Microsoft Windows 8.1 Preview

Windows 8 Background

Windows 8 was released in August 2012 as a radical redesign of the previous Microsoft Windows desktop. It featured an attempt to design an operating system which would be suitable both for the traditional keyboard and mouse set-up and for the more contemporary touch screen (or tablet) devices, such as Microsoft Surface.

The applications created specifically for Windows 8 were implemented using a visual design language called Metro which has subsequently been renamed as Modern. Metro/Modern emphasises the use of very clean, clear typography.

The original design proved to be rather too radical an update for many long-time Windows users, some of whom struggled to perform basic tasks such as starting up an application or finding a recently used file. Windows 8.1 is the update that aims to make the transition from Windows 7 less drastic.

A Taste of Windows 8

My first experience of Windows 8 was typical. I went to visit a customer to deliver an Excel training course. Their IT guy took me under his wing and showed me his beautiful, brand new desktop computers kitted out with touch screens and loaded up with the latest version of Windows.

Hardly able to contain my excitement, I said "Let's start up Excel". A simple task you would think and after a good 10 minutes we had managed to get one machine running Excel. After 20 minutes we had all six going. Of course, this usually takes about 2 minutes.

At the end of the day, my IT guy reappeared and we decided the shut down all of the computers. This proved a little harder than we expected. In fact, we failed. So, being practical guys, we pulled out the power leads. Our excuse was that neither of us had encountered Windows 8 before. I was fascinated to see what Microsoft had made of Windows 8 since.

This review is based on the preview version; there may be significant changes before Windows 8.1 is released later in the year. I mainly used Windows 8.1 with a standard keyboard and mouse laptop but spent a few happy hours with a Lenovo ThinkPad to check out how it behaved with a touch screen.

Start Screen

Once you've signed in you come to the Start screen. This is the famous "dashboard for your world" and you can click any of the tiles to launch a Modern App. If you just want to get some work done then click the Desktop tile (at the lower left hand side) and use the Start button. If you're used to using Windows 8 the small swipe used to select a tile has changed. That now swipes you down to the Apps screen instead. To select a tile, press and hold on it.

Start Screen, the Desktop tile is lower left

The Start screen can be viewed as a replacement for the old Start menu. You can easily create a shortcut for a desktop application and it will launch on the desktop.

Any of the existing tiles can be removed or replaced and you can "pin" any tiles on your Start screen. But if you want to launch an application without creating a shortcut then you go to your Apps screen. On Windows 8 you had to swipe across to see your Apps but now you swipe down.

Display Apps

To go to your Apps screen using your mouse click the downward pointing arrow which is available at the lower left hand side of the screen below the tiles. It becomes visible when you hover your mouse in that area of the screen.

The Apps Screen

The view of the Apps screen shows the Modern Apps listed first and you either swipe or scroll across to see your Office Apps.

You can change this order to show the Office Apps first but whilst a swipe on a small screen is a minor matter it is a painful process with a mouse on a large monitor.

Firstly, you have to point down to the bottom of the screen, find a scroll bar which only becomes active when you hover over with your mouse and then scroll.

Scroll across for Office Apps

Windows 8.1 has a pretty face; it is graphically very attractive but the gloss is starting to come off the product, this is the first of several instances where you feel that this interface was not designed for traditional mouse users.

Of course, what you should do is change the sort order of your Apps. By default they are listed "by name", you just change the order to "by most used" and then you will probably not need to create any shortcuts.

Arranging Windows on the Desktop

One of the major criticisms of Windows 8 was that it was difficult to arrange the different application windows and that you could only have two apps visible at the same time. Relax, this only ever applied to Modern apps on the Start screen, not for apps on the desktop.

Many people need to copy and paste from one window to another and this was never a problem with Windows 8 nor is it an issue with Windows 8.1. Standard apps run on the desktop and you can arrange them as you always have without difficulty. After all, it is called "Windows".

The familiar Desktop

Start Button

The Windows 8.1 desktop is as familiar and as easy to use as any earlier version of Windows.

The original Windows 8 dispensed with the Start button which confused many people as they found that while it was easy to start one application it was not so obvious how to do another. The Start button has now been restored. The original Start menu has not, click the Start button and you go to the Apps screen.

Standard application windows on the Desktop

In Windows 8 it was possible to have two Modern apps on screen at once but one of them had to occupy a thin strip at the side.

This has been changed and you can now have two apps with half of the screen each and you can drag the divider line between them to give one app more space if required.

Depending on the resolution and size of your screen, you may be able to have up to four modern apps next to each other.

Search

Search is much improved. The Windows 8 the system-wide search defaulted to searching for Apps only and threw you out onto the Start screen. You had to click on other categories such as Files or Settings if you were not actually searching for an app.

Search-just start typing!

Search now searches everywhere, including the internet. The Search pane is displayed on top of what you're currently doing.

Clicking any of the returned results will launch the relevant Modern UI app, desktop app or web browser.

But far and away the best bit about Search in Windows 8.1 is the bit you can't see. Search is so easy it hurts. You don't actually have to use any particular control in the interface to search.

You just type something in! Yes, look at the screen, type your search text, the Search pane opens and your search results will instantly be displayed. Brilliant!

We discovered this quite by chance when we were having a Windows 8 moment. Where was File Manager and Control Panel? We typed in "Control Panel" and soon found out. However, it must be said that at the time we had yet to discover our Charms.

