8 Reasons To Hate Windows 8.1
Sure, it's an improvement over Windows 8. But for many PC users, Windows 8.1 is a clumsy hybrid that's a pain to navigate.
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Just how unloved is Windows 8's new interface? Consider this: One of Windows 8.1's hot new features is the ability to bypass the Live Tile user interface and boot directly to the traditional Windows desktop. It's a tacit admission by Microsoft that its ambitious goal of creating a unified interface for mobile and desktop devices hasn't exactly gotten a warm embrace from longtime Windows users.
That can't be good. Much has been written about the jarring distinction between Windows 8 and its predecessors, all of which had the same look and feel (with a few tweaks) dating back to Windows 95. Of course, change isn't necessarily a bad thing; it's often for the best, in fact, even when people resist it, which they usually do.
Windows 8 featured a new UI optimized for multitouch tablets, which Microsoft slapped on top of a crippled Windows desktop sans the Start button/menu. This one-UI-fits-all-devices approach backfired, resulting in confused end users, as well as wary enterprise uses unwilling to upgrade from earlier versions.
PC shipments began to plummet at around the same time that Windows 8 arrived. It's not fair to pin moribund PC sales entirely on Windows 8 -- for many global consumers, a tablet or smartphone is the better, cheaper choice -- but the hybrid OS was certainly a contributing factor.
A year after Windows 8's debut, Windows 8.1 is here. Is it better than its predecessor? Yes, but in small ways. The overall presentation is essentially unchanged, albeit with some needed improvements. You'll find a visual tour here.
If you're a Windows 8 hater, Windows 8.1 probably won't change your opinion of the OS. (It's worth noting that in addition to the Live Tile UI, Windows 8.x offers other enhancements, most notably faster startup times.) New features such as the return of the Start button and boot-to-desktop are welcome additions, but they might make Windows 7 users wonder: Why upgrade at all?
This doesn't mean that Windows 8.1 will fail. If touchscreen laptops and hybrid devices like Microsoft's own Surface Pro 2 prove popular with businesses and consumers, the operating system's touch-oriented UI and mobile-style apps might prove a winner in the long run. But for legacy desktops and laptops, Windows 8.x remains a hard sell.
Here are eight reasons to hate -- or at the very least, dislike -- Windows 8.1. If you think the latest version of Windows is getting a bum rap here, let us know in the comments below.
As you've no doubt heard, Windows 8.1 brings back the Start button that graced the desktop from Windows 95 through Windows 7. But Windows traditionalists won't be pleased. Why? Because when you click (or tap) the new Start button in Windows 8.1, you're sent back to the Start screen. To find your programs, you have to click a down arrow at the bottom of the screen to launch the Apps view.
Clunky, perhaps, but here's a trick to save an extra step: Go to the desktop, right-click on the task bar, and select Properties from the pop-up menu. Click the Navigation tab, and check the box next to "Show the Apps view automatically when I go to Start." If you use mostly desktop apps, be sure to check "List desktop apps first in the Apps view when it's sorted by category."
Here's another tip: Right-click the Start button to see a menu of popular features, including Programs and Features, Task Manager, Search, Sleep, and Shut Down.
Like its predecessor, Windows 8.1 comes with two versions of Internet Explorer: one for the desktop, the other for the Windows 8.1 Live Tile screen. The two flavors of IE each offer a different user experience.
Example: In the desktop version, the address window assumes its traditional spot near the top of the screen. But in the Windows 8.x edition, it's relocated at the bottom. If another browser, such as Chrome or Firefox, is the default choice, you can only use the desktop version of IE. The dual-interface nature of Windows 8.x makes this IE combo necessary, perhaps, but the whole approach is awkward and unintuitive, to say the least.
If you're not a fan of Microsoft's Bing search engine -- perhaps you're fully enmeshed in the Google ecosystem -- you won't like Bing Smart Search, a new feature that integrates tightly with the Windows 8.1 Start screen.
By default, Search now shows results from "everywhere," meaning files and settings on your device, and online videos, images, page previews, and links culled from Bing. It's pretty slick, particularly on a touch device, where a simple right-to-left swipe reveals more search results. (Tip: From the desktop, the fastest way to access Smart Search is to press the Windows key and start typing a search term.)
So what's not to like? Smart Search's reliance on Bing might rankle Google search fans. The fix: You can always use Google or another search engine inside the browser.
Windows 8.1's Apps view needs a bit of tidying up. It fails to distinguish between actual apps and assorted flotsam like uninstallers and readme and help files. The result: A messy melange of shortcuts that will confuse novices and annoy power users. Note the example in this slide: The ScanSnap Manager section has seven links, and it's hard to tell which link launches the actual program.
Tip: One way to cut the clutter is to click the down arrow to the right of "Apps" and select "by most used" from the drop-down menu. Windows will rearrange your apps into four categories: most used, moderately used, least used, never used. This should help push the readmes and uninstallers to the back of the list.
The Mail app in Windows 8.1 has plenty of improvements, including a new toolbar on the left side of the screen, as well as hover commands for the mouse and keyboard PC crowd. Mail works with a variety of popular email services, including Gmail and Yahoo. However, it reserves its best features for Microsoft's own Outlook.com.
Two examples: The Sweep feature makes it easy to delete all unwanted messages from one sender. And Mail automatically files newsletters and social network messages into different inbox folders, thereby reducing inbox clutter and making it easier to find more pressing emails. Both features work only with Outlook.com.
It's easier to resize apps in Windows 8.1, but there's still plenty of room for improvement. You can have up to three or four open apps (based on the device's resolution) on the Windows 8.1 screen at one time. But some apps won't run properly, if at all, in a confined, narrow space. If you wedge a desktop app in there -- giving it a third of the screen, for instance -- Windows 8.1 will resize every other open desktop app as well. Bottom line: still clunky.
One solution is to try a third-party app such as ModernMix ($5), which lets you run Windows 8.x apps in desktop windows.
Windows 8.x (Metro) apps are clearly designed for mobile use. They're optimized for multi-touch input, and mouse and keyboard controls often appear to be an afterthought. Many are lightweight, mobile-style apps that are fine for tablets. But they might seem wimpy to PC users who rely on feature-packed desktop programs and browser-based apps that continue to grow in power and sophistication.
This isn't to say that Metro apps won't get better, but for long-time Windows PC users, they're an unnecessary appendage, at least for now.
The latest version of Windows doesn't -- and can't, really -- correct version 8.x's most serious problem: its hybrid design.
The two interfaces don't mesh, period. A ham-fisted attempt to meld desktop and mobile UIs, Windows 8.x overlooks the fact that desktop and mobile users have unique ergonomic needs. Throughout its lifespan, the OS will remain a textbook example of the dangers of the one-size-fits-all approach to user interface design.
Windows 8.x guarantees one thing: a long and fruitful life for Windows 7, at least in the enterprise market.
The latest version of Windows doesn't -- and can't, really -- correct version 8.x's most serious problem: its hybrid design.
The two interfaces don't mesh, period. A ham-fisted attempt to meld desktop and mobile UIs, Windows 8.x overlooks the fact that desktop and mobile users have unique ergonomic needs. Throughout its lifespan, the OS will remain a textbook example of the dangers of the one-size-fits-all approach to user interface design.
Windows 8.x guarantees one thing: a long and fruitful life for Windows 7, at least in the enterprise market.
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