Windows 10 - First Impressions

[NoelC]

 

So then, would you lean toward thinking that Win32 applications not launching from the Start Menu is something that was intended?

 

 

I'd say so, yes.

 

I also honestly believe the travesty that is the new "Start Menu", which shrivels by comparison to anything they've implemented before, is being done on purpose.  Kind of a "See?  SEE?  You didn't know what you really wanted.  Nyah." from Microsoft.  Gosh, those BS half-baked Metro/Modern Apps are starting to look better and better by comparison to the desktop.

 

It's a pre-release, so nobody can complain, right?

 

It's a free upgrade, so nobody can complain, right?

 

-Noel

[Formfiller]

Had to shut up the metro on channel9 again (lengthy anti W10 rant)

[Formfiller]

I am sure the win32 "bug" was fully intentional. No way anyone could have missed that. We're talking about not being able to launch Windows programs. It's on the same category as not booting on Intel processors.

 

It's yet another "FU" to their established user base.

 

I am pretty sure they will fix that though, because W10 would be completely broken without win32. Shipping the current broken build however is just one more dick-move in a very long list now.

[jaclaz]

@Formfiller

Sorry to say so, but you are IMHO missing the whole point.

 

It was noticed alright, as it is talked about in the actual release blog post for that build, here:

http://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/04/22/windows-10-technical-preview-build-10061-now-available/

 

The issue here is that  a build with such an ENORMOUS issue should have never have come even NEAR a release, and that IF that happened the release should have been canceled, instead of "downsizing" the issue as a mere bug (even if described as "a bit painful") and providing a (lousy) workaround:

We know this one will be a bit painful but there is a bug with this build in which Win32 (desktop) apps won’t launch from the Start menu. The workaround is to use search to find and launch these apps and pin them to your taskbar for quick access.

 

 

Imagine Toyota (I am taking Toyota as an example as they have built for themselves over the years a fame for their reliability and pursuit of excellence)  engineers presenting a car at specialized press for a drive test  (i.e. well before going into mass production and selling the car, just presenting it as a "preview") telling the journalists:

"There is a bit painful bug in this car as it doesn't have seats, as a workaround you can use these fruit crates".

Unconceivable.

 

jaclaz

[NoelC]

Nobody's missing the point here.  They're releasing crap on purpose to get us used to receiving crap.

 

-Noel

[Formfiller]

Apple's iPad sales numbers are sinking fast. (19,5 million in Q2 2014 - 12.6 million in Q2 2015)

23% less iPad sales than a year ago.

It's ridiculously funny how fast the pundits are dropping tablets now:

http://www.howtogeek.com/199483/tablets-arent-killing-laptops-but-smartphones-are-killing-tablets/

 

http://www.itproportal.com/2014/10/20/the-apple-ipad-air-2-is-proof-that-tablets-are-dying/

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2014-05-01/tablet-sales-slowdown-comes-sooner-than-expected

And that are articles from 2014, the 2015 sales slump even more.

That was really smart by MS, crippling Windows for a market that was on the brink to flat-down.

 

I am absolutely not surprised by the fast slow-down of tablets. Typing on them is pretty terrible, worse than on smart phones because you need two hands - so even facebooking, chatting and e-mail writing is a sub-par experience. And anything remotely productive, even light school work, is better done on a notebook/desktop by far. The only niche where they might work is presentation to customers and very light data input (salesmen)

 

So they are pretty much only suitable for media consumption, but TVs (including consoles, DVR etc), smart phones and notebooks are strong contenders here as well.

 

I am pretty sure tablets will be a niche product in the long run. I've been saying this all the time, others on this forum as well. Not because we are so smart, but because it was very easy to predict just by using a tablet.

Edited April 28, 2015 by Formfiller

[jaclaz]

Typing on them is pretty terrible, worse than on smart phones because you need two hands - so even facebooking, chatting and e-mail writing is a sub-par experience. And anything remotely productive, even light school work, is better done on a notebook/desktop by far. The only niche where they might work is presentation to customers and very light data input (salesmen)

Yep , and I would go further.

Tablets (and smartphones) are contributing to killing syntax and grammar of languages   or force the user to write in an invented, simplified, language, not suitable for any meaningful purpose.

 

This effect goes almost unnoticed in English because it is an alphabetically simple language, but I can assure you that in languages like Italian and French (and I believe German also) where some "special" characters are needed the result is very noticeable.

 

Till the simplified language was confined (understandably) to kids and to SMS's it was of course fine, but you simply cannot write properly (or it takes you such an effort that it is highly counterproductive) on the "simplified" screen keyboard of a smartphone/tablet.

