HN user
It shouldn't be. You either use the "Media Creation Tool" which also can download the ISO or you the "Windows USB/DVD Download Tool".
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/create-reset-re... http://wudt.codeplex.com/
It's not just because they are a big company though. The "community", the industry and the government all share blame for the lack of liability for software.
Edit: It's pretty bad form to downvote new accounts becuase you disagree. Imagine if I didn't know about hellbanning.
Ask yourself what open source licenses, corporate EULAs and the NSAs defense have in common. The best hope here is that Lenovo explicitly promised someone something they didn't keep.
Get out of tech, at least for a while, it's a toxic industry. People treat each other like crap.
Your lifestyle is unsustainable and you're now paying the price. Which means you don't enjoy what your doing. You still enjoy the idea though and that's why you spend all your time planning.
Imagine if a professional soccer player suddenly didn't want to play anymore. Do you think people would go "oh, you're just procrastinating"?