Windows 8 Interface Alienates Enterprise: Report

According to a new report, just one in four enterprise users are planning to upgrade to Microsoft's new Windows 8 any time soon. In fact, these users are only half as excited about Windows 8 as they were about Windows 7 in 2009.

Enterprise software is used in large organizations, such as private corporations and government agencies. A huge part of Microsoft's Windows revenue depends on these kinds of organizations buying Windows licenses in bulk.

Only 24% of Enterprise Users Plan to Upgrade to Windows 8

That's why it's bad news to hear that of 1,200 North American and European information technology (IT) hardware purchasers polled by Forrester Research, only 24 per cent said they had plans to migrate their systems to Windows 8.

Back in 2009, 49 per cent of these software buyers had plans in place to migrate their systems to Windows 7. Put another way, enterprise buyers are only about half as interested in upgrading now as they were back then.

In fact, just 4 per cent of respondents said they had plans to migrate to Windows 8 in the next twelve months. (Source: zdnet.com)

Migration Schedules, Interface Changes Present Problems

Part of the reason for this tepid enthusiasm is that many companies have only recently migrated to Windows 7, so they're in no way interested in yet another migration to Windows 8 so soon.

"Most companies are still in the midst of their Windows 7 migrations, or have only finished them," noted Forrester Research analyst David Johnson.

"They don't have the time or the money for another Windows migration." (Source: computerworld.com)

But Johnson believes there are other reasons why enterprise users are reluctant to move toward Windows 8. For one thing, some organizations are concerned about the lack of relevant applications in the new Windows Store.

But an even bigger concern is the vastly different interface prominent in Windows 8, and the prospect of having to train employees to use it.

"IT professionals are not quite sure how their users will accept the UI," Johnson said. (Source: computerworld.com)

"The loss of familiar attributes like the Start button for navigation, or the potential for confusion between apps running on the legacy Windows desktop and those running in the new Windows 8 interface, will cause disorientation and frustration," Johnson added.