• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Microsoft Windows 8.1 Is Now Available

rtwjunkie

PC Gaming Enthusiast
Supporter
Joined
Jul 25, 2008
Messages
13,995 (2.34/day)
Location
Louisiana
Processor Core i9-9900k
Motherboard ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming 6
Cooling All air: 2x140mm Fractal exhaust; 3x 140mm Cougar Intake; Enermax ETS-T50 Black CPU cooler
Memory 32GB (2x16) Mushkin Redline DDR-4 3200
Video Card(s) ASUS RTX 4070 Ti Super OC 16GB
Storage 1x 1TB MX500 (OS); 2x 6TB WD Black; 1x 2TB MX500; 1x 1TB BX500 SSD; 1x 6TB WD Blue storage (eSATA)
Display(s) Infievo 27" 165Hz @ 2560 x 1440
Case Fractal Design Define R4 Black -windowed
Audio Device(s) Soundblaster Z
Power Supply Seasonic Focus GX-1000 Gold
Mouse Coolermaster Sentinel III (large palm grip!)
Keyboard Logitech G610 Orion mechanical (Cherry Brown switches)
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit (Start10 & Fences 3.0 installed)
Joined
Jul 19, 2006
Messages
43,607 (6.50/day)
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard ASUS TUF x670e
Cooling EK AIO 360. Phantek T30 fans.
Memory 32GB G.Skill 6000Mhz
Video Card(s) Asus RTX 4090
Storage WD m.2
Display(s) LG C2 Evo OLED 42"
Case Lian Li PC 011 Dynamic Evo
Audio Device(s) Topping E70 DAC, SMSL SP200 Headphone Amp.
Power Supply FSP Hydro Ti PRO 1000W
Mouse Razer Basilisk V3 Pro
Keyboard Tester84
Software Windows 11
Just installed the 8.1 upgrade and it saved all my apps and my start8 still works like a charm. I suggest the upgrade if you have non legacy equipment.

Should I delete windows.old?

Yeah, you can get rid of windows.old.
 

MxPhenom 216

ASIC Engineer
Joined
Aug 31, 2010
Messages
13,006 (2.50/day)
Location
Loveland, CO
System Name Ryzen Reflection
Processor AMD Ryzen 9 5900x
Motherboard Gigabyte X570S Aorus Master
Cooling 2x EK PE360 | TechN AM4 AMD Block Black | EK Quantum Vector Trinity GPU Nickel + Plexi
Memory Teamgroup T-Force Xtreem 2x16GB B-Die 3600 @ 14-14-14-28-42-288-2T 1.45v
Video Card(s) Zotac AMP HoloBlack RTX 3080Ti 12G | 950mV 1950Mhz
Storage WD SN850 500GB (OS) | Samsung 980 Pro 1TB (Games_1) | Samsung 970 Evo 1TB (Games_2)
Display(s) Asus XG27AQM 240Hz G-Sync Fast-IPS | Gigabyte M27Q-P 165Hz 1440P IPS | Asus 24" IPS (portrait mode)
Case Lian Li PC-011D XL | Custom cables by Cablemodz
Audio Device(s) FiiO K7 | Sennheiser HD650 + Beyerdynamic FOX Mic
Power Supply Seasonic Prime Ultra Platinum 850
Mouse Razer Viper v2 Pro
Keyboard Corsair K65 Plus 75% Wireless - USB Mode
Software Windows 11 Pro 64-Bit

Easy Rhino

Linux Advocate
Staff member
Joined
Nov 13, 2006
Messages
15,587 (2.36/day)
Location
Mid-Atlantic
System Name Desktop
Processor i5 13600KF
Motherboard AsRock B760M Steel Legend Wifi
Cooling Noctua NH-U9S
Memory 4x 16 Gb Gskill S5 DDR5 @6000
Video Card(s) Gigabyte Gaming OC 6750 XT 12GB
Storage WD_BLACK 4TB SN850x
Display(s) Gigabye M32U
Case Corsair Carbide 400C
Audio Device(s) On Board
Power Supply EVGA Supernova 650 P2
Mouse MX Master 3s
Keyboard Logitech G915 Wireless Clicky
Software The Matrix

