Biggs' Zone

A Geek's Cogitations, Conjectures and other Cortical Experiences

Tag: Windows 8 Page 1 of 2

Tech Talk: Windows 10’s Imminent Release

By

On June 2, 2015

In Microsoft, Tech Talk, Technology

borgJune started with Microsoft announcing that Windows 10 will launch on July 29th (so by imminent I meant two months). Be that as it may, many may wonder if Windows 10 is worth the upgrade and I would say it is. I know many may be shocked to hear me say that as I have been a long time advocate for Windows 7 and a long time opponent of *the dismal* Windows 8; but I have my reasons. Windows 10 does appear to have some of the Windows 8 look-and-feel, but Microsoft was (finally) smarter about how it was implemented for those of us that don’t always use touch-enabled devices.

I would recommend you upgrade, for starters, because Windows 10 will be free (probably Microsoft’s way of saying “Sorry we made you waste your money on Windows 8”). I haven’t looked again, yet, but the last thing I heard was that Microsoft will be offering Windows 10 for free for one year if you are currently using Windows 7 and it will be free indefinitely if you are using Windows 8. A few folks have told me that might have changed, but I haven’t seen that printed anywhere yet (if you know this has changed, please leave a comment).

If you are running Windows 7, it might behoove you to upgrade because mainstream support for Windows 7 ended January 13th of this year. This basically means Microsoft will stop providing security updates and you are on your own to protect yourself from viruses and malware. Windows 7 does have extended support for another 5 years but I don’t really know what all that entails (my theory is bug fixes and minor tweaks).

I have had the Tech Preview of Windows 10 installed in a VM on a work laptop for a few months, so I’ve gotten to play around with it off-and-on. If you have been using Windows 7 then, from a usability perspective, Windows 10 won’t be a huge shift for you. It’s basically Windows 7 with some tiles in the start menu. There are some other features that may improve your experience, but all the primary functionality should still be pretty familiar (there is just more color, ostentatious design does make things feel new and shiny). Perhaps after Windows 10 officially launches I can do a write up of some of the other features you didn’t know about that you might find useful (ex: multiple desktops – of course if you have used a Mac, this is a feature that has been around for several years).

NOTE: If you do plan to upgrade to Windows 10, you can reserve your upgrade now. If your Windows 7/8.1 environments are up-to-date with all service packs and updates, you should see a Windows icon in the lower right section of your taskbar.

/cheers

(P.S. In not-so-related news, Microsoft is re-branding Windows 8.1 and will reveal the “new look” in a special Vanity Wired issue subtitled “Call Me C8L1N”)

Why I’m Hard On Microsoft

By

On September 19, 2014

In Apple, General Cogitation, Microsoft, Technology

borgYou can ask anyone and they will tell you that I rarely cut Microsoft any slack. I have been working in Microsoft technologies for over 10 years now, and I’m pretty good at .NET development. People generally assume that if you make a career working in a technology then you should give the appropriate, unrelenting respect but that’s not how I work. I won’t swoon over every product Microsoft produces because I don’t agree that everything that comes out of Redmond is made of gold. (Also, for what its worth, I don’t swoon over Apple products either. I’m not getting online at 4 in the morning or standing in line outside the Apple store to buy the new iPhone just to have the new iPhone; that’s just not economically sane or reasonable. I swoon for no one … well, maybe except for Nathan Fillion but, come on, he’s Malcolm Reynolds!

It probably doesn’t help that from 1998 to about 2002 I was full blown anti-Microsoft. I would only use Windows if I absolutely had to. My first computer was configured for dual boot which gave me the option to use Linux or Windows and I used Linux 90% of the time I was actively using my computer. Eventually I began to cut Microsoft some slack and when Windows 7 came out, it was a turning point for me. Microsoft has been in business for nearly 40 years so I expect a lot from a company that has been around since the mid-70’s. Is it wrong for me to set the bar that high? Lately I feel as though Microsoft thinks they can throw their weight around and still get their way but this isn’t the 90’s anymore. The vendor no longer controls the market; the users are now dictating what they want and what they expect (I blame social media). If you’re not willing to listen to your users and consumers then you’ll never deliver what the people really want and you’ll get left behind by those that really do respond to criticism and feedback (hence why Apple and Google have been far more successful).

