(In the news) The End Of Windows?
Roman_K2
Posts: 1,239
Current New York Times story discusses Steve Ballmer's time at the helm of MS. Ray Ozzie is mentioned and there is some talk of The End Of Windows. The future appears to be... um, obscured by clouds. I'm still struggling with the search feature in Windows 7... it is NOT helping me locate my DAZ content, or any content for that matter.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/26/technology/young-tech-sees-itself-in-microsofts-ballmer.html
Regards, Roman
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Comments
The article really doesn't "talk" of the end of windows. It just suggests that while it's conceivable that windows may not be around forever, it's hard to foresee other technological breakthroughs, like cloud computing, ever becoming outdated. That was the article's point, not that Windows is dying anytime soon.
If they really want to keep Windows alive and relevant they need to first start listening to the constructive criticism of their beta testers. They completely ignored (and in some cases outright worked against) their testers during the beta of Windows 8 and the train wreck of an OS is what we're left with. No wonder they offered it cheaply. No smart person would spend the same amount as a Windows 7 OS for that rubbish.
cloud computing - zero control with zero security... I think I'll still be using windows for a good while yet
You and me both!
As for Windows, I wouldn't call it dead just now.
Microsoft has a history of doing a great version, not so great (for lack of another word) version, great version, not so ...
Windows98/Windows2000 - Windows ME (I had that one ... for 5 years ... don't ask) - WindowsXP - Windows Vista - Windows 7 - Windows 8 ...
judge for yourself.
I think Windows9 will be good again.
Umm....are you using the same Windows 8 I am?
I've been running it as my primary OS since launch and other same some minor annoyances that are related to making the system more secure I don't have any issues with it.
Yes, the Metro UI doesn't work for me as a desktop UI but then I only see that for a few seconds when I hit my windows key and start typing the name of a program I want to launch. The rest of the time you'd be hard pressed to distinguish my Win 8 PC from the laptop running Win 7 just by looking at the screen.
So what exactly is a train wreck about the OS? Every time I see these complaints it's always about the Metro UI and since you're not forced to use that I can't see how that constitutes a "train wreck".
Equally there were people who got on well with Windows ME or Windows Vista. However the majority didn't.
You and me both!
As for Windows, I wouldn't call it dead just now.
Microsoft has a history of doing a great version, not so great (for lack of another word) version, great version, not so ...
Windows98/Windows2000 - Windows ME (I had that one ... for 5 years ... don't ask) - WindowsXP - Windows Vista - Windows 7 - Windows 8 ...
judge for yourself.
I think Windows9 will be good again.
You know I love how all of these companies are saying how "Cloud" computing is the next big thing like it's something shiney and new. Back in the 70's, when we used terminals to connect to the mainframe and run our programs over the network we called this Distributed Computing.
Windows ME was really nothing more than a modified version of Windows 98. Nothing new really added and some things taken away.
Vista was a paradigm shift to a more secure windows version. As such it tended to get in the way of experienced users and most people hate drastic change like that.
I think a large part of the issue with Win8 is the fact that it's another paradigm shift and, as I said, people hate change. They take one look at the, admittedly, ugly normal start screen and say I hate this without trying to use the underlying application. I also agree that I'm not sure the shift to a touch UI on either the desktop or laptop is going to work long term and I'm not sure why both Apple and Microsoft want to try and make their desktop and tablets use the same UI.
You saw, and still see, the same thing with the redesign of the Office UI. It doesn't matter that the underlying application works the same as it always has that ribbon bar looks wrong so we hate it. Now I will admit that the changes to the 2013 Office UI are baffling to me. The ribbon layout appears to be the same but why would you change to a thin almost dark gray instead of black font on a white background. It makes finding things hard on my old eyes.
Yep, clouds have a long known attribute of evaporating. Not a good icon for stability if you ask me.
You and me both!
As for Windows, I wouldn't call it dead just now.
Microsoft has a history of doing a great version, not so great (for lack of another word) version, great version, not so ...
Windows98/Windows2000 - Windows ME (I had that one ... for 5 years ... don't ask) - WindowsXP - Windows Vista - Windows 7 - Windows 8 ...
judge for yourself.
I think Windows9 will be good again.
Oh yes. Windows XP was the best OS for me. I still use it on my desktop. When I get a new machine, I'm putting XP on it.
I have Vista on my laptop and Vista is a piece of $#!+
I'm steering clear of the cloud. Where the hell is my stuff when it's in the "cloud". What happens if the cloud blows away or some raids the cloud?
Umm....are you using the same Windows 8 I am?
I've been running it as my primary OS since launch and other same some minor annoyances that are related to making the system more secure I don't have any issues with it.
I have a test install running, and I think it's okay, apart from the UI. With 8.1 which is relased soon as a free upgrade they've restored the Start button and made the UI more user friendly. I guess they had to with all that negative criticism about the UI.
