first impressions of Windows 8

I should at least comment on what I see as I begin to use Windows 8 for the first time...

I have been using computers for 30+ years, so I should be able to figure this new beast out. I want to try it out for a bit before I switch to use Desktop mode which is familiar enough that I can get my work done ...

I know flat design is in but it sure it hard knowing what I can click on tap on. The good thing is that my new laptop came with a 4 page color quick start guide to help me get started as I would never guess I have to put the mouse in the upper right hand corner to see the Windows dock - sorry I mean list of charms. Who thought calling icons on the screen charms was a good idea? I thought charms were those things that girls wear on necklaces or on their wrists. Then again icons are not small like drawings on the screen either. I miss my Mac Finder Spotlight as on Windows 8 I must search within a context. For instance in the quick start guide it states that I must click on Search charm and then Settings and then search for Windows Update. So very sad.

My favorite so far is when I installed the VAIO updates as it automatically switched me to Desktop mode instead of the Start screen. Of course I had to wait for the standard Microsoft progress screens of downloading and installing for endless minutes. Kind of amusing that anyone would want to see the Desktop mode as all I care about is that my updates have worked. The standard Windows Update is all I care to see. It is pretty odd when the laptop goes into sleep mode as I have to get used to the clock and default drawing of Seattle - wait a second I can change that. It is pretty easy to customize the lock screen background as they have 5 different drawings/photos to choose from - I guess when going to flat it is also time to simplify all of my choices! The default color scheme and stylized drawings available for the Startup screen are pretty odd, but easily to change to one of the provided ones.

I did like the 5 or so screens when I first turned on my laptop as it helped me immediately get WiFi working and since I already had a Microsoft account, which I setup yesterday to access some of the developer documentation, I was able to get on the internet right away. Until of course I started applying updates, which left me plenty of time to blog!

By the way, who came up with the 5 dots that fly in from the left, collect together and then fly off to the right as a way of showing progress? I guess that matches the new spinning dots I see while waiting for updates to be applied while restarting my laptop. Change for change sake I assume.

So I bought a Windows Pro 8, since Windows Phone SDK requires it. I open the nice box and low and behold I see instructions that look good but don't work. Inside the box is a card with a product license key. I have to find out where to enter the code since the instructions don't work. Thankfully I have my mac to enter this blog post and search for answers - wait I have some version of IE available on my VAIO machine so let me try it. That was easy as I just entered "windows 8.1 upgrade" in IE and with two clicks I was on the Windows Store and waiting for the Windows 8.1 download - nice. Of course very nice would have been if when I ran Windows Update then 8.1 would have been an optional choice which I could have checked and it would have been done auto-magically. For now I just want a working computer, so nice will do.

While waiting for the 8.1 download, time to get back to figuring out how to use Windows 8.  Wait, I can try to switch my laptop to be a surface. I look thru the paperwork and find instructions on how to do that. So I can use it in 3 modes: Laptop mode, Viewer mode, or Tablet mode. Viewer mode has less steps and is first so let me try it. Pretty easy with instructions, but I have a problem. My display is up side down. I finally realized it is not an iPad as it did not automatically detect the orientation change. Unfortunately no mention how to get the display to do that, so enough of Viewer mode as that does not help me. Tablet mode was pretty easy and I can see how that would be useful as the screen lays right on top of the keyboard. Maybe one did I will have the Windows Phone emulator working and can demo this to my customer by pretending the laptop is a mobile tablet with their app running on it. When I moved the display back into position, the display automatically switched so maybe the first time it does not work! I surely hope not and expect this to not work again in the future  when I need to use it that way!

Now I did it. When I was messing around with the display I no longer see the Windows 8.1 update screen. I reopened IE and I see my last search right there waiting for me. I got back to the Windows Store and it says I can download the update. It cannot be that bad can it. No it is not, in the upper right hand corner I see green text on the white background telling me something "Updates (20) installing 8.1..." and when I click on that I see a screen that shows 20 medium size boxes with green borders that contains icons and text for apps to be updated - each has a green checkmark in the upper right hand corner. Not sure what that means - have them been installed or ready to be installed or available to be installed? What else would I see there? Maybe a red border with a red "X"? If I click on a box then the green border and check mark are removed. Now I see what they are trying to show me. If I click on "Installing Windows 8.1..." text in the upper right hand corner I see Windows 8.1 is installing. That is odd behavior that I have to toggle back and forth to get an idea of what is going on and what will happen next. I am hoping after Windows 8.1 is installed that the 20 app updates will be installed, but I have no indication that it will occur without me doing something. It down download 8.1 and automatically start the install so maybe there is hope. I would guess I am a couple of restarts away from that happening anyway.