I think a lot of my harsh criticism stems from frustration. I feel like Microsoft has been extremely obtuse and out of touch with the modern world. How do you release something as wonderful as Windows 7 only to turn around and release something as odious as the Metro UI and Windows 8? I get that the industry has become more mobile where gestures and touch enabled devices are paramount for new products but Microsoft’s interpretation of a mobile UI was just awful. I also think that the Windows Phone and the Surface tablet was a terrible idea because the market was already saturated with several successful devices. It’s very disappointing because they made some very poor decisions; but I guess if anyone has the money to throw around its Microsoft. They have never really been afraid to take risks, no matter how terribly they pan out.

I’ve already seen a few rumors swirling around about Windows 9, code named “Threshold” and the early indicators are that they are going to separate the standard computer desktop user from the touch enabled user. Despite all the mud slinging I have been doing lately about Windows 8, I am excited for Windows 9 and to see if Microsoft has learned their lesson. I’m still not interested in either of their mobile devices (until they become less of an eye-sore) however futile it is to resist 😉

Microsoft Haters vs Critics

By

On February 28, 2014

In Microsoft, Programming, Technology

quillIt’s not a secret among many of my friends and co-workers, I have been pretty harsh toward Microsoft lately. It’s an interesting dichotomy since I make a living developing Microsoft solutions. Despite my harsh opinions, I’m hardly considered a hater. This post was inspired by another post I read in Visual Studio Magazine (No Stopping Microsoft Haters). The unfortunate fact is, the trolls of the Internet are relentless. Some may actually have valid reasons for their opinions, others are probably just trying to bate the passionate.

The thing is, there is a huge difference between a hater and a critic. I rip on Microsoft a lot, because I do have high expectations for a company that has been in business for nearly 40 years. I don’t think my comments and opinions make me a hater. Perhaps if you were to say I am a Windows 8 hater, that might be a valid accusation. However, I really enjoy the tools Microsoft provides to make my job a hundred times easier. I really think Windows 7 is the best version of Windows you can use (unless you must use Hyper-V, then you are pretty much stuck using Windows 8).

Unfortunately for Scott Hanselman, his rather scathing article, which has incited quite a comments backlash, may have painted him as a hater. I read his article, Microsoft killed my Pappy, and it does read like one of those obstinate anti-Microsoft personalities that has been attacking the company for years.  So, yea, there is quite a difference between someone that just has strong opinions against one or two particular products and someone that is merely trying to trash a name.

/cheers

Stuck At A Crossroads

By

On October 22, 2013

In Microsoft, Programming, Technology

thinkingmanI’ve been a programmer for going on 10 years now. I’ve mostly been doing .NET development because that came fairly easy to me. I’ve done non-.NET programming on the side (i.e. HTML5, iOS, etc) but the bulk of my experience lies in .NET. I’ve been butting heads with Microsoft lately because I don’t like the direction they are moving with their desktop and mobile technology.

I’m not a fan of Windows 8. I haven’t been since I saw it the first time in beta. I’ve tried it on several occasions in stores and laptops of co-workers and friends. Every time I’ve tried it I have never liked it. The only functionality of Windows 8 that doesn’t bother me is functionality that is already in Windows 7 so in my opinion there is no need for me to warrant paying to upgrade. I give that same advice to everyone else I speak to (which isn’t just limited to friends and family, but work colleagues as well).

This presents a conundrum because as a .NET developer its important to be on the “bleeding” edge. I won’t kowtow to everything Microsoft produces just because “they are Microsoft and can do no wrong”. On the other hand, how can I move forward in my career when I don’t agree with the direction the technology is moving? To be fair, I would feel the same if it were something Apple or Google were doing that I didn’t agree with. I know I’ve had my resistances to Microsoft in my past but I would like people to believe me when I say that its not just because its Microsoft.

