How many people are actually using Windows 8?

[DOS]

Two words for you, “Linux Forum”, you should check it out.

 

[pallentx]

The company I just left was just now leaving XP for Windows 7 at the beginning of the year. We bought the "downgrade" option as long as the offered it. Eventually, enough people had Windows 7 at home, and the corporate software slowly had been catching up with compatibility to the point that we could make the switch. Throw in a completely new UI with Windows 8, and I think everyone, including MS, fully expected a slow adoption. Its not something you want to brag about, but I am certain they are not surprised that consumers and particularly corporate customers are going to take it slow. Of course Windows Blue is coming. Just like the Windows we already know has gone through numerous tweaks and improvements from the beginning. The more radical the shift, the more adjustments and tweaks to expect. You can expect MS to continue trying to find the balance between pushing toward the future and keeping current users comfortable. That's exactly what they should be doing in my opinion.

 

[machistmo]

Mitchell --

Sounds like good advice to me. Maybe you should follow it. Just think about how much unused energy you would have if you didn't spend so much of it bitching and whining about Microsoft and Windows 8.

Have a nice day,

Russ

Excellent logic. So shut up with your criticism.? Nonsense. Mitchell is not bashing so much as he is restating the glaringly obvious. MS isn't releasing blue as part of a course of updates, it is well known that it is a direct result of the terrible reception windows 8 has so far received. Bash Mitchell if it makes you feel better, his point here is valid and yours is fanboi esque to say the least.

 

[machistmo]

Personally, the more I use Windows 8 the more I like it. I just do not get the negative talk at all.
I have laptops, desktops, tablets...etc. The one piece I am missing is a windows phone and that is coming next week.

Frankly, I think the press/media and threads like this are missing the mark on both Windows 8 and the general sales of PC's.

I work in IT for a major fortune company and have direct ties to service providers (ATT, CSC, HP, Etc....). Companies are not buying for many reasons. The market is still unstable, hiring is still down and frankly there has been no serious change in software to warrant companies to spend $$$$ on new hardware (to name a few reasons). This holds true for home PC's as well. I have a Falcon computer system that is over 6 years old that can handle the applications released today. Over the last 6 years all I needed to do was to swap out a video card and even that was not really needed.

So I ask you, why upgrade the hardware or the OS if what you purchased years ago still works fine in a market that is unstable still? Its not the OS or PC. Nothing has changed except tablets and cloud based services that warrant any direct attention from IT.

Companies are still running XP and even MS Office 2003 is still running strong.

Follow? We cant blame MS and Windows 8 for a stale market within hardware and software in general.

That being said, I think MS has done a great job at addressing where change was needed and that is in the form of tablets, phones and the Skydrive. They have also laid the foundation to force companies to change and produce new products. Think METRO. This will stimulate things if given the chance.

Also, Surface RT is MS answer to the iPad (yes, it goes beyond that ). People cant seem to accept this fact but instead want to make it into something that it was never meant be. It's not the PRO so people need to stop trying to review it like it was meant to be one. It is not meant to run legacy applications yet this is its biggest complaint. Apple never had the same scrutiny when the iPad first came out so what gives?

Anyways, I am happy with Microsoft's direction.

You lost me with "I have a Falcon Computer System." If by that you mean that you have a Falcon Northwest PC then your opinion is a consumer based one at best. I have a PC I spec'd from the ground up and built with my own 2 greasy little hands. I upgraded the boot drive to SSD two years ago now and that's about it.

While you may be happy with the direction Microsoft has chosen, its loud and clear that your opinion is the minority and MS is now scrambling to salvage Windows8 before it is relegated to the fate of VISTA. It is quickly falling into the VISTA category. They aimed at consumers and for the most part missed. The enterprise was never a target and is basically lost as a reality.

Saying the RT is competition for the iPad is a laugh. It may have been intended as that device, but it isn't any competition. I hate the iPad but would rather give my Grandma one than EVER let her touch 8.

 

[machistmo]

It should be noted that I have used all these devices extensively and have continually adopted the MS solution as soon as it was available. The fact that I feel this way is a direct reflection of the sad state of Windows8 not my ability to form opinions. 5 hard resets in 3 months is too much. I bought every bell and whistle, I ran out and supported MS with the RT and the Pro. So far my experience has been ultimately disappointing. I don't think I am in the Minority here. The MS pop-up store in my area is GONE, can this mean that sales are GREAT? No.

