Windows 8 Horror story.

1) Unable to install any other windows , other then going back to factory status by resetting windows 8.

2)Screen flickering randomly.

3)Touchpad randomly not working whenever and wherever.

4)Updates from windows not working.

5)Norton works WHEN it feels like it.

6)Windows 8 and it's stupid lock screen that cannot be removed.
Tried the gpedit.msc tihngy. Wouldn't even open the windows. Says no such thing found)

7)Wifi drop on the Intel 6205

8)I will definitely be continuing this list.

So please , anybody intending to get windows 8 on a thinkpad to get the key because you already have the windows 7
key. I URGE you to save the trouble and get the windows 7 stable thinkpad.

 

Yeah, I bought an Win8 Notebook and did not like it, so i returned it and bought two Lenovo Z580 with Win7 while i can as everything is going to Win8 , I am going to get the $15 Win8 update, but hopefully i will be able to dual boot Win7 and Win8.

NBR is going to be full of Angry Win8 owers after Christmas Day.

Have you tied turning off UEFI in the bios and then try and install Win7 or whatever.

John.

 

Yes. I did try to turn off the secure boot in bios. Doesn't work.

Windows 8 is just not feasible on a laptop without touch screen.

 

Can you not return it and get an Win7 notebook?

John.

 

Win8 is very usable on a laptop with no touch screen if you know how to set it up and what shortcuts to use. First of all I believe you can set windows 8 up so it boots directly into the desktop environment, which is very much like the windows 7 desktop. If you want you can even get a cheap 3rd party application called Start8 that gives you your start button back and returns 90% of the functionality it had in Windows 7. However there is no real need, I know a number of people that actually have started to like the Windows 8 GUI once they get used to it. There is just lots of new shortcuts that you need to learn and like anything new it takes time but I wouldn't say Windows 8 is no good for non touch screen devices.

The main reason for me not wanting to jump over to win 8 at the moment is because the driver and software support is still immature in my opinion. I would like it to mature a bit more before I jump ship. Windows 8 also has a much more optimized Kernel, performance wise it is a better OS than Windows 7, people just need to get used to it and drivers support still needs to improve.

 

I got in from the usa and used a forwarder to ship to singapore. So it wouldnt be economical to return it for a windows 7. .

Maybe i put it wrongly. I feel it is much more feasible on a touchpad enabled laptop.

Like i said i have tried the hack to disable lockscreen. I can't get to the option to disable it. Also i do not need the
start button. I am fine with scrolling to the left corners for the the thing that pops up. Quite cool. I like the
gui of windows 8 but i feel it would work better with a touchscreen. Which is why i may get the windows surface
haha.

The driver support is one i totally agree with you. Sucky drivers haha.

 

This is not true. Maybe in your case do to inexperience, but I can guarantee this is not true in my case.

This is also not true. I have been using Windows 8 for months and rarely even see the start screen because all of the apps I use are executing on the regular desktop. Flipping back and forth between them is trivial with the windows key. None of the machine I own have a touch screen.

Change isn't always good and I don't agree with all of the changes in the new OS, but ranting about it isn't going to solve anything.

 

Windows 8 is working fine in my case also. I have the programs I use primarily for school and the programs my T400 absolutely needs (namely Power Manager and Switchable Graphics). While I do not have the start orb in my lower left corner of the taskbar I have pinned the control panel, snipping tool, and a few other programs to my taskbar. This makes it a bit easier to access when I need them. I also use Fn+F4 to shutdown my laptop. I use Metro about 1% of the time

 

I had windows 8 working fine as well. It just is not as usable nor as appealing without aero. So no go here especially with all the hacks and software etc to get IMHO a proper desktop back..................

 

Ditto on the 1% for now. I also added the Quick Launch toolbar so I could pin more application to the bar. I have about 20 frequently used apps pinned to the quick launch toolbar.

See http://windows7themes.net/customize-your-pc-how-to-add-quicklaunch-toolbar-in-windows-8.html for some easy instructions on how to add this Windows 8 native feature.

 

Windows 8 was not usable for me. I'll have to stick with Windows 7 indefinitely.

I used XP from 2001-2009. I don't see myself using Windows 7 through 2017, but I think it will certainly outlast this Windows 8 fiasco.

I'm pretty sure we all know what to do by now when Microsoft releases a nonsense version of Windows (which is more or less every other release) - and what we do is precisely nothing. Wait until the next release.

