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Going crazy and very frustrated

#41
Selta said:
I use Linux daily... and I wouldn't currently consider it for home use. I can't play all of my games on it. And it doesn't really address the point - you either learn Win 8 or learn Linux. Of the two, learning a new iteration of Windows is easier, IMO, not to mention that the flavor of the month Linux distros fall out of favor and go dead in development, causing way more issues for the less-than-savvy users.

Edit: Just to add, Mint has been seeing explosive popularity lately. Before that though, Ubuntu was all the rage (guess what killed it? Oh, yeah, Unity UI!). Before that, Fedora. GenToo in there as well. The fragmentation, IMO, is what keeps Linux flavors from taking more desktop, home use market share. Mint does have a lot going for it though, and is poised to do well if it doesn't fracture and divide the devs behind it, or simply fall off the face due to a new "flavor" taking top spot.
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I have used windows forever. Also I should add that I am computer savvy. I went to school for it...... however after numerous re-installs of windows 8.1 with my computer constantly crashing in said screw that and installed Linux mint. Yes its different that windows but navigating is very similar. Some things are called different blah blah. Some terminal use but if u can follow directions its not that hard.

Linux distros will keep improving. They have tremendously in the past 5 years. If you dont need to play games or use windows specific apps then linux is great choice. Its faster, smoother and best of all completely free and open source with tons of people to help you out on the forums....oh yea..my computer that would constantly crash with windows 7/8 is completely crash free on Mint!

Amd phenom x4 3.0ghz
8gb ram
Geforce gt640
Ocz vertex 4 128gb
Wd green 2tb
 
#42
Groovy_Gravy said:
I have used windows forever. Also I should add that I am computer savvy. I went to school for it...... however after numerous re-installs of windows 8.1 with my computer constantly crashing in said screw that and installed Linux mint. Yes its different that windows but navigating is very similar. Some things are called different blah blah. Some terminal use but if u can follow directions its not that hard.

Linux distros will keep improving. They have tremendously in the past 5 years. If you dont need to play games or use windows specific apps then linux is great choice. Its faster, smoother and best of all completely free and open source with tons of people to help you out on the forums....oh yea..my computer that would constantly crash with windows 7/8 is completely crash free on Mint!
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You touch on a few of my points - for the most common denominator, re-learning all of the things on Linux is a bigger pile than relearning the new UI on Windows, and hence more effort. For most people who just want to turn it on and have it work, either is likely too much. Those people have enough going on with work, paying bills and trying to live, to learn a new OS, any new OS. One of the falling out with any Linux variant is the inevitable turn to the console for something along the lines, even if the commands are written out for you. I'm sure you've seen plenty of packages just not install even if they're supposed to ;)

But, I agree Linux will keep improving, just as it has for the past few decades. I still don't see it over taking any serious amount of home desktop users outside of enthusiasts anytime soon. If Mint can get a bigger following and continue on its current path, it might get pretty serious. With gaming possibly ramping up on it now thanks to "SteamOS", who knows what it'll be like in another 10 years. Interesting times for sure.
 
#43
mrpackerguy said:
Sorry I'm not trying to hijack your thread, Mr. OP. Wondering, though. Still using XP at home. Am I really ultra-exposed to threats continuing to run XP with AVG in place? A computer shop in the town my folks live in told my dad that since Microsoft is not supporting XP any longer, that he's now at an "ultra high risk" of viruses and all the nasty computer risks. I'm not sure I agree with that but not being the computer saaviast, am not sure.
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Yeah, XP machines will be targeted.
 
#44
iamlowsound said:
I can't believe that there are still companies out there running XP. It just blows my mine how some companies refuse to spend money staying on top of technology.

lowsound
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Big companies and institutions have to test many, many programs before upgrading. What a fiasco if they rolled out new OS and had compatibility issues. Also, some expensive software will not run on newer computers, and some budgets do not allow for purchase of new software, especially when it has been running for years without problems on the old hardware.
 
#46
I know this is a couple months old, but I didn't see the need to create a whole new thread for my comments. I was working with Linux at work today, and came up with a great list of sites for tweaking your installs. This is mainly directed at Ubuntu 14.04 flavors but it obviously applies to others as well:

Easy Linux tips project
https://sites.google.com/site/easylinuxtipsproject/first

Back to the original Gnome:
http://www.webupd8.org/2014/04/how-to-install-and-tweak-gnome.html

Get rid of the Lubuntu settings:
http://askubuntu.com/questions/3319...plash-screen-from-unity-gnome-on-ubuntu-12-04

More good settings:
http://www.noobslab.com/2014/04/thingstweaks-to-do-after-install-of.html

http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2014/04/10-things-to-do-after-installing-ubuntu-14-04

http://www.webupd8.org/2014/04/10-things-to-do-after-installing-ubuntu.html

Install Java

sudo apt-get install icedtea–7-plugin openjdk–7-jre

Cool
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
 
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#47
placedesjardins said:
So, I retired a home PC computer running Windows XP and set up a new PC that has Windows 8 today. Navigating around and trying to find things is driving me nuts. Getting out of apps is crazy. Is that previous window running an app closed? I don't know. Does it matter? Where's the Control Panel? How do I get out of a window and back to the desk top? Where are the edges of the window? Everything is expanded. Slide it over and you get a compressed window on one side and a black window on the other. No more cascaded tiles of windows. Or maybe there still is?

At least the new computer is fast. The other PC always was slow and the fan was running at mega-cool-down-speed almost all the time.

