windows 8.1 pro question
Sfariah D
Posts: 26,551
I am planning on getting Windows 8.1 pro if today's interview goes well but it won't be until late November or early December at the earliest. I currently have Windows 7 but not happy with it. I am using my kindle fire a lot and I heard Windows 8 is more like a tablet which might be more useful for me. Will daz studio and poser still work with 8.1? What do I need to consider before get the upgrade to 8.1?
Also when I get a second hdd should I get an internal or external? Is nine gb of ram good with win 8.1? Thanks for any help
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Can't answer your questions about Win8 - I still use XP and 7.
As for the hard drive...
If you have more than one computer, you can move an external hard drive from one computer to the other just by unplugging it and plugging it in again. On the flip side, you can forget where you put an external hard drive.
If you have USB3, you probably won't notice any speed difference between internal and external drives. If you have USB2, you might notice a difference in speeds. (If you still have USB1, it's long past time to upgrade your computer.)
Internal drives cost slightly less than external drives, because they can use the computer's case and power supply circuits instead of needing their own.
If it was my setup, I'd go with an external drive, but I have a desktop and a laptop. If you only have one computer, and there's room inside it for a drive, an internal drive might be a better call. Either way, buy the largest you can afford - your runtime will expand to fill it. ;-)
Windows 8.1 tablet interface (tiles) only helps if you have a touch screen monitor, if you are working with a mouse you will most likely boot into desktop again, which is 98% like Windows 7 without the start menu (there are free tools to add start menu again). So don't buy Win8.1 for that reason alone.
Windows 7 gets extended support (this means security updates) until 2020, so it will be safe using it until then. No reason to switch to new version as well.
I'd suggest skip that one and wait for Windows 10 (it is 10 indeed, not 9), which is available as technical preview now and will be released in 2015 (though probably later in the year). It fixes some things from Win8.1 that mainly annoyed desktop users, not sure how good or bad it will be though.
PS: If you start programs like DS or Poser Win8.1 will always run them on desktop like Win7 does, only when you stay with Win8 apps it will be running them within the tiled UI like tablets do.
Windows 8 has caused a lot of problems for me re. older programs running on it.
I would stay with Windows 7 if I had the choice.
Since my old Windows 7 Computer totaly crushed a few weeks ago I had to buy a new one. Because I didn`t have the money and the time to wait (for the one I liked to buy) I have to buy one with Windows 8.1.
I my opinion DAZ Studio works much better with Windows 8.1 than it does with Windows 7.
On the other Hand all my other Software like Graphic Suites and Office Program did not work with Windows 8 so I have to get free ones until I can buy new Versions that works with Windows 8.
Windows 8 is some kind of unaccustomed to me because most things are not handled like they were handled with Windows 7; but that is my personal view and other People may have a different view.
If you use Tablets and Smartphones Windows 8 may be more familiar to you.
This is the first OS upgrade that actually hasn't given me any problems with Studio or Poser. The only thing that happened is I was one of the lucky ones that got the bad Windows update in August and ended up having to completely reformat and reinstall everything. But Studio and Poser are still chugging along just fine.
I moved from Vista to Windows 8. Not sure if the latest update was 8.1 or 8.2, but I've had zero problems with rendering any pictures.
Be prepared for a bit of messing around in version 8... It defaults to a tablet-like system of doing things and you have to get the old-style shell back to work as you used to, I found.
Which version of Poser are you using? Some older versions of Poser have issues with Win 8.
For those programs that won't run under Windows 8, select the program short cut, right click and select "Troubleshoot compatibility" and follow the prompts. You may luck out and get those older programs to run.
Hello!
You've asked a simple question, but there are a lot of complex issues at play here. I'll slice your original post apart and will try my best to answer each concern to the best of my ability. Please bear in mind that my answers ONLY refer to Windows on the "x86" architecture. You can think of this as a "regular desktop or laptop" type computer running an Intel i5 or i7 CPU or an AMD CPU.
I don't know much about Mac OSX or other platforms such as "atom", etcetera, so my answers won't apply there.
If you are thinking of upgrading your existing computer to Windows 8.1, that can be simple or it can be complicated, depending on how old your current computer is and your level of technical expertise. If you can provide some more info about your existing system and your skillset for doing a Windows upgrade, then I may be able to advise you better or direct you someplace where you'll get good help.