Since 1995 we have:

Windows 95 - not so good
Win NT 4.0 - great
Windows 98 - not so good
Windows 98 SE - much better
Windows 2000 - excellent
Windows ME - terrible
Windows XP - better
Windows XP SP2+ - pretty good
Windows Vista - terrible (on release)
Windows 7 - great

Surely the cycle will continue. Just keep using Windows 7 until they release a good version of Windows (circa 2014-2015)

 

I personally think the computer world is going through a period of significant change right now and personal computing is about the experience one of the biggest changes in how we interact with our day to day computer devices since the mouse was introduced.

For better or for worse I believe touch devices are here to stay hence I don't think we will see a traditional Windows 7 style GUI ever again. I believe most people and manufacturers will start moving towards the tablet/notebook hybrid concept. This is what Microsoft is banking on hence Windows 8 being so touch device friendly.

More people will start using powerful tablets like the Windows Surface Pro which is a proper PC with an i5 processor that have the ability to dock with a keyboard and mouse if you wish. As technology advances these devices will become even more powerful and soon be able to replace the traditional notebook.

You will have a Tablet PC with a docking station that turns it into a notebook. This is the swing I believe is currently taking place and I expect it to be complete in the next 3-4 years hence the Windows OS morphing into a new beast. We are in a transition phase.

 

My notebook does not have touch, I dont want a touch interface, get it though your thick head Microsoft, where is the off button

John.

 

Linux.

 

Shhhhhhhhh, use the L word sparingly........................

 

I'm reasonably sure it has a touchpad, something that at one point in time would have been considered ridiculous and useless when you could just use a mouse.

 

I was originally excited about Windows 8 (given how awesome of an improvement Windows 7 was over Vista) but anticipation quickly turned to depression when I experienced how frustrating the OS is on a daily basis. And the worst part is that while I'm not the type of user who needs their computer to be super efficient and is a "power user" like some of the others who dislike 8....I'm not a newbie when it comes to using computers. So the fact that I couldn't get comfortable with Windows 8 after multiple attempts (lasting weeks in total) is not a good sign IMO that others I know around me are going to like it....

So I'm gonna buy a new all in one desktop and see how it works for my folks. And I'm planning on getting a laptop (once a decent coupon comes out) but I'm dreading the reaction I'm gonna get the first time they run into an issue with Windows 8.

 

And before that...

– John C. Dvorak in the San Francisco Examiner on February 19th, 1984

 

I would put this more akin to the command line vs. the GUI wars form a bit ago. That is rather than just adding a mouse to the system. The touch interface is more consumption interface at the moment just like the first GUI's. The command line yeilded quite a bit more power but as time progressed the GUI took over for power speed and ease of use. It should be noted I supported the early GUI's over the command line.

Anything to make my life easier was the way I looked at it. Most were against it as this was taking the hobbiest machine to main stream consumers but I was all for that. The touch screen will do the same for end users as it is a more simplified interface. There is one major issue with this. Since just command line the computers usage has evolved in the production sector and even the consumer sector where productivity becomes involved. While I will agree though that consumption has gone up since the early days of the GUI so has the need for a true keyboard and mouse with a proper desktop.

I have no doubt as things settle I will get a touch device and possibly Win8. I would rather have for consumption purposes a long battery life, easy to transport and use pad. Even to use side by side with my real work horse DTR. Just need a way to synch email and other files between the devices and I'll be a happy camper.......

 

I have a Windows 8 laptop with touchscreen that I rarely use. I prefer the mouse and only use touch to bring up the Charms menu. I also spend 90% of the time in the desktop and now I wonder why I ever needed a start button. I set up that all the needed system icons like recycle bin and control panel are checked to display on desktop. I also added most used shortcuts to the taskbar.

I do use the laptop to remote to my work pc. I go to my work portal and load Juno Pulse to connect to our private network. Then I use a remote desktop app panel to connect to my pc as work. Once I set it up the first time my username is saved in the remote desktop app and I just have to enter my password.

 

I never understood why people think Windows 8 is a touch interface. By the same logic, is OSX a touch interface as well? I can't imagine using OSX using a mouse.

Granted, Windows laptops generally have terrible touchpads. A Logitech T650 should solve that problem. Then again, I have had no trouble with Windows 8 on my T430s, with either a mouse or the trackpoint.

