
I'd rather have Aero Glass back than the Start menu. Not sure if it's my vision, but with Aero, it was easier to tell which window was active.
Click to expand...

It's the one in the front. :D
 
maw said:
It's the one in the front. :D
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I have several in front on a couple monitors. Plus, my complaint with a lot of Windows versions - changing focus. Some programs will refresh, or load slowly then finally grab focus. So, you're typing in one window, then it switches and you're putting stuff in another... Or other minor things. I just like Aero, or even other ones that had more of a visual on which window was active. It's not that great on Win8. For most things, doesn't matter. For that once or twice a day when it happens - it sucks.

Huge complaint, too, I should give up on Windows and go to OSX because of it! :D [/sarcasm]
 
Ur_Mom said:
I have several in front on a couple monitors.
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The window border color will be drastically different on the active window.

Ur_Mom said:
Plus, my complaint with a lot of Windows versions - changing focus. Some programs will refresh, or load slowly then finally grab focus. So, you're typing in one window, then it switches and you're putting stuff in another... Or other minor things.
Click to expand...

That's not a Windows thing. That's down to what the application designer decided to do. They decided (implicitly, maybe) to have a slow application, and they decided to set their window as the active one.

Ur_Mom said:
I just like Aero, or even other ones that had more of a visual on which window was active. It's not that great on Win8.
Click to expand...

Personal preference is personal preference. Other people also miss certain aspects of the aero theme too. Depending on how much you miss it, there is hope, though. Contrary to anything a Linux user would ever tell you, Microsoft's APIs offer quite a lot of capability for customization, and I know that it is completely possible to create a third party tool/theme to approximate aero's appearance on 8/8.1. I also know that there are tools out there which attempt this. You could try one of those. How well they work would be up to you to discover, though.
 
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