Windows ME was really nothing more than a modified version of Windows 98. Nothing new really added and some things taken away.
Among others stability...
+1
So what exactly is a train wreck about the OS? Every time I see these complaints it's always about the Metro UI and since you're not forced to use that I can't see how that constitutes a "train wreck".
There are paid applications which bring back the start menu, of this I'm well aware. However, during Beta testing they were continuously reminded of compatibility issues across literally dozens of drivers and software and none of which were even addressed. Those compatibility issues still persist even to this day. The most annoying of which for my part was that it would not recognize my audio at all, and refused to play sound on anything.
The removal of the Start Menu is as baffling as it is frustrating too. In early Beta's it was still around, and possible to view on desktop mode with only a simple registry change. After Microsoft got wind of this they 'fixed' it by removing that ability, though not completely as Start8 actually is a fix for Microsoft's fix.
I really despise the dual nature of the OS. Assuming you haven't paid extra to 'unlock' what should have been included to begin with, you're constantly bouncing between the ugly Start screen and the desktop because most applications don't use the Metro UI. The Metro UI, of course, acting like a touch screen OS with horrible mouse gestures required to access certain functions like turning the damned PC off.
So, why is it a train wreck? Because it clearly wasn't designed for a desktop user because of the Metro interface. It also clearly wasn't designed for a tablet user either, because half of the programs are forced to run in desktop mode. So, exactly who is it being aimed at? Programs frequently run into compatibility issues and many drivers to this day remain unusable in Win8. That's why I consider it a train wreck, and is likely why so many computer retailers backpedalled on their exclusion of Windows 7 for new machines.
Umm....are you using the same Windows 8 I am?
I've been running it as my primary OS since launch and other same some minor annoyances that are related to making the system more secure I don't have any issues with it.
Yes, the Metro UI doesn't work for me as a desktop UI but then I only see that for a few seconds when I hit my windows key and start typing the name of a program I want to launch. The rest of the time you'd be hard pressed to distinguish my Win 8 PC from the laptop running Win 7 just by looking at the screen.
So what exactly is a train wreck about the OS? Every time I see these complaints it's always about the Metro UI and since you're not forced to use that I can't see how that constitutes a "train wreck".
Was thinking the same thing. The only "problem" with Windows 8 is that the interface is different. I've found it stable, fast, and it must be well optimized because I even installed it on my 4+ year old PC and it ran fine.
The interface alone puts me off it. I refuse to upgrade until they change it back to something usable
It's not just cosmetics that makes me glad I'm not Windows 8...
http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2013-08-26/german-government-confirms-key-entities-not-use-windows-8-tpm-20-fearing-cont
I'm not paranoid, honest! :lol:
You do realize that this is a combination of hardware and software right? If your PC doesn't have the TPM chip in it then any software backdoor does them no good.
Of course, just having your PC connected to the internet and running pretty much any OS means that someone can get in if they really want to.
As far as the Win8 start screen and bouncing back and forth. I don't really experience that. I do have StarDock's Start8 installed to bring back the start menu but then I get access to most of their tools either through my ObjectDesktop subscription or fairly cheaply because of it. I was using their Fences product on Win7 - and still use it on Win8 - so it's not like previous versions of Windows didn't benefit from add on utilities. Still the only reason I added it was because I got it on sale for $5.00 and it provides quick access to the Shutdown/Restart menu which is all I've used the start menu for since Vista.
I kind of monitored myself today and the only times I saw the Metro Start screen was a brief flash when I hit the Windows key and typed CALC->Enter to launch the calculator. I wouldn't see that if I'd just create a shortcut to calculator on my desktop but I'm so used to doing it that way that it's habit.
I already had Excel running but I launch it the same way, again I could create a desktop shortcut but it's habit.
I do agree that removing the start menu from Desktop mode was just silly but they're apparently bringing it back in 8.1 so that problem is resolved.
I haven't experienced any driver issues but driver issues and new versions of operating systems go hand in hand and they're never all fixed before launch. Also, for many of those you can't blame Microsoft, the people that build the hardware need to update the drivers and many don't. Especially for older/discontinued hardware since they really want you to buy new. This is why it takes most big companies 1 - 2 years to start upgrading to a new OS. They have to verify that it's going to work with all of their 10 year old printers and that custom database app that was written in Visual Basic back in the 90's.
My father-in-law bought an app or something that changes the look of Win 8 to look like Win 7. Point is he shouldn't had to pay for it and it should've come with it.
