windows 7 64 bit or windows 8?

[announced]

I didnt know where exactly to post this. but Ive got a comp pre-built picked out and im just wondering what OS is easier to use. windows 7 64 bit or windows 8.

im not familiar with 8 and im hoping its not like another vista fiasco. Im wondering if it matters much for gaming. ill mostly just be playing wow/d3 ros and maybe a few games in the future while browsing the web. looking for some opinions on what to get.

thanks. i got help from a poster to pickout a build.

http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/Gamer_Xtreme_1000 is the build.
Case: Cooler Master N600 w/ USB 3.0, Side Panel Window
CPU: Intel® Core™ i5-4670K 3.40 GHz 6MB Intel Smart Cache LGA1150 (All Venom OC Certified)
CPU Cooler: Corsair Hydro Series H60 High Performance Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator & Fan (Single Standard 120MM Fan)
Motherboard: GIGABYTE Z97-D3H ATX w/ Realtek GbLAN, 2 PCIe x16, 2 PCIe x1, 3 PCI, 6x SATA 6Gb/s (Pro OC Certified)
Memory: 8GB (4GBx2) DDR3/1600MHz Dual Channel Memory (G.SKILL Ripjaws X)
HDD: 1TB SATA-III 6.0Gb/s 32MB Cache 7200RPM HDD (Single Drive)
Video Card: AMD Radeon R9 270 2GB GDDR5 PCIe 3.0 x16 Video Card (Major Brand Powered by AMD)
Power Supply: 500 Watts - Corsair CX500 500W 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply
Optical Drive: 24X Double Layer Dual Format DVD+-R/+-RW + CD-R/RW Drive (BLACK COLOR)

[mercutiouk]

8.1 is FRACTIONALLY less resource intensive. It's massively fractional though.
Win 7 64bit is the windows you know. Win 8.1 is still quite a different beast.

If you are going on easier to use, if you have more than a years experience in windows, go with Win 7, it's familiar and easy. Win 8.1 MIGHT be the look of future "home" style operating systems from MS though so it might be worth the learning curve and once used to it you might find that easier.

Not a straightforward answer.

[Isoge]

I have windows 8.1 and I missed my windows 7 so much that I got the start menu through an application. So if you care that much about how you spend the computers resources (it's not that great of a difference) get the windows 8.1, and you can customize it to look like windows 7. Or you can get the windows 7 that you are used to if you've used earlier versions....

Also, Metro UI sucks.

[announced]

id rather learn windows 8 even if it is new. i mean whatever is best im up for learning it. also do i have enough ram? sorry for a separate question.

thanks for the replies.

and ya ive used windows 7 64 for like 4 years now.

[Pwellzor]

id rather learn windows 8 even if it is new. i mean whatever is best im up for learning it. also do i have enough ram? sorry for a separate question.

thanks for the replies.

and ya ive used windows 7 64 for like 4 years now.

Your ram is fine. I actually don't mind the 8.1 metro any more.

[Deleted]

If you don't like the UI simply use classicshell, download, install, set and forget, free.

[Deleted]

better the devil you know.

[Blade and Soul]

Windows 7 Professional while you can still get it. In many places you aren't given an option for it (Windows 7) or have to pay another $100 to have it installed over Windows 8. I got caught up in the hype for Windows 8, and thought the idea of the "metro" look and feel was something different and may be interesting. Needless to say I was very disappointed.

Windows 8.1 is still on the "meh" side of things, and I think it's pretty dumb I have to install an outside application to make it work like it should have to begin with on desktop computers.

Different strokes for different folks, but unless Microsoft decides to stop support for Windows 7 or something else drastic changes, I will not be switching to Windows 8.

[Deleted]

Windows 8.1 is still on the "meh" side of things, and I think it's pretty dumb I have to install an outside application to make it work like it should have to begin with on desktop computers.

It's an option for something else. It works perfectly fine without it. It takes 10 seconds to download, 10 seconds to install, you can tweak a few things if you like but mostly runs out of the box and you never have to worry about it again.

People who play World of Warcraft install addons all the time and many of them, does that mean the game failed?

You install VLC/MPC etc. instead of Windows media Player.

Different browsers and I could go on... do you have to? No. Is it an option? Yes. Just like this is an option.

[schwarzkopf]

8.1 is SIGNIFICANTLY less resource intensive. It's massively fractional though.

Fixed that for you - the memory management in Windows 8.1 is way way ahead of Windows 7. Apart from that, the other resources are fractionally better.

[Iamanerd]

Get 8.1, don't bother with people preaching 8.1 sucks. 8.1 is easy to use and windows search works much better in 8 along with better memory management, plus it benefits from a SSD more with better boot and shut down times. Also people saying it's a big learning curve, it's not and stop spewing bullshit, if it's actually hard to learn then it's PEBKAC.

