I'm thinking of migrating to Windows 8. At first I hated it, but I'm pretty sure the Windows 8 model is the future, and I don't particularly want to end up hating the future like my parents, frustrated and bewildered by anything past Windows XP.

I'm currently running Windows 7 and my system has been accumulating some problems. It's probably an accumulation of issues from installing too much software, changing firewall settings, installing Ubuntu alongside Windows, and... well I'm not sure, but my computer has been buggy in unexpected ways lately (freezing and unfreezing, display driver crashing and recovering, and what I call "deep freeze/thaw cycle" where the mouse won't even move for a while).

I'm good at solving computer problems, but I can't seem to get to the root of these and my best idea for fixing them is making sure I've backed up every file then re-installing the entire OS. Luckily for me, a new OS is just around the corner so this would be a good time to get two things out of the way at once. The problem I see is that the upgrade options I see are all "seamless". I don't want a seamless upgrade. I want to wipe the slate clean and start all over.

Does this mean I will have to buy a full, new copy of Windows 8 rather than one of the cheaper upgrading options? Or does it not make since for me to go to Windows 8 given that I have a laptop, not a tablet? Maybe I should just re-install Windows 7, or even call good enough good enough, try to eliminate the bugs, and start with a fresh slate in 2-3 years after this computer eventually dies entirely from (inevitable) hardware failure.

What would be the advantages or disadvantages and costs of each option, how would I go about upgrading to Windows 8 if that's the option I choose, and what is your personal opinion about my situation?