 

 Little by little everyone starts removing accents, proper punctuation, etc. and the result is appalling.

 

About this:

I am pretty sure tablets will be a niche product in the long run. I've been saying this all the time, others on this forum as well. Not because we are so smart, but because it was very easy to predict just by using a tablet.

as I see it the issue is not with tablets in themselves (which I believe when used for the right scopes are nice little thingies), but in the (false) perception (of course fueled by the advertising and what not) that they are a replacement for a "real" computer, while in reality they may represent an extension to it, or rather a different commodity.

 

I am typing this on a very normal desktop, I have before me a 22" display which is set at the right distance to allow me to see the text I type comfortably, I have under my hands a "real" keyboard (IBM M ), I don't need to look at it to type (and it doesn't cover half the screen area), if I notice an error I have arrow keys that allow me to move the cursor back where I need to make a correction, I have both a "backspace" and a "del" key, I can use SHIFT+ arrow keys to select text, etc., etc.

 

I have a teeny/tiny laptop, which I use when I have to do some work on the move, which is in my perverted mind an extension to the above main PC, and while less convenient for typing, and forcing me to a not fully comfortable posture, is OK for the occasional activity.

 

My mom has an iPad which is an exceptionally good device for what she uses it for (e-mails, some Facebook, a few games, listening to music, looking for info, timetables and the like, searching translations or the occasional definition on dictionaries, researching this or that topic on Wikipedia or similar) which I happen to use from time to time and as long as I do those same activities on it (excluded Facebook) it is a pretty nifty little thingie, but I would not even dream of using it to work with it on (say) an Excel spreadsheet. 

 

Now:

Would I possibly buy "a" tablet?

Possibly yes , my smartphone (which is anyway a very "large" model) has a far too small screen to allow me to read comfortably, and even if my netbook is a very small one it is anyway not "perfect" in portability, I would find an use for the tablet to have it (say) near my couch at home ready if I want to check some info on the internet or have it with me and use it as an e-book reader in a waiting room.

 

Would I possibly buy specifically a "Windows" tablet?

Not really , simply because there is no way I could use it as a replacement to any of the other two devices for the use I have for them, and if all I would use it for is some internet browsing, occasional e-mail checking, etc. there is no real reason why I would prefer having a Windows OS, both iOS and Android do that nicely and they are both all in all "user friendly enough", and I am pretty sure that even the stupid Windows 8/8.1 (and the next 10) would do as well nicely for these trivial activities, if I had to choose (being notoriously cheap) I would probably go for the less expensive thingie that would fulfill my requirements which may (or may not) be a Windows based one.

 

In a world where everything will be (before or later) internet based the focus will probably shift from OS to browser, and just like it is now with Chrome vs. Firefox vs. Safari vs. IE vs. Opera^[1], etc. the personal preferences would be more aimed to having available your browser of choice on the given hardware platform and the OS will probably fade away in the background.

 

 

 

jaclaz

 

 

^[1]For the record after having fought uselessly against Chrome, I have Opera (mini) on my Android smartphone and it is not too shabby.

Edited April 28, 2015 by jaclaz

[NoelC]

I am absolutely not surprised by the fast slow-down of tablets. Typing on them is pretty terrible, worse than on smart phones ...

 

It's been highly unpopular / unfashionable, though, to come out and say that it's virtually impossible to get anything useful done on a portable electronic device.

 

And why would I buy a new iPad, when the old iPad 2 we bought is still as functional as the day it was new.  Even though it's been dropped on every corner.

 

-Noel

[Formfiller]

http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-ipad-units-sold-q2-2015-2015-4

 

Apple now earns more revenue from Mac products than it does from the iPad

 

[JorgeA]

Can this really be true??

 

Windows 10 build 10074 ISO now available for download, Aero Glass returns!

 

One of the new features in this build is the return of Aero Glass, but not everyone will get it right away. Here's what Microsoft had to say:

 

"We’ve also heard loud in clear that many Windows Insiders want to see Aero Glass from Windows 7 make a comeback. We’ve been working out how to satisfy this request, and are trying some things out with this build to see how you like them. We’re running a little A/B test with this build. 50% of you will normal transparency on the Start menu and taskbar while the other 50% will see a blur effect on the Start menu and taskbar (like frosted glass). If Windows Insiders really like the blur effect, we will add it to more areas and even consider making it the default instead of standard transparency. Which one did you get? Send us feedback about it via the Windows Feedback app!"

[emphasis added!]

 

Build 10074 is downloading onto my test laptop as I write this. Anybody else seen the resuscitated Aero Glass yet?