Windows 8.1 formerly known as blue, another great thing to do with consumers, have endless different names for updates and make it as confusing as possible. People like simple. Our MS apps architect explained to me how simple the Apple interface was compared to his Windows 8 phone with live tiles as if simple was a bad thing. Last time I checked iPhone's had like 60% of the North American Market, or close to it.

I bought my sister a Windows 8 phone and she loves it but finds the camera so bad I am going to eat the cost of the phone and get her something she can actually use for both Music and Photos. I have purchased like 2500 dollars worth of MS products in the past 6 months attempting to support and adopt this new OS and they just keep making me regret my choices.

I think I am as entitled to post my experiences and opinions here as the next guy that is happy. OR no?

 

[KLR]

You lost me with "I have a Falcon Computer System." If by that you mean that you have a Falcon Northwest PC then your opinion is a consumer based one at best. I have a PC I spec'd from the ground up and built with my own 2 greasy little hands. I upgraded the boot drive to SSD two years ago now and that's about it.

While you may be happy with the direction Microsoft has chosen, its loud and clear that your opinion is the minority and MS is now scrambling to salvage Windows8 before it is relegated to the fate of VISTA. It is quickly falling into the VISTA category. They aimed at consumers and for the most part missed. The enterprise was never a target and is basically lost as a reality.

Saying the RT is competition for the iPad is a laugh. It may have been intended as that device, but it isn't any competition. I hate the iPad but would rather give my Grandma one than EVER let her touch 8.

I gave one example of how and why I feel that the lack of industry changes in general is why OS and PC sales are suffering. Try not to make this any more then it was meant to be. Likewise, when the iPad first came out it needed to start from nothing much like the RT. Again, opinion of mine is that is all the RT was meant to be at this time.

Listen, I gave my personal opinion from my experience as an IT professional both at home with over 20 active computers and tablets running different operating systems and brands of hardware and with another dozen or so at work. I run it all.

As you pointed out everybody is entitled an opinion. I respect the fact that you are not happy. Please respect the fact that I am. My experiences are great and as I stated I am happy with the direction so far.

 

[Russ]

Excellent logic. So shut up with your criticism.? Nonsense. Mitchell is not bashing so much as he is restating the glaringly obvious. MS isn't releasing blue as part of a course of updates, it is well known that it is a direct result of the terrible reception windows 8 has so far received. Bash Mitchell if it makes you feel better, his point here is valid and yours is fanboi esque to say the least.

Machismo --

Anything that I have to say either to or about Mitchell, I will post to him. I don't need an intermediary.

re: "his point here is valid and yours is fanboi esque to say the least." -- That is very cute. My compliments.

Regards,
Russ

 

[J515OP]

Windows 8.1 formerly known as blue, another great thing to do with consumers, have endless different names for updates and make it as confusing as possible.

Mitchell is not bashing so much as he is restating the glaringly obvious. MS isn't releasing blue as part of a course of updates, it is well known that it is a direct result of the terrible reception windows 8 has so far received.

Machistmo you may be an experienced Windows user but this statement and other similar statements in different threads just shows you simply don't know what you are taking about when it comes to Windows Blue. Windows 8.1 is just the first roll out under Windows Blue and it has nothing to do with a complete rethink of Windows 8 due to feed back. Will it incorporate some changes for feedback? Sure and it should just as any product should be responsive to input. Summary: Microsoft made it very clear that Windows Blue is a program to bring more frequent updates to Windows just like iOS and Android because the OS world has changed and people expect frequent updates these days. You are able to believe what you want about Windows 8.1 and what the update is coming out but you should educate yourself because an opinion or belief does not equal a fact.

So what is Windows Blue? The first thing to know—assuming that what we've seen so far isn't an elaborate hoax—is that it's not going to be the kind of complete re-think of the operating system that Windows 8 was. By all indications, Windows Blue will be an enhancements and refinement release. This makes sense, when you consider that that was the strategy for Windows from Windows 95 all the way to Windows 7.

This strategy also jibes well with another release strategy the rumor mill has turned up: That Microsoft will be releasing versions of Windows every year, rather than every three years. This more Apple-like approach lends itself to more incremental, less-drastic overhauls with each new release.

Microsoft executives have hinted at this more frequent upgrade schedule, and word on the street is that Windows Blue will launch as early as this summer or fall. As with a lot of the inside dope on Blue, this tidbit comes from Microsoft-watcher-extraordinaire Mary Jo Foley, who put the pieces of evidence together in a piece on Redmondmag.com called Can Microsoft Speed the Pace of Windows?

