Windows 8: Do I Really Need a Single OS?

gManZboy writes "If you skip Windows 8, you lose the appealing opportunity to synchronize all of your devices on a single platform — or so goes the argument. If you're skeptical, you're not alone. OS monogamy may be in Apple's interest, and Microsoft's, but ask why it's in your interest. Can Microsoft convince the skeptics? 'If the hardware and software are the same at home and at work, one can't be "better" than the other. It would help if Microsoft convinced users like me that their platform is so good, we'd be fools to go anywhere else,' writes Kevin Casey."

Re:Developers love USDP

[jythie]

You know, I have often said that emacs makes a reasonably good OS and all it needs is a good text editor ^_^

Re:Developers love USDP

[LurkerXXX]

So, make it easy for developers at the expense of users? Sorry, I don't have a windows phone, don't like tiles, and don't want to run a shitty tablet/phone interface on my desktop machine.

I write desktop apps for work, and use Visual Studio 2010 instead of 2012, because I don't care about the phone crap. At work, and pretty much everyone I know will be using Window 7 at least until 9 comes out.

Re:What the fuck are you going on about?

[jbolden]

Microsoft itself has created an operating system and application platform which allows the same applications to run on a $200 throw away netbook and a $2000 workstation or a $20,000 multiprocessor array drive server. Nothing like that existed a few decades ago.

Perfect no. Impressive progress, yes.

Car analogy

[jd659]

Imagine if Toyota had a near-monopoly on passenger cars. There would be other makers selling specialty trucks and busses, but most people would be driving Toyotas. On top of that, Toyota would be producing a single model every few years, like Corolla 95, Corolla 97, Corolla 2000 and people would feel like getting a new car is a requirement. Now suddenly some smaller maker Kawasaki releases a new model of a motorcycle that everyone enjoys driving and sales go through the roof. The controls are very different than those of Corolla – the shape of steering wheel, how you switch gears with your foot, several brakes, and it is a significantly more fuel efficient than any Toyota. New uses for the motorcycles are discovered – they can be driven on pedestrian walkways, or can even be taken into the offices. There are talks how everyone will be driving motorcycles in the future, how we are entering a post-car era, and how, if you want to be current, you need to make motorcycle-friendly roads.

At the same time Toyota remembers how it tried making motorcycle in the past with a round steering wheel and no one bought it, so it needs a new plan. It develops its own version of Corolla-Moto that has a new set of controls where you switch gears with your elbow. Some people saw a test model and had different opinions – some liked it, some hated it. Toyota plans to start producing motorcycles that mimic the Kawasaki, but it first needs to teach users how to shift gears with the elbow and other oddities of motorcycle controls. Since nearly everyone is driving Corollas, Toyota comes up with a plan to install motorcycle controls in the new version of Corolla alongside with the regular controls. And it allows switching controls while driving! Yes, the shape of the steering wheel changes, the gear shifter moves from the right hand to the left elbow, etc. All that while you drive!

Since everyone already knows how to drive Corollas, Toyota needs to make the existing car controls a little bit more inconvenient so that users are forced to use the motorcycle controls. For example, the only way to start Corolla-Moto is to rev up the engine by twisting the right handlebar. No one ever needed to twist anything on any car model before. So the plan is to beat Kawasaki, and has nothing to do with making the car better for the driver. Many start blogging that “motorcycle is the future” and if you don’t buy new Corolla-Moto (which gets renamed to Corolla-Toyota-Style in the last minute) you will be left in the past. Very few question true Toyota’s motives and quarrel about little details of the new interface and discuss how they intend to skip the Corolla-Toyota-Style and keep driving their existing Corolla-2007. Once enough people learn how to shift gears with their elbows, Toyota plans on introducing more motorcycles with similar controls and driving Kawasaki out of business. That’s the nature of business.

Re:Developers love USDP

[Anonymous Coward]

When you actually get paid to code, sometimes the people signing the check pick the language.

Need? no. But it is nice.

[Barlo_Mung_42]

Been using 8 for over a year. Took me about 3 weeks to quit looking for the start button. Tight coupling between devices and services makes for a better experience. Yes they are copying apple on this but I can't wait for my computers, phone and living room console to all work together.