Windows 8.1 - why'd I wait so long?

Discussion in 'other software & services' started by DoctorPC, Jan 23, 2014.

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  1. Mrkvonic

    Mrkvonic Linux Systems Expert

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    You're not the lone man out here.

    I have been testing win 8 on several boxes since it came out.
    Even bought a laptop with it - not because of the os.
    I have more experience with 8 than most people.
    It's a total failure.

    Mrk
     
  2. SirDrexl

    SirDrexl Registered Member

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    I disagree. I think the "people just hate change" excuse is lazy and assumes that any and all change is for the good; if you don't accept it, "you're" the problem.

    If people hate change so much, why did many of them stop buying CDs and switch to iTunes and the like? Why did they ditch their flip phones for touchscreen phones? Why did they replace their desktops with laptops? Why are they increasingly streaming movies now instead of buying and renting discs?

    People are just fine with change, as long as they see a benefit to it. Granted, sometimes change is difficult if the benefit isn't obvious. Maybe MS needs to do a better job of explaining why it should be preferred over Windows 7.
     
  3. wat0114

    wat0114 Registered Member

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    How about 8.1? I ask because I thought 8.1 was considerably improved over 8. I've no experience with either.
     
  4. Mrkvonic

    Mrkvonic Linux Systems Expert

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    I upgraded my asus vivobook a few weeks back. To see what gives.
    The actual changes visible to the user are negligible.
    Mrk
     
  5. wat0114

    wat0114 Registered Member

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    Okay, thanks!

    I've no plans for the foreseeable future to "upgrade" to 8.1. As it is now I hardly use Win 7 anymore. My son uses it the most for his games. What bugs me the most about these recent Windows O/S' is they don't offer a version with AppLocker for the home consumer market.
     
  6. Minimalist

    Minimalist Registered Member

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    I've just installed Windows 8.1 on my SSD as dual boot to see how it works compared to Windows 7. I had to disable "fast startup" to avoid dual boot problems. I installed all updates and installed Sandboxie and Webroot SecureAnywhere to get similar protection as installed on Windows 7. After restarting it few times, startup and shutdown times are the same as in Windows 7. I did not find any noticeable speed improvements on freshly installed system. I will play with it for a while to see if I could get used to it.

    hqsec
     
  7. DoctorPC

    DoctorPC Banned

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    You should see performance increases in virtually every aspect of a system when upgraded to 8.1. 8.1 has tested to be faster on older laptops than XP, and even most Linux distros.

    Roughly 90% of the vectors should be faster, sometimes 100% faster under 8.1. Not just boot (which should be half the length under 8.1), but also video playback, gaming, and browsing activity.

    This doesn't factor 8.1, which is an improvement over 8.0 but;

    http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2406668,00.asp

    ~ Removed Copyrighted Image ~
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 26, 2014
  8. Nebulus

    Nebulus Registered Member

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    What about speed? Every person that has Win 8.1 swear that they see an improvement in speed and resource usage (and I'm not talking about boot times). What happened in your case?
     
    Last edited: Jan 26, 2014
  9. pandlouk

    pandlouk Registered Member

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    What a surprise...
    A test made on an laptop with Ivy Bridge, i5 2450M, that supports turbo boost 2, Clock Speed 2.5 GHz, Max Turbo Frequency 3.1 GHz. :rolleyes:
    Read again
    http://hwbot.org/newsflash/2394_

    Panagiotis
     
  10. erim

    erim Registered Member

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    Those browser benchmarks in the picture instantly made me suspicious, because I've done them myself and saw no difference. And indeed, they were simply using different versions of IE, which is ridiculous and makes me question their entire methodology and possible agendas.

    There are just as many tests out there that say Windows 8 doesn't perform any faster, or even that it performs slower.
    http://www.bit-tech.net/bits/software/2012/10/26/windows-8-performance-benchmarks/3
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jVgM_0AO4U
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duxmgWKHTIE
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eO7_xFToEAI

    I'd be very suspicious of anyone who claims there are big differences between the two OSs, because neither common sense nor most tests would lead you to believe that.
     
  11. aztony

    aztony Registered Member

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    But if the newest OS isn't moving off store shelves as projected, and you want people to upgrade from their existing OS to embrace the new one and improve sales, hyping performance and security capabilities might make it more appealing to recalcitrant users. n'est–ce pas?
     
  12. roger_m

    roger_m Registered Member

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    :thumb:
     
  13. DoctorPC

    DoctorPC Banned

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    Maybe to counter fake, trumped up negative publicity by the water cooler crowd? Seems like the bad guys here are the ones giving the public bad information, about the best MS operating system they've released?

    This reminds me of people on Amazon downvoting a game because they hate the DRM it ships with, effectively ruining the sales of a perfectly good, and in some cases amazing game for an absolutely ridiculous reason.

