Has Microsoft stumbled?

[Zelig]

The XP start menu is basically cripplingly useless without a search function.

 

[Arakhor]

Well apart from the fact that that opinion is of purely anecdotal worth only, why did they make the search function in W7 and 8 apparently so much worse? I can hardly find anything I want when I'm at work, unless I already know where it is.

 

[Mise]

Windows 7 search is great! What's wrong with it? I just hit Windows key then start typing the file, folder, program or setting i want to change and it pops up 9/10 times.

 

[bhsup]

You really should not need to use a search feature very often if you have a well ordered computer. Documents in their places, programs in a well organized programs tree folder, etc. Search being used excessively is really an indicator of sloppy computer upkeep.

 

[Arakhor]

Well, I don't use it that often anyway (see previous usage explanation), but I struggle to find lost files with it.

 

[Mise]

You really shouldn't need to waste time obsessively organising everything when you can just type the thing you want and it comes up instantly

 

[Arakhor]

I'm Aspergic - I sort things endlessly, usually only in ways that make sense to me.

 

[Zelig]

You really should not need to use a search feature very often if you have a well ordered computer. Documents in their places, programs in a well organized programs tree folder, etc. Search being used excessively is really an indicator of sloppy computer upkeep.

You really should not need to use Google very often if you have well ordered bookmarks. Web sites in a well organized folder tree, etc. Google being used excessively is really an indicator of sloppy bookmark upkeep.

I'm Aspergic - I sort things endlessly, usually only in ways that make sense to me.

Sorting things is one of the key things that computers are awesome at doing. Since my computer can't yet cook for me, I'm quite happy to let it sort stuff for me.

 

[Arakhor]

Really now, Zelig, if your defence was anywhere near as organised as your offence in this thread, you wouldn't come across (to me, at least) as so 'hit and miss'.

 

[Zelig]

Depends who I'm replying to.

If you want a serious overview of searching in Windows:

File searching: Should work pretty much the same across any Windows OS (other than being dramatically faster in newer ones). From windows/file explorer, select the folder/drive you want to search in, type in the search box, including wildcards if you want any.

Start menu/screen searching: This is separate from the search in windows/file explorer and is not system-wide, it only searches indexed locations (by default, your start menu and your users folder). This is a drastically better and faster paradigm than clicking through layers of the start menu to open programs. Win8 kind of mangled this by splitting up files/folders/settings results, but 8.1 unifies everything together again.

Re: Organizing stuff - the better your stuff is organized, the better search works! If everything is organized into a folder structure of your choice, you just need to hit the windows key, type the name of any folder, and you're immediately in the folder and depth of your choice.

 

[bhsup]

You really should not need to use Google very often if you have well ordered bookmarks. Web sites in a well organized folder tree, etc. Google being used excessively is really an indicator of sloppy bookmark upkeep.

I think it's fair to say that keeping the entire internet indexed in bookmarks is a little beyond what most individuals should worry about. Besides, don't google. They're evil. Yahoooooooooooooo!

 

[Mise]

I would actually love it if my browser organised tabs the way Windows 7 organises programs, with pins and hover over previews....

Sent from a phone, apols for any mistakes.

 

[Zelig]

Opera has hover over previews.

 

[Mise]

Yeah but it's not like Windows 7 pins though is it.

 

[Zelig]

Not exactly, but you can pin tabs to be persistent until you close the browser. Otherwise it's mostly just a visual difference you pin stuff to the speed dial instead of the tab bar and open them with ctrl+# instead of windows+#.

 

[Tommy Vercetti]

Windows 7 search is great! What's wrong with it? I just hit Windows key then start typing the file, folder, program or setting i want to change and it pops up 9/10 times.

I agree, as is the much more compact Windows 7 start menu. The Windows 8 start screen is unwieldy and unappealing. It sucks you have to download a third party program just to get your start menu back.

 

[Zelig]

I agree, as is the much more compact Windows 7 start menu. The Windows 8 start screen is unwieldy and unappealing. It sucks you have to download a third party program just to get your start menu back.

He was comparing it to Windows XP, the Windows 8 start screen is also wieldy and appealing.

 

[dutchfire]

Well, I still think the default implementation is kind of broken because the window previews take so long to pop up.

If you get rid of the delay, window previews on mouse-over becomes one of the best features of Windows and is something I miss whenever I'm using a different OS.

The IE mouse-over that shows you the different tabs next to each other is especially awesome. I was so happy when I saw that.

 

[Mise]

I agree, as is the much more compact Windows 7 start menu. The Windows 8 start screen is unwieldy and unappealing. It sucks you have to download a third party program just to get your start menu back.

Windows 8 search is exactly the same. I hit windows and type the thing I want and it comes up. What's not to like?

 

[Tommy Vercetti]

Windows 8 search is exactly the same. I hit windows and type the thing I want and it comes up. What's not to like?

The start screen is terrible. I don't like the fact it takes up the whole screen. That is what ruins Windows 8 for me. The Windows development team members that support this are idiots.