Frick

Fishfaced Nincompoop
Joined
Feb 27, 2006
Messages
19,589 (2.86/day)
Location
Piteå
System Name White DJ in Detroit
Processor Ryzen 5 5600
Motherboard Asrock B450M-HDV
Cooling Be Quiet! Pure Rock 2
Memory 2 x 16GB Kingston Fury 3400mhz
Video Card(s) XFX 6950XT Speedster MERC 319
Storage Kingston A400 240GB | WD Black SN750 2TB |WD Blue 1TB x 2 | Toshiba P300 2TB | Seagate Expansion 8TB
Display(s) Samsung U32J590U 4K + BenQ GL2450HT 1080p
Case Fractal Design Define R4
Audio Device(s) Plantronics 5220, Nektar SE61 keyboard
Power Supply Corsair RM850x v3
Mouse Logitech G602
Keyboard Cherry MX Board 1.0 TKL Brown
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores Rimworld 4K ready!
hi, this thread is about windows 8.1, not linux. please stay on topic.

:roll:

Anyway I'm pretty sure there are no windows.* files anywhere. Not on my computer anyway. :laugh:

EDIT: Nope, just searched my C drive. Nothing. I think it's safe to go ahead.
 
Joined
May 13, 2010
Messages
6,073 (1.14/day)
System Name RemixedBeast-NX
Processor Intel Xeon E5-2690 @ 2.9Ghz (8C/16T)
Motherboard Dell Inc. 08HPGT (CPU 1)
Cooling Dell Standard
Memory 24GB ECC
Video Card(s) Gigabyte Nvidia RTX2060 6GB
Storage 2TB Samsung 860 EVO SSD//2TB WD Black HDD
Display(s) Samsung SyncMaster P2350 23in @ 1920x1080 + Dell E2013H 20 in @1600x900
Case Dell Precision T3600 Chassis
Audio Device(s) Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 80 // Fiio E7 Amp/DAC
Power Supply 630w Dell T3600 PSU
Mouse Logitech G700s/G502
Keyboard Logitech K740
Software Linux Mint 20
Benchmark Scores Network: APs: Cisco Meraki MR32, Ubiquiti Unifi AP-AC-LR and Lite Router/Sw:Meraki MX64 MS220-8P
I'm gonna wait this one out since this system needs a solid OS for my testing and stuff... too much stuff to reconfig if stuff mucks up.
 
Joined
Mar 24, 2010
Messages
5,047 (0.94/day)
Location
Iberian Peninsula
i would never ever delete Windows.old without a DEEP check. Stupid 3rd party software developers like to save stuff in the weirdest places.... Of course if you only play games, who cares! :p
 
Joined
Mar 10, 2010
Messages
11,878 (2.21/day)
Location
Manchester uk
System Name RyzenGtEvo/ Asus strix scar II
Processor Amd R5 5900X/ Intel 8750H
Motherboard Crosshair hero8 impact/Asus
Cooling 360EK extreme rad+ 360$EK slim all push, cpu ek suprim Gpu full cover all EK
Memory Corsair Vengeance Rgb pro 3600cas14 16Gb in four sticks./16Gb/16GB
Video Card(s) Powercolour RX7900XT Reference/Rtx 2060
Storage Silicon power 2TB nvme/8Tb external/1Tb samsung Evo nvme 2Tb sata ssd/1Tb nvme
Display(s) Samsung UAE28"850R 4k freesync.dell shiter
Case Lianli 011 dynamic/strix scar2
Audio Device(s) Xfi creative 7.1 on board ,Yamaha dts av setup, corsair void pro headset
Power Supply corsair 1200Hxi/Asus stock
Mouse Roccat Kova/ Logitech G wireless
Keyboard Roccat Aimo 120
VR HMD Oculus rift
Software Win 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores 8726 vega 3dmark timespy/ laptop Timespy 6506
i would never ever delete Windows.old without a DEEP check. Stupid 3rd party software developers like to save stuff in the weirdest places.... Of course if you only play games, who cares! :p

:mad::banghead: i had to do a win7 first, win8 upgrade, so ive only just got rid of 1 windows.old

the new start menu is amazing, i hated that metro nonsense but now i have a start button its all alright ,,, welll except thats sarcasm(noted for some) and the damn paint icon isnt in start nor is wordpad notepad ,all those things I have to ass about to use,, nice.
 
