Looks Like Win 8.1 Update Will Be Mandatory

I just read this in Tom's Hardware forums. It states that from now on Win 8 support will end in 2 years. I am happy using Win 8 with Start8 as I almost never use the metro screen or any apps since I don't have a touch screen laptop, but extended support is scheduled to end. I know this is early on but if I take the update now just what changes will I have to expect? As far as I'm concerned "If it ain't broke don "t fix it ". Does anyone have any info or opinions?

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/windows-8-support-lifecycle-windows-xp-enterprise,24665.html

 

I was just concerned if I would have to do much or any tweaking to basically keep things the way they are. It works well enough for me as is.

 

You say "mandatory" as if that is a bad thing. It is not.

FTR, I don't like W8's Start Screen (the "Metro" UI with those tile thingies). Perhaps it is the Luddite in me, but I like the traditional Desktop and Start Menu button. So I also use (and highly recommend) Start8.

Installing 8.1 broke Start8 on my system but simply re-installing it brought it back with the same setup I had before - that is, 8.1 now boots directly to the Desktop as I wanted, with the Start menu orb in place. So all is good there.

It also broke my sign-in - or rather reset it back to the cloud sign-in, which I don't need or use. But that was not hard to set back to the way I wanted it either.

Great demand but also the file is over 3Gb in size. This is why it is being pushed out via Windows Update in phases based on region.

Another good read is from Ed Bott - What's new in Windows 8.1