Windows 8 beta (Consumer Preview)

[Stephen!]

The day many have been waiting for has finally arrived. The Windows 8 consumer preview is now available for download at the following links below. We'll add direct links once they become available.

The consumer preview represents the first look in to Windows 8 that is, as the name denotes, intended to let consumers try out the new OS. The previously released version, the Windows Developers Preview, was locked down and only provided a limited look at what the new OS has to offer.

32-Bit Download
64-Bit Download

Source

[Recursion]

Installing as we speak. Was getting 3MB/s on the x64 ISO, only getting 1MB/s on the Server ISO though

[Stephen!]

Lol at this. Don't enjoy using it at all. The start button has vanished!

[xxMATTGxx]

Lol at this. Don't enjoy using it at all. The start button has vanished!

The True Story Behind the Missing Start Button:

http://www.winsupersite.com/article/...-button-142338

[peteyt]

Microsoft is so popular in enterprise in comparison to Mac etc. due to their tremendous long term support and backwards compatibility.

But I'd of thought a company using a buggy program with many security holes would look bad?

[Chippiewill]

But I'd of thought a company using a buggy program with many security holes would look bad?

What the hell are you talking about?

The True Story Behind the Missing Start Button:

http://www.winsupersite.com/article/...-button-142338

Have to wait till tomorrow for the audio version of his musings

[JoeyK.]

Honestly, not a whole lot changes between versions of Windows. You get a few bonuses that slow your computer down a bit if you choose to use them. Look at Aero. In all honestly, you're better off being a version behind - Look how many people had issues playing their games on Vista when it first came out. Same with 7, it'll be the same with 8. Early adopters pay more and get screwed in the software department just so their computers can look pretty and get 'oohs' and 'ahhs' from their friends.

Trust me, I paid the $ for W7 Ultimate - never used any feature that is not included in Home Premium. Bought Vista earlier, wished I'd stuck with XP.

Sure, you have 'XP compatibility mode,' but really, it's more of an inconvenience to run a brand-new OS than anything. No one develops anything exclusively for an OS in the first year it comes out... Windows 8 is not the PS4 / NeXtBox / etc... Even a first-year console usually has a crap lineup, so wait until it's cheap.

Source - I have worked in IT for 3 years.

[Recursion]

Honestly, not a whole lot changes between versions of Windows. You get a few bonuses that slow your computer down a bit if you choose to use them. Look at Aero. In all honestly, you're better off being a version behind - Look how many people had issues playing their games on Vista when it first came out. Same with 7, it'll be the same with 8. Early adopters pay more and get screwed in the software department just so their computers can look pretty and get 'oohs' and 'ahhs' from their friends.

Trust me, I paid the $ for W7 Ultimate - never used any feature that is not included in Home Premium. Bought Vista earlier, wished I'd stuck with XP.

Sure, you have 'XP compatibility mode,' but really, it's more of an inconvenience to run a brand-new OS than anything. No one develops anything exclusively for an OS in the first year it comes out... Windows 8 is not the PS4 / NeXtBox / etc... Even a first-year console usually has a crap lineup, so wait until it's cheap.

Source - I have worked in IT for 3 years.

Are you a complete and utter fool? If you worked in IT for 3 years I am extremely worried about the IT at the place you work for.

No one had issues when 7 came out, because that's what Vista was for. Microsoft changed key elements of the kernel and hardware manufacturers got lazy and didn't bother rewriting their drivers to Microsoft's new spec, hence the problems Vista had in the first run.

Firstly, hardware has gotten stupidly fast compared to the hardware we were using back when XP was released and superceeded, secondly, the critical backend functions have been rewritten with performance in mind in Vista and 7, to say they run slowly is a stupid thing to do, the fact is, even with all the bells and whistles, 7 will run a ton faster than XP... even when we're not taking this into account, it still would because it's optimised for today's hardware, whilst XP is not.

I'm just about to finish rolling out Windows 7 at my place of work, some of the hardware is back from when XP was still around. The machines run faster and more reliably than ever before. I even have the end users on board! I updated the first few machines and as soon as staff had seen these they were asking when I was able to update their machines for them!

EDIT: I think you'll also find that OS price drops occur extremely rarely, generally, they're taken off the shelves as soon as a new OS is announced.

[JoeyK.]

Are you a complete and utter fool?

Sorry, I didn't read past your first line. If you have a valid argument, please post it without being a complete ass.

Well, maybe I did read a bit more. I guess MS had every right to test an OS on the public and charge them for it before releasing a half-decent successor to XP.

[Recursion]

But I'd of thought a company using a buggy program with many security holes would look bad?

Microsoft provide far superior "Enterprise" type support for networked machines, Apple will never touch that fact.

Sorry, I didn't read past your first line. If you have a valid argument, please post it without being a complete ass.

Oh, so you've agreed you've been a bit of an eejit? Thanks.


On topic, got the client installed on my MacBook, love it so far... and I'm not missing the start menu as much as I did in the DP Now to get Server installed in VMWare