Windows 8...$39...upgrage dilema

[Puer Aeternus]

Will an upgrade work for a bare install? I can't find my darn 7 disc and this would be a great compromise if it does. Once I m enrolled in my masters program I can get Win7 for like $10.

Looks like the $39 online version is an upgrade only...it will install on top of winx/vista and win7.

Speaking of which...how was the install over win7? Is this a clean slate or will it keep all my programs and docs in place?
Also...what about drivers? Ay issues w/ win8 drivers for my ATI GPU?

 

[klear]

Looks like the $39 online version is an upgrade only...it will install on top of winx/vista and win7.

Speaking of which...how was the install over win7? Is this a clean slate or will it keep all my programs and docs in place?
Also...what about drivers? Ay issues w/ win8 drivers for my ATI GPU?

It's actually $39 for the full version, and if you have a legit windows 7 key you can get it for $15. You can download windows 8 to a dvd or flash drive and install it fresh with these 'upgrade' keys. Install over windows 7 was okay for me, it keeps all your settings and apps the same including power options, desktop icons, etc. I am currently using a 7970 with no issues.

Windows 8 interface was frustrating at first, a couple times I was like "No way, this is really stupid, going to back to windows 7 asap" but I'm glad I didn't because I do prefer it now.

 

[BeHappy]

I felt the same way about the Metro Interface. I had an HD2 smartphone that dual booted Android/Windows Phone and I NEVER used WP. It's just so bland compared to what we have in android/modded windows 7 + no Pandora...

I only bought it because it was $15 for the Pro version, and it's a full install, not just an upgrade. Now that I've installed it, I like it a *little more. It does boot up really frick'n fast on my i7/SSD laptop. And supposedly gives extra battery life, so for now I will dual boot Win 7/8.

Here is the thread I started that has instructions for the $15: Windows 8 Pro

 

[Hicksimus]

Looks like the $39 online version is an upgrade only...it will install on top of winx/vista and win7.

Speaking of which...how was the install over win7? Is this a clean slate or will it keep all my programs and docs in place?
Also...what about drivers? Ay issues w/ win8 drivers for my ATI GPU?

It was a flawless upgrade from Win7 for me. Told it to keep my data and settings and it did so perfectly, ex. it kept my pinned items, and all of my Win7 drivers worked(not surprised).

The big thing I haven't liked so far: You can still turn off User Account Control as usual but now it still acts like you have UAC on for working in the program files folder! Major pain in the ***, haven't looked for a work around yet.
How I found this out: Sins of a Solar Empire activation wasn't compatible with Win8 but the developer has files to do it. I unpacked the files to my install folder and they all failed. So I thought whatever I'll extract them to the desktop and copy them. With UAC off I got the friggen UAC pop-up. Then I still couldn't activate the game because the game couldn't use the activation executable. So I had to go back and run the activation myself selecting run as administrator.

Seriously they need to screw off with UAC or just let me launch terminal in Windows so I can at least get the enjoyment of working manually.

 

[TeknoBug]

It's actually $39 for the full version, and if you have a legit windows 7 key you can get it for $15.

I tried that, couldn't get it for $15, I think the $15 is for prebuilt PC's (like HP, Dell, Sony, etc)? I tried to get it on my laptop and I said I got it after June 2012 and it said I couldn't get it.