OT: Win 7 vs. Win 8

[Dave Labrecque]

I'm currently on 7 x64. Is there any reason to move to 8? Or just wait for 10?

[Wink0r]

One reason would be that MS has announced that 10 will be a free upgrade for W7 and W8 owners. Of course, that would not apply to a new build. I would also wait until there is some press on the new OS as there is no compelling reason for me to upgrade as there was when I had an ME box.

[mr_es335]

Dave,

First, I have heard through the "grape-vine" that Microsoft may be offering Windows 10 free to Windows 7 users?

Second, I see no personal reason to go with Widows 8. What IS interesting, is that movement of the Windows versions since Windows Vista are really not all that different under the hood. Internally these versions are referred to version 6.0, 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3. The graphics drivers in particular have changed for Windows 8, but in all other cases, if the driver was written for Windows 7 - it should work fine under Windows 8.

The only thing I believe that has changed relating to audio under Windows 8/8.1 is that I this version of Window - it is now running in a "dynamic latency" model - similar to Linux and Mac OSX. This means that deep down in the core of the Windows NOS there is a 'clock' that says 'tick'. In previous versions just how fast that clock is 'ticking' means how fast the NOS - and thus a device, can respond.
Note: Since I do not use Windows 8, I have not checked into this personally. But I do have an acquaintance that works for Microsoft of whom I meet every now-and-then - and I did glean this information from him.

Dave, I do hope that this information is of assistance to you?

[RBIngraham]

Dave,

First, I have heard through the "grape-vine" that Microsoft may be offering Windows 10 free to Windows 7 users?

If you upgrade from Win 7, 8 or 8.1 within the first year of Win 10's release, Win 10 will be free.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10/about

[Dave Labrecque]

If you upgrade from Win 7, 8 or 8.1 within the first year of Win 10's release, Win 10 will be free.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10/about

Yes, I heard this, too. So, I'm leaning toward waiting a few months, rather than buying into 8, unless there's something really special about it. I only ask now because I think I'm going to do a fresh re-install due to my elsewhere-mentioned streaming video playback issues.

[Adam Christopher]

I personally enjoy Windows 8.1 a lot more than Windows 7. The big drawback for most people on Windows 7 is that is a big departure UI-wise. There is no real start menu. They brought back the start button (sort of) for shutting down and restarting the computer on the bottom left hand corner of your stock. But it has a tiled view that is clumsy for finding programs.

Now that we have that out of the way, my experience is that Windows 8/8.1 uses about a third less ram on the same computer when idle. The launch times for programs aren't much different but the bootup is significantly faster and overall I have found it to be snappier as a whole than Windows 7.

Regarding Sawstudio, myself and other Saw users noticed less dropped buffers on Windows 8 than 7 because it is much more efficient resource-wise.

I suspect that Windows 10 might be marginally better and if you don't mind the fact that Cortana (at the heart of Windows 10) is essentially spyware. You may enjoy Windows 10 quite a bit. They are bringing back the conventional start menu and it should run much more efficiently than Windows 7.

Realistically, if you are happy with your user experience on 7, you might be best off sticking with what you have. The improvements (aside from better ram efficiency) are going to be marginal at best and Windows 10 is again spyware. it is free but it is not really free. Their current beta allows not only MS to record snapshots of your computer, but also record your voice and all sounds/background noises through the microphones. Yes, that is creepy but somehow Microsoft thinks that it should have the right to analyze that data for the beta testers.

I think it's unwise to assume that MS is just going to allow all users to disable Cortana and not have to worry about them creating a spyware database. That's the direction they are going among other giant technology companies and it's a shame.

[Microstudio]

If Win 7 is working why change at all?

[Dave Labrecque]

If Win 7 is working why change at all?

Only if there was something to be gained by going to 8. As it is, reinstalling 7 (hopefully!) will make video streaming work again. That's it.

[mr_es335]

Dave,

What video card are you using?

[bcorkery]

Their current beta allows not only MS to record snapshots of your computer, but also record your voice and all sounds/background noises through the microphones. Yes, that is creepy but somehow Microsoft thinks that it should have the right to analyze that data for the beta testers.

I think it's unwise to assume that MS is just going to allow all users to disable Cortana and not have to worry about them creating a spyware database. That's the direction they are going among other giant technology companies and it's a shame.

I don't have my computer on line and don't intend to with the new build I'm working on right now. I can't imagine how Cortana can spy on me.

I'm still debating 7 or 8.1. I'm leaning toward 7.