I recently installed Ubuntu on a laptop for my grandmother who is in her 80's and has never used a computer before. All she wanted to do was to type up her memoirs. When I told people I was installing a linux distribution for her, everybody told me how difficult it would be for her to use.

In reality, this is for a person who constantly holds the mouse upside down, doesn't understand the concept of clicking and dragging to highlight text, etc. Now try to tell her to launch an application by: - clicking on the little "Start" menu - navigating through a menu of tiny items - reading each one as she goes - making sure to not accidentally click on something which will open up the wrong program - click on the little "x" in the opposite corner when she accidentally opens up the wrong program - etc...

Her Ubuntu machine automatically opens up gedit in full screen when she turns the computer on, autosaves every minute, commits to version control every five minutes (in case she accidentally deletes everything then it autosaves) and turns off when she closes the laptop lid.

Yes, you could do this in windows, yes, the default interaction paradigm of Gnome 2 is similar to windows, Gnome 3 is strange, unity is different, etc.

But the point is, if you have never seen any of them before, they are frustrating and difficult. I still don't know how to correctly navigate a save dialog in Windows 7 on the rare occasion I'm using Windows. I have been using Gnome3 for a while now, and I finally understand how it works and is meant to be used (for the most part). That doesn't mean I think its awesome, bit it gets the job done.

Now that I've been using it for a while, my brain doesn't have to work so hard to get stuff done.

Seriously? Maybe you are being purposefully difficult because you have an emotional dislike of Windows? I think Gnome is ok, but it unquestionably has a steeper learning curve than windows, especially when you get outside simple things (like save dialogs).

Sometimes I feel like "Computer" is the top directory, sometimes "Desktop" feels like the top directory, and sometimes "Documents" is the top directory. Then there is the ill-defined (at least to the casual user) "Libraries". I miss the "up" button I am used to from many other contexts. The bar up the top which tells me my current location is thoroughly confusing to me. When I click the right arrow next to "Documents" when I am in the documents library, it shows what seems to be the locations defined by the library (My and Public documents). But when I am in a sub folder of Documents, clicking the right arrow next to Documents shows me the list of folders for the specific part of the library I am in (e.g. subfolders of My or Public documents).

No doubt these are all implemented like this for some very good reasons. I also have no doubt that if I used it as my primary OS, I would adapt relatively quickly. But for someone who only uses Windows to file my tax return and to occasionally help out my partner, I get frustrated.

If all of that is just "different", perhaps you're right: Windows 8 has a different bug count than Windows 7, a different number of frustrated users, a different standard for what makes sensible software and ultimately a different idea about what's worth that kind of money.

"There are certain things that you do with your PC every day that should form the basis of the operating system. Email. Instant Message. Calendars. Media Playing. All of these functions in Windows 8 are carried out through Metro apps, and they are universally awful. There are no desktop apps included that do a similar job."

And I thought, you didn't open up a web browser? I do all of those thing on the web and none of them in the OS's UI. Well maybe not media playing.

I'm not sure that's fair. I'm reading three types of complaint that aren't simply "it's different":

1. It takes more steps to do things. That's not just different; it makes the UX for those tasks objectively worse, at least for a person who already knew how to do them.

2. The UI is designed for touch and is inefficient with a mouse.

3. Useful functionality, such as being able to have certain types of applications side by side or run multiple instances has been removed.

2. Only a concern if you think that everything has to be done from the start screen/MetroUI. Everything feels just as it did in Win7 from the desktop in my experience (except Win8 is a bit faster).

3. Once again, only a concern if you intend to only use Metro apps. Windows on the desktop work just as they did in Win7 and multiple instances can be opened with a shift-click on the taskbar or right-click -> click on icon, just like Win7.

Honestly, Windows 8 has been my daily driver since consumer preview came out and after a little time acclimating myself to some of the new nuances, I found myself feeling much more productive in Windows 8 than I was in Windows 7. However, maybe that is just me and I pick up on newer UI/UX better than all of these people that have been complaining and put in the time to give it a try.

I think where Windows 8 fails is that it doesn't provide me with any compelling reasons why I would want to upgrade from Windows 7, or migrate from Mac OSX or Linux. It doesn't give me any sense of excitement - the paradigm shift from Windows 7 to 8 is not at all like the experience of shifting from something like a Blackberry to an iPhone. I agree with the author - I don't like the Metro start menu, I prefer the old start menu. Maybe that's just me clinging to an old beat-in paradigm, but I don't really see any benefits in the new paradigm. I don't like the full-screen metro apps with limited window management capability and hidden OS "chrome" (clock). I don't like having to use touch-like gestures or memorize new keyboard shortcuts for using all the wonky new features in the OS that don't seem to provide me with any real compelling value. The Windows 8 "optimists" that try to defend the OS by listing out keyboard shortcuts or alternate ways to navigate to different areas, or ways to "hide" Metro UX are kind of missing the point. Most people that provide a laundry list of what they hate are not looking for suggestions or tutorials - the OS has already failed to direct them, and they've simply come to the conclusion that they don't like it.

Also, if the point is to convince me to buy Windows 8 touch hardware, it has failed there too because the desktop experience was so uncompelling for me, I have no interest in exploring other options.

For one final edit - if they don't want me to upgrade from 7 to 8 on a desktop, what's the reasoning behind the massive price cuts for upgrades. If I bought a PC in the last year or so, I can upgrade from 7 to 8 for $15. Or if I have an old XP machine, I can upgrade for $40. If they don't care about non-touch desktop and laptop users, why would they slash the prices like this?

And, by me saying the primary goal is to sell hardware, does not exclude upgrades being a secondary or tertiary goal. Microsoft wants the Windows 8 ecosystem to be as big as possible, hence the cheap price. They want to shift the conversation from devices sold (e.g. iPad, Nexus) to total ecosystem coverage. But, that number is less effective if everyone is just booting into the desktop.

I get what you are saying though, I was also disappointed by the desktop experience. But, in retrospect, I think the desktop was pretty good in 7, so I think the new visual options are a nice addition.

My desktop PC is not a tablet.

This is insanity. This is Windows 8."

He then goes on to mention how the desktop is a second-class citizen, most programs default to the metro version, and core OS features are metro-only.