I was just at the Microsoft store showing my wife some Windows 8 laptops and convertibles, most with touch screens. She was instantly frustrated by the non-intuitiveness of the Modern UI (formerly known as Metro). I would have helped her out with the basics, except that I seemed to have forgotten them myself.
It takes a little getting used to, but all the elements are there. The thing I like about Windows 8 over Windows 7 is the performance optimization that Microsoft put into booting, entering and exiting sleep states, launching applications, and general task switching. For that alone, I was willing to upgrade my desktop system - but since it seems to be a big fail, I'll make due with Windows 7.
On brand new systems - and especially those with touch - I really like the new UI. No other tablet OS can meet the new Windows in terms of task switching in between programs (a simple left-flick), or multi-tasking (a left-flick and hold). After you've created a multi-tasking plane, you can adjust it by moving the separator in the middle. Additionally, you can run the OS like other tablet OS's by returning to the home screen and relaunching more applications, but Windows 8 has a very clean way of closing apps (flick from the top, and follow slowly to the bottom). You also have per-app settings by opening the charms menu (a simple right-flick) and choosing settings. The charms menu also has a search option and some other quick features.
These are the basics, and they're easy to learn. I recommend you spend the required 20 minutes to learn and appreciate what Windows 8 can do. While it's not as intuitive as putting the device in front of wife or mother, as is an iPad, it can be learned fairly quickly with some time spent - and it's well worth it, since Windows 8 with touch is much more enjoyable to use than any other tablet OS, IMHO.
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