Still don't really buy it. True, i don't have Win8, but assuming i had followed the trend and upgraded, why should i, an advanced power user, have to be bothered with the casual interface every single time i start up every one of my computers? Sure, i can agree with having it appear the first time. After that, power users should have been able to change to the regular desktop permanently from launch day. The effort involved on Microsoft's part would have been infinitesimal. The gain in productivity and goodwill from the user base would have been enormous.

Some of the articles i read indicated that Microsoft was intending to not include the preference in version 8.1 either, but was railroaded into it by all the negative feedback and caved. Yeah, there is something to be said for "seeing the light of the future" and pushing it on your users unwanted when you know it's in their best interests. On the other hand, when the change is so drastic and a lot of the world not only shows you they hate it, but it's of no benefit to them nor ever will be, you ought to listen to that too.

>>power users should have been able to change to the regular desktop permanently from launch day.

I believe you can with Windows 8.1

Configuring Windows 8.1 to boot to the desktop should take less than a minute.

just use iobit.com's start menu on 8 and everything is NORMAL again.

Actually I use Classic Shell and this provided in Windows 8 the ability to go directly to the desktop. With Windows 8.1 MS allowed us to do this. I still use Classic Shell because I like the menu system is also offers. Its free and a brilliant solution. Consequently I never see the MI unless I want to. This also offers the power user a lot of options. None of which are available to Windows 7 user. What I mean by this is they can't run apps where a Windows 8 user can.

Oh, and if you think it adds CPU overhead or slows down the system it doesn't because it is well written.

Power users have traditionally added utility programs to their Windows installation and this is one of the very best.

"Configuring Windows 8.1 to boot to the desktop should take less than a minute."

My point was that this should have been possible in the original Win8 from the day it was available for download.

First of all, in the original release of Windows 8, you could get to the desktop with ONE mouse click, is that REALLY so difficult?

Secondly, in Windows 8.1, you could easily set it up to go straight to the desktop.

Lastly, in an update scheduled to be released as early as next month, the desktop mode will automatically be the default for those on non-touch devices.

yes. their new idea of the desktop was way less useful than the older start menu. I understand people that can use metro would not need the tools we need to fly around windows (like Classic Shell or Iobit) but for us, it opens up way more stuff faster than metro or the Metro's "Desktop" that is only a click away.

wow. Much debate.
On my editing box I run 3 system drives-
Win 7 64
Win 8.1 64
and OS X Mountain Lion.
They all have their strengths.... and a few weaknesses.
Bottom line though, is that they are all very nice to use.
If you put in some time to learn the keyboard shortcuts, add some custom context menus, and however else you want to customise the GUI, you can edit and work very well on any of them.
Side note- Preview performance in Vegas is still faster in Win 7 than Win 8 with same hardware.

Jedman

Have a look a this thread as It may help you with your Win8 preview performance. http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/forums/ShowMessage.asp?MessageID=885247&Replies=27

Thanks. Will try it out.
Cheers

>> I can find absolutely nothing whatsoever -- nothing -- that I like better
>> about Windows 7 compared to XP

I have 8G of memory, I have 4G of reasons to prefer Win7/8/8.1 over XP. XP is like DOS. Dead.

>> If you do switch it off it doesn't load any quicker

This is not in accordance with reality.

>> has a negative impact on productivity (at least it does on mine).

Install Start8 or one of the other alternatives. There is no UI difference between Windows8 in desktop mode and Windows 7, but Win8 is somewhat more performant.

The Desktop UI inWin8 is actually what you get when you switch Aero Off in Windows 7 and set it for Performance; that will give you the some performance in Win7 as Win8 and the same "flat" Win2k look.
So again.. we are buying a new OS and tweak it to make it look like the old one? I hate the Metro Apps, the only operate in full screen, what nonsense is that. So why would I change? From XP to Win7 that is a leap forward but 7 to 8 is almost going backwards.

Well now, there's an interesting thought! Microsoft should examine the Linux model, where the OS and the GUI/shell are separate entities, and can be mixed and matched at will. Might be nice to have the Win8 OS, with the XP or 7 GUI natively running on top of it. This would also let people launch alternative GUIs or even have them running in different screens at the same time.

Have to agree with OldSmoke about Aero. It was an ugly waste of time and resources.

Went from 7 to 8 and then 8.1 and hated it. Despite MS's app that stated everything was compatible with my system, it was not. For instance, here's how I was burned. My chipset drivers were OK with 8, but not compatible when I upgraded to 8.1 and the system eventually crashed. Also, Cineform would not work correctly with Canon MOV files with no fix to be created.

It's taking me for what seems like forever to reformat the hard drive and return to 7.

I'll never go back to 8.X on this system.

Windows 8 has desktop graphics acceleration. http://www.extremetech.com/computing/133318-windows-8-graphics-microsoft-has-hardware-accelerated-all-the-things

The link above will set the record straight Aero was meant to take the redrawing of the desktop off the CPU and have the GPU handle it directly.

AH-ha! That could 'splain it. I'm not sure i've ever had a video card with a GPU in any of my desktops. The transparency effects always slow everything to a crawl, in addition to being ugly and distracting.

Thats interesting. If you have a graphic card you have a GPU. Even if you have built in graphics you still have a GPU. It is the way most computers work.

Well, ok, true, every singe graphics card ever produced has a GPU, of some primitive sort, that handles internal computations necessary to drive the display.

What i don't have is video cards with an externally accessible general purpose GPU that can be used by software running on the computer. Never saw the need for one. Keep in mind that i tend to pay $15 or less for my video cards.

I bought a new Vaio E Series laptop with Win 8 installed last April. I upgraded to 8.1 in November. Since then I've had repeated stability problems. (Had one right out of the box with 8.0, but no repeated instances. Contracted ransom virus while current Norton was in place, but reinstalled without incident.) Seems to be a memory thing. Maybe RAM/cram. I'm not running any exotic software. I don't use the Creative series much. External monitor, mouse, & keyboard sometimes. But the crashes happen whether ext. peripherals are connected or not. I just need to have a # of windows open and apps, again, nothing exotic, Word, Excel, browser (thought it might be IE, but it happens with FFox & Chrome also), and freeze, then crash. Had to reload OS twice, though more often I just have to do a master reset and start everything back up. Seems I can count on this at least every couple of weeks, or so.

WIndows 8.1 has been solid for me with Vegas 11. Built a new computer last summer and finally decided to get modern with 8 (now 8.1). Boots very fast with an SSD HD and runs very smooth and fast. I also use the Classic Shell which makes it look just like 7. Don't be afraid and get stuck with a semi-obsolete operating system. 8.1 is already gettin old....FYI I use mostly Canon .mov files with no problems.