Windows 8 Metro: The Good Kind of Market Segmentation? 389
nk497 writes "A UX designer working at Microsoft has taken to Reddit to explain why Windows 8's Metro screen isn't designed for power users — but is still good news for them. Jacob Miller, posting as 'pwnies,' said Metro is the 'antithesis of a [power user's desktop],' and designed for 'your computer illiterate little sister,' not for content creators or power users. By splitting Windows into Metro and the desktop, Microsoft has created space for casual users as well as power users."
Update: 02/18 18:14 GMT by S : Further explanations from Miller are available now.
Re:Really?!?! (Score:5, Insightful)
Not a bad attempt at trolling, but in a data center, server 2012 would likely be a headless server-core instance with no GUI at all. To address your question, I would imagine that developers who choose to develop on a server SKU may want to target Metro/Modern apps so it is available, if required.
Well, look at the bright side (Score:3, Insightful)
At least this one admits to working for MS.
I swear, I have seen more shills flood the internet advocating Windows8 than for any other product in history.
mod options (Score:5, Insightful)
Where do I mod this article -1 Flamebait? I'd really like to know.
Multiple Desktops on a Single screen. (Score:2, Insightful)
The fact that windows does not have this in 2014 is shameful.
Whoosh. (Score:5, Insightful)
This "UX designer" has completely missed the complaint everyone has lodged against Windows 8 and its interface. Nobody cares that there's a new interface added to the system, or even that it's the default. But power users do care that there's no way to bypass it.
Give us a way to shut it off and restore the original functionality in a control panel somewhere.
And shut your dumbass mouth, Jacob Miller. We didn't miss the point. You did.
Re:Non sequitur. Your facts are uncoordinated. (Score:4, Insightful)
Ditto. Casual users are used to the XP interface, and they really don't want to be forced to use some crappy shiny thing designed for three year olds.
Re:I'm confused (Score:5, Insightful)
A good example of this are hot keys. Most apps have them, but you don't need them to use the app. They are easy to figure out because they are listed next to every menu item, so if you forget how to past, you can look at 'paste' from the menu and see it's cntrl-V.
The joke here is that Win8 is not discoverable, the gestures are rather hidden. Furthermore creating two different UIs for the same computer is pretty near the opposite of good design. You will inevitably run into the same types of problems you have with 'mobile' websites, which are not good for anybody.
Re:Astruturf? (Score:4, Insightful)
Illiterate? (Score:2, Insightful)
Whose little sister is computer illiterate in 2014? Both of my little sisters are established professionals who have been using computers since they were children, and anyone younger than them has been using computers since birth. This mythical audience doesn't exist except in the minds of "UX Designers".
Whatever. (Score:5, Insightful)
Doesn't matter if you're right if you can't sell it.
Re:Really?!?! (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Really?!?! (Score:2, Insightful)
If you're a real Windows sysadmin today and you're not using powershell you won't remain an admin for long.
Ubuntu and Windows 8 fail the newbie test (Score:5, Insightful)
I call bullshit (Score:5, Insightful)
To really understand metro, you have to watch the development videos at microsoft virtual academy website.
Somehow their UI designers came up with this ridicilous notion that your apps don't need any "distract" menus or system icons and it should only display content. Content is the king they say, none of those resizing bars or window icons or anything. This is the main reason why metro apps look like that.
It's like someone designed a car and said.. "you don't doors once you're in the car all you need is the road". To that I say "getting in and out a car shouldn't be an un-intuitive mess dumbass"
Explaining things (Score:4, Insightful)
You know how if you have to explain a joke, it isn't funny? Well, if you have to explain a decision you made like this, there's a solid chance it wasn't the right one. Especially when it comes to matters of personal taste, preferences, perception, etc. "No, see, you should like this, because..."
"De gustibus non est disputandum." [wikipedia.org]
(I'm not using Latin to make me look smarter, but to illustrate that this idea has been around for a long damn time.)
So, what exactly is Metro doing in the background? (Score:4, Insightful)
1) How is my machine being slowed down (CPU cycles, disk I/O, etc.) and how much bandwidth is being wasted (especially if I don't get unlimited data) by Metro apps that are running "in the background"? This is really important at the server level--why do I need any apps running on a server--especially if it's running in a VM???
2) What information is being sent out the door about my usage to Microsoft and other entities (spyware), especially if those apps came preloaded with Windows 8.x / Server 2012 (base/R2)??? Again, servers are especially of concern--why should Microsoft or anyone else know how I'm using my server?
Numerous articles have said that Windows 8.x runs better/faster than Windows 7 on all kinds of hardware (even using less memory), but I can't see how this is possible given the concerns above...
Re:Really?!?! (Score:5, Insightful)
"Can't figure out" isn't the same as "don't want to use because it's less functional and more time consuming to do basic tasks". You knew that and yet you pretended they were the same because you have an inferiority complex that demands you think less of others to justify your own pathetic skills.
I'm not an admin, and I know how to use powershell. That doesn't excuse fucking metro.