Who is planning on going from windows 7 to windows 8.1?

[silk186]

I upgraded my OS with every version of windows up to Windows XP which I stuck with until Windows 7. I didn't see a compelling reason to upgrade immediately to 8 but I'm considering giving 8.1 a try.

I'm curious how many plan on making the jump to 8.1

 

[B00nie]

Why would you? Aside from the typical fanboys of the forum I haven't seen anyone say a word good about Windows 8 or 8.1 so far, at least on the GUI front.

Faster bootup time etc. matters little when the user experience is like eating shards of glass. It's comical really, when I saw Unity on buntu I thought what a fail - would be funny if MS copied that as interface.

Cue Win8 and just as horrible UI design.

 

[Velocity_Micro]

I am one of those that tried 8, but for my personal use I went back to 7 after I finished my testing. If I liked using touch on a desktop, I probably would have stayed, but for a desktop PC user with a fat monitor, my preference was to stay at 7. I'm not somebody that appreciates touch except on a tablet or smartphone, because a mouse is drastically more efficient on a 27" monitor.

I have used 8.1 (and continue to use) and it is remarkably similar to 8 in many respects, including the reasons why 7 was right for me. That said, I believe I will stay with the RTM 8.1 as my main OS at home. I'm not sure it's familiarity or shame for preferring the old, but 8.1 is the right choice for me now. It does run faster, is contemporary, and very solid now. (I am not promising I won't go back later)

Bottom line, it's a personal choice, and you can't go wrong with either OS...it's whatever feels right to you.

(note: VM sells about 65% of new systems now with 7 still!)

 

[Zuul]

I tried Win 8 on my GF's netbook and i rage-quitted it hard and never looked back.

Also, why oh WHY would anyone want to mess up their monitors with fingerprints all over the place?? Don't touch my monitor.Ever.

 

[Nenu]

Giving 8 a miss entirely.
I tried 8 and MS dont deserve any money for the worse experience.
They havent fixed 8.1 so its a no brainer.

 

[PornoSatan]

Windows 8 is a joke, always has been and always will be. The only reason I have it is because I got it during that $14.99 promotion thing and my previous OS was a pirated XP. So now I have an updated legitimate OS thats 64 bit and capable of running the latest DirectX games with, but really Windows 8 is nothing special. And this whole "legitimate OS" thing is starting to annoy me too, i've already had to call Microsoft after swapping HD's to get permission to re-activate.

 

[RogueTrip]

I've been using Win 8+WMP+Start8 since release. Can't complain too much. I'll probably jump to 8.1 when it releases officially and not leaked RTM.

The biggest things that I have liked about Win 8 has been the UEFI fast boot and reset/refresh ability, otherwise I'd say stick with Win 7.

Looking at 8.1 though. I only have found that the next DX update would be worth the upgrade and effort.

On a side note. I think Vista had been the worst OS I've used. I started off with Windows 95. Even run a retro gaming rig in sig with Win ME!! haha.

 

[Domingo]

It might not change any minds about Windows 8, but the new quicker access to your programs is great for me.
After getting used to it (and spending some time configuring everything the way I want), I actually prefer Windows 8 to 7 now. When I first tried it, I hated it.

 

[polonyc2]

I'll use the public release version of 8.1 until it expires in January 2014 and then decide...right now I still prefer Windows 7

 

[atto]

Not me. I just upgraded to Windows 7 a few months ago and I love it. Windows 8 seems like a desperate attempt to revive the desktop when smartphones and tablets are gaining market share.

 

[bigdogchris]

I do not plan to upgrade beyond 7 until Microsoft gives me a OS that is built for the computer I use it on, which is a desktop with keyboard and mouse.

I do not believe in a unified OS approach and will no longer support Microsoft until they change direction from their current stance on this issue. If they don't change their stance, I can hold out with 7 as long as I can, then switch to Linux or buy a Mac.

 

[TCM]

And this whole "legitimate OS" thing is starting to annoy me too, i've already had to call Microsoft after swapping HD's to get permission to re-activate.

Haha, nice one.

On a side note. I think Vista had been the worst OS I've used. I started off with Windows 95. Even run a retro gaming rig in sig with Win ME!! haha.

You think Vista is the worst and you use ME?! Very funny.