And so, I'm in IT and have been doing computer programming on both Unix and Windows platforms for years... and this is completely Nutsville times 50.
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Glad I'm not the only one. I'm pretty weak on computer skills and thought it was just me at 1st. There have been a couple threads posted on this issue (including my own), and I've heard numerous complaints from others I know more computer literate that I. I've adjusted to it, but still haven't figured out how to open more than one window at a time. At random times every time I move the cursor the screen will zoom in and out. It's a PIA but I still wouldn't want to try living without one!
 
#48
I have always been accepting to at least try new Windows OS's since Windows 3.1. I currently have Windows 8.1 (Update 1) on my desktop and I actually like it. With the update it makes it much easier to use on a non-touch desktop. It was risky for Microsoft to again just make the kind of assumption that most people have a touch screen however I appreciate how much quicker it is and boots up faster and file transfers quicker just to name a few things I greatly appreciate. Change is inevitable most times, you just have to embrace it and give it a chance.
 
#49
From a different perspective, I own a Surface 3 Pro. So, Windows 8.1, and problems running Linux natively. That is my only Windows 8 device but I got usable after some tweaking and getting used to... Everything works great now except for two things:

One, Chromium is really bad on touch. As in, really bad. The toolbar/tab list/url bar sometimes completely stop responding to touch, while keyboard shortcuts and the cursor work. This fixes itself by opening some link in a new window and closing it. Not only that, but there are DPI issues that only Chromium has and that are fixed on the dev channel... Maybe they migrated to the stable build. Dunno. Firefox is sadly no better, and IE is disabled and will stay disabled.

The other problem is that Windows came bundled with all the Windows RT "utilities", for my convenience. That means that, for example, besides the control panel there is the metro version called Settings or something, that overlaps the Control Panel in features. Similarly, when I search for Update at the start menu, two update apps show up: one from Windows RT, the other being the real one. Only the icon is different. That's infuriating and there's nothing to be done about it.

But the first issue is due to Chromium and the second due to the Surface itself. Everything else is fine. That said, I don't use a single metro app, do not have a connected MS account, use no "live drive" or whatever; it's my best attempt to make it work as Win 7 and it's close enough.
 
#50
Bocete said:
That said, I don't use a single metro app, do not have a connected MS account, use no "live drive" or whatever....
Click to expand...

Aside from using a few Metro apps, I am in the same boat as you on my Dell Venue 8 running Windows 8.1 Pro. I really like it.

As for the touch issues, there is an option to enable touch mode for some apps. Have you tried that? I have not. I use IE and Comodo from the desktop, they work alright.

-Mike
 
#51
Yeah, I tried everything to make Chromium work alright. Moving onto the dev build made it usable for me.

Another Chromium bug I forgot to mention: the virtual keyboard pops up every time I click on a text field, even if I have the keyboard dock plugged in. This does not happen on any other browser or application. Luckily, as soon as I press any key on the physical keyboard, the virtual keyboard disappears. Still, it is annoying.
 
#52
Selta said:
Yes and no. Developers are making things easier to find and more intuitive, but they are not doing it just to "screw with you". Trust me, devs have better things to do. Need to get into control panel? Win+X+P and you're there. Or right click the start button and click Control Panel (either method is quicker/easier than it was to get to it in Win XP, Win Vista or Win 7). Want a command prompt? Right click and click either normal or admin command prompt. Control Panel has actually changed quite a lot - we now have Bit Locker, Sync Center, better Indexing, Backup & Restore, Software Explorer more advanced power control options, Credential Manager... ah, I could go on and on. Yes, you have to get at it a different (yet easier) way now, but it is most certainly improved, especially where it matters - in an enterprise setting. Even at home I love all of the changes though and welcome them. I get more done, in less time. Most people I run into just don't know how to use it or know about the new/expanded features, because they don't want to take a few minutes to learn it. Often, I give a free 30 minute consultation which then nets me a few hours of billable service to train these people. Once I do that, everyone I've worked with has loved it as well.
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It's great that they've got all of the new features for the people who will use them, but they could have left the option to have the classic start menu for those of us who aren't keen on the technicolour metro screen.
 
#53
After several years of xp on my laptop and ubuntu studio on my desktop, my laptop finally bit it hard just after 8 came out, and I took the opportunity to buy a new laptop with 8, with the intention of dual booting, only to get trapped in the signed kernel uefi shenanigans trying to get win 8 to work after installing ubuntu on a 2nd disk. gave up on windows at that point and have yet to regret not having it a year and a half on
 
#54
Jim Nazium said:
My employer is scheduled to upgrade the entire workforce (7,000 +) from Windows XP to Windows 8 this fall, including all new hardware. Should be fun. I predict 3 or more months of round-the-clock, 7-days-a-week work for the IT department, and a total cessation of all useful work by everyone else.
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... and here we are, almost one year since I posted this (5/11/2014), and everyone in my department is still running XP ...
 
#56
Happynoj said:
It's great that they've got all of the new features for the people who will use them, but they could have left the option to have the classic start menu for those of us who aren't keen on the technicolour metro screen.
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Plus, the bloatware eats up hardware capacity. If there was a way to have the computer do what I want it to do without all the other stuff somebody somewhere decided I really wanted, I would be pretty happy. It's a tool. That's all it is.
 
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#59
Gaolee said:
Plus, the bloatware eats up hardware capacity. If there was a way to have the computer do what I want it to do without all the other stuff somebody somewhere decided I really wanted, I would be pretty happy. It's a tool. That's all it is.
Click to expand...

The bloatware helps drive down the price. If you take that out, then people start crying about how expensive it is.

You can always build your own computer. Zero bloatware and great performance when built thoughtfully.

-Mike
 

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