joei

I'm sure it's useful, (though I stubbornly refuse to use it) but I still think it's an unnecessary key created by the MS marketing department. Ctl-alt, ctl-shift or any combination other existing keys would have got the job done and I would encourage MS to include/keep standard key combo alternatives to the Windows key. Where's my Tux Key or my OSX key (though I wouldn't be surprised if Apple has one) ? Using marketing clout to put a specific OS key on what is supposedly standard PC hardware, capable of running many operating systems, just seems arrogant. Aside from pure marketing arrogance, the Windows key holds a special place of evil in my heart as the key which causes me to die when I accidentally press it during First Person Shooter sessions and get rudely switched back to the desktop while the start menu opens. I used to rip it off my keyboards for this very reason. (I've improved and most games handle it better these days) Anyway it's admittedly a minor, personal peeve and I posted it more to be humorous than anything else... happy holidays! PS --- I agree with everyone that UAC is annoying but it's easily turned off!!!! (run msconfg.exe > Tools > disable UAC, reboot) I can see why corporate environments would want it and think it's good they included it. I completely agree here and to make matters worse, MY favorite links (to unc paths) don't even work so I can't even make this patronizing 'feature' useful. I have discovered that if you resize the Folders pane you can completely obscure Favorite Links, making Explorer appear and behave as if it wasn't there. Fortunately, this seems to be remembered after closing and restarting Explorer (though it remains to be seen for how long, as many settings in XP often got 'forgotten' after a period of use).

1.) Totally inconsistent user interface to set software options. For example: Windows Explorer - Organize > Folder & Search Options Word Pad - View > Options Internet Explorer - Tools > Internet Options Windows Photo Gallery - File > Options Windows Mail - Tools > Options, or Tools > Accounts, or Tools > Junk Mail Options, or View > Layout Windows Media Player - Right Click in UNIDENTIFIED area > Tools > Options It goes on and on. To make matters worse, in Vista, they appear to have randomly moved configuration options around for no apparent reason. Or is there a method to the madness? 2.) MS seems to focus on new features and rarely refines old ones. There's no excuse for the limitations of Notepad, or MSPaint, or the built-in telnet client with no ssh ability at this stage of of game. Make them useful or rip them out. I'd rather they fix these than enhance Media Player. The least they could do is pay off the authors of software like Editpad, scite, and Putty, and include these instead. 3.) Lean & Mean default, not big & bloated default. All bloat should be optional. There should be a core, stripped down OS that installs and does the basics as simply and quickly as possible. A user should be able to add only what they want or need when they want or need it. 4.) Instead of (or along with, at least) a search engine that will find anything on your PC no matter where you put it, (and which will suck up resources indexing everything) it would be better to try and educate your users as to how data is actually stored on a computer... where they should and should not store things. When you cater to the user who has no clue, randomly saves files all over the place, and generally can't find anything on their PC, you do everyone a disservice. Things like adaptive user interfaces which change based on context or users' habits, hiding file extensions, making Documents & Settings a junction point without telling anyone, hiding user data deep within hidden directories with very long unintelligible names, etc.. don't really help my parents use their PC and hinder me from helping them as well. I'd rather they suck it up and learn what a folder is and how to navigate a directory tree. You aren't doing young, potential IT workers any favors here either. Seems to me we'd all be better off if the structure of data at the file system level was as transparent as possible. While there's alot of cool stuff in the new Explorer, the default settings are questionable. Basic navigation has not improved and may even be harder for most people. Stop forcing your particular idea of how things should be organized on us and give us a clearer picture of where things really are. Please.... 5.) Favorite Links in Windows Explorer - Why don't links to UNC paths work? If I open a window to say \\server\home\ and drag a directory called 'myhomedir' to Favorite Links, I get a link called 'myhomedir' that does absolutely nothing. A shortcut to a symlink doesn't work as a 'favorite link' either. 6.) Symlinks & Junctions points - I''m very happy Vista has real symlinks now. But I'm very disappointed that Vista presents itself as if they don't exist even though junction points are used to redirect most of the old Documents & Settings tree to the new Users tree (which, btw, is going to confuse the hell out of people...). Don't hide this functionality. Fully integrate this into Explorer (symlinks & Junction points only show up as shortcuts which is misleading... though properties of a symlink will at least show you where it's really pointed). Explain how they work in the help files. And make it clear what & where My Documents really is. 7.) All right... last one and I'll stop. The Windows Key is an abomination and to link it to what's arguably the coolest 'gee wiz' feature (the 3-D window flipping alternative to alt-tab) in Vista is lame. That COMPLETELY unnecessary key should be regarded as a marketing mistake and never used by anything.

The new wmf flaw hotfix, KB912919, won't /integrate for me. Anyone else? Update... My bad. It works. I gave it the wrong path.