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    #1

    In defense of Windows 8.1

    Before you guys shoot me, please hear me out:

    I've been messing with the windows 8 tablet from hell lately. Long story short, Insignia can't share the install images due to an included free year of office 365 , the only version of 8 that will run and activate is a leaked torrented image of windows 8.1 with bing x86 (a version that was free for OEMs and low cost devices) and gettings drivers to work off a clean install is a BASTARD (reinstalling now, hoping the driver kit somebody made for a similar model works).

    Anyway, as a result, I've gotten to play with 8.1 and 10. Here's what I've found:

    Windows 8.1 stock sucks
    Windows 10 sucks slightly less
    Windows 10 with classic shell is ok but still dicked uo
    Windows 8.1 with classic shell feels a lot like 7, and I like it (although I won't be buying 8 keys for my 7 installs any time soon).

    What it boils down to is 8.1's main deviation is the start screen, which classic shell fixes (quite elegantly, I might add). 10's is the taskbar, which classic shell doesn't help with.

    So, as much as I've bashed 8 and said 10 is sorta better, aside from storage efficiency (which 10 is indeed better), I retract my statements. 8.1, with classic shell (and especially if there is a way to make it default to the desktop), is indeed better than 10, stock or classic shell'd.

    (Ok, if you still wanna shoot, I'll dodge )
    sigpic

    (Insert witty quote here)
    Tags: None
    #2
    Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

    I like the right click menu in 8 and 10 but i'm still running 7.

    Comment

      #3
      Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

      Other than my webcams (which worked before the reinstall, the driver installs as a system device, hm2056 image sensor x2), the reinstall with driver pack (plus modded touchscreen driver to make the windows button work) worked great.

      I also found a $5 program called ModernMix that lets one run metro apps as windows (probably not the most secure but whatever) if one wants. It pairs nice with classic shell in that i can get the start screen and full screen metro if I want, but by default I can skip it.
      Last edited by ratdude747; 10-08-2015, 04:54 AM.
      sigpic

      (Insert witty quote here)

      Comment

        #4
        Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

        I'm with you, I've been working on an update to my search article so I've been doing allot of installs of Win 8.0, Win 8.1 and different editions of Win10 (Regular Pro, LTSB, latest preview builds of Pro and Server 2016).
        And I've come to a conclusion: Win 8.1 is allot better than what I've given it credit for, with a start-menu replacement it's a good OS where for me the biggest improvements are in DISM as I mentioned here.
        Sadly I don't know if I'll be able to get my search article in shape for publishing, there are simply so many weird search caveats so it's very difficult to write a coherent piece on it that is easy to follow.

        I'd say that Windows 8 is similar to Vista: RTM version was crap but a service pack or two later it shapes up to be a really decent OS for it's time!
        Last edited by Per Hansson; 10-08-2015, 04:55 AM.
        "The one who says it cannot be done should never interrupt the one who is doing it."

        Comment

          #5
          Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

          yay, the webcam was due to idiot here not updating the intel hd driver. fixed, everything works.

          its the best of both worlds... portability of a tablet, without the limitations of android.
          sigpic

          (Insert witty quote here)

          Comment

            #6
            Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

            Looks like a lot of tweaking for Windows 10!

            While Windows 10 may not be as bad as the doomsday'ers' interpretation of Windows 10, it looks like more chaos.

            I wouldn't be surprised if some of the stuff people say about Windows 10, is just a bunch of hooey...

            I've been known to debunk XP and later versions of Windows.

            I remembered knowing that Vista wasn't as bad as some folks on the internet said it was...

            Could history just be repeating itself again???

            Oh Lord, I don't like the doomsday'ers on the internet!

            I'm typing this on my FX rig with Windows 8.1...
            Last edited by RJARRRPCGP; 10-08-2015, 06:56 AM.
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            "Today's lesson in pissivity comes in the form of a ziplock baggie full of GPU extension brackets & hardware that for the last ~3 years have been on my bench, always in my way, getting moved around constantly....and yesterday I found myself in need of them....and the bastards are now nowhere to be found! Motherfracker!!" -Topcat

            "did I see a chair fly? I think I did! Time for popcorn!" -ratdude747

            Comment

              #7
              Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

              I'm quite content being several versions behind.
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                #8
                Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                I told my doctor, if you give me a pill, make sure it's been out for a while. I don't want to be the ambulance chasers next statistic. "If you or a family member has died while taking xxxxx, give me a call".
                sigpicThe Sky Is Falling

                Comment

                  #9
                  Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                  RD, not to pull ya down, but isn't the time you've wasted so far worth a hell of a lot more than what you paid for this "device?"

