Windows 8 - Deeper Impressions

[vinifera]

ahahah I just love this

http://www.theverge.com/2014/1/30/5362156/windows-8-1-update-1-boot-to-desktop-by-default

Microsoft backpedals: Windows 8.1 update hides tile interface by default

While the software giant originally released Windows 8.1 last year with an option to bypass the "Metro" interface at boot,
sources have revealed that the upcoming update for Windows 8.1 will enable this by default.

Like many other changes in Update 1, we’re told the reason for the reversal is to improve the OS for keyboard and mouse users.

ehehehe they can't decide anymore should this be OS for touch or classic
ah the blessed irony

[SIW2]

Vista has disappeared from digital river. Makes it tough for vista users to repair/reinstall.

All the win7 including sp1 iso downloads have also gone. win7 rtm isos.still there it seems.

Just a touch inconvenient for win7 users needing to repair/reinstall.

EDIT After much complaining in various forums, there are rumours it is a temporary glitch. Strange it only seemed to affect the SP1 iso and not the rtms.

http://techverse.net/download-windows-7-iso-x86-x64-microsofts-official-servers/

Edited January 31, 2014 by SIW2

[TELVM]

ahahah I just love this

http://www.theverge.com/2014/1/30/5362156/windows-8-1-update-1-boot-to-desktop-by-default

... Microsoft has been paying close attention to telemetry data that shows the majority of Windows 8 users still use a keyboard and mouse and desktop applications. This same telemetry data was used to justify the removal of the Start button shortly before the Windows 8 release ...

[MagicAndre1981]

Everyone knows that MS lied during Win8 development. Mister arrogance (Sinofsky) simply wanted to force users to use the new Metro crap.

[jaclaz]

I would venture to say that it is an affirmation by omission.

They simply miss millions of telemetry feeds (those of the people that DID NOT buy or use Windows 8.x) and the consequent digital silence is deafening.

jaclaz

[Tripredacus]

They simply miss millions of telemetry feeds (those of the people that DID NOT buy or use Windows 8.x) and the consequent digital silence is deafening.

jaclaz

I'm guessing this is because all the users that MS should be listening to regarding how to improve the OS are also the same users that uncheck that box to send data/particpate in the customer experience programs.

[jaclaz]

I'm guessing this is because all the users that MS should be listening to regarding how to improve the OS are also the same users that uncheck that box to send data/particpate in the customer experience programs.

...provided that unticking that check box actually disables the feature....

jaclaz

[TELVM]

All these 'telemetry tales' are just hogwash.

Forrest Gump wouldn't have needed any telemetry to predict in early 2012 that murdering the Start Menu by decree and force-feeding Metro down the throats would make The Tiles Wonder capsize and founder.

A then competent Microsoft team didn't need any telemetry in 1995 to create an efficient GUI, a 20-person field study was enough.

As Formfiller says, what a crazy f***ed up industry this is.

Edited January 31, 2014 by TELVM

[Formfiller]

Man, with all these news, I could cut through Channel9 like through butter. But it would be like kicking someone who is lying on the floor already.

Anyone else noticing that the metro-aficionados are getting demotivated? Case in point is NuMicrosoft enthusiast and former MS employee Hal Berenson (hal2020.com), formerly a total metro fanboy, now posting about how the Xbone is failing him, how tablets won't be the sole computing devices on earth and how much Windows 8 has failed.

Edited February 1, 2014 by Formfiller

[jaclaz]

Man, with all these news, I could cut through Channel9 like through butter. But it would be like kicking someone who is lying on the floor already.

Anyone else noticing that the metro-aficionados are getting demotivated? Case in point is NuMicrosoft enthusiast and former MS employee Hal Berenson (hal2020.com), formerly a total metro fanboy, now posting about how the Xbone is failing him, how tablets won't be the sole computing devices on earth and how much Windows 8 has failed.

Well, when I am having difficulties to produce some nonsensical statement, I often use the Hal Berenson's site to get inspiration.

By saying everything (and the opposite of it), multiple times, it can happen to get something right, on average 50 % of the times, and is rather easy, now, to acknowledge that Windows 8 is a failure (and putting all the blame on Sinofsky - whom surely has a lot of responsabilities but cannot be the only root of all evil).

What is not bold (and often totally apodictic) statements is petty talk and chattering about people working at MS (and how much they failed in whatever they are/were up to or more generally badmouthing everyone else but himself).

