Windows 8

[hood 2]

Is anybody flying OFF on Windows 8 yet?

[Olham 164]

A computer system administrator gave me the advice: wait for a year or so, before you buy Windows 8.

That should be the time they usually need to fix their usual problems.

[UK_Widowmaker 571]

I'm trying out Windows 8 (for my job)

 

Not tried OFF yet...but W8 just looks like a Windows phone! :)

[Hasse Wind 46]

I'll wait until Windows 9.

[HumanDrone 4]

Isn't the maxim something like "They get every other version right?" So 98, XP and 7 were good, while 2000 and Vista were dogs.... Hasse Wind, I think you're on to something there...

Edited November 29, 2012 by HumanDrone

[UK_Widowmaker 571]

You left out Millenium HumanDrone.

 

What a wonderful piece of software that was..................................................................... not

[HumanDrone 4]

Oops! Did I miss a version? Does my maxim still hold?

[hood 2]

Thanks for the replies.I am working on a new rig.I am still on XP on my present rig.I suppose Windows 7 would be the logical choice for the new one.

Thanks all.

[Olham 164]

I'm not an expert at all; I can only tell, that OFF is running fine on my Windows 7.

I recommend to make the essential updates every now and then, to give Microsoft

the chance to improve their product. No problems here.

 

As for AntiVirus Protections: everyone should make sure he is only using ONE;

and to have the "gaming mode" or "fullscreen mode" activated in his/her AV.

That will cause those programs to postpone all non-essential tasks; and that will

make a sim run much smoother.

[+Lothar of the Hill People 6]

Windows 8 deprecates DirectX 9, and AMD/ATI will no longer support it with their drivers. NVIDIA may continue DX9 support in its desktop drivers for a while, but not mobile graphics chips in laptops and such. Since CFS3 requires DX9, you may be able to run OFF under Windows 8 with a NVIDIA desktop graphics card until they drop support, fingers crossed, otherwise you're SOL.

 

As to why you'd want to install a phone OS on a desktop computer in the first place, I have no idea.

[FastCargo 412]

As to why you'd want to install a phone OS on a desktop computer in the first place, I have no idea.

 

That's very easy to answer...consistency of experience.

 

If you can have one OS that runs on your phone, tablet, laptop, desktop, and your interaction is the same with each of them, that is huge. One can already see that Apple has been moving in that direction for sometime, and we all know how they are continuing to grab market share. What Microsoft is trying to do is leapfrog them...hoping to lure folks into their 'ecosystem'. Time will tell if they are successful or not.

 

FC

[+Lothar of the Hill People 6]

That's very easy to answer...consistency of experience.

 

If you can have one OS that runs on your phone, tablet, laptop, desktop, and your interaction is the same with each of them, that is huge. One can already see that Apple has been moving in that direction for sometime, and we all know how they are continuing to grab market share. What Microsoft is trying to do is leapfrog them...hoping to lure folks into their 'ecosystem'. Time will tell if they are successful or not.

At some point interface consistency becomes retarded: toss out your joystick and pedals and fly OFF by touching your screen! Millions of us simply can't get much actual work done with a phone OS. And the irony is there's no consistency at all across apps themselves in iOS, so consistency of experience has nothing to do with Apple's success in the first place.

 

Apple is growing in mobile--phones and tablets--not desktop comptuters where it only has 7% of the market. Killing the desktop computer ecosystem doesn't get you ahead in mobile. So I guess time will indeed tell.

[rjw 48]

You all raise some good points here. But at the end of the day, legacy apps support has not been a strong point with Microsoft until compatibility mode came along.

I have a strong feeling Windows 8 will end this. I hope I'm wrong. I have been running Windows Vista Ultimate for a couple of years and have no problems with it inspite of the fact that most people give it a low grade.

 

I would really like to hear from people who are already running/testing Windows 8 with OFF/WOFF.

 

Lothars comment: "Windows 8 deprecates DirectX 9, and AMD/ATI will no longer support it with their drivers. NVIDIA may continue DX9 support in its desktop drivers for a while, but not mobile graphics chips in laptops and such. Since CFS3 requires DX9, you may be able to run OFF under Windows 8 with a NVIDIA desktop graphics card until they drop support, fingers crossed, otherwise you're SOL." gives me concern and I would like to understand this more clearly.

 

Best Regards;

[+Lothar of the Hill People 6]

Typo, support for DX8 is required for CSF3.

[FastCargo 412]

Apple is growing in mobile--phones and tablets--not desktop comptuters where it only has 7% of the market. Killing the desktop computer ecosystem doesn't get you ahead in mobile. So I guess time will indeed tell.

 

Windows 8 still allows traditional desktop interfaces, and runs traditional apps quite well....while allowing those who like the option of the "don't call it Metro" experience.

