I HATE Windows 8. This is the worst OS ever invented.

I agree that, if they're going to call it Windows, that it should have, oh, say, Windows? I know I'm just being OCD about that.

To give you an example of what I am dealing with, I'm typing this reply, and say I noticed a typo in the last paragraph. Quickest way to fix that is to mouse to the word and fix it.  I put my finger on the mouse pad, and the second I move it, a Charm bar appears to the right, and across the bottom 1/3rd of the screen. I try to move it again, and the Charms pop up again. I hit Esc, and the Charms disappear, and at that point, it's a 50/50 proposition as to whether they'll come back up if I use the mouse. If they DO come back up, then even the Esc key doesn't help, and moving it again kicks it out of my program and into the start screen. The only thing I can do then is to push the Esc key until I'm back here, and then I MUST (no other way will work) press the left click to be able to use the mouse key. Once I've used the mouse and return to my typing, touching the mouse again instantly causes the Demon Charms to reappear.

If I use the scroll bar on the right side at all, there is no escape. As soon as I try to mouse off the scroll, the Demon Charms have me and won't let go, no matter hat I do. I use the Esc key, and the left mouse click, but nothing works. The ONLY way to get the mouse free is to "slap" it to the left, and hope the cursor wings away from the scroll bar without the Charms catching it. That takes 30 seconds of fussing, every single time. If I hit my Down arrow and the screen doesn't scroll down, then I know I'm in for it. Not being able to use the scroll means no internet. THAT is a real hassle, as I always do my research on the web as I write.

It makes it so difficult to use that I reach for my old XP laptop when I need to search on the internet. Surfing the web is all but impossible, with the Charms screen coming up over and over.

As an author, I use primarily MS Word (Office 2010). This Lenovo has the nicest touch of any keyboard I've ever used, and once I tried it in the store, I had to buy the laptop. I was right about it; it almost doubled my speed, and reduced my typos by more than half. To a writer who would rather concentrate on WHAT they're writing rather than what it takes to get the word down on the page, that becomes the Holy Grail of writing equipment.

Ask any legal secretary or medical transcriptionist, and they'll tell you to use keystrokes instead of your mouse whenever possible; it's much faster. So, I suppose I'm learning beneficial new skills here. But it's taking me out of my comfort zone to do so.

I'll continue to monitor these blogs and hope that somebody finds a patch for this. I've considered installing WIndows 7, which would solve all the problems I have with this. Since I primarily write all the time, my needs are simple and few.

I'm having no problem understanding how the Windows 8 system works, and had no issues at the school for learning the system, other than the Demon Charms, so I'm disappointed at the thought of having to move backwards when I've gone ahead and moved forward with the purchase of this.

rcskypilot,

Thanks for replying and for the extra information about your issues.

I do not know if the issue is related the hardware of your laptop, with drivers for the laptop or with any software that you have installed,  for example any Lenovo specific software.

What I can say is I have never had the issue that you describe, and would suggest that it is not normal Windows 8 behaviour, so don't worry, Windows 8 is not hat bad to use, in fact when it is working correctly it is quite nice. Even if others report the same issue, it is not happening to everyone.

The challenge is how to resolve your Windows 8 installation's abnormal behaviour.  Here are a few suggestions (sadly, all of which I am sure that you have tried before or are unable to do).  Since you mentioned that several of your friends also have the same issue, and I believe you said with the same hardware, it is likely to be that Windows 8 does not have suitable hardware drivers for the laptop model that you are using.

You said, "We all loved the new "Chicklet" tablet keys on the new Lenovo laptops, and we all bought one", so I would ask, "Have you installed a Windows 8 upgrade?"  I am guessing from your previous postings that this is the case, and therefore Windows 8 might not have the correct drivers for your Laptop's model ?  I am an IT manager supporting a small company, and I have wanted to upgrade a number of our laptops but have not been brave enough to do so due to the lack of the manufacturers supplying drivers for Windows 8.  I was please to find that Lenovo has released Windows 8 Drivers for a number of their models (but as yet have not had the time to install an upgrade).  I found this site which helped me locate drivers for one of our models http://support.lenovo.com/en_AU/research/hints-or-tips/detail.page?&AliasID=WIN8-INDEX&rd=1 maybe you can find drivers for you laptop model.