 

[DeathFromBelow]

Windows 8 is a disaster. I tried it for a few months and I'm not touching it or any of it's derivatives again unless Microsoft apologizes and quits dicking around with the desktop UI.

I really can't see any valid reason for using 8 on a desktop. Features have been removed and nothing useful has been added. Media Center, a standard feature on Vista/7 Home Premium, now requires 8 Pro plus an additional $10 and is completely unchanged. Metro/Modern UI is just as terrible with 8.1. The 'Flat' GUI looks like shit compared to Aero Glass. It only boots faster because they're basically forcing you to hibernate rather than shut down and the supposed code optimizations don't actually translate into measurable real-world performance improvements over Windows 7. I really don't know how Microsoft could have screwed up worse than what happened with 8.

On a side note. I think Vista had been the worst OS I've used.

People who talk like this have almost certainly never used Vista. It was one of the best products Microsoft ever made and it was sunk by Microsoft's PR ineptitude. Vista was faster than XP, introduced lots of new features, and brought security up to the same level as the Unix-like ecosystem. The only real problem was poor driver support, companies like Nvidia and Creative took months to push good drivers and lots of peripheral manufacturers used it as an excuse to discontinue support for older products that were still perfectly functional.

 

[Ur_Mom]

People who talk like this have almost certainly never used Vista. It was one of the best products Microsoft ever made and it was sunk by Microsoft's PR ineptitude. Vista was faster than XP, introduced lots of new features, and brought security up to the same level as the Unix-like ecosystem. The only real problem was poor driver support, companies like Nvidia and Creative took months to push good drivers and lots of peripheral manufacturers used it as an excuse to discontinue support for older products that were still perfectly functional.

Add to that the "Vista Capable" thing. OEM's putting out desktops with Vista with 512MB of RAM (1 GB, tops). People were pissed, and the blame was on Vista for being slow. I can put XP on a P2-233 64MB RAM and have it slow, and it wouldn't be the fault of the OS... I was one of those that didn't have a single problem with Vista. It ran flawlessly for me. The only time I thought it was sub-par was when it's successor was released - Windows 7 was refined and a lot better (as it should be!).

Windows 8 on desktop can be odd. For some, it's a pain in the ass to do anything. It's slow to get anything done while using Metro, it flip flops back and forth between desktop and Metro (and when you want to go to Desktop after working there, it goes to Metro and you have to click on Desktop to get back to work...). For others, it's an easy to use OS and Metro is a application launcher and little more. If you didn't want to go to 8 after 7, there really isn't anything special in 8.1 to justify it any more now. I'd say save your money and wait until Windows 9 is announced to see if it improves anything. If there is no reason to upgrade to Windows 8.1/8, then don't blow the cash on it.

 

[CEpeep]

People who talk like this have almost certainly never used Vista. It was one of the best products Microsoft ever made and it was sunk by Microsoft's PR ineptitude. Vista was faster than XP, introduced lots of new features, and brought security up to the same level as the Unix-like ecosystem. The only real problem was poor driver support, companies like Nvidia and Creative took months to push good drivers and lots of peripheral manufacturers used it as an excuse to discontinue support for older products that were still perfectly functional.

I think this is akin to what people will say about 8 once Windows 9 (or higher) is used commonly. It brings plenty of new features to the table and it's faster than 7 on the same hardware. Just like Vista, the real problem with driving its adoption isn't the software itself but a lack of readily available consumer-grade hardware (touchscreens and gesture input devices in this case, Aero-capable GPUs in Vista's) that makes optimal use of its feature set.

 

[Skripka]

Win8 or 8.1 as seen is not going to have a home on any of my machines.

I think this is akin to what people will say about 8 once Windows 9 (or higher) is used commonly. It brings plenty of new features to the table and it's faster than 7 on the same hardware. Just like Vista, the real problem with driving its adoption isn't the software itself but a lack of readily available consumer-grade hardware (touchscreens and gesture input devices in this case, Aero-capable GPUs in Vista's) that makes optimal use of its feature set.

Even if there were were widely available touchscreen panels for the desktop...who would ever want to use it compared to a decent mouse and keyboard? From an ergonomics standpoint, sitting at a desk it is a no brainer which one is less tiring for any normal sustained usage.

