Perhaps the reason why so many people, including myself occasionally, are qvetching about Windows 8 right now is because so much of what they know about previous Windows versions’ behavior and capabilities is coloring their perception and appreciation for what the new OS represents, and especially how this new OS really works. My favorite point in Thurrott’s blog is “The desktop is not the OS. It’s an app.” Yeah, sure, it’s a pain to learn to work without a Start button and menu but there are plenty of other good ways to get around Metro and the Desktop without it, too.

I think the real issue is that while Windows 8 doesn’t necessarily obviate what most people know about Windows, it does short-circuit their quick instinctual behaviors to get around inside the Windows 8 runtime environment. But hey, it’s about learning something new, which means it’s important to let go of those old, ingrained instincts and start developing new ones. It’s like exercise or learning a new skill: difficult at first, and perhaps occasionally even a little painful, but with practice and repetition new neural pathways and automatic behaviors will form. Give it time, and we’ll all start seeing Windows 8 as natural rather than “a crime against nature” or a deliberate violation of what we know and understand about Windows 7 and XP.