Interesting that most of this boils down to 'its different'
I'm not sure that's fair. I'm reading three types of complaint that aren't simply "it's different":
1. It takes more steps to do things. That's not just different; it makes the UX for those tasks objectively worse, at least for a person who already knew how to do them.
2. The UI is designed for touch and is inefficient with a mouse.
3. Useful functionality, such as being able to have certain types of applications side by side or run multiple instances has been removed.
1. Valid concern if adding an extra mouse click here and there bothers you
2. Only a concern if you think that everything has to be done from the start screen/MetroUI. Everything feels just as it did in Win7 from the desktop in my experience (except Win8 is a bit faster).
3. Once again, only a concern if you intend to only use Metro apps. Windows on the desktop work just as they did in Win7 and multiple instances can be opened with a shift-click on the taskbar or right-click -> click on icon, just like Win7.
Honestly, Windows 8 has been my daily driver since consumer preview came out and after a little time acclimating myself to some of the new nuances, I found myself feeling much more productive in Windows 8 than I was in Windows 7. However, maybe that is just me and I pick up on newer UI/UX better than all of these people that have been complaining and put in the time to give it a try.
Do you work for Microsoft? Your comment:
"Valid concern if adding an extra mouse click here and there bothers you"
sure makes me think so. Yes, adding an extra click here and there is annoying, especially when it didn't add any extra functionality.
I'm not sure that's fair. I'm reading three types of complaint that aren't simply "it's different":
1. It takes more steps to do things. That's not just different; it makes the UX for those tasks objectively worse, at least for a person who already knew how to do them.
2. The UI is designed for touch and is inefficient with a mouse.
3. Useful functionality, such as being able to have certain types of applications side by side or run multiple instances has been removed.