Microsoft Windows 8.1 Is Now Available

Octavean · Oct 17, 2013

Prima.Vera said:
So why isn't this called simply Win 8 SP1??

Marketing as has been said before,....Nomenclature is arbitrary though and at the discretion of Microsoft,...

However, while I have seen service packs add new features in the past its not something I think of as typical whereas Windows 8.1 does add some new features (regardless if these are desired features or not). Also note that Windows 8.1 was released about one year after Windows 8 which suggest this is Microsoft's interpretation of their cited annual OS upgrade cycle. Therefore it stands to reason that there will be two more OS upgrades such as Windows 8.2 and Windows 8.3 before they truly move on to something akin to Windows 9 or some truly new version. Assuming calling something that it isn't really is the trend,.....

VulkanBros · Oct 17, 2013

erixx said:
A WARNING DURING INSTALLATION: you will have to reinstall your software!!!

Just finished upgrading from Win 8 Pro x64 to 8.1....
All my applications, games, printers and you name it - all things are working just fine

TheMailMan78 · Oct 17, 2013

VulkanBros said:
Just finished upgrading from Win 8 Pro x64 to 8.1....
All my applications, games, printers and you name it - all things are working just fine

Yeah a friend of mine just upgraded and everything works fine also. He said he gained 13gb. Ill have to check it out tonight.

VulkanBros · Oct 17, 2013

TheMailMan78 said:
Yeah a friend of mine just upgraded and everything works fine also. He said he gained 13gb. Ill have to check it out tonight.

I gained about 4 - 4.5 GB - still good, SSD space is still expensive

Remember to run the cleanmgr.exe command afterwards - to delete the old Win installation...

Ravenas · Oct 17, 2013

Easy Rhino said:
The changes in 8.1 are a step in the right direction but not enough to make businesses pay for windows 8 to "upgrade" from 7. We still need a proper desktop!

It's easier to find the desired program you want on Windows 8 vs. any Windows version before it. I'm sick of hearing this start menu argument. Oh it's not business acceptable because the start menu doesn't appear as prior. Lol what a joke... Surface tablets are going to be the best choice for businesses and they run Windows 8 Pro and RT. You would do best to get used to it and quit living in the past because Windows isn't leaving enterprise for the foreseeable future.

Mathragh · Oct 17, 2013

Upgrade went fine and smooth on all 5 systems here, nothing I needed to reinstall. I do have a windows.old now, but it's "only" 4,3GB's. I suppose I can just delete it anyway. Furthermore, it took quite a while on my GF's surface RT lol, but that's just that slow tegra 3 being the bottleneck I suppose.

The only downside I now have is the obligatory start button. I don't need it, and can't delete it without using 3rd party programs and eventhough I'm not exactly short on task bar space, the fact that its obligated while from a functional point of view its totally irrelevant is quite a good reason to atleast give the user a choice i'd say!

Ohwell.

VulkanBros · Oct 17, 2013

Mathragh said:
Upgrade went fine and smooth on all 5 systems here, nothing I needed to reinstall. I do have a windows.old now, but it's "only" 4,3GB's. I suppose I can just delete it anyway. Furthermore, it took quite a while on my GF's surface RT lol, but that's just that slow tegra 3 being the bottleneck I suppose.

The only downside I now have is the obligatory start button. I don't need it, and can't delete it without using 3rd party programs and eventhough I'm not exactly short on task bar space, the fact that its obligated while from a functional point of view its totally irrelevant is quite a good reason to atleast give the user a choice i'd say!

Ohwell.

run the cleanmgr.exe (and click "Remove systemfiles") - it will remove all clutter from the upgrade - and it will be more than 4.3 GB...

manofthem · Oct 17, 2013

I left it to download the update when I left for work today, but I'm not excited about having a start menu back in there, as I've become very used to being without it. I suppose I shall see later tonight

Mathragh · Oct 17, 2013

VulkanBros said:
run the cleanmgr.exe (and click "Remove systemfiles") - it will remove all clutter from the upgrade - and it will be more than 4.3 GB...

