tanzanos
New Member
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2009
- Messages
- 280
- Joined
- Jan 12, 2009
- Messages
- 1,013
"One of the coolest new tools in Windows 7 is the Problem Steps Recorder (PSR) — especially for those of us who provide tech support to Windows users."
I realize that this comment is several months old, but one phrase here is so very appropriate to look at by tech support professionals and particularly developers. The non-technically trained masses are far and away the majority computer user group and also the most ignored group. Comparing Windows XP with Windows 7, the professional has to realize that Windows 7 is significantly more complicated (and on my 3 Windows 7 machines, considerably more troublesome) than either Windows XP or the most reliable and stable Microsoft OS ever, Windows 2000. The masses need an OS that is not so filled with things like Problem Steps Recorder and other programs that guide the user in diagnosis, but rather an OS "that just works". Windows XP - and Windows 2000 - is far ahead of Windows 7 in this respect. If Microsoft, and other developers, would concentrate on an OS that has no need for complications such as Problem Steps Reccorder rather than adding more and more unused "features" that just complicate things for the masses,they would eventually come up with an ideal OS. Currently they show no signs of even realizing that the masses need a system "that just works". While I am not a huge fan of Windows XP, I do have to continue to use Windows XP for my banking and for important work because Windows 7 just does not demonstrate the stability and reliability of Windows XP.
I realize that this comment is several months old, but one phrase here is so very appropriate to look at by tech support professionals and particularly developers. The non-technically trained masses are far and away the majority computer user group and also the most ignored group. Comparing Windows XP with Windows 7, the professional has to realize that Windows 7 is significantly more complicated (and on my 3 Windows 7 machines, considerably more troublesome) than either Windows XP or the most reliable and stable Microsoft OS ever, Windows 2000. The masses need an OS that is not so filled with things like Problem Steps Recorder and other programs that guide the user in diagnosis, but rather an OS "that just works". Windows XP - and Windows 2000 - is far ahead of Windows 7 in this respect. If Microsoft, and other developers, would concentrate on an OS that has no need for complications such as Problem Steps Reccorder rather than adding more and more unused "features" that just complicate things for the masses,they would eventually come up with an ideal OS. Currently they show no signs of even realizing that the masses need a system "that just works". While I am not a huge fan of Windows XP, I do have to continue to use Windows XP for my banking and for important work because Windows 7 just does not demonstrate the stability and reliability of Windows XP.
rronaldson
Senior Member
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2009
- Messages
- 75
I agree with you John that what most of us want is just an OS that works. XP was very stable for me and I still have a spare computer with XP installed. I also had a spare installation disk of XP so I've installed that as a virtual PC on my Windows 7 system. Don't use it much but I still have the odd program that won't run in Windows 7.
Having extolled the virtues of XP I must say that Windows 7 is pretty stable for me. It doesn't give me much trouble.
Having extolled the virtues of XP I must say that Windows 7 is pretty stable for me. It doesn't give me much trouble.
tanzanos
New Member
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2009
- Messages
- 280
Ever since Ribbon and the win7 start menu; "INTUITIVE" OS's have gone the way of the DODO. Drop down menus were so user friendly that anyone could intuitively learn to use a PC. Now with the "Hidden" trend being imposed on all software including OS's it has become frustrating to say the least. Sure kids get the hang of it very quickly but millions of adults have a problem with the new UIs. My win 7 PC yesterday froze up on me and nothing bar a hard restart could unfreeze it. I was doing some CAD work when it happened and I almost fainted because I lost hours of work. My PC is clean from malware, trojans, viruse, worms. This was the first time after one year that this happened.
Basically my only peeve with win7 is the lack of classic menus. Thank god for CLASSIC SHELL
Basically my only peeve with win7 is the lack of classic menus. Thank god for CLASSIC SHELL
- Joined
- May 25, 2009
- Messages
- 6,637
catilley1092
Extraordinary Member
- Joined
- Nov 19, 2010
- Messages
- 1,063
This version of Ubuntu is still a little buggy, even more so than Windows 8 CP is. But I give the folks at Canonical credit for this. For the first time ever, Ubuntu installed my printer with no interaction from me. This is a major shift from the past, where it was often a PITA, at the least, to install & configure a printer.
Hopefully, this will carry over to Linux Mint, the version of Linux that I use the most, & is now the #1 Linux OS.
