Why do people hate Windows 8.?

[Chregu]

I wasn't responding to your particular posts. You obviously have a more nuanced view of things. The original thread question was why do people "hate" Windows 8? You only hate something if it is a lot worse than the alternatives. I haven't seen any good arguments to "hate" Windows 8. Once again, my position is clear. If people don't want to upgrade because it doesn't provide them with additional benefit, then more power to them. However, I haven't read a single compelling argument, including yours, that evidences Windows 8 as an inferior OS and therefore subject to hate. The fanboys I'm talking about are actually "hateboys" because there are a ton of people running around that hate everything Microsoft, or everything Apple, and so on. I'm not including you in that group so no need to get frosted.

I think hate is a changeable word in the context of tech.

When creates being annoyed hate? If you'd ask me this question I would of course say: never. That should just not happen. Hate is a very strong emotion, it's deep, it's a brutish feeling that leads to very bad things. I actually have seldom felt hate for something. I couldn't recall a single instant. Being very mad at something or someone, yes of course, hating someone or something? Not really.

However, it might well be that I wrote something along the lines of "Personally, I hated Windows 8 because of that and that reason." This has partially to do with how the question was phrased, but also with how the word "hate" is used here. Hateboys and fanboys, it's just something so broadly used when talking about emotions towards tech.

I of course didn't hate Windows 8 at all. After a few tweaks here and there I could easily live with it. I however still disliked it.

And sorry about the frosty part, might have to do with my love for ice cream.

 

[iamtim]

So, what's your opinion? ;-)

As to why people don't like WIndows 8? Well, I can only speak to my experience, which says that people who don't like Windows 8 don't like it because they're hidebound and it's different than Windows 7.

To wit, a buddy of mine got a new laptop with Windows 8. "Ugh," he cried, "why did they do this? Why did they make it so different?" Before he did anything else he had installed a 3rd party Start Menu and tweaked the registry to boot straight to the desktop and disable the ModernUI completely. Of course, when update 1 and WIndows 8.1 came out he couldn't get them because he'd disabled the Store and so after a while his system was crap.

He got his wife a Windows 8 laptop. "Wow," she said, "this is different." He quickly installed a 3rd party Start Menu and set it up like his.

They both say they hate Windows 8.

Everyone else I know who actually uses Windows 8 loves it.

*shrug*

 

[anon(5445874)]

I can give you tons of reasons why the user experience with Windows 8 was terrible.

Beginning from the context menu that would pop up on the bottom of the screen instead where the mouse is, to booting to the start menu, to mouse gestures that worked very badly on two screens.

I had to make a specific "turn of computer" icon, because waiting on the corner of my mainscreen until the side bar appears and then hitting through all the buttons to turn my computer off was just too tedious.

The settings menu was hidden, the real settings I mean, not the ones that changed the background of the lock screen.

It was disconnected, it was very bad to use, and it was annoying.

You guys liked it, you are either power users who know the right shortcut for every function on Windows, or you just didn't mind moving the mouse courser around the screen as if it were a game. Most people are no power users, they work with their computer, they don't learn shortcuts. Most people like to have a convenient solution.

All of the things I've mentioned were fixed in 8.1.

I'm sorry, but you miss read what i wrote. I quoted that bloke and bolded the part I was responding about. This is part of the problem is people just don't read. And even if we were just comparing 8 to 8.1, those items you list are great, but they didn't make 8 bad.

 

[anon(5445874)]

As to why people don't like WIndows 8? Well, I can only speak to my experience, which says that people who don't like Windows 8 don't like it because they're hidebound and it's different than Windows 7.

To wit, a buddy of mine got a new laptop with Windows 8. "Ugh," he cried, "why did they do this? Why did they make it so different?" Before he did anything else he had installed a 3rd party Start Menu and tweaked the registry to boot straight to the desktop and disable the ModernUI completely. Of course, when update 1 and WIndows 8.1 came out he couldn't get them because he'd disabled the Store and so after a while his system was crap.

He got his wife a Windows 8 laptop. "Wow," she said, "this is different." He quickly installed a 3rd party Start Menu and set it up like his.

They both say they hate Windows 8.