Thnx, and it really is only 4,3GB. I double checked, and since I only have a small 120GB SSD I would've noticed if it was more I'd suppose.

Edit: Also another really annoying point I just came across: to complete the setup procedure I apparently MUST first login using an email/password combo :S. After I logged in with my usual login/password it only gives me the option to also login with an email/password combo. Really crappy. the next time around I might give Linux an even bigger chance(or get some server variant of windows). This is on pro btw.

Edit2: regarding obligatory email linking with local account: If you click " I'm not *stated account*" it'll skip everything and just go to the standard windows login which you can use without having to put in an email.
This is still quite lame though.

Easy Rhino · Oct 17, 2013

Ravenas said:
It's easier to find the desired program you want on Windows 8 vs. any Windows version before it. I'm sick of hearing this start menu argument. Oh it's not business acceptable because the start menu doesn't appear as prior. Lol what a joke... Surface tablets are going to be the best choice for businesses and they run Windows 8 Pro and RT. You would do best to get used to it and quit living in the past because Windows isn't leaving enterprise for the foreseeable future.

i invite you to visit my workplace. there well over 300 employees who have a desktop in their office running windows 7. if you were to upgrade to window 8 i guarantee 80% of them would be completely lost. it would be a nightmare for our User Services department. we are not alone. the interface change is the #1 reason why businesses are not switching to windows 8.

erixx · Oct 17, 2013

so sorry for upsetting some, but I started to update my 8.1 Preview computer. Later, when updating the stock win 8 I noticed that all programs stood in place.
One less issue for some!

xvi · Oct 17, 2013

I've clicked the upgrade link and while the Windows Store does launch, it just sits on the main screen. Anyone else getting this?

manofthem · Oct 17, 2013

xvi said:
I've clicked the upgrade link and while the Windows Store does launch, it just sits on the main screen. Anyone else getting this?

Any chance your user account control is set to off? I had to turn it back on in order for it to start.

VulkanBros · Oct 17, 2013

Crap - just found out that the Citrix Receiver is not working...at least not with IE....but works with Pale Moon....odd Citrix is owned by Microsoft as far as I know...
Maybe an update to the receiver will help...

Yes - updated the receiver from 4.0..... to 4.0.1.4 - then it works.....

Dos101 · Oct 17, 2013

RejZoR said:
Where can i bloody buy Win8.1 online, download ISO image and install the thing with USB drive? Want to go legit, but their webpages are so ridiculously confusing it's crazy. No wonder people prefer war_ez if they can't make one big red button with BUY written on it that would lead you to a purchasing process. Totally moronic.

Windows 8.1 general availability through retail is available tomorrow (Oct. 18). Today it is only available as an update for existing Windows 8 users.

xvi said:
I've clicked the upgrade link and while the Windows Store does launch, it just sits on the main screen. Anyone else getting this?

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

Ravenas · Oct 17, 2013

Easy Rhino said:
i invite you to visit my workplace. there well over 300 employees who have a desktop in their office running windows 7. if you were to upgrade to window 8 i guarantee 80% of them would be completely lost. it would be a nightmare for our User Services department. we are not alone. the interface change is the #1 reason why businesses are not switching to windows 8.

Lol. Businesses don't just upgrade whenever a new OS is released. You're talking about an OS (and interface for that manner) that is barely in its life cycle. Businesses upgrade based on other factors. Your company isn't just going to upgrade to 8 because Windows 8 is the newest and coolest thing. That's not how it works in enterprise.

erocker · Oct 17, 2013

Does Start8 work with 8.1?

qubit · Oct 17, 2013

RejZoR said:
Where can i bloody buy Win8.1 online, download ISO image and install the thing with USB drive? Want to go legit, but their webpages are so ridiculously confusing it's crazy. No wonder people prefer war_ez if they can't make one big red button with BUY written on it that would lead you to a purchasing process. Totally moronic.