Touchscreen desktops are one of those things that look cool on NCIS:LA or seem cool for a presentation...and once you actually have to use them normally, you never want to have to use them again.

 

[Nenu]

Your comparison isnt valid, Vista didnt change the way windows was used and make it slower to do basic tasks.
It didnt remove things that were heavily utilised and much liked, replacing them with methods that are much slower and annoying.

 

[Mav451]

I upgraded my OS with every version of windows up to Windows XP which I stuck with until Windows 7. I didn't see a compelling reason to upgrade immediately to 8 but I'm considering giving 8.1 a try.

I'm curious how many plan on making the jump to 8.1

I think you'll ultimately need to decide for yourself. Many of the typical anti-Win8 comments come from a position of extreme ignorance, so I would strongly urge that you come to your own conclusions. It really is hilarious the amount of hyperbole coming from some of the haters.

If Win8 was so bad, why didn't I also jump back to Win7? Because I felt that would've been a downgrade. I have no need to return to a 4-year old OS. I still have my 7 license as a back-up, of course, but I have no plans on using it again.

 

[CEpeep]

Even if there were were widely available touchscreen panels for the desktop...who would ever want to use it compared to a decent mouse and keyboard? From an ergonomics standpoint, sitting at a desk it is a no brainer which one is less tiring for any normal sustained usage.

Touchscreen desktops are one of those things that look cool on NCIS:LA or seem cool for a presentation...and once you actually have to use them normally, you never want to have to use them again.

I use Windows 8 (well Server 2012) on a 27" touchscreen at work every weekday. I use the screen instead of the mouse for about 50% of my tasks. I'd never go back to a setup without a touchscreen at work, because the productivity boost is incredible. You're not using Windows 8 on the right hardware if you didn't see a marked productivity boost, but when that hardware costs a couple thousand dollars, it's easy to understand why most people haven't really tried it and won't for at least another year or two.

At home, my PC isn't used for productivity, so I'm still on Windows 7. I don't have the hardware to make any use of Windows 8 here.

Windows 8 is all about the hardware, but hardly anyone has it. Microsoft did an absolutely terrible job of getting OEMs on board with producing hardware for it. They should have flat-out told OEMs they couldn't sell Win8 on any machine without touch, and then discontinued 7 as planned to force the OEMs to build touch from the ground-up or use another OS like Chrome.

 

[mdmcaf]

I stuck with Windows 7 for my main machine (only for playing video games, I use Linux for everything else) and begrudged installing Windows 8 on my ThinkPad (for which I also use mainly Linux). But I started playing around with 8.1 on a virtual machine and I really like it.

I think the ability to automatically boot to the Desktop as well as the fact that the Metro Interface (errr....Modern Interface) now includes your desktop background as its background make for a much more usable interface. I didn't think it would make much a difference to have the desktop background visible in the Modern Interface but it makes a huge difference in my opinion. It feels like a lot less of "shock" to move from the desktop to the Modern Interface and has really made me look forward to using 8.1 on my desktop.

One of the principal reasons I didn't move to Windows 8 on my main desktop was that I only use Windows to play video games on that machine and I didn't want to deal with the hassle of re-configuring GRUB....but 8.1 feels a lot more polished. Granted, Microsoft should have done this in the first place; but they rarely get it right the first time.

People will of course have their own opinion about the Modern Interface and I can understand why many people want the Start Menu back...people are adverse to change, especially geeks/nerds. Just think of all the backlash that Ubuntu's Unity has gotten since its release. It's just a matter of opinion and the matter is largely subjective. You either like it or you don't.

 

[darkwraith007]

The general rule is to skip every other M$ Windows release.
Buy WinNT, skip Win98, Buy Win98SE, skip WinME, Buy XP, skip Vista (aka Windows v6.0), buy Win7 (aka Windows v6.1), skip Win8, wait for Win9.

The biggest factor in me wanting to even update to Win7 and not stay with WinXP is the 64-bit compatibility. Unfortunately, game developers have rarely taken advantage of the fact that even most of the crappiest budget Walmart computers and laptops tend to have 64-bit compatibility. Then again if they develop for that lowest-common denominator then we shouldn't be surprised with how terrible things can get.

Game developers in particular (ever since the advent of widespread broadband consoles) have become lazy, inept, and downright maliciously exploitative in their mechanics and practices. While most of these have been confined to the PC, many of them have been worming their way over to full-priced console games.

