Windows 8

rei · 2013-10-06T11:00:24.000Z

Who needs power management when you want desktops to run 100%?

Case · 2013-10-06T11:21:45.000Z

rei:

Who needs power management when you want desktops to run 100%?

No desktop runs 100% all the time.

Even if you’re running a game, there are moments when the system is idling. Modern CPU power management will idle the system for microseconds at a time, switching between power states hundreds of times per second.

When you’re running desktop apps, the system is idling for a much larger percentage of the time than it’s actually doing useful work. Haswell introduced a faster switching deep sleep state, which improves power efficiency even more.

stusser · 2013-10-06T12:37:43.000Z

You can set your desktop to 100% all the time, and some gamers do exactly that to eliminate microstutter. It’s unclear if it actually makes a real difference, though.

wumpus · 2013-10-06T14:52:23.000Z

Yeah… no.

These are the same “gamers” who believe they need 1 cpu core for every task running on their machine, especially WinAmp.

stusser · 2013-10-06T19:20:42.000Z

I’m doubtful too, but it’s never been proven either way.

LMN8R · 2013-10-06T21:21:47.000Z

If you get Windows 7, you can’t update to Windows 8.1 for free. And if some Windows “8.2” comes out that’s free for 8 and 8.1 users, you won’t be able to get that for free either. And Windows 7 won’t be supported for as long as Windows 8+ either.

If you have a choice, there’s really no reason at all to go with Windows 7. Even if you absolutely hate the new interface, which you probably won’t, you can replace it with something that looks a lot like Windows 7 with both free and $5 utilities.

Razgon · 2013-10-06T23:03:42.000Z

Imryll:

So, if the manufacturer of a new PC offers me a choice between Windows 7 and Windows 8, which is the better choice? This is for a home PC, so business apps aren’t an issue. The PC is used for email, gaming, light word processing (still using Office 97 with Windows 7!), and standard internet searching, shopping, etc. I don’t own a tablet–or even a smart phone–so interfacing with those isn’t a consideration. My general impression is that I’m likely to find Windows 8 alien and inefficient, although with a shorter boot time, but I don’t want to choose an obsolete OS, either. Thoughts?

I am a reluctant win 8 user and I just use the desktop part. There are some limitations on what I want to do in day to day carry-ons, and some games that won’t run anymore (Like Rome1). I just find it silly to have the Metro part when its something I detest and never use. I look forward to the start button that is supposedly coming with 8.1.

I did ask the retailer I bought the laptop from if it could run windows 7, and he said while it was a popular request, there were no windows 7 drivers for the machine.

Bottom line - it works fine, but I’d rather use windows 7.

barstein · 2013-10-07T01:05:17.000Z

Until you find you can get the W7 experience back by installing Stardock Start8 or an equivalent and then experience the W8 improvements.

Starlight · 2013-10-07T07:40:56.000Z

LMN8R:

If you have a choice, there’s really no reason at all to go with Windows 7.

Unless you know, your software doesn’t work with Win8. At least two major bits of games dev software I use don’t run on Win8, one doesn’t intend to port, the other has it at 12-18 months. Also, in Benchmarking on this PC - Sandy Bridge i5, 8GB RAM, R9850 - Win8 is ~10% slower.

Plus there is a bunch of XP-designed games etc. which won’t run on it.

Case · 2013-10-07T08:10:12.000Z

Starlight:

Unless you know, your software doesn’t work with Win8. At least two major bits of games dev software I use don’t run on Win8, one doesn’t intend to port, the other has it at 12-18 months. Also, in Benchmarking on this PC - Sandy Bridge i5, 8GB RAM, R9850 - Win8 is ~10% slower.

Plus there is a bunch of XP-designed games etc. which won’t run on it.

Something’s wrong with your system. Windows 8 should benchmark just a tad faster than Windows 7 in graphics related stuff, and pretty much on par with everything else. Differences are minor across the board in all the benchmarking I did when Win8 originally came out – a couple of percent better here, a couple of percent worse there… but nothing like 10%.

Menzo · 2013-10-07T08:43:36.000Z

Razgon:

I look forward to the start button that is supposedly coming with 8.1.

