It's 20 years on, and Windows still doesn't have...

[Roj]

...Use, Test, and true Cancel gadgets on preference windows.

Apply doesn't count. It's just an OK gadget that leaves the preferences window open. Cancel? They should just change that to say Close. Opening a preference window, making changes, hitting Apply, and then hitting Cancel should revert to the settings before the preferences were opened. It doesn't. It's largely useless.

Just for example, my father has hearing and vision problems. When he visits and wants to watch a movie, I turn on subtitles and set the subtitle font size to something ridiculously large for him. If I forget to change the settings back to normal, my wife won't watch movies because subtitles ruin the show for her. She's not savvy enough with tech to change the settings herself*, so she just does something else instead.

There are many other reasons to include gadgets that promote experimentation with settings. But for some reason, Microsoft deems experimentation too dangerous for their userbase...I guess.



*I've tried teaching her, but it's more than she cares to learn. You know how that goes I'm sure.

[Roj]

Intuition is not at all superior. It's lagging behind the times badly, and I find Windows way easier to use. Sad, but true

I'll never agree with that as long as the OS dictates that the active window be the frontmost window.

[Roj]

@roj

Nothing in Windows prevents it. Window z-order is independent of window input focus.

I've got a freeware tool that can lock any window to front, but it's awkward to use. It's the only way I've found so far to keep inactive windows on top of the window I'm working in.

Is there an easier way that you know of?

[Roj]

You should not have to change settings each time, that why Windows has user logins to keep different settings for each user separately.

Create a login for each user and set them with the settings you want, switch user login when a different person uses the system.

good luck

That could "fix" the problem, but it's neither a handy nor pretty way to do it. If I were to create an account for everyone who interacts with my Windows system and wants even a minor, custom setting for anything, I could wind up with over 25 accounts. Yuck.

[Roj]

Reading some comments here I cant help but think you are all still using a very old version of Windows. Some of you are even comparing it to AmigaOS, which is plain ridiculous. For example; okay, so Windows lacks a way to save multiple sets of preferences for videoplayers, in the way the Amiga does when saving screenmode prefs, for example. But do you all realise its not even possible to play back any modern video on an Amiga, even without subtitles? Windows may not be perfect, and for sure is not much 'fun' to use (like AmigaOS) but it IS the most advanced, complete and evolved operating system around these days. And Windows7 is very speedy indeed on my 2006 pc. I even use IE9 and I think its alright.

TL;DR:  It's fast. That should be good enough.

This standpoint was first taken in 1987, and I continue to respectfully disagree. Speed is nice, but by itself it can't make up for some of the missing features pointed out earlier.

I'm posting this on a Win7 i7 GTX580 system. The speed makes me happy when I'm running games and applications, but when I return to Windows to get work done, speed simply isn't enough.

[Roj]

Well, perhaps you should go back and read my entire post. I wasnt commenting on the speed.

I hate picking posts apart, but here goes...

Reading some comments here I cant help but think you are all still using a very old version of Windows. Some of you are even comparing it to AmigaOS, which is plain ridiculous.

We're not comparing the two. We're simply saying Windows still lacks specific features. My mini-van has several features that my Camaro lacks. Am I comparing the two? No. I'm saying my Camaro would be improved with these features. Please don't take our discussion to extremes and then use that to try to make us look foolish. It's bad form.

For example; okay, so Windows lacks a way to save multiple sets of preferences for videoplayers, in the way the Amiga does when saving screenmode prefs, for example. But do you all realise its not even possible to play back any modern video on an Amiga, even without subtitles?

This is more a speed issue than a shortcoming of the OS. Since the Amiga hardware was incapable of playing back video, few developers saw a point in implementing playback with subtitles.

Windows may not be perfect, and for sure is not much 'fun' to use (like AmigaOS)

That's part of what we're talking about here, and we're discussing some of the reasons why.

but it IS the most advanced, complete and evolved operating system around these days.

...and on this point we disagree.

And Windows7 is very speedy indeed on my 2006 pc. I even use IE9 and I think its alright.

Well, perhaps you should go back and read my entire post. I wasnt commenting on the speed.

Speedy. Yes. It's a comment you've made on speed.

I'm not interested in IE9, so I'll let others discuss that in another thread.

[Roj]

@roj, First off, I find it ironic that you accuse me of bad form. You replied to a comment I made with a 'TL;DR', then only commented on the very last and least important line of my post. Thats just plain rude.

Anyway, thanks for your lengthy explanation of the purpose of this thread. I wasnt intending to make anyone look foolish. Just wanted to point out that comparing Windows to AmigaOS makes no sense. And Im glad you agree with me there.

Last, I dont expect many people on an Amiga forum to agree with me when I write positive things about Windows or IE9. Its just that some people seem to have a very biased, even short-sighted opinion on anything Microsoft-related. Thats why I made my post.

...and that's why I don't like picking posts apart. Things get changed and twisted too easily.

You mean it's a coincidence, not an irony.

I took your post to mean "Since the Amiga can't play back video, and doesn't have the speed of modern PCs, we should simply dismiss everything about the Amiga; throw the baby out with the bath water, as it were.

I didn't mean anything personal with the TL;DR header. It was just my way of shortening my summary. And I didn't just refer to the last line. I read and commented on every line in your post. You referenced speed twice in the post, not just at the end.

[Roj]

It's been 20 years, and the Amiga still doesn't support...

...multi-core (SMP)
...dual head (yes, multiple screens on the same gfx card)
...memory protection/ressource tracking (yes, you'd think by now every OS would suppport it ?)
...multi user support

What's more constructive for the Amiga ? Pointing out (eventual) Windows flaws ? Pointing out Amiga's own flaws ?

I'm not sure keeping saying Windows suck will improve the Amiga... Maybe some of you think it does, but it's not the way it works... Apple is now the king before they stopped caring about Windows. Certainly not by keeping on insulting Windows...

If I held out any hope that the Amiga and its descendants still had a snowball's chance I never would've posted this topic. At this point I'd just like to see some of the things that made Amigas so comfortable get recognition and be implemented on Windows. Although I'm sure that's equally pointless.