Fun Stuff > CLIKC
The Post-PC thread
mtmerrick:
I actually got a good story about this one.
So we were in Las vegas, a day and a half before CES actually officially starts, getting our badges. We take a different way back, and we see that Lenovo has taken over a restaurant to show off its stuff, instead of using the breakout rooms like everyone else. They're still setting up, but all the electronics are already out on display. So we just walk in, and had a good 15 minutes of playing with smartphones that normally never see the light of day outside asia before some guy comes up to us and asks "hey, um, are you guys with Lenovo?". I respond "No?" with a 'do you have a problem with that' tone. He says, now highly flustered, that "You can't be in here unless you're with Lenovo. No one can." now starting to be a little nervous. So we leave.
On the way out we see a display on a wall, out in public. It has a couple android phones and tablets, and in the center a Thinkpad Helix. I recognise it from the leaks, and go over, saying "holy crap, this thing hasn't even been announced yet!" I touch the sceen to turn off the demo mode, and some wiry little man sprints over, throws himself in between me and the Helix, rips it off the charger, and runs back into the Lenovo room, clutching it to his chest. The look of panic/shame on him was incredible. Clearly this was not SUPPOSED to be on display.
When we came back later the wall display was completely gone. It never returned, even after the device was officially announced. We tried to go back in once the show had officially started a couple days later but we were informed by a burly security guard that this was only for press, and by invitation only.
:P
mtmerrick:
OK guys, Windows 8.1 is now officially a thing.
Go.
*waits to hear masterpiece sound off before textwalling initial impressions*
celticgeek:
No.
Masterpiece:
I heard that a notification center is coming. Color me excited about that, that's about it.
Needs more apps
mtmerrick:
personally, i think a lot of stuff - everything they announced with multitasking, the way the all apps page works, the way wallpapers work, lockscreen functionality, ect - shoudl have been that way since day one.
i'm very intrigued by 7"/8" tablet support.
i still plan on avoiding don't-call-it-metro apps like the plague, but i saw a couple live tiles, like the weather, that actually seem potentially useful to me.
using the new start screen as the start menu's replacement seems a bit easier now, from a desktop user's perspective.
unified search - about damn time
skydrive integration. ugh. why.
------
that said, the two features grabbing the most amount of PR are the two i am the most unsure of - the new/old 'start button' and boot to desktop.
thing is, though they've inherently changed how you interact with the desktop, the backend hasn't changed. In 8.0 everything was very clear cut. Metro start screen, metro apps, ect. The desktop was an app, a shelled environment for running your legacy software. While i didn't/don't agree with this, it was VERY clear cut. Metro is/was microsoft's vision for the future, the desktop is on its way out.
now, in 8.1, the lines are very blurred. what type of software is microsoft pushing again? the desktop is now "ok" to use again, vs the "we'd really rather you stayed out of it" feel of 8.0. I mean seriously, use some metro apps, and go back to the desktop. it feels like you're living in an emulator, and that's not too far from the truth. but now, the mechanics behind it haven't changed, but they're artificially elevating the desktop to an "importance level" of much higher in the OS.
Its really hard to see where microsoft is actually heading now. desktop? metro? its hard to say, and i don't like that.
TLDR; very interesting. actually an OS i won't mined using, a lot better than W8.0, but seems as if it can't make up its mind.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version