sqwabb

"There is nothing wrong with your computer. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are controlling transmission. ... We will control the horizontal. We will control the vertical. For the next hour (if you're lucky!), sit quietly and we will control all that you see and hear. You are about to experience the awful and mysterious way Microsoft automatically updates Windows, which reaches from the inner mind to... The Outer Limits of your patience!"

Apologies to the classic Outer Limits TV series -- see the 1963 opening ►

I can tweak Windows 8 to be fairly unobtrusive. I can disable, and hide the Metro/Modern interface. I can run Windows versions of most of the opensource programs I use in Ubuntu Linux. And I do like how fast Windows 8 boots up, and shuts down, But one thing I don't like is the awful way Windows 8 handles automatic operating system updates -- the same as Windows 7, which was the same way updates were handled in Windows Vista: When you least expect it, instead of your laptop shutting off, it informs you that it is "Configuring Windows updates," and whatever you do, "Do not turn off your computer." Both Ubuntu Linux, and Apple's Mac OS X can perform system updates in the background while you -- the User -- are using your computer. Windows does not seem to be able to install system updates while the User is logged in. You can't actually turn this off, but you can turn it down a little.