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Windows 8.1 |OT| There's your start button

D

Dunlop

Member
I had Windows 8 and while I did not share some of the over exaggerated hate that was expressed here by some posters I did not really see a benefit to the whole start screen.

My hdd went boom and I put Windows 7 back on the new drive.

I still have my valid windows 8 key, any reason yet for me to take the update?
 
E

Easy_D

never left the stone age
Hey guys, a friend of mine updated from the pre-release Win 8.1 to the final release today (Got the pre-release via MSDNAA, if you are curious).

Now she can't connect to her wireless router at all, the computer sees it but it doesn't connect.
Asked her to do the usual stuff, troubleshooting guide, restart computer, restart router, to no avail. Anyone else got the same issue and or a solution? Haven't tried uninstalling the network adapter drivers yet, could just be the drivers acting up.
 
S

Syf

Banned
So the update resulted in a failed boot to a blank black screen, and my PC is now having to go through restore to function. Anyone else run into this problem?
 
S

Shogun_of_Truth

Member
Was running Windows Pro 8 x64.,

8.1 didn't show up in the store.

Made sure all the necessary updates were installed.

Still was not in the store.

Said f it, and downloaded the ISO from a less then legal site, extracted the files from the image, ran the installer, and now I'm rocking Win 8.1 just fine.

Despite the pain it was to install, I like it so far.
 
G

gblues

Banned
jokkir said:
I can't update because I'm on Enterprise. Why :(
Click to expand...

I'm right there with ya bro.

Deadly Cyclone said:
Nope. Nothing. Says my PC is up to date. The app store has Facebook in the main tile. Weird because the update showed for my Surface Pro, but not my new laptop (was Win 7, upgraded to Win 8 upon purchase).
Click to expand...

Are you on 8 Enterprise? Enterprise users are dirty poors who don't get a free upgrade. Unless you've actually paid the bux for a support contract from Microsoft.
 
G

Guri

Member
Also posting here if people don't see the Windows 8 OT:

If you have a Steelseries or Logitech driver, either uninstall before updating/installing 8.1 or wait for them to update their drivers. If you try to install, it won't boot or you'll have BSOD because they're not compatible yet.
 
S

SPDIF

Member
Jzero said:
Use the Windows 8 Start screen with the Xbox 360 controller!
Click to expand...

Huh, surprised to see that my little program made it into the OT.

Deadly Cyclone said:
Nope. Nothing. Says my PC is up to date. The app store has Facebook in the main tile. Weird because the update showed for my Surface Pro, but not my new laptop (was Win 7, upgraded to Win 8 upon purchase).
Click to expand...

Open a new tab, copy this into your address bar, then hit enter:

Code: 
ms-windows-store:WindowsUpgrade

It should open the store straight onto the 8.1 update.

Edit: Not sure if that'll work on Windows 8. It does work on the 8.1 preview however.
 
S

Shogun_of_Truth

Member
MrBig said:
Check my earlier post for the process to get the iso. You can then install via a usb drive sans the store.
Click to expand...


Hmm, that probably would have made my life easier and saved my the trouble of browsing shady sites to find the ISO if I had know that.

Figure torrents would be the only way to get one if the store wasn't showing the update.
 
M

M3d10n

Member
Easy_D said:
Hey guys, a friend of mine updated from the pre-release Win 8.1 to the final release today (Got the pre-release via MSDNAA, if you are curious).

Now she can't connect to her wireless router at all, the computer sees it but it doesn't connect.
Asked her to do the usual stuff, troubleshooting guide, restart computer, restart router, to no avail. Anyone else got the same issue and or a solution? Haven't tried uninstalling the network adapter drivers yet, could just be the drivers acting up.
Click to expand...

You probably need to check the drivers. Windows 8.1 is actually a full OS upgrade, not a service pack. The install rollbacks all your drivers and other low-level stuff (like modified/hacked system files), so if you have some hardware that doesn't work well with default drivers, you better re-install them.

The underlying process is the same as doing an in-place install of 7/8 (when you run the setup from inside Windows and select "upgrade").
 
K

Kabuki Quantum Lover

Member
I have mixed feelings about this update.

