Hello Zzzzzz and welcome.
Anyone using Windows 8.1 or Windows 10 and not using apps is IMHO, an *****. And the fact the users and developers aren't aware of the benefits of switching to the app model really just shows how stupidly obstinate people can be. It really does seem that some people want time to have stopped in 1995.
Here are some of the benefits of the Microsoft Store and the app model:
1. Provenance - Provenance is a big word from the worlds of art and law. One way of proving a painting is genuine is to have documentation of each and every owner of the piece right from when it was painted, a bit like the service history of a used car. Similarly, if you download the Facebook app, you know it's genuine because the Store shows you it's published by Facebook Inc. There are other Facebook apps available, but you can be certain you have the genuine article, because Microsoft manages the Store. How can you be certain you're getting the genuine article when it's easy for malware to block a genuine website and redirect you to a malicious one?
2. Apps are vetted and blocked if there have suspicious behaviours. It's very difficult to use an app as a Trojan to smuggle malware on to a computer.
3. It's easy to find and download apps. We've all suffered download.com, where the download button for the apps (or as we used to call them, programs) isn't as prominent as the one on the advert and where we have to be careful not to install a Yahoo search bar into our browser. None of that rubbish with the Microsoft Store.
4. A more level playing field for developers. Because the Store searches by relevance, smaller developers aren't at such a disadvantage against the big boys and because the apps are star rated, it's easier for users to make a good selection.
5. App behaviours are consistent. All apps run under the modern UI and so behave in a similar way, so users aren't faced with such a steep learning curve with every app. Every app can be snapped, shared from/to, et cetera, in the same way.
6. More convenient. Just this morning I switched from logging on to Facebook in Edge/Internet Explorer, to using the Facebook app. Not only do I get the security enhancements I've already detailed, but I can forget about cookies and malicious scripts. On top of that I get easy sharing to Facebook, Window's fantastic multi-tasking and a Live Tile.
7. Live Tiles. In my opinion the reaction to Windows 8 was completely irrational and a shameful failure to adapt. Yes, Microsoft could have done more to make Windows 8's features clearer and easier to discover; but lumping Windows 8 in with Millennium and Vista is unjust and Apple would just love OS X to have Windows 8's user numbers.
One of the things which makes the world of technology compelling is it's one area in life where there's indisputable progress. When I soldered my first computer together, I was presented with nothing more than a blinking cursor. In order to get something done, I either had to write a program or buy one and load it every time I wanted to run it. Then cassettes gave way to floppy discs, to hard drives so programs could be installed and run more conveniently. Command lines, gave way to GUIs, GUIs became touch sensitive and now, with Live Tiles, GUIs become dynamic and even proactive.
I work in conjunction with a major airline, so it's good for me to know what the weather is like in the various destinations they fly to, so that when a passenger asks I can answer. This is done by adding these destinations to the favourites in the MSN Weather app and the Live Tile presents me with this information. Similarly, The MSN News app presents me with headlines, keeping me up to date. All without losing any of the function of a static icon. Indeed, I have some control over how much information is presented by adjusting how much screen space I allot to it. Live Tiles have the effect of raising the consciousness of their users by improving their awareness.
Live Tiles have another big advantage over the static UIs of Android, iOS, Chrome and OS X; room for development. For instance, as well as being dynamic, tiles could include interactivity. Imagine a music player with playback controls presented in the Live Tile - one of the big complaints Windows Phone used to suffer from was the inability to control volume separately for notifications and music - well with interactive tiles, you could control volume app by app. Imagine a calculator tile which enlarges at a touch when you want to do a quick calculation and then shrinks back to a tile when you're done. Both these scenarios I have seen working on a leaked video from Microsoft. I was hoping they'd be introduced with Windows 10, but I guess I'm going to have to wait a little longer. (That's the end of point 7, btw.)
8. Universal Apps. It really cannot be stressed strongly enough what an advantage this is, because whether it's a desk top, tablet or phone, it's really just a computer. The separate categories are a historical accident caused by the limitations of the platforms, limitations which are shrinking as processors and memory improve. There's no logical reason for any distinction between iOS and OS X now that Qualcomm processors are powerful enough. Apple could integrate iOS and OS X the way Microsoft have done with Windows 10, you can use Bluetooth Mouse and Keyboards on an iPad and there's no logical reason OS X can't introduce touch, but that's the limitation that has been imposed by a failure of imagination at Apple. Similarly, the only reason Instagram might not make a universal app for Windows 10 is the failure of imagination of seeing Instagram as a mobile only service, when they should be concentrating on their users, not their devices. With this in mind, why should users divide their attention between their PC and their phone when one app can address them wherever they are? We all have to think outside the box sometimes you know.
9. (For companies only) At the moment, you are entirely at the mercy of your users. If they don't open your app, they won't see your content and the advertising that goes with it. If they get out of the habit, they may never come back. Why would you want that when you could view the Live Tile as a billboard, your opportunity to catch your user's attention and entice them into your service and your advertising? Quite inadvertently, Microsoft have offered you this unprecedented opportunity. Are you going to waste it, because you think Microsoft are fuddy-duddy old aunties, who never innovate. Look at boring old iOS, OS X, Android and Chrome, with their staid and dated icons and then see the innovation in Window's lively and informative approach.
Finally, let me reiterate that whether it's a phone, tablet, laptop or desktop, it's really just a computer. This has been brought home by the GOTO FAIL bug on iOS/OS X and more recently by the Stagefright bug on Android. The first destroyed the TLS authentication, the second leaves ~950,000,000 devices susceptible to a malicious MMS, which could install malware on to your phone or tablet and in the vast majority of cases will never be patched.
Clearly, at least with Windows there's no pretence that you're dealing with anything different and with all those patches people have been complaining about Microsoft are at least going in the right direction. So use those apps and write them, because it's the way to go.
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