No, it's not. It's Windows 7, with a more efficient kernel, and a full-screen start menu. Some people just can't handle change... until they use it for a few months, then they'll hate the next version.

I did nothing to make this work: http://i.imgur.com/AGShX.png

Windows 8 is a great operating system at its core. Very fast, very stable, and a lot more secure by default.

It's just ridiculous to have to switch visual interfaces from desktop to start screen to gain access to a programs list. There's no good reason to have to do it (ie it wasn't done that way due to superior design choice); and the reason it is that way, stems from mistakes that Microsoft made in the past, that left them drastically behind Android and iOS in mobile. It's an extremely simple thing made unnecessarily more complex and visually annoying for anybody doing work.

For example, if I have an Excel spreadsheet open, why on earth should I have to dive into the start screen just to pull up a list of programs? It's bad design.