Posted on 01/08/2014 12:30:34 PM PST by SeekAndFind
Windows 8/8.1 has topped 10% market share for the first time, apparently picking up a few users from among those who are finally leaving Windows XP behind.
According to Web analytics firm NetMarkeshare, users of all versions of Windows 8 amounted to 10.49% of Internet users for the month of December, up from 9.25% in December. This as users of Windows XP have dipped from 31.22% to 28.98%.
While the showing for Windows 8/8.1 is a milestone, it is also part of a gradual trend. Since last February, use of the operating system has risen 7.82 percentage points while XP has dropped 10.01. Windows 7 use has moved up 2.97 points over the same period, so it seems most of those abandoning XP have moved to Windows 7 or 8/8.1.
Over the same period, Windows Vista dipped 1.56 points.
NetMarketshare’s data is gathered from the browsers of visitors to its customers’ 40,000-plus Web sites worldwide. The firm breaks down the sites as 46% commercial, 18% corporate, 10% content and 29% other, including government, search engine marketers and .org groups. Seventy six percent participate in pay per click programs to drive traffic to their sites, the company says.
Surface Pro 2 upgrade
While it’s not an official hardware overhaul, customers who buy Microsoft Surface Pro 2 laptops now will get faster machines than those who bought them last month.
That’s because the Windows 8 devices are being built with a better CPU than the earlier versions, according to a report by WinBeta. The newer Surface Pro 2s have Intel i5 4300U (1.9Ghz) CPUs vs the older versions that had i5 4200U (1.6Ghz) processors.
Here’s how Microsoft explained the changes to WinBeta: “Microsoft routinely makes small changes to internal components over the lifetime of a product, based on numerous factors including supply chain partnerships, availability, and value for our customers. With any change to hardware or software, we work to ensure that the product experience remains excellent.”
Chromebooks rule on Amazon.com
Amazon.com reports disheartening holiday sales from a Windows 8 perspective: Chromebooks are outselling the best-selling Windows 8 laptops.
According to the site’s Best Sellers, two Chromebooks – Acer C720 and Samsung Chromebook - are ranked No. 1 and 2 with two Windows 8 devices – Asus Transformer Book T100TA-C1-G and Asus X200CA-HCL1104G – coming in third and fourth. Price seems to be a factor. The Chromebooks sell for $199 and $179, respectively, while the Windows devices go for $448 and $298. Another blow to Windows 8: Toshiba’s Satellite C55-A5245 came in fifth - equipped with Windows 7.
Surface 2 BitLocker woes
Microsoft is promising a Jan. 14 solution to a Surface 2 software problem that has the device demanding the BitLocker recovery key when it boots up.
Microsoft acknowledges it shouldn’t do that and is working on a fix.
The only disadvantage I can see to windows 8 is the metro interface.
But you can disable that and use a windows 7 interface in 2 minutes by installing the free “Classic Shell”.
So I really don’t understand why anyone would downgrade to 7 from 8
My new system is 8.1. I like it so far.
Instead of my stating: “why should Microsoft change the way something is operated or controlled” I should have stated “why should Microsoft change the user interface making it confusing and difficult to learn”.
Going back to my analogy, the new Subaru has many new positive features that could never have been on that old Geo. It has so much more modern bells and whistles that makes it a pure pleasure to drive. Similarly, Win8 has performance improvements, security enhancements and other.
Now using your logic, since Subaru’s Legacy is their product, not a charity, then they could feel free to put the shifter by the glove box, go to rudder style foot pedals for steering, get rid of the windshield and use a periscope.
My point is it is still possible to make drastic improvement without changing the user interface.
Nonetheless, you have your opinion, I have mine. Enjoy your Win 8, I’ll work with Win7.
In the meantime MS will have learned from Win8 like they did from Vista and make Win9 something more people will accept.
No. I installed Linux Mint along side XP. The Mint version I used for this is Mint 16 Cinnamon. You can get it in 32 or 64 bit versions depending on your PC. If it's an XP machine it's undoubtedly a 32 bit machine.
You get the live/install version. With the disk in the CD/DVD drawer start the PC and go to the start up settings in BIOS (usually F12). Select the CD/DVD drive as your boot drive. If everything's ok, it will boot right into Mint.
Once you know it works ok, click on the "Install Mint" icon on the desk top. It will begin the install process. Select language and time zone. Then it will ask if you want to replace what's on your hard drive or install along side the existing OS. Select the latter. It will then come up with a suggested partitioning of the disk (how much space for XP, how much for Mint). The suggested value is probably ok.