If you go through his (to be fair, once cleaned off the badmouthing of every software product on Earth , and of all the other people in the business , seemingly quite honest ) recalling of the failure of his own startup "PredictableIT":

http://www.zoominfo.com/CachedPage/?archive_id=0&page_id=1902037377&page_url=//www.microsoft.com/presspass/exec/de/Berenson/default.mspx&page_last_updated=2008-02-21T10:48:11&firstName=Hal&lastName=Berenson

http://hal2020.com/2012/06/06/anatomy-of-a-startup-predictableit-part-i/

http://hal2020.com/2012/06/11/anatomy-of-a-startup-predictableit-part-ii/

http://hal2020.com/2012/08/31/anatomy-of-a-startup-predictableit-part-iii/

You might see how much similarities there are (were) between his own "business model" and the ones he now widely criticizes.

No, most probably he is a good guy , but not someone I would rely on for "authoritative" opinions on softwares and particularly on Microsoft ones.

jaclaz

[CharlotteTheHarlot]

NOTE: If anyone is wondering ( or cares ), NeoWin is off the air ( see here for explanation ). At this writing they have an offsite mirror at http://neow.in. None of the links below will work at the moment unless you swap out the URLs.

Microsoft may name new CEO by next week, spotlight on insider Satya Nadella ( TechSpot 2014-01-30 )

Microsoft rumored to select new CEO next week; Satya Nadella still the frontrunner ( NeoWin 2014-01-30 )

Ericsson Chief Hans Vestberg Wants to Stay Put as Microsoft Continues CEO Search ( Maximum PC 2014-01-30 )

Microsoft Could be Headed for the Cloud Under New Leadership ( Tom's Hardware 2014-01-31 )

Report: Microsoft board discussing replacing Bill Gates as chairman ( NeoWin 2014-01-31 )

Satya Nadella reportedly asks Bill Gates to help with 'product problems' at Microsoft ( NeoWin 2014-01-31 )

Ford chief Alan Mulally was a name that kept coming up, right up until he broke his silence and said he planned to finish out his contract with Ford, which expires at the end of 2014. Now it seems that Ericsson boss Hans Vestberg has also taken himself out of the running.

Unnamed sources close to Microsofts CEO search claim that the company is getting ready to name Satya Nadella, the current enterprise and cloud chief, as the successor to Steve Ballmer. Theres also talk that Bill Gates may be replaced as Microsofts Chairman of the Board.

According to a new report from Re/code's Kara Swisher, who has broken much of the news about Microsoft's CEO search, Microsoft insiders say "Nadella has always been [Gates'] favorite candidate," and the selection has primarily been the decision of the Microsoft co-founder. So why are reports now emerging that Gates may step down as chairman of the company? Swisher says it's because he will actually be more involved on Microsoft's products, and he would even remain on the board if he does step down from the chairman role.

Well that's what I call a cleaned house. The original Microsoft brain-trust not just out of the office, but also the boardroom. And to make things really squirrelly, move the cloud guy into the big chair? Man, the transition to IBM couldn't be quicker! I don't see a bright side, sorry. I see another sleazy services company existing behind the scenes bleeding other companies dry. The news can even get worse too, because at the end of the day with the Snowden leaks the whole cloud might just evaporate, at least for those of American companies. Sounds like they are really making ONE Microsoft, if by "ONE" you mean placing most of their eggs is in ONE basket. UPDATE: the most recent articles are now suggesting Gates will stick around actively, but not on the board. Sound like someone is worrying about what Wall Street will think about a stagnate arrogant company cleaning out the few remaining people with any experience.


Report: Windows 8.1 Update 1 defaults to desktop on startup ( NeoWin 2014-01-30 )

Rumor: Windows 8.1 Update 1 to boot to desktop by default ( TechSpot 2014-01-30 )

Microsoft's Update to Windows 8.1 May Boot Directly to Desktop by Default ( TechSpot 2014-01-31 )

Windows 8.1 Update 1 Could Boot Directly to Desktop ( Tom's Hardware 2014-01-31 )

Report: Microsoft might not make Windows 8.1 Update 1 boot to desktop by default ( NeoWin 2014-01-31 )

Big whoop. Little baby steps along the way to what we suggested from the beginning: ... Windows 7 with back-end improvements, an icon on the front-end just like Media Center but this time for Metro Center. It was so frickin simple. Meanwhile the NeoKids are having metal breakdowns.

UPDATE: The last article there dials back the story a bit, with MJF calming the kids: "Foley states, "While there's no reason Microsoft couldn't opt to make boot-to-desktop a universal default -- or even just the default on non-touch devices/machines -- my contacts don't believe this is currently the plan."" The kids sigh in relief. Dot MetroTard asks: " Is there a reason Mouse users cannot (or should not) see the start screen? Why is such an atrocity for mouse users?" Why yes Dottie. It's called choice. Wow, such a 'Tard. He/sh is a MacTard without even knowing it. It's sheeple like him/her that almost require that Microsoft develop two completely different products, one for normal people, and one for retards.


