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Windows 8 Dev. Preview Hands on & Compatibility
- Thread starter sgtakase
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2-finger scroll works on my Macbook Pro 2011 after installing bootcamp-assistant in compability-mode. Everything seems to work as it should
I've done exactly that, install via compatibility mode. I checked all the trackpad settings in Bootcamp control panel and the metro UI does not want to scroll horizontally. I just can't get used to dragging those scroll bars.
No, not at all. Imagine running Windows 7 and when you click the start button, instead of bringing up the menu, it launches the Metro interface with all the tiles. If you choose a non-metro app (like ms office), it launches the app and displays the Windows task bar at the bottom (like Windows 7). To get back to the Metro interface, you need to click the start button again.
ahh yes too true. i just got win 8 on my computer and i am not a huge fan of it. especially the log out screen, when you have to "swipe"
lolz
I just installed the Windows Developer Preview through VMWare on my iMac..overall the Metro UI is new and fresh but how the hell do I get out of an app? I find my self having to alt-tab to get back to desktop then click the windows logo to get the metro UI again. Very very weird..
I hit the Command key.
After using it for the good part of a day, I feel no real desire to go back and use it again.
Yeah, I am done using it. I think the concept is great for tablets but not for day to day PC use.
A few issues here on 2011 13" MacBook Pro. Opposite to what the above poster said, if I'm not on the charger, I get a solid black screen. I thought this might be because of the lack of drivers, so I put my 4.0 drivers disc in, but it turns out my Windows 8 installation won't recognise CDs at all, probably because of a driver as well. I've just booted back into Lion, and I've put the drivers on a USB flash drive. We'll see if this is any better.
EDIT: I've got the drivers installed. Turns out the brightness was just set to 0 when running on battery power, and I had to way to move it up. Installing the drivers allowed me to use F2 to get the brightness up to a useable level. CDs still aren't recognised though.
EDIT: I've got the drivers installed. Turns out the brightness was just set to 0 when running on battery power, and I had to way to move it up. Installing the drivers allowed me to use F2 to get the brightness up to a useable level. CDs still aren't recognised though.
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If you get a black screen it is because it turns the LCD brightness at 0. Take a flashlight and aim it at the light-sensor and then turn the backlight up
My only scroll vertically too but you can scroll left and right in metro UI by scrolling vertically. Could you scroll horizontally in Windows7?
My only scroll vertically too but you can scroll left and right in metro UI by scrolling vertically. Could you scroll horizontally in Windows7?
I couldn't ever get it to scroll horizontally in Windows 7, but you are right, the Metro UI does respond to vertical scrolling. (down is right).
I had no luck installing on my 2011 MBA.
Wouldn't work of USB thumb drive, and when using external DVD/CD it wouldn't see my bootcamp partition at the install part.
So I gave up.
Still tempted to try it on my working Win 7 bootcamp in my mac pro - but concerned it may break more than it's worth.
Wouldn't work of USB thumb drive, and when using external DVD/CD it wouldn't see my bootcamp partition at the install part.
So I gave up.
Still tempted to try it on my working Win 7 bootcamp in my mac pro - but concerned it may break more than it's worth.
This
Windows 8 is unusable at this stage still. Internet Explorer doesn't seem to work properly and I can't bring up the address bar. Have no idea how to open tabs either. And I'm disappointed I can't use the two finger gestures to swipe horizontally across the Metro UI.
Its a mess right now and I wouldn't use it till they have a proper beta.
This isn't even a beta yet. It's pre-beta and it isn't supposed to be functional. Some features may be added in the future too. This isn't meant for everyday use or for consumers at all. It's a developer preview.
Yeah me neither. Installed 64-bit version in VirtualBox on my MacBook.
I think Microsoft might be on to something with Metro.....might is the key word here. It's definitely unique.
Where I don't see Metro working is when they mix Metro and Classic Windows. Wow, what a mess. If I'm on a PC....a full fledged "truck", I don't want to have to NOT have a Start Menu. Yes, I know you can hack to turn Metro off, but that's not the point.
Why force Metro if I want to use my PC like a PC....not a tablet?
Seems Microsoft is trying to have it's cake and eat it too.
Metro just seems like a glorified Start screen setup that can also run these Metro apps. I'd rather a way to stay in Classic....and if I want to get to Metro or run a Metro app, I can go there.
In the end though....I'm an OS X user....so all this is mainly because I'm a curious geek
-Kevin
Am I the only one here who is loving Windows 8? After getting through all of the compatibility mode drivers and all of that I found it to be mindblowingly fast. When I clicked Windows Explorer or Internet Explorer it would pop up much faster than Safari or Finder would on the Mac side of my HDD. Some things I found a bit odd were the behaviors of some Metro apps. It's odd to me that the Metro Internet Explorer 10 and the normal IE10 are considered separate browsers. I also can't find the shut down button for the life of me... I have to go to the Metro menu, click log out and then click shut down.
So overall, I'm loving the speed. It seriously makes Lion feel slow, but the Metro style mixed with the Windows 7 desktop seems a bit counterintuitive at the moment. I wouldn't judge too hard though since this is only a developer preview. It's like judging Lion from the (awful) dev preview 1. Things only get better.
So overall, I'm loving the speed. It seriously makes Lion feel slow, but the Metro style mixed with the Windows 7 desktop seems a bit counterintuitive at the moment. I wouldn't judge too hard though since this is only a developer preview. It's like judging Lion from the (awful) dev preview 1. Things only get better.
Of course not, I'm liking it. I'm running it in Vmware and starting to put it through its paces. Overall I do like it what it has to offer. Given that its a developer preview, I am pleased at how well it looks and feels and hope that the betas will be even more polished.
