You're obviously doing things the wrong way - it only took me a day or two to get used to the way of thinking when using Windows 8.

The only thing you could possibly be opening in Modern UI mode is Internet Explorer - and the simple solution to that one is open it in Desktop mode. Then you never need to open a fullscreen app ever again! Surely learning the new start screen is within your limits!?

As for any other apps you are opening in full screen mode - simply don't open them and use a desktop equivalent, don't blame Windows 8 for giving you more choice.

Why don't you invest some time in learning many of the new features (you may like what options you are presented with if you right click the start button/corner, for example).

Edited by Pipexer (Thu 28-Nov-13 21:11:37)

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

In reply to a post by johnjburness:

Obviously it depends on the program (some still have the "old-fashioned" arrangement of a an "X" in the top right hand corner) but to grab/drag/hold (until the shrunken program reverses) seems harder than a simple click!!

Er yes because there is a difference between desktop apps and Modern UI apps!

So are you saying that the Modern UI Apps are harder (as I've found out)? Don't this nullify your previous post?

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

In reply to a post by johnjburness:

The Apps page doesn't allow me (or to be more precise, I haven't found a way of doing it) to edit it so only the relevant Apps display - this means I'm invariably having to scroll to look for my App (***).

right click > unpin
click > drag the app around???
If you're on about the "All Apps" bit - if its frequently used, pin it to the main start screen!

I'm not aware of multiple Apps screens, just the one, plus the "Tiles" screen.

Incidentally, I tried your suggestion, but it didn't work & the choices on offer didn't match your comments!

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

In reply to a post by johnjburness:

The fact that some programs "obliterate" the Task-Bar means that I'm no longer able to simply click between Programs, but I have to do the Alt-Tab approach!

Then don't open the Modern UI apps! Nobody is forcing you to use them, they wern't there in Windows 7. Windows 8 does not force you to use any full screen apps!!

Sorry, I really don't understand what you are talking about!

Are you talking about Skydrive? Which I didn't want & it would not let me get rid of it (until I found a "dirty-way" to do it).

This was controlling that save facility in Word (which I've used the various variants since Ver 2), contrary to the Save-Defaults that I had set, or am I supposed to stop using Word!

They even took away such silly progs such as Free-Cell & you were expected to download the modern equivalent which is riddled with Adverts!

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

You have got to remember that these full screen apps are an offering, and you aren't forced to use any of them, they are a different experience and mainly designed at touchscreen and handheld devices. Don't confuse that with the OS, it's just those Apps. Windows 8 gives you a choice that is fully integrated with one another and fully maintains backwards-compatibility.

As I've said in another post, I haven't bought a quasi-Media-Centre but, or so I thought, I was buying a PC - but I certainly agree with you that it is designed for these quasi-media-centres!

Obviously the UI is not the same thing as the OS, but it is the Front-End to it & its flexibility/adaptability/usability is dictated by that Front-End!

I do note that, when I responded to your challenge with various examples, you haven't refuted any of it - only made a suggestion to stop using it!

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

You're obviously doing things the wrong way - it only took me a day or two to get used to the way of thinking when using Windows 8.

I recognise that you are "wonderful"!

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

The only thing you could possibly be opening in Modern UI mode is Internet Explorer - and the simple solution to that one is open it in Desktop mode. Then you never need to open a fullscreen app ever again! Surely learning the new start screen is within your limits!?

So you are suggesting that I go through every Program that I might need & see if it obliterates everything? That seems a pointless exercise!

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

As for any other apps you are opening in full screen mode - simply don't open them and use a desktop equivalent, don't blame Windows 8 for giving you more choice.

So you are suggesting that I go through every Program that I might need & see if it obliterates everything? That seems a pointless exercise!

I really don't understand how you regard it forcing me to save to the Skydrive, when I've set the defaults to "My Documents" is giving me more choice??

As you have said, Win 8 is NOT designed for PC Work, but Media-Centre applications, which is giving less choice!

In reply to a post by Pipexer:

Why don't you invest some time in learning many of the new features (you may like what options you are presented with if you right click the start button/corner, for example).

I use the right-click, when I can found a relevant link there, but it is very restrictive.

Incidentally, pray tell how a Right-Click is much faster/simpler that the old left-click?

Right-clicking on the Start menu give access to a host of options that took three or four steps in Windows 7. Undoubtedly faster.

In reply to a post by AEP:

Right-clicking on the Start menu give access to a host of options that took three or four steps in Windows 7. Undoubtedly faster.

True, but just what are those options?

File Explorer - which I have on my Task-Bar.
Control Panel - which was a single click before (but I probably use less than once a week).
Run - which was a single click before (but I probably use less than once a month).
Shutdown - this is 2 clicks, as it was before
Search - tended to only use that within File Explorer or within Emails or within Browsers (***).
Task Manager is new (I used to use the "3-finger-salute"), but I'm only likely to really need that when I'm investigating PC problems.

Rest are subsets of Control Panel that I would only use on rare occasions.

Doesn't give any access to basic Programs, Browsers or Mail Clients that I'm likely to require frequently.

(***) have checked this out & it just seems to be an Internet Search (i.e. a Browser Search), but I couldn't get it to shutdown as per other Apps!

On win7 you could open task manager by right clicking on the task bar - you didn't need the 3 finger salute to do it.

Closing modern UI programs is odd - but Microsoft will tell you that you don't need to as they are designed to keep running and therefore are only closed in exceptional circumstances. And if you want to close a program quickly just use Alt-F4 (assuming you have a keyboard).

You can use normal desktop apps without using the modern UI. Pin things to the taskbar or shortcuts on desktop and it will be there ready for you.

I have a tablet with win 8.1 and have seen far more hangs/crashes than with win 8 but the interface is good on that. Got a laptop with win 8 and do find it less intuitive than the tablet but it is OK. Other 2 machines are still running win 7 as I decided not to bother to upgrade them - will wait to see what happens with win 9.

Win 8 is not as bad as many people think but it is not as good as Microsoft think. But I find OS X pretty unintuitive for a lot of things (been a while since I used it because I wasn't that keen and couldn't run the software I wanted at the time) - but who decided that ejecting a disk should be done by dragging it to the trash can - no-one would assume that was the right way without being told!

keeping 10 yr old hardware running / limping along because you don't like the monopoly OS offering in the otherwise competitive retail hardware sector is an unfortunate position to be in.

In reply to a post by AEP:

No-one has to use Windows 8. .... It seems perverse to use something you don't like.

A very large proportion of the population go into a retail outlet or online and buy what is on offer, they won't find Windows 7 in a shop.

Like most people, if I buy what's on offer it's because it does the job I want it to. Otherwise I wouldn't buy it.

Windows 7 is not the only alternative to Windows 8 - not even the only commercial one. If you go into PC World and buy a computer it doesn't have to run Windows 8. If you are even more sensible and go to somewhere like Novatech it doesn't even have to come with an OS installed.

But people happily buy Windows 8 computers - because they work for them.

Investing time! That's the whole issue.

Apart from the system booting quicker, the actual typing and doing the usual tasks takes the same time.

It's the starting and closing of the Apps/Programmes that's causes consternation!