Windows 8 'gripes' and a fix...

In the course of work, I keep meeting people who have recently had computers replaced with new Windows 8 machines, and generally speaking most people seem to hate it! This is basically a fear of something that is different, and also due to the fact that most people didn't use a lot of features that were already available in Windows 7. For instance I was always one for using the Windows 7 feature whereby you pressed the Windows key and then start typing the program name I want to start, and then when the name appears, press the enter key to start it. This is rather than searching for it through all the menus. Most people didn't use this feature previously! This works the same in Windows 8, but you get thrown back into the metro/modern interface whilst you type. This in itself can be quite unnerving for some, but keep on typing and the effect is the same.

Also what never ceases to amaze me is the power of uninformed chatter. I hear people saying that Windows 8 is as bad as Vista, but have never tried it themselves! Mind you most of the people who talked about Vista being bad, hadn't tried that either! Vista wasn't bad, it was just different like Windows 8. Vista's main problem was the need for new drivers from most hardware manufacturers and they were slow in providing these. You won't encounter the same issues with Windows 8, as it's really only a reskin of Windows 7 to the greater degree. Admittedly Vista wasn't amazing either, but an operating system has to evolve gradually... Vista was too little change for most, and now Windows 8 seems to be too much!!

Anyway...... to restore some sense of "normality" in Windows 8 my recommendation is to download the free Classic Shell tool. This returns you the look and feel of Windows 7 start menu. and also there are options to boot directly into the desktop screen as well. Although this last feature will be built into Windows 8.1, which is due to be released in Autumn.