Since he's using the preview version and runs a successful PC software company that also publishes some great games, we figure he's a qualified expert. We asked him to explain (since we've also heard some wonderful things about Windows 8). He obliged.
Here's Brad:
Windows 8 has a lot of features to recommend it. It's smaller. It's faster. It's smoother. However, it has three flaws that worry me a great deal.
#1 It's schizophrenic. Is it a tablet OR a desktop OS? It tries to be both…and neither.
Let's say you're on the desktop and you want to load up Mass Effect 3 or Microsoft Word. You are expected to move your mouse to the bottom left, wait for a tile to be displayed, click on the tile. That action whisks you away from the desktop to the Metro environment where you can then look for those programs.
The Windows 8 experience involves jumping back and forth between the tablet environment (Metro) and the desktop. They have nothing in common. Metro's task list won't list desktop apps and the desktop won't list recently active Metro apps. They're separate and yet you have to use both.
#2 Forcing apps to be full screen is obnoxious. Imagine Notepad running full-screen with no border, no title bar, and no menu bar on a 21 inch monitor. That's what a Metro text editor would be like to use.
Metro apps want to be full-screen. Always.
You can snap them to use 1/3rd or 2/3rd of the screen, vertically, but that makes usability even worse in most cases. Take your most common apps and resize them vertically as mentioned and tell us what you think of that.
Try getting any serious work done like this.
#3 It's a usability nightmare. Let's assume you can accept/adapt to items 1 and 2. You're adaptable. What's the problem? Answer: The rest of the user base.
Less savvy users are in for some serious grief.
Nothing is visually discoverable. There are no visual cues. It's all based on touch, which means for most users, moving the mouse moving around the screen until it finds an invisible hotspot.
There's no Start button or Start menu on the desktop (unless you use a third-party utility like Start8 which is not going to be acceptable for corporate customers).
Multi-monitor user? Forget it. Metro doesn't support multiple monitors, at least presently. Additional monitors can be the Windows desktop but Metro always reserves one monitor for itself.
Why are they doing this? I can't think of any reason why they would do this—except for the hypothesis that they are obsessed with some group of users who would be better off with a tablet.
Microsoft: Don't party like 1999 anymore.
I've seen Windows 8 advocates say that if you don't have a tablet you should just stick with Windows 7. I think a lot of people may do that.
But here's the problem for Microsoft: This isn't 1999 where they could ship a Windows ME type product and users had no real alternatives. 2012 is the year in which millions of users are using an iOS or Android device.
By the time Windows 8 is released, it's going to be facing a market where displays are going start including AirPlay and/or Intel WiDi. That means mobile devices will be able to stream their output to large screens. Connect a Bluetooth keyboard, mouse, gamepad and suddenly that mobile device could become a real threat.
I'm a PC developer. I want Windows 8 to succeed. I have Windows games and software in development with releases dates far in the future. It's a pretty big deal to us that Windows 8 not fail.
Lest you think I'm yelling about falling skies or preaching doom, let me say that I have great faith that between now and the time Windows 8 ships that someone at Microsoft will realize the peril they're putting their flagship OS in.
Microsoft can fix these issues before Windows 8 ships. Don't force users to jump around between Metro and the desktop. Allow users to live within a single, consistent environment if they so choose. All we need is for Microsoft to release a solid, non-crazy version of Windows 8.
Brad Wardell is president and CEO of Stardock. He's been previewing Windows 8 for some time. Stardock is a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner. The company is the world's largest Windows desktop customization software provider with products like WindowBlinds, the Object Desktop suite, Object Dock, Fences and more. They also publish the hit strategy game Sins of a Solar Empire.
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10 comments:
Maybe the only time the user is knocked back into the desktop app is when it's docked? Apple included magnets to detect its face cover and turn the iPad on or off so why not do the same with win8? I mean taking the desktop and turnig it into an app is a brilliant idea, especially because the whole experience is fluid and I never detected my computer bogging down to accomplish the task.
This guy does not know what he is talking about. I´ve been using Windows 8 consumer preview since it came out and I have absolutely no usability problems. You are NEVER forced to switch between desktop and metro interface as he states (you can just as easily lauch Mass Effect from desktop if you wish) and although it took me a day or two to get used to the new interface it is very intuitive and i´m sure most people will get it right away. Windows 8 is awesome and provides the best of both worlds in having the ability to switch at will between a tablet optimised interface and a pc optimised interface. To attack it because of this is just ludicrous
So the CEO of Stardock is a reliable source to critique the new Windows experience? I'm a little critical since the Metro interface will probably render their desktop UI enhancement software as no longer relevant.
Brad Wardell - Is spot on. I played with Windows 8 and I can reflect on exactly his comments. I have been a Windows Fans since the days of DOS. Microsoft has a track record of release a great version of Windows follow by a really shitty version. Windows 8 (shitty), Windows 7 (great), Windows Vista (Shitty), Windows XP (great) ..etc. Guess you have to wait for Windows 9 ..and hopefully they don't screw that up. I am Windows Developer and Windows 8 aint great.
I hate apps. I hate apps. Delete them.
I am a Windows Developer and I love Windows 8. Microsoft learned from their mistake (Vista). Windows 8 Release Preview is working great and soon the flood of apps will come pouring in. Then you will have the benefit of both desktop to do work on and the metro to do apps/browsing/reading/etc on. What is not to love about that... ALL IN ONE DEVICE.... Android and Apple are jealous. I will happily pay a higher price for a Slate that runs Windows 8.
windows 8 is great but Microsoft should learn from their mistake like Vista so should give option for user changing desktop option like windows 7 or earlier version desktop enviroment.
i absolutely agree with him...
would be great if windows 8 followed something similar to windows mango ( phone 7.5)
U have everything in a different page, no confusions.....
then only use the desktop side. think before you spout idiocy.
He's completely off, there's no forced switching between metro or desktop if you run a full fledged desktop game from the desktop icon. Now, either he got it backwards and tried to run a desktop game from the metro ui (which is expected to force you to desktop). I run Firefox on this just fine, and I am using an old and slow laptop. Try to run Cut the Rope from your desktop, it will switch over to app mode because it is an app game. Try to run Mass Effect 3 from the metro ui (in my case, spore), and it will take you to desktop mode. If you expected anything else from that situation, you are an idiot. Windows went a little overboard saying you only have to develop one program on one source code. Metro and Desktop aren't completely different, but they are more similar than than the competitor options. Either way, it's easier than developing for the differences between android and iOS, which is what they were aiming for. Besides, you can have interconnectivity between a gaming developer developing everything from serious hardcore games that would have to run on the desktop and the simpler app games. I think steam and origin and other such programs are going to see a huge bonus to this. If you're a developer for just windows, then you don't understand the full issue. If you develop apps for other os's, and you're still complaining? Well, then you're just a lazy idiot with nothing better to do. (In case of your future response of (you have nothing else to do but critique), I have been sick and really have nothing better to do than call out you idiots).
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