Windows 8.1 Preview Now Available

[alucasa]

Anyone figure out how to use your background of your desktop to be the background of the start screen?

I'd like to know this as well. I am okay with the metro screen. Once I got used to it, it feels like a start menu that takes up a whole screen but Windows 8 doesn't let you choose custom wallpaper for the metro screen which sucks.

P.S. I didn't buy windows 8. It came with my new laptop.

 

[remixedcat]

such as?

and alucasa: I use Decor8 on Server 2012 and it works well. I even have it cycle my abstracts and I get a new Start screen look every time. LOL.

 

[alucasa]

I've heard of Decor8, but I was hoping for a solution that doesn't install a 3rd party program. What's with MS and their surreal addiction(or attachment) to metro-everything?

 

[Derek12]

Bah, Windows 8 with start8/classic shell and Windows 7 widgets support installed is better than anything.
The best of Windows 7 plus the best of Windows 8 all in one.

I only miss Chess Titans.

Windows 8/8.1 - Filled with clueless retards that have to use Bing (if they manage to find the browser) to solve ongoing confusion one obstacle after another to get a how-to on solving problem "x" to fix problem "y". However, this can be solved if you depend entirely on over-simplified services like Skydrive as long as you let Microsoft brain wash you to use ONLY their apps.

Ubuntu/Mac - They reject other people's reality and substitute their own.

The only thing I have to solve on Windows 8 is start menu and W7 widgets as above said, nothing more for the moment. No compatiility issues at the moment*. No crashes. I don't use Skydrive. I don't have a Microsoft account. I don't use Bing. I don't use their apps except Office. Still I like Windows 8, it has amazing features, very understated. The only mistake was removing start menu and use Metro as default without fallback options. Something that can be solved easily by Googling.

*except brightness control and metro apps on my netbook.

By the way, comparing Ubuntu with Mac :shadedshu

 

[erixx]

Just discovered (was it after a restart?) that now we have "staying" search results!!!! That is great.
Not as versatile as the old folder view where you can quickly see dates, file types, rearrange results etc... (so still really a step backwards, but of course nobody uses a big screen PC anymore, this is soooo mobile!!! :-(

 

[xorbe]

I don't know what I'm doing wrong, since I can see others can install this in VirtualBox just fine, but it's not working for me. Latest VirtualBox in Win7_64. No boot, 32-bit hangs at black screen, and 64-bit gives an error message on the text screen.

 

[Prima.Vera]

I don't know what I'm doing wrong, since I can see others can install this in VirtualBox just fine, but it's not working for me. Latest VirtualBox in Win7_64. No boot, 32-bit hangs at black screen, and 64-bit gives an error message on the text screen.

try latest version of VBox, or use VMWare.

 

[etayorius]

I will skip this version too, they just added a useless Shortcut and named it start menu... no thanks, Win7 is still kicking strong.

 

[xorbe]

I got it booted in vbox. Seems as though of the earlier iso links in this thread aren't the same as from MS.

 

[Naito]

Have any of these people whinging actually used Windows 8 for any considerable amount of time? I've been using Win8 since August last year and have yet to come across any compatibility issues, or useability issues that weren't easily solved. The OS is better than Windows 7 on many levels.

 

[newtekie1]

Have any of these people whinging actually used Windows 8 for any considerable amount of time? I've been using Win8 since August last year and have yet to come across any compatibility issues, or useability issues that weren't easily solved. The OS is better than Windows 7 on many levels.

Yes, I have, and while I think Microsoft has made some wrong decisions and implemented somethings that I don't like that hurt the usability of the OS, I do agree that it is actually better than Win7 once I installed Classicshell...

 

[Naito]

Yes, I have, and while I think Microsoft has made some wrong decisions and implemented somethings that I don't like that hurt the usability of the OS, I do agree that it is actually better than Win7 once I installed Classicshell...

Moving from a list of icons, to a grid of tiles, doesn't seem to hurt usability. The start screen still works in very much the same way as the start menu. I can see how it would be useless for people who don't need or use metro apps, or use apps that display info on tiles (like myself, I use StartIsBack), but I wouldn't go as far as saying it 'hurts' usability. I have many power-user friends that use Windows 8 completely default, and have no problem with it.

 

[TheOne]

Have any of these people whinging actually used Windows 8 for any considerable amount of time? I've been using Win8 since August last year and have yet to come across any compatibility issues, or useability issues that weren't easily solved. The OS is better than Windows 7 on many levels.

The whining is on both sides.

Windows 8 seems to have issues with BIOS's, after installing it on my laptop I couldn't use my battery until Acer released a BIOS update. There was also an issue with a Windows 8 update killing the USB ports on systems, the only ways to fix it, if you can't use your mouse and keyboard, is to change the legacy option in BIOS (if you have one) or refresh the system, which isn't easy to do thanks to the new hybrid boot.

Windows 8 Pro/Ent x64 not recognize notebook battery

Windows Update KB2756872 kills USB ports

These are two issues I've personally run into on the only Windows 8 systems I have used, my laptop and a Lenovo desktop designed for Windows 8 and used by a business.

 

[Naito]

The whining is on both sides.

Windows 8 seems to have issues with BIOS's, after installing it on my laptop I couldn't use my battery until Acer released a BIOS update. There was also an issue with a Windows 8 update killing the USB ports on systems, the only ways to fix it is to change the legacy option in BIOS (if you have one) or refresh the system, which isn't easy to do thanks to the new hybrid boot.

Windows 8 Pro/Ent x64 not recognize notebook battery

Windows Update KB2756872 kills USB ports

These are two issues I've personally run into on the only Windows 8 systems I have used, my laptop and a Lenovo desktop designed for Windows 8 and used by a business.

Interesting. Surely that only happens to a minority, though. Many people I know have had no problems. I've not run into any problems running Windows 8 on my UX31E or my rig.

 

[newtekie1]

Moving from a list of icons, to a grid of tiles, doesn't seem to hurt usability. The start screen still works in very much the same way as the start menu. I can see how it would be useless for people who don't need or use metro apps, or use apps that display info on tiles (like myself, I use StartIsBack), but I wouldn't go as far as saying it 'hurts' usability. I have many power-user friends that use Windows 8 completely default, and have no problem with it.

Doesn't hurt usability? Try watching a video on Win8 and bringing up the start screen. Can you still watch your video?

 

[Naito]

Doesn't hurt usability? Try watching a video on Win8 and bringing up the start screen. Can you still watch your video?

Good point. However, opening the start menu in Windows 7, still would draw most peoples attention away from the video and, if that doesn't, the program loaded from the menu most likely will. So having a full screen menu pop up for a few seconds, probably isn't going to be much more of an annoyance.

 

[newtekie1]

Good point. However, opening the start menu in Windows 7, still would draw most peoples attention away from the video and, if that doesn't, the program loaded from the menu most likely will. So having a full screen menu pop up for a few seconds, probably isn't going to be much more of an annoyance.

Not in my case, my eyes go back and forth between the video and the start menu while I find what I'm looking for(which is easier on a start menu then the start screen by the way), then the large majority of the programs I use open in a Window that is sized and positions on a different part of the monitor from where I have videos playing.