Forum Home
Press F1
 
Thread ID: 126281 2012-08-18 04:44:00 Windows 8 Pro x64 upgrade from Windows 7 Pro x64 chiefnz (545) Press F1
Post ID Timestamp Content User
1295336 2012-08-18 04:44:00 Ok so I took the plunge into Windows 8 and.... I am pleasantly surprised :p

Burnt the iso and ran setup within my existing Windows 7 install. The upgrade process from start to finish was about 20-30 mins.

The interface is "weird" in that the OS is obviously designed for a touch screen but one can navigate reasonably well using a mouse.

One tip I would give is to have a shortcut on your desktop for your most commonly used applications. The new START pane can be customized by adding "tiles" for your favorite applications etc.

Things I like;

Windows seems zippier and overall navigation around Windows Explorer is really smooth. I like the MS Office "FEEL" they have given Windows Explorer. You can hide or expand the command bar which I have to say has been given a great facelift with easy access to the common "explorer" features one would use, my favorite being the "Share" tab which allows you to email, burn to disc, zip, print, fax and share with other users in one click. You can also disable sharing with a single click.

"Cloud" integration using your Windows Live/Hotmail/Outlook.com email address is pretty cool allowing you to sign into windows with your MS account giving you instant access to Windows Live features such as SkyDrive etc. I'm not using this at the moment as I have far to much email related stuff to migrate, though having said that the new Outlook.com product does allow importing messages from other accounts in the same way Gmail does.


Applications with issues (mainly not being compatible with Windows 8)

ACDSee Pro 3
Total Video Converter
Acronis Disk Director 11
Nero 10 (won't even start up, and no error messages from Windows)
VMware Workstation, is compatible but needs to be re-installed to make Windows happy, so not a complete loss in the least.
Windows gadgets no longer run, from what I've seen MS have removed this from Windows 8, which is a shame as they are quite handy but not something I can't do without.



The above is not completely unexpected, as I had the same issues when moving to Windows 7. Apart from Nero not working at all the other apps do work though Windows does "complain" about their incompatibility.


All in all I'm pretty happy with what they have done which says a lot given all the hype since Windows 8 was announced and demo'd.
There is a clear absence of the "anxiety" one is used to feeling when trying a new MS OS or at the very least it is minimal in comparison to the release of previous platforms.
I'm not in the least bit inclined to go back to my old Windows 7 install, though having said that I prudently made a backup of my Windows 7 install :p

Next... well toying with the idea of uninstalling Office 2010 and replacing it with the Office 2013 Preview release but might wait a while before relinquishing any type of end user sanity I may have left.

Good job Microsoft, you kept it simple but integrated a myriad of features the average user will find relevant, easy to use and in my opinion productive.

Cheers, 		chiefnz (545)
1295337 2012-08-18 06:31:00 One program that DOES not work is The Media Center.

In the Preview you could download and install it Via Free Key From MS.
In the RTM you cant install it ( yet), as the Free Trial key wont work, and as of yet you cant purchase a Key either.


MS obviously have not got this working yet, should be OK by the time general public have it.
Guess the Media Center PC will stay as Preview option currently. :)

Never mind got DVD playback and other Video working fine.

The RTM does seem a bit more "snappy"

The "start" menu Apps are defiantly a lot more snappier.

Then of course one of the first things that were added were the restart and shutdown buttons ;) 		wainuitech (129)
1295338 2012-08-18 06:48:00 Any idea of NZ prices,wainuitech? Thanks. Neil McC (178)
1295339 2012-08-18 06:52:00 No idea yet, except the upgrade from W7 if purchased in the time period MS have created is $20. windowsupgradeoffer.com

I'll be calling a supplier on Monday, may have to "bend their ear" and try to get some prices. :D

Currently I'm evaluating it from TechNet.

Edited: this may sound silly, but It appears to be getting faster as I use it, must have done its indexing I guess. It feels faster than my W7 machine, and this one is LOW spec. - An old P4 3.0Ghz, with 4GB RAM, x64 OS. 		wainuitech (129)
1295340 2012-08-18 07:08:00 What's the time period? I have this sinking feeling I just missed out. Nick G (16709)
1295341 2012-08-18 07:15:00 Have a look through the FAQ in the link in my previous post Nick, theres quite a bit of info, but the dates are between 2 June 2012 and 31 January 2013 wainuitech (129)
1295342 2012-08-18 07:21:00 Ok, Cheers Wainuitech, I'll have a look and see if I get in. Nick G (16709)
1295343 2012-08-19 03:09:00 There's also the cheap upgrade from Xp, Vista and W7. $US40 it seems. It is Pro with WMC. Can't use the cheap upgrade over the top of a previous win 8 install, though. linw (53)
1295344 2012-08-19 03:31:00 Two things...

1) Any idea if the Windows.old folder can be deleted after upgrade?

2) Is there any way to default "File Explorer" (previously Windows Explorer) to "My Computer" rather than "libraries" like in Windows 7?

Thanks, 		chiefnz (545)
1295345 2012-08-19 06:32:00 There's also the cheap upgrade from Xp, Vista and W7. $US40 it seems. It is Pro with WMC. Can't use the cheap upgrade over the top of a previous win 8 install, though. The Full install RTM doesn't come with WMC, the upgrade may, but thats only upgrading from an older version.

Lots of people on technet and other various forums who have got the RTM are all complain about WMC not being available yet. Even if you try to purchase a Product key all MS's servers do is say there is an error -- Seems they are a little slow on getting this feature active yet ;) 		wainuitech (129)
1 2