I remember when Microsoft launched Windows NT. Microsoft said "NT" stood for "New Technology". Everyone else said it stood for "No Thanks".
Getting used to Wndows 8, and getting your applications to run on it is a pain, but once you get used to the two-step process of getting to your desktop it isn't that bad. That having been said, most businesses seem to have shunned 8 and stuck to 7 or even XP, and I heard a few months ago that Microsoft was including vouchers to switch back to 7 with all new PC purchases. The wife bought the new PCs for her business (all Windows 8 ) before the about-turn, but my media "bitsa" (ask an old biker if you don't know what a Bitsa is) will be running 7. It took me a month to get 8 and all the applications working on my main PC and I lost a shedload of old data in the process - grrrr....
In other news, I hear Amazon UK is now offering the same AutoRIP bonus Amazon US has been running for a few months now. On most mainstream albums you can download a full MP3 rip of the album as soon as you buy the CD, and using Amazon's cloud player means you can listen to the music on several (can't remember how many, sorry) registered devices - for me that's two PCs and the Droid which I play back through the audio jack into the car stereo. I can also download the MP3s onto a portable hard disk and play themback through the AV receiver. I also use the Amazon rips as stand-ins until FLAC-ing (as opposed to FRAC-ing - sorry, I'm in the oil business) the new CDs as soon as they're unwrapped, and before putting them away, hopefully for posterity.