"Dave "Crash" Dummy" wrote in message
...
SC Tom wrote:


"Dave "Crash" Dummy" wrote in message
...
SC Tom wrote:


"Dave "Crash" Dummy" wrote in message
...
...winston wrote:

"Dave "Crash" Dummy" wrote in message
...

I have heard that Windows 8 RTM is available for everyone,
but every download I see in Microsoft requires a username
and password. Can someone direct me to a download that doesn't
require a sign in?


General Availability afiak remains Oct 26.

Sure you're not downloading Windows 8 RTM 'Evaluation Version' ? - 90
day trial - not upgradeable to the final GA licensed version


Yes, I'm getting the 90 day evaluation version. 90 days is more
than enough time to decide if I want to install it permanently. If I
do, I'll pick up a copy of the educational release at the university
IT department when it is available.

I installed it yesterday (Enterprise Eval 64-bit), and had a few
devices that weren't picked up, or updated. One was my wireless, but I
managed to find a work-around on line. After fixing the rest of the
devices, I installed Classic Shell, and kinda like it
(Win8). I probably won't buy it when it's released, since I haven't
seen it being any faster on anything I've done with Win7,
but I have to admit that the RTM is definitely better than the two
preview versions I tried. Part of the driver problem is that
Acer hasn't released any for my Aspire V3-731 yet. I was able to
shotgun a couple of Win7 drivers in, and the others came
directly from Intel and Qualcomm-Atheros. I don't like the tiles,
but with Classic Shell I can bypass that and add a start menu.
There are still some things that won't get added that way, so I
have to drop out to the tiles to do them (one is Solitaire). Then
it gave me grief using my Live ID sign in sigh. I'll keep it
for a while and test it out, but unless I see something radical
that I haven't seen yet, I'll pull that drive and put my Win7 one
back in.

Thanks for the heads up. I haven't installed it, yet, but when I do
it will be as a dual boot with Win 7. You said you "kinda like it."
What is it you like, compared to Win 7?

I guess I should have said I kinda like the fact that it's not any slower
than Win7. It does seem leaner, but I can't truly explain what
I mean by that. It's very responsive, but that may be because it's a
fresh installation with no third-party software installed yet.

I dislike the whole tile thing, though. Even with Classic Shell, sooner
or later, you have to drop out to the Start tiles to get to things. I may
uninstall Classic Shell (or just reinstall Win8) and see if I can get
used to the tile system, but since I couldn't stand
it in the two previews I had installed, I doubt seriously if I'll like
it any better even if it reacts faster and more smoothly.

I probably will buy it, even if I don't install it right away. I had
forgotten about the new PC $15 upgrade until I saw it in another
newsgroup. Since I just bought a new laptop last month, I qualify for
it. $15 for a new operating system? Hard to pass *that* up :-)

I have friends in low places, like the university IT department, so I
can get it cheap. I didn't pay anything for Windows 7 Ultimate.

I know I won't ever like the tiles. I have been running with icon free
desktops since Windows 95. I use the task bar for my frequently used
items. I was disappointed when I discovered that Windows 7 no longer
allowed an active desktop, but I figured out how to work around it.
This serves as my living room clock:
http://crash.thedatalist.com/temp/desktop.jpg
There are also some hidden features that show up with a mouseover.

If you want the ultimate Win8 machine, here it is:

http://www.microsoft.com/surface/en-US

Bill's answer to the iPad :-)
--
SC Tom