The primary reason to use Windows is compatibility with nearly everything, past and present. For much older software I can usually either do Wine or boot up an emulated Virtual Machine with Win98SE.
Linux is good, but it hasn't yet reached mainstream ease-of-use for most people. Linux Mint is one of the distros to look out for; has a ton of good ideas but also far too many flaws still in it. Wine is a joke and Linux might seriously consider poking game developers to just start using OpenGL.

All that said, if you don't care about 64-bit stuff or don't care about having more than ~3.5 GB of RAM then use WinXP. Otherwise, use the 64-bit Win7.

I don't see any reason in the foreseeable future to upgrade Windows anymore. Metro has always been a TERRIBLE idea in a desktop environment. Their attempt at 'one interface across all devices' is an unmitigated disaster. Their falling stock prices have cost thousands of jobs and they blindly trudge forward into shoving this Win8 shit down everyone's throats. M$ had to pull their monopoly strings and force vendors to stop putting Win7 on new computers just to force the adoption of Win8.

 

[heatlesssun]

I don't see any reason in the foreseeable future to upgrade Windows anymore. Metro has always been a TERRIBLE idea in a desktop environment. Their attempt at 'one interface across all devices' is an unmitigated disaster. Their falling stock prices have cost thousands of jobs and they blindly trudge forward into shoving this Win8 shit down everyone's throats. M$ had to pull their monopoly strings and force vendors to stop putting Win7 on new computers just to force the adoption of Win8.

How has Microsoft's stock going UP around 20% since the launch of 8 cost thousands of jobs? The price is higher now than at anytime during Windows 7's three year reign as the flagship desktop OS.

 

[Dogs]

All that said, if you don't care about 64-bit stuff or don't care about having more than ~3.5 GB of RAM then use WinXP.

LOL.

Considering how technologically obsolete XP is, I simply can't take that advice seriously. I just can't.

 

[polonyc2]

The general rule is to skip every other M$ Windows release.
Buy WinNT, skip Win98, Buy Win98SE, skip WinME, Buy XP, skip Vista (aka Windows v6.0), buy Win7 (aka Windows v6.1), skip Win8, wait for Win9

good strategy...I've used all those OS's (with Win95 instead of NT) but Windows 8 is the first one that I truly don't feel good about...even Vista and ME weren't as bad as the skeptics said...Vista was not that great initially but once SP1 (or was it SP2?) was released it was excellent

 

[munkle]

good strategy...I've used all those OS's (with Win95 instead of NT) but Windows 8 is the first one that I truly don't feel good about...even Vista and ME weren't as bad as the skeptics said...Vista was not that great initially but once SP1 (or was it SP2?) was released it was excellent

Vista has always never worked for me. Every machine I have ever used vista on was a pile of fail and switching the os fixed it. I like win 8 once you put a start menu on it. I can't stand it with out one.

 

[Dogs]

Vista has always never worked for me. Every machine I have ever used vista on was a pile of fail and switching the os fixed it.

That probably means you're doing it wrong, since as of SP1 Vista and Windows 7 are nearly identical operating systems, and weren't much different even before that.

If you think there's a problem with Windows Vista, then in order to be logically sound, you must also think there is the same problem with Windows 7.

 

[silk186]

Originally Posted by darkwraith007 View Post
All that said, if you don't care about 64-bit stuff or don't care about having more than ~3.5 GB of RAM then use WinXP.

who on this forum has less than 3.5 GB of RAM? I feel like I'm on the bottom end with 8 GB.

 

[munkle]

That probably means you're doing it wrong, since as of SP1 Vista and Windows 7 are nearly identical operating systems, and weren't much different even before that.

If you think there's a problem with Windows Vista, then in order to be logically sound, you must also think there is the same problem with Windows 7.

Yes i'm doing it wrong by doing a fresh install of vista and updating to sp1 and it still blowing chunks and being slow...

 

[pxc]

No. I have Windows 8 installed for dual boot, but haven't used it in many weeks (possibly a couple of months now).

Spackling the door in a frame (metro tweaks) of a house which has been destroyed by a hurricane doesn't really fix much. I'm sure many consumer users can find Win8 acceptable of better for simple things like playing games, browsing the web and email, but productivity users, particularly businesses and me, will steer clear of the entire Metro-ized mess of any Windows version for the foreseeable future.