People just don't like changes. That's good and bad for M$. People won't upgrade, but they are even less likely to move to OSX or Linux. Sooner or later, people need to buy new computers, problem solved.

 

I can't speak for others but I love changes, that is when they are for the better............................

 

I assume that you are running Juniper firewall on your network. How good is it? You might want to consider virtual desktop.

Can't agree more with you!

 

I don't agree with the mouse or command line analogies. In this case the problems are to me pretty big:

• The vast majority of monitors aren't don't have touch/multi-touch capabilities. Without it, I found the Win8 interface quite... painful to use.
• The desktop or laptop monitors that do have touch features aren't fixed in place. Touch works on iPhone or iPad because you're holding the thing in your hand. If you poke around your monitor (unless you own some sort of tablet like I do that can be twisted around) the whole thing wobbles and vibrates.
• It took me 30 mins to get annoyed with iPad after I realized how prone is the touch surface to fingerprints. This is the main reason I don't use my tablet laptop in tablet mode most of the time; I just can't be bothered cleaning the screen so freaking often. Even if you just use the stylus with a glove you still get grease and stylus traces on your screen (that can be cleaned but still).
• The whole OS (Win8) looks like it is still in early alpha release. The classic desktop feels very awkward as an "app" and isn't at all integrated with the new UI.
• I don't want (and I imagine a lot of other people) to use my 24" desktop monitor to show the same stuff you can have on 4" phone screen. There's lots of stuff you can fit on a desktop screen (or even laptop screen if it's > 11") compared to phones or smaller tablets. Having a UI where a media player app fits the entire screen is pointless.

I certainly don't think Win7 has the perfect UI. But at least I find it functional and more appropriate for a device that's not a phone.

 

What's "better"? To most people, no change to the way they work is better. Pinning applications on your task bar is "better" than the start menu, yet very few people use them. Typing in the start menu to find application is "better" than going through many levels of menus, again, very few people use them.

The problem with M$ is that they actually believed statement like "I love changes, that is when they are for the better". They took away the start menu because they thought people have moved on to "better" ways (i.e. pinning applications and search apps by typing). The reality is people hate changes, even those "for the better". At least sudden changes without a security blanket to fall back on.

People want the start menu not because it's better, but because it has always been like that. Oh don't I remember how people hated Windows 95 when it first came out.

Yet despite all the complaints, most people will still stick with Windows. And when the time comes to buy a new computer, they will continue to use whatever is shipped with that computer. And after a person has used Windows 8 for 10 years, you think they will move to Windows 7 like interface voluntarily because it is "for the better"?

That is of course if people will continue to buy computers, which is a big if.

 

People didn't like Win95 because it was unstable and would BSOD whenever it felt like it, not because of the GUI. Both its GUI and the one from Win3.11 worked just fine with a keyboard and mouse.

And yeah, I want to start menu because its better and more functional than the phone UI. On a device that IS NOT A PHONE.

 

Don't know about your experience but i have Windows 8 for almost 3 months and i don't have any problem yet.
In fact, i like it very much, even though it doesn't have a start button as the win7 does, it still has some pros in the screen.

 

wanna bet?

but ya, since you can use custom window managers, you can just switch it out.

but really, expect to see the default desktop managers to be touch-based within the next couple of years.


EDIT:

i have no clue why people are complaining about 'no start button.' the start button is in the exact same spot (roughly), it's just invisible.

 

This should cure most of your woes.... Its another 4.99$ which i think is BS because it's how WIn8 should have came but whatever..

Start8 for Windows® 8 - Bringing back the Windows Start menu


If You guys are serious about throwing around the L word.... I Recommend Elementary OS Luna.. Its based off Ubuntu so you can still use steam for gaming!

 

Actually, people didn't like Windows 95 because they couldn't go back to DOS anymore, which was their security blanket at the time. Yet in the end, few people defected to Mac or Unix. Not because Windows 95 was more stable or has better UI, but because most PCs shipped with it and most applications only work with Windows.

Is pinning application on the taskbar a phone UI? Is typing in the application name (either in the start menu or the start screen) a phone UI? If not, then why are people still using the start menu? If yes, then Windows 7 is already a phone OS.

And will people install Linux over Windows 8 because it has the "better and more functional" start menu? I don't even think most people will install Windows 7 over a preinstalled Windows 8.