They also added "full screen mode" to desktop apps, to mimic the iPad/iPhone full-screen apps.
It's not like Microsoft invented the notion of making their desktop OS more "phone/tablet-like"... Apple started it first.
The only real difference is that Microsofts tablet offering will be able to run desktop apps (at least if it's an Intel-powered tablet) and will be running basically the same OS on both form-factors, while Apple has two discrete platforms (iOS and OS X). But even there you can clearly see that the future is iOS and OS X is winding down.
They've already stated parts that aren't finished, they've already showed UI improvements (that aren't in the develper preview)... the fact that the UI isn't finished (let alone polished) is well known...
The point of a 'developer preview' is mainly to get developers hands on the APIs and jump-start application development and the learning curve. Yes, they're getting UI feedback as well, but there's a long list of "known issues" and one of them is mouse navigation isn't complete. That's why the preview was handed out to developers on touch-tablets. While devleopers can (and did) install on dozens of other form factors in order to give feedback, that build was not optimized around the desktop keyboard/mouse experience. It was optimized to give Developers experience with WinRT and Metro and Touch.
There are regular Windows desktop apps (just like now, including every Windows app out tehre).
And there are new "Metro" apps, which are targeted at touch-tablet devices... but can run on desktop systems.
Metro apps can run one or two on a screen at once. They're full screen (like iPad apps), but you can "dock" two of them side-by-side as well. They're designed for tablets though. You CAN run them on a desktop, and I'm sure there will ultimately be many "Metro" apps people will want to run on Desktops...... but most desktop people will stay in desktop. I knwo they've called it an "App", but that's just a silly way to think of it. You sit at the desktop just like you do now in Win7. Instead of the small Start Menu, you have a big Start Screen. Hit escape and you're back on the desktop just like with the Start Menu. You still have the task bar for windows apps, and you can flip full-screen metro apps in if you like and cycle through them (or switch to them with Task Manager).
You're making a judgement based on a developer preview pre-beta, where the UI isn't finishe... That includes the mouse/keyboard access. I'd say the problem is your expectations and interpretations, not Windows 8.
Windows 8 is a super-set of Windows 7, with some really amazing advances on the desktop side (from a vastly improved Task Manager to impoved large disk management, to faster boot times, faster/better file copies, etc).
Metro apps are a bonus. Everything that ran on Win7 will run on Win8.
My immediate concern is what happens when it leeches into food, and is consumed? Especially in the case of being heated... like BHA? What are the health consequences for humans?
Well, with games like "RAGE" already coming on three discs, they obviously can't stay on DVDs. And Microsoft isn't aobut to go BlueRay.
I would imagine we'd be going back to the future, with solid-state cartridges... basically thumb-drives, but read-only. We already have 64GB versions of those. And the capacity can be tailored to the game's needs, so smaller games can be cheaper to produce. Hopefully by the time the new console is released, 64GB storage in this form-factor will have come down enough in price to make it cost effective. I don't want to see Fallout 4 be $120 just because the game needs to fit on $60 worth of storage hardware:-)
...so developers release tech demos disguised as games.
You mean like "RAGE"?
That game comes how many years into the XBox 360 lifecycle? And the graphics and abilities are stunning. Gameplay was obviously a secondary consideration.
I think the timeframe of late 2013 seems reasonable. They'll announce next year, and give game developers a year to get up to speed and get some games on it. But it will be five years from now before there are many (or any) decent games that can truly take advantage of the new hardware.
Wen calculating pie in a given number base (I forget which base), there was an abnormally long string of zeros and ones. The length of this string was the product of two prime numbers.
Arrange the zeros and ones into a two-dimensional matrix with one prime's units on the X axis, and the other prime's units on the Y axis.
If you use an app that often and don't want it pinned to your task bar, you can pin it to your start menu, so you don't HAVE to rely on search for it. I have my "most used" apps (about 10) on my task bar, and another ten "second tier" apps pinned to the start menu.
I would never EVER want to go back to the XP Start Menu.
You're aware you can pin Explorer to your task bar, and right-click the icon (even when it's not running) to access frequently used locations. You can also pin "favorite" locations in the favorites location (navigate to the location in Explorer, then right-click the "favorites" node in the left pane and select "Add current location to favorites". You can drag and drop it to change it's position in your favorites list, and you can even rename it (it doesn't have to match the folder that opens).
