I think the new UI is different, which is good. We've been using the same interface since Win95.
Changing things for the sake of change is not good. I see you are still speaking English? Why don't you start using that "new" Esperanto instead? If you don't, then you are doing things the oooooooolllllld way.
The Windows 95/NT 4 user interface, was - unlike Windows 8's - well researched, very solid, and very usable. Most of its "flaws" came from application developers not using it right (such as cluttered Windows 3.1 style program groups in the Start menu)
there's plenty of OSS packages to revive the old menu. Like really, in less than 60 seconds you can have it back.
Which is great for a few personal machines that are under your control, but when you have to deal with larger numbers of machines, or machines that are not under your control, installing third party software or making significant changes to system options is not feasible. In fact, you can easily get in to big trouble for doing so.
A proper "start" menu is something a large number of people need and expect from Microsoft Windows. So it doesn't it make sense to include one by default?
Now, if only they had removed Internet Explorer instead of the Start menu...
These kinds of articles are supposed to make us feel better about Microsoft? I'd suggest not celebrating until they have actually DONE something. Lets see if they actually improve anything - there is a good chance they will make things even worse!
This isn't the first time they have screwed over their customers, and the sure as hell isn't the last.
forced to use Microsoft's now obsolete Windows XP and Internet Explorer 6
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 is only just now obsolete? No, it has been obsolete since sometime around 2003 when Microsoft let it stagnate.
This is what happens when you put something "on the web" that doesn't need to be on it. It sounds like the user base for this is now small enough the people who need this should just contact them in person, or by telephone, or perhaps just good old pencil and paper.
But no, it has got to be "on the web", in a database, on a computer, with XML, and object oriented. And then they won't spend any money to update it to the constantly evolving/devolving changing rearranging web "standards", and then it just sits out there and rots.
Most of the "news coverage" right at the start could have been replaced by a 5 second looping animated GIF.
Worse yet, a few hours later some of the stations around here were showing repeating footage clips of people running and screaming with no obvious indication it was recorded earlier to try and make it seem like it was still happening.
An interesting "full circle" given the history of the PC that the main reason given now for keeping it around is that is corporate inertia.
Exactly, take a look at the software that made companies buy IBM PCs in the first place. These were spread sheets, word processors, databases, financial programs and such. Those needs may seem mundane today but they are not magically going away, and they are just as critical to businesses as they were then. And those are not the sort of things you can easily do on a toy phone or tablet.
I wouldn't count on this change until the final gold images are pressed and on store shelves. And even if it is there, expect it to be some hidden registry key that only exists for "legacy" users and the whispers will suggest that it will "go away" at some unspecified time.
Furthermore, both the Windows 8 metro and desktop have many other things wrong with them that Microsoft is not likely to fix. Even if you start up in a desktop, what happens when some accessory you used is now only available metro-ized and pops up full screen covering all your work?
Microsoft have gone too far down this road now, they can't fix things without doing a complete 180. And I don't think I have ever seen Microsoft do that before.
The reason PC sales are down is because computing power has reached a point where we don't need a new computer every 2-3 years.
Wrong. The reason PC sales are down is a combination of A: Nobody wants Windows 8 B: Their old computer is good enough C: The people who only use computer to look at pictures of cats have found they can make do with toy phones/tablets.
It is not a single simple reason. And you imply it has nothing to do with Windows 8. If Microsoft had stuck with a similar Windows 7 UI, then there probably would not have been such a sudden drop off.
There are plenty of people who would be in the market for a new desktop or laptop, but cant find what they are looking for without Windows 8.
Soon Microsoft is going to point and say that that Desktop PCs are failing because CONSUMERS don't want desktops any more, they want "phones" and tablets instead. When the fact is that nobody happens to want desktops WITH WINDOWS 8.
Go back to the beginning of what made the IBM PC great. It was spreadsheets, databases, word processing, and boring financial programs. These were, and still are very much critical to businesses. These needs are not going away!
An operating system package that is only optimized for looking at LOLCats and clips of Family Guy, is not going to go over well with any business that has a clue. And Windows Blue shows Microsoft has no intention of backing down on this.