What Is Windows Blue? | News & Opinion | PCMag.com

For years, Microsoft officials talked about speeding the Windows client delivery cycle. Some cheered; some jeered. (Those jeering were business users worried about the compatibility testing and training that the introduction of more frequent Windows releases would wreak.)

In 2009, with the arrival of Steven Sinofsky as head of the Windows and Windows Live business, the talk of frequency changed to a focus on predictability. The Windows train would arrive precisely every 2.586 to 3.0 years, and that was that.

But lately there have been some signs of more frequent Windows updates...

That would be one way to more quickly transition developers from the Win32 to the WinRT programming interface -- and to get fixes and updates pushed to users more quickly and reliably. Bisson did add the caveat that it would be easier and more likely for this kind of a change to occur on ARM tablets first, given that the OS is embedded and locked to specific devices. Add that to the fact that current and potential tablet users have iPad-ingrained expectations about how quickly their vendors should be revving their OS, and there's a believable argument for new versions of WinRT being delivered annually.

Can Microsoft Speed the Pace of Windows? -- Redmondmag.com *Note this article predates the release of Windows 8 (July 2012) so this could not have been in response to user complaints but indicates an actual road map and strategy.

Blue is the continuation of a push for reinvention that began in 2012, when Microsoft launched new versions of Windows, Office, and Windows Phone, unveiled a new corporate logo, and surprised the world with two Surface tablets.

Blue, the codename for a range of upcoming software and service updates, is a key part of this very shift. Microsoft chose Blue, a deliberately meaningless name, to focus on the products rather than the version numbers for the early milestones of development. While Windows Blue will adopt the Windows 8.1 moniker at retail, other updates in the Blue initiative have yet to receive final names. It's a simple push to align internal product processes and release software at an increased speed, making Microsoft more agile. Rather than a three year cycle for Windows releases, Microsoft will release upgrades every year...

Microsoft knows that most consumers get Windows pre-installed on devices, rather than boxed copies, and the company is moving to acknowledge that. Windows 8.1 (Windows Blue) will be pushed to existing devices via the Windows Store at a low-cost designed to ensure users upgrade, similar to how Apple manages its yearly OS X upgrades. It will include improved cloud sync options, Bing integration, and changes for smaller 7- and 8-inch hardware. Lowering the cost for OEMs to build Windows machines is also an important part of Blue and the future of Windows, to ensure hardware makers continue to focus on Windows instead of Android, Chrome, or other open-source software.

Blue is an effort to shape Windows into a base layer, sitting in the background, that lets Microsoft’s other divisions, and developers, build on top of for services and apps. “It's not surprising that Windows will be the core of all the different ‘Blue’ updates; it's a continuation of the strategy,” says ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley. “That's why with Blue, Microsoft is believed to be moving to make the ‘app model’ across all of its Windows variants something that also is more shared / common.” Windows Services, the new name for Windows Live, will continue to focus on Outlook.com, SkyDrive, and Microsoft Account, along with new apps under an Inbox Experience team. Microsoft is moving towards an era where it may eventually sell access to Windows or its services as part of a subscription, in the same way it has started to do so for its Office 365 service.

Blue state: Microsoft's tricky strategy to strike back against Apple and Google | The Verge

Continue to believe what you want about Blue and throw out all the nonsense you want about how it is all in response to a lack of start button or ability to boot directly to the desktop but the fact is that MS had planned Windows 8 with the strategy to use frequent updates under the Windows Blue strategy name.

I bought my sister a Windows 8 phone and she loves it but finds the camera so bad I am going to eat the cost of the phone and get her something she can actually use for both Music and Photos. I have purchased like 2500 dollars worth of MS products in the past 6 months attempting to support and adopt this new OS and they just keep making me regret my choices.

So you made a hardware mistake on one singe feature, the camera, and some how that has to do with music and your choice to support their new OS? You even say she loves the phone just not the camera. One has nothing to do with the other. I guess you should have bought a different phone with a better camera in that case.

I think I am as entitled to post my experiences and opinions here as the next guy that is happy. OR no?

Of course you can post your experiences and opinions. You have now made it clear, the Surface was not performing to your satisfaction and you are finding you don't like Windows 8. However that doesn't apply to everybody and it doesn't mean that Windows 8 and the Surface are doomed for those reasons alone. So if you are going to say that is the case of course you are going to receive experiences and replies directly contrary to your own.