Cat
Opinion: First of all, a computer to me is a tool, like a crescent wrench or an anvil. What you DO WITH IT very broadly determines its usefulness, even if rightfully it is valuable to you because the fantastic hardware makes gaming very pleasurable to you. That said, yes, it is the best Microsoft has released. All that means is one hammer hurts less than two hammers. Since 80% of the planet has to use it, there is no real need to improve it very much. Some features STILL have problems I have seen since 98SE. Try plugging in a USB printer twice without it getting confused. Try word-wrapping an unwrapping the text editor without it getting confused, and on and on. My Linux and Mac OS boxes can detect a printer with CUPS and the test page is printed within five minutes, too. The difference is that they've been able to do that effortlessly FOR YEARS. I have made my machines read aloud to me to help me edit since the 80s. Wintel is strangely way behind. My Dictionary is an app built into the MacOS. Preview has always read .pdfs.
To be fair, Windows must, by design be more flexible to allow as few hardware changes as possible AND cannot build-in it's own DVD player, .pdf reader, etc. DVD burning is bare-bones, etc. Unfortunately, this solution has a huge range in quality and features of the bloatware and feeware each manufacturer provides, unless you build your own. Then you are ON your own- not necessarily a bad thing. If you choose to logically rely on Dell, Toshiba, etc., they will take care of you with a warranty you pay for in the price of the hardware. The OS rightfully highly recommends you make your backup image DVDs or external HDD as soon as you customize you hardware.
The conclusion is that it is literally Apples and oranges. You can't realistically compare the two. The only real question is which is the best business model for NON-COMPUTER PEOPLE. In my work I advise teachers, dentists, real estate salespeople, etc. who don't enter this realm the way computer people do. I answer "What do I do when..." questions. Globally, I tend to recommend to agnostics, "IF YOU CAN SWING IT, start with a Mac". You'd be surprised how the overpricing of that hardware sets them back. I heard they are sitting on a huge pile of cash. This is only important because it isn't going into R&D, retail prices, employees, factory workers, California taxes, etc. Mac OS is much easier to use and more flexible for non-computer people. "Computer people" also have much EASIER access to the OS. The reasoning behind this opinion is based on what you get with each OS. Whereas Windows cripples "Home Editions" for absolutely no reason (booooooo! Microsoft. boooooooo!), Apple, through 10.5 (further updates are online purchases) had only two update data DVDs, one for servers, the other for EVERYTHING ELSE. No joke. All the OS developer tools are an optional install on the same $35 disk you bought to go from 10.4 to 10.5! Why even have all those different Windows editions anyway? ...only more confusion for dentists and 2nd grade teachers. Basic protocols are also very clumsy on the Windows side. How often do you shut down Win 7 only to discover you have to leave it on for another half-hour for updates, or get a flag that your computer will automatically restart in 8 minutes- in the middle of your work? ...unacceptable and inexcusable. (Booos also go to Oracle Java and Adobe annoyances.) Mac OS NEVER does this. ALWAYS, if a restart is needed, you are given a chance to postpone. ALWAYS, ANY updates have notifications that can postpone the procedure, and the Mac OS updates can be as verbose as you want, no mysterious "6 updates", etc. They have links to Apple documents describing the purpose for the optional interruption. As I mentioned at the start of this post, Microsoft can be as clumsy and annoying as it wants to be, because 80% of the planet is stuck using it.
Thank you for this forum.
To be fair, Windows must, by design be more flexible to allow as few hardware changes as possible AND cannot build-in it's own DVD player, .pdf reader, etc. DVD burning is bare-bones, etc. Unfortunately, this solution has a huge range in quality and features of the bloatware and feeware each manufacturer provides, unless you build your own. Then you are ON your own- not necessarily a bad thing. If you choose to logically rely on Dell, Toshiba, etc., they will take care of you with a warranty you pay for in the price of the hardware. The OS rightfully highly recommends you make your backup image DVDs or external HDD as soon as you customize you hardware.
The conclusion is that it is literally Apples and oranges. You can't realistically compare the two. The only real question is which is the best business model for NON-COMPUTER PEOPLE. In my work I advise teachers, dentists, real estate salespeople, etc. who don't enter this realm the way computer people do. I answer "What do I do when..." questions. Globally, I tend to recommend to agnostics, "IF YOU CAN SWING IT, start with a Mac". You'd be surprised how the overpricing of that hardware sets them back. I heard they are sitting on a huge pile of cash. This is only important because it isn't going into R&D, retail prices, employees, factory workers, California taxes, etc. Mac OS is much easier to use and more flexible for non-computer people. "Computer people" also have much EASIER access to the OS. The reasoning behind this opinion is based on what you get with each OS. Whereas Windows cripples "Home Editions" for absolutely no reason (booooooo! Microsoft. boooooooo!), Apple, through 10.5 (further updates are online purchases) had only two update data DVDs, one for servers, the other for EVERYTHING ELSE. No joke. All the OS developer tools are an optional install on the same $35 disk you bought to go from 10.4 to 10.5! Why even have all those different Windows editions anyway? ...only more confusion for dentists and 2nd grade teachers. Basic protocols are also very clumsy on the Windows side. How often do you shut down Win 7 only to discover you have to leave it on for another half-hour for updates, or get a flag that your computer will automatically restart in 8 minutes- in the middle of your work? ...unacceptable and inexcusable. (Booos also go to Oracle Java and Adobe annoyances.) Mac OS NEVER does this. ALWAYS, if a restart is needed, you are given a chance to postpone. ALWAYS, ANY updates have notifications that can postpone the procedure, and the Mac OS updates can be as verbose as you want, no mysterious "6 updates", etc. They have links to Apple documents describing the purpose for the optional interruption. As I mentioned at the start of this post, Microsoft can be as clumsy and annoying as it wants to be, because 80% of the planet is stuck using it.
