Need to rebuild ... should I use Win7 or Win8

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beameup

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Need to rebuild ... should I use Win7 or Win8

#1

Post by beameup » Wed Jan 24, 2018 8:53 pm

...or even 10?

Sorry as I imagine this is an oft asked question, but I looked through recent topics and didn't see a match.

I am on Win 7 and having enough problems that it is time to reimage my machine and start over. And need to determine if it is best to go with 7 again, or start with 8 or maybe even 10.

I am leaning away from 10 as it looks like it gets broken with every MS update.

So is it recommended to start with 7 or 8? What are the pros / cons?

If 8, do I start with 8 base and then upgrade to 8.1 or go with 8.1 out the gate? I do have a license for media pack on 8, but it was for original 8, not 8.1.

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Scallica

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#2

Post by Scallica » Wed Jan 24, 2018 9:57 pm

Windows 7
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Shark007

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#3

Post by Shark007 » Wed Jan 24, 2018 11:34 pm

Windows 8.1 with Media Center.
Find an ISO on the internet with media Center integrated and activate it with your own key.

Windows 8.1 is far superior to Windows 7 when it comes to video playback.
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dkrom

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#4

Post by dkrom » Thu Jan 25, 2018 12:35 am

Windows 7 especially if you have, or plan to get, any non Xbox 360 extenders.

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DavidinCT

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#5

Post by DavidinCT » Thu Jan 25, 2018 1:49 am

Personally, I would use Windows 7... Windows 8.1 version loses features. Windows 8.1 can take advantage of the store but, no apps are WMC compatible

ANd 3rd party extenders on ebay are cheap, and they all work with WIndows 7... if you go to 8.1, you can only use the 360.
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beameup

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#6

Post by beameup » Thu Jan 25, 2018 10:03 pm

dkrom wrote:Windows 7 especially if you have, or plan to get, any non Xbox 360 extenders.
I only have X360 extenders ... if that is a non-factor (for me at least) are there other reasons you would stick with 7?

beameup

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#7

Post by beameup » Thu Jan 25, 2018 10:04 pm

Shark007 wrote:Windows 8.1 with Media Center.
Find an ISO on the internet with media Center integrated and activate it with your own key.

Windows 8.1 is far superior to Windows 7 when it comes to video playback.
Thanks, at the current time I don't have any UHD content so not a factor yet for me. Any other benefits in going with Win 8 over 7. I think I read something about the extended product life so that would be one factor.

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Shark007

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#8

Post by Shark007 » Fri Jan 26, 2018 12:34 pm

If you have a (or several) Smart TV networked in your home, Windows 8.1 has better DLNA support allowing you to rightclick a video file in Windows Explorer and choose to 'Play To' any networked TV in the home. Sorry to plug my own software here but installation of my codec software on Windows 8.1 does allow MKV DLNA playback using DIrectshow for decoding.
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DavidinCT

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#9

Post by DavidinCT » Thu Feb 01, 2018 2:38 pm

Shark007 wrote:If you have a (or several) Smart TV networked in your home, Windows 8.1 has better DLNA support allowing you to rightclick a video file in Windows Explorer and choose to 'Play To' any networked TV in the home. Sorry to plug my own software here but installation of my codec software on Windows 8.1 does allow MKV DLNA playback using DIrectshow for decoding.
Right but, can you take advantage of those features with your remote inside Windows Media Center ? If the OP is using his device as a PC, that's all good but, if your using it more of a appliance, aka a dedicated HTPC, then if it does not work in WMC it's pretty worthless for a lot of people.
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joecrow

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#10

Post by joecrow » Tue Feb 06, 2018 8:29 am

Win 7, particularly if you are using or plan to use an AMD GPU. AMD no longer provide new drivers for Win 8 although still do for Win 7.

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