|
The charms bar is the task bar of the metro mode.
Metro app programming is the point to windows 8.
The desktop is only there for backwards compatibility.
Your arguments are based on inexperience.
|
|
|
|
|
Metro is unusable for desktops workstations. This is not a matter of taste, it is a fact. This is not a matter of some things needing to be done differently, it is a matter of vital libaries not supported by Metro. Even for Metro app programming (depending on type of app) you may need to work in desktop mode, because Metro doesn't support some developer tools. At least this was true half a year ago - not sure 8.1 changed anything about it, but I doubt that. Clearly, you are not a developer, or you would know this.
Here is an old article bashing the Win 8 preview[^]. My experience so far, pretty much mirrors the descritpions in this article. I've found it to be very accurate so far:
Neil McAllister wrote: The result is a twisted chimera of an OS that can't decide whether it wants to frustrate, annoy, or interfere.
Neil McAllister wrote: smartphone app UIs are tailored to the devices they run on. A smartphone's primary input device is a tiny touchscreen. Big icons and easy controls cater to that. But on a PC equipped with a 22-inch monitor, a mouse, and a keyboard, you don't need to simplify the UI to such a degree. Metro forces the PC usage model to cater to the UI, rather than the other way around.
Neil McAllister wrote: Apps aren't why people buy PCs. Apps are frivolous. The most popular ones are mostly games, gadgets, social networking clients, and other minor diversions.
True, some people use apps for business. But the apps that help you do real work aren't the type you download for 99 cents while you wait for the subway. They're not what's driving the app sales revenue Microsoft craves. Consumer entertainment is the sweet spot.
I can only underline these realizations. They match my experience, and probably that of most desktop developers, too. If they don't match yours, all the better for you - but please don't assume we all share your perspective.
|
|
|
|
|
I have no problem making enterprise apps in metro mode for desktop workstations.
As a 16 year programmer I cursed when I realised all the libraries were not there, but then realised the tasks where not impossible I just didn't know at that moment how to do it.
|
|
|
|
|
I disagree on the inexperience. It is not about "it is possible" or "it is meant to use it this way". What counts is:
#1-) Is it easy to use, intuitive and clear (no, to the point that it is confusing on the dual mode)
#2-) Clear action = reaction (no, unless you are a ninja mouse master)
Present anytime, anywhere: www.ccview.me
Clipboard in the cloud: www.cloudclipx.com
-- If I have 8 hours to chop down a tree, I spend 6 sharpening my ax! And I mostly do in CodeProject and Pluralsight!
|
|
|
|
|
My 80 year old grandpa gets it - never got any other OS.
that proves both your points invalid.
|
|
|
|
|
Colborne: Do you own stock at MS?
Present anytime, anywhere: www.ccview.me
Clipboard in the cloud: www.cloudclipx.com
-- If I have 8 hours to chop down a tree, I spend 6 sharpening my ax! And I mostly do in CodeProject and Pluralsight!
|
|
|
|
|
|
My 24 inch screen is more than an arms length away, because of its size.
It is not touch, but if it was I would not be able to reach it. Also, have you heard Gorilla arm? And last but not least, how much time do you lose raising your hand and using it both on the screen and mouse?
Not very efficient.
Present anytime, anywhere: www.ccview.me
Clipboard in the cloud: www.cloudclipx.com
-- If I have 8 hours to chop down a tree, I spend 6 sharpening my ax! And I mostly do in CodeProject and Pluralsight!
|
|
|
|
|
My efficiency went up ten fold with the use of touch screens.
The efficiency went up to all of my real estate agents that also use touch.
It gets results, opinions beyond that are kind of invalid.
|
|
|
|
|
Agreed. Many of the W8 UI features make some sense on small, touch based screens, but not at all on large desktop screens without touch.
W8 Desktop mode should be desktop mode. Charms don't belong there! These are central system commands that should be discoverable and easily accessible on a typical desktop system, disregarding the needs of a touch based or mobile system! The W7 (and earlier) Start Button and attached menu fulfilled that role. the Charm bar does not - to the contrary, it gets in the way when you try to close a window!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Then why do you even post?
|
|
|
|
|
It's a reason to why everyone is not happy about Windows 8, not the reality of it.
|
|
|
|
|
I've had plenty of time to learn about the reality of W8 on my Ultrabook. It's almost as bad compared to W7 as Vista was claimed to be compared to XP. At least for any kind of professional work. I've spent hours to find(*) and set up my energy settings only to get them wiped on a regular basis for no apparent reason (I suspect Windows Update does it, but can't be sure). I regularly spend valuable minutes of worktime to locate the folder in Windows explorer that actually contains the files I stored from an application, because the whole "library" system is a total mess and makes it unnecessarily hard to locate files from without the application that stored it. I've spent more hours removing annoying remnants of the Metro UI popping up in desktop mode - just how often and insistently do I need to tell Windows I don't want it!? I've spent even more time trying to figure out how to make Windows and applications store data on my data partition, but I'm not yet done jumping through hoops. Why can't I just relocate the "My Documents folder to another path in a simple manner?