There are many good sites for technical help for Windows 7, Windows 8, and upgrading. Here are two that usually pop up near the top of any Google search.
Eight Forums
Techreport Forums
I have had excellent results with Windows 8.1 and I would never go back. I use it for everything except when I'm browsing the web on my iPhone or iPad, haha.
But you may have made it a bit more complicated for yourself by saying you might want to go with a touch interface. I don't know how well that works with DAZ and Poser. I still use a trackball, so I don't have the experience to advise you on a touch interface.
Okay, this will become rather involved. I'll give you some general tips to get you thinking, and because I am still not sure whether you are thinking of buying a new system, building one, or just improving your existing system, I'll cover the major components of a system.
CPU:
I recommend an Intel CPU. 3D rendering is the hardest thing you'll probably ask your CPU to do. DAZ Studio can use more than one core for rendering. When I render, all 12 threads of my desktop system's CPU are 100% employed, and it gets the job done much faster than a dual core i3 or i5 would. More reflections, more lights, more objects, more polygons in your scene, these things will all increase rendering times. Yes, you can be efficient when lighting your scene, but at some point you may need to add more lights to make the scene work. Or you may want to render an animation, which could be as much as 30 still images per second of video.
Sometimes the art IS more important! Underbuilding always puts constraints in place. You need to figure out what you can live with and what you can't live without.
So for rendering purposes, I recommend a Core i7 processor. These are more expensive than AMD, but AMD has been in trouble lately, most recently they announced that they'll be laying off another several hundred employees. For their sake, I hope AMD's next CPU release is great, but that's not going to happen anytime soon, so I'd stick with Intel.
Core i7s are available for laptops. I have one with 4 cores in my Asus.
Core i7s are also available for desktops. I have one with 6 cores in my main desktop rendering rig.
Memory:
With the new HD meshes made available by DAZ, I would expect that memory usage will go up. This is one excellent reason to have a 64 bit operating system, so that the OS and D/S can address all the memory needed to support HD characters in your scene. If you're planning on taking your art to the next level, you may want to consider building up to 16 GB of RAM in your system. 32 is better. 64 is better yet.
I currently have 12 GB in my Asus laptop from 2011.
I have 64 GB in my desktop system which I built in January 2013.
Hard Drives:
This depends on what you need to do. I have terabytes upon terabytes, but I also have music instrument sound samples; entire orchestra pieces/parts, and these take up a lot of room. 3D art takes up a lot less space if you're just doing stills. For my DAZ runtime library of about 1500 items, here's how much disk I'm using:
--> Windows partition on C: is 248 GB and is about 75% full after almost 2 years of service.
--> Download folder for DIM: 70 GB
--> Runtime library folder for D/S: 76 GB
--> Program folders for 32 and 64 bit versions of DAZ Studio, Carrara, Hexagon 2, Bryce, etcetera: About 10 GB. If you add in other photo, drawing, painting, or content-creation programs, then you'll probably want to budget for 30-50 GB for your program folders (apps).
I have many other partitions to support the music software, website creation software, Windows Office, and much more; I haven't counted those here.
Here's my loose recommendation for DAZ and Poser with a library of up to 3,000 items:
C: Windows 8.1 and your applications: 512 GB
X: Downloads for DIM: 248 GB (I'd keep it on a separate partition from the OS, just to cut down on how long it takes to back up the OS partition).
Y: Runtime folder for DAZ and Poser: 248 GB (this can optionally be kept on the same or a different partition from the OS).
So if you are building new or completely replacing your existing drives, then a single 1 Terabyte drive would give you ample space to grow into.
You shoudn't ignore the need to back up your stuff, however. So either you'll use a cloud backup solution, or you'll need 1 or more hard drives to support several cycles of backups. I take full backups about 1 time per week, and incremental backups (only changed files) every day.
How to decide on the size of your backup drive, or "times 4":
This is just a loose estimate, but if your working disk partitions total 1 TB and it's 50% used (to start with), then you should probably also have a 2 TB backup drive. For each computer I own, I have at least TWO backup drives and I trade them off about every other month. Mine are 4TB because I have a lot of data to back up.
Adding a hard drive:
If you are thinking of ADDING a drive to give more capacity, then you'll need to decide whether or not to get an internal drive or an external drive.