I do like the simple IE in Start mode as I definitely understand that surface users do not need to see a bunch of window decoration when viewing a web site since the web site now takes up as much of the display as possible - nice. I can do this on my Mac but that is an advanced feature and to know how to get out of that mode on my Mac is not totally obvious.

I am now hoping that within 3 hours I will be have a computer ready to install Windows Phone 8 SDK on and my goal is to have my first app running by the end of today - please Microsoft help me achieve my goal and don't get in my way. The good news is that I have plenty of time to memorize the Windows 8 Getting Started guide since I am stuck at "Setting up 83%" for a while - wait it just jumped up to "Setting up 87%"! I thought it was installing Windows 8.1 but it is telling me it is just setting up something. Then all text disappeared and now all I see is a spinning dots and then a total black screen - no wait after a minute it switched back to the spinning dots. Then I see "Getting devices ready" followed by a bunch of screen flickers. If only this was much faster I would not have to be commented on every odd thing I see. It is only because I never have this problem with my Mac. Switching from OSX Lion to OSX Mavericks was an hour and it seemed like an Apple eternity and that jumped one who operating system level as I never installed OSX Mountain Lion. Wait a second, going from Windows 8 to Windows 8.1, how hard could that be as that is a minor version change. Apparently pretty difficult as I have been waiting for an hour now. I am encouraged now as I see "Applying PC settings 25%"; however, the only problem is that I have absolutely no idea how many steps are left or how many I have waded thru. Besides, what does that statement mean that it is applying PC settings? Maybe it is almost done? One can only guess and hope.

More comments on Windows 8 while I am waiting. After looking at the gestures illustrated in the color brochure, how would someone figure these out? Who is the target user for these surface laptops? Definitely not Apple iPad users as the gestures are nothing like those I am used to using. Maybe it is young people that like learning new ways of doing the same thing. It was amazing to watch the young fellow at BestBuy last night swipe his way around so quickly that I could not even tell the gesture he was using, so no hope in learning that way. Now I am at "Setting up a few more things 3%". The only trouble now is that the next message is "Setting a few more things 6%", so my wait will not end soon most likely. Then the most helpful message of the day "Getting ready", right at the 3 hour mark from when I opened the box.

Now I am kind of irritated because when I turned on the laptop this morning it asked me a series of questions and now with Windows 8.1 I am answering the very same ones. I am 100% sure none of those changed in the last 3 hours! This business of sending my email a code that I have to enter as part of the install process is definitely an oddity I was not expecting - maybe that is supposed to make me feel more secure. And then the message "Hi" I see on the screen - which makes it all worthwhile somehow. Instead of just being friendly, now I see the screen rotating thru the color palette with the messages "Taking care of a few things" with "Installing you apps" below it followed by "Taking care of a few things". Then I finally see my startup screen at 3 hours and 5 minutes.

Now I have to give up blogging as I see they have fixed some of the things in Windows 8.1, as now I see text "Everything ˅" above the search box which is definitely going to make finding stuff easier already! Of my gosh, so close and yet so far. When I searched for "Windows Update", I was switched from Start mode to Desktop mode. Now do I get back? They have added the windows logo on the left side of the menu bar and when I click that I get back to Start mode - wow two problems fixed that bothered me that quickly. And just when I thought I was done, it turns out I have two more updates that require yet another restart. I think is about my 5th restart, so I am close to averaging one every 30 minutes so far today. Come on Microsoft is the really the best you can do?

Surely now I am done? I am on step 5 out of 7 on the Sony Quick Start Guide. Sony has tried to get around this Start mode vs. Desktop mode confusion by adding a hardware button called "ASSIST", which automatically switches to Desktop mode. How that is putting a bandaid on top of a bandaid.

And then after 3 and half hours it is all worthwhile as I finally found a match when I searched for "Add features to Windows 8.1" as I paid $100 for Pro and now I realize I don't have to return it to BestBuy and get my money back. And I was able to enter the 20 digits on the plastic card the first time - I think I am getting better at this Windows 8 stuff. My old bad habits are returning just like I wanted to forget about them. Just when I thought everything was done - my code was verified and then it failed on the last step. I go back to the first step and I see the message "This key won't work. Check it and try again, or try a different key.". The only problem is that the key matches as I got someone else to verify, so time to call BestBuy... Who told me I had to bring the machine in and then they could swap out the card for me. When I objected, Mr. BestBuy told me to call the Geek Squad. Hopefully they can help me so I don't have to take it into the store. Bad news, I have a 9 minute wait ahead of me for the geek to rescue me from Microsoft... Turns out no they cannot. What makes matters worse is that the geek hung up on me! How rude!