8.1 released

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Leif
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8.1 released

Post by Leif »

BBC News - Windows 8.1 set for global release

"Servers ready to dispense the update are scheduled to be turned on at 07:00 New York time (12:00 BST). The update is free to those already running Windows 8. Charges will apply if users upgrade to 8.1 from Windows 7."
Leif

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Rudi
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Re: 8.1 released

Post by Rudi »

Excellent!
TX.
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Rudi

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JoeP
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Re: 8.1 released

Post by JoeP »

Along with many updated Windows Store apps.

Joe
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Jay Freedman
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Re: 8.1 released

Post by Jay Freedman »

I expected the Windows Store servers to be swamped today, but the download started immediately and finished in good time. That means either that MS allocated enough bandwidth or that there aren't a lot of people trying to get the upgrade today. I wonder which it is...

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silverback
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Re: 8.1 released

Post by silverback »

A neighbour has asked how difficult it's going to be to install 8.1 over Windows 8. Anyone know how easy/difficult it will be, please?
Thanks
Silverback

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Jay Freedman
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Re: 8.1 released

Post by Jay Freedman »

For me, it was extremely easy. After the 3.5 GB (!) download finished -- how long that takes depends, of course, on your connection speed -- there were only a few places where keyboard input was needed. If you have a Microsoft account and want to use it, you need to enter your password. (It's possible to use a local account, but MS makes that as difficult as they can.) I chose to use the custom setup rather than the "express", so that I could turn off some of the more intrusive personal-info requests, but that could be done after the installation is completed. It took about an hour and a couple of automatic reboots to finish the installation, but most of the time I ignored it.

The upgrade kept all of my installed programs and data files. (As should be a requirement, I did an image backup before starting, so I could have restored Windows 8 if anything had gone wrong.) The only program that wasn't happy was Start Menu 8 (from IObit), which probably needed an update; instead, I switched to Classic Shell.

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Cah
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Re: 8.1 released

Post by Cah »

Is there any way to get the download without signing in to the Windows Store? I don't want to get tied up with up a Windows account.

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Jay Freedman
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Re: 8.1 released

Post by Jay Freedman »

Cah wrote:Is there any way to get the download without signing in to the Windows Store? I don't want to get tied up with up a Windows account.
Only if you have an MSDN or TechNet subscription, or a Volume Licensing agreement.

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Cah
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Re: 8.1 released

Post by Cah »

I think C/Net found a way - use an iso

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Jay Freedman
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Re: 8.1 released

Post by Jay Freedman »

Interesting. I don't think that's what MS intended. :evilgrin:

The MSDN and TechNet downloads are also iso files. I don't know whether they're exactly the same as what you get with this "trick" install.