Charms

Point your mouse to the relevant hot spots on the screen, that's the top or bottom right hand corners and your "Charms bar" will appear. But don't admire your Charms for too long because they will soon disappear unless you point your mouse towards them to make them active.

The Charms bar-over to the right

The Charms bar includes Search, Share-options for sharing what's currently on your screen, like a web page that you want to email, a Start Button, Devices-devices currently connected such as a printer or a phone and Settings for the majority of options previously available in Control Panel.

The expanded Change PC Settings in Settings gives the complex mass of Control Panel options a nice, clean, straightforward user interface that Windows has needed for years.

Another hidden gem in Settings is the Power icon. One of the most common user complaints about Windows 8 was that while it was fairly obvious how to get to the Start screen and reasonably obvious how to start an application hardly anybody could work out how to turn their system off.

That's how you shut down!

"How do you turn it off?" was the refrain. There are several ways of shutting down, none of them obvious but the easiest, if you know about your Charms, is to go to Settings and click the Power icon then choose Shut Down from the pop-up menu.

It's quite a good idea to learn your Windows shortcut keys if you are going to use Windows 8.1 without a touch screen.

You need your Windows key to switch between the desktop, where you do most of your work, and the Start screen and Apps screen. For example, to get to your File Explorer it's Windows key and you should see "File Explorer" listed on the Apps screen.

The other essentials are:

Charms bar is Windows key + C,
Settings is Windows key + I,
Lock Screen is Windows key + L.

See a comprehensive list of Windows 8 shortcut keys.

Lock Screen

If you sign out or take a coffee break you will return to your Lock screen and have to sign in again with your password. Pretty standard stuff and just what you want. 

The Lock Screen

The Lock screen can be set to turn into a photo gallery, picking photos automatically. So, it's maybe not a good idea to have inappropriate photos tucked away in a folder somewhere.

For tablet computers, you can unlock the camera or answer a Skype call without needing to fiddle with a password.

And it's goodbye to the good old fashioned three finger salute, CTRL+ALT+DEL. It's still supported but no longer needed. To go to the Lock screen deliberately it's Windows key + L.

Should you press CTRL+ALT+DEL out of habit then you need an extra click to choose Lock.

To get past the Lock screen, you swipe up, click your mouse or press a key on the keyboard. Our cat, Elvis showed us how to do this. Every time he sees a shiny screen or a glass window he swipes it with his front paws.

Customisation

If you are using Windows 8.1 on a non-touch system and predominantly use the desktop then a few changes will make a world of difference. There is a new tab, "Navigation", available when you right-click the desktop Taskbar and choose Properties. Here are the options which resolve most of the worse complaints which bedevilled Windows 8.

Three simple changes should make your day:

1. Start up straight to the desktop and bypass the Start screen.
2. Show desktop apps before Modern UI apps on the Apps list when sorted by category.
3. Force the Start screen to show on your main display if you have more than one monitor.

The Case For

1. Windows 8.1 is not the great leap as Windows 7 to Windows 8 was.
2. Using Windows 8.1 on a traditional desktop PC only requires a few hours familiarisation, a few tweaks and a bit of patience. And away you go.
3. Windows 8.1 is a fast, stable OS and that is for the pre-release version.
4. It's pretty, you do have to look at it all day long.

The Case Against

1. Windows 8.1 is still an operating system of two halves. If it is to take over the mantle of Windows 7 then it needs to cater to the target market, which is people using Windows at work on a laptop or PC without a touchscreen and using the desktop for the majority of the time. This is likely to be the case for the foreseeable future
2. These people are working and need to be productive, they probably do not want to jump around between a desktop and a glorified smart phone interface nor do they want to fiddle with settings.
3. All too often Windows 8.1 breaks the cardinal rule of good user interface design, Don't make me think. Until you are familiar with the new interface some simple tasks will seem to be overly complicated.

The Verdict

Windows 8.1 is good for touch devices but not so much for the traditional mouse, screen and keyboard set-up. It can not be described as unusable as some commentators claim, you can work around its foibles easily.

In the software training business we have seen the take-up of Windows User courses go down every year as nobody needs to be trained in the art of the obvious; new Windows 8.1 users may need a little familiarisation.

The comparison with other, more mature, products is inevitable. Apple iPhone and iPad are universally popular touch devices and with good reason; both work superbly well running iOS. Apple iMac does very well on OSX and you do not put down your iPad, turn to your Mac and starting prodding and pinching the screen. You adapt easily to the different standards.

Touch is useless for a large monitor; large touch screens are physically difficult to use as you have to sit closer and you end up with squinty eyes and tired arms. And God help nature's keyboard pounders using an on-screen keyboard; they'll end up whacking themselves in the nose. Attempting to blend together a tablet user interface with a desktop interface seems to be an unnecessary contrivance. Surely, touch for the big screen is merely a change of input device, maybe Magic Mouse or Trackpad!

So, is Windows 8.1 a triumph or a turkey? It's neither; it's not a turkey as it is quite usable once you get used to it and a significant improvement on the original Windows 8. Nor is it a triumph, more of a work in progress. A bold attempt to integrate touch with the traditional user interface that's maybe not quite as slick as you would like it to be.

List of Windows 8 shortcut keys.