Useful to have tweaks! Note the taskbar previews are a Windows 7 (or possibly Windows Vista) introduction. I found quite a lot of difference upgrading from XP to 7 (e.g., locating all the settings in the control panel).

I'm not a fan of Mac-style-candy. Though I think 8 is a bit more minimalist than 7 in that they've dropped the see-through appearance for windows.