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supervelous

macrumors 6502
May 28, 2010
323
39
I'm interested in Windows 8 because of one aspect that's not covered (well) in the market currently, at least not to my knowledge (correct me if I am wrong).

I haven't been able to justify a tablet purchase, because $500 to me is a bit much for a media consumption device that I don't think I'd use all the time (I have game consoles, big screen TV's and my laptop at home in addition to my smartphone).

Also, I like to record gaming footage and use editing software to make Youtube videos. And use MS Office for spreadsheets, word processing, etc.

I am currently "due" for a new laptop, I bought my current laptop in 2008 and have started thinking about purchasing a new one.

SO, what I think MS might be able to help me out tremendously with in Windows 8, is a tablet that doubles as a new PC. This allows me to still do work when I need to, then disconnect from the keyboard/dock and use it on my couch or in bed to watch vids, surf the web, etc.
 
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Night Spring

macrumors G5
Jul 17, 2008
14,885
8,055
SO, what I think MS might be able to help me out tremendously with in Windows 8, is a tablet that doubles as a new PC. This allows me to still do work when I need to, then disconnect from the keyboard/dock and use it on my couch or in bed to watch vids, surf the web, etc.

I think that is the ideal that we all want. However, looking at all the Windows 8 tablet-laptop hybrids on the offer, I don't think we are quite there yet. The ones where the keyboards flip over or slide under to go into tablet mode will be too thick and heavy to be comfortable as a tablet. The ones where the keyboards detach -- you'll be forever debating whether to take the keyboard with you or not, and finding you have lugged around the keyboard only to not use it, or finding that you have left it at home the one time you need it. The only product that shows any promise is Microsoft Surface, but the screen size is a bit small for use as a full laptop, and nobody knows how well that keyboard cover really works.

I think I'm sticking to the iPad + MacBook Air combo for the foreseeable future. Your mileage may vary.
 

MRU

macrumors Penryn
Aug 23, 2005
25,370
8,952
a better place
Dependent entirely on the Surface Pro's PEN support, which if has 1024 levels of pressure, I'd actually buy one for Corel Painter and Sketch Book Pro and replace my MBA.

I had considered a modbook pro but it's WAY over priced for what I want it to do.

I currently use a Cintiq 21UX for illustrating, but would love a portable that did the same with the same level of clarity/detail.

So whilst I'm not convinced by Windows RT, I am ready to drop €800-1000 on a Surface Pro & windows 8 pro if it gets the pen support up to scratch.

It would probably replace my MBA & iPad (I'm also considering an ipad Mini or a Nexus 7 imminently depending on whats announced tomorrow to replace my ipad 3 for ebook reading and some gaming)
 

MRU

macrumors Penryn
Aug 23, 2005
25,370
8,952
a better place
Based on some rumor I read...I dunno...somewhere, I think it only supports 512 levels of pressure. It won't be as good as your Cintiq, but still fairly decent.

Hopefully another manufacturer comes up with one with more sensitivity, but I do like the surfaces design so may just have to put up with the 512 levels. Will obviously wait for hands on testing though :)
 

ChazUK

macrumors 603
Feb 3, 2008
5,393
25
Essex (UK)
Well, despite my criticisms, I've bought it and am going to try my best to get used to it. Some compelling positives in this thread have encouraged me to do so. :D

Fresh install (via the downloader), just deleting the Windows.old folder as I had everything I neededbacked up to an external HDD and Google Drive. iTunes is restoring all my music from an external hard drive too.

Going to give it a good chance again after using the 90 day trial version.
 

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Eidorian

macrumors Penryn
Mar 23, 2005
29,190
386
Indianapolis
I would pick it up but I am between hardware cycles. I could go with a Core i7 3820, Vishera, or just upgrade to Haswell next year. Now I might go out and pick up one of these notebooks instead and it is going to have Windows 8.
 

Cod3rror

macrumors 68000
Apr 18, 2010
1,809
151
Windows 8 has such a wonderful concept. In concept it is a fantastic idea.

The UI though... Ho. RRi. Ble.

Not only is the start UI terrible, they ruined the desktop too. You cannot make any customizations to the desktop UI. Transparency is gone, you cannot make the edges(boarder padding in Settings) thinner.

The Metro is atrocious, the whole side scrolling is just a terrible idea, such a bad way to acquire information.

You cannot backup Metro apps, you don't get anything like ipa files, so if you're offline, you won't be able to reinstall apps. If Microsoft takes down an app, it's gone, even if you've paid for it, you cannot recover it. You're completely in the air.

