Gabe Newell Slams Windows 8, Talks Steam Box on GT.TV

[exfileme]

Spike TV did a 30-minute scoop on what's currently going on at Valve including Newell's distaste for Windows 8, info on the Steam Box, the upcoming launch of Big Picture, and even talk about a DOTA 2 documentary.

Gabe Newell Slams Windows 8, Talks Steam Box on GT.TV : Read more

 

[Guest]

In a way, yeah. However, gamers who aren't busy whining about the UI will just download Steam and play there games just like on 7, Vista, xp, etc.


The only reason why you could see less sales from machines with win 8 is that some people in the PC gaming camp are too oblivious and ready to blindly flame Windows 8 just over the UI, completely ignoring the improvements and the fact that there is Desktop mode and an option to install a start button.

So, it goes without saying that windows 7 will have a higher proportion of "PC enthusiasts" then windows 8. That may change a bit because OEM's run to the new OS no matter how bad or good it is, just look at Vista. That includes boutique PC builders.

 

[master_chen]

Where's my Half-Life 3? As long as it's not announced/released, I don't really care about anything else that he says.

 

[xkm1948]

Well, the UI of Windows 8 is an instant turn down for me. Not gonna buy windows 8 when my machine runs perfectly on windows 7 professional.

 

[Godzealot]

Exactly, windows 7 is perfect. Why would I upgrade?

 

[bustapr]

[citation][nom]M1n3Kraft[/nom]In a way, yeah. However, gamers who aren't busy whining about the UI will just download Steam and play there games just like on 7, Vista, xp, etc.The only reason why you could see less sales from machines with win 8 is that some people in the PC gaming camp are too oblivious and ready to blindly flame Windows 8 just over the UI, completely ignoring the improvements and the fact that there is Desktop mode and an option to install a start button.So, it goes without saying that windows 7 will have a higher proportion of "PC enthusiasts" then windows 8. That may change a bit because OEM's run to the new OS no matter how bad or good it is, just look at Vista. That includes boutique PC builders.[/citation]
the UI is likely more than half of what makes a person like an OS. If the UI is terrible, then i doubt anyone would enjoy using the OS and would call it a hassle. as far as I know there is no option to install a start button(might be wrong though, havent used Win8 in a while). I found it extremely stupid that you had to drag the screen up just to type the password to log on(like a tablet). then it became quite stressful mess with all the tablet features on the desktop os. also the start button is the single most convenient and organized thing on any pc today. taking it away is so stupid and inconvenient.

 

[tomfreak]

I hate to say this but if Gabe really scared/hate windows 8, instead of whining here and there. He should do himself a favor using his steam platform, start offering "promotional" period to developer who offer steamworks game that work on linux by taking less cut from them.

pretty sure the greed developers will take this bait, and start developing games with linux support. Good for consumer also as they can finally save $100-200USD to buy a better GPU.

and make all ur games linux support too.

 

[cscott_it]

[citation][nom]bustapr[/nom]the UI is likely more than half of what makes a person like an OS. If the UI is terrible, then i doubt anyone would enjoy using the OS and would call it a hassle. as far as I know there is no option to install a start button(might be wrong though, havent used Win8 in a while). I found it extremely stupid that you had to drag the screen up just to type the password to log on(like a tablet). then it became quite stressful mess with all the tablet features on the desktop os. also the start button is the single most convenient and organized thing on any pc today. taking it away is so stupid and inconvenient.[/citation]

I'm going to disagree with you on the start menu being the single most organized thing. I've heard people make similar arguments (albeit, different circumstances) for their desktop or their fences etc.

The start menu, metro splash-thing, desktop, etc. Is only as organized as the user is. For me, I have a few items pinned to the taskbar, a few items on the desktop, and from there mostly use the run prompt or press the start button, type in what I want, and press return (same for Windows 8).
For your average consumer, their desktop and start menu are going to be cluttered with every piece of crapware they have ever downloaded and has 4 searchbars.

Don't get me wrong, I don't care if upgrade or don't - if you want to stick with 7 - awesome. If you want to install Linux - great (I'd suggest Fedora http://fedoraproject.org/get-fedora), I think more people need to learn Linux - it will help you learn more about how an operating system works, which is something that can't hurt anyone

I just find some of what you are saying to be overly subjective to your particular user style and that you never took the time to try to optimize anything - you just threw the baby out with the bathwater. That's just my two cents though.