 

[heatlesssun]

I'm sure many consumer users can find Win8 acceptable of better for simple things like playing games, browsing the web and email, but productivity users, particularly businesses and me, will steer clear of the entire Metro-ized mess of any Windows version for the foreseeable future.

So what advanced desktop applications are you using in a version of Windows prior to 8 that doesn't work exactly the same in 8?

 

[Ur_Mom]

So what advanced desktop applications are you using in a version of Windows prior to 8 that doesn't work exactly the same in 8?

The OS is a lot more than just a system to run applications. If that was the case, we'd all still be using DOS. They will work exactly the same in 8 as they did in 7. But, getting there and multitasking can be a challenge (doable, but not as clean and efficient as 7).

 

[heatlesssun]

The OS is a lot more than just a system to run applications. If that was the case, we'd all still be using DOS. They will work exactly the same in 8 as they did in 7. But, getting there and multitasking can be a challenge (doable, but not as clean and efficient as 7).

The first and foremost interesting thing about an OS is 3rd party support. One of the primary criticisms of Windows RT is that it doesn't run Win32 apps and likewise Windows Phone is pounded over its lack of apps. Why is multitasking more efficient in 7? 8 supports exactly the same desktop multitasking model. When using modern apps it does get more complex admittedly, there's that top right hot corner or right edge swipe to deal with.

 

[Alexbrown012]

I have already upgraded window 7 to 8.

 

[Nenu]

^Another noob joins and in his 1st (and only) post makes a statement for Win 8.
Smells of desperation.

 

[B00nie]

Your comparison isnt valid, Vista didnt change the way windows was used and make it slower to do basic tasks.
It didnt remove things that were heavily utilised and much liked, replacing them with methods that are much slower and annoying.

Actually it did. Several things in Vista take extra keystrokes compared to XP. One simple example: folder menu - which is hidden by default and visible in XP.

 

[Nenu]

Thats using hotkeys though and while still valid, doesnt hit most users in the face.

 

[DeathFromBelow]

Actually it did. Several things in Vista take extra keystrokes compared to XP. One simple example: folder menu - which is hidden by default and visible in XP.

How often do you actually use that menu? Commonly used explorer tasks are all accessible from the right-click menu. The only time I ever have to hit alt and bring up the explorer folder menu is to go to tools -> folder options and enable show hidden files/folders, and that's a one-time operation per Windows Install. I can understand their thinking there.

You've brought up that example before in another thread. Do you have any others that are more substantial? Hiding a rarely-used menu is nothing compared to the Metro/modern UI clusterfuck.

 

[B00nie]

How often do you actually use that menu? Commonly used explorer tasks are all accessible from the right-click menu. The only time I ever have to hit alt and bring up the explorer folder menu is to go to tools -> folder options and enable show hidden files/folders, and that's a one-time operation per Windows Install. I can understand their thinking there.

You've brought up that example before in another thread. Do you have any others that are more substantial? Hiding a rarely-used menu is nothing compared to the Metro/modern UI clusterfuck.

Yep every time I have to do work on a clients computer I have to access that menu as they typically have default settings which are very unsecure and impractical (well at least for me).

Other examples are the networking menu which used to be much easyer accessible in XP etc. To tell you the truth I'm starting to forget all the changes as I've been using 7 for so many years already. Vista I skipped totally but a couple of our clients had them. But it's a fact anyway that many things got obfuscated already with Vista and the trend is for the worse all the time.

 

[Dogs]

Yes i'm doing it wrong by doing a fresh install of vista and updating to sp1 and it still blowing chunks and being slow...

Yes, you clearly are doing it wrong. A competent user can install vista on any machine 7 works well on, and it will work well.

 

[Sovereign]

I upgraded my laptop to 8 (but not 8.1). Why no preview for an [H]-er?

Because I find the interface hideous and won't touch Metro/Modern with a ten foot pole. The apps I use to keep a Windows 7 look (Start8, WindowBlinds) aren't ready for 8.1 yet, so neither am I.

If Microsoft's UI changes persist, I will stick to older operating systems as long as possible. They get one personal mulligan from me (Windows 8), after that if I have to pay $20 to make Windows usable there's going to be a problem.