The year is drawing to a close, so there’s a very good chance that you now find yourself staring straight down the gaping maw of Windows 8. Maybe someone gave you a new Windows tablet or PC as a gift.

It's now too late to whine about the user interface changes in Windows 8. They may be "confusing" and put a "cognitive burden" on ordinary users, but for now at least, these changes are there to stay.

Senior writer Seth Rosenblatt covered Google and security for CNET News, with occasional forays into tech and pop culture. Formerly a CNET Reviews senior editor for software, he has written about ...