 

[crewton]

It's just like vista. Everyone will hold onto xp until microsoft makes something worth getting. Stupid work still uses xp /sigh.

 

[siuol11]

Article should read: Gabe Newell's focus remains on anything but games; sad attempt at flame war still ongoing.

 

[Fokissed]

[citation][nom]xkm1948[/nom]Well, the UI of Windows 8 is an instant turn down for me. Not gonna buy windows 8 when my machine runs perfectly on windows 7 professional.[/citation]
Not gonna buy windows 7 when my machine runs perfectly on windows XP professional.
See what I did there? People were saying that too. Under the hood Windows 8 is a similar upgrade to Windows 7 as Windows 7 is to Vista. It runs better and uses less resources, just like 7 did over Vista. It is also a NT kernel upgrade. Sure, the metro menu and lack of a start menu can be a nuisance, but it really has little effect on gamers.

 

[xaed]

[citation][nom]Fokissed[/nom]Not gonna buy windows 7 when my machine runs perfectly on windows XP professional.See what I did there? People were saying that too. Under the hood Windows 8 is a similar upgrade to Windows 7 as Windows 7 is to Vista. It runs better and uses less resources, just like 7 did over Vista. It is also a NT kernel upgrade. Sure, the metro menu and lack of a start menu can be a nuisance, but it really has little effect on gamers.[/citation]

The thing is, UX and UI design are significant factors that help determine the success of a particular piece of software. The everyday joe doesn't care about how optimized the backend is, what he cares about is the ease of access, and the user experience. As a graphic designer and front end web developer, I can assure you that there is a certain "science" that goes into UX and UI design, and w8 is horrible on the desk space. In a nutshell, MS is forcing a tablet UI and UX unto the desktop segment, which is already a flawed approach in itself as they are two different market segments -regardless of their overall goal of unifying all their platforms, it's like forcing a car's dashboard be used on your truck, your bus, and your airplane, and saying that you want all their dashboards to look the same.

 

[master_chen]

[citation][nom]bustapr[/nom]If the UI is terrible, then i doubt anyone would enjoy using the OS and would call it a hassle.[/citation]

My secondary OS is Arch Linux, babeh, "and I feel fine." (c) R-E-M

 

[mstngs351]

He just doesn't like the possibility of MS taking a bite of Valves sales.

 

[dimar]

I just installed the Classic Shell from http://classicshell.sourceforge.net/, and will never look at Metro garbage ever again.

 

[therabiddeer]

[citation][nom]Fokissed[/nom]Not gonna buy windows 7 when my machine runs perfectly on windows XP professional.See what I did there? People were saying that too. Under the hood Windows 8 is a similar upgrade to Windows 7 as Windows 7 is to Vista. It runs better and uses less resources, just like 7 did over Vista. It is also a NT kernel upgrade. Sure, the metro menu and lack of a start menu can be a nuisance, but it really has little effect on gamers.[/citation]
Win7 is an actual upgrade over XP. Stability, features, style, protection, everything. Personally, I dont see myself upgrading to a new OS if the UI is a turnoff for me, simply because of how great Win7 is. I didnt upgrade from XP to vista for a reason, much like I wont upgrade from Win7 to Win8. Maybe Win9 depending on the scenario, but I dont see Win8 as being the same caliber of upgrade from XP to 7.

 

[nukemaster]

Maybe its just me, but my XP -> Vista SP1 was just fine(Nvidia Drivers still needed some work at that time). I Think too many OEM's put it on underpowered systems. This sure did not help people want to use it. With the right system, Vista was just fine. Win8 is different, little more little less.

You can still hit "Start" type Photoshop and hit enter to get to Photoshop just like Win7/Vista. Just now its a full screen search when you start to type. That is the part that takes getting used to, well that and not using the "Start Key" to bring up the taskbar.

 

[Guest]

98: win
ME: fail
xp: win
vista: fail
7: win
8: to be determined, but if previous strategy from MS stays in place, it's going to be yet another fail.

XP & 7 were pretty much directly adapted straight from server OS versions, which is part of why they turned out so awesome for WinOS's. Win8 is an "upgrade" to 7, just like vista was an "upgrade" from XP.

I know where the smart money would be betting. Hell, I personally skipped vista altogether after trying it out once. My XP box was booting on 150mb with good functionality, which suited the box I had at the time to a T (1gb ram, yes, it was that old).

