Surface Pro 2 / Win 8. So far no good.

[OldRoy]

After months of pondering I just bought a 128 Gb Surface Pro 2. A compromise between a tablet and an Ultrabook but I hoped that it would be a satisfactory one if eye-wateringly expensive (to me, anyway). So far I'm appalled. I didn't realise that Win 8 is quite such a radical upheaval from previous versions. After three decades of using computers daily I didn't expect to be so off balance. It's a really, really horrible experience.

The combination of track-pad and touch screen with highly lose-able pen is a complete headache. I've never liked track-pads but this one is baffling and seems to work completely unlike any that I've ever used previously. Clicking on the scroll bars or arrows does nothing at all. You can drag with a finger tip (assuming your fingers are pointed) or use the pen but the track-pad does nothing in this mode. the only way I managed to get the magnification of the Chrome browser up in size was to connect a mouse and use the scroll wheel. In fact the thing becomes almost usable with a mouse connected.

I have 21 days to return this device and exchange it for a conventional Ultrabook: if only one was available with Win 7. There's something deeply frustrating about having to struggle to accomplish basic tasks that by now ought to be completely intuitive for anyone who has been using Windows for decades.

Roy
PS. If replying, please don't mention Macs. I'd forgotten that this is primarily an Apple forum.

[jjj]

If you learn the gestures that modern trackpads use then you'll be fine.
I loved mouse gestures when Opera introduced then over a decade ago, but sadly were little used by anyone else. So I was very pleased when trackpads started using them, it is so much easier than using scrolls bars and the like.
Most trackpads for some bizarre reason are set up by default to be completely and utterly shite Mac or PC. So no wonder many people hate them, but once you tweak the setting then they are much better I use one along with my mouse for my desktop machine and use each for the things it excels at.

[mcbroomf]

You should still be able to find an ultrabook with Win7.  Lenovo for just 1 example.

[andyptak]

Don't know if this will this will help but try a shareware called, start is back.

I almost returned a Windows 8 machine because I hated it so much until I installed this. It mimics W7 and it's worked for me. Good luck

[jjj]

Don't know if this will this will help but try a shareware called, start is back.

Or update to Win 8.1. The hands free mode is a neat idea.

[NickNod]

Didn't try Surface Pro 2, but Win8 still acceptable to ME.

[mcbroomf]

Looks like Win7 is not going anywhere for a while

http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-57615133-75/microsoft-never-mind-that-windows-7-end-of-sales-date/

"Last week ((My comment ... would have been the beginning of Dec presumably as this was posted Dec 10th), Microsoft made it public that it planned to stop allowing its PC partners to sell machines with Windows 7 preloaded as of October 30, 2014.
The Redmondians are now saying that date was posted in error. The new official word is that Microsoft still has yet to determine when the Windows 7 preload cut-off date will be. (Neowin reported the change from October 30, 2014 to "TBD" over the weekend.)"

[Rob C]

Looks like Win7 is not going anywhere for a while

http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-57615133-75/microsoft-never-mind-that-windows-7-end-of-sales-date/

"Last week ((My comment ... would have been the beginning of Dec presumably as this was posted Dec 10th), Microsoft made it public that it planned to stop allowing its PC partners to sell machines with Windows 7 preloaded as of October 30, 2014.
The Redmondians are now saying that date was posted in error. The new official word is that Microsoft still has yet to determine when the Windows 7 preload cut-off date will be. (Neowin reported the change from October 30, 2014 to "TBD" over the weekend.)"

I've just taken delivery of a new computer today, running W8. I hate it so far. I am back using the old computer with Vista to write here. I posted a thing using 8 earlier this evening and it refused to write (Windows . What it insisted in doing was writing (Windows and dropping the 8 and the close bracket, and substituting a smiley after the word Windows. Also, as I was writing, everything was being undelined with a red wavy line! You can see the effect on my last post in Without Prejudice. The red line didn't show on the actual post.

I have managed to put two web sites onto 'favourites', but can't even figure how to put links to them on the Desktop. As Roy indicates, it's unbelieveable that we find ourselves drowning here. When I was ordering the new computer, I was given two prices, one with 7 and one with 8. 7 was actually more expensive! Go figure.

Thank goodness cameras are not as complicated (unnecessarily) as computers are. I'd have given up years ago.

Hell's bells! Now that I've opened 'Review' in order to check what I've written, I see it's done it again with the bloody smiley on this, the other, old computer! Is it nothing to do with the W8 programme but something on LuLa? However, there are no red lines using this old machine.

Rob C

[barryfitzgerald]

Win 8.1 is a mixed bag it's quite horrible for desktops and non touch laptops (bit more bearable than 8.0 only just though)
On mobile devices it's quite good (ie phones and tablets)

The "surface" well used those and it's a dilemma for MS problem is if you are trying to make an ultra portable touch laptop (ie with the add on keyboard) forget RT as you just can't run Windows X86/64 software. And the Intel based surface is quite expensive really.

MS haven't really thought it out, they're caught between Apple taking the higher end market for tablets, and Android bagging lots of users with more affordable ones. MS are not really competing effectively in this market unless they can offer more affordable tablets running their OS, and they know Google have them on the run in other areas (cheap chromebooks - I can't stand them but some like them)

As for Windows 8 I have not deployed the OS to any of my desktops or laptops and have no intentions of doing so. It's an uncomfortable attempt to merge a touch interface with a non touch device. Metro sucks for desktops, and sadly whilst 8.1 lets you boot to desktop mode, they still didn't fix the start button problem. Simple solution for MS is to allow users to "have a choice" real start menu, ability to not use metro (or not use it often) Let's hope they get the message with Windows 9 because they didn't with Windows 8

Windows 8 nice enough for touch devices, sucks for non touch ones.

[BJL]

What it insisted in doing was writing (Windows and dropping the 8 and the close bracket, and substituting a smiley after the word Windows.

Hell's bells! Now that I've opened 'Review' in order to check what I've written, I see it's done it again with the bloody smiley on this, the other, old computer! Is it nothing to do with the W8 programme but something on LuLa?

Yep, it is a thing with LuLa's forum software. Old timers like you and I are advised to go below the text window and check the item "Don't use smileys."


P. S. Since you forbid mentioning Mac, I am tempted to say that you will probably get a far better "laptop computer plus hand-held touch-screen device" experience by getting a good ultra book for the former plus an Android tablet or iPad for the latter, because the Android/iOS options actually have lots of software designed to work well without a keyboard and mouse/trackpad, whereas Windows does not.

[andyptak]

Rob

 Get - "startisback" and it will change your life. Puts a W7 skin on your desktop for W8 and you have all of the familiar W7 screens and functions. It's either free or shareware, I can't recall.