If you can, this is how I was going to attempt an install and test Windows 8's stability.  My intention is to purchase a new hard disk drive, replace the existing drive so that I still have the ability to go back if required, then install a fresh clean installation of Windows 8 with the drivers supplied by Lenovo.  If this worked without any issues, then I would try a straight upgrade to the existing hard disk drives of out other laptops.  I am confident that your IT friends will be able to help on this process, but if you want any tips on how I go about the installation, please ask.

If you are able to do the above, please give it a try.  On a Toshiba laptop, I have tried several times to install Windows 8, but there were no drivers for at least two hardware components, so I had to go back to Windows 7 until Toshiba releases drivers for the models that we have.  Their web site reports that they are in the process of making drivers, so I do not mind waiting.

I do not know if you can do a clean installation, and please do not install any other software or drivers, other than that which comes with Windows 8 and test to see how Windows 8's Charms behave?  If you can this would be a quick test to see if the same issue still exists. At least this would tell you if the issue was directly related to Windows 8 compatibility with your laptop hardware or with other software/drivers that we would normally install after installing native Windows 8.

If you are unable to resolve the issue, I would recommend going back to Windows 7 for the time being, as the problem you describe will make you hate Windows 8, when it is not really Windows 8's fault.  While I am getting used to Windows 8, and do not appreciate all its features, the issue that you are experiencing is not how Windows 8 is designed to work.

Awesome! this is one of the things I was looking for myself to.. now how do I permanently get rid of my mandatory Windows Live ID connection and all that advertising looking things that show up before I click on the desktop square? They made now what used to be 1 click into 5... looks like it was made for a 2-year old... I cannot get my programs visible without like 5 clicks.. I too hate Win 8.

I don't actually know what you call "charm" but I too am having the problem of the invisible bar with settings and other options appear every time I head in that direction to do something.. I have 8 now (for hopefully only a short time because I hate it too).. this things pops in my way.. so then I have to mouse a bit to the left and click somewhere on the page to get that go away, including the weather icon on the bottom left.. so then I am heading again to the right to grab what I wanted the first place... and again the invisible right side pops in.. I sometimes have to spend 20 minutes to finally be able to go to that part of the screen and do what I want--I am a photographer and I may need to remove a pimple from someone's nose.. but it won't let me... 

If this is what s called "charm" then I have it and free to take it for anyone who wants it!

I hate to think what will happen once I connect my drawing pad (Wacom) to my laptop to see if I can work with that... cannot see it work with Win 8 at all...

Does anyone have any idea how to separate my Win Live ID from 8??? And so I don;t need to log on my computer every time??? I HATE that... help please!!

rcskypilot,

 

If you are unable to resolve the issue, I would recommend going back to Windows 7 for the time being, as the problem you describe will make you hate Windows 8, when it is not really Windows 8's fault.  While I am getting used to Windows 8, and do not appreciate all its features, the issue that you are experiencing is not how Windows 8 is designed to work.

 

 

 

 

I'll check on that link, and see if Lenovo has updates that solve the problem.  I'm going to give it one month of due diligence, and then I'll bite the bullet and buy a copy of Windows 7, and install it, and write off Windows 8 as Microsoft's ultimate Faux pas, and the only operating system they ever put out that I found to be unusable and completely user unfriendly.

In every other system I've seen from them, up to XP (the latest I have in my machines), I saw reasons for changes and found some rationale for the reasons they went to something new. So far, everything about Windows 8 is needlessly complicated, and utterly non-intuitive. It appears to be a system based on a touch-screen user's needs, and I have no touch-screens, and a touch-screen would be counterproductive to me in what I do.