 

I'll be sure to vote in favor of this -- the best-looking Glass effects IMO are on windows borders.

 

This is really a surprise. Let's hope it sticks and grows back to full Vista/7 size.

 

Wonder how the fanboys and Neowin kids are reacting to this news?

 

Paul Thurrott corroborates reports of the return of Aero Glass, and also reports that Win32 applications can be launced from the Start Menu again. Guess enough people called them out on it.

 

--JorgeA

 

EDIT: typo

Edited April 30, 2015 by JorgeA

[Formfiller]

Glass is nice, but watch out:

 

https://archive.is/DkDBq

 

Microsoft is using some of its HyperV work to virtualize these existing desktop apps on Windows 10. Adobe is one particular test case where Microsoft has been working closely with the firm to package its apps ready for Windows 10. Adobe Photoshop Elements is coming to the Windows Store as a universal app, using this virtualization technology. Performance is key for many desktop apps, so it will be interesting to see if Microsoft has managed to maintain a fluid app experience with this virtualization.

 

 

ALARM BELLS!!!!

Why do you need to virtualize win32 on Windows? Just for the store? Stupid. Are they planning something really funny here? (see the "bug" with the start menu not launching W32 applications)
 

[jaclaz]

ALARM BELLS!!!!

Why do you need to virtualize win32 on Windows? Just for the store? Stupid. Are they planning something really funny here? (see the "bug" with the start menu not launching W32 applications)

 

Appalling.

Thanks for that link, really interesting.

 

All in all I would then see even less reasons to run an ugly, bloated OS as a host for the virtualization, at the end of the day, I would rather have (say) QNX running a VM , hey, wait, seemingly it is exactly what the good guys at QNX are after :

http://berryflow.com/2015/02/blackberrys-qnx-launches-hypervisor-1-0-vmm/

 

jaclaz

Edited April 30, 2015 by jaclaz

[Formfiller]

What the...

https://www.thurrott.com/mobile/android/3174/windows-android

 

Microsoft will most likely announce this week that it will enable customers to run Android apps on their Windows 10 phones, tablets and PCs. The timing ostensibly makes sense, as the software giant’s Build conference, held this week in San Francisco, targets developers. But I wonder what message this change will send to developers and users, especially at a time when the company is also pushing a universal app strategy centered on Windows.

 

[..]

 

For Windows, the effect is similar. We’ve already sat through a Windows 8 generation of three years in which customers and developers ignored the latest (Metro/Modern) app platform in droves and the only popular Windows applications—besides Chrome and iTunes, which are in a way their own platforms too—were utilities that made Windows 8 look and work more like Windows 7. I was already on the fence about the efficacy of universal apps making Windows relevant again. But the ability to run Android apps simply means people will do so. On Windows. And that Windows becomes less relevant as a result. It’s just a launcher for Android apps and those few legacy desktop/Win32 applications some of us still need

 

Those few legacy win32 applications? These tards are insane!

It's retardedly ridiculous how much these asshats (including MS!) undervalue Windows software. The world would break down if this "legacy software" would stop running tomorrow.

They are thousand times more insane than the Linux guys ever were ("replace Photoshop with GIMP today!")

Edited April 30, 2015 by Formfiller

[NoelC]

That's what happens when a company believes its own BS.  The line between planning and marketing to outsiders is blurred, then the snake starts to eat its own tail.

 

That they think DECADES of development can just be pushed aside.  It's clearly all executive think without rational technical guidance to bring them back to Earth.  I've been in a big software company where a group (that I was most certainly not in) has gone down that path.  Everything seems to go along swimmingly, with money being sapped from the parts of the company still rooted in reality - until one day the money really does run out and EVERYONE gets laid off.  It marked the complete failure of the company in the case I saw.  No less can and will happen to Microsoft.

 

Those of us still interested in what's happening with Windows are more and more being convinced to step back, hop off, and let the runaway train go where it will.

 

I just installed Windows 7 on a brand new system here.  WOW, it works nice.  There's nothing like seeing an elegantly designed system again to make one realize what a travesty Windows has become.

 

They're just not smart enough to make anything new that works as well, nor are they patient enough to do it even if they could.

 

-Noel

[Formfiller]

I know, I am really wasting my f***ing time there, but some metroistas are completey in the freetard-zone (Linux fanatics back in the day) now with their "but this year it will work!"-talk:

Channel9 yet again

I really had to laugh at all the "Year of the Windows Tablet" wishful thinking going on at that thread.

Edited April 30, 2015 by Formfiller