This is a warning for Windows 8 users about the “refresh” option. If you are experiencing a problem with a Windows 8 PC, you might end up at a screen that looks like this:
Although Microsoft only mentions that you won’t lose your personal data when you choose to “Refresh Your PC”, they do not give the proper warning, in my opinion. Don’t be confused by the friendly sound of “refresh”. This isn’t like refreshing your browser so the page loads correctly. You will probably not feel refreshed by the time you get your PC back to normal. The warning should probably look like this:
WARNING! You are about to lose every program you have ever installed on your Windows 8 PC.
According to Microsoft logic Windows programs like MS Office, Photoshop, Classic Shell, StarCraft, your antivirus… ARE NOT Apps! Any mention of your apps still working after a refresh is just MS confusing you with their bullshit idea that a Windows App is not a Windows program or application and a Windows program is not a Windows App.
Prepare to spend hours, if not days, looking for discs, downloading installation files, and searching for product keys so you can re-install all of your programs. If you were using an email program (client) like Outlook, Thunderbird or <gasp> Windows Live Mail, you will need to reconfigure your accounts. If you had your account configured as a POP account rather than IMAP then you will need to import your old mail if you know how to find it.
If Microsoft needs help writing warnings they can contact me here.
WINDOWS 8 SUCKS ASS I HATE IT SOOOO MUCH!!! Sorry I needed to vent HAHA. Thanks for the post!
I DESPISE WINDOWS 8. I WANT MY 2004 WINDOWS XP BACK> IT WAS SO MUCH MORE USER FRIENDLY AND THE PHOTO VIEWER ON WINDOWS 8 IS TOTAL GARBAGE!! YOU CANNOT ZOOM IN ON ANYTHING IT JUST BLOWS UP THE SCREEN AND THE PIXELS AND IS A BLURRY MESS. XP HAD A SMOOTH ZOOM IN FEATURE THAT ALLOWED ME TO MOVE THE PICTURE OR SECTIONS OF THE PICTURE TO LOOK AT SMALLER ANOMOLIES> OBVIOUSLY THESE ASSHATS DID THIS ON PURPOSE. OR THEY ARE JUST COMPLETE IDIOTS. I BELIEVE THEY MADE IT FRUSTRATING AND LESS USER FRIENDLY ON PURPOSE. THATS WHAT NARCISSISTS AND PSYCHOPATHS DO YOU KNOW. AND THATS WHATS RUNNING THESE UNITED CORPORATE STATES OF AMERIKKA INTO THE HOLE.
I just experience this problem with a client who blamed me for restoring his machine to factory state. And what did I do? He asked me to help him activate a bluetooth mouse. When I did that, Windows says that the device cannot be installed because the PC has a problem and need to “Refresh”. Oh yeah just refresh, after all the PC has a problem.
“Refresh” just sounds too innocuous and run-of-the-mill like refreshing the browser. It did’nt even ask for Admin password again which would indicate something serious going to take place. I know about “RECOVERY” which would restore the PC to factory state. But please be warned “Refresh” actually means almost the same thing, be warned!!!!!
So I click Refresh the small word under that prompt. When I did that, Windows did not give any serious warning other than some rather ambiguous information like removed files will be saved blah blah.
Unfortunately upon reboot the installed Ms Office licence activation was gone. My customer got worried and I hope he can recover it from MS.
Other installed programs also were removed by “Refresh”. Fortunately the PC was quite new and not many programs had been installed.
Microsoft may be making $billions from people all over the world but it should know that it is very hated company because to a large extent its OS gives so much trouble, so much stress to users all over the world. I think it is company is run by many lazy and irresponsible bums – never how good they think they are.
When users encounter such troubles the Ms people and its die-hard fans come back and tell you that you are stupid and did not read the instructions properly. Yeah this includes being unable to navigate expertly through its ever-changing cluttered mess of setting windows.
But the point is not everyone is as savvy as those big talkers. I see too many people doing things on Windows that are utterly hilarious like minimizing every open windows just to get to the Desktop simply because the desktop icon is not in the taskbar by default and because these users know nothing about holding down the Windows key and pressing ‘D’. These are such time-consuming unproductive work thanks to the geniuses in Microsoft.
What Ms genuises lack is the simple intelligence to realize that software is to make life easier for the average person not for geniuses like them. So if Windows causes so much trouble to people then no matter how great it may look, OS is actually a failure in so far as software is expected to be — to make life easier not harder.
MS should be the acronym for Most Shitty.