Unfortunately you are mistaken about what the new, “improved” Start button does in 8.1. All it does is take you to the Start screen. Yeah, it’s basically Microsoft giving a huge middle finger to everyone who asked for the Start button to be put back in.

Just buy Start8. It’s awesome, if you have to use Windows 8.

KevinC · 2013-10-07T08:48:14.000Z

LMN8R:

Even if you absolutely hate the new interface, which you probably won’t…

Right, because the Metro UI has been so well received.

Razgon · 2013-10-07T08:48:57.000Z

Menzo:

Unfortunately you are mistaken about what the new, “improved” Start button does in 8.1. All it does is take you to the Start screen. Yeah, it’s basically Microsoft giving a huge middle finger to everyone who asked for the Start button to be put back in.

Just buy Start8. It’s awesome, if you have to use Windows 8.

That is awesome! Thanks a lot! I’ll try the free version first, but seems like a perfect match for me.

Edit: This is brilliant! Thanks Stardock and Thanks Menzo - this works beautifully!

Edit2 - what abot the stupid windows 8 menu that pops out whenver my mouse dares to enter the corner when I want to close programs - can that be disabled as well?

Menzo · 2013-10-07T08:59:06.000Z

So after a few months of using Windows 8, both at home in Bootcamp on my iMac, and at work on my main machine, I have to say that it’s terrible. Or more specifically, the Modern UI is terrible, and even more specifically, the Start screen is terrible.

Look, I actually really like Windows 8 on tablets. The Start screen makes sense for a touch interface on a smaller screen. Full screen apps even make sense. But on a desktop it is so very very bad that I don’t understand how Microsoft let it happen. It’s a New Coke-level mistake.

And the whole thing was SO CLOSE to being pretty darned great. Just have the Modern UI be the default for tablets and the desktop be the default for desktops. If you’re using a Surface on the road you get the Modern UI and when you dock it at work it switches seamlessly to desktop mode. As it is, you get two completely different interfaces at work - the Start screen isn’t just an update of the classic Start menu. If you click the wrong icon you’re suddenly thrust into a full screen version of Internet Explorer, and IE full screen on a 24" monitor is very bad.

And even the Start menu could be pretty cool if you could have it up full time on a second monitor, but you can’t. So it makes me wonder what the heck is the purpose of those live tiles if you only see them briefly as you’re clicking on a new program to launch.

I got a new iMac at home and reinstalled Windows 7 on it the other day. It was such a relief to just go back to the paradigms I know. New Start screen, charms, etc. - who needs it on a desktop? It’s built for a touch interface and that just ain’t happenin there.

It’s a debacle.

wumpus · 2013-10-07T09:25:42.000Z

Shrug. Works fine for me on my triple monitor setup, I just winkey, type what I want to launch, press enter. And who uses ie anyway?

(I love ie on the surface pro though, but on desktop it is chrome all the way)

mono · 2013-10-07T10:30:21.000Z

Menzo:

And even the Start menu could be pretty cool if you could have it up full time on a second monitor, but you can’t.

Win + Page Up and Win + Page Down allow you to move the start screen to other displays so it doesn’t take over your primary.

TimElhajj · 2013-10-07T12:12:20.000Z

Razgon:

Edit2 - what abot the stupid windows 8 menu that pops out whenver my mouse dares to enter the corner when I want to close programs - can that be disabled as well?

It’s a configurable option --for two of the four corners – but only in Win 8.1

TimElhajj · 2013-10-07T12:19:10.000Z

mono:

Win + Page Up and Win + Page Down allow you to move the start screen to other displays so it doesn’t take over your primary.

That doesn’t work for me. :(

Plus, I can’t find it listed on this blog. Did it get pulled between 8 and 8.1?

http://www.nextgentricks.com/microsoft-windows-8-1-keyboard-shortcuts/

stusser · 2013-10-07T12:33:05.000Z

Yeah, I don’t mind the start screen at all. I miss the taskbar popping up when I hit ctrl-esc, and I despise the separated search, but they’re fixing that in 8.1.

LMN8R · 2013-10-07T13:26:57.000Z

In 8.1 it’s also fixed so the start screen can stay up on one monitor while you do something else on another monitor, so there’s that at least.