JorgeA

I'm with you on that. The only reason I might buy Windows 8 would be to get the Pro pack with Media Center (we use it to watch cable), so that we can get MS support for WMC for (hopefully) three more years. --JorgeA

Paul Thurrott, our favorite Windows 8 fan, leans over the cliff in the following excerpt from Windows Weekly. Then, in the next excerpt, he steps back somewhat with a lucid observation of the dangers involved in Metrofying everything. I: During a discussion of Samsung's (possible) addition of a desktop application launcher that would include a revived Start Button for Windows 8, Paul, Mary Jo Foley, and host Leo Laporte had the following exchange -- II: Later on in the show, Paul (unlike the public pronouncements by Steve and Steve) showed an awareness of the possibility that this whole Metrofication thing could turn into a disaster -- --JorgeA EDIT: typo!

Charlotte, Thanks very much for the scoop, and especially for offering to look into one of these packs to see what's going on. Here are my top three candidates: Longhorn M7 R2 Nightly, Longhorn Revealed for Windows 7, and Aero 6519 theme for Windows 7. The Longhorn themes are visually stunning IMHO, but I'll settle for the Vista look if necessary. Of these three, the leader is Longhorn Revealed, if it can do the Vista-type convex taskbar (not shown on the screenshots). Let me see if I'm starting to understand this. It sounds like the first two contain modifications to system files, while the Vista one is simpler and maybe safer? (Although even that one still calls for using the UXTHEME patcher.) --JorgeA

Andre, I found this FAQ for UXSTYLE, and it looks promising. So, after applying this program, all I need to do is to locate the .msstyle file inside the downloaded theme package, put it in C:\Windows\Resources\Themes, and run Personalization -- is that right? --JorgeA

Hear, hear! I totally agree with most of what you say, especially regarding Windows 8. Although I can't vouch for XP (I jumped from 98 to Vista) as it's the major Windows version that I've used the least. Sure wouldn't mind it if they offered a "maintenance subscription" where you could pay X dollars a year for them to keep issuing tweaks and security updates indefinitely, that would be a great idea. It wouldn't even have to lower their profits, if they priced it correctly (say, $40/year past end of mainstream or extended support). But then, being a great idea, it's out of the question for the current MS management. --JorgeA

Count me as one of them! There are several others I know of who prefer Vista, but I'll let them speak for themselves. My preference for Vista is mostly from an esthetic angle. A lot of people don't care much about "eye candy," but I think it has the most elegant interface of any Windows release. My work involves looking at a PC screen all day long (and sometimes far into the night), and for me a visually appealing UI helps to make the day more pleasant. Windows 7 ranks second on my list. It works much the same as Vista, but the visual effects are toned down so I view 7 as a "plain Jane" version of Vista. Oh, and on my one Windows 7 system, I've slimmed down the Taskbar to the sleek Vista default width. Glad to meet another Vista fan! --JorgeA

Hey, dencorso! I much appreciate the advice. When thinking "safe" it was more along the lines of whether one of these theme packs might contain malware, but you're right that things could get royally messed up, so I will add a full backup to the precautions. The box that I'm trying this out on doesn't have anything irreplaceable on it, but why risk the rebuilding tedium that a catastrophic crash would mean. --JorgeA

vinifera, Very good, thanks! I was planning to scan the heck out of anything that I downloaded (with Norton, Spybot, Windows Defender, MBAM, ...), but it's still better to see reports from people who actually used it, so that's a great idea you just gave me. --JorgeA

Andre, Cool! I'll try UXSTYLE first and then dig deeper if that one doesn't work for me either. Most of the themes I've found on the Web (on DeviantArt, for example) seem to require patching UXTHEME.DLL, but that makes me nervous. --JorgeA

vinifera, Thanks for the info. I will watch out for packs that include files with extensions other than .msstyle, and check out UXSTYLE. A question about what you said -- is it not really allowed to install themes that patch EXPLORER.EXE or other system files? --JorgeA

KNARZ, We are maintaining a list of applications to restore/create the Start Button and Start Menu in Windows 8. An application or technique to bypass the Start Screen would also qualify under the rules (as the OP, I make the rules for that thread ). May I add Bypass Modern UI to our list? I ask because at the bottom of your post, you specify that... ...so I'm playing it safe by asking for permission. Thanks, and good luck. --JorgeA

