Best Win 8 Start Button replacement program?

On Thu, 30 May 2013 18:36:21 +0800, xfile wrote:

On 5/30/2013 17:07, mechanic wrote:
On Thu, 30 May 2013 16:18:29 +0800, xfile wrote:

So which is more important in terms of doing their jobs for
serving customers, directly or indirectly, and helping the
company making money (so they can get paid too) or learning a
darn new OS for Microsoft?

You don't believe in training for employees? They're supposed to
arrive fully trained in the latest tools and techniques?


I do only if you can provide tangible ROI (Return on Investment)
in numbers.

Starting with, how many clicks they spent on finding a file.

If you or Microsoft can provide tangible money-saving and
productivity-increase numbers, we and any sane business managers
will be more than happy to learn and call it a "tool" or
"technology" but before that, it's a toy and hype.

"Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that
can be counted counts."

On 5/30/13 2:18 AM, xfile wrote:
On 5/29/2013 22:33, Darklight wrote:
On 08/05/13 10:28, mac wrote:

"usenetopian" wrote in message
...
This has been asked before but I forget the answers given (sorry)

can anyone recommend a great Start button replacement for Windows 8?

Thanks in advance

Hang on a while?

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/li...-29249953.html



Windows 8: Microsoft announces 'biggest product U-turn since New Coke'.

mac



There is nothing wrong with the metro interface. If people had a degree
of intelligence or the play fullness of a child they might see the
benefits of the metro interface.

It's the incompetence of people that is the problem. They are like
religious fanatics. Unable or don't want to try some thing new.

The metro interface is nothing more than a full screen start menu and if
people can't see that tough ****.

What happens when you put the mouse in the bottom left hand corner of
win 8?
What happens when you put the mouse in the bottom left hand corner of
win 7?

answer the same thing.

From a physiological point of view the metro interface has been an
enlightening exercise.




My reply was meant to you,

Did it ever occur to you that each experimenting involves cost,
including cost of a person's life and cost of hiring an employee?

You may want to spend any amount of time you wish to learn a new OS
which you are rightfully to do so.

But you should be taught that there are others outside of yourself and
they have the same right as yours to choose how they want to spend their
personal life. Some may want to spend the time on reading, watching
movies, taking care of their families, and so on except on learning a
new OS.

Does that ever occur to you?

And do you realize that every minute an employee spent involving cost
including their salaries, benefits, and bonuses? Employees are NOT
volunteers, you know that, right?

So which is more important in terms of doing their jobs for serving
customers, directly or indirectly, and helping the company making money
(so they can get paid too) or learning a darn new OS for Microsoft?

If you are kind (and rich, of course) enough to pay for all learning
costs for every business for learning the new program, then you are
rightfully to criticize for anyone refuses to do so.

Until then, you have demonstrated yourself as an ignorant person with no
respect to others' choices of how to spend their life and one has zero
knowledge about business costs.

And only sane and educated and rational people would think about how o
put the best use of their "limited time and life."

Like it or not, learning a new OS is at the very bottom of the list.

Not everyone is found of playing computers, and please grow up to learn it.

I was sure glad that reply wasn't meant for me. :-)

I agree with all your points... 99% of them anyway. LOL

Computers are now part of everyday life, like cell phones and cars. I'd
bet when cars were replacing horses and buggies, there were similar
sounding discussions about loss of productivity because people didn't
know how to drive a car or truck, and didn't want to learn on their own.

What I think people need to learn, on their own at this point in time,
is the OS. Software such as office suites, graphics suites, CAD
programs, etc. would be a case by case basis depending on the company's
needs.

I've always felt/maintained that if you were competent in the OS and
available utilities such as macro recorders, file management basics, 3rd
party customization options available, you would be so far ahead of
those that don't know those features when it comes to learning Word,
Excel, AutoCAD, etc.

And in today's economic reality where efficiency counts, that should
give you some kind of edge.