So what happens when you need to do a desktop oriented tasks and there are no desktops left because Microsoft killed all desktops?
It's been nice to have people ask, "What other choices do I have?"
An even better question they should be asking is "What other choices WILL I have?". Obvious to some, it is becoming more obvious to the masses that Microsoft has no intention of backing down from what it has done with Windows 8. Windows 9/10/11 etc, will be more of the same if not worse.
What options will you have 10 years from now when you need to do a critical desktop computing oriented task - tasks such as spread sheets and word processing that were what brought about the revolution in personal computing in the first place - but there are no more desktops because Microsoft killed them all?
> It's not going to work when it gets riddled with malware because of unpatched remote exploits.
Take a look at whatever latest OS you are currently running. Is it bug and exploit free? If you think it is, then come back in a year and there likely will be a long list of vulnerabilities found during that time. And they didn't just magically appear, most of these vulnerabilities are in your OS RIGHT NOW and there is a good chance the bad guys have known about them for quite a while too.
Even a brand new Windows 7/8/Blue or Mac or Linux shouldn't just be thrown on the net without some extra precautions.
With good practices, and and extra precautions, even Windows 95 can be "secure". Many people will choose to take this path, manage security themselves, and continue to happily run Windows XP.
I bought my vacuum cleaner more than 10 years ago and I don't have to worry that it will suddenly stop working because some mega corp flips a switch and says I can't use it any more. I fully expect it to work for another 10 or more years if I take care of it.
Good luck using an internet DRMed game that long after release. I certainly wouldn't buy a vacuum cleaner if it could stop working like one of these games. You have to be pretty stupid to even buy something DRMed like that, but the world is full of stupid exploitable people.
Slashdot really doesn't know how to monetize their assets. If they had any common sense the "decoder" would require a "free download" and bundle spyware/adware/malware/shitware.
Consider most people in the corporate world with PCs. The ones I saw, way back when, would tend to hit the maximize button so that the application window took up the whole screen. They weren't taking advantage of multiple overlapping windows and tended to get confused by them
This is an interesting observation, and one I have seen too. However one should consider that Microsoft could have chosen a different path to make dealing with full screen applications easier in a way that integrated with the existing desktop window management - rather than just throwing it all away.
Keep in mind that various forms of copy protection have been around almost since the dawn of the personal computer. I can't even begin to count all the Apple II and 1980s PC software that was copy protected - and caused so much pain for legitimate users who could not back up what they bought.
At least it seemed like by the early 90s most vendors gave up on crazy stuff like checking for intentionally bad/misnumbed/nonstandard sized sectors because they couldn't guarantee that such non standard tricks would work on every single PC out there, and most people required the ability to run from a hard drive. It was mostly dock checks and serial numbers for a while. But then they started the same nonsense with CD-ROMs.
And now with the damn kids who don't mind being tracked or having an always-on internet connection, they tie you down to a remote server for activation or to use the stupid program at all.
On other words, THIS SHOULD HAVE DAMN STOPPED A LONG TIME AGO!
But this raises the question why should millions of customers have go to the trouble of installing a separate program just to get a sane UI. And how many actually will, or can.
What this story tells me is that Microsoft didn't threaten to break enough legs in the British PC sales market.
Nobody here in the US wants Windows 8, and the manufacturers know it. They just sell it to make their Microsoft monkey overlords happy. Customers be damned.
And if I'm using the keyboard I press Win-key and type just like in previous versions. The Win+x menu is also nice, although I'm sure there's a way to get that functionality on Win 7 as well.
Memorizing keyboard shortcuts? how 1970s. Do you also like to use WordPerfect for DOS? I bet you are so good you don't even need the PC keyboard overlays.
So how are "gamers" or anyone that builds a computer from parts going do deal with this? Many people need the ability to upgrade and interchange parts as they see fit. Windows activation already throws a monkey wrench in to this. An now they want to do this with Office too?
Microsoft is really trying to nosedive itself in to the ground. Very scary stuff.
It would be interesting to see how sales of Windows 7 vs Windows 8 compare. So many chairs would be thrown if it was discovered there were a sudden uptake in business class computers with Windows 7.
But since the submitter didn't seem to know they still exist, it would seem Microsoft is doing a good job trying to erase Windows 7.