Everyone else I know who actually uses Windows 8 loves it.

*shrug*

I think this is one of the guys who was posting in this thread.

 

[iamtim]

I think this is one of the guys who was posting in this thread.

The thing is... too many people don't understand that at its base, Windows 8 *IS* Windows 7, but with a Start Screen instead of a Start Menu. And if you take some time to get used to the Start Screen, you'll probably discover it to be preferable to the Start Menu. I don't remember who, but one of the posters above mentioned a UI design ideology which states that bigger UI elements are easier and quicker to use... and that's absolutely true.

At work, I'm an SQL/SharePoint/Office/LAMP developer. I run Windows 8.1 with two monitors. I run my system at work pretty much as a Windows 7 desktop machine; I've turned off the Charms bar, I have Modern apps on the taskbar, I've uninstalled as many of the Modern UI apps as the system will allow me (some of them, like OneDrive, Settings, Photos, and... one or two others can't be uninstalled) and installed all the desktop apps I need. Desktop Skype, Lync, Acrobat Reader, I run IE in desktop mode, no Modern UI apps run on my machine (except Settings - because I like that better than the Control Panel and the Start Screen). And it's faster, more reliable, and easier to use than any system I've used to date (including the iMac I used, running Windows 7 via Boot Camp).

At home I use a laptop as my main machine. It's setup the same, except I use more Modern UI apps... Mail, Calendar, OneNote, IE in Modern UI mode, Reader for PDFs, because it works well and it makes sense on my single screen. The whole "OMG MODERN UI APPS WORK HORRIBLE WITH KEYBOARD AND MOUSE AND ARE FOR TOUCH ONLY" complaint is exceedingly, just... wrong. Especially now with Windows 8.1.

Most of the hate you see against Windows 8 is done by internet blogger pundits looking for clicks.

 

[Chregu]

The thing is... too many people don't understand that at its base, Windows 8 *IS* Windows 7, but with a Start Screen instead of a Start Menu. And if you take some time to get used to the Start Screen, you'll probably discover it to be preferable to the Start Menu. I don't remember who, but one of the posters above mentioned a UI design ideology which states that bigger UI elements are easier and quicker to use... and that's absolutely true.

At work, I'm an SQL/SharePoint/Office/LAMP developer. I run Windows 8.1 with two monitors. I run my system at work pretty much as a Windows 7 desktop machine; I've turned off the Charms bar, I have Modern apps on the taskbar, I've uninstalled as many of the Modern UI apps as the system will allow me (some of them, like OneDrive, Settings, Photos, and... one or two others can't be uninstalled) and installed all the desktop apps I need. Desktop Skype, Lync, Acrobat Reader, I run IE in desktop mode, no Modern UI apps run on my machine (except Settings - because I like that better than the Control Panel and the Start Screen). And it's faster, more reliable, and easier to use than any system I've used to date (including the iMac I used, running Windows 7 via Boot Camp).

At home I use a laptop as my main machine. It's setup the same, except I use more Modern UI apps... Mail, Calendar, OneNote, IE in Modern UI mode, Reader for PDFs, because it works well and it makes sense on my single screen. The whole "OMG MODERN UI APPS WORK HORRIBLE WITH KEYBOARD AND MOUSE AND ARE FOR TOUCH ONLY" complaint is exceedingly, just... wrong. Especially now with Windows 8.1.

What you write here is exactly what I tried to describe of how I think Windows 8.1 should be used. What I think is the strength of Windows 8.1.

It offers the choice, it offers the possibilities to use it as a desktop machine on multiple big screens, and to use it with metro on smaller screens like laptops and tablets.

I also think that this choice wasn't there with Windows 8. And that's why I didn't like it. Next to the things I wrote down above of course.

 

[iamtim]

I also think that this choice wasn't there with Windows 8.

It was, just not as comprehensively. I've been running Windows 8 at work and at home since it was released ("Hey, boss, can I upgrade to Windows 8?" I asked. "Sure," he said, "as long as you pay for the upgrade." He didn't know that Microsoft was running a $15 upgrade special, LOL.) Windows 8.1 made it better, but it was largely the same in Windows 8. I mean... I had to click the Desktop tile to get to the Desktop when the system booted, I had to manage Modern UI apps using the left-hand App Bar instead of the Task Bar (no big deal since I don't run Modern UI apps much at work), and I had to drag down with the mouse instead of clicking an X to close an app, but that's small potatoes. The base of the system and the way it works is largely the same between Windows 8 and Windows 8.1.

