I'm still not sold on updating.

I am now fully in the corner of those that hate the metro interface. Seems like a great OS for speed but the tablet portion of the OS is obnoxious as hell for a laptop.

I thought this as well when testing beta versions. However, the final version I think is much better, especially with the touch pad features enabled. Still takes a little getting used to though.

I do think that for a touch screen setup that Windows 8 is pretty stellar. I bought a budget closeout all in one gateway for Christmas that had a Windows 7 touch screen (2 point touch rather than Windows 8 preferred 5 point) that I upgraded to 8 and it is a great machine now where it was only ok with 7.

I still don't like 8 for a traditional desktop though that only has a keyboard and mouse.

Any more converts? I have had my copy for 2 months now but still haven't installed it.

I got a copy of Windows 7 Pro yesterday for $55.

Thank God for Windows 8! :)

I read an article the other day calling Win8 the new Vista.

I think that's a bit unfair. Vista just plain ran like shit, where Windows 8 runs fine.

The problem with Windows 8 is that, for a desktop user, there's really nothing that has improved over Windows 7. They made a few minor tweaks to the desktop UI, but nothing major. The biggest change is all the Metro bullshit, and most people on desktops don't care.

I think it would be a good idea to go ahead and buy Windows 8 for $39.99 - but just hold on to the license for now until there is a reason to upgrade.

This.

I do have to say...it's crazy how consistent Microsoft is when it comes to quality releases vs. crap releases. They basically put out a release with all sorts of half-assed new ideas that don't work very well, then fix them all a couple years later.

Windows 95 - Innovative, but buggy
Windows 98 - Not many changes, but much more stable
Windows ME - Pure crap / Windows 2000 - Compatibility issues
Windows XP - Most stable OS yet and few compatibility issues
Windows Vista - Ultra shitty performance
Windows 7 - Runs great
Windows 8 - Shitty integration of Metro UI
Windows 9 - (I bet it'll be much more cohesive by that point)

Some things that may help.

Think of the metro as the new start menu (and for god's sake type the name of the program you want. Hell even in 7 and Vista this was faster than clicking)

Learn some keyboard shortcuts (there is an app for that) such as Windows Key + M to go to the desktop. Windows Key to go back to the metro.

And I didn't read the entire thread, so this may be mentioned already but if you absolutely cannot stand metro, try this Start8. It will bring back the traditional windows desktop and start menu. This will work for people who are running 8 on laptops or desktops without touchscreens.

I will say that I hate the IE app from the metro and use IE from the desktop. I have a Surface RT so no other browsers yet.

I rarely use the start menu. I don't see why people are so butthurt about that.

Just personal style, I suppose. I use it all the time.

Yea, im not sure why MS didnt have a seperate OS for tablets and desktops? I feel like Win8 is some sort of strange hybrid/bridge OS.

TBH it didn't need to be separate, but there should have been an option in the Control Panel or something

New Metro
Traditional Windows Desktop

If you have a tablet or touchscreen, the metro is nice and easy. With a standard desktop/laptop, it is definatly a bit awkward, at best.