                  Worse, it sounds like you're getting the "jiffy lube special," in that you're warming up to such bullshit.

                  You may think you got a "good deal" based on what you paid for that POS (insignia no less); someone, in your defense, should be paying you for even having to deal with such nonsense.


                  [opinion only]
                  Was it $54 you paid? $54 too much- may as well have burned it. Shoulda gone with something that acually had usability in mind, not some worst buy shit whose only purpose is a "billboard" for M$'s lastest "shove-fest."

                  You may as well be stuck with a "dumbfone."
                  [/opinion only]

                  What was so terrible about your metal Dell? You can still get better CPUs for them, if even on ebay. I recently upgraded my "rescued" inspiron 1720 (intel GFX) from 2GB to 4, and took the CPU from a T5250 (bleh) to a T8300. The performance difference is quite obvious. And going to Penryn from Merom yielded superior performance vs power consumption. More than just a sweet spot; not only can the 8300 do more for the same TDP, its consumption drops far more while idle, for snappier performance and longer battery life.

                  FWIW...
                  "pokemon go... to hell!"

                  EOL it...
                  Originally posted by shango066
                  All style and no substance.
                  Originally posted by smashstuff30
                  guilty,guilty,guilty,guilty!
                  guilty of being cheap-made!

                  Comment

                    #10
                    Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                    Originally posted by kaboom View Post
                    Worse, it sounds like you're getting the "jiffy lube special," in that you're warming up to such bullshit.
                    This comment is priceless!

                    Originally posted by Topcat
                    I'm quite content being several versions behind.
                    Me too.
                    XP4EVER! hehe.
                    Yeah, I think I am slowly following in your shoes in terms of moving away from technology. The way things are going, I think I probably will be disconnecting my internet service in 10 years from now (if not less). Of course, I will always keep my old computers running. All of that music, pictures, and videos I've collected are here to stay with me .

                    Comment

                      #11
                      Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                      Originally posted by kaboom View Post
                      RD, not to pull ya down, but isn't the time you've wasted so far worth a hell of a lot more than what you paid for this "device?"

                      Worse, it sounds like you're getting the "jiffy lube special," in that you're warming up to such bullshit.

                      You may think you got a "good deal" based on what you paid for that POS (insignia no less); someone, in your defense, should be paying you for even having to deal with such nonsense.


                      [opinion only]
                      Was it $54 you paid? $54 too much- may as well have burned it. Shoulda gone with something that acually had usability in mind, not some worst buy shit whose only purpose is a "billboard" for M$'s lastest "shove-fest."

                      You may as well be stuck with a "dumbfone."
                      [/opinion only]

                      What was so terrible about your metal Dell? You can still get better CPUs for them, if even on ebay. I recently upgraded my "rescued" inspiron 1720 (intel GFX) from 2GB to 4, and took the CPU from a T5250 (bleh) to a T8300. The performance difference is quite obvious. And going to Penryn from Merom yielded superior performance vs power consumption. More than just a sweet spot; not only can the 8300 do more for the same TDP, its consumption drops far more while idle, for snappier performance and longer battery life.

                      FWIW...
                      No. This was never meant to replace any of my high power laptops. If anything, it was to replace a quasi fickle sony 10" ultraportable.

                      for productivity i't take one of my latitudes or better yet one one of my workstations. This wasn't meant at all to replace those. It was meant to see just how portable I could make an x86 based platform go and still be usable.

                      With a lowly/intel atom (quad core at least) and 1GB of ram, this thing could never do everything. Obviously.

                      But for $54, plus a $25 case, i like it. For the niche. It's handy when I need something but hefting one of my laptops makes no sense (short trips, etc.)