--
Ken

Mac OS X 10.8.3
Firefox 20.0
Thunderbird 17.0.5
LibreOffice 4.0.1.2

"SC Tom" wrote:

I could probably get used to the MUI faster if it would allow a
"finger-swipe" using a mouse from anywhere on the screen instead of having
to use the horizontal scroll bar.

I find that all of the W8 MUI apps I've tried so far (like CNN and
CNET) scroll both vertically and horizontally by using the mouse
wheel. (The scroll bars usually reappear with a mouse movement in case
I want to scroll extra fast.)

I recently bought an Asus tablet and can
get around the screens well using my fingers, and a stylus for the fine
work, so when I go back to my Win8 laptop, I try to emulate that swipe with
the mouse, but no joy :-(

Touchscreen laptops are getting cheaper. Maybe it's time...

Aside to Al- you must not be as OC as I am; I end up cleaning my tablet
screen two or three times per session, even though I make sure my hands are
clean and dry before messing around with it :-)

My tablets get filthy dirty too. But something about the touchscreen
on this laptop just makes the fingerprints seem much worse. I have yet
to figure out exactly why. Maybe I need to go see a shrink... :-/

mechanic has written on 5/16/2013 1:30 PM:
Ken Springer wrote:

I think too many users choose Windows and MS Office products because they
are sheeple. Everyone else has it, everyone else says that's what they
need, so that's what they buy. There's other reasons too, such as it's
hard to find Mac outlets, even harder to see a Linux box, but I'm
referring to the aggregate result.

Surprised no-one picked up on this! Unfortunately the likes of Open/Libre
Office aren't compatible (enough) with MS Office to be useful in a mixed
platform environment; by which I mean that if you have to collaborate with
another author on a document you will have problems

What kinds of problems?

Ken Blake has written on 5/28/2013 10:32 AM:
On Tue, 28 May 2013 03:22:50 -0500, Ron Fey
wrote:

On Tue, 21 May 2013 20:17:48 +0800, xfile wrote:

I decided to have all of our company's outgoing documents to be
converted to PDF format first and added a standard line: For your
convenience, we have prepared the document in PDF format so you may view
and edit with any editor of your choice.

I've used a bunch of editors over the years but I don't think I've ever seen
one that can edit pdf files. Can you please name one or two?


Here are three that spring to mind:

Adobe Acrobat
Foxit Reader
WordPerfect

Do they edit PDFs in the same manner as a word processor edits a document?

On Thu, 30 May 2013 14:22:53 -0400, Juan Wei
wrote:

Ken Blake has written on 5/28/2013 10:32 AM:
On Tue, 28 May 2013 03:22:50 -0500, Ron Fey
wrote:

On Tue, 21 May 2013 20:17:48 +0800, xfile wrote:

I decided to have all of our company's outgoing documents to be
converted to PDF format first and added a standard line: For your
convenience, we have prepared the document in PDF format so you may view
and edit with any editor of your choice.

I've used a bunch of editors over the years but I don't think I've ever seen
one that can edit pdf files. Can you please name one or two?


Here are three that spring to mind:

Adobe Acrobat
Foxit Reader
WordPerfect

Do they edit PDFs in the same manner as a word processor edits a document?


For WordPerfect, which *is* a word processor (the *best* word
processor, in my view), yes.


--
Ken Blake

Ken Springer wrote:

What I think people need to learn, on their own at this point in time,
is the OS.


Apparently we'll all have to learn (or adapt) once 8.1 arrives with its
overhaul.

Start Button but **no Start Menu**
- which I'm ok with since I rarely needed it in Win7. Likewise, I
prefer keeping only select programs and Modern UI apps on the Win8 Start
Screen with utilities on the Task or Quick Launch tool bars

More tile sizes (larger and smaller)

PC Settings UI that more closely mimics/includes desktop Control Panel items

Search functionality expanded to include by default all scope options
(apps,files, store, web etc)rather than a need to pick and choose a scope.