Thank you for this forum.
tanzanos
New Member
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2009
- Messages
- 280
When the UI of an OS is no longer based on intuition simply because the developer has decided to give the public something "NEW" then that OS is nothing more than a marketing ploy designed purely to increase profits and cares not for the end user. New does not mean better and we have ample examples of such failures.
Change does not necessarily mean improvement. One should improve a product for the sake of improvement but not for the sake of change for changes sake.
Microsoft has given us more candy and less intuition in its OS. If you think that windows 8 is an improvement simply because you accept anything that a company dishes to you then sadly you are by definition a victim of marketing.
I am a products designer and I pay special attention to "INTUITION". If one needs to be a wizard in order to find the "Print button" that has been hidden then the developer or designer has failed to give the customer a good product. Remember that the basic design of the wheel has remained the same since its invention thousands of years ago. Yes it has been improved upon through better materials and manufacturing refinements. It works!
MS took the wheel and made it square then forced it upon us by denying us the round tyres that fit the round wheels and is giving us square tyres.
Just look at Win8 and how MS has totally removed "Intuition" for this OS.
Change does not necessarily mean improvement. One should improve a product for the sake of improvement but not for the sake of change for changes sake.
Microsoft has given us more candy and less intuition in its OS. If you think that windows 8 is an improvement simply because you accept anything that a company dishes to you then sadly you are by definition a victim of marketing.
I am a products designer and I pay special attention to "INTUITION". If one needs to be a wizard in order to find the "Print button" that has been hidden then the developer or designer has failed to give the customer a good product. Remember that the basic design of the wheel has remained the same since its invention thousands of years ago. Yes it has been improved upon through better materials and manufacturing refinements. It works!
MS took the wheel and made it square then forced it upon us by denying us the round tyres that fit the round wheels and is giving us square tyres.
Just look at Win8 and how MS has totally removed "Intuition" for this OS.
Drew
Banned
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2006
- Messages
- 3,574
'tanzanos',
We are, already, very much & very well aware of your negative feelings & attitude towards Windows8. But, yours is a statement of opinion & subjective. Please, allow others to develop their own view. And know not all will agree w/ yours or be similar to yours no matter how much you repeatedly preach it.
Many, actually like, understand, appreciate & enjoy Windows8. Please try to respect & accept that & allow for it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kurt,
To a point I completely agree w/ you... I have always liked & thought well of Windows7; yes, better than XP & much better than Vista but...
when it comes to Windows8, WOW!! Mind you, I have been using it non-stop since 29/2/12. It's fun, fast, versatile, easy & technically excellent & generally impressive.
Cheers,
Drew
Link Removed
We are, already, very much & very well aware of your negative feelings & attitude towards Windows8. But, yours is a statement of opinion & subjective. Please, allow others to develop their own view. And know not all will agree w/ yours or be similar to yours no matter how much you repeatedly preach it.
Many, actually like, understand, appreciate & enjoy Windows8. Please try to respect & accept that & allow for it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kurt,
To a point I completely agree w/ you... I have always liked & thought well of Windows7; yes, better than XP & much better than Vista but...
when it comes to Windows8, WOW!! Mind you, I have been using it non-stop since 29/2/12. It's fun, fast, versatile, easy & technically excellent & generally impressive.
Cheers,
Drew
Link Removed
I'm not negative towards 8, I like alot about it, pretty well just agreeing that i'm happy with windows 7, (my dad used to say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.') I would recommend windows 8 for anyone with a touch-screen laptop, for instance. The metro software is pretty good in that regard. I pay full retail for my windows, like the idea of getting some of my product lifetime for my money.
Drew
Banned
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2006
- Messages
- 3,574
Kurt,
Was referring to the other person as disliking 8. Part to you was below the dotted line; sorry if I was unclear about that.
It's, also, somewhere between terrific & wonderful on a conventional (non-touch) desktop /monitor or standard laptop.