Joined
Mar 24, 2010
Messages
5,047 (0.94/day)
Location
Iberian Peninsula
Just tested for the first time in my life Xbox Music. It is the stupidest thing I ever seen. Before playing my own music on my hdd, it shows me a propaganda (publicity) spot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We do not deserve this bullsh1t. Totally and irreversibly smelling like iTunes (which I NEVER have had to smell, btw... But I got imagination)
 
Joined
Jan 31, 2012
Messages
2,651 (0.57/day)
Location
East Europe
System Name PLAHI
Processor I5-10400
Motherboard MSI MPG Z490 GAMING PLUS
Cooling 120 AIO
Memory 32GB Corsair LPX 2400 Mhz DDR4 CL14
Video Card(s) PNY QUADRO RTX A2000
Storage Intel 670P 512GB
Display(s) Philips 288E2A 28" 4K + 22" LG 1080p
Case Silverstone Raven 03 (RV03)
Audio Device(s) Creative Soundblaster Z
Power Supply Fractal Design IntegraM 650W
Mouse Logitech Triathlon
Keyboard REDRAGON MITRA
Software Windows 11 Home x 64
I downloaded it from app store - 3.65 GB, but when I tried to install, it says: Your PC ran into an error, reverting back to the previous windows version....I guess I will have to make a fresh install. Pff....I was going to anyway.
 
Joined
Nov 10, 2006
Messages
4,666 (0.71/day)
Location
Washington, US
System Name Rainbow
Processor Intel Core i7 8700k
Motherboard MSI MPG Z390M GAMING EDGE AC
Cooling Corsair H115i, 2x Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM
Memory G. Skill TridentZ RGB 4x8GB (F4-3600C16Q-32GTZR)
Video Card(s) ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3090 Trinity
Storage 2x Samsung 950 Pro 256GB | 2xHGST Deskstar 4TB 7.2K
Display(s) Samsung C27HG70
Case Xigmatek Aquila
Power Supply Seasonic 760W SS-760XP
Mouse Razer Deathadder 2013
Keyboard Corsair Vengeance K95
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores 4 trillion points in GmailMark, over 144 FPS 2K Facebook Scrolling (Extreme Quality preset)
Any chance your user account control is set to off? I had to turn it back on in order for it to start.
I can't stand UAC, so yes, it's off, but turning it on wasn't what fixed it. (See below)
Thanks though!

Give it time, Microsoft's servers are getting hammered right now.

My issue appears to have been fixed by installing a few updates over in Windows Update and rebooting. I can't say for sure if it was the updates themselves or just rebooting, but after the reboot, the Windows 8.1 update appeared under a new "Update Windows" category and appeared as soon as the app was opened.
 

brandonwh64

Addicted to Bacon and StarCrunches!!!
Joined
Sep 6, 2009
Messages
19,542 (3.51/day)
Ok I deleted windows.old and now after reboot I cannot ping or remote into in... I figured some stupid shit would happen to me
 
Joined
Oct 9, 2013
Messages
27 (0.01/day)
Location
Earth
System Name PredatorX
Processor Intel Core i9-10900X Skylake-X 10-Core 3.7 GHz OC 4.5GHZ
Motherboard EVGA X299 DARK 151-SX-E299-KR
Cooling Corsair Hydro Series H80i V2
Memory CORSAIR Dominator Platinum SE Torque 32GB (4 x 8GB) CMD32GX4M4C3200C14T
Video Card(s) SAPPHIRE Radeon RX Vega 64 DirectX 12 100410NT+SR
Storage SAMSUNG 970 PRO M.2 1TB NVMe PCI-Express 3.0 x4 MZ-V7P512BW
Display(s) Acer XR382CQK IPS 3840x1600 @ 75HZ
Case THERMALTAKE ARMOUR VA8003SWA ATX
Audio Device(s) CREATIVE AE-9 7.1
Power Supply CORSAIR AX1200i
Mouse Logitech G502 HERO
Keyboard LOGITECH G19S
Software Window 10 64 Pro
Window 8.1 sucks