You know what makes it even stupider? Just look at how Amazon does it. The answer is right there.

Beautifully designed website makes it a breeze to shop at. Couple that with superb customer service and you have a very efficient wallet emptying machine. I should know. :laugh:

VulkanBros · Oct 17, 2013

erocker said:
Does Start8 work with 8.1?

Yes version 1.30 does

rtwjunkie · Oct 17, 2013

erocker said:
Does Start8 work with 8.1?

Yes, it does. They put out an update about 6 weeks ago that was ugraded specifically for 8.1!

EDIT: Sorry, Vulcan! I answered before getting to the end of the thread to see if anyone else answered.

Steve-007UK · Oct 17, 2013

Well it all seemed to go well untill i tryed to play some music and realise i have no bloody sound and i can't seem to fix it. Back to windows 7 for me as i cant be arsed with 8 anymore had enough of it.

And yes i have tryed uninstalling drivers and reinstalling and also letting my card use the windows driver to but nothing works and i refuse to use my shity onboard sound chip.

TheOne · Oct 17, 2013

My laptop upgraded from Windows 8.1 Preview (UAC off) to Windows 8.1 Pro without a problem, only took about 20-30 minutes to download and 10-20 minutes to install the update, all of my programs were removed of course, don't really use 'Apps'.

Haven't bothered to actually activate it since I'm hoping Valve is going to release SteamOS next week when they begin giving out the Beta 'Steam Machines', and I intend to use my laptop to test it like I have Windows 8 and 8.1, though mainly the streaming function.

Mathragh said:
The only downside I now have is the obligatory start button. I don't need it, and can't delete it without using 3rd party programs and eventhough I'm not exactly short on task bar space, the fact that its obligated while from a functional point of view its totally irrelevant is quite a good reason to atleast give the user a choice i'd say!

Ohwell.

You know traditional Windows supporters say the samething about the start menu, guess now the Windows 8 fans and the traditional Windows fans have something in common, they both have to use a mod to make Windows 8.1 like they want it or stick with the older versions, Windows 7 and 8. :laugh:

Of course this could be avoided if Microsoft would just do the one thing their customers want and make Windows 8/8.1 more customizable so Windows users can set it up how they want, whether it is a more classic style or a more mobile style or a mix.

Easy Rhino · Oct 17, 2013

Ravenas said:
Lol. Businesses don't just upgrade whenever a new OS is released. You're talking about an OS (and interface for that manner) that is barely in its life cycle. Businesses upgrade based on other factors. Your company isn't just going to upgrade to 8 because Windows 8 is the newest and coolest thing. That's not how it works in enterprise.

uh, when did i say businesses upgrade whenever a new OS is released? if windows 8 continues to utilize the metro interface even years down the road you won't see businesses upgrading. you will in fact see them skip windows 8 and wait for a much more business friendly windows 9 which is already in heavy development. :nutkick:

brandonwh64 · Oct 17, 2013

erocker said:
Does Start8 work with 8.1?

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?

Easy Rhino · Oct 17, 2013

brandonwh64 said:
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?

delete windows.*

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Microsoft Windows 8.1 Is Now Available

Octavean

VulkanBros

TheMailMan78

Big Member

VulkanBros

Ravenas

Mathragh

VulkanBros

manofthem

WCG-TPU Team All-Star!

Mathragh

Easy Rhino

Linux Advocate

erixx

xvi

manofthem

WCG-TPU Team All-Star!

VulkanBros

Dos101

Ravenas

erocker

*

qubit

Overclocked quantum bit

VulkanBros

rtwjunkie

PC Gaming Enthusiast

Steve-007UK

TheOne

Easy Rhino

Linux Advocate

brandonwh64

Addicted to Bacon and StarCrunches!!!

Easy Rhino

Linux Advocate

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