As I stated in my earlier post however, I'm not liking Metro and right now it definitely has a bolted on feeling, not very well integrated and it does not have a seamless synergy we're used to. That is clicking on the start menu and it shows up. I make heavy use of the Start> Run in windows. So far from appearances if I don't disable Metro I don't have access to this.
But as I noted it is a developers preview and I think its a good portend of what to expect from MS
To me so far, if you take Metro out.....Windows 8 is like Snow Leopard....a lot of under-the-hood changes and a bit of interface updates (ribbons, etc).
Will be interesting to see if they can make the Metro interface seamless on a "desktop" experience.
So far, as awkward as the Classic Windows looks on a tablet, Metro on a full PC is weird to me. Seem likes an added step....going back to Metro screen instead of popping up the Start Menu.
Interesting also that when on a full PC.....Metro apps still kill themselves like on a tablet. Not sure about that. Why if I'm on a desktop, and switch away from a Metro app...do I want it to close? It's not like Lion's closing.....it closes after the 5 seconds or so that Metro apps are allowed to run in the background.
-Kevin
Will be interesting to see if they can make the Metro interface seamless on a "desktop" experience.
So far, as awkward as the Classic Windows looks on a tablet, Metro on a full PC is weird to me. Seem likes an added step....going back to Metro screen instead of popping up the Start Menu.
Interesting also that when on a full PC.....Metro apps still kill themselves like on a tablet. Not sure about that. Why if I'm on a desktop, and switch away from a Metro app...do I want it to close? It's not like Lion's closing.....it closes after the 5 seconds or so that Metro apps are allowed to run in the background.
-Kevin
Works fine in VirtualBox
I have it running fine in VirtualBox. I used the 32 bit version. I'm like the way Metro looks but I've got mixed feelings about how it works. For one, on my Mac, getting the start menu to come up is tricky because Virtualbox takes over the left command key. You absolutely need the command key to get in and out of Metro or switch apps. alt tab does nothing. I installed Win 8 x64 in a virtualbox on a PC running 32 bit Win 7. I know not exactly intuitive. Only then did I find out some of the features because things weren't exactly smooth in Virtualbox on my Mac.
The Metro control panel is only a very thin veneer. As soon as you want some detail you are thrown back into Windows 7's xp-ish looking control panel. I played around with the rss reader. Way too much space is wasted with large font headlines in the same size tiles that are used for apps on the Metro home screen. I guess it's ok for old folks with bad eyes. Then when you read a feed, you get into some sort of middle earth where everything stops working like Windows 8 and starts working like Windows 7 or XP. For instance, spin the wheel on the Metro home screen and you move right and left to see all your app tiles. Move the mouse wheel when reading a story in the rss reader and you would think the thing is broke. The paint app is trying to be like the dock where the colors are along the bottom and mousing over them enlarges them. A cool but shameless shot over OS X's bow.
I have it running fine in VirtualBox. I used the 32 bit version. I'm like the way Metro looks but I've got mixed feelings about how it works. For one, on my Mac, getting the start menu to come up is tricky because Virtualbox takes over the left command key. You absolutely need the command key to get in and out of Metro or switch apps. alt tab does nothing. I installed Win 8 x64 in a virtualbox on a PC running 32 bit Win 7. I know not exactly intuitive. Only then did I find out some of the features because things weren't exactly smooth in Virtualbox on my Mac.
The Metro control panel is only a very thin veneer. As soon as you want some detail you are thrown back into Windows 7's xp-ish looking control panel. I played around with the rss reader. Way too much space is wasted with large font headlines in the same size tiles that are used for apps on the Metro home screen. I guess it's ok for old folks with bad eyes. Then when you read a feed, you get into some sort of middle earth where everything stops working like Windows 8 and starts working like Windows 7 or XP. For instance, spin the wheel on the Metro home screen and you move right and left to see all your app tiles. Move the mouse wheel when reading a story in the rss reader and you would think the thing is broke. The paint app is trying to be like the dock where the colors are along the bottom and mousing over them enlarges them. A cool but shameless shot over OS X's bow.
I've got the 64-bit version installed on my MacBook Pro 2010 13", and modified the BootCamp64.msi to allow installation in a non-Windows 7 environment, but don't seem to have read ability on HFS drives. If I insert a FireWire drive which is HFS-formatted, Windows 8 doesn't recognize it. I checked and AppleHFS.sys is listed under /Windows/Drivers. Has anyone else noted this problem?
Edit: After running Windows update (there were at least 6! available, as well as an updated NVidia graphics driver) and a restart HFS drives are now readable.
Also, I tried to install MacDrive V9.0 without success. Even after hacking the .msi installation file to drop the Windows 7 launch condition, MacDrive reports that it's unable to load any of the necessary drivers upon startup. Has anyone found a workaround for this?
By the way, VMWare Fusion 4 handles Windows 8 ilke a champ. Parallels 7, however, does not, but in the Parallels forums it was noted that there is a workaround to allow installation of Parallels Tools,
Edit: After running Windows update (there were at least 6! available, as well as an updated NVidia graphics driver) and a restart HFS drives are now readable.
Also, I tried to install MacDrive V9.0 without success. Even after hacking the .msi installation file to drop the Windows 7 launch condition, MacDrive reports that it's unable to load any of the necessary drivers upon startup. Has anyone found a workaround for this?
By the way, VMWare Fusion 4 handles Windows 8 ilke a champ. Parallels 7, however, does not, but in the Parallels forums it was noted that there is a workaround to allow installation of Parallels Tools,
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Is anyone else having trouble connecting to wifi. Installed on my MBP 11 13", everything working fine except for wifi, Win 8 is pretty much useless without internet. I need help.
Oh yeah, installed with bootcamp
Oh yeah, installed with bootcamp