What I like:

  • Start screen searching speed as been restored (with/without Bing; nearly imperceptible difference); had Preview installed and it was slow as hell
  • The Start button shutdown/sleep stuff seems more fleshed out (like when you have updates to install)
Why the hell:

  • Sure you can resize Metro windows, but they are still as awkward to manage as they were before, pushing me further into remaining in the Desktop side.
  • Why did they remove Flickr integration in the Photos app?
  • Why is Mail still complete garbage?
  • Why is the arbitrary default browser = desktop & Metro issue still around?
  • Why is the Control Panel still split between Desktop & Metro's PC Settings?
 
H

hadareud

The Translator
ctw0e said:
Yeah, I tried that and got:

Code: 
ms-windows-store:PurgeCaches

The app didn't start.

:( No idea what to do. It's a fresh Windows 8 Pro install. I've run sfc/ scannow & reset everything app-related.
Click to expand...

Run WSReset.exe (just type it in on the start screen).

It'll clear the store cache and the update should then show up.

Otherwise, use this link in your browser: ms-windows-store:WindowsUpgrade&sessionId=00000000000000000000000000000000
 
R

railGUN

Banned
Getting touch gesture tool tips when it should be able to tell my PC is not touch enabled is pretty amateur. Then, clicking on them and getting further touch tips, rather than understanding that a mouse pointer was just used to click the tip is also pretty amateur. But, not actually telling me how to perform the action with a mouse is fucking ridiculous.
 
V

Victory Red

Member
Hopefully this is the place to ask this.


I'm running Windows 8 through Bootcamp on a late 2011 Mac Mini.

Everything runs great but after I leave the computer idle for a few minutes the Mac Mini's fan goes BANANAS. Like helicopter crazy running at full speed until the computer goes to sleep, which is sometimes 10-15 minutes of straight full speed, loud, fan going.

Does anyone know why this happens or what can be done?

I'm not on 8.1, hopefully this is fixed.
 
T

Tunesmith

formerly "chigiri"
Tunesmith said:
I have one of the Alienware X51 rigs and this is apparently DELL's suggested solution, I haven't tested it yet.

  • Boot to BIOS by tapping F2 key on the startup.
  • First LOAD LEGACY ROM option should be set to 'Disabled'.
  • Then change the SECURE BOOT to 'Enabled'.
  • Save the settings and exit the BIOS.
  • Restart the system and check functionality.
Click to expand...
Quoting myself due to hilarity. So I tried to do this, but turns out my GTX660 graphics card doesn't support UEFI mode. Yay! I'm stuck with the watermark until MS releases that update..
 
E

Elija2

Member
Whenever you want to shut down your computer, they pop up this "slide down to shut down" thing. What was wrong with the old way where it would just shut down right away? Why do I have to do this pointless gesture?

It's the same thing with logging in. I have to slide up or press a key before I can enter my password to log in. There is only one user account on my laptop, why can't I just type my password in right away?
 
C

cchum

Member
X6mEkYc.png
Click to expand...

The hell is this? On admin account, but secondary looks ok.
 
E

Easy_D

never left the stone age
M3d10n said:
You probably need to check the drivers. Windows 8.1 is actually a full OS upgrade, not a service pack. The install rollbacks all your drivers and other low-level stuff (like modified/hacked system files), so if you have some hardware that doesn't work well with default drivers, you better re-install them.

The underlying process is the same as doing an in-place install of 7/8 (when you run the setup from inside Windows and select "upgrade").
Click to expand...

Yeah, but the pre-release version loaded the drivers just fine.

However we just tried the Uni wifi and it loaded fine, so it seems there's some conflict with the Router, not the wi-fi drivers. Thanks anyway :)
 
A

antiquegamer

Member
Biskie said:
So the update resulted in a failed boot to a blank black screen, and my PC is now having to go through restore to function. Anyone else run into this problem?
Click to expand...

I reply in the old thread, but yes this happen to my laptop and Khorino post that Logitech and Steelseries drivers are incompatible and could cause this problem. I uninstall both (as I use both as my gaming mouse) and 8.1 now install fine. I can understand Steelseries not being compatible but Logitech? Seriously that's like one of the most popular mouse on the PC.