Windows 8 could've been an incredible OS, truly a revolutionary OS that would work everywhere and even on the phones in couple of years... you'd dock a your phone to a dock with a screen, keyboard and a mouse attached and a real full OS opened, undock and it'd switch into a mobile OS. But Microsoft ruined it.
 

Night Spring

macrumors G5
Jul 17, 2008
14,885
8,055
.You cannot backup Metro apps, you don't get anything like ipa files, so if you're offline, you won't be able to reinstall apps. If Microsoft takes down an app, it's gone, even if you've paid for it, you cannot recover it. You're completely in the air.

Seriously??? I hadn't realized this. What about when you download them to a desktop, there's no way to back them up from there? But then, I suppose there's no way to install them from a desktop to a Win8 or RT tablet. Hmmmmm...
 

Cod3rror

macrumors 68000
Apr 18, 2010
1,809
151
Seriously??? I hadn't realized this. What about when you download them to a desktop, there's no way to back them up from there? But then, I suppose there's no way to install them from a desktop to a Win8 or RT tablet. Hmmmmm...

You cannot download them to desktop, the process is completely transparent and you cannot do anything at all about it.

Cannot back them up, cannot keep them, Microsoft has absolute and total control and lock on you.
 

Night Spring

macrumors G5
Jul 17, 2008
14,885
8,055
You cannot download them to desktop, the process is completely transparent and you cannot do anything at all about it.

Cannot back them up, cannot keep them, Microsoft has absolute and total control and lock on you.

Well, if you have an Win8 desktop (or laptop), then when you install a Metro app, the files for that app end up somewhere on your hard drive, right?
 

DingleButt

macrumors regular
Dec 14, 2011
124
0
Well, if you have an Win8 desktop (or laptop), then when you install a Metro app, the files for that app end up somewhere on your hard drive, right?

They are under Program Files>Windows Apps but the folder is locked so unless/until someone finds a way to unlock it, they may as well not be there.
 

SA Spyder

macrumors regular
Oct 15, 2012
135
1
Dumb question, but has anyone tried "take ownership" yet?

Ding ding ding. It's stupidly easy to gain access to "locked" folders. It's Windows.

Yes the files are in a folder, and yes it's very easy to back them up. Copy and paste. That's about it.


Been using Windows 8 for a few days now. I can finally feel the speed of the i7 in my MacBook. OSX was truly hogging it down in a massive way. Windows 8 boots in quarter the time and is generally smoother, quicker, more fluid, and more efficient at just about everything I can think of except maybe iTunes app. The shininess deceived me.
 

MRU

macrumors Penryn
Aug 23, 2005
25,370
8,952
a better place
Ding ding ding. It's stupidly easy to gain access to "locked" folders. It's Windows.

Yes the files are in a folder, and yes it's very easy to back them up. Copy and paste. That's about it.


Your making an assumption about windows RT based on windows 8 file structure. It's possible that in windows RT the option to do that is greyed out / unavailable.
 

mKTank

macrumors 68000
Jul 2, 2010
1,537
3
Your making an assumption about windows RT based on windows 8 file structure. It's possible that in windows RT the option to do that is greyed out / unavailable.

Nope, it's not "greyed out / unavailable." Microsoft never operates that way.


And if it turns out that they do, you should know how excessively clever Windows hackers are in getting anything they need working. A simple registry edit here or there. That's it.


Basically, this is nothing like the iPad where it's a device that depends on another computer to access filesystem, to hack, etc. This is a Windows tablet. Everything is already available directly on it. You could hack the iPad with it (provided an RT port of redsn0w comes out). You get the point.
 

MRU

macrumors Penryn
Aug 23, 2005
25,370
8,952
a better place
Nope, it's not "greyed out / unavailable." Microsoft never operates that way.

Again your guessing and not basing this on fact. Please don't pass guesswork or assumptions as fact.


Basically, this is nothing like the iPad where it's a device that depends on another computer to access filesystem, to hack, etc. This is a Windows tablet. Everything is already available directly on it.

No I'm afraid that is wrong. A lot of system tools have been removed from windows RT.




Then we get to the rub of the matter....

Assuming then in the remote chance they manage to the jailbreak/hack windows RT to allow you to install an application. Then what ?

The application still cant work or function as its not for ARM architecture, its compiled for X86/X64 and unless your going to recompile the entire application and re-architecture it to run on ARM then jailbreaking the surface would have been entirely redundant.