 

[BobLobIaw]

OP wrote: "Been a while since the 8.1 update and a surprising lot on the internet still seen to have it out for the OS."

I think that even if the "hate" for Windows 8 was legitimate (which I don't think it was) we are now talking about the continued "hate" for Windows 8.1.

Chegru's observations regarding the improvements in 8.1 actually reinforce the argument that the remaining internet "hate" towards Windows 8.1 is misplaced.

I think a lot of the negative opinions toward Windows 8 and 8.1 are not along the lines of an extra swipe or click or keystroke. I am reminded of the video the guy posted where he put his aging father in front of a Windows 8 screen and told him nothing and the guy didn't know what to do. The video maker then concluded that Windows 8 sucked and a bunch of people who watched the video then thought it sucked and told everyone else that it sucked. To that extent, much of the dislike is reputational, not operational. Most people I know that use Windows 8 (or now 8.1) actually like it and don't understand why it has a bad reputation. Some people, like Chegru, don't like it because of annoying aspects. Nothing wrong with that. I just think most people's criticisms are lame, especially those who don't even use it.

Personally, I don't even have strong feelings about it. I use Windows 7 at work and Windows 8.1 at home and on my tablet. Both of them are fine for me even though I could certainly identify improvements that need to be made. I just think the overall "hate" toward the OS is lame and is really a testament to the shortcomings of people and their bad tendencies.

 

[Everard Onggon]

I have a Windows 8.1 on my touchscreen laptop. Its been 5 months that I'm using the Windows 8 OS, and I'm somewhat adjusted to it.
I think the only mistake of Microsoft in Windows 8 OS is that they make one single OS for Desktop and Tablet devices.
Although the screen size of both devices is almost the same, but the user experience for tablet and desktop is still different. Apps for tablet should be touch friendly, and apps for desktop should be keyboard and mouse friendly. That is where Windows 8 failed that is why they considered the desktop user experience on their Windows 8.1 release.
On my own opinion, I think they should get rid of the Start Screen for desktop devices. And instead, if they really want the retain the Metro Style signature of Windows 8, they should just implement it with the start menu just like the image below:

 

[ShreyansShah]

I have a Windows 8.1 on my touchscreen laptop. Its been 5 months that I'm using the Windows 8 OS, and I'm somewhat adjusted to it.
I think the only mistake of Microsoft in Windows 8 OS is that they make one single OS for Desktop and Tablet devices.
Although the screen size of both devices is almost the same, but the user experience for tablet and desktop is still different. Apps for tablet should be touch friendly, and apps for desktop should be keyboard and mouse friendly. That is where Windows 8 failed that is why they considered the desktop user experience on their Windows 8.1 release.
On my own opinion, I think they should get rid of the Start Screen for desktop devices. And instead, if they really want the retain the Metro Style signature of Windows 8, they should just implement it with the start menu just like the image below:

View attachment 66876

i am quite not agree with this.
i am using win 8 since long on my macbook, and i am really comfortable with that. apps are quite well mouse friendly. and, even after the update, i havenot brought back the start menu. i dont need it anymore. i am used to the start screen now. i havenot tried bringing start menu, just i never felt required anymore.

 

[JamesPTao]

Most of those 10 million apps are either complete garbage or full of malware, spyware or viruses.

I think you are confusing WP with androids play store!

 

[anon(5445874)]

I think you are confusing WP with androids play store!

If you are going to come into a conversation this late, perhaps you should quote the other relevant parts. I've had thousands of conversations since that post. I don't even know what it's referring to.

 

[JamesPTao]

i Should probably post from my laptop, not my phone. It only allows me to choose one quote to comment on and doesn't give the info from where in the thread it came from as the conversation expands. If I jumped the gun on your statement sorry. It appeared you were referring to metro apps as full of malware apps and garbage. If that was accurate I couldn't disagree more. If that is not an inaccurate summery. I apologize.