The only question I have is whether or not the actual improvements in the background will pave the way in bringing techy people across to the new UI. For the most part, OEMs will try push you to the new OS as they're incentivized to do so. The average user will of course upgrade to 8 as they upgrade their computer - we saw this with Vista. A lot of people disliked Vista because it was "slow" (i.e put on hardware it wasn't suited for, especially when you add in all the bloatware oems push to lower their costs). Your average consumer will adjust to the new UI and complain, but learn it because apparently installing a different OS is too much of a challenge for them. But those who listen to their "techy" mates will no doubt be influenced towards win7 unless win8 is actually that much better all round that the advice won't be to stick to the more user-friendly win7.

Start button is an integral part of most novice-intermediate users experiences. Hell, I know the starting file of most of my programs via Run, but even so, I still use the start button more often. It's just easy, to be frank.

 

[myromance123]

I know there's a lot of Win8 talking going on, but I'm glad that my OS is definitely going to be supported by Valve now (Ubuntu).
Yes, I realize not everything will be ported but its definitely a whole lot better than nothing. Desura is good, but has too few titles (many of which are still in development).

 

[namecnassianer]

xaed said:

"it's like forcing a car's dashboard be used on your truck, your bus, and your airplane, and saying that you want all their dashboards to look the same."

That is exactly what MS is trying to do with Win 8, and that is exactly why many people think it will not work.

Driving your bimmer (or beemer): Let's see now, what does this control marked "aileron" do?

 

[mr grim]

I'm a theme designer for Windows 7 and one of the best parts of a theme for me is the start menu, it's where I can put my most creativity, so that alone is a really sad thing about Windows 8, not only for me but for all of the members on my site who enjoy my creations, I have tried Windows 8 and I think it's just not right for a desktop environment, the truth is it's not good for any environment, it's trying to be all things but it's a master of none.

What MS should be doing is making different versions optimized for each environment, Have a professional Office OS, a Tablet OS and a Home Entertainment OS, the home Entertainment one being the most important for my members and myself who love to have a PC be just that, a personal computer that they can customize fully and call their own.

MS needs to stop forcing all of us to conform to their vision of what a OS is meant to be and actually see what people want, don't just use their statistics gathered from their spyware telling them what we want, actually ask people and gather real feedback.

 

[marcolorenzo]

No matter what his past achievements were (although I for one thinks that HL2 was extremely overrated. The original may be ahead of its time though), a developer, just like anyone else should be judged on what they do now. And the truth is Valve hasn't released anything significant in a long time. Portal 2 is a puzzle game based on an eight year old engine. L4D and TF2 are all multiplayer only games which let's face it, doesn't require a company as decorated as valve to pull off properly. In my opinion, Valve has been trying to live off of their past glories for almost a decade now and are afraid to really challenge themselves.

 

[shinmalothar]

98: win
ME: fail
xp: win
vista: fail
7: win
8: fail

I see this all the time and it is completely nonsense, there is no pattern (unless your trying to manipulate one)

It should be

95: win
98: win
2000:win
ME: fail
xp: fail then win
vista: fail
7: win
8: tba

I seem to remember everyone hating xp when it was first released but then everyone got used to it. Ah well, so much for innovation. Why invent the wheel when we can walk just fine eh!

 

[namecnassianer]

Or more inclusively:

95: win
98: win
Windows NT: win
2000:win
ME: fail
xp: fail then win
vista: fail
7: win
8: tba

Windows NT was the first Windows full 32 bit OS and was used on a lot of desktops.
All subsequent MS OS's are all part of the NT family, including Win 8. The 32 bit NT file system (still being used) replaced FAT.

 

[pennywise]

[citation][nom]shinmalothar[/nom]98: winME: failxp: winvista: fail7: win8: failI see this all the time and it is completely nonsense, there is no pattern (unless your trying to manipulate one)It should be95: win98: win2000:winME: failxp: fail then winvista: fail7: win8: tbaI seem to remember everyone hating xp when it was first released but then everyone got used to it. Ah well, so much for innovation. Why invent the wheel when we can walk just fine eh![/citation]

For me:
95A: Fail
95B: Win
98: Fail
98SE:Win
2000: Super Glorious WIN
ME: Fail
XP: Fail
XP-SP1: Win
Vista: Fail
Vista-SP1: Win
7: Win
7-SP1: Fail - I get so many Kernel 41 errors its not even funny. Rolled back to Pre-SP1 and will wait for 8.
8: TBA - but so far so good from RTM/CP that I have used.