Wineows 8 to Windows 7

The statement "It appears that the ability to use a mouse was an afterthought..." was what I asked about. What part of your post addresses that? Specifically, what, in the Win 8 "Metro" interface, is easier to do via touch then with a mouse?

strollin wrote:

Clay L wrote:
... It appears that the ability to use a mouse was an afterthought to satisfy what they thought were dinosaurs and sooner or later we would all see the light and switch over to touch screens. ...

I encounter this sentiment all over the internet. Can someone please explain it to me? What is it that they think the new interface does better via touch than what can be done with mouse/keyboard? My opinion is that using a computer via touch is much more difficult than with a mouse/keyboard and that touch is really only useful on a small screen device that doesn't have a mouse/keyboard...

OK, strollin, I'll give it a try.

IMNSHO, Microsoft developed the Metro interface with the deliberate intention of merging all their various platforms into one common interface codeset, that would give developers a "one size fits all" link to Windows Phones, tablets, PCs, Xboxes, and Smart TVs. From a developer's perspective, that's helpful; from Microsoft's perspective, that's a tremendous cost savings (only one interface development team of coders).

Also, the interface allows for "live tiles" that update their Start screen tile without requiring multiple open windows. That's especially helpful for smartphones, tablets, and Smart TVs which are always at the Start screen. It also means that you could view the latest headlines, Bing trends, and Facebook updates all from the same screen.

As for your comment that you'd rather use your mouse than a touchpad or touchscreen, that's your option. But, if you're using a Windows Phone or tablet (as many Millenials are, today), there's usually no mouse available -- the touchscreen is your only choice. Can you say iPad?

Being a "Junior Senior" (AARP < JS < Medicare), I too tend to use my mouse because I still run several W7 apps from the Desktop, but our younger generations are more comfortable with touch.

Clay L wrote:
... It appears that the ability to use a mouse was an afterthought to satisfy what they thought were dinosaurs and sooner or later we would all see the light and switch over to touch screens. ...

I encounter this sentiment all over the internet. Can someone please explain it to me? What is it that they think the new interface does better via touch than what can be done with mouse/keyboard? My opinion is that using a computer via touch is much more difficult than with a mouse/keyboard and that touch is really only useful on a small screen device that doesn't have a mouse/keyboard.

It's like the touchpad on my laptop, I only use it if a mouse isn't available.

In my not so humble opinion I think the Microsoft people got so enamored and carried away with the smart phone craze that they thought all devices should emulate them and designed Win8 to fit that model. It appears that the ability to use a mouse was an afterthought to satisfy what they thought were dinosaurs and sooner or later we would all see the light and switch over to touch screens.

Well they were wrong and a lot of the public agrees with me. When sitting with my laptop or desktop computer the last thing I want to do is to have to reach out to touch the screen to cause things to happen.

I'm also waiting for 8.1, maybe it'll work as good as my Win7 did! Knowing what I do now, I wish I had just sold my Pro 8 on ebay for double what I paid, and just kept my 7 instead. I got the 8 on a promo deal for $45, not an upgrade but a full new version. I don't use it any differently than I used my 7, which I didn't use much differently than XP. Sometimes progress isn't useful for everyone.

My new laptop also came with Win8. I bought one of the Dummies for Win8 and that helped me figure out several things about Win8.
I now have it configured to look and act pretty much like the Classic View (pretty much the same as Win XP). I had Win7 configured the same way.

There are a few things in Win 8 that I like so I wouldn't go back to Win 7 now.
I understand that Win 8.1 which is due out in a few months will address many of the issues that annoy folks (including booting to the Metro (Tile?) page) and allow booting to the Desktop. I think the power off switch and start menu will be on the desktop too.

camperpaul wrote:

karylkoch wrote:
-- snip --
I had a small jar of olives I was snacking on, and when I picked it up it slipped and I had olive juice on my keyboard which leaked to the motherboard.
-- snip --

It's not really olive juice; olives are packed in salt brine.

The only thing worse is the vinegar/salt brine used for pickles.

To quote Hillary, "What difference does it make". The liquid fried my motherboard....... I was answering a question, in short it was the liquid from the small bowl I had the olives in......

Another alternative is Classic Shell, makes your 8 look and work more like 7. I have 8 Pro and if I knew what I know now I would never have installed 8. I use it just like 7, not using any of the apps or charms. I should have sold my new version of 8 and kept 7. Maybe 8.1 will help but I'm ok with the Classic Shell (free) for now.

I am using "Start8" on our new Win8 laptop. It makes the machine operate just like Win7. To date no problems - it works great. I know a number of other people using this product and all are very satisfied.
Oh - it is very expensive - about $6

karylkoch wrote:
-- snip --
I had a small jar of olives I was snacking on, and when I picked it up it slipped and I had olive juice on my keyboard which leaked to the motherboard.
-- snip --

It's not really olive juice; olives are packed in salt brine.

The only thing worse is the vinegar/salt brine used for pickles.