Who said I was cheerleading? No one. What I did say (I left the quote above, unchanged) is that anyone who wants to read articles cheerleading for Windows 8, has plenty of places to do it. And I would add, not just individual articles, but large chunks of websites, sometimes almost entire ones. I'm glad to know that, like me, you were concerned about the removal of Windows Media Center and Aero elements. Personally, I do find the fancier graphics much more appealing and wish that Microsoft would let users choose the level of "eye candy" that we prefer on our screens (as they did with Vista and 7, for example) instead of channeling everyone to the same (lowest) common denominator. There is no doubt that we aren't forced to buy or use Windows 8. But as the economist Albert Hirschman wrote, markets offer two non-mutually exclusive ways for customers to react to a situation where the quality of a company's products or services is perceived to have declined: "voice" and "exit." That is, we can speak up ("voice") in the hope that the company will mend its ways and offer something closer to our preferences; and/or we can "exit" by ceasing to buy from the company. In this thread, we are speaking up -- using our "voice." If that fails, then some of us have already indicated that eventually we'll "exit" for Linux or the Mac. Sure, we can still use Windows 7, but Microsoft won't be supporting that OS forever. As has been mentioned several times in this thread, the concern is that MS will ultimately kill off the Desktop, rendering useless our preferred way to interact with our computers. Hence our voluble use of the "voice" strategy here. BTW, since @Tripredacus just mentioned Neowin -- in my view the coverage by staff writers at Neowin hasn't been entirely unbalanced, but I stopped reading the comments section after seeing people expressing an unfavorable view of Windows 8 denounced as a "TROLL!" or told to "STOP WHINING!" for the thousandth time. Not an effective way to argue, IMHO. --JorgeA

ricktendo64 (and @LakotaRising), I started this thread back in January, for the purpose of offering "deeper impressions" on Windows 8 (beyond the "first impressions" given in a previous thread), and you're welcome to contribute your own. That said, as the mods will attest, the thread has developed over time. There is no shortage of places to go for anyone who wishes to read articles cheerleading for Windows 8. It's easy to get one's fill of that. This thread has evolved largely into a place where people who (for whatever reasons) are not enamored of Win8, can come to collect and obtain information to balance out what we see as the marketing hype and boosterism available elsewhere. --JorgeA

I'm thinking of installing a Vista or Longhorn theme or visual style on my Windows 7 system, but before I do that, I'd like to ask: Is it safe to do this? Are there any security, stability or other concerns that I need to keep in mind, or that should warn me off the whole idea? I know that I'll have to patch the file uxtheme.dll. Is this safe to do, and if I do that can it lead to any possible issues I should be aware of? Thanks very much. --JorgeA

Shades of when Vista came out and vendors ended up continuing to sell XP systems -- except that this time it's already happening even before the new OS is officially released: HP, Lenovo and Acer will all have new Windows 7 PCs after Windows 8 launch Looks like I didn't need to rush out and buy a new PC... thankfully! --JorgeA

It's curious that you and I might end up in the same place (Linux) coming from totally different routes! --JorgeA

Great post all around, but this is the (IMHO) most important point! Because MS has made Windows 8 and Windows RT look the same, a lot of regular folks are going to expect Windows RT to do the same things as Windows 8, so they're being set up for a lot of disappointment (not to say frustration and anger) when they find out that it DOESN'T. Based on prior history where MSFT stock spikes just before the launch of a new OS, I had intended to buy a few weeks ago, but now I'm glad that I procrastinated. If the pattern were to hold, it should have gone up by now. There may still be a bounce in the price, but I'm not sure it'll be worth the effort. As public anger builds against MS, I wouldn't be surprised if ultimately the stock even dropped from its current level. Meanwhile, there's been another less-than-glowing review of Windows 8 and analysis of its prospects. The curious thing is that the general praise is warm, but the details are icy: --JorgeA

Thanks for the bug report! Did you notify the author? Maybe he will fix it. Has anybody else experienced this issue? --JorgeA I did, I reported the bug and suggested a few options, but the author wouldn't reply. If your Windows 8 is on drive other than C, you'll see what I mean, Wentutu can't see other drives. Huh, thanks for letting us know. I'll keep the listing but add a note to this effect. Please do post the news if you ever hear back from the author, or if the problem gets fixed. --JorgeA

Thanks, Charlotte. I'll add it to the list. BTW, check out the video at the bottom of the page, where Chris Pirillo introduces Windows 8 to a number of people, some of them obviously tech-savvy. --JorgeA

No increase is necessary. Their customer complaint strategy requires a staff of exactly two: --JorgeA

Tripredacus, Any ideas as to why Microsoft might have changed course and upped the price of the Surface to match the iPad rather than Android tablets? --JorgeA

There is a report out that Microsoft is setting itself up for failure on the Windows 8 Phone front: I'm curious to hear what those in this thread who are developers, think of this situation. Is this normal and nothing to worry about, or a sign of a real problem? --JorgeA

More tepid receptions to Windows 8 from the business world: --JorgeA

His site offers both. You need to search a little bit more. Thanks PROBLEMCHYLD, I *think* I've got a handle on the issue now. The problem for me is that the material isn't organized the way I think. If it were me, I'd have made a clear separation on that page between official and unofficial updates, each set in its own distinct cubbyhole. And then it doesn't help that the top line of the Win98 section exhorts you to: ...so that you end up jumping around if you want to gather everything together. --JorgeA