So what exactly are you going to do with that hacked Windows RT ?
 

AnonMac50

macrumors 68000
Mar 24, 2010
1,580
324
How so? Plenty of OEMs kept installing XP post-vista and MS had to extend the support period for Windows XP.

Windows 7 is only 3 years old and XP was 5-6 years old at the time of Vista's release....

Windows 7 won't be going anywhere for quite a while I should think.

----------



Nice try. Win2k was not a consumer targeted release and win98 and win2k are not even on the same OS lines (NT line vs Win 3.1 line).

The comparison you should be making is XP to Vista (5-6 years) but then even during the 3 year period between Vista and 7 many OEMs were still providing Windows XP.


Replace 2000 with ME (which was released a few months later than 2000.

----------

It is them forcing people to use it. You could disable the Metro screen and bring back the old Start menu in the old developer preview via a registry hack, but they removed the work around afterwards.

...by completely removing the old start menu from the OS completely.

Though I do have one question. Yeah, the new Metro start screen does look different, but it performs exactly the same otherwise. To me, other than it quickly filling up the whole screen for a second, there are no disadvantages in using it. Why does everyone want the old start menu back so bad when the replacement works just as well?

They resist change. Many don't want change, and they probably don't even know it (through their subconscious mind).
 

mKTank

macrumors 68000
Jul 2, 2010
1,537
3
Again your guessing and not basing this on fact. Please don't pass guesswork or assumptions as fact.




No I'm afraid that is wrong. A lot of system tools have been removed from windows RT.




Then we get to the rub of the matter....

Assuming then in the remote chance they manage to the jailbreak/hack windows RT to allow you to install an application. Then what ?

The application still cant work or function as its not for ARM architecture, its compiled for X86/X64 and unless your going to recompile the entire application and re-architecture it to run on ARM then jailbreaking the surface would have been entirely redundant.

So what exactly are you going to do with that hacked Windows RT ?

You'll see. I won't bother explaining because people like you have a very limited vision. Windows RT is still Windows, and all of those missing tools and other limitations can be removed by a simple registry edit.
 

MRU

macrumors Penryn
Aug 23, 2005
25,370
8,952
a better place
You'll see. I won't bother explaining because people like you have a very limited vision. Windows RT is still Windows, and all of those missing tools and other limitations can be removed by a simple registry edit.

How convenient (no need to prove the nonsense your posting with real evidence), we wont be able to understand!! Patronising much ? :rolleyes:

You can not re-engineer software developed for x86 to run on completely different architecture by a mere registry hack. :rolleyes::rolleyes:
 

mKTank

macrumors 68000
Jul 2, 2010
1,537
3
How convenient (no need to prove the nonsense your posting with real evidence), we wont be able to understand!! Patronising much ? :rolleyes:

You can not re-engineer software developed for x86 to run on completely different architecture by a mere registry hack. :rolleyes::rolleyes:

Never said that. I said limitations can be removed by registry hacks. And frankly, this being MacRumors, I'm not sure people here understand a whole lot about computers. No offence, but there's a difference between not wanting to waste my time and simply running away from an argument. I really don't have the energy to teach a blind man colours.
 

MRU

macrumors Penryn
Aug 23, 2005
25,370
8,952
a better place
Never said that. I said limitations can be removed by registry hacks. And frankly, this being MacRumors, I'm not sure people here understand a whole lot about computers. No offence, but there's a difference between not wanting to waste my time and simply running away from an argument. I really don't have the energy to teach a blind man colours.

And the patronisation continues even more....

i'm a blind man.. oh right. I'm a Microsoft most valued professional, I wouldn't be able to understand ? Where's your acknowledgment of talent/expertise from Microsoft then ? :rolleyes:
 

mKTank

macrumors 68000
Jul 2, 2010
1,537
3
And the patronisation continues even more....

i'm a blind man.. oh right. I'm a Microsoft most valued professional, I wouldn't be able to understand ? Where's your acknowledgment of talent/expertise from Microsoft then ? :rolleyes:

Ugh, stop.

The guys at XDA already got desktop apps running on RT. Windows is compiled for ARM but desktop exe's can still run if they have signatures. Of course, spoofing these signatures is the biggest challenge but it's doable and has already been done to some degree, not even a week after release. There's already regedits to remove open app limitations, to completely customize tiles, and this hack to run desktop apps will be out soon I bet. The alternative is run a discreet emulator. But that won't be necessary anymore.


Be a big boy and do some of your own research. I'm not wiping your ass anymore,
 
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