Store apps automatically updated as part of background maintenance process.
- alleviates need to visit store, select/install updates for apps
- Note: Store apps updates include program and security updates.
Security updates (like current Win8) for Store apps are not deployed via
Windows Update

SkyDrive stand-alone Desktop program integrated into Windows
- never made much sense to have a separate Modern UI app and Desktop
program and a need to use the latter locally to upload to/sync with an
online SkyDrive. Also included is the stand-alone option to selectively
sync folder/files to a local device (though its uncertain if the other
way around 'local to cloud' is available)
- though doing so may create loss of flexibility for those with
multiple SkyDrives (since the logged on MSFT account determines the
active SkyDrive) unlike the stand-alone Desktop program which can
disconnect one MSFT account and sign on with another independent of the
Win8 logged on MSFT account.

Boot to Desktop - self explanatory
- for me not a big deal...no preference one way or another since
switching is relatively easy and at times I prefer a few of the live tiles.

All Apps screen has more functionality with new sort function and can be
configured to be the default view instead of the Modern UI 'Start Screen'
- New installed apps aren't automatically added to the Modern UI Start
Screen, instead saved to the All Apps screen and labeled as 'new'

No changes for the Mail UI (i.e. no POP3 support which may never come
thus some with ISP accounts that don't support EAS or IMAP will continue
the need to use a stand-alone email client.
- Not an issue for me since Outlook is my email client which supports
POP3, IMAP, and EAS....though I continue to prefer legacy Windows Live
Mail for Hotmail type accounts with the http two-way syncable protocol.


If folks are waiting for Win8 to become Win7 - it does not look like
that will happen (ever).


--
...winston
msft mvp consumer apps

Apparently we'll all have to learn (or adapt) once 8.1 arrives with its
overhaul.

snip


If folks are waiting for Win8 to become Win7 - it does not look like
that will happen (ever).



Forgot to include Ed Bott's write-up

http://www.zdnet.com/windows-8-1-unveiled-will-it-change-your-mind-about-windows-8_p2-7000016112/


--
...winston
msft mvp consumer apps

"AL" wrote in message
...
"SC Tom" wrote:

I could probably get used to the MUI faster if it would allow a
"finger-swipe" using a mouse from anywhere on the screen instead of having
to use the horizontal scroll bar.

I find that all of the W8 MUI apps I've tried so far (like CNN and
CNET) scroll both vertically and horizontally by using the mouse
wheel.

Well, duh, I knew that; I don't know why I didn't think of it before posting
:-( Must be early onset stupidity :-)

(The scroll bars usually reappear with a mouse movement in case
I want to scroll extra fast.)

I recently bought an Asus tablet and can
get around the screens well using my fingers, and a stylus for the fine
work, so when I go back to my Win8 laptop, I try to emulate that swipe
with
the mouse, but no joy :-(

Touchscreen laptops are getting cheaper. Maybe it's time...

Aside to Al- you must not be as OC as I am; I end up cleaning my tablet
screen two or three times per session, even though I make sure my hands
are
clean and dry before messing around with it :-)

My tablets get filthy dirty too. But something about the touchscreen
on this laptop just makes the fingerprints seem much worse. I have yet
to figure out exactly why. Maybe I need to go see a shrink... :-/

Prozac is the answer :-) Doesn't matter what the question is . . .

Hi, Winston.

Thanks for that link! But it's better if we start with Page 1 of Ed's
review:

http://www.zdnet.com/windows-8-1-unv...-8-7000016112/

We can read both pages either way, but I wondered who "Harris" was (near the
end of page 2) until I loaded and read the first page.

Sounds like Win8.1 will go a long way to quieting the complaints about Win8.
Even though, as you said, it ain't Win7.

RC
--
R. C. White, CPA
San Marcos, TX

Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
Windows Live Mail 2012 (Build 16.4.3508.0205) in Win8 Pro


"...winston" wrote in message ...


Apparently we'll all have to learn (or adapt) once 8.1 arrives with its
overhaul.

snip


If folks are waiting for Win8 to become Win7 - it does not look like
that will happen (ever).