Slashdot Mirror
Changing things for the sake of change is not good. I see you are still speaking English? Why don't you start using that "new" Esperanto instead? If you don't, then you are doing things the oooooooolllllld way.
The Windows 95/NT 4 user interface, was - unlike Windows 8's - well researched, very solid, and very usable. Most of its "flaws" came from application developers not using it right (such as cluttered Windows 3.1 style program groups in the Start menu)
Which is great for a few personal machines that are under your control, but when you have to deal with larger numbers of machines, or machines that are not under your control, installing third party software or making significant changes to system options is not feasible. In fact, you can easily get in to big trouble for doing so.
A proper "start" menu is something a large number of people need and expect from Microsoft Windows. So it doesn't it make sense to include one by default?
Now, if only they had removed Internet Explorer instead of the Start menu...
These kinds of articles are supposed to make us feel better about Microsoft? I'd suggest not celebrating until they have actually DONE something. Lets see if they actually improve anything - there is a good chance they will make things even worse!
This isn't the first time they have screwed over their customers, and the sure as hell isn't the last.
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 is only just now obsolete? No, it has been obsolete since sometime around 2003 when Microsoft let it stagnate.
This is what happens when you put something "on the web" that doesn't need to be on it. It sounds like the user base for this is now small enough the people who need this should just contact them in person, or by telephone, or perhaps just good old pencil and paper.
But no, it has got to be "on the web", in a database, on a computer, with XML, and object oriented. And then they won't spend any money to update it to the constantly evolving/devolving changing rearranging web "standards", and then it just sits out there and rots.
Most of the "news coverage" right at the start could have been replaced by a 5 second looping animated GIF.
Worse yet, a few hours later some of the stations around here were showing repeating footage clips of people running and screaming with no obvious indication it was recorded earlier to try and make it seem like it was still happening.
Exactly, take a look at the software that made companies buy IBM PCs in the first place. These were spread sheets, word processors, databases, financial programs and such. Those needs may seem mundane today but they are not magically going away, and they are just as critical to businesses as they were then. And those are not the sort of things you can easily do on a toy phone or tablet.
I wouldn't count on this change until the final gold images are pressed and on store shelves. And even if it is there, expect it to be some hidden registry key that only exists for "legacy" users and the whispers will suggest that it will "go away" at some unspecified time.
Furthermore, both the Windows 8 metro and desktop have many other things wrong with them that Microsoft is not likely to fix. Even if you start up in a desktop, what happens when some accessory you used is now only available metro-ized and pops up full screen covering all your work?
Microsoft have gone too far down this road now, they can't fix things without doing a complete 180. And I don't think I have ever seen Microsoft do that before.
Wrong. The reason PC sales are down is a combination of
A: Nobody wants Windows 8
B: Their old computer is good enough
C: The people who only use computer to look at pictures of cats have found they can make do with toy phones/tablets.
It is not a single simple reason. And you imply it has nothing to do with Windows 8. If Microsoft had stuck with a similar Windows 7 UI, then there probably would not have been such a sudden drop off.
There are plenty of people who would be in the market for a new desktop or laptop, but cant find what they are looking for without Windows 8.
Soon Microsoft is going to point and say that that Desktop PCs are failing because CONSUMERS don't want desktops any more, they want "phones" and tablets instead. When the fact is that nobody happens to want desktops WITH WINDOWS 8.
Go back to the beginning of what made the IBM PC great. It was spreadsheets, databases, word processing, and boring financial programs. These were, and still are very much critical to businesses. These needs are not going away!
An operating system package that is only optimized for looking at LOLCats and clips of Family Guy, is not going to go over well with any business that has a clue. And Windows Blue shows Microsoft has no intention of backing down on this.
So what happens when you need to do a desktop oriented tasks and there are no desktops left because Microsoft killed all desktops?
Yes, ReactOS! :]
An even better question they should be asking is "What other choices WILL I have?". Obvious to some, it is becoming more obvious to the masses that Microsoft has no intention of backing down from what it has done with Windows 8. Windows 9/10/11 etc, will be more of the same if not worse.