UK government once again threatens to ditch Microsoft Office ( The Verge 2014-01-29 )

UK Government plans to ditch Microsoft Office, move to open-source solutions ( NeoWin 2014-01-29 )

As The Guardian reports, Her Majesty's Government is planning to overhaul its software procurement policies in a move that is intended to save tens of millions of pounds a year for the public purse. Since 2010, the UK public sector has reportedly spent a staggering £200m on Office licensing alone.

Later today, Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude will outline some of the considerations behind the plans to move away from Office, towards lower-cost open-source solutions. His remarks will refer to a "tiny oligopoly" of companies that currently dominate the supply of software and services to government departments, and the need to open up procurement to a broader range of suppliers in an effort to drive down costs and foster greater innovation.

What a great point. Big Data is a "tiny oligopoly" of companies, monopolizing the market, even the governments, not to mention acting as the gateway for spooks. If only more bureaucrats began thinking outside the box like this one appears to be doing. At least it's a start.

EDIT: formatting

Edited February 2, 2014 by CharlotteTheHarlot

[CharlotteTheHarlot]

Yesterday: Microsoft not the only one using 'OneDrive' name ( ZDNet 2014-01-28 )

Microsoft faces new brand dispute over OneDrive name ( NeoWin 2014-01-29 )

Neowin has been in contact with Thomas Medard Frederiksen, chief operating officer of One.com, who says that his company is now "consulting trademark experts" following Microsoft's rebranding, stating that OneDrive is "a name that is very close to One.com's own cloud service."

One.com has offered cloud storage solutions under the 'Cloud Drive' moniker for the last three years, allowing customers to synchronise their files to their online storage. One.com says that "OneDrive, from Microsoft, is a similar product - with a similar name, that will lead to confusion."

The first of many I bet It is almost unfathomable that in the past 6 months they didn't bother to do any due diligence, either research into the name or negotiations to obtain clear title and ward off bad publicity! How is it possible that Microsoft keeps getting burned on legal matters when the firm itself was founded by a lawyers son whose father was an early stockholder? Considering the countless legal episodes they have experienced how is it possible that they ever get caught flatfooted again?

Microsoft offers $100 off Xbox One for trading in PlayStation 3 ( NeoWin 2014-01-31 )

Today Microsoft announced its intentions to offer a $100 store credit at any of the 31 participating Microsoft Stores for anyone who is willing trade in their old console. Consoles eligible for trade include the Xbox 360 S and the Xbox 360 E, two of Microsoft's newer 360 models, but they also offer the credit for anyone who brings in a Sony Playstation 3.

~head-scratching~ For the life of me I can't understand how this makes sense for Microsoft? Do they really think they are removing competition by buying old Sony consoles? Really? Furthermore, isn't it ironic that the console must be in working order! With the massive amount of Xbox 360 failures and replacements they are probably going to end up spending more on this than they have to. If someone has a broken 360 paying $100 to remove it has to be cheaper than the repair/replace procedure. Not to mention they'll probably receive a whole lot of stolen consoles from crooks that need a quick $100. I just don't get this business model at all. It's not done anywhere which is proof it is not sensible. There is simply no logic to it.

January AdDuplex: Low end drives growth, Nokia still king, new devices uncovered ( NeoWin 2014-01-29 )

Well, only if "King" means King of the Windows Phone universe. And yes, that is exactly what they mean. So this is a story that tells us more about NeoWin than anything else because the headline of the article only pertains to Windows Phone and assumes everybody everywhere co-inhabits this little market.

Microsoft removes blog post on 'BootyBay' sideloading project ( NeoWin 2014-01-29 )

A Microsoft team in China has apparently been working on a better way to sideload Windows 8 apps, but as ZDNet reports, those efforts have now been publicly silenced, at least for now. Earlier this week, the Microsoft Lighthouse blog posted up details on what the Chinese team called "BootyBay", a reference to a town in the massively multiplayer game World of Warcraft.

The blog post said that this proof of concept was designed for businesses who cannot access the current sideloading solutions Microsoft offers via System Center or Windows Intune. The team even uploaded an alpha version of "BootyBay" to Codeplex, which included a Windows 8 app that acts as a private Windows Store, a desktop application that serves as a "Store Agent" and an ASP.Net MVC app that's made to be a store server.

Sounds good, doesn't it? Apparently it was too good for Microsoft as both the blog post and the Codeplex alpha code have now both been removed.

