{"video_id":"jcLJhL3J63o","title":"The Most Pointless Version of Windows","channel":"Techquickie","show":"Techquickie","published_at":"2023-05-05T14:58:16Z","duration_s":347,"segments":[{"start_s":0.0,"end_s":3.6,"text":"What was the worst version of Windows ever?","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":3.6,"end_s":9.88,"text":"We've argued it was clearly Windows Me or ME, but there's another version that people love to hate.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":9.88,"end_s":13.4,"text":"Windows 8 may not have been the buggest release ever,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":13.4,"end_s":19.52,"text":"but it was definitely the most pointless. So let's take a stroll down memory lane back to 2012,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":19.52,"end_s":24.6,"text":"when the iPhone 5 was all the rage. Call Me Maybe was the most overplayed song in history,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":24.6,"end_s":28.6,"text":"and the end of the world we are embracing for didn't bother to show up.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":29.0,"end_s":32.56,"text":"Windows 7 had been out for about three years,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":32.56,"end_s":37.76,"text":"and people actually seemed to like it, but it was built for traditional desktops and laptops.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":37.76,"end_s":43.32,"text":"Microsoft could sense that a massive shift toward mobile computing on touchscreen devices was imminent,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":43.32,"end_s":46.6,"text":"and the company, understandably, didn't want to be left behind.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":46.6,"end_s":51.22,"text":"So they adopted the attitude that Windows had to be on everything from desktop PCs","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":51.22,"end_s":55.92,"text":"all the way down to smartphones. In 2010, Microsoft released an operating system","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":55.92,"end_s":61.36,"text":"for phones simply called Windows Phone 7. It introduced the concept of live tiles,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":61.36,"end_s":65.12,"text":"which were supposed to distinguish the OS from iOS and Android.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":65.12,"end_s":70.2,"text":"Instead of boring static app icons, users would instead get large tiles","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":70.2,"end_s":74.52,"text":"which would show real-time information like messages, emails, or news updates.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":74.52,"end_s":79.3,"text":"This design language, called Metro, was actually relatively well-received,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":79.3,"end_s":83.8,"text":"with some outlets praising Microsoft for daring to go in such a different direction.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":83.8,"end_s":88.22,"text":"So what does this have to do with Windows 8? Well, Windows 8 directly borrowed","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":88.22,"end_s":92.62,"text":"quite a few design elements from Windows Phone, possibly due to the positive feedback","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":92.62,"end_s":96.74,"text":"or possibly because they planned for that to happen all along, but regardless,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":96.74,"end_s":100.98,"text":"Microsoft clearly thought the correct way to get Windows onto every device","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":100.98,"end_s":107.1,"text":"was to have it look the same on every device. But it turned out that this wasn't the solution,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":107.1,"end_s":114.06,"text":"and we'll get into the exact reasons why, after we thank, computers and tablets are not phones,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":114.06,"end_s":117.34,"text":"yet you'd never know that from the way Microsoft designed Windows 8.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":117.34,"end_s":122.74,"text":"One of the biggest aspects of Windows that Microsoft had emphasized since Windows 95","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":122.74,"end_s":126.7,"text":"was multitasking. If you need to switch to another program,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":126.7,"end_s":130.14,"text":"just click its button on the taskbar and you're there,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":130.14,"end_s":135.34,"text":"or hit Alt-Tab if you wanna impress the hotties. This simple and long-standing design convention","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":135.34,"end_s":139.46,"text":"was upended by Windows 8 and its much-maligned start screen.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":139.46,"end_s":143.7,"text":"Instead of the familiar start menu, you got a start screen,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":143.7,"end_s":148.94,"text":"featuring a dizzying mosaic of live tiles spitting out often useless information","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":148.94,"end_s":152.26,"text":"and steering you toward full-screen Metro apps,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":152.26,"end_s":156.82,"text":"which made multitasking a lot more confusing, as when the Metro app took over the whole screen,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":156.82,"end_s":161.02,"text":"the taskbar would disappear, leaving novice users wondering what the heck was going on.