... What! You mean I can't expect to get a driver in Windows8 that manages my 1970 era 7-track, 1/2inch, 200bpi magnetic tape drive? Foo. :-(
While I'll admit I'm in no particular hurry to switch to Windows 8, the whole "end of the PC" really irritates me. I want my personal stuff to be stored on my personal computer, on my personal hard-drive right there in the room with me. Plus the way they market the whole cloud computing thing seems even more smart phone and tablet centric than Windows 8, with an added dose of Facebook and twitter too. No thanks.
I totally agree with Kerya about the good-bad alternating OS's. Even then I figure Windows 8 probably isn't terrible, It's more that Windows 7 is great (best OS to date IMO). If I still had Vista I'd switch to 8 in a second.
On the subject of user friendliness, the first Apple I used had a one button mouse, and you dragged programs to the trash to eject the disk, the next one I used hid the power button on the back, and when I tried to locate a file on my sister's laptop recently I could barely find a logical file hierarchy. 8 can't be worse than that
My father-in-law bought an app or something that changes the look of Win 8 to look like Win 7. Point is he shouldn't had to pay for it and it should've come with it.
Umm...he didn't have to buy an app to do that. Just run any non-metro App (almost anything that didn't come as part of Win8) and you'll be back on what looks like a Win7 desktop. If you're using IE the you can change the settings to run it in desktop mode. If you use Firefox or Chrome you can tell them to start in desktop mode as well.
The only thing desktop mode doesn't have is the old Start button down in the lower left corner. If you want that back you need a separate app until 8.1 releases.
There is also an app that will take any of the Metro apps you download from the store and force them to run in desktop mode but if you're going for apps that are specifically built to run in the Metro UI I'm not sure why you'd want to do that.
Heck, I run Office 2013 and it doesn't even have a Metro UI mode, it runs in the standard desktop mode.
You know I love how all of these companies are saying how "Cloud" computing is the next big thing like it's something shiney and new. Back in the 70's, when we used terminals to connect to the mainframe and run our programs over the network we called this Distributed Computing.
We were still doing that back in the 80s when I worked as a systems engineer.
Thanks for all the nice replies - perhaps I ought to have been more careful in my comments. I guess I was reacting to the part in the N.Y. Times article which discussed Microsoft's possible future difficulties... as everyone knows, when a vendor undergoes big shifts and changes, support for legacy product lines tends to weaken... DESQview users, raise your hands please!
I want to clarify that for me, Win7 DEFINITELY AND CLEARLY improved the DAZ experience, but lots of other stuff in my own personal toolkit did not seem to get better, especially Search. Again this is just my own quick and dirty take on it, fearful as I am about some aspects of the WinXP situation. DAZ got better under Win7, but day-to-day work kind of got a lot harder.
Also, I have tried Win8 RT or whatever on a tablet. It's nice for some things but overall it seemed to make life more difficult, esp. in the short term.
Related: this happened to me - I bought Norton Ghost 16 or 17 (I forget which) about a year ago and wouldn't you know it, Symantec folded the product shortly thereafter. Arrgh!!! I may have a sort of "legacy backup and imaging tool" that will be good for a few years, but I also got left holding the bag, kinda. Oh well.
DAZ users doing backups with XP/Vista/Win7 will know that there are a lot of changes going on in the category, changes which probably impacted Ghost and what Symantec is currently up to, etc... it's a very interrelated area... Wikipedia has various useful over-view type articles.
By the way, the N.Y. Times web page is completely down for me this (Tuesday) evening. Go figure!!!
Sorry about that...
Oh yes. Windows XP was the best OS for me. I still use it on my desktop. When I get a new machine, I'm putting XP on it.
I have Vista on my laptop and Vista is a piece of $#!+
I'm steering clear of the cloud. Where the hell is my stuff when it's in the "cloud". What happens if the cloud blows away or some raids the cloud?Support from Microsoft for XP stops in less than a year. No more security updates.
I am.
Two categories of people make me nervous when they have too much free time on their hands: lawyers (including and especially politicians) and computer programmers. I blame most consumer rebellions in the computer programming realm as caused by programmers given far too much time to "improve" an existing program. If it ain't broke, don't fix it! If you really think we need all those features that we haven't asked for, leave it alone and create a NEW program.
Another pet peeve of mine is required security. I live with my wife, no kids anymore. I resent having to work around all of the security crap that is a part of so much software. I don't need or want to enter a password to access my computer, and I don't want to take even 5 seconds to figure out how to work around it. That's why Linux is not my friend.
I will stop here before I go into a full fledged rage.
Beginning tests of Windows 8.1
If you want the old Windows 7 Start Menu get Classic Shell http://www.classicshell.net/. There is no come back of the start menu as far as I know
Some Compatibility issue for now with blender. DS seems OK. I have to do some bench to see if there is some performance gain
What is already noticeable is the startup : less than 1 min with standard hardware. Wow
Aside from that it seems that I don't need to install multimedia codec for popular formats. So good point here