Wow, that idea almost sounds logical! Naturally it was pulled. Of course such a mechanism completely destroys the walled-garden lock-in that is the real purpose of Windows 8, Metro and the Microsoft Store. Pulling on the threads in the fabric of this design will cause it to unravel quickly because it would become as ubiquitous as Start Menu replacements. I wonder how they plan to keep this particular cat in the bag. It won't be easy since people have seen it and probably copied the demo. They have also gotten a glimpse at the architecture.

[CharlotteTheHarlot]

Microsoft, Apple helping Obama administration with high-speed broadband initiative for schools ( NeoWin 2014-01-29 )

Oh that's just great, it's already time to repave the Information Superhighway, and guess who foots the bill again. Screw this. These companies are already raping us at the K-12 level, all of them, have been for decades. Nobody can explain why there should be a single computer sitting in K-12 for students ( taxpayer funded ). And if you think this makes any kind of sense whatsoever, you have to explain to me that in the 900 hours that makes up a school year exactly what was sacrificed to make room for every minute spent behind a computer. Total time is a constant, they do not add to the school year to accommodate brilliant new ideas like computers, therefore lots of other things are now gone. I would argue that our already short school time ( compared to say China or Japan ) pre-computer age was already just marginally acceptable as educating the population to core things, reading writing arithmetic. Then came the computer-age and have effectively sliced that total probably in half, and the fruits of that experiment pretty much shows up as an even more sheeple-ized society of dumb@ss narcissists who can do little except operate a remote control and perhaps manage a keyboard and mouse behind an Apple or Windows computer.

Just talking about wasted time is bad enough, but the costs are enormous. Operational simultaneous broadband for hundreds or thousands of seats? That's not broadband, that's ENORMOUS! That would be the equivalent of several T3 lines per classroom, site-wide the I/O would be industrial grade. Even if they could afford it ( they can't because they don't pay anything, we do ) the management including support would skyrocket the plan. Then you need to upgrade all the end-user stations ( again ) with the latest and greatest hardware, and for what? To watch YouTube videos? Furthermore, these scoundrels have just found a way to make the student carrying cost even higher than before when some folks complained about overpriced textbooks supplied by a monopolized market. Thanks to these brilliant ideas those $100 textbooks now look cheap because they will just say they'll use a paperless classroom, until the kids need to go home and study. Then we get to buy the books anyway, or massively overpriced tablets in their place. This is a no-win situation for the taxpayer, and these rotten Big Tech computer corporates are here for one simple reason, to fleece taxpayers for money for equipment and software we taxpayers can never even use. Eff all'yall.

Nursingjobs.us would rather give clients a new PC than support IE7 ( NeoWin 2014-01-29 )

Simply put, IE7 users of Nursingjobs.us are eligible to get a brand new PC with a more advanced web browser. The blog states, "We determined that it would cost us more to support a browser from 2006 in 2014 and beyond than it would to help our clients upgrade their legacy hardware." They added, "We want to make sure all our customers are well served by our new product and we are serious about making this right if our ceasing to support IE7 becomes an inconvenience."

Seriously? They are clearly using NuMicrosoft approved NuMath. File this under 'Humanity is doomed'.

Why are we almost considered as fanboys ? ( The Verge 2014-01-24 )

Here's another fanboy introspection thread, where the Verge Tribers face their demons in group therapy. Lots of entertainment, some truth, much more denial, and plenty of rationalization ensues.

[CharlotteTheHarlot]

Trojan-laden FileZilla clone slurps data, sends it to the UNKNOWN. Sneaky dupe looks & works just like the real thing ( UK Register 2014-01-29 )

Cybercrooks have put together a malicious version of popular FTP app FileZilla which works just like the real thing but surreptitiously passes login information to a hacker-controlled server.

[...]

"Beware of malformed FileZilla FTP client versions 3.7.3 and 3.5.3," Avast warns. "We have noticed an increased presence of these malware versions of famous open source FTP clients."

[...]

Compromised FTP logins can be used to plant malware on associated sites or steal data, among others things. The varmints behind the FileZilla attack and their ultimate purpose remains unclear at present. ®

Be aware, false copies of FileZilla are in circulation, and they are password collectors. Not so long ago everyone would have suggested this is some group of blackhats. Now? Could be anyone, including our own friendly neighborhood government spooks.


Angry anti-NSA hackers pwn Angry Birds site after GCHQ data slurp. Developers Rovio blame third-party ad networks for leak ( UK Register 2014-01-29 )

Angrybirds.com became "Spying Birds" as a result of the defacement (Zone-h mirror here). Rovio has confirmed the defacement, the International Business Times reports.