Forgot to include Ed Bott's write-up

http://www.zdnet.com/windows-8-1-unveiled-will-it-change-your-mind-about-windows-8_p2-7000016112/


--
...winston
msft mvp consumer apps

"R. C. White" wrote in message ecom...

Hi, Winston.
Thanks for that link! But it's better if we start with Page 1 of Ed's review:
http://www.zdnet.com/windows-8-1-unveiled-will-it-change-your-mind-about-windows-8-7000016112/

We can read both pages either way, but I wondered who "Harris" was (near the end of page 2) until I loaded and read the first
page.

Sounds like Win8.1 will go a long way to quieting the complaints about Win8. Even though, as you said, it ain't Win7.


RC, thank for providing the link to Page 1 of Ed's article.

W8.1 fills in the blanks for a broad section of users, but its reasonably clear that MSFT's objective for Windows 8/8.1 (regardless
of how earlier o/s are currently being used) is focused on:
1. Use with a Microsoft Account as the Windows Logon
2. A tile based Start Screen (consistent with online services and other MSFT devices)
3. Integration with MSFT online cloud services (too many to name) [1] (see footnotes at end for my comments)
4. Program and Security 'app' bundled updates via the Store [2]
5. Reducing some past redundancy (SkyDrive app + SkyDrive desktop program)
6. Antidote for some of the venom by including a direct boot to the desktop (imo with an intent to use the existing or user created
Task bars for loading desktop programs)
7. More flexible All Apps screen (imo, just a different Start Menu though more user configurable)

I would have liked to see the ability to Pin MSFT programs (e.g. Office programs) item to the WinKey X mini menu even if redundant
to the Start Screen, All Apps and Task Bar alternatives.

Satiating the crowd (XP, Vista, Win7 users) will take time....though it’s a start (not entirely all encompassing) at making Win8's
UI and features more flexible.

For my usage patterns, I still plan on retaining Windows 7 Pro on the desktop pc and Win8 Pro on the laptop.

[1] Almost all cloud services had their roots in Windows Live thus I continue to hold the opinion that the entire purpose of
Windows Live was to obtain telemetric cloud data usage patterns from Hotmail and Messenger accounts (half billion people, a few
years of usage accessing and sharing content, etc.)

[2] It's still not inconceivable, imo, that all updates for Windows 8, Office 2013, IE10/11, etc. for the consumer side will
eventually be pushed out via the Store (and possibly only to a Microsoft Account with Admin rights)....Why ? Well as an old
corporate 500 guy, Id' wager a small amount that there's an internal power struggle occurring on how best to deploy updates (Store
vs. Windows Update)


--
....winston
msft mvp consumer apps

On 5/30/2013 23:08, Ken Springer wrote:
On 5/30/13 2:18 AM, xfile wrote:
On 5/29/2013 22:33, Darklight wrote:
On 08/05/13 10:28, mac wrote:

"usenetopian" wrote in message
...
This has been asked before but I forget the answers given (sorry)

can anyone recommend a great Start button replacement for Windows 8?

Thanks in advance

Hang on a while?

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/li...-29249953.html




Windows 8: Microsoft announces 'biggest product U-turn since New Coke'.

mac



There is nothing wrong with the metro interface. If people had a degree
of intelligence or the play fullness of a child they might see the
benefits of the metro interface.

It's the incompetence of people that is the problem. They are like
religious fanatics. Unable or don't want to try some thing new.

The metro interface is nothing more than a full screen start menu and if
people can't see that tough ****.

What happens when you put the mouse in the bottom left hand corner of
win 8?
What happens when you put the mouse in the bottom left hand corner of
win 7?

answer the same thing.

From a physiological point of view the metro interface has been an
enlightening exercise.




My reply was meant to you,

Did it ever occur to you that each experimenting involves cost,
including cost of a person's life and cost of hiring an employee?

You may want to spend any amount of time you wish to learn a new OS
which you are rightfully to do so.

But you should be taught that there are others outside of yourself and
they have the same right as yours to choose how they want to spend their
personal life. Some may want to spend the time on reading, watching
movies, taking care of their families, and so on except on learning a
new OS.

