Big Mistake - Windows 8

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Ernie n Tara

Ernie n Tara

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Joined
May 16, 2009
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Ft Myers, FL
Hi,

I got to feeling magnanimous and bought Tara a new Surface. Disaster! She can't play her crossword games on Facebook (no Flash).

Also Adobe reader doesn't work/won't install (I thought Word read PDF, but apparently not).

Can't say I much like the new interface either, but the real problem is Flash.

Secondarily,  no Firefox ot Tbird. I understand that Microsoft has gone back to locking everyone out of the operating system (you'd think they learned their lesson last time but....), but does anyone have a workaround for the Flash problem? There has to be a way since Apple has the same restriction on Flash.

Thanks,

Ernie

PS I've also found it won't play CDG's

PPS I was just told that the computer says Flash is there,  it doesn't work!
 
Is it a Surface RT or Surface Pro? The former runs Windows RT and the latter runs Windows 8. Substantial difference, even though similar. Based on the description of the problems, is sounds like RT. Windows 8 browsers can run the Flash plug-in, though both IE and Firefox classify it as a security risk and disable it by default.

I thought MS had quietly added Flash support to the browser that comes with RT. Not a plug-in, but their own built in Flash support. That was reported in various windows news commentaries back in early 2013. There is also supposed to be a Flash Tool you can add. The built-in Flash orignally only handled certain web sites that MS cad deemed "safe", but I read that they later lifted that restriction too. Maybe not on yours?

MS says the Reader app in Rt can do pdfs.
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/reader-app-faq

Windows RT is neither fish nor fowl: it ain't Windows and it ain't Android either. It's closest to the Windows Phone OS, but that doesn't help much of anybody either!
 
Flash may be present but not installed. I had my Win7 laptop for a couple of years before I discovered it has Windows Media Center.  It was hidden somewhere (I can't remember where) under another file name totally unrelated to WMC.  I found the solution by googling the problem. It took a while, but I finally found a forum (sorry I don't remember which one that was, either) where someone knew what to look for. I don't know if MS hides these things just for fun or whether their code is just so bloated that things get lost.  Hope you get things working properly.
 
According to this article from last March, Flash is included in IE10 on Windows RT.  A Google search on Windows RT flash will show a lot of other related articles.
 
I have a Windows 8.1 Toshiba Notebook (What we call laptops) and I am tying this in Firefox. I have Thunderbird on board,,, Adobe Reader (yes I just upgraded it yesterday)  I have no problems with Flash files either.. I do not have Java installed on it at this time though.. I have 2 xp machines if I need that. Javascript however is working.

That said: WIndows 8 brings us the concept of APPS.. APPS will NOT install from the windows store if you are using a cell phone to connect.. YOu must go to a place where you can get Free Wi-Fi.... McDonalds, Lowes, Home Depot, Staples. The park where Im parked, or some other place that offers free Wi-Fi.
 
Got my newest laptop last year with a touchscreen and win 8.  Does everything my Win 7 workstations do including the standard windows desktop and all my programs except that it's faster.  No problems with flash, adobe, Thunderbird, Firefox or anything else.  Almost bought a 7 laptop.  Glad I got 8.
 
Windows 8 and 8.1 are not relevant, Ernie apparently has Windows RT.  Also, it's a tablet, not a phone, so that's also irrelevant.  Apps are only available from the MS App Store.
 
Sorry was responding to the subject line (Which said Windows 8 not Windows RT) and yes, I did say "The Windows Store" (Forgot to include the word Apps)  I get android apps from the Google app store (And Amazon and a few others) but Windows Apps, only when I'm on a NON cellular (Non-Metered) Service and only from the Windows App Store...  Which sucks.

Other programs like Firefox. I still get from Mozilla.org and ______ .com or .org or .net or .whatever same as always.

But none of this applies to windoze RT.
 
Trust me to blow it the first time I don't research before buying! :-\
Thanks for the replies, I think I see my way clear now, but I really don't like Microsoft even more now.

Ernie
 
Ernie n Tara said:
Trust me to blow it the first time I don't research before buying! :-\
Thanks for the replies, I think I see my way clear now, but I really don't like Microsoft even more now.
Click to expand...
I tried a Windows 8 beta a few years ago and hated it. I got a Chromebook and have never looked back at Microsoft.
 
Ernie... you might not have done as bad you you think.

