
Windows 8 Consumer Preview hits 1 million downloads - evo_9
http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2012/03/windows-8-consumer-preview-hits-1-million-downloads.ars
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pan69
Just downloaded it and installed it in virtualbox.

First thing I clicked on was Photos, for no particular reason. So, I'm in
Photos and there is nothing there for me to do (obviously). I want to go back
to the main screen (where I came from) but there is nothing I can do. I'm suck
in Photo land. The is nothing to click on that will take me back. ESC doesn't
do anything, or any other key for that matter. Right click brings up a
Feedback form. How the hell are you supposed to navigate this thing?

EDIT: Hovering at the top of the screen changes your mouse cursor into a hand.
I can drag the entire screen which makes it small. I guess the purpose of this
is to dock the current application or something.

I still can't go back to the main screen however...

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rkwz
Apart from metro, what are the advantages in having Win8 instead of Win7 in a
non-touch PC?

/Just curious

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bradford
(disclaimer, I'm a MS employee).

some advantages:

* Hyper-V support([http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/09/07/bringing-hyper...](http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/09/07/bringing-hyper-v-to-windows-8.aspx)).

* Refreshing to a clean state without reinstallation. ([http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2012/01/04/refresh-and-re...](http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2012/01/04/refresh-and-reset-your-pc.aspx))

* Better support for large disks.([http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/11/29/enabling-large...](http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/11/29/enabling-large-disks-and-large-sectors-in-windows-8.aspx))

* Easier setup([http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/11/21/improving-the-...](http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/11/21/improving-the-setup-experience.aspx))

* Less restarts after updating.([http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/11/14/minimizing-res...](http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/11/14/minimizing-restarts-after-automatic-updating-in-windows-update.aspx))

* A task manager which I certainly like much better.([http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/10/13/the-windows-8-...](http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/10/13/the-windows-8-task-manager.aspx))

* Reduced memory consumption([http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/10/07/reducing-runti...](http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/10/07/reducing-runtime-memory-in-windows-8.aspx)).

* Better malware protection([http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/09/15/protecting-you...](http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2011/09/15/protecting-you-from-malware.aspx))

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mikeknoop
Question: On Windows 7, my current workflow for starting applications is:

Widows key + start typing app name

This starts searching the start menu and installed apps. I press enter and bam
-- no mouse requried.

Is there something comparable for Windows 8?

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yohui
It's still the same. The new Start screen doesn't explicitly show a search
box, but it'll start searching as soon as you type something.

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Permit
Yeah I really wondered about that as a UI decision. I'm sure many of the users
here will figure that sort of thing out, but I'm curious whether or not my
parents will ever discover the existence of that sort of thing.

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freehunter
My parents never noticed the search box in Windows 7, got confused when I
mentioned it. Working tech support when my company released Windows 7 laptops
to the employees, very few of them understood the search box either.

I think it will take a few software generations before people really "get" it.

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Mithrandir
In case you don't know where the download page is, like I didn't:
<http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-8/iso>

~~~
cskau
Thank you. This is why I came back here after visiting the official download
page.

All I was able to find there was an exe-file, which is of little use when I'm
running Ubuntu as my main OS..

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Spearchucker
The only complaint I have so far (more like a WTF thing) is that Mail doesn't
do POP3. Otherwise loving it.

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kitsune_
Am I correct in my assumption that Windows 8 features a basic tiling window
manager?

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pavlov
Depends. If you mean a tiling window manager for Win32 windows, then no -- old
Windows apps continue to run as the always did, as overlapping windows within
one desktop "space".

The new WinRT APIs and Metro UI offer some variations on tiling windows,
however. (They don't support overlapping windows at all; apps are launched
full-screen but can be tiled with others within some specific design limits.)

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recoiledsnake
The ability to dock apps on part of the screen is pretty good for
multitasking, like IM'ing while browsing without constantly switching apps
back and forth.

<http://wordament.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/snap.png>

Here's a link to the presentation video they had for the launch demoing the
new features.

[http://cdn-smooth.ms-studiosmedia.com/news/HTML5/FINAL_PRESE...](http://cdn-
smooth.ms-studiosmedia.com/news/HTML5/FINAL_PRESENTATION_030112.mp4)

All the form factors that Windows will be supporting seem exciting for me,
especially touch Ultrabooks like the IdeaPad Yoga.

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6jnrRRAcZc&hd=1](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6jnrRRAcZc&hd=1)

Here's a comparison with the iPad:

[http://www.theverge.com/2012/3/1/2835346/windows-8-vs-
ipad-f...](http://www.theverge.com/2012/3/1/2835346/windows-8-vs-ipad-feature-
comparison)

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Alind
1 million silly donkeys.