At that point, the installation will finish (be sure you are connected to the internet during this process so you get updates). Eject the disk and you are done.
The next time you start the computer you'll get a screen asking which OS you want to boot into. Very easy.
You can download and burn the install disk or you can just order one from one of the Linux disk vendors. I use osdisc.com. Price is about $6 plus postage.
I went from XP to Snow Leopard, and glad I did, because I’m shocked at how much money I save, not needing all that virus protection crap.
You can do that in 7 easily. Open an explorer window, navigate to the zone you think the file will be (folder, whole harddrive, whole computer, whatever), click in the search box in the upper right, put your *.exe in, then notice that when you clicked in that box a popup appeared that said “Add a search filter” and under that “Date modified” and “size”, obviously for you search you want to click on Date Modified, at which you will be presented with a calendar control that you can use various presets or click and drag to get you specific period.
It’s all right there, at your finger tip, available any time you’re in Explorer, and with fewer mouse click that the XP advanced search.
For me when I stopped recording it popped up a Save dialog so I could put the file where I wanted defaulted to my Documents folder. YMMV, Sound Recorder isn’t the most feature rich app out there, it’s basically notepad for sounds.
This version of 8 only had a “rename” box which allowed you to name the file. Nothing else.
I was just looking for a cheap, functioning application. Because the function to record narration wasn’t working in the “movie maker” application. So we had to use sound recorder and import the narration as “music” for our movie.
I was in Frys the other day and saw a case with the completely opposite design philosophy. It's called a "strike-x air" by Aerocool. If I had the space on my desk for it, this would be a serious contender for me. Hmmm... Open air or trash can. I actually really like both concepts. (no sarcasm).
No. There was literally just a box to type a name in and a “rename” button. Not any type of “file save” dialog box which lets you select a drive and path, etc.
This seems to be a 8.1 “feature.” See the following, for example:
http://techjia.com/where-are-files-stored-for-windows-sound-recorder-windows-8-1/
Or this “helpful” Microsoft help file:
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/sound-recorder-app-faq
“Your recordings are stored within the Sound Recorder app. If you uninstall the app, your recordings will be deleted. To send the recording file to someone through another app, use the Share charm.”
I don’t have 8.1 handy, I tried 8. Sounds like they busted it, appdata should at best be where the temp file is stored, user data should never go there. And now we see why they didn’t change sound recorder for 20 years, first time they changed it they broke it.
Exactly. Apparently the easiest way Microsoft designed for me to get a file from the sound recorder is to use the “Share charm” to email it.
Instead of giving me an option to save it to a flash drive, or do any sort of normal file operations on the file.
It’s a Nerf operating system.
I went from XP to Snow Leopard, and glad I did, because I’m shocked at how much money I save, not needing all that virus protection crap.
And time.
Windows is for people who don't value their time.
Dave, Download Audacity. It’s free, and I’m pretty sure there is a windows version. Audacity is a really powerful sound editor.
Thanks, but not important now. We had to get homework done then. Windows stood in my way and I had to go to the internet to look for workarounds.
“Where do I get Linux?”
Although most Linux versions are free to download from the web, I think non-techies would find it much more convenient and less intimidating to buy the demo/install disks from vendors that charge very little for a single disk. Visit OSDisk.com
Now, which brand of Linux to buy? There are only two brands that I recommend to newcomers, Linuxmint.com and Ubuntu.com. I advise you try Mint first, the current version still strongly resembles Windows XP.
Now, which desktop version of Mint should I try? There are several versions, such as Cinnamon, Mate, Xfce and KDE. For an older computer, Mate or Xfce would probably run best. Your computer should have a minimum of 512mb RAM to run Mint or Ubuntu decently.
For the price of a single copy of Norton Antivirus, you could test drive quite a few Linux versions. If your computer has some weird graphics card that is incompatible with Mint, try Ubuntu. One or the other works on any computer that I have tried.
Once you find a demo that you like, you will see an icon on the desktop to install it. I have found Mint and Ubuntu to be easier to install than Windows!!! An installed copy of Linux runs MUCH faster than running the demo from a DVD.
Although you can install Linux alongside with Windows XP, you need plenty of spare room on the hard drive to do that. Run Windows own utilities to clean up and compress the drive before installing, and also back up anything you wouldn’t want to lose.
Ya. Understood. For future usage, I'd recommend audacity though. I just looked at the page, and it's good for Linux, OSX, and Windows
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