W8 is a horror to set up in a specific manner. If you're fine with the factory settings, then you're in luck. If not, plan for some exhaustive sessions to even find the appropriate settings that *may*, under certain conditions, affect the system in the way you want - only to have those settings changed or reset by some obscure background "service" that you possibly didn't even want to run in the first place if you even knew it existed.
Maybe some of these problems hail from the additional manufacturer-installed software, but by all indications the majority are built into W8.
Just to make a point: I wouldn't want to run iOS on a desktop any more than I would run W8. W8 is a smartphone OS. It is not a desktop OS any more, even in "desktop mode": It may be usable for tablets - I don't own one so I don't know. But on my Ultrabook - without touch screen - it is still more of a hindrance than help.
(*): when I said hours to find and set up, I meant stuff way beyond the 10 minutes to blank screen and 30 minutes to power down. There are several dozen settings spread over two different dialogs, several tabs and a badly ordered list of options with a terrible UI. It's somewhat intuitive once you've found all of it, but it's painfully easy to override an option in one place that you've set to a different value in another if you're not careful. Plus, as mentioned above - something in the system appears to reset some or all of the choices under certain conditions. Without asking or any kind of feedback to the user.
|
|
|
|
|
To move the documents folder.
Right click on the documents folder.
select properties.
go to location tab.
click the move button.
Find folder in the dialog box that appears.
Click ok or apply.
Message box appears that reads "Do you want to move all of the files from the old location to the new location - Yes no cancel.
In your case select no.
Nothing is hard in windows 8 in fact its super easy once you have the experience.
The only time I've lost settings within windows 8 is when I screwed up the install.
|
|
|
|
|
Yes and no. What you describe (and what I already knew) is the way to move the user specific part of a specific library. In this example it will move the "My Documents" location for the currently logged in user. It will not move hte location for the public or any other user, nor will it move the location of the picture, audio, and other library files - you have to move all of them individually! And that's what I haven't found out how to do in 'one step'.
It used to be super easy in W7, because it only required knowledge of moving files and folders rather than "libraries", and because that way you could move the entire document folder at once rather than each "sub library" individually.
Thank you for proving my point.
|
|
|
|
|
When you only select the documents folder it will only move the documents folder.
This method stems from windows 95.
There are many ways of mapping this in one command.
|
|
|
|
|
P.S.: just to make a point: I actually like the vision behind Windows 8. I just don't like how it's being implemented. An UI should always cater to the users' needs, and these needs wildly differ between desktop users and smartphone users. It's a great idea to have a common OS under the hood - but it should remain under that hood and not force the pecularities of one device on the use of a comepletely different one!
|
|
|
|
|
UI's that cater to the users is always a model that has failed.
|
|
|
|
|
You do understand that UI stands for "User Interface"? 
|
|
|
|
|
A car is a user interface, the car that Homer Simpson build was good I must admit but the reality is users don't know jack about what they really what.
|
|
|
|
|
That doesn't change that a UI needs to cater to the users needs! Whether they know them or not is a separate issue - you as a developer should know them however. And it appears MS has failed miserably in this regard.
|
|
|
|
|
I used to listen to users - I barely made any money.
Then I found that if I program to get results - I make money.
Every user will complain they have to learn something new, because its all about me me me, that day is over - get over yourself.
|
|
|
|
|
The point isn't to do everything the users say, the point is to understand their needs.
I agree that complaints about having to learn something new are not important in that regard, but the complaints about Win8 have been raging since day one of the preview, and MS chose to ignore them all. Some, but definitely not all of them may just have been about "learning something new". But many were very valid complaints about real usability issues for desktop users. And these did and still do exist.
|
|
|
|
|
I can see how there are a lot of things currently in the UI that don't work the way they are suppose to and affect the user experience, listening to the user at this point is just allowing the user to have creative input into the program not really addressing the issue and potentially road blocking the greatness that will come out of this UI if windows moves backwards.
|
|
|
|
General 
News 
Suggestion 
Question 
Bug 
Answer 
Joke 
Praise 
Rant 
Admin 
Submit an article or tip
