Windows 8

[Rork]

@McNister,

Because you don't agree to my point of view, getting personal isn't the way to go.
But I'm not missing any so called 'power features'.

Enlight me... please....

Oh.... and I'm off now stroking my ego

[grahamef]

Personally I still miss the old File Manager. You could open several child windows, tile and sort them the way you want, and minimize and restore them all together. Now there are lots of separate folder windows, opening up wherever they will, sorted in any which way. Bleah.

File Manager also let you do advanced things like filter folder contents. As well you could select multiple files and rename them all at once e.g. to change extensions. The only way to do that now is in a command prompt, but it's harder to specify multiple files unless you do all files in a folder via *.*.

And speaking of the command prompt, it seems like every new version it and other fundamental things require more and more clicks to access.

[Bullit]

The search in W7 is a downgrade from XP for example...
For me all OS's since XP have been a dumbing down, it is obviously uneven some stuff is improvemnt, in W7 i like the capability to rename (2) new files that have same name as an existing one. But there are a lot of puzzling/crap decisions.
The OS i think made the biggest impact for me was Windows 2000. That was a big big jump from W98 or NT4. XP was a good increment. Vista was a disaster for anything without 4Gb RAM...

Here is stuff that was taken from W8:
http://xpwasmyidea.blogspot.pt/2011/09/ ... ows-8.html

W7
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fe ... _Windows_7

Vista:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fe ... dows_Vista

I didn't tried W8 so i don't comment, but it doesn't seem something that improves anything enough and it has GUI issues.

[luceric]

I could never get windows search to work before windows 7, now I'm happy. It's either better or I learned to use it the way it's meant ot be used. the XP-like ui for searching by types and size is a little hidden, however. there is a whole search query language if you don't want to have to do initial search. Can't be bothered to use it, but apparently you type things like "*.jpb size:<26mb"

win7 is more for optimized advanced users, actually. lots of keyboard workflows. I cannot relate to someone to searches in the start menu for the command prompt; if you're going to be a command prompt user, you can also use the keyboard UI to start it, which is to press the Start key, and type 'cm' and [enter]. windows has left behind the hunt-and-peck users who are "in-between" the newbies and the power user, who use a mixture of workflows.

I'm working on the mac now, there is a lots of stuff that we take for granted on windows - like maximizing and organizing windows easily. a popular addon for OSX ads the Win7 "aero snap" to OS X to easily tile windows (more necessary on the mac than on windows, where I had disabled it)

I do a lot of stuff of files, actually I did more when I worked on the compositor. Never misses the File Manager, but I've certainly seen a lot of people miss it. I just don't get it, personally. I'm probably going to get a Finder alternative (like Path Finder) to get that address bar the WIn7 explorer has in OSX. It's nice!

[Bullit]

the XP-like ui for searching by types and size is a little hidden, however.

Yeah that's my problem.

[grahamef]

the hunt-and-peck users who are "in-between" the newbies and the power user, who use a mixture of workflows.

Yeah, that pretty much describes me.

Of course I don't actually search in the Start menu for the command prompt, I either make a shortcut if I want particular settings (e.g. "Start in") or use Windows+R, cmd, Enter. In fact I use the Start menu less and less since Win7 (skipped Vista). Moving things around just for the sake of it only penalizes users who learnt where they were, without benefitting anybody else.

[luceric]

use Windows+R, cmd, Enter. In fact I use the Start menu less and less since Win7 (skipped Vista).

I've spent years in Vista, it was fine. I think you're missing a lot by using Windows+R instead of just pressing Windows and directly typing what you want. Well, ok, you're only missing one thing: incremental search. There is no advantage to the Run dialog that I can see.

[McNistor]

There are a lot of commands you exec though Run. Typing to get you to the desired app doesn't mean you're taking advantage of what is in there and the fact that you don't see is also very much irrelevant.