 

[anon(5445874)]

i Should probably post from my laptop, not my phone. It only allows me to choose one quote to comment on and doesn't give the info from where in the thread it came from as the conversation expands. If I jumped the gun on your statement sorry. It appeared you were referring to metro apps as full of malware apps and garbage. If that was accurate I couldn't disagree more. If that is not an inaccurate summery. I apologize.

I believe you got it backwards. I was saying metro apps are better, the old desktop apps that you randomly download from sites like downloads.com are full of garbage. There's not even any kind of approval process.

 

[JamesPTao]

I believe you got it backwards. I was saying metro apps are better, the old desktop apps that you randomly download from sites like downloads.com are full of garbage. There's not even any kind of approval process.

Sorry, should have read it Better and not jumped right in.

 

[anon(5445874)]

Sorry, should have read it Better and not jumped right in.

It's all good. Been there, done that!

 

[Steve Itman]

Just pointing out the end of your post is generalizing a bit. What you find useful or life improving on Windows 8 might not be to others. I like Windows 8. But on the most basic level of computer use, I'm not sure what it offers to the average person using Windows 7 (which I use at work) that makes it better.

It offers NOTHING. It's not supposed to. It is suppose to make us want to ditch our well functioning and widely supported iPhones, iPads, and Droids and run out and buy useless Microsoft phones and surface tablets. That's the whole point of the OS.

 

[Steve Itman]

That's a very good question. I suspect they were pointing at the portable device market first and foremost while trying to keep an eye to the business area. That's why you had Metro/Modern + the old desktop beneath it and everything was duplicated in Win 8. They have been very very daring indeed. However they screwed with 8. People like me got adapted quick with some small software to just add up the old start button etc. Many users are in their late 40s, 50s and aren't eager to do tricks to get the thing to work. The OS must be familiar and work out of the box. That's why everyone told MSFT to make Win 8 bootable in desktop mode. Something they did now with 8.1 and more will come to make 8.1 more similar to 7. Modern UI, not the tiles is to be blamed. They built it as a cage, like Android. So you have a paradoxical situation where the Desktop OS went from real multiwindow/classic desktop to birdcage 2 window/modern UI and then the WP environment, where those 2 windows would be good VS Android can just handle one single one. All in all, in this specific area they have managed to reach the incredible result of keeping everyone unhappy or partially happy

Because they are hoping that by forcibly building your muscle memory with a desktop that works just like a Windows phone you will come to love the Windows phone, and throw away your Droid or iPhone for it. It's a moronic gamble that obviously has not paid given the extremely low adoption rates and extreme negativity from customers.

 

[Steve Itman]

1. Security
2. Updated live tiles
3. Easy app update process
4. A metro app that crashes won't cause your whole computer to freeze
5. I can easily download to all my computers that use W8. I can even log in to someone else's computer using my account.

All of these are either capabilities in Win 7 or things that people don't care about. I administer PCs and other than the initial setup, do not log onto other people's computers. Thus a USELESS feature.

 

[Steve Itman]

I understand people have different preferences. I also understand people have different levels of sophistication and nuance. What I don't understand is how people can "hate" Windows 8 (the original title of the thread) when essentially it gives you the option to use it like Windows 7 or use it more like your Windows tablet or Windows Phone, all the while having a much smoother and quicker start-up with better security.

I would never expect everyone to voluntarily upgrade to Windows 8, but I still haven't read any compelling arguments about why Windows 8 is objectively worse than older versions of Windows. As a result, I chalk up most of the "hate" to laziness, fanboyism, stereotyping and groupthink.

Sure, once you spend time to make it behave just like Win 7, it is fine. However Microsoft defaults it to all the useless Win 8 functionalities -- Metro, no right-click context menues, useless fullscreen apps, etc... They attempt to use it a way to force to you to setup a Windows account (until you learn the trick to make a local account). It's not laziness. It's offensive that Microsoft would temporarily impair the productivity of businesses to force an OS on them whose sole purpose is to get the users used to operating a Windows phone or Surface tablet. It's a stunt that has people up in arms.