Linked by Thom Holwerda on Sat 16th Jun 2012 17:52 UTC
Adrian Kingsley-Hughes pens a rant on Windows 8, calling it 'awful': "I'm now ready to sum up my Windows 8 experience with a single word: awful. I could have chosen a number of other words - terrible, horrible, painful and execrable all spring to mind - but it doesn't matter, the sentiment is the same." I've been using Windows 8 Release Preview on both my ZenBook and my regular desktop since its release, and here's my short review: "I like it." Issues a-plenty, but for what is essentially a 1.0 release - not bad. It's a hell of a lot better than other releases which were similar in scope (Mac OS X 10.0, KDE 4.0).
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RE[2]: Kingsley-Hughs refuses to get that
by Nelson on Sun 17th Jun 2012 21:49
in reply to "RE: Kingsley-Hughs refuses to get that"
Member since:2005-11-29
Metro multitasking is fine.
With Metro I get:
- Custom tailored snap view states which take full advantage of screen real estate
- Push and Local toast notifications
- Lock Screen notifications in badge and detailed form
- Live Tile updates showing a plethora of data
- Connected Standby (Ultra low power state) notification updates while my device is out of my view
- Fast application switching with simple gestures. Swiping in from the side either with the mouse or a finger is easier than Alt+Tabing through a list.
- Contract based App to App communication.
To name a few.
RE[3]: Kingsley-Hughs refuses to get that
by Dave_K on Mon 18th Jun 2012 02:16
in reply to "RE[2]: Kingsley-Hughs refuses to get that"
Member since:2005-11-16
- Custom tailored snap view states which take full advantage of screen real estate
Multiple moveable and resizable windows allow full use of screen real estate. Being restricted to one full screen app, with another compacted into a sidebar, is so crippled and restrictive that it's a joke in comparison.
On a larger monitor, controlled by a keyboard and mouse, Metro is a massive waster of screen space. That's not surprising considering that it's designed for little touchscreen tablets.
- Fast application switching with simple gestures. Swiping in from the side either with the mouse or a finger is easier than Alt+Tabing through a list.
Compared with alt-tab this is a slow way of switching between multiple applications, especially if a large number are open. It's another thing that works on a tablet, but is pretty worthless on a desktop PC.
The fastest and most efficient way of working with multiple applications is to arrange them all on screen. That way a quick glance between them updates you on their status, and switching between them simply means moving the mouse from one window to another.
Features
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Why does Google get so much credit in the technology industry? Why, despite the company's many obvious failings, do many geeks and enthusiasts still hold a somewhat positive view on the all-knowing technology giant? A specific talk at Google I/O this week provides the answer.
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/11/13 21:41 UTC
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/08/13 14:22 UTC
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/02/13 15:28 UTC
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/29/13 21:06 UTC
Oh multitasking. That staple of computing that got thrown out the window with many modern smartphones. We got some rudimentary thing in its place - but even as multitasking on phone and tablets improves, its user-visible side remains cumbersome. Windows 8 has a neat implementation, and now it's time Android follows in it footsteps.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/24/13 22:24 UTC
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/18/13 11:21 UTC
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/16/13 9:29 UTC
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/15/13 22:44 UTC
Almost exactly three years ago, I wrote about why OSNews was no longer OSNews: the alternative operating system scene had died, and OSNews, too, had to go with the times and move towards reporting on a new wave of operating systems - mobile, and all the repercussions that the explosion of smartphones and tablets have caused. Still, I was wondering something today: why aren't we seeing alternative operating systems on mobile?More Features »
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2007-03-30
there are some good points here. except the prognostication that the desktop is dead. I dont get that.
let the desktop be a screen of application launchers, informative widgets, and movable application windows. it seems to me that android, iphone, osx, windows 7, and windows 8 all still have the desktop... except for the movable windows. only the traditional osx and windows desktops have the movable windows.
so what are we really talking about here, the death of movable windows? the death of multitasking?
metro and the mobile platforms surely have poor multitasking ability, but originally this was because of limited hardware resources. does microsoft attempting to apply that design to high-performance devices prove that movable windows and multitasking are dead for good?
I think this is not the case. I see no trend yet. I see no people with big screen devices demanding they have less functionality. if windows 8 metro is a huge success on laptops and desktops, then I will see the beginning of a trend.