What options will you have 10 years from now when you need to do a critical desktop computing oriented task - tasks such as spread sheets and word processing that were what brought about the revolution in personal computing in the first place - but there are no more desktops because Microsoft killed them all?
> It's not going to work when it gets riddled with malware because of unpatched remote exploits.
Take a look at whatever latest OS you are currently running. Is it bug and exploit free? If you think it is, then come back in a year and there likely will be a long list of vulnerabilities found during that time. And they didn't just magically appear, most of these vulnerabilities are in your OS RIGHT NOW and there is a good chance the bad guys have known about them for quite a while too.
Even a brand new Windows 7/8/Blue or Mac or Linux shouldn't just be thrown on the net without some extra precautions.
With good practices, and and extra precautions, even Windows 95 can be "secure". Many people will choose to take this path, manage security themselves, and continue to happily run Windows XP.
> News at 11...
Right after a dozen graphic "news" stories about shootings and other violence just like any other day.
But first the 9 O'clock movie featuring people shooting at each other and getting blown up in various ways with blood and guts everywhere.
Yea, video games are the problem. :P
I bought my vacuum cleaner more than 10 years ago and I don't have to worry that it will suddenly stop working because some mega corp flips a switch and says I can't use it any more. I fully expect it to work for another 10 or more years if I take care of it.
Good luck using an internet DRMed game that long after release. I certainly wouldn't buy a vacuum cleaner if it could stop working like one of these games. You have to be pretty stupid to even buy something DRMed like that, but the world is full of stupid exploitable people.
Is there any chance Opera would consider open sourcing Presto since they plan to drop it?
Slashdot really doesn't know how to monetize their assets. If they had any common sense the "decoder" would require a "free download" and bundle spyware/adware/malware/shitware.
-insert SEO blogspam here-
It's looking even more like Windows 1.01:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLcPbsfF3qI
How far we have come... backwards.
This is an interesting observation, and one I have seen too. However one should consider that Microsoft could have chosen a different path to make dealing with full screen applications easier in a way that integrated with the existing desktop window management - rather than just throwing it all away.
Nice fucking shill post. Anecdotal experience, no facts even supporting the opinion. And this one is even worded like a catchy ad.
So how much is Microsoft paying for this kind of thing these days anyway?
Keep in mind that various forms of copy protection have been around almost since the dawn of the personal computer. I can't even begin to count all the Apple II and 1980s PC software that was copy protected - and caused so much pain for legitimate users who could not back up what they bought.
At least it seemed like by the early 90s most vendors gave up on crazy stuff like checking for intentionally bad/misnumbed/nonstandard sized sectors because they couldn't guarantee that such non standard tricks would work on every single PC out there, and most people required the ability to run from a hard drive. It was mostly dock checks and serial numbers for a while. But then they started the same nonsense with CD-ROMs.
And now with the damn kids who don't mind being tracked or having an always-on internet connection, they tie you down to a remote server for activation or to use the stupid program at all.
On other words, THIS SHOULD HAVE DAMN STOPPED A LONG TIME AGO!
Now, if only they would ban stuff that has real danger to the mental health of America.... such as Fox News.
But this raises the question why should millions of customers have go to the trouble of installing a separate program just to get a sane UI. And how many actually will, or can.
What this story tells me is that Microsoft didn't threaten to break enough legs in the British PC sales market.
Nobody here in the US wants Windows 8, and the manufacturers know it. They just sell it to make their Microsoft monkey overlords happy. Customers be damned.
Memorizing keyboard shortcuts? how 1970s. Do you also like to use WordPerfect for DOS? I bet you are so good you don't even need the PC keyboard overlays.
So how are "gamers" or anyone that builds a computer from parts going do deal with this? Many people need the ability to upgrade and interchange parts as they see fit. Windows activation already throws a monkey wrench in to this. An now they want to do this with Office too?
Microsoft is really trying to nosedive itself in to the ground. Very scary stuff.
It would be interesting to see how sales of Windows 7 vs Windows 8 compare. So many chairs would be thrown if it was discovered there were a sudden uptake in business class computers with Windows 7.
But since the submitter didn't seem to know they still exist, it would seem Microsoft is doing a good job trying to erase Windows 7.