 

You can also look at Apple as taking the lead in PCs, if you count tablets as PCs. There are so many people who have dumped their laptops because their iPad does everything they wanted their laptop to do...without the complication of the typical PC.

 

Simply put, those who are familiar with their computers, like PC gamers, are the minority. How many users barely use their computers for things like watching YouTube, surfing the web, looking at their pictures, light word processing and maybe video editing? They are the majority...and as smartphones get more prolific, I guarantee you will start seeing more and more desktop/laptops using that kind of interface, because that is what those people want.

 

FC

[+Polovski 460]

WOFF works on Windows 8 so far (also tried on an old HP laptop with ATI graphics and it runs too) so there is hope I guess ;).

 

As a personal comment having played with Windows 8, I will not want to upgrade my main PC to Windows 8 from Windows 7 for some time, until its Service Pack 1 comes out, or wait for Windows 9.

I dislike all the simplified bland screens and colours etc too but on the other side as fastCargo says you can change things. There's a great little free utility (amongst a few) that puts the start menu back and let's you choose from XP, Windows 7 etc start menu.

 

http://classicshell.sourceforge.net/

[UK_Widowmaker 571]

WOFF works on Windows 8 so far (also tried on an old HP laptop with ATI graphics and it runs too) so there is hope I guess ;).

 

As a personal comment having played with Windows 8, I will not want to upgrade my main PC to Windows 8 from Windows 7 for some time, until its Service Pack 1 comes out, or wait for Windows 9.

I dislike all the simplified bland screens and colours etc too but on the other side as fastCargo says you can change things. There's a great little free utility (amongst a few) that puts the start menu back and let's you choose from XP, Windows 7 etc start menu.

 

http://classicshell.sourceforge.net/

 

I agree...I know it's going to be a popular choice with 'the sheep'.....but I havent seen anything interesting in Windows 8 thus far

[Olham 164]

Perhaps we can look at it another way.

Like: Windows 8 is for those who want the same surface as on their tablets and SmartPhones.

It must not be the only version everyone should have.

I guess I will carry on with Windows 7 - I have no tablet nor SmartPhone.

[UK_Widowmaker 571]

I 'did' have a windows smart phone...but it got a little 'damp'...and now...I have no windows smartphone :(

[rjw 48]

I 'did' have a windows smart phone...but it got a little 'damp'...and now...I have no windows smartphone :(

 

Ah! Let me guess. If it was a business phone, it probably ended up in the toilet one weekend!!!

[UK_Widowmaker 571]

Ah! Let me guess. If it was a business phone, it probably ended up in the toilet one weekend!!!

 

lol...I wish. I had it in my pocket in the rain...it got slightly damp...and has never even sparked up since then....I only had it a month into an 18 month contract!!

 

My Old Nokia worked through hell and high water!...not going to a smartphone again anytime soon!

[Olham 164]

No, I have a better guess, rjw - Widowmaker is an angler, and the way he wrote 'damp'

makes me imagine he fell into a brook with it - Mmuahahahahahaaaa!!!!

[UK_Widowmaker 571]

No, I have a better guess, rjw - Widowmaker is an angler, and the way he wrote 'damp'

makes me imagine he fell into a brook with it - Mmuahahahahahaaaa!!!!

 

Very close to the truth Herr Olham!

[+Lothar of the Hill People 6]

Simply put, those who are familiar with their computers, like PC gamers, are the minority. How many users barely use their computers for things like watching YouTube, surfing the web, looking at their pictures, light word processing and maybe video editing? They are the majority...and as smartphones get more prolific, I guarantee you will start seeing more and more desktop/laptops using that kind of interface, because that is what those people want.

Don't forget desktops and workstations in offices, used by people to get actual work done. Sure there's growth of mobile in the consumer space, when secretaries who type reports all day go home and watch neflix on their Kindle Fire, but who do you think Dell sells most of its machines too? Can't imagine volume business customers lining up for Windows 8.

[FastCargo 412]

Don't forget desktops and workstations in offices, used by people to get actual work done. Sure there's growth of mobile in the consumer space, when secretaries who type reports all day go home and watch neflix on their Kindle Fire, but who do you think Dell sells most of its machines too? Can't imagine volume business customers lining up for Windows 8.

 

True, from a business standpoint, it doesn't make much sense to go from Win7 to Win8 if you upgraded within the past couple of years. But those limping on Vista or XP may find more of a reason to do so, especially if they are expanding with mobile devices (insurance adjusters, medical, logistics, etc). Having a common interface for all your IT devices simplfies training.

 

I've just been impressed on how much faster Win8 has been on this old computer than WinXP ever was. If it means we get a few more years out of these machines, thats worth the price of the upgrade.