I will accept the premise that my “concerns” with Windows 8 are personal but I feel that I can separate personal and professional opinions. With that said, even in my professional opinion I disagree with the Windows 8 desktop look-and-feel. The desktop UX should be distinctly different then a tablet UX and combining them was a mistake that hasn’t even been corrected in Windows 8.1 (which many people are calling the Coca-Cola Classic of the Windows desktop but without the revival).

Can I weather this until the next version of Windows? If so, how?

Soapbox: Dropping the Ballmer

By

On August 23, 2013

In Microsoft, Soapbox, Technology

Steve BallmerI heard today that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has announced that he will retire sometime within the next 12 months.

Finally some good news for Microsoft!

Ballmer, in my opinion, has been less than stellar (and that’s me being kind). He hasn’t had a clue since the first time he came running and screaming out on the stage. He definitely knew how to wake a crowd up … and then put them all back to sleep. I think once he retires the only direction Microsoft can go is up. He doesn’t have too many accolades to be proud of since becoming CEO.

Windows Phone – FAIL.

Windows Surface – FAIL

Windows 8 – FAIL

XBox One – Almost a FAIL, but there’s still time.

Windows 7, and all the Visual Studio developer tools, are really the only noteworthy products that has come out of Microsoft’s doors in years (aside from the XBox 360, but I’m speaking specifically computers but the 360 is also a really great product!).

I really am pulling for Microsoft that the next guy to step up to the helm not only has a clue on how to market a product but really knows what the users actually want. Microsoft should no longer be trying to dictate to the user, they should be responding more on what they user wants and try to anticipate based on industry trends. I know, I make it sound so easy, so why shouldn’t I just do it. Yea, no thanks! Crazy, not stupid (though Ballmer was a bit of both – maybe a bit heavy on the “crazy”).

/endsoapbox

Soapbox: No One Deserves A Pedestal

By

On June 20, 2013

In Apple, Microsoft, Soapbox, Technology

mighty_have_fallenI’ll be honest, I was going to make this another post about Microsoft (because they are still pissing me off) but I decided that I would try to be more of an equal-opportunity troll today. Unfortunately, I am going to start with Microsoft since they are the ones who have most recently been in the (tech) news.

Microsoft has backpedaled for a second time this year, on a second product (that’s not a good track record). Obviously the first time are the changes they are making in 8.1, though I still argue that what they chose to change is half-assed. We wanted a Start Menu with the Start Button, not your vomit inducing Start Screen. But I digress. When Microsoft unveiled the XBox One they were expecting fanfare, instead they got fan-flamed. Their architectural decisions for the XBox One were not popular and they paid the price with constant mockery and ridicule. Yesterday Microsoft changed their policy on used games and the always-on DRM. I’m still not thrilled about the idea that I wouldn’t be able to play my XBox 360 games on the new console so I still don’t feel the need to buy the XBox One.

I’m kind of tired of folks putting Microsoft up on this mighty pedestal when they are actually teetering on the edge of the toilet stool. Honestly, I don’t think anyone really deserves to be up on any pedestal right now. Apple isn’t really coming up with anything truly innovative anymore. In fact I’d say they are starting to play the catch-up game right now with Google’s Android. Speaking of Android, they’re not exactly inventing much lately either.

The fact of the matter is, it seems like they (Microsoft and Apple specifically) don’t seem to be listening to their users. We’re no longer living in a vendor-driven market, this is a user-driven market. Microsoft and Apple no longer have the power to dictate to us what we will use, we are telling them what we want. It’s up to them if they choose to listen and when they don’t listen the viral backlash is awkward and unpleasant. If anyone deserves a pedestal it would probably be Google as they are the ones that seem to be taking all the Apple and Microsoft complaints and providing solutions with their phones and tablets.

So the first half of 2013 has been embarrassing and tumultuous for Microsoft and uneventful and dull for Apple. Both have a lot promised for the second half of the year, hopefully their plans will bolster their already bruised and waning reputations.

/endsoapbox

Page 1 of 2

Next

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén