New Windows 9 screenshots give us a closer look at the desktop, start menu and taskbar

[TheBigFatClown]

I don't. I'm actually a fan of ModernUI. The performance gains from Windows 7 to 8 were worth it alone. Not to mention that Win7 will not be able to support future monitor resolutions or newer versions of DirectX, if you're going to want to keep current you will have to upgrade. Lots of people don't like the 'flat' look of it, but honestly a LOT of UI design is going that way nowdays, not just MS. 5 years ago everything was about skeumorphism; design styles change, not everyone is going to like where trends go.

And also, all those colors and everything? They're totally changeable. And if you don't like it, I'm sure by launch people will have custom shells and start menus that you can install, though I wouldn't be suprised if on the Pro edition that you'll have the capability to turn it all off to bring a more traditional start menu back. Win 8.1 is a huge improvement over Win7, just for the search and admin tools alone. I'm looking forward to 9.

Crippling a UI by digressing to a caveman like appearance? Yeah, I could see how that would yield some nice performance gains on systems that aren't that powerful to begin with. My only minor, minor complaint about Windows 7 is that it does take a while for the hard drive to settle down after some update/reboot operations. But my solution to my own complaint is to purchase an SSD sometime in the near future. Rather than digressing into an operating system with square boxes and 16 different colors as some new hip color scheme. And we still can't deny the WHY of Windows 8. WHY is it using square Windows and 4-bit color schemes? The answer is still the same. Because they wanted to be the next Apple at the expense of their own desktop market. They thought everybody would just hop on board and they would be as successful as Apple. It just isn't happening that way.

If everything is about performance gains at the expense of everything else you might wanna try to switching to a Linux OS without a graphical front end. That should get you even more performance gains than Windows 8. To have my system boot to desktop a few nanoseconds faster than it does now at the expense of having to work in a childrens UI 24 hours a day, 7 days a week...guess what? I would be more than happy to wait that time out. And that's exactly what I will continue to do. Windows 8 was a disaster and Microsoft is doubling down. Amazing. Hey Microsoft, careful, icebergs dead ahead. Oh, but they don't scare you, do they?

You sacrificed a hell of a lot of style, flexibility and power for a quicker boot experience. LOL. To each their own.

 

[Guest]

If that is the new Windows than I am already disappointed. It still looks like that metro colorful crap. Just give me an enhanced Win7 theme where I can change it to my liking than I will be alright.

 

[Guest]

Those four big circles, are they a watermark or are they part of the OS?

 

[Guest]

It's still a terrifying mess, an inconsistent pile of rubble.
Some icons are normal, some are tilted similar to the Windows one, some icons are full-color images, other icons are two color silhouettes, the tray seems to be Aero-like transparent but no transparency on window borders.
How am I supposed to take something seriously when it looks like it was designed by 12 hipsters closed together with a kinder-gardener class for a week.

 

[VitalyT]

MS should purchase Starfock instead of the Minecraft idiocy, and make things right.

 

[jonny702]

There's a lot of belly aching on here it's almost surprising. I would have thought readers of this website would be more technical. There's nothing wrong with the UI. Threshold is designed to give mouse and keyboard users the usability that's natural to them and touch users an interface that works for them. I use both so I'm looking forward to how this will work across my various devices. I've always thought the live tiles were awesome. I don't get the complaints. I'm reminded of the stupid comments I've seen about Aero. Technology changes, stop clinging to Windows 95 and change with it

 

[cliffordcooley]

There's nothing wrong with the UI.

Wrong? No! Hideous? Yes!

 

[TheBigFatClown]

There's a lot of belly aching on here it's almost surprising. I would have thought readers of this website would be more technical. There's nothing wrong with the UI. Threshold is designed to give mouse and keyboard users the usability that's natural to them and touch users an interface that works for them. I use both so I'm looking forward to how this will work across my various devices. I've always thought the live tiles were awesome. I don't get the complaints. I'm reminded of the stupid comments I've seen about Aero. Technology changes, stop clinging to Windows 95 and change with it

It's almost surprising...he says. Is this the only website you read? Millions of people spread across multiple websites have been complaining for 2 straight years about Windows 8 and you are surprised by it? LOL. Does not compute Will Robinson. Why I do find it hard to believe that you are "surprised" by the complaints?

Read practically *ANY* article that has to do with the imminent release of Windows 9 and you would know that an ungodly number of people have rejected Windows 8, primarily due to the "one-size-fits-all" approach of the UI. Which includes the sad reality that it looks cheap, superficial, childish, and ugly. That simple look just doesn't work for me.

"WHAT??? You don't love Windows 8 like I DO???". LOL.

Okay, that's all the troll food I have for today.

 

[Teko03]

Ohhh ahhh, look at all the pretty colors. Errr, well, I mean, look at all the pretty green and white. *cough, *cough*.
Windows 9 = Failure. Same square windows, same 4-bit color pallette. It still looks, as yRaz says, like a toy. It looks like an operating system for pre-schoolers. How can Microsoft be this retarded? So they think that putting a mini start menu back into the next release is all that they needed to do to woo millions of holdouts back into their cash cow? *sigh*

Oh my God. I guess this is it then. Windows 7 for life. Sad but true.

There is more to Windows 8 than live tiles. But even better for you and many others, get Windows 9 and unpin the Live Tiles from Windows 9 --- boom, you have the fucntionality of Windows 7 and the new features of Windows 8 & Windows 9 --- fast boot, system refresh, XBOX Music, PC settings backed up to OneDrive, updated File Explorer, Storage Spaces just from Windows 8 alone. Windows 7 is great, but there is much to like about 8 and so far 9 (notifications, virutal desktops). Microsoft appears to be giving you the option to use or see Live Tiles now.

 

[Nobina]

Better than Windows 8 but still worse than Windows 7.

 

[RustyTech]

I better get another copy of Win7 just in case MS decides to drastically limit the supply...somehow.

 

[Guest]

Windows 7 works. It's easy to navigate, easy on the eyes, easy to configure, and easy to use. Designed for mouse and keyboard. No sane person wants change for the sake of change. No one wants an OS that's harder to use, hiding options and settings under two GUIs awkwardly jammed together. No one wants this colored tile crap that looks like a Sears newspaper ad. At least not on a desktop computer. Why can't MS understand that and just add the option to turn it off? Oh, you're not using a touchscreen, we'll just turn off Metro. Is it hubris?

 

[Arris]

To be fair I've adjusted to Windows 8.1 and while it is still some sick love child of a mouse and keyboard UI and Touch UI it's not really that bad. I just treat metro for the most part as a giant start menu and the rest of the OS isn't that bad. You can ignore most of the Metro elements and turn off charms/hotspot corners etc. in settings. It's not great but it's not as awful as people make out. Really, it's not.

Although maybe not worth buying a full priced copy as it's not particularly an upgrade from Win7.

 

[stansfield]

What a mess! An awful, disjointed, unattractive and tacky interface. No way would I want this showing on my monitor. I can live with w8 or 8.1 using classic shell to give another option but I don't even want to know about this one!! The Microsoft store seems to be getting more intrusive too. I don't want a shop, I want an OS!

 

[Guest]

IMO, app store = USELESS on a PC (there is already the whole internet, why would one want to restrict himself to an app store.....) I'd find it more restricting than anything.
Desktop users do not need to have modern apps in Desktop environment. Please consider an option to disable or remove having modern UI apps or Windows Store apps in Desktop environment.


Bring Ribbon in Notepad too.
"Notepad is like the only thing in Windows that literally hasn't changed since the first Windows came out!"

 

[EClyde]

Win 8 ain't bad as long as I am using Classic Shell. I can pretty much much ignore most of the bad interface that way. As for gaming, I have no problems with the few games I have tried but my Win 8 computer is my backup and is used only for trying things out. 9 looks like hellish as 8.

I don't think there has been much adoption of the Win 8 interface look by other software companies but I have noticed some. I wish none had but what I wish more is that Win 8 would be ignored as a test bench. That may all be clear it may not

How do you ignore the square windows? If you can tell me that I might think about upgrading to Windows 9. How do you ignore a catastrophic interface that permeates the entire operating system? I am sorry but adding(or bringing back a start menu) just isn't enough.

It's about what I like and none of that needs splainin' to you.

 

[Jad Chaar]

The virtual desktops seem pretty nifty.

 

[otester]

Keep screwing up Windows, then Valve will keep pushing towards Linux, then we can all be free.

 

[Railman]

Bring Ribbon in Notepad too.
"Notepad is like the only thing in Windows that literally hasn't changed since the first Windows came out!"

As someone who hates the Ribbon that would be a retrograde step.

 

[trgz]

I like most of what I saw above, though the PC Settings screen is an abysmal bit of design

 

[Nero7]

Can someone explain to me how this is progress and not 10 steps backward into the wrong direction?
http://www.chip.de/ii/1/9/2/4/2/0/8/8/apps-3b4ae2664f6a101a.jpg

I must say though that I am glad that corners are coming back. Everything had to be kinda round and kinda soft...

 

[Nero7]

When I got GodMode it felt like the revelation. Hopefully W9 will have it too. Now I hear rumors of it being called only "Windows" without any number or version indicator... shivers.

 

[darkzelda]

It looks great, I hope it comes out soon

 

[Charles Ingram]

If they keep forcing the Metro menu, this Version 9 will fail as bad as 8,
Only if they allow me to drip the metro menu will I even think of using it.
Wil 7 is too good to give up for such crap.

 

[Guest]

A start menu that covers more than half the screen? Ok, I'm sold.