Window 8.1 sucks!!!its big stepback from Window Vista/Window 7...Microsofts Software Clown are going backwords!!!!What a stupid looking interface!!!I will never ever upgrade to Window 8 and thinking about Apple!!!!!!!!!!!!:mad:
 

brandonwh64

Addicted to Bacon and StarCrunches!!!
Joined
Sep 6, 2009
Messages
19,542 (3.51/day)
Window 8.1 sucks!!!its big stepback from Window Vista/Window 7...Microsofts Software Clown are going backwords!!!!What a stupid looking interface!!!I will never ever upgrade to Window 8 and thinking about Apple!!!!!!!!!!!!:mad:

I think you forgot some of these !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
Joined
Jun 17, 2007
Messages
7,336 (1.15/day)
Location
C:\Program Files (x86)\Aphexdreamer\
System Name Unknown
Processor AMD Bulldozer FX8320 @ 4.4Ghz
Motherboard Asus Crosshair V
Cooling XSPC Raystorm 750 EX240 for CPU
Memory 8 GB CORSAIR Vengeance Red DDR3 RAM 1922mhz (10-11-9-27)
Video Card(s) XFX R9 290
Storage Samsung SSD 254GB and Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s
Display(s) AOC 23" @ 1920x1080 + Asus 27" 1440p
Case HAF X
Audio Device(s) X Fi Titanium 5.1 Surround Sound
Power Supply 750 Watt PP&C Silencer Black
Software Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit
Window 8.1 sucks!!!its big stepback from Window Vista/Window 7...Microsofts Software Clown are going backwords!!!!What a stupid looking interface!!!I will never ever upgrade to Window 8 and thinking about Apple!!!!!!!!!!!!:mad:

Windows 8.1 took so many steps back it wound up back where it started. ;)
 

Easy Rhino

Linux Advocate
Staff member
Joined
Nov 13, 2006
Messages
15,587 (2.36/day)
Location
Mid-Atlantic
System Name Desktop
Processor i5 13600KF
Motherboard AsRock B760M Steel Legend Wifi
Cooling Noctua NH-U9S
Memory 4x 16 Gb Gskill S5 DDR5 @6000
Video Card(s) Gigabyte Gaming OC 6750 XT 12GB
Storage WD_BLACK 4TB SN850x
Display(s) Gigabye M32U
Case Corsair Carbide 400C
Audio Device(s) On Board
Power Supply EVGA Supernova 650 P2
Mouse MX Master 3s
Keyboard Logitech G915 Wireless Clicky
Software The Matrix
Window 8.1 sucks!!!its big stepback from Window Vista/Window 7...Microsofts Software Clown are going backwords!!!!What a stupid looking interface!!!I will never ever upgrade to Window 8 and thinking about Apple!!!!!!!!!!!!:mad:

LOL this guy knows.
 

brandonwh64

Addicted to Bacon and StarCrunches!!!
Joined
Sep 6, 2009
Messages
19,542 (3.51/day)
LOL this guy knows.

 
Joined
Sep 15, 2011
Messages
6,730 (1.39/day)
Processor Intel® Core™ i7-13700K
Motherboard Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Elite AX
Cooling Noctua NH-D15
Memory 32GB(2x16) DDR5@6600MHz G-Skill Trident Z5
Video Card(s) ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 3080 AMP Holo
Storage 2TB SK Platinum P41 SSD + 4TB SanDisk Ultra SSD + 500GB Samsung 840 EVO SSD
Display(s) Acer Predator X34 3440x1440@100Hz G-Sync
Case NZXT PHANTOM410-BK
Audio Device(s) Creative X-Fi Titanium PCIe
Power Supply Corsair 850W
Mouse Logitech Hero G502 SE
Software Windows 11 Pro - 64bit
Benchmark Scores 30FPS in NFS:Rivals
I still need someone to explain me in basic English why SP 8.1 is better than Win 8.0 vanilla, or even better, Win 7.
 
