This is the thing I don't get.

You can't upgrade from 32-bit Windows 7 to 64-Bit Windows 8 by using the Upgrade Assistant, whatever that is. You have to use a disc.

But can you use a legally obtained ISO image downloaded from the internet? Yes, these do exist. Microsoft has them available via Digital River.

That's because of the technology and not because of any type of licensing agreement. The upgrade assistant is an 'in place' upgrade that simply transforms your version of Windows into the next version, but keeps as much of your stuff installed as possible. So it's an actual upgrade, and not a re-installation. It's just not possible to upgrade the 32 bit installation of Windows (and any 32 bit specific software and drivers and what not you may have installed) to a 64 bit version.

64-bit-capable systems are generally sold with 64-bit Windows pre-installed; those that shipped with 32-bit are in the minority and many aren't suitable anyway (due to motherboard memory limitations or whatever). Not offering a way of changing architectures through the upgrade process eliminates potential performance and compatibility problems that would ultimately be blamed on Windows 8 rather than the computer's own limitations.

The retail Upgrade package includes both DVDs and is only slightly more expensive than purchasing the download through the Upgrade Assistant.

True, good point.

To be more precise, Win16 stuff is here only on 32-bit versions of Windows.

Yet. There _are_ technical limitations for Metro apps. And Windows Store is the only way to distribute applications for Metro. So, Valve concerns are perfectly legitimate. And it's not like they are saying something wrong.

Valve concerns are legitimate to a point, yes, but consider the root of those concerns. Is it because Steam and Steam games won't work on Win8? No. They do work, so that's not the problem.

Is it because Win8 is going to have an integrated app store? I'm thinking, yes, probably. And the reason for that is because Steam is now moving into the app market themselves. So it's reasonable that they'll feel threatened when Microsoft decides to integrate their own app store into their new OS.

Does that mean Win8 is a bad OS? I don't think so.

Disclaimer: I have not used any version of Win8 yet and therefore have no bias towards championing it.

I didn't exactly mean running 16bit applications, but I was referring to very old and outdated APIs still in Windows in order to keep backwards compatibility with applications that need those APIs.

And those technical limitations are for WinRT applications, something that Valve as a developer don't care about, and no, their complaints aren't legitimate. If we're thinking about the same technical limitations, then that is no different than the limitations imposed by Valve for games distributed via Steam... or whatever.

We can go on and on about this. :)

We'll just have to wait and see how it plays out. As I said previously I personally don't like the direction Microsoft is heading with Windows 8, so it's a platform I intend on avoiding unless I'm driven to it by necessity. But as far as whether or not any of my or Valve's or anyone else's concerns about the OS turn out to be true or not, we'll just have to see how it turns out. Personally I don't think the concerns about Windows 8 are unfounded, but we'll find out soon enough.

Windows 8 socks. There. Got that out of my system for now :)
Windows 8 socks. There. Got that out of my system for now :)

Socks? Dude, you're some die-hard fanboi. :p

Windows 8 is not bad (while I dislike that Metro stuff, but to each their own), but it's a move in a bad direction. Of course, MS can't close the desktop in a single step -- in this case Windows would be immediately irrelevant. But they can slowly, in multiple steps fade out open desktop platform -- via introduction of a new closed ecosystem, and slow deprecation of the old open ecosystem. It's hard not to see the trend in the MS actions. Windows-based Tablet PCs were open, new ARM Windows tablets are as closed as iOS devices. Windows Mobile 6.5 was open, Windows Phone 7+ is locked. Windows 7 was completely open, in Windows 8 MS introduces huge locked platform. Yes, today Windows 8 is not that bad, but when it will be that bad, it would be too late for Valve or anybody else to do something.
Steam is not the only game store in world, there are plenty of competitors, if you don't like Steam, you are free to use something else. Windows Store is the only application store on Metro. So yeah, it's very different.

^ Hey look, someone else who's capable of seeing the bigger picture here.

I really can't see how anybody concious about DRM in individual games could support Microsoft in restricting their rights and freedoms by buying Windows 8!

Granted, I have to use Windows 7 and Microsoft's closed software for college and so I fit into GOG.com's niche in the way that I am running a commercial operating system, and I can admit that it is functionally a good operating system, and I can just about tolerate the freedoms I lose compared to Linux and other truly open systems for the benefits that come with such a huge market share, but if Microsoft have their way they will trap their consumers in a permanent cage!

This is why I have urged friends contemplating the "upgrade" to save their money, and as far as I know, all of them have.

-_-

Windows Store isn't the only store in the world, if you don't like Windows Store, you can use something else.

Two examples:
You can sell the source code, for everyone to compile and deploy the application themselves using Visual Studio (the free version works just fine for this). Or, you can make your applications free in Windows Store with limited functionality, and the rest of the functionalities to be unlocked by inserting a key that users can buy on your website or your own store.

Also, note that this is Microsoft's newest application platform, through which they provide different programming language support, language projections, hundreds of new APIs, new tools, certification, testing, reporting, and various other services. These services can only be provided by the creator of the application platform.

Valve through Steam and Steamworks provide similar services which are meant to be accessed by developers who release games on Steam and use Steamworks. Do not think of Steam as a store, in the literal sense of the world. It is an application platform.

If you try to reply with the example that GG and similar places sell Steamworks titles, I already gave you a similar example regarding Windows Store.

We really can go on and on forever. :)
Well, I am not that smart. I only look at the facts that are present today. Every single thing that worked with XP, Vista and 7, work on 8. A new, modern and beautiful (not beautiful in the sense of look, but beautiful in programming sense) application platform was introduced with Windows 8 (just like Silverlight before it, just like Flash before it, just like WPF before it, just like WinForms (yes I know these aren't exactly full application platforms, more like wrappers on others that already exist, but still lets call them that since the applications built with them are very different) before it, just like Win32 before it, and so on), and that's about it.