Edit: further more: I'm very curious of what do you actually do (if you care to answer me) as this would answer a lot of my questions and sometimes save time of posting them here or other forums. Are you a dev. person (e.g. coding/participating to the development of a particular application) or a sales/marketing/managing person? Along the time I've been on this and other forums I've got the impression that you have an idea about developing (actually writing code) but you don't write code yourself. Is that true?

[xsisupport]

There are a lot of commands you exec though Run. Typing to get you to the desired app doesn't mean you're taking advantage of what is in there and the fact that you don't see is also very much irrelevant.

Edit: further more: I'm very curious of what do you actually do (if you care to answer me) as this would answer a lot of my questions and sometimes save time of posting them here or other forums. Are you a dev. person (e.g. coding/participating to the development of a particular application) or a sales/marketing/managing person? Along the time I've been on this and other forums I've got the impression that you have an idea about developing (actually writing code) but you don't write code yourself. Is that true?

Take a minute and google it. Actually, just maybe 15s if you click the first hit.

[McNistor]

Ah... you replied to it... I was just going to delete it. It's actually that much I care. Sorry for this, I'm intoxicated.

[Rork]

@grahamef :

Personally I still miss the old File Manager.

Maybe something like XYPlorer will help out. It's one of the best Explorer replacements out there. Tons of features,and tabs....

Have a look here: http://www.xyplorer.com/product.htm

rob

[luceric]

There are a lot of commands you exec though Run. Typing to get you to the desired app doesn't mean you're taking advantage of what is in there and the fact that you don't see is also very much irrelevant.

My comment was totally worth it if anyone doesn't know this, but the Vista/7 Start menu isn't just a search for apps, you can directly type anything in there that you can type in the Run dialog, it doesn't have to be an application or something already present in the Start menu. It the end, it runs runs the exact same "ShellExecute" function as the Run dialog with whatever you type, it's just the UI that's different.

[pluMmet]

Exactly. This attitude is slightly pathetic to be honest. It reminds me of teenage fanboys putting everything down. The internet seems to encourage a sense of communal hostility to change. I bet there were people moaning about Windows 95 too.

They also forget the average user. The new start menu is much more friendly.

Perhaps there are people who don't like it because they have experience (the opposite of being young) and they think that this volley of removing user control of the OS will be followed by no user control.

Stupid way to think I guess...? Richard Stallman is probably some sort of a programming fanboy nut I guess...?

[SamHowell]

Thats was a really interesting video, thanks for posting. He's got some very valid point although saying we are heading for "total disaster" is a tad extreme?

I can understand the frustration for development guys and experienced users but has control been removed or just hidden? Is that such a problem if you know what you are doing? For everyone else (and thats the vast majority of people) it seems to be a good thing.

Maybe I shouldn't have used the words pathetic fanboy, that was slightly rude but when I listen to people describe their hostitlity to Windows 8 (in real life) it is usually worded as some vague tantrum at something they like being changed. Or maybe it is the rate of change that annoys people. We've all only just got to grips with Windows 7, it's all working the way we like it and then we are expected to upgrade and change all over again. I guess that could be quite annoying.

[pluMmet]

Sam, perhaps you are not familiar with this effectively utilized platitude?

Little by little inch by inch stealing your soul is a cinch.

or

Little by little inch by inch changing your mind is a cinch.

or

Little by little inch by inch making you do what I want is a cinch.

Microsoft among others push and push and push and when there is too much backlash they regroup and try again from another angle.

People who call others fanboys off the cuff have a much worse name to be called.

I'm sorry to say that that word is "asleep."

Wake up buddy. Just because we want to make dreams with our computers does not mean we should be in one

[grahamef]

@grahamef :

Personally I still miss the old File Manager.

Maybe something like XYPlorer will help out. It's one of the best Explorer replacements out there. Tons of features,and tabs....

Have a look here: http://www.xyplorer.com/product.htm

rob

Thanks, I'll check it out.

RE not running Vista -- it's not so much that I deliberately avoided it, but I just didn't get a new machine (either work or home) during that period.