Joined
Nov 29, 2004
Messages
588 (0.08/day)
System Name Blue Beast 2.0
Processor AMD Ryzen 9 3900XT
Motherboard Gigabyte X570 AORUS MASTER
Cooling EK EK-AIO 360 D-RGB
Memory G.Skill Trident Z Neo 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL16
Video Card(s) EVGA RTX 3090 Ultra Gaming Hybrid
Storage Seagate FireCuda 520 500GB NVME, Western Digital SN750 1TB NVME, Western Digital SN850 1TB NVME
Display(s) AOC AG271QG, Dell UltraSharp U2414H
Case Lian Li PC-O11 Dynamic - Black
Audio Device(s) Asus Xonar DGX PCI-E 5.1
Power Supply Corsair HX850i
Mouse Logitech G502 HERO
Keyboard Corsair Strafe MK.2 Cherry MX Silent
Software Windows 10 Pro 64bit
Just tested for the first time in my life Xbox Music. It is the stupidest thing I ever seen. Before playing my own music on my hdd, it shows me a propaganda (publicity) spot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We do not deserve this bullsh1t. Totally and irreversibly smelling like iTunes (which I NEVER have had to smell, btw... But I got imagination)

Xbox Music is OK, definitely not great. Can't say that I ever had any ads played if I was listening to music from my hard drive though. Are you sure you weren't streaming the song? (A little wifi icon appears next to the song if you are). IMHO Microsoft should have kept the Zune software and modified it for touch, it was far superior at music management compared to Xbox Music.

My issue appears to have been fixed by installing a few updates over in Windows Update and rebooting. I can't say for sure if it was the updates themselves or just rebooting, but after the reboot, the Windows 8.1 update appeared under a new "Update Windows" category and appeared as soon as the app was opened.

That would have been my next suggestion. :laugh: Be sure to check for updates after 8.1 is installed, there should be about 3 updates for it.
 
Joined
Jul 2, 2010
Messages
4,015 (0.76/day)
Location
UK
System Name PC
Processor AMD Ryzen 3600
Motherboard MSI B450 Mortar Max
Cooling Phanteks PH-TC12DX, 3 x NZXT FN 140mm, 1x NZXT FV V2 120mm
Memory 32gb DDR4 3200mhz
Video Card(s) ASUS R9 290 DCII-OC 4GB
Storage corsair mp600 1TB
Display(s) LG 27MB85Z 27" 1440p
Case NZXT Source 340
Power Supply Thermaltake 675w
Mouse Logitech G500S
Keyboard Logitech G510S
Software Windows 8.1 64 bit
I still need someone to explain me in basic English why SP 8.1 is better than Win 8.0 vanilla, or even better, Win 7.

Well as a long time user of 8

The metro settings menu is now a full settings menu

Apps actually work properly across multiple monitors, and two can run at a time without messing with the other

And i now have 3 buttons for the start menu, because apparently the pop up one, and charms at the right side, wasn't good enough
 
Joined
Jun 28, 2012
Messages
246 (0.05/day)
System Name Main Pc | Xeon rig
Processor Intel Core i5-4670 @3.6Ghz | Intel Xeon X5675 @stock
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z87-HD3 | Sabertooth X58
Cooling Noctua NH-U9B SE2 | Noctua NH-D14
Memory 16GB Crucial OC @ 2133mhz | 12 GB Various
Video Card(s) MSI RX480 | MSI R7970 TF III 3GD5 OC BE (Bios mod 1081 mV)
Storage 120GB Samsung Evo\ 4TB WD HDD | 120GB Samsung Evo
Case NZXT H440 | Fractal Design Define R5
Power Supply Seasonic 650 Watt| Nexus 450
Software Windows 10 Pro x64 | Windows Server 2016 Datacenter x64
I still need someone to explain me in basic English why SP 8.1 is better than Win 8.0 vanilla, or even better, Win 7.

