Windows 8: one step forward, two steps back (Column)

Majority of users will not care... Windows 8 will be the biggest OS Microsoft has ever released in more than just sales figures... It is will be the biggest driving force behind moving the computing world into desktop touch environments...
 
recre8 said:
Another question: Would anyone consider the future uptake of Linux threatened if Microsoft made a entry level version of Windows freely available that caters for people who mostly read e-mail, facebook and twitter, watch movies, etc. (i.e. most home users).

Windows 7 Stater Edition, although not readily available, sells for about R300-R400 and can do almost everything the average user wants to do. It has the familiarity of Windows, which they know, it can run Word, go on the internet. Microsoft already provides the Express editions of Visual Studio and SQL Server for free. I actually use the Express editions when I bring work home. So... lets say Microsoft significantly cuts the price of Windows Starter Edition to say about R100 or even provides it free of charge. Would it threaten Linux as a desktop operating system? Keeping in mind the question is aimed specifically at desktop OS, not as a server OS.
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I would really really welcome this move. My biggest issue with Windows is the R1000 to R2000 it ads to a PC's price. Many times I am also forced to take it even when I want to install another OS.

Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
 
Elimentals said:
I would really really welcome this move. My biggest issue with Windows is the R1000 to R2000 it ads to a PC's price. Many times I am also forced to take it even when I want to install another OS.

Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
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I completely agree with you. This would be an incredible move. As I see it, the biggest "development costs" of Windows are the parts that are business oriented: active directory with all its group policies and trees and forests etc. I would happily pay R500 for Windows on my home computer, but I agree, the almost R2000 I paid for OEM copy of Windows Ultimate is just too much. On the other hand the almost R6000 I just had to fork out for new disks and pads for my car is also too much and they will probably only last a year.
 
Elimentals said:
I would really really welcome this move. My biggest issue with Windows is the R1000 to R2000 it ads to a PC's price. Many times I am also forced to take it even when I want to install another OS.

Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
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Yet we have no issues spending 5-20/30k on pc parts but an OS for 1k? WTF are you mad, i run a 10k gpu system and i reckon 1.5k for an OS is just fine.

Take windows xp i bought pro for 1k 6 years later i was still using it. R3.20 a month :eek: F me that is crazy.
 
Microsoft will require computers with the "Designed for Windows 8" logo to use UEFI with secure booting enabled by default. Red Hat developer Matthew Garrett raised concerns over the requirement for secure booting to be enabled by default and Microsoft responded by saying that there was no mandate from Microsoft that prevents secure booting from being disabled in firmware.
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"OH GOD MICROSOFT IS FORCING US TO DO X AND LOCKING OUT LINUX oh wait if only I used my brain and read up about UEFI I would have known the truth" - every linux user ever also this columnist.

http://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-clarifies-windows-8-uefi-concerns - UEFI is optional
 
killadoob said:
Yet we have no issues spending 5-20/30k on pc parts but an OS for 1k? WTF are you mad, i run a 10k gpu system and i reckon 1.5k for an OS is just fine.

Take windows xp i bought pro for 1k 6 years later i was still using it. R3.20 a month :eek: F me that is crazy.
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I am not saying the OS is overpriced. I am saying in order to buy systems to use for Linux I have to either pay the R1000 on something I will never use or build my own systems, so I would love it if they gave free Windows starterpacks just so I can legally get a system without the overhead esp when it comes to laptops where you have no choice at all.

1 or 2 PC's the R1000+ is fine but when you do a farm of 80 PC's then you can see how it start costing a business money on something they will never use.
 
recre8 said:
Its such a pity that open source supporters more than often can only look at the negative and completely disregard any cool new features in a commercial operating system. That and they always to tend to refer to Microsoft as M$
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Do you live in Seattle? Do you work for M$? It’s that big place directly under the roiling black cloud. It's got all the millionaire employees.
 
RaptorSA said:
It's amazing how much "freedom" the average person is willing to give up for those attributes...for a damn good reason.
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That’s how a police state originates. Tyrants rely on this. It's amazing how much "freedom" the average person is willing to give up to feel safe and secure.
 
Basjohn said:
You cannot do away with Metro unless using a registry hack (which may or may not work for the retail). Going out of Metro normally puts you back into Metro anytime you try and do ANYTHING like say.......open the start menu. 8 seems to think tablets first and desktops last.
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If this is true then it is a mistake that will be corrected in the final release. AFAIK you just press ONE button to access normal desktop mode. If it bounces you back then it will be fixed because METRO is only for touch... well... it is best used by touch interfaces, which is where Windows 8 is taking us...
 
Nothing interesting here...

I'd like to see a follow up article from Andrew the open source enthusiast on the support added for Hadoop in an upcoming SQL server.
 
antowan said:
If this is true then it is a mistake that will be corrected in the final release. AFAIK you just press ONE button to access normal desktop mode. If it bounces you back then it will be fixed because METRO is only for touch... well... it is best used by touch interfaces, which is where Windows 8 is taking us...
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Yep metro is your new start menu as per Microsoft, there will be no more start menu as we know it.

At least they listened to some suggestions from developers and made some changes to how it looks/works
 
Bump

Does anyone know whether there has been an update to the version that you can download on the MS website? I can't see a version number on the website.
I'm currently on Build 8102.winmain_win8m3
 
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