                      PS- I have 7 or so running laptops already (two sony's, one ASUS, Two Latitudes, a precision, and an XPS built like a latitude). Do I really need one more?
                      sigpic

                      (Insert witty quote here)

                      Comment

                        #12
                        No defense for Windows 8.1

                        Originally posted by ratdude747 View Post
                        No. This was never meant to replace any of my high power laptops. If anything, it was to replace a quasi fickle sony 10" ultraportable.

                        for productivity i't take one of my latitudes or better yet one one of my workstations. This wasn't meant at all to replace those. It was meant to see just how portable I could make an x86 based platform go and still be usable.

                        With a lowly/intel atom (quad core at least) and 1GB of ram, this thing could never do everything. Obviously.
                        You're missing the point. This is just another "gadget" whose original purpose (before you got it) was simply to "sell" 8/10 or whatever it had. The fact that you could jump in afterwards, and "score" it, is beside the point. Now, not only are you out, albeit slightly, financially, you now keep pushing forward with it (wasting valuable time), fully convinced the end justifies the means.

                        What's the point, when your time, driver hunting, "forcing" ten to play along far exceed what you're stuck with in the end? It's a fools' game.


                        Originally posted by ratdude747 View Post
                        But for $54, plus a $25 case, i like it. For the niche. It's handy when I need something but hefting one of my laptops makes no sense (short trips, etc.)
                        Again, how does that make it special to you? You could (can still?) have your choice of any old atom netbook, which would be equally as useless/useful, depending on your take, and not be saddled with "new vistas." As you well know, plenty of older hardware has drivers not rigged to only work with 8/10/etc. It's a bit disturbing that you didn't consider going that route; instead, like far too many "modern users," trying to find an "out," or excuses, for the "new" microsoft. A young engineer should be far more open to such ideas.


                        Originally posted by ratdude747 View Post
                        PS- I have 7 or so running laptops already (two sony's, one ASUS, Two Latitudes, a precision, and an XPS built like a latitude). Do I really need one more?
                        Did you really need that gadget? Seriously... that $79 could've bought some nice upgrades for one of those Dells.

                        Why 7 of 'em anyway? And when you say "running," I hope you don't mean "running" on the slasher install they had after you got them. Wanna see some real performance increases? Wipe one of those 630s, do a clean install (yes- clean install) with an XP disc, and either use dell SFX archives and/or device manager to install the drivers. The difference will be shocking at first, but believe me, it's how they were always supposed to run.

                        Originally posted by momaka View Post
                        This comment is priceless!
                        Here's another for ya: Technology is supposed to be our bitch. It is not supposed to be the other way around.
                        Last edited by kaboom; 10-09-2015, 06:54 PM.
                        "pokemon go... to hell!"

                        EOL it...
                        Originally posted by shango066
                        All style and no substance.
                        Originally posted by smashstuff30
                        guilty,guilty,guilty,guilty!
                        guilty of being cheap-made!

                        Comment

                          #13
                          Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                          Hehe, don't be so harsh on him, Kaboom. I have a sense that RD just likes to play with problematic technology, just to prove that it can be done his way . Kind of like what I (and a few others here) do with crappy PSUs and old PC hardware that doesn't perform worth a damn. But it is fun sometimes.

                          The one thing I do definitely agree with you, though, is that it is not very cost-effective to do these things. And yes, you are bound to sink in lots of time and effort (and money too, likely).

                          Comment

                            #14
                            Re: No defense for Windows 8.1

                            Originally posted by kaboom View Post
                            You're missing the point. This is just another "gadget" whose original purpose (before you got it) was simply to "sell" 8/10 or whatever it had. The fact that you could jump in afterwards, and "score" it, is beside the point. Now, not only are you out, albeit slightly, financially, you now keep pushing forward with it (wasting valuable time), fully convinced the end justifies the means.

                            What's the point, when your time, driver hunting, "forcing" ten to play along far exceed what you're stuck with in the end? It's a fools' game.




                            Again, how does that make it special to you? You could (can still?) have your choice of any old atom netbook, which would be equally as useless/useful, depending on your take, and not be saddled with "new vistas." As you well know, plenty of older hardware has drivers not rigged to only work with 8/10/etc. It's a bit disturbing that you didn't consider going that route; instead, like far too many "modern users," trying to find an "out," or excuses, for the "new" microsoft. A young engineer should be far more open to such ideas.