    These kinds of things need to be countered by good, solid evidence, along with testimonials from folks that actually run the product, or have tested it. It's lighter and faster. Performance wise, everything is better. This was already shown last year with the original 8 benchmarks. Security is better. Better search function, better task manager, refreshing/resetting windows is easier. Haven't had any issues with anything yet. Hell the better task manager alone is a great reason to upgrade, ignoring everything else.
     
  14. aztony

    aztony Registered Member

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    Why are they bad guys? Because they have a different opinion, and or, experience from yours? If anything, what this thread emphasizes is that not everyone who has, or tried the OS came away with the same sentiment, or experience that you did. But should that diminish what they have to say, or make their opinion(s) somehow pernicious to the public? The perspectives and experiences shared here is no different to what I see in discussions about security programs. One user praises the efficacy of a specific AV, tells how great it is and would recommend it to everyone. Another user complains the very same AV is 180 degrees from what the other user said, and that he ditched it for another. Who right, and who's wrong? In the end, it is mostly subjective based on user perception(s). And you know what they say, perception becomes reality.
     
    Last edited: Jan 27, 2014
  15. Mrkvonic

    Mrkvonic Linux Systems Expert

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    It's about how the system is setup.
    For me, it's always been vanilla, no tweaks.
    And xp and 7 were and are just as fast as win 8.
    There's no improvement in that space really.

    Then again, hardware changes.

    Mrk
     
    Last edited: Jan 27, 2014
  16. Nebulus

    Nebulus Registered Member

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    Mrk, thank you for your answer!

    Anyway, after reading all the opinions here I decided to run some quick tests later using an evaluation version for 8.1, to see for myself how it behaves on my particular hardware. I have no intention of upgrading from XP, but I don't want to be in the dark either :)
     
  17. Banzi

    Banzi Registered Member

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    OK we get it, you love Win 8.1 but making comments like that is just silly. I think you will find that most that don't like Win8x have actually used & tested it. Just because someone doesn't share your opinion doesn't make them bad or evil :rolleyes:

    Again you don't quite get it, the reason they are complaining about some of the DRM used in games is due to the invasive nature of it & also the fact some of the DRM has limited activations, personally I install a game & play through it & then uninstall it then a few months later install it again, some of the games you can only install 3-5 times despite paying full price for the game. Hidden services, dll's & other files & other rootkit like abilities in games IS a bad thing.
     
    Last edited: Jan 27, 2014
  18. aieie

    aieie Registered Member

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    No one is worried about Windows 8 (with current Intel chipsets) not really supporting USB3 devices?

    The Win8 integrated driver doesn't work on real devices (try WD or other brands) or works, if you're lucky, in USB 2.0 speeds (while in Win7 with additional drivers it worked way faster).

    It scares me that MS (or Intel, providing working Win8 drivers) has not put a fix on this.

    Best Regards
     
  19. Robin A.

    Robin A. Registered Member

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    Yes. I have found the same in 8.1, and reported it in other threads. In some cases Linux drivers are much faster.
     
  20. Defcon

    Defcon Registered Member

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    From what I can see complaints about Win 8 all refer to -

    1. Start screen/Metro
    2. Start menu
    3. MS account used as login
    4. device driver issues

    1/2 are easily remedied, and I'd say start screen is not that hard to get used to and there are some useful Metro apps.

    3 has very real benefits and is optional.

    4 is the only real problem and the same happens in every Windows release. Things appear golden now but when Win 7 came out there were horrific driver issues.

    These things happen because, not to mince words, oem's are utter idiots and know they can blame MS. They all have access to SDK's and final OS bits months and years before release, yet still don't update drivers.
     
  21. Defcon

    Defcon Registered Member

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    On a basic system with adequate hardware and not being multitasked, the OS and cpu will be idle most of the time and its hard to notice any change. I've seen 7 is much more responsive than XP, which it should be. The difference between 7 and 8 is less, since a lot of the changes were to the faster bootup.
     
  22. safeguy

    safeguy Registered Member

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    If you have Win7, upgrading to Win8/8.1 no matter what you think of it, would not be a good investment money-wise unless you took advantage of the $40 promo.

    On the other hand, if you're buying a new PC with preloaded OEM image, you might as well opt for Win8/8.1. That Metro thing is getting too much attention. Like it? Keep it. Hate it? Not that big a deal to get it out of sight.
     
  23. The Hammer

    The Hammer Registered Member

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    Do you need a touch screen to use 8.1 to it's full potential?
     
  24. jima

    jima Registered Member

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    No not at all.

    Safeguy - good summary.
     
  25. DoctorPC

    DoctorPC Banned

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    Awesome summary. One of the reasons I waited was for drivers to be updated. Anything that needed to be updated - has been by now, or the company is an idiot.

    8.1 actually does a remarkable job of finding the correct drivers. On install for several machines it found the perfect drivers, every time. Even for obscure hardware, like my Gigabyte Mouse.
     
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