Hi everyone. I'm a new Surface user and new to Microsoft too. Although I've used Microsoft systems at work, at home it has been a different matter. I've been using computers since '79, used the usual fare of 8-bit machines, many with Microsoft BASIC, through to 16-bit machines like the Amiga and Atari ST. When it came to my first x86 PC, I used DR-DOS and Viewmax, then I went to OS/2 and Warp. Eventually I moved to Yggdrasil Linux and remained a Linux and SPARCstation Solaris user. In 2003, I moved to Mac OS X (incl. MacBook Pro, Air, iPhones and iPads) and stayed with Apple until 2012 when I became disillusioned at returned to Linux. It never occurred to me to buy a PC for using Windows, I just didn't like the OS very much. Until recently, I've been using Android on a tablet and phone and OpenSUSE on a HP laptop.
A friend came to stay about a month or so ago and had a Nokia Lumia phone, after playing with it for an hour I was hooked. Even with a smaller app selection, I was blown away by the quality of the hardware and the aesthetics of the UI. I was forced to re-evaluate my long held prejudices about Microsoft. The following day I bought my own Lumia and have not looked back since. I then started to take a fresh look at Windows 8.1, I needed a new laptop or something a bit more full-featured than a typical tablet and I started looking at these neat Windows tablets which could also run a full desktop, really it was for web browsing and writing while watching TV in the lounge. I even considered a Chromebook, but it's reliance on the web to do things was a turn off, the internet may work great at Google's R&D labs, but where I live it's patchy. I then saw the Surface Pro on offer on the Microsoft Store site and was immediately drawn to it.
I've had my Surface Pro for over a week or so now. I have my favourite Linux apps on it like Gimp and Blender, win32 games I ran on WINE on Linux like Starfleet Command 2, plus I'd bought tons of Linux games on Humble Bundle, so I have the Windows versions of those available. It's a great machine, it feels fast and powerful and watching media on it is really nice too. It is the first PC, I've ever bought and not immediately blanked and wiped Windows off in favour of Linux. I have seen a lot of people complain about Windows 8, I'm using 8.1 and I really like it. I love the metro (or whatever they call it now) tiles on the start screen and UI design, my only complaint is the desktop mode's icons look very dated compared to the modern-look ones but I'm sure that will be sorted in time. It really is the best of tablet and desktop worlds, for me, I think Microsoft are finally doing it right and are actually innovating in the UI space. Whether I'll give up Linux is another matter, I'm planning on getting a desktop workstation soon which probably will end up running it. But I'm very happy with Windows 8.1 on my new Surface Pro, I'm hoping I'll get many years out of it.
So that's me, a big hello to all of you!
A friend came to stay about a month or so ago and had a Nokia Lumia phone, after playing with it for an hour I was hooked. Even with a smaller app selection, I was blown away by the quality of the hardware and the aesthetics of the UI. I was forced to re-evaluate my long held prejudices about Microsoft. The following day I bought my own Lumia and have not looked back since. I then started to take a fresh look at Windows 8.1, I needed a new laptop or something a bit more full-featured than a typical tablet and I started looking at these neat Windows tablets which could also run a full desktop, really it was for web browsing and writing while watching TV in the lounge. I even considered a Chromebook, but it's reliance on the web to do things was a turn off, the internet may work great at Google's R&D labs, but where I live it's patchy. I then saw the Surface Pro on offer on the Microsoft Store site and was immediately drawn to it.
I've had my Surface Pro for over a week or so now. I have my favourite Linux apps on it like Gimp and Blender, win32 games I ran on WINE on Linux like Starfleet Command 2, plus I'd bought tons of Linux games on Humble Bundle, so I have the Windows versions of those available. It's a great machine, it feels fast and powerful and watching media on it is really nice too. It is the first PC, I've ever bought and not immediately blanked and wiped Windows off in favour of Linux. I have seen a lot of people complain about Windows 8, I'm using 8.1 and I really like it. I love the metro (or whatever they call it now) tiles on the start screen and UI design, my only complaint is the desktop mode's icons look very dated compared to the modern-look ones but I'm sure that will be sorted in time. It really is the best of tablet and desktop worlds, for me, I think Microsoft are finally doing it right and are actually innovating in the UI space. Whether I'll give up Linux is another matter, I'm planning on getting a desktop workstation soon which probably will end up running it. But I'm very happy with Windows 8.1 on my new Surface Pro, I'm hoping I'll get many years out of it.
So that's me, a big hello to all of you!