Now when it comes to Windows 8.1  When I first got it I had a MAJOR complaint... However turns out a company (StarDock) had a major fix. and fix it it did.  Still ticked that it cost me five bucks to fix what Micky Soft broke.

It may be that the solution to your problems are easily fixed, or soon will be...  And I too do not much like Microsoft but so much of what I use is not yet written for Linux.

Also.. it may be possible to "Flash" your tablet over to Linux if not now then soon.
 
John From Detroit said:
Now when it comes to Windows 8.1  When I first got it I had a MAJOR complaint... However turns out a company (StarDock) had a major fix. and fix it it did.  Still ticked that it cost me five bucks to fix what Micky Soft broke.
Click to expand...
For assorted reasons I follow MS news relatively closely. 

Steve Sinofsky was in charge of Microsoft Office for a few years and, in my opinion, did a pretty good job.  He then got tapped to be in charge of Windows 8.  I'm sure he was a major part of making those "radical" UI decisions in Windows 8.  Within a few weeks of Windows 8 being released he had a meeting with Steve Ballmer, CEO and Sinofsky resigned.  The joke amongst the MVP geek set was that Steve Ballmer started using Windows 8 for the first time when it went retail, got highly irritated and fired Steve Sinofsky.
 
I have a Windows 8 laptop, and it's a love/hate (mostly hate) relationship.  The whole tablet interface thing makes little sense when your machine does not have a touch screen.  Every time I log on I go right to the desktop that most resembles the Windows 7 interface.  W8 is a waste of my time for the most part.
 
SargeW said:
I have a Windows 8 laptop, and it's a love/hate (mostly hate) relationship.  The whole tablet interface thing makes little sense when your machine does not have a touch screen.  Every time I log on I go right to the desktop that most resembles the Windows 7 interface.  W8 is a waste of my time for the most part.
Click to expand...
Agreed.  The "Metro" interface, IMNSHO, sucks big time.
 
Tony_Alberta said:
The joke amongst the MVP geek set was that Steve Ballmer started using Windows 8 for the first time when it went retail, got highly irritated and fired Steve Sinofsky.
Click to expand...

I hope that's no joke, whomever came up with this idea needs to be seriously scrapped.

That said I have managed to tame MOST of it's annoyances... Still some I do not think I'll ever tame...  Even the time wasters like Soiltare and Freecell they ruined.. Why not just port over the classic, I mean it runs 32 bit programs, it runs 16 bit programs (one of those is each) so why not just port over the good programs instead of the )(@#)*$ apps!

Challange of the day.. Look up DINGBAT.. yes it has a meaning. And it is properly used above.
 
John From Detroit said:
I hope that's no joke, whomever came up with this idea needs to be seriously scrapped.
Click to expand...

Sorry the joke was that the person who had responsibility for the new user interface was fired once the CEO saw the new user interface.

John From Detroit said:
That said I have managed to tame MOST of it's annoyances... Still some I do not think I'll ever tame...  Even the time wasters like Soiltare and Freecell they ruined.. Why not just port over the classic, I mean it runs 32 bit programs, it runs 16 bit programs (one of those is each) so why not just port over the good programs instead of the )(@#)*$ apps
Click to expand...
You can.  If they aren't already in Windows 8 you can copy those exe files from an older version of Windows.  If you try to run them and you get a missing DLL message then locate the DLL and place in the same folder as the exe.
 
Most new computers are 64 bit and come with 64 bit Windows and they will NOT run 16 bit programs.  Time to leave the DOS days behind.

Copying an exe does not work often.  It's not only missing DLLs, but registry entries, often a specific version of .NET is required, etc.  The only legitimate way to move a program to a new version of Windows is to use the installer.  And even that is not a guarantee that it will work, unless the program has been written to be compliant with Windows UAC specifications.  Programs that ran fine under XP when the user was an administrator often won't work at all on Windows 8, or even 7 or Vista because of the tightened security and data protection.
 
Myself... As soon as I seen Windows 8 I bailed out of Microsoft products and into Ubuntu Linux 12.04 and not looked back at all.

Why Linux is better than Microsoft.
http://www.whylinuxisbetter.net/
 
Hopefully Win9 will be to 8 what Win7 was to Vista.

My laptop is 3 1/2 years and I gave away a Win8 laptop to my SIL. :(
 
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