Internal drives often cost less, but they plug right into a SATA port on your motherboard, which makes them pretty fast. You need to make sure you have an available SATA port on your motherboard.
External drives may cost more, but they come with an enclosure and sometimes a cable too. USB drives are really "SATA" drives inside the enclosure, but the USB interface is not as fast as a pure SATA interface, so any external drive you get will probably be slower than a similar internal drive. If your computer can take a USB 3.0 cable, then a USB 3.0 external drive will be faster than a USB 2.0 drive and you probably won't notice a lot of difference between a USB vs. a SATA drive when doing 3D art.
Graphic Cards:
The subject of GPUs is far too big to go into with any depth, but I can give you some broad strokes here and let you do further research as needed.
There are three main solutions for GPUs in modern computers, and they are Nvidia, Intel, and AMD.
Nvidia and AMD both make separate graphic cards that plug into the PCIe bus. On a laptop, the card is small and is plugged into or soldered into the motheboard. For a desktop computer, these cards will have 2, 3, or more ports on the back into which you'd plug your monitors. I have a card that can support up to 6 monitors (though only 5 plugged in now).
Intel and AMD make some CPUs that include a GPU right inside the chip! These might be called "APUs". For motherboards that are capable of taking one of these, there's a graphic port on the back that you would plug your monitor into. The main benefit here is less electricity use and one less card to maintain inside your computer. The main drawback is probably that this type of GPU can accept fewer monitors, and also generates heat on the same chip that also does your PC's main work.
AMD and Nvidia cards can do "compute" work. Depending on your rendering engine, you can possibly let your GPU share the work with the CPU. For example, Octane can use CUDA, which is available on modern Nvidia graphic cards. This can cut down on render times; especially useful for those who render for video.
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Okay, I'm exhausted now.
Upgrading Windows to 8.1 may be a great idea if you want to get more life out of your old hardware. There's an upgrade advisor on the Microsoft site. Let the upgrade advisor tell you what needs to be done and whether you have any known incompatibilities.
@Lindsey
Thank you; I know how to do a Troubleshoot compatibility - Windows 7 have it, too.
But nether Corel Draw Graphic Suit X5, Corel PaitShop Pro X3 or Corel Word Perfect X3 works with Windows 8.
I think they are to old - actual versins are X7.
btw. PaintShop Pro X3 does work with Windows 7 only with compatibility modus for XP.
And sadly, after buying a new Computer I did not have 630€ for the new Graphic Suit and 250€ for Word Perfect
I had DS under W7 32-bit. It worked really well. I have W8.1 (DS was also installed under W8, I simply got a free upgrade) - 64-bit this time - and HECK! It works wonders! I had to customise the system as it was primarily designed for touch devices, but it didn't take long. It is my favourite system so far (I have 16GB of RAM though). Frankly, not intending to blame people who complain about it, they usually did not check it thoroughly. I was dissatisfied at first, but then fiddled a bit and now you could not make me return to W7 or even XP. I also helped many people customise it and now they value it, so it just takes patience in the first place - and more tech knowledge. It is quite like XP with all the improvements of the time (including simple but ingenue things like merging all actions windows into one).
As for Windows 10... There are rumours it is because they promised free upgrades from W8 (service packs included) to W9 and don't want that now ;). Well, to me it is plain weird (every child knows 9 goes after 8 and before 10).
wow lots of food for thought. Is that the right phrase?
I have Poser Pro 2012 and the latest version of DS. I am trying to figure out what aspects of windows 7 I do not like. All I know is that I am not happy with it. I will go back and reread everything and try to respond to the questions.
Poser pro 2012. I did not upgrade for several reasons. I might upgrade to 2014 but not sure. I mainly use DS lately but might wait till 2016 comes out before upgrading Poser. No clue yet.
Here is my computer info basically showing that it has 9 gb of ram and 3.07GHz processor.
Poser pro 2012. I did not upgrade for several reasons. I might upgrade to 2014 but not sure. I mainly use DS lately but might wait till 2016 comes out before upgrading Poser. No clue yet.
Pro2012 should have few if any issues with Win 8 but like all versions of Poser, issues common to one user may not be an issue with another. Manily we found that lower versions such as P5 up through P8 and the original Pro version had varying issues with Win 8. We didn't bother to test P9 and 10 or Pro 2012 and 2014 as we had decided against upgrading to Win 8 for a variety of reasons.
is it possible to buy windows 7 ultimate?