[announced]

im still on the fence about this. leaning towards win 7 64 bit, but if 8.1 is easier to use and how much better is this memory management thingy? will it run future games faster? and what about the bugs? does windows 8.1 have any known issues or huge problems? if 8.1 was released about a year ago i hope they've fixed most of its issues.

although i do have the old win 7 64 bit disks, maybe its better to get windows 8.1 anyway?

[Warrax]

Memory management doesn't matter if you have a good computer with enough ram, you won't notice a thing. It only matter for small devices with limited resources.

Windows 8.1 (not 8.0) does have known issues, I work at a repair shop and we often get broken 8.1 that we have to repair/re-install (we install Win 8.0 and tell the client to not update to 8.1 yet), it's not as stable as Windows 7 that's for sure. Also: INB4 "I don't have issues with 8.1", good for you

Also, addons like Classicshell won't fix everything in Windows 8/8.1, it basically bring back the start menu but things like dragging down apps with the mouse/touchscreen (aka no X in the upper right corner) to move or close them will still be there.

Just keep in mind that it's designed for small devices and touch screen, that's also why memory management was tweaked in Win8, they HAD to do it.

[Jonexe]

I've used both. I had Win 7 in my previous laptop, and now have 8.1 in the current one.

Honestly, if you install ClassicShell, set it to not auto-open the Metro menu, and disable charms is essentially Win 7 all over again. I can't tell you if the improvements in memory management and other places will help on your system or not, as I got it on a complete new computer; but it's not a hassle in the slightest. I've haven't seen the metro menu in... I dunno... three or four months? And the last time I opened it, it was on accident. 99% of software, even if it has a Metro mode, also has a desktop mode. I've never actually used an application in Metro mode, if that helps.

The only annoying thing I've found is the side menu that pops up swiping from the right side to the middle of a touchpad. On a desktop you'll never run into this. Hell, and on a laptop you can disable it as long as your touchpad drivers aren't stupid (like mine) and have the option.

Edit: In response to the post above mine; if you use software in desktop mode it has your standard windows options (min, max, close) in the upper right.

[moremana]

The search option in Win 8.1 is more than worth it.

Classic Shell, download it and problem solved.

Windows 7 is old, resource hog and outdated, why would you all recommend it?

Answer: Windows 8.1

[ben-]

Windows 8 works better for me on a day to day basis once I adjusted to it. I use windows 7 at work and on other PC's and find myself missing some of Windows 8 abilities than I do missing the archaic start menu.

I personally find it easier to type the first few letters of the program i want to open in a box than searching through a long list of icons+ names hoping i remember what that actual program i want to open is classified under.

For my games i made a folder on my desktop gave it a nes controller icon and filled it with shortcuts to all my games. Works awesome!

I dont want to advertise any websites but I have picked up a few copies of Windows 8 for less than 30 bucks. On a video game key place based out of the EU.

[Deleted]

I've used 7 extensively and 8.1 recently, 8.1 is usable with the classic shell but I still prefer 7.
No reason for me to upgrade.

If 8.1 used significantly less resources, I would go with that. As it stands, 8.1 uses only fractionally less resources

[Iamanerd]

Memory management doesn't matter if you have a good computer with enough ram, you won't notice a thing. It only matter for small devices with limited resources.

Windows 8.1 (not 8.0) does have known issues, I work at a repair shop and we often get broken 8.1 that we have to repair/re-install (we install Win 8.0 and tell the client to not update to 8.1 yet), it's not as stable as Windows 7 that's for sure. Also: INB4 "I don't have issues with 8.1", good for you

Also, addons like Classicshell won't fix everything in Windows 8/8.1, it basically bring back the start menu but things like dragging down apps with the mouse/touchscreen (aka no X in the upper right corner) to move or close them will still be there.

Just keep in mind that it's designed for small devices and touch screen, that's also why memory management was tweaked in Win8, they HAD to do it.

So let me get this straight, you don't upgrade your customers pc's to 8.1 but rather keep them on 8 when support for 8 not 8.1 ends in 2015? Also 8.1 update 1 is where you want them at if you want good support and security updates.

As for known issues with 8.1 please do list, also take in to account all OS's have known issues. Seriously if you work in a repair shop and keep people on 8 not 8.1 that's shitty business. 8.1 runs fine, I've updated thousands of machines to it and only a handful have issues usually related to customer error. Plus with the new update coming to 8.1 they are adding the classic start menu back for people who are computer illiterate. I would never do business with a crooked shop that denies customers updates as big as 8.1 and 8.1 update 1.

[Ettan]

It is much worse than vista.
Windows 8 was a complete failure, it was designed for touch screens (phones/tablets/entertainment) and not a propper pc.
As such the ui and metro is all garbage (and full of comericals).
You will be forced to find solutions on your own using third party software.

[Wilderness]

Take 5 minutes to configure Windows 8.1 to look just like Windows 7, then enjoy the benefits of the better OS while ignoring Metro.