                            Did you really need that gadget? Seriously... that $79 could've bought some nice upgrades for one of those Dells.

                            Why 7 of 'em anyway? And when you say "running," I hope you don't mean "running" on the slasher install they had after you got them. Wanna see some real performance increases? Wipe one of those 630s, do a clean install (yes- clean install) with an XP disc, and either use dell SFX archives and/or device manager to install the drivers. The difference will be shocking at first, but believe me, it's how they were always supposed to run.



                            Here's another for ya: Technology is supposed to be our bitch. It is not supposed to be the other way around.
                            give him a break.... So what, he like playing with problematic hardware. I've been trying to get NetBSD running on this thing for a minute. http://www.amazon.com/Compaq-iPAQ-IA.../dp/B00004ZEPC
                            For some reason the CF card goes to 0 bytes right after switchroot.
                            Last edited by goontron; 10-09-2015, 09:15 PM.
                            Things I've fixed: anything from semis to crappy Chinese $2 radios, and now an IoT Dildo....

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                            Excuse me while i do something dangerous


                            You must have a sad, sad boring life if you hate on people harmlessly enjoying life with an animal costume.

                            Sometimes you need to break shit to fix it.... Thats why my lawnmower doesn't have a deadman switch or engine brake anymore

                            Follow the white rabbit.

                            Comment

                              #15
                              Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                              I actually use the thing though.... I'm actually posting this from it on break at work.

                              Think of it not as a downgrade from a laptop but ascan upgrade fromma smart phone. Much better .
                              sigpic

                              (Insert witty quote here)

                              Comment

                                #16
                                Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                                Originally posted by ratdude747 View Post
                                I actually use the thing though....
                                Or more like those (lame?) Russia jokes,
                                No, tablet uses you.

                                Originally posted by ratdude747 View Post
                                Think of it not as a downgrade from a laptop but ascan upgrade fromma smart phone. Much better .
                                I don't know about upgrades, but with those touchscreen keyboards, your spelling will always be terrible .

                                If I don't have time to make a proper post on a proper computer, then I don't post. But that is just me, of course.

                                Comment

                                  #17
                                  Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                                  Coming from someone who still prefers the XP interface, take it for what it's worth, but each new release of Windows is a bigger joke than the last.

                                  There's now a program that removes the Windows 'telemetry' gathering (read: spying) ability of Windows. And Microsoft disguises these in updates for the older OS' so that no one gets left out.
                                  "We have offered them (the Arabs) a sensible way for so many years. But no, they wanted to fight. Fine! We gave them technology, the latest, the kind even Vietnam didn't have. They had double superiority in tanks and aircraft, triple in artillery, and in air defense and anti-tank weapons they had absolute supremacy. And what? Once again they were beaten. Once again they scrammed [sic]. Once again they screamed for us to come save them. Sadat woke me up in the middle of the night twice over the phone, 'Save me!' He demanded to send Soviet troops, and immediately! No! We are not going to fight for them."

                                  -Leonid Brezhnev (On the Yom Kippur War)

                                  Comment

                                    #18
                                    Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                                    so no "tapatalk" or whatever it's called then?

                                    Comment

                                      #19
                                      Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                                      Originally posted by mockingbird View Post
                                      There's now a program that removes the Windows 'telemetry' gathering (read: spying) ability of Windows. And Microsoft disguises these in updates for the older OS' so that no one gets left out.
                                      that's called FDISK

                                      Comment

                                        #20
                                        Re: In defense of Windows 8.1

                                        Originally posted by momaka View Post
                                        Or more like those (lame?) Russia jokes,
                                        No, tablet uses you.


                                        I don't know about upgrades, but with those touchscreen keyboards, your spelling will always be terrible .

                                        If I don't have time to make a proper post on a proper computer, then I don't post. But that is just me, of course.
                                        Missed that. Whoops, break was ending and I didn't have time to notice. I put it in a keyboard folio case which helps when I'm at a table or desk.
                                        sigpic

                                        (Insert witty quote here)

                                        Comment

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