Uhhh, no. I doubt that skipping over 9 has anything to do with Microsoft changing their mind about giving it out for free. In fact, I have not heard anything about that at all.
I am a programmer and I can see that the biggest problem with the name "Windows 9" is mostly that internally, it is very similar to "Windows 95" and "Windows 98". Some old application software will do simple text checks and may be designed to reject any attempt to install or run it on any OS whose name might resemble these old versions of Windows. This is NOT a Microsoft problem, it's the fault of the people who designed that old software, much of which has not been modernized in the last 19-20 years since the time of Windows 95.
To avoid this type of problem, it is probably a good idea for Microsoft to avoid any name beginning with "Windows 9". And "Windows Victory" probably would be a bad idea, too...
Also...to the person who was talking about Corel Paintshop and Draw X5. The current versions are X7, but the X5 versions have been available for 2 years, which is the same length of time Windows 8 has been available. The X5 versions will work just fine on Windows 8.1. If you are having trouble, then there is something else wrong, it's not an incompatibility with Windows.
Here is a question sort of related. I have an img disc image file I want to burn to a DVD. I think it is made for a CD by its size which is 769mb but I do not have any blank cds. I have an old version of Nero but the install disc is messed up, but trying to clean it with my zebra cloth from dollar tree. Do not have the time to go to a store to buy blank cds as it would take several hours just to go to a store via the bus.
edit Forgot the question, until I can have a chance to get the lastest version of Nero, what is a free or open source software that can burn img and iso files to blank dvds?
I use IMG Burn. Forget where I picked it up, but it was free and did not contain any malware or viruses. It allows me to burn ISOs to disc or to transfer from a disk to an ISO, and it works on Windows 7 as well as Windows 8.1 .
I like microburner: http://silentnight-microburner.en.softonic.com/
You can download a free iso mounter ("virtual drive") like WinCDEmu or Virtual Clone Drive, so you can mount the img or iso file to a virtual drive, which appears just like a physical CD/DVD drive then. Keep away from free Daemon Tools though, which does the same job, but seems to be a privacy risk. Remember that you will still need to burn to real CD/DVD if you want to keep a backup disk of your iso or if you want to boot from it !
I use IMG Burn. Forget where I picked it up, but it was free and did not contain any malware or viruses. It allows me to burn ISOs to disc or to transfer from a disk to an ISO, and it works on Windows 7 as well as Windows 8.1 .
Have a care with recent versions of IMG Burn. The installer has a number of unwanted PUP's (Potentially Unwanted Programs) that install automatically.
Homonyms: Windows 9 = Windows Nein, tough selling to German speaking countries? General Motors had a problem selling Chevy Novas to Spanish speaking countries as Nova roughly translated to No Go.
The only problem GM had selling Novas in Spanish-speaking countries was they couldn't keep up with the demand.
http://www.snopes.com/business/misxlate/nova.asp
I suspect the reason Windows is jumping to version 10 is because Macintosh is already there... but I have no proof of that.
Uhhh, no. I doubt that skipping over 9 has anything to do with Microsoft changing their mind about giving it out for free. In fact, I have not heard anything about that at all.
I am a programmer and I can see that the biggest problem with the name "Windows 9" is mostly that internally, it is very similar to "Windows 95" and "Windows 98". Some old application software will do simple text checks and may be designed to reject any attempt to install or run it on any OS whose name might resemble these old versions of Windows. This is NOT a Microsoft problem, it's the fault of the people who designed that old software, much of which has not been modernized in the last 19-20 years since the time of Windows 95.
To avoid this type of problem, it is probably a good idea for Microsoft to avoid any name beginning with "Windows 9". And "Windows Victory" probably would be a bad idea, too...
You know, this sounds plausible too. Some old apps have really simple algorithms, this could be an issue.
The Corel programs seem very OS sensitive for some reason, since I've had similar problems with CorelDraw in the past.
Can Norton run on Windows 8.1?
Oh okay so the problems is that there is no start menu like Windows 7, but is that really a problem or just something different?
Yes it is possible!
Some stores sell it. you can even buy it as Download-Version.
DELL also sells it pre-installed on some Computers like their Workstations or on Alienware.
just something different... and unaccustomed - it is more like using a smartphone