It can open Iso files by it self. And you have more options to make it more like a start menu. It runs more stable, and starts up faster. support for directx 11.2
 
Last edited:
Joined
Nov 29, 2004
Messages
588 (0.08/day)
System Name Blue Beast 2.0
Processor AMD Ryzen 9 3900XT
Motherboard Gigabyte X570 AORUS MASTER
Cooling EK EK-AIO 360 D-RGB
Memory G.Skill Trident Z Neo 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL16
Video Card(s) EVGA RTX 3090 Ultra Gaming Hybrid
Storage Seagate FireCuda 520 500GB NVME, Western Digital SN750 1TB NVME, Western Digital SN850 1TB NVME
Display(s) AOC AG271QG, Dell UltraSharp U2414H
Case Lian Li PC-O11 Dynamic - Black
Audio Device(s) Asus Xonar DGX PCI-E 5.1
Power Supply Corsair HX850i
Mouse Logitech G502 HERO
Keyboard Corsair Strafe MK.2 Cherry MX Silent
Software Windows 10 Pro 64bit
Joined
May 17, 2009
Messages
49 (0.01/day)
System Name TheRig
Processor AMD Phenom II x4 970 @ Stock
Motherboard Asus Crosshair IV
Cooling Cooler Master V8
Memory Crucial Ballistix Tracer Red LED 2gb x 4
Video Card(s) XFX Radeon 6950 2gb
Storage 1x Crucial 64gb C300, 2x Seagate SV35.5 500gb
Display(s) 24" LG LED 1080p
Case Lian Li Lancool K62R1 (Red Interior)
Audio Device(s) On Board Soundblaster X-Fi
Power Supply Cooler Master SilentPro 850w
Software Windows 7 64 bit
Change isn't so bad

I still need someone to explain me in basic English why SP 8.1 is better than Win 8.0 vanilla, or even better, Win 7.

Advantages of Windows 8.1:
More color options
Desktop wallpaper on start screen provides more uniform experience
Boot to desktop
Easy access to "All Apps" section of start screen
Start (ish) button with easy right click access to shutdown/reboot/etc
Cleaner install (freed up 6gb from my 8.0) install

Advantages of Window 8 over 7 (in general)
Direct X 11.1
Snappier navigation (hard to measure, easy to see)
Up One Level button in File Explorer
Improved Task Manager
Faster Boot

Now granted, yes, Windows 8 (and 8.1 for that matter) could still use a little tweaking. The hot corners are not the most intuitive thing ever, and the start screen is a not so big departure from the start menu, but all in all Win 8(.1) has lots of really nice touches. The UI is clean, snappy, lightweight. The boot speed is a good deal better than Win 7. I've been on Win 8 since they released it through MSDN and I don't plan on going back. Change isn't so bad.
 

rtwjunkie

PC Gaming Enthusiast
Supporter
Joined
Jul 25, 2008
Messages
13,995 (2.34/day)
Location
Louisiana
Processor Core i9-9900k
Motherboard ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming 6
Cooling All air: 2x140mm Fractal exhaust; 3x 140mm Cougar Intake; Enermax ETS-T50 Black CPU cooler
Memory 32GB (2x16) Mushkin Redline DDR-4 3200
Video Card(s) ASUS RTX 4070 Ti Super OC 16GB
Storage 1x 1TB MX500 (OS); 2x 6TB WD Black; 1x 2TB MX500; 1x 1TB BX500 SSD; 1x 6TB WD Blue storage (eSATA)
Display(s) Infievo 27" 165Hz @ 2560 x 1440
Case Fractal Design Define R4 Black -windowed
Audio Device(s) Soundblaster Z
Power Supply Seasonic Focus GX-1000 Gold
Mouse Coolermaster Sentinel III (large palm grip!)
Keyboard Logitech G610 Orion mechanical (Cherry Brown switches)
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit (Start10 & Fences 3.0 installed)
Advantages of Window 8 over 7 (in general)
Direct X 11.1
Snappier navigation (hard to measure, easy to see)
Up One Level button in File Explorer
Improved Task Manager
Faster Boot

and don't forget:

better task manager UI in general, and speedier file transfers. really a good operating system when you get away from Metro UI (for those that don't like that part).
 
Top