Sure one can stay w/ 7, 7 is good, I've always liked it & would never say it's bad, @ all. But, that said, 8 is better. Nor is there any suggestion that one must or even ought to migrate to 8 just cus or as soon as October 26th rolls around. But, the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" does exactly apply. It's not a matter that 7 is 'broken' in any way; it's more a matter of someone having a perfectly good 3 year old car & choosing to move up to a new model simply because the newer model is nicer & better but, not because of any (other) obligation to do so.
Remember, I've always been a big fan of 7 but, 8 surpasses it.
Understand the financial logic. In that light, the $40 for the Upgrade is a great bargain & the Windows8 Upgrade is a far cry from what the Windows7 Upgrade was.
Cheers,
Drew
Link Removed
Was referring to the other person as disliking 8. Part to you was below the dotted line; sorry if I was unclear about that.
It's, also, somewhere between terrific & wonderful on a conventional (non-touch) desktop /monitor or standard laptop.
Sure one can stay w/ 7, 7 is good, I've always liked it & would never say it's bad, @ all. But, that said, 8 is better. Nor is there any suggestion that one must or even ought to migrate to 8 just cus or as soon as October 26th rolls around. But, the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" does exactly apply. It's not a matter that 7 is 'broken' in any way; it's more a matter of someone having a perfectly good 3 year old car & choosing to move up to a new model simply because the newer model is nicer & better but, not because of any (other) obligation to do so.
Remember, I've always been a big fan of 7 but, 8 surpasses it.
Understand the financial logic. In that light, the $40 for the Upgrade is a great bargain & the Windows8 Upgrade is a far cry from what the Windows7 Upgrade was.
Cheers,
Drew
Link Removed
tanzanos
New Member
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2009
- Messages
- 280
Seven is bad but seven plus classic shell is good but has 3 very serious drawbacks: extremely slow boot time and much less stable than XP and a search that is as useless as a blind man trying to read a telephone directory.
As for Eight? Well I will let the "Playskool" engineers work on that; After all did they not design it
As for Eight? Well I will let the "Playskool" engineers work on that; After all did they not design it
Drew
Banned
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2006
- Messages
- 3,574
Adamsappleone
U.S.Navy D.A.V.
- Joined
- Aug 2, 2009
- Messages
- 1,647
tanzanos
New Member
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2009
- Messages
- 280
First of all I was not referring to web search. Win 7 search is less capable than XP search. Countles of times I have to manually search folders simply because search does not find what I am looking for. As for stable? I used XP for 10 years (still do on my laptop) and only once had it freeze up on me and once had BSOD! Win 7 takes 4 minutes to boot and it has many issues! There are many features in 7 I love and I had many people try to help but to no avail. In fact a single sata cable issue would not let me install 7 when I first bought it while XP installed easily.tanzanos: I have no problem with windows 7, knowledge is power, controlling boot time is a breeze with Soluto, try it. Windows 7 is much more stable and secure as well, if you treat it right. I use google search without any difficulty, as well as bing. Windows 7 will work as well as you let it
Yes 7 has many features that XP lacks. No, 7 has a horrid search feature. As for BING? Stay clear of it!
I have no applications running in the background except Avast and a few update applications such as NVIDIA etc. Once it has booted properly then my machine literally FLIES!
I had a few IT friends take a look at my PC and they said that it is in perfect order and absolutely no malware or virus infections are present and my drives are in perfect working condition as are my ram, and GPU.
When I first installed 7 (I have not added more software since with the exception of updates and replaced MS security essentials for AVAST) it booted extremely fast but my PC slowly took longer and longer to boot as time passed. Of course were it not for Classic Shell I would have remained with XP as the start menu of 7 is horrid although not as bad as METRO!
I know that some people here simply cannot accept any complaints about windows be it 7 or 8; I on the other hand am an end user who feels that I have valid complaints that MS never pays attention to. They never ever replied to any of my e-mails even though all my windows from win 95 to win 7 were bought with cash and did not come preinstalled.
tanzanos
New Member
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2009
- Messages
- 280
What on earth does Google search have to do with win 7 search???????????
i run around 40 third party apps and games, my computer boots in 1 minute 16 seconds because i let it load everything, i could trim a few out easily with soluto, which is excellent freeware if you want control of your boot, this is your fix, mse is made by microsoft just like your os, they work very well together, windows 7 protects system files better than xp ever dreamed of, and has much better wireless software, sounds like you need to tune up your registry to speed things up, and windows 7 start menu is easy to configure once you figure it out. I complain when i find an issue, but there are much fewer issues than xp had. Wise registry cleaner and ccleaner are two registry cleaning tools i use, and both are free. hope this helps-
Similar threads
- Solved
