Earlier quoted context omitted.
So much for a release preview...
Isn't the whole point of a preview that users run it and find and report errors? Otherwise why not just go RTM?
That's true, although that seems like a pretty big bug.
Windows 8 Release Preview ready for download
71–80 of 94 posts
Re: Windows 8 Release Preview ready for download
#72I'll tell you why this OS will be the biggest Microsoft success ever... Most consumers can be clueless, attention deficient, instant-gratification seeking, work/knowledge averse ... or can just want something simple. A lot don't even understand the concept of the file-system (let alone the other 95% of Windows). A lot can't even download a picture from a camera's memory card and place it into the proper folder after…
Why exactly do you think it's easier to use when it's so different from theyre used to?
Re: Windows 8 Release Preview ready for download
#73I really don't understand what all the complaining is about. For most desktop users Microsoft took away the start button and added a new app launcher. The rest of the OS functions the same or better.
They didn't need to take away the start button, and it's going frustrate a lot of users. See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4boTbv9_nU I've been running the preview in a VM, and getting back to the launcher frustrated me so much I had to install a small utility made by Stardock that makes a fake start button that takes you to the launcher: http://www.stardock.com/products/start8/ . I'm a Mac guy, but my job require…
Oh, these videos about first time users are painful to watch. It seems Microsoft isn't doing UX tests with avarege users.
Re: Windows 8 Release Preview ready for download
#74I'll tell you why this OS will be the biggest Microsoft success ever... Most consumers can be clueless, attention deficient, instant-gratification seeking, work/knowledge averse ... or can just want something simple. A lot don't even understand the concept of the file-system (let alone the other 95% of Windows). A lot can't even download a picture from a camera's memory card and place it into the proper folder after…
Why exactly do you think it's easier to use when it's so different from theyre used to? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4boTbv9_nU
the final version will include some self-learning demo/video upon initial startup. so users will hopefully be less clueless than the video here.
i think the battle is more with whether microsoft can convince users to upgrade/buy. most people do not like big change unless you prove them how the chance is for the better.
Re: Windows 8 Release Preview ready for download
#75Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why exactly do you think it's easier to use when it's so different from theyre used to? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4boTbv9_nU
the final version will include some self-learning demo/video upon initial startup. so users will hopefully be less clueless than the video here. i think the battle is more with whether microsoft can convince users to upgrade/buy. most people do not like big change unless you prove them how the chance is for the better.
Right, because everyone watches those videos.
Re: Windows 8 Release Preview ready for download
#76I do not understand the skepticism against Windows 8, specially from the hacker community. The only reason I do not use a Windows computer (anymore) is because there are so few ways to build things on it, compared to a Mac. I remember back in the day when I used Windows exclusively because Visual Studio was the only way to do build awesome things fast. With Windows 8, MS has brought back those days. Developing for Me…
> I do not use a Windows computer (anymore) is because there are so few ways to build things on it, compared to a Mac. I'm using Windows to build things and I don't have any problems. More than that I remember having issues when I was on a mac (Sony Vegas). Care to explain what you can do with a mac you cannot do with a PC?
Run the iOS emulator?
Re: Windows 8 Release Preview ready for download
#77I'll tell you why this OS will be the biggest Microsoft success ever... Most consumers can be clueless, attention deficient, instant-gratification seeking, work/knowledge averse ... or can just want something simple. A lot don't even understand the concept of the file-system (let alone the other 95% of Windows). A lot can't even download a picture from a camera's memory card and place it into the proper folder after…
I actually think W8 is ultimately going to be a disaster for Microsoft because it's so consumer-focused.
Microsoft has been a juggernaut for the past decade because of the enterprise. Part of the reason for this are technologies like Active Directory and Exchange built on top on the Windows stack. Another big part of it are enterprise applications that are also built on top of that stack.
Windows RT (aka Windows on ARM) doesn't support AD management. It's instead employing a self-service style portal that's meant to address bring-your-own-device situations rather than corporate device management.
Additionally, Windows RT will only run applications written targeting Windows Runtime; traditional W32 apps aren't supported.
So here's the thing: from a corporate IT perspective, what does Windows 8 give me that other devices like iPads or Android tablets don't if I'm going to give up full device management, especially if I'm trying to address the BYOD problem? (And from a corporate IT perspective, wanting to run line of business apps on iPads etc is probably the most frequent request I hear from end users).
From an ISV perspective, if I'm rewriting my app to target a new platform anyway, why not just go ahead and move as much as you can server side, present the UI as a webapp, and then be able to support all these non-Windows devices that users are clamoring for anyway?
W8 really feels like Microsoft painting themselves into a corner by chasing the consumer market while doing a poor job of addressing the market that's made the company what it is to date.
Re: Windows 8 Release Preview ready for download
#78Earlier quoted context omitted.
It'll ship on almost 90% of desktop PC's and there are millions of ageing PC's running XP that have to be near the end of their useful life. In short, how big of a flop could it be?
The potential for a big flop is that instead of buying a PC to replace that aging XP box, the customer will just buy an iPad.
Bingo. I think this could be a huge threat to Microsoft in enterprise use. What happens when ISVs decide to just target web apps rather than rewrite to Windows Runtime?
Re: Windows 8 Release Preview ready for download
#79I'll tell you why this OS will be the biggest Microsoft success ever... Most consumers can be clueless, attention deficient, instant-gratification seeking, work/knowledge averse ... or can just want something simple. A lot don't even understand the concept of the file-system (let alone the other 95% of Windows). A lot can't even download a picture from a camera's memory card and place it into the proper folder after…
Why exactly do you think it's easier to use when it's so different from theyre used to? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4boTbv9_nU
That video does almost nothing to show windows 8 is less easy to use. All this takes is to say 'go to the bottom left'. Windows 8 is not littered with things like this.
Re: Windows 8 Release Preview ready for download
#80I think at best it will have moderate success, and at worst it will be a disaster bigger than Vista. There's no way it can be the "most successful ever", for 3 reasons:
1) Windows 7 has that title covered, because people waited for something like it for 10 years, and were very frustrated with both XP and Vista. It also came at a time when there was still no competition in sight for Microsoft. There was a real, painful need for Windows 7. There is no such thing for Windows 8. Plus it arrives at a time when people just got Windows 7 and they are happy with it.
2) Windows 8 does a dramatic change over previous Windows versions, which means most users are much less likely to be interested in it because most users don't like change, and Windows 8 would have to follow the technology product life cycle all over again (innovators -> early adopters -> early majority, etc.). So it has to actually convince people to use Windows 8 over anything else out there, including Windows 7.
3) People are less likely now to be interested in a Windows machine. You have Macs which are getting increasingly more popular (at least in US). You have iPads and Android devices. You even have Ubuntu and Linux Mint which are starting to leak a bit into the mainstream. The point is, the competition landscape is a lot less friendly to Microsoft right now than it was for previous versions over the past 17 years.