The ?Angrybirds.com ?website was back to normal by Wednesday morning. The defacement, which Zone-h has yet to confirm is genuine, must have been brief. Defacing a website is an act more akin to scrawling graffiti on a billboard put up by a company than breaking into its premises and ransacking its files.

It's unclear how the defacement was pulled off by a previously unknown hacker or defacement crew using the moniker Anti-NSA hacker.

Click the spoiler. That is priceless! Well done. :


Snowden documents say Canadian intelligence agency uses airport WiFi to track passengers ( TechSpot 2014-01-31 )

Another part of the global vacuum cleaner, in Canada ( and of course that means everywhere else ) they are gobbling up metadata from Wi-Fi for laptops, cellphones, iPads, etc. It's bigger than just "tracking passengers", and it sure ain't just Wi-Fi, it is recording snapshots of metadata of all communication. Archiving this for later recall allows simple plotting of movement of devices and therefore their presumed owners. This is probably the only legal part of the whole thing, that is if it really is only metadata. Still this is Orwellian, our government protectors have set about and successfully accomplished recording metadata of all communication that travels through wires and the air, the world over. I expect the bad guys by now have given up on stock cellphones and iPads and moved on to custom PCB's and SIMs throwing out random pings just to drive the spooks crazy. They end up with a database full of innocent non-terrorists and a few intentionally fake signals. Quite an expensive exercise. But hell, they ain't paying for it, we are.


Yesterday: ISP block on The Pirate Bay ruled unlawful in The Netherlands ( NeoWin 2014-01-28 )

Court rules Pirate Bay blocks ineffective allowing Dutch ISPs to lift bans ( TechSpot 2014-01-28 )

The ruling in question comes from an appeal made by the ISPs on a judgement made in 2012 originally enforcing the ban. That motion was initiated by a local anti-piracy advocate group called BREIN. At the time, the ruling was quite significant and is reported to have motivated similar motions in other countries like the UK, but it is hard to say if the reversal will have a similar effect. BREIN is set to pay-out 326,000 euros in damages to the providers, and likely more down the line as other ISP's look for compensation.

Cool : The instigators are held accountable! Look out Hollywood.

EDIT: clarity

Edited February 2, 2014 by CharlotteTheHarlot

[CharlotteTheHarlot]

AT&T Files Patent to Limit File-Sharing Bandwidth ( Maximum PC 2014-01-30 )

The telecom company filed a patent on September 12, 2013 that revealed consumers would be given a number of credits to be used when downloading data. In turn, the data would be checked to see if it is permissible or non-permissible.

As to what is considered non-permissible, the patent states, Non-permissible data includes file-sharing files and movie downloads if user subscription does not permit such activity. If the data is permissible, the user is provided another allotment of credits equal to the initial allotment. If the data is non-permissible, the user is provided an allotment of credits less than the initial allotment.

The patent goes on to say that a consumer who uses up all of their allotted credits on an unacceptable use of bandwidth could be subjected to additional fees, the blocking of certain services, or even receive incentives to discontinue such practices like downloading or uploading large files.

Oh this is gonna go over well.

Microsoft granted U.S. patent for the Windows 8 Start screen ( NeoWin 2014-01-31 )

The official patent number is US D698,359 S and is labeled as a "Display Screen With Graphical User Interface." The UI , with its large Live Tile rectangles that displayed information from Windows 8's Modern apps, was a radical departure from the older Windows desktop interface and embraced the growing trend in touchscreen tablets and notebooks.

Lots of funny comments. Favorites so far: "I'm all for it -- it will put everyone else off trying to emulate it...."

Twitter purchases 900 patents, signs cross-licensing agreement with IBM ( TechSpot 2014-01-31 )

Twitter Buys 900 IBM Patents, Inks Licensing Agreement to End Infringement Dispute ( Maximum PC 2014-01-31 )

If you recall, IBM filed a lawsuit against the microblogging platform last fall claiming Twitter was in violation of at least three of their patents. One involved advertising, another dealt with resource locators while the third was related to discovery of contacts.

Instead of heading to court, Big Blue was open to resolving the issue without legal assistance which is apparently how it ultimately played out.

In other news it will soon be determined that Chuck Berry single-handedly invented rock and roll guitar 60 years ago and is owed over $10 trillion in back royalties and damages by every musician since. ( yeah right, they'll wait for him to pass away and then take his rights and assert them )

"Maybellene" sold over a million copies, reaching No. 1 on Billboard's Rhythm and Blues chart and No. 5 on the September 10, 1955 Billboard Best Sellers in Stores chart.(Wikipedia)