Does that ever occur to you?

And do you realize that every minute an employee spent involving cost
including their salaries, benefits, and bonuses? Employees are NOT
volunteers, you know that, right?

So which is more important in terms of doing their jobs for serving
customers, directly or indirectly, and helping the company making money
(so they can get paid too) or learning a darn new OS for Microsoft?

If you are kind (and rich, of course) enough to pay for all learning
costs for every business for learning the new program, then you are
rightfully to criticize for anyone refuses to do so.

Until then, you have demonstrated yourself as an ignorant person with no
respect to others' choices of how to spend their life and one has zero
knowledge about business costs.

And only sane and educated and rational people would think about how o
put the best use of their "limited time and life."

Like it or not, learning a new OS is at the very bottom of the list.

Not everyone is found of playing computers, and please grow up to
learn it.

I was sure glad that reply wasn't meant for me. :-)

I agree with all your points... 99% of them anyway. LOL

Computers are now part of everyday life, like cell phones and cars. I'd
bet when cars were replacing horses and buggies, there were similar
sounding discussions about loss of productivity because people didn't
know how to drive a car or truck, and didn't want to learn on their own.

What I think people need to learn, on their own at this point in time,
is the OS. Software such as office suites, graphics suites, CAD
programs, etc. would be a case by case basis depending on the company's
needs.

I've always felt/maintained that if you were competent in the OS and
available utilities such as macro recorders, file management basics, 3rd
party customization options available, you would be so far ahead of
those that don't know those features when it comes to learning Word,
Excel, AutoCAD, etc.

And in today's economic reality where efficiency counts, that should
give you some kind of edge.



I'd
bet when cars were replacing horses and buggies, there were similar
sounding discussions about loss of productivity because people didn't
know how to drive a car or truck, and didn't want to learn on their own.

It's very interesting for you to mentioning "cars vs. horses" because it
has always been a popular discussion and debate subject (but mostly
misinterpreted) about the use of technologies and if marketing is really
necessary.

I think the whole debate started when people quoting something Henry
Ford said long ago: If I asked people what they want, they would tell me
a better horse.

In marketing theory (which is not just about shiny boxes and advertising
just in case someone is wondering), the "need" is always there. And the
challenge is how to "uncover" and "interpret" and "deliver solutions" to
address the needs.

When people said that they need a better horse, a stupid market
researcher may interpret it "literally" that they need a better "horse."

But an experienced marketer or a gifted leader would know that what they
are really saying is: "I need a better transportation mechanism" and
horse is a symbol for them to use and express because that is the main
tool used at the time.

Henry Ford was a gifted leader so he provided a new transportation means
to the public. And once the general public "experienced" the real
benefits, it became an instant mass adoption.

However, Henry Ford didn't realize and refused to accept the fact that
once the general public learned and used the "new product", they would
also evolve and learn, and sometimes, faster than the product provider.

In the case of automobiles (or horses vs. cars), people started to
request all kinds of cars to fit their different purposes and preferences.

And yet, Henry Ford still thought he knows the best, and it was GM that
recognized the new needs and started the "branding concept" to address
the needs.

Ford was almost bankrupted because Henry Ford thought he knew the best
(sound familiar?). Later, GM was almost bankrupted, among other things,
by one of their advantages - branding, and in the later case, unable to
differentiate so many brands.

We can continue the discussion of automobile industry for days including
the importance of foreign/global markets, such as if it were not China's
market that constantly contributed to over 50% of GM's revenues
especially during the toughest years of the company in the domestic
market, GM would be long gone and there will be no General Motors as we
are still seeing today.

But it would be a different subject.

The point of the case is that, consumer and the general public are not
responsible for telling the provider about the exact solutions for their
needs. It's not their job and that's why a provider exists and why
consumer pay them.

It's the provider's job to correctly "uncover" and "interpret" and
"deliver solutions" to address the needs.

On top of everything else, does one know who are their customers?

iPhone has been popular (but who knows 2 years from now) because that
was exactly what Steve Jobs had been doing.