I find Windows 7 to be VASTLY more efficient at navigating than XP ever was, and every bit or even more reliable. "Flakey" is not a description I'd ever use to describe Win7.
You understand that if you just start typing while on the Start Screen, it invokes search... taking you directly to the search screen and narrowing down selections as you type, right? And just like the start menu I'm sure the search will work on more than just literal executabl ename matches or document names or whatever.
You can also organize and customize the start screen as you wish, grouping things as you like.
And if you really want the hierarchical folder view of Program Files, you can always pin "Program Files" to your task bar or start screen and jump right into Explorer to search or navigate.
And I'm equally sure there will be more and better options available in the beta. It's not like Microsoft will ignore all this feedback... I assure you it will work better in the Beta and GA than it does in the Developer Preview, which as more focused on the APIs. The UI isn't complete yet.
Actually, "Metro" is a "design language"... a look-and-feel.
WinRT is the API.
C# and VB can target the WinRT runtime. "Metro" apps cannot use the full.Net Runtime but only a core of it (plus WinRT). HTML/Javascript and Managed C++ can also target WinRT to create Metro apps..Net will still be there for making non-Metro apps, as the Desktop is still there for running any sort of windows app you want. And Metro+WinRT simply isn't sutable for ALL apps, so there will continue to be a demand for all the other technologies in Windows for the forseeable future.
You have yet to see any feature that is cool in Win7 that wasn't in XP? Seriously?
Drag-and-drop re-arranging of taskbar buttons
Jump-lists with most-recently-used documents and other quick featuers (app doesn't need to be running to use them!)
Areo snap (snap to left/right, snap-to-full-height) makes window management much easier.
Tons of new short-cut keys (especially useful are the ones for hadningling projectors and secondary screens: Win-P)
Improved search and Start-Menu-Search.
Vastly simplified "Homegroup" networking.
Full 64-bit support (not that half-assed WinXP64 crap).
"Play to" for playing media to other devices (Win7 or even XBox extender devices) and remote media streaming.
And that's just off the top of my head... I know that every time I have to sit at an XP machine now, it feels like going back into the dark ages and having to use stone knives and bear skins to get anything done.
Wrong. The start menu in Win7 is perfectly fine (more functional than XP in just about every way).
The issue is that the new task bar serves as an excellent launcher and more people are using the task bar, jump-lists, etc.
The start-screen replaces all the functionality of the Start menu and provides a bunch of enhancements as well. For desktop/mouse oriented users, it is currently very rough and not optimized. They've said this as clearly as possible that tehre is a lot of enhancment going on that didn't make it into the developer preview.
I think it's a bit too early to judge just yet. We'll know more when the beta is released, but even I can see that the new start screen will prove useful to even non-touch desktop users.
Looking at the graphs and statistics, I ended up wishing they'd factored in usage share, to make the numbers more meaningful.
I mean, if (say) 70% of users used XP and 30% of users use Win7, then seeing 70% of the exploits on XP and 30% of the exploits on Win7 doesn't tell you much other than there's an exploit that is the same across them. It does NOT mean that XP is more vunerable than Win7. Ditto the breakdown by browsers. Without usage share factored in, the numbers can be misleading in either direction.
I liked Far Cry 2 better. And it can be had for cheap on Steam. In fact, I got Far Cry, Far Cry 2, and the Far Cry 2 expansion for $14 I think. At most. Wait, maybe it was just $7 on "sale". Anyway, great value for the dollar. I put 50 hours into FarCry 2 alone.
Well, not all windows PCs will have a touch interface. I imagine most people using desktops will "stay on the desktop".
Most people using tablets will likely "stay in Metro" most of the time.
And don't forget, that teh start menu is the metro start screen now, so even those "staying on the desktop" will in fact be dipping their toes into metro every so often... search, start, shutdown, etc.
Right now it might be a bit awkward, but I imagine that some of that awkwardness will be smoothed out before release... though clearly not all, since some of it is just inherent in the hybrid deisgn.
Slashdot Mirror
Everything you wanted to know about Windows 8 file copy enhancements:
Improving our file management basics: copy, move, rename, and delete: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/08/23/improving-our-file-management-basics-copy-move-rename-and-delete.aspx
Designing the Windows 8 file name collision experience: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/08/26/designing-the-windows-8-file-name-collision-experience.aspx
Building robust USB 3.0 support: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/08/22/building-robust-usb-3-0-support.aspx
They also added "full screen mode" to desktop apps, to mimic the iPad/iPhone full-screen apps.
