From the time Microsoft announced its new and futuristic operating system Windows 8 it has been criticized for trying too hard to achieve something that it couldn’t in the last decade. But Microsoft pursued and it has now created something that is sure to give many a people many sleepless nights.
Figuring out how to do the easiest of things on the new Windows 8 has proven to be a nightmare for many users, and as I found out there’s plenty of reason for veteran Windows users to curse the new Windows 8 operating system.
Here are some of the features that I found to be the most difficult to use in the Windows 8:
1. The browser tab display feature of the Internet Explorer 10:
The browser tabs in the Internet Explorer 10 in the Windows 8 are not shown at the top of the browser as is done in other conventional browsers or operating systems. Instead it hides the tabs in the browser and it becomes a pain just to find the other pages that we have opened in other tabs. Today, much of what we do online is browser-based, so it should make sense that users can use the browser tools as seamlessly as possible; something Microsoft has evidently planned letting Windows 8 users not do. To expose the open tabs hit Windows key+Z
2. Navigating between open browser tabs:
Windows 8 does not expose all the open browser tabs and lets us choose from among them. We have to expose tabs manually, so a better option would be to just cycle through the tabs, and the key combo that will be useful for this purpose is Ctrl+Tab to switch forward through the open tabs and Ctrl+Shift+Tab to cycle backward.
3. Closing open programs or apps:
Ever thought that simply closing open programs or apps will become a challenge? Well, the Windows 8 makes this simple job a big challenge. There is no small “X” button at the upper right hand corner of open programs or apps. To close any open window, you have to drag the program to the bottom of the screen by properly selecting the window. When you have properly selected the window, a small hand icon appears and then you can drag the window.
4. Accessing the task bar in the Windows 8:
One of the hardest maneuvers in the Windows 8 is to find the taskbar of all the open programs or apps. This is trickier for those with no touch screen devices. The easiest solution is to hit Windows+Tab.
5. Checking the battery life:
All of us are used to glancing at the remaining battery life shown at the corner of our screen but the Windows 8 has done away with that icon that was so helpful in checking the remaining battery life in a glance. Now, with the new Windows 8, every time you want to check the remainder of battery power you have to hit the Windows+D, which will let you see the actual percentage of battery life remaining.
Overall I found that Windows 8 is far more difficult to use on a non-touch laptop than on a touch laptop. But in case you don’t have a touch laptop and you have already switched over to Windows 8, just click the Desktop icon on your screen and you will go back to the desktop mode with everything as it was in previous Windows OS.
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