Steve Jobs looked at a product purely and exclusively through the eyes
of an ordinary user and not from a techie, geek, or an engineer.

Once the general public touched it, they "experienced" the difference
and nobody cared about what shxt is going on under the hook, pretty much
like most ordinary user and consumer do to just about every product.

Apple's challenge, of course, is to maintain its lead because
competition also learned.

Back to our *discussion* about Windows.

It's almost 30 years since the birth of PC, and frankly speaking, many
users have evolved and it's no longer about a PC, a desktop OS, or
Windows xx version; it's about how "technology" plays its role in a
competitive and yet promising global environment.

If one looks from this perspective, one will know that the change of UI
is the least important thing to care and the dumbest thing to do.

Speaking of changes and technologies, you may have heard about 3-D
printing which is an emerging technology.

As far as I know, many business and professionals including myself have
been paying close attention to 3-D printing's development.

Why?

Because if 3-D printing is mature and is being properly implemented, it
could drastically reduce the cycle time from idea generation all the way
to rapid prototyping.

Implication? Faster product development with less concept development cost.

Benefits? Faster time-to-market, meaning - higher profits meaning
distinctive differentiation and also meaning larger market share.

3-D printing is the kind of emerging technology that could drastically
change a business's competitive edge by adopting it or not.

Image yourself as an IT head standing in front of board members and
requesting resources for "learning and using new Windows" because it's
the best invention from Microsoft at the cost of resources for
technologies like 3-D printing, how long do you think you can hold your
job?

It's not that people refuse to change; it's that people are smart to
know what changes are real and what are BS.

And it's good to use the horse vs. cars, but one has to know the meaning
and moral of the story.

Erik Vastmasd wrote:

the now extinct (in the eyes of some) Eudora, performs quite well
for me under Windows 8.--

My 10+ year old copy of Agent also works just fine in W8
(both pop and nntp).

On 5/31/13 12:57 AM, xfile wrote:
On 5/30/2013 23:08, Ken Springer wrote:
On 5/30/13 2:18 AM, xfile wrote:
On 5/29/2013 22:33, Darklight wrote:
On 08/05/13 10:28, mac wrote:

"usenetopian" wrote in message
...

snip

I'd
bet when cars were replacing horses and buggies, there were similar
sounding discussions about loss of productivity because people didn't
know how to drive a car or truck, and didn't want to learn on their own.

It's very interesting for you to mentioning "cars vs. horses" because it
has always been a popular discussion and debate subject (but mostly
misinterpreted) about the use of technologies and if marketing is really
necessary.

I think the whole debate started when people quoting something Henry
Ford said long ago: If I asked people what they want, they would tell me
a better horse.

In marketing theory (which is not just about shiny boxes and advertising
just in case someone is wondering), the "need" is always there. And the
challenge is how to "uncover" and "interpret" and "deliver solutions" to
address the needs.

When people said that they need a better horse, a stupid market
researcher may interpret it "literally" that they need a better "horse."

But an experienced marketer or a gifted leader would know that what they
are really saying is: "I need a better transportation mechanism" and
horse is a symbol for them to use and express because that is the main
tool used at the time.

Henry Ford was a gifted leader so he provided a new transportation means
to the public. And once the general public "experienced" the real
benefits, it became an instant mass adoption.

However, Henry Ford didn't realize and refused to accept the fact that
once the general public learned and used the "new product", they would
also evolve and learn, and sometimes, faster than the product provider.

In the case of automobiles (or horses vs. cars), people started to
request all kinds of cars to fit their different purposes and preferences.

And yet, Henry Ford still thought he knows the best, and it was GM that
recognized the new needs and started the "branding concept" to address
the needs.

Ford was almost bankrupted because Henry Ford thought he knew the best
(sound familiar?). Later, GM was almost bankrupted, among other things,
by one of their advantages - branding, and in the later case, unable to
differentiate so many brands.


This seems to be where many successful companies begin to fail, IMO.
They "sit on their laurels" and forget that they got where they are by
providing something that was better than the other guy's product.

