Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by cjc1083 4988 days ago
Windows has always been the base OS on my home computers. I've used a separate ESXi box, or local virtual box VMs for development. Thus far windows 8 tells me that it is time for me to shift totally to Linux and just sacrifice gaming, which was the sole reason I held onto my windows 7 environment on my primary home PC's. I also dread the day I will have to deal with it at work. I have between 20-30 windows open at any given time with anything from ArcSight to multiple putty sessions running. How will that possibly translate to this blocky touch screen interface?

I can't be alone in this feeling, although I do feel a bit like the old man yelling at kids to get off his lawn..

I really can't stand this environment and

3 comments

> Thus far windows 8 tells me that it is time for me to shift totally to Linux

This is like saying you're going to sell your Toyota because Toyota just released a car that you don't like.

Why all the drama? Just stick to Windows 7, which will be supported for years to come.

If it becomes apparent that your platform is not a good fit then it's better to move sooner than later. That said, if Win8 is enough to put you off, I'm not sure what lies ahead for you on Linux.
I didn't get along with Windows Vista but I quite like Windows 7, I hated OS X 10.7 but I like 10.8.2 again. There must be many examples like this - it's hard to predict what kind of beast Windows 9 will be.
You know that the regular desktop interface is still there, just as it was in Windows 7, Vista, etc., right? You could be using Windows 8 and never have to see the Metro interface, save for when you are doing a search for an app.
Yes, it's still there, in the same way that MS-DOS was still there in your shiny new copy of Windows 95. And as with DOS in Win95, the primacy of the new environment lays down a clear marker that Microsoft is going in a different direction from now on, so if the "legacy" environment is the one you prefer you should start planning to either live without it or move to a different OS.

You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows, etc.

As someone who's been using Windows 8 since it launched on technet, I would like to politely disagree with you.

>never have to see the Metro interface

This is a total exaggeration. When you boot up, Metro. Want to go to start and launch a program (like 99% of the general public would do)? Metro. Certain PC settings not available on the control panel? Metro. Accidentally click on the corners of the screen? Metro.

My main gripe is that the computer boots into Metro with desktop as an option instead of the inverse.

the problen with this viewpoint is that metro represents a fundamental shift in the window system. Stuff like appstore only, forced sandboxing and tons of restrictions that have never been an issue on windows before. Microsoft has made it very clear this is how they think everything windows should be moving forward.

Desktop mode might be there for now, but how comfortable should a user remain when everything that gives the system value for them just got marked "legacy"

I for one am moving away from windows as much as i can

What gives you the idea that Desktop mode is "legacy" mode?
People have been saying these types of comments since Windows 95
>I have between 20-30 windows open at any given time with anything from ArcSight to multiple putty sessions running. How will that possibly translate to this blocky touch screen interface?

You have even more space on your taskbar to put your 20 to 30 windows now that the start button is gone and you can have a separate task bar per monitor. I seriously don't understand how the so called blocky touch interface changes anything about managing 20 to 30 windows.