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":161.02,"end_s":165.5,"text":"Although you could still get back to the traditional Windows desktop pretty easily,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":165.5,"end_s":169.58,"text":"Windows 8 felt confusingly like two operating systems in one,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":169.62,"end_s":172.86,"text":"with a normal desktop experience and a touch-optimized experience","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":172.86,"end_s":178.9,"text":"stuffed into a single, bizarre package. Maddeningly, Windows 8 also lacked any option","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":178.9,"end_s":183.1,"text":"to restore the classic start menu, a decision that was so unpopular","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":183.1,"end_s":188.02,"text":"that developing third-party tools to restore it became a full-blown cottage industry.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":188.02,"end_s":192.14,"text":"Windows 8 also debuted a built-in app store, which wasn't bad,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":192.14,"end_s":196.22,"text":"but seeing as how many people were already used to just finding whatever program they needed","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":196.22,"end_s":199.82,"text":"through a quick web search, the new Windows Store raised concerns","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":199.82,"end_s":204.38,"text":"about Windows becoming a walled garden in which users would ultimately have less control","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":204.38,"end_s":209.06,"text":"over their own PCs. But this wasn't to say Windows 8 was a terrible OS.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":209.06,"end_s":212.34,"text":"It was roughly as stable and polished as Windows 7,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":212.34,"end_s":215.34,"text":"and some of the weird UI decisions could have been forgiven","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":215.34,"end_s":220.34,"text":"if Windows 8 actually improved in other ways over its predecessor for desktop users.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":220.34,"end_s":224.06,"text":"There were some useful new features, such as the ribbon in File Explorer,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":224.06,"end_s":228.42,"text":"a new task manager with a performance monitor, secure boot to prevent against rootkits,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":228.42,"end_s":233.22,"text":"and native USB 3 and NBME support. But all of these features likely could have been part","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":233.22,"end_s":238.5,"text":"of a Windows 7 update, or at least didn't necessitate such a radical redesign","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":238.5,"end_s":242.94,"text":"of the user interface. Simply put, Windows 8 didn't give users","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":242.94,"end_s":246.98,"text":"enough positive changes to outweigh the negative ones,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":246.98,"end_s":252.46,"text":"especially considering that the popular Windows 7 was also a minimalist, unintrusive OS","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":252.46,"end_s":256.92,"text":"that largely stayed out of the way, even on phones where Metro apps and live tiles","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":256.92,"end_s":261.0,"text":"seemed to make a little more sense. Microsoft overestimated how much utility","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":261.0,"end_s":266.48,"text":"the average user would get out of them. It turns out most people didn't need a bunch of live tiles","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":266.48,"end_s":271.72,"text":"vying for their attention every time they opened their phone. Think of how annoying regular notifications can be","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":271.72,"end_s":274.72,"text":"without live tiles. And there simply wasn't enough interest","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":274.72,"end_s":278.32,"text":"from big app developers on the platform, especially the likes of Google,","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":278.32,"end_s":283.48,"text":"who didn't want to help Microsoft compete with Android just by handing them a YouTube app, for example.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":283.48,"end_s":287.96,"text":"So the phone version of Windows 8 didn't fare much better, and Microsoft completely pulled out","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":287.96,"end_s":293.6,"text":"of the phone OS market in 2017. On the desktop side, the start screen was completely axed","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":293.6,"end_s":297.88,"text":"in Windows 10, and live tiles disappeared by the time Windows 11 rolled around.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":297.88,"end_s":302.48,"text":"Yes, they were still in Windows 10. And ironically, the Microsoft Surface lineup","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":302.48,"end_s":306.96,"text":"is doing just fine today without a specific tablet interface.