And someone comes along and produces a better widget.

We can continue the discussion of automobile industry for days including
the importance of foreign/global markets, such as if it were not China's
market that constantly contributed to over 50% of GM's revenues
especially during the toughest years of the company in the domestic
market, GM would be long gone and there will be no General Motors as we
are still seeing today.

But it would be a different subject.

The point of the case is that, consumer and the general public are not
responsible for telling the provider about the exact solutions for their
needs. It's not their job and that's why a provider exists and why
consumer pay them.

But there should be a better and easier way for the consumer and general
public to provide that feedback so new products that are developed have
a better chance at succeeding.


It's the provider's job to correctly "uncover" and "interpret" and
"deliver solutions" to address the needs.

On top of everything else, does one know who are their customers?

I suspect that some are better than others at doing this.

Just a personal opinion, but I don't think MS knows much about it's
personal users. Large corporations and governments, yes.


iPhone has been popular (but who knows 2 years from now) because that
was exactly what Steve Jobs had been doing.

Steve Jobs looked at a product purely and exclusively through the eyes
of an ordinary user and not from a techie, geek, or an engineer.

Once the general public touched it, they "experienced" the difference
and nobody cared about what shxt is going on under the hook, pretty much
like most ordinary user and consumer do to just about every product.

Apple's challenge, of course, is to maintain its lead because
competition also learned.

Back to our *discussion* about Windows.

It's almost 30 years since the birth of PC, and frankly speaking, many
users have evolved and it's no longer about a PC, a desktop OS, or
Windows xx version; it's about how "technology" plays its role in a
competitive and yet promising global environment.

If one looks from this perspective, one will know that the change of UI
is the least important thing to care and the dumbest thing to do.

I wouldn't say the least important thing, but certainly not the most
important. I'd say a UI that fits the environment it's used in/on is
important. The standard desktop is lousy on a cell phone, IMO. Don't
own a tablet, yet, so have no thoughts there. But the swipe stuff is
wasteful to me, on a big screen monitor. Too much wasted effort.

Share the underlying OS, but leave each environment with the power and
UI that best fits the environment.


Speaking of changes and technologies, you may have heard about 3-D
printing which is an emerging technology.

Are you speaking of the ability to create something tangible out of
almost thin air? LOL If so, I think it's fascinating, although the
word printing may be the wrong word if you want the concept to be
clearly understood by many. Printing tends to bring to mind putting ink
on paper. Something of the "Give me a better horse" analogy.


As far as I know, many business and professionals including myself have
been paying close attention to 3-D printing's development.

Why?

Because if 3-D printing is mature and is being properly implemented, it
could drastically reduce the cycle time from idea generation all the way
to rapid prototyping.

Implication? Faster product development with less concept development cost.

Benefits? Faster time-to-market, meaning - higher profits meaning
distinctive differentiation and also meaning larger market share.

3-D printing is the kind of emerging technology that could drastically
change a business's competitive edge by adopting it or not.

Image yourself as an IT head standing in front of board members and
requesting resources for "learning and using new Windows" because it's
the best invention from Microsoft at the cost of resources for
technologies like 3-D printing, how long do you think you can hold your
job?

It's not that people refuse to change; it's that people are smart to
know what changes are real and what are BS.

Which brings up the core question, if the change doesn't benefit the
individual using it, of what value is it?


And it's good to use the horse vs. cars, but one has to know the meaning
and moral of the story.




--
Ken

Mac OS X 10.8.3
Firefox 20.0
Thunderbird 17.0.5
LibreOffice 4.0.1.2

On 07/05/2013 15:20, usenetopian wrote:
This has been asked before but I forget the answers given (sorry)

can anyone recommend a great Start button replacement for Windows 8?

Thanks in advance

May be you won't need it when Windows 8.1 comes out later this month:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22714048



--
Good Guy
Website: http://mytaxsite.co.uk
Website: http://html-css.co.uk
Email: http://mytaxsite.co.uk/contact-us