Is Windows 8 Any Good?

[dasherman]

Hi
My ageing desktop computer (Windows XP) is starting to play up big time and I'm thinking of buying a new one. Does anyone have any experience good or bad, of Windows 8 on a desktop? Would you recommend it?

[rojash]

Windows 7 is far superior to Windows 8 for use on a desktop.
However, there are a number of free and cheap applications available which can restore the Windows 7 functionality to a Windows 8 machine.

[Garibaldi2]

Why not buy a desktop PC from Ebuyer for less than £200 (without an operating system) and purchase a copy of XP from an e-bay seller.

http://www.ebuyer.com/443469-zoostorm-desktop-pc-7873-1080

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-Microsoft-Windows-XP-Home-Edition-Service-Pack-3-CD-and-COA-OEM-SP3-7-/140927010364?pt=UK_Computing_Software_Software_SR&;hash=item20cfe7863c

You will then have a pretty good spec PC running an operating system that you are familiar with, with the knowledge that it will work with your current peripherals.

[wildwood]

Windows 8 is good on a tablet where a touch screen is standard. Personally, I prefer 7 or even XP for a standard screen computer.

[bravejordy]

Like you, I had a desktop computer (Dell Dimension 3100) with Windows XP, that served me well for many years but then started getting a bit sluggish in its old age. In September last year I decided to order a new desktop computer. Dell had this offer that anyone buying a Windows 7 computer from them between August and January would be entitled to an upgrade to Windows 8 for £14.99. Anyhow, I took delivery of my new computer in October, but I didn't want to set it up until Windows 8 became available. Basically, I didn't want to become accustomed to using Windows 7, I wanted to kind of go straight from Windows XP to Windows 8. Long story short, I didn't get around to setting up my system until last month (February) therefore, it might be a little too early for me to be offering advice but I'll give you my views anyway. Remember, a lot of what I write here may not be applicable to you because mine was an upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 8.

I did experience problems of none of the Start screen apps opening when I clicked on them with the mouse due to my McAfee AntiVirus software conflicting with the new Operating System. To be fair, this was apparently because I'd failed to completely uninstall McAfee prior to ungrading to Windows 8. I'm happy to say this problem has now been resolved and both McAfee and Windows 8 are running smoothly together.

Windows 8 does take some getting used to and my initial thoughts are that Microsoft's Windows 8 with its fancy Start screen tiles is more aimed at the touchscreen market. Don't get me wrong, it does work well with diehard mouse fans like myself but sometimes it can seem a little clumsy. Then again, maybe it's just me missing the old Start menu format I've grown accustomed to. To be fair, I do like how you can "pin" your favourite websites to the Start screen and automatically create a new tile for each of them.

My main complaint, however, is that a lot of my old programs, (such as Ulead iPhoto Express 1.1 - a program I've been using for over 10 years) are not compatible with Windows 8. Nor is my Epson Stylus Photo R300 printer. I found it necessary to set up my old Windows XP computer in the spare room so I can still use my old programs and printer but this kind of defeats the object of getting a new computer. Windows 8 does have a compatibility feature that allows a lot of older programs to run with the new Operating System but sadly, this doesn't work for the two I've mentioned.

On the plus side, my Windows 8 system is a lot faster than my old machine both in booting up and opening webpages.

In conclusion, given time, I probably will grow to love Windows 8, but right now I'm undecided and wondering whether it would have been better to stick with the original OS my new computer came supplied with, namely Windows 7. A lot of people seem to favour Windows 7 over Windows 8. The thing is I didn't want to make the same mistake I made some years ago. I bought a Dell laptop with Windows Vista and a few months later Windows 7 was released. I was kicking myself for not waiting until the new OS was released. This time, when I was buying a new desktop, I wanted to make sure I was on the ball regarding the release of any latest Operating Systems.

[hc4361]

I installed W8 on my desktop as a dual boot so that I could still use W7 if I didn't like it.

I much prefer W8 - it's faster and very easy to use. The task manager is much more detailed and useful.

In fact I have only used W7 once since and can't see me using it again.

By the way, bravejordy says his printer is not compatible with W8. He need only install this driver.
http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/support/supDetail.jsp?oid=26322&;infoType=Downloads&platform=OSF_W_8-64

[bravejordy]

Cheers for the link, hc4361, you're a star! I looked everywhere for compatible drivers (or thought I had!) and was led to believe my old R300 wasn't supported by W8. I'm so glad to find this information was incorrect. Thanks again. ;o)