It's not like Microsoft invented the notion of making their desktop OS more "phone/tablet-like"... Apple started it first.
The only real difference is that Microsofts tablet offering will be able to run desktop apps (at least if it's an Intel-powered tablet) and will be running basically the same OS on both form-factors, while Apple has two discrete platforms (iOS and OS X). But even there you can clearly see that the future is iOS and OS X is winding down.
Um... no. Sorry. Not even.
They've already stated parts that aren't finished, they've already showed UI improvements (that aren't in the develper preview)... the fact that the UI isn't finished (let alone polished) is well known...
The point of a 'developer preview' is mainly to get developers hands on the APIs and jump-start application development and the learning curve. Yes, they're getting UI feedback as well, but there's a long list of "known issues" and one of them is mouse navigation isn't complete. That's why the preview was handed out to developers on touch-tablets. While devleopers can (and did) install on dozens of other form factors in order to give feedback, that build was not optimized around the desktop keyboard/mouse experience. It was optimized to give Developers experience with WinRT and Metro and Touch.
There are regular Windows desktop apps (just like now, including every Windows app out tehre).
And there are new "Metro" apps, which are targeted at touch-tablet devices... but can run on desktop systems.
Metro apps can run one or two on a screen at once. They're full screen (like iPad apps), but you can "dock" two of them side-by-side as well. They're designed for tablets though. You CAN run them on a desktop, and I'm sure there will ultimately be many "Metro" apps people will want to run on Desktops... ... but most desktop people will stay in desktop. I knwo they've called it an "App", but that's just a silly way to think of it. You sit at the desktop just like you do now in Win7. Instead of the small Start Menu, you have a big Start Screen. Hit escape and you're back on the desktop just like with the Start Menu. You still have the task bar for windows apps, and you can flip full-screen metro apps in if you like and cycle through them (or switch to them with Task Manager).
That notion has been thoroughly debunked already. Let it go.
You don't remember Windows 7?? Come on, man, it wasn't THAT long ago! Have you been checked for Altzheimers?
You're making a judgement based on a developer preview pre-beta, where the UI isn't finishe... That includes the mouse/keyboard access. I'd say the problem is your expectations and interpretations, not Windows 8.
You aren't getting it.
Windows 8 is a super-set of Windows 7, with some really amazing advances on the desktop side (from a vastly improved Task Manager to impoved large disk management, to faster boot times, faster/better file copies, etc).
Metro apps are a bonus. Everything that ran on Win7 will run on Win8.
They can certainly do all of that in Windows 8.
Are you under the impression that they can't?
My immediate concern is what happens when it leeches into food, and is consumed? Especially in the case of being heated... like BHA? What are the health consequences for humans?
Chrom OS anyone?
Well, with games like "RAGE" already coming on three discs, they obviously can't stay on DVDs. And Microsoft isn't aobut to go BlueRay.
I would imagine we'd be going back to the future, with solid-state cartridges... basically thumb-drives, but read-only. We already have 64GB versions of those. And the capacity can be tailored to the game's needs, so smaller games can be cheaper to produce. Hopefully by the time the new console is released, 64GB storage in this form-factor will have come down enough in price to make it cost effective. I don't want to see Fallout 4 be $120 just because the game needs to fit on $60 worth of storage hardware :-)
...so developers release tech demos disguised as games.
You mean like "RAGE"?
That game comes how many years into the XBox 360 lifecycle? And the graphics and abilities are stunning. Gameplay was obviously a secondary consideration.
I think the timeframe of late 2013 seems reasonable. They'll announce next year, and give game developers a year to get up to speed and get some games on it. But it will be five years from now before there are many (or any) decent games that can truly take advantage of the new hardware.
Wen calculating pie in a given number base (I forget which base), there was an abnormally long string of zeros and ones. The length of this string was the product of two prime numbers.
Arrange the zeros and ones into a two-dimensional matrix with one prime's units on the X axis, and the other prime's units on the Y axis.
The result was a "picture" of a circle.
If you use an app that often and don't want it pinned to your task bar, you can pin it to your start menu, so you don't HAVE to rely on search for it. I have my "most used" apps (about 10) on my task bar, and another ten "second tier" apps pinned to the start menu.
I would never EVER want to go back to the XP Start Menu.