Ok, enough ranting, love the 8.1 so far. The Start button is great and I love all the little tweaks they did, especially moving the annoying charm to the top. Oh, I also love the little arrow (borrow from Windows Phone OS?) on the bottom of the screen to give you cue that you can scroll down to the rest of the apps.
 
S

Syf

Banned
antiquegamer said:
I reply in the old thread, but yes this happen to my laptop and Khorino post that Logitech and Steelseries drivers are incompatible and could cause this problem. I uninstall both (as I use both as my gaming mouse) and 8.1 now install fine. I can understand Steelseries not being compatible but Logitech? Seriously that's like one of the most popular mouse on the PC.
Click to expand...
I do have Steelseries drivers on my PC so that must be it. Guess I'll uninstall and try again after class. Thanks man.
 
W

Windu

never heard about the cat, apparently
cchum said:
The hell is this? On admin account, but secondary looks ok.
Click to expand...
it synced the tile layout etc.. from your other pc.

option is in settings-skydrive-sync settings

the arrows mean the app has not downloaded yet. click it and it will download.
 
G

Geoff9920

Member
The install took me much longer than I had anticipated, but other than that it was fairly painless. I like the changes I've seen so far. I hope Microsoft continues to improve the OS with future updates.
 
W

Windu

never heard about the cat, apparently
can make install media from this:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-8/upgrade-product-key-only
If you bought a Windows 8.1 or Windows 8 product key, you can download and install Windows from this page. You'll have the option to install Windows now, later, or using media with an ISO file.

Before you begin:

• Make sure you’re on the PC you want to upgrade. If you're updating to Windows 8.1, this PC must be running Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 Preview. If you already have the latest version of Windows 8 installed on your PC, you can update to Windows 8.1 in the Windows Store for free.

If you're upgrading to Windows 8, this PC must be running Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP with Service Pack 3 (SP3), Windows 8 Release Preview, Windows 8 Consumer Preview, or Windows Developer Preview.

Windows Setup checks that your PC meets all system requirements before it installs Windows 8.1 or Windows 8.

• Have your product key handy. You can find it in your online order info, in the confirmation email for your purchase, or on the packaging. The product key will look something like this:
XXXXX- XXXXX- XXXXX- XXXXX- XXXXX.

• Make a backup of everything you want to keep. Save it somewhere you can get to it later, like an external drive or a DVD.

Warning

•Don't format your hard drive before installing Windows. Your current version of Windows must be running when you begin installing Windows 8.1 or Windows 8.
Click to expand...
 
M

megarockexe

Member
What I'm not liking is how right-clicking the start button default highlights "Desktop", which is a really, really poorly implemented function. It's like clicking the bottom-right space, but worse.
 
B

bedlamite

Member
WRT the "return" of the Start button:

Doesn't enabling 'Show the Apps view automatically when I go to Start' in taskbar Settings bring back similar functionality?
 
R

Raide

Member
Install took ages but at least the system was polite about letting me know what was going on. :D

Nice tweaks and stuff but the Start button panic was just not worth it.
 
M

Monkeylord

Member
Selecting anything that I can type in brings up the OSK, despite having my screen slid up in notebook mode. It never used to bring up the OSK unless I was in tablet mode.

Anyone know how I can set it back to how it used to be? It's not too bad, except that I'm getting annoyed by having half my screen taken up by keyboard every time I want to type something.
 
A

antiquegamer

Member
Biskie said:
I do have Steelseries drivers on my PC so that must be it. Guess I'll uninstall and try again after class. Thanks man.
Click to expand...

Steelseries mouse still work even with driver uninstall, but you can't re-program it until Steelseries update the driver. And thanks Knorino, he was the one that originally posted the solution.
 
G

Groof

Junior Member
I gotta say, using Disk Clean-up to clear up old Windows installations, as well as the space freed by installing 8.1 I regained almost 30gb of space on my HDD. So far 8.1 gets a huge thumbs up.
Also love the consolidated "This PC" shortcut. This is really turning out better than expected.
 
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