Personally I like Windows RT and the new UI. I do believe however that Windows 8 is a big stepping stone for Microsoft, their “new Vista” if you so like, to get an upgraded architecture in the hands of both developers and users while waiting for the “killer” OS to come along that everyone will enjoy using.
Here are some thoughts from the web I have collected the past week.
“For the first week the most frustrating thing about Windows 8 was getting to anything that was power-user-like. I was literally pissed at my computer because I was so used to clicking the Start Menu, then right clicking on My Computer in order to do things like Device Manager, etc. For things like the Event Viewer or Admin Command Prompts I was pressing Start, then typing “Event” and hitting enter. It was fine but it wasn’t as fast as it should be.
Then I discovered the Number 1 most powerful Windows 8 shortcut for the Power User. It’s Windows Key+X.”
Read: Windows 8 productivity: Who moved my cheese? Oh, there it is. (hanselman.com)
“It also appears that desktop applications can no longer register themselves as default (even if you want it) or certain file types too. The only way around this is to open the Control Panel (or Start screen) and search for Default Programs, wait for all your installed software to load and appear in the left pane, then select your preferred program and click the Set as default option. An added bonus is that you can set different file types to open in different applications, but Windows will keep reminding you that “there are other apps that can open this file type” as well.”
Read: Why Windows 8 still isn’t my idea (neowin.net)
“After spending much time with Windows 8, I can’t recommend it for advanced desktop users unless Microsoft makes interface tweaks to make it more desktop-friendly. I don’t plan to upgrade my desktop from Windows 7 to 8 at launch because Windows 7 works so well.”
Read: Why Windows 8 is terrible for desktops (venturebeat.com)
“Users will need to remember two different interfaces. They will learn Windows 8, but won’t be able to forget Windows 7. And they will need to keep track of which app goes with each framework. [It's] definitely a cognitive burden”
Read: Usability Expert: Windows 8 on PCs is Confusing, a Cognitive Burden (laptopmag.com)
“I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that Windows 8 is the worst computing experience I’ve ever had. As a desktop operating system, it’s annoying, frustrating, irritating, and baffling to use. I’ve tried on many occasions to explain exactly why it’s so awful to use day-to-day, and most of the time, smoke starts pouring out of my ears.”
Read: Why I’m uninstalling Windows 8 (pcgamesn.com)
“At the moment, Windows 8 is two competing operating systems that don’t always play nicely together. Going to desktop in order to make programs run, and to be able to use more than one app or even more than one browser tab at a time, feels in many ways like having to boot to DOS and then launch Windows did, twenty years ago. Apps that are installed in Metro can be uninstalled with a single right-click in Metro, but don’t show up in Control Panel’s Programs and Features listing. Launching an app that goes to desktop mode prevents you from seeing easily if one (or two, or ten) apps are still running in the background over in Metro.”
Read: Windows 8 Is Not Good For Gamers (kotaku.com)