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":306.96,"end_s":311.68,"text":"But if any Microsoft developers are watching this video, please don't feel too badly.","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":311.68,"end_s":314.84,"text":"Windows 8 was far from the most pointless tech product","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0},{"start_s":314.84,"end_s":316.68,"text":"we've ever seen. Remember Gibo?","speaker":null,"is_sponsor":0}],"full_text":"What was the worst version of Windows ever? We've argued it was clearly Windows Me or ME, but there's another version that people love to hate. Windows 8 may not have been the buggest release ever, but it was definitely the most pointless. So let's take a stroll down memory lane back to 2012, when the iPhone 5 was all the rage. Call Me Maybe was the most overplayed song in history, and the end of the world we are embracing for didn't bother to show up. Windows 7 had been out for about three years, and people actually seemed to like it, but it was built for traditional desktops and laptops. Microsoft could sense that a massive shift toward mobile computing on touchscreen devices was imminent, and the company, understandably, didn't want to be left behind. So they adopted the attitude that Windows had to be on everything from desktop PCs all the way down to smartphones. In 2010, Microsoft released an operating system for phones simply called Windows Phone 7. It introduced the concept of live tiles, which were supposed to distinguish the OS from iOS and Android. Instead of boring static app icons, users would instead get large tiles which would show real-time information like messages, emails, or news updates. This design language, called Metro, was actually relatively well-received, with some outlets praising Microsoft for daring to go in such a different direction. So what does this have to do with Windows 8? Well, Windows 8 directly borrowed quite a few design elements from Windows Phone, possibly due to the positive feedback or possibly because they planned for that to happen all along, but regardless, Microsoft clearly thought the correct way to get Windows onto every device was to have it look the same on every device. But it turned out that this wasn't the solution, and we'll get into the exact reasons why, after we thank, computers and tablets are not phones, yet you'd never know that from the way Microsoft designed Windows 8. One of the biggest aspects of Windows that Microsoft had emphasized since Windows 95 was multitasking. If you need to switch to another program, just click its button on the taskbar and you're there, or hit Alt-Tab if you wanna impress the hotties. This simple and long-standing design convention was upended by Windows 8 and its much-maligned start screen. Instead of the familiar start menu, you got a start screen, featuring a dizzying mosaic of live tiles spitting out often useless information and steering you toward full-screen Metro apps, which made multitasking a lot more confusing, as when the Metro app took over the whole screen, the taskbar would disappear, leaving novice users wondering what the heck was going on. Although you could still get back to the traditional Windows desktop pretty easily, Windows 8 felt confusingly like two operating systems in one, with a normal desktop experience and a touch-optimized experience stuffed into a single, bizarre package. Maddeningly, Windows 8 also lacked any option to restore the classic start menu, a decision that was so unpopular that developing third-party tools to restore it became a full-blown cottage industry. Windows 8 also debuted a built-in app store, which wasn't bad, but seeing as how many people were already used to just finding whatever program they needed through a quick web search, the new Windows Store raised concerns about Windows becoming a walled garden in which users would ultimately have less control over their own PCs. But this wasn't to say Windows 8 was a terrible OS. It was roughly as stable and polished as Windows 7, and some of the weird UI decisions could have been forgiven if Windows 8 actually improved in other ways over its predecessor for desktop users. There were some useful new features, such as the ribbon in File Explorer, a new task manager with a performance monitor, secure boot to prevent against rootkits, and native USB 3 and NBME support. But all of these features likely could have been part of a Windows 7 update, or at least didn't necessitate such a radical redesign of the user interface. Simply put, Windows 8 didn't give users enough positive changes to outweigh the negative ones, especially considering that the popular Windows 7 was also a minimalist, unintrusive OS that largely stayed out of the way, even on phones where Metro apps and live tiles seemed to make a little more sense. Microsoft overestimated how much utility the average user would get out of them. It turns out most people didn't need a bunch of live tiles vying for their attention every time they opened their phone. Think of how annoying regular notifications can be without live tiles. And there simply wasn't enough interest from big app developers on the platform, especially the likes of Google, who didn't want to help Microsoft compete with Android just by handing them a YouTube app, for example. So the phone version of Windows 8 didn't fare much better, and Microsoft completely pulled out of the phone OS market in 2017. On the desktop side, the start screen was completely axed in Windows 10, and live tiles disappeared by the time Windows 11 rolled around. Yes, they were still in Windows 10. And ironically, the Microsoft Surface lineup is doing just fine today without a specific tablet interface. But if any Microsoft developers are watching this video, please don't feel too badly. Windows 8 was far from the most pointless tech product we've ever seen. Remember Gibo?"}