You're aware you can pin Explorer to your task bar, and right-click the icon (even when it's not running) to access frequently used locations. You can also pin "favorite" locations in the favorites location (navigate to the location in Explorer, then right-click the "favorites" node in the left pane and select "Add current location to favorites". You can drag and drop it to change it's position in your favorites list, and you can even rename it (it doesn't have to match the folder that opens).
I find Windows 7 to be VASTLY more efficient at navigating than XP ever was, and every bit or even more reliable. "Flakey" is not a description I'd ever use to describe Win7.
You understand that if you just start typing while on the Start Screen, it invokes search... taking you directly to the search screen and narrowing down selections as you type, right? And just like the start menu I'm sure the search will work on more than just literal executabl ename matches or document names or whatever.
You can also organize and customize the start screen as you wish, grouping things as you like.
And if you really want the hierarchical folder view of Program Files, you can always pin "Program Files" to your task bar or start screen and jump right into Explorer to search or navigate.
And I'm equally sure there will be more and better options available in the beta. It's not like Microsoft will ignore all this feedback... I assure you it will work better in the Beta and GA than it does in the Developer Preview, which as more focused on the APIs. The UI isn't complete yet.
Actually, "Metro" is a "design language"... a look-and-feel.
WinRT is the API.
C# and VB can target the WinRT runtime. "Metro" apps cannot use the full .Net Runtime but only a core of it (plus WinRT). HTML/Javascript and Managed C++ can also target WinRT to create Metro apps. .Net will still be there for making non-Metro apps, as the Desktop is still there for running any sort of windows app you want. And Metro+WinRT simply isn't sutable for ALL apps, so there will continue to be a demand for all the other technologies in Windows for the forseeable future.
You have yet to see any feature that is cool in Win7 that wasn't in XP? Seriously?
Drag-and-drop re-arranging of taskbar buttons
Jump-lists with most-recently-used documents and other quick featuers (app doesn't need to be running to use them!)
Areo snap (snap to left/right, snap-to-full-height) makes window management much easier.
Tons of new short-cut keys (especially useful are the ones for hadningling projectors and secondary screens: Win-P)
Improved search and Start-Menu-Search.
Vastly simplified "Homegroup" networking.
Full 64-bit support (not that half-assed WinXP64 crap).
"Play to" for playing media to other devices (Win7 or even XBox extender devices) and remote media streaming.
And that's just off the top of my head... I know that every time I have to sit at an XP machine now, it feels like going back into the dark ages and having to use stone knives and bear skins to get anything done.
Wrong. The start menu in Win7 is perfectly fine (more functional than XP in just about every way).
The issue is that the new task bar serves as an excellent launcher and more people are using the task bar, jump-lists, etc.
The start-screen replaces all the functionality of the Start menu and provides a bunch of enhancements as well. For desktop/mouse oriented users, it is currently very rough and not optimized. They've said this as clearly as possible that tehre is a lot of enhancment going on that didn't make it into the developer preview.
I think it's a bit too early to judge just yet. We'll know more when the beta is released, but even I can see that the new start screen will prove useful to even non-touch desktop users.
That is factually untrue.
"Microsoft demoed creating new WinRT components on both C++ and .NET."
http://tirania.org/blog/archive/2011/Sep-15.html
Looking at the graphs and statistics, I ended up wishing they'd factored in usage share, to make the numbers more meaningful.
I mean, if (say) 70% of users used XP and 30% of users use Win7, then seeing 70% of the exploits on XP and 30% of the exploits on Win7 doesn't tell you much other than there's an exploit that is the same across them. It does NOT mean that XP is more vunerable than Win7. Ditto the breakdown by browsers. Without usage share factored in, the numbers can be misleading in either direction.
I liked Far Cry 2 better. And it can be had for cheap on Steam. In fact, I got Far Cry, Far Cry 2, and the Far Cry 2 expansion for $14 I think. At most. Wait, maybe it was just $7 on "sale". Anyway, great value for the dollar. I put 50 hours into FarCry 2 alone.
Well, not all windows PCs will have a touch interface. I imagine most people using desktops will "stay on the desktop".
Most people using tablets will likely "stay in Metro" most of the time.
And don't forget, that teh start menu is the metro start screen now, so even those "staying on the desktop" will in fact be dipping their toes into metro every so often... search, start, shutdown, etc.
Right now it might be a bit awkward, but I imagine that some of that awkwardness will be smoothed out before release... though clearly not all, since some of it is just inherent in the hybrid deisgn.