As someone who stuck with the classic start menu until it was finally lost in windows 7 I thought the windows 8 was going to be a tough one to get used to. I had it a few weeks now and after the first shock I think it is great. Once I set the start screen up into groups for dev, games, office etc it has became very quick and easy to start up programs. I found my desktop almost empty of icons now. I like my keyboard shortcuts and windows 8 has a few great additions. Win X is one to remember. Everything feels a lot faster but whether it really is or not I am not sure. May just be an illusion of the new look. I have done my usual development and gaming and have seen nothing bad. My desktop usage feels just the same as windows 7. File explorer ribbon works great as well. I would recommend it but give it time. Learn the key shortcuts and what you can do. There is a lot of cool stuff in there.