Your Experience with Windows 10

[ToineF]

Also keep in mind that fewer and fewer windows based computers and laptops are being sold. Most people will be just fine with a tablette or even a phone. In this new market, where does windows stand?

In terms of gaming, a 7" screen is a 7" screen. Too small, no matter what is powering it.
In terms of movies, again...a 7" screen is a 7" screen.
In terms of office stuff, I defy you to manipulate a complex Excel workbook on a little tablet.

Phones and tablets are good as consumption devices. They are not so good for creating.

Yes, 'fewer' PC's are being sold, and more tablety things are being sold. This is because most PC's are 'good enough' right now. For a lot of people, there is no compelling need to get a new one and upgrade.

A 3 year old i5 CPU does just fine. Scrapping that for a new shiny i7 brings minimal benefit for that $1500+ for a whole new box.
Along with this, more tablety things are being sold, because they are in addition to the 3 or 4 year old desktop, and not a replacement for.
Currently, I have 1 PC and 4 'tablets'. An Asus MeMo, Asus Transformer, and 2 Kindles. 4-1 purchase over the last few years. Just looking at those raw numbers, you'd obviously conclude that the PC is dying.

But the vast majority of my time is spent on the PC.

The Transformer is great as a travel device. The MeMO is going to become a kitchen recipe book. The Kindles are obviously for books.

All of us here are geeks. We will never give away our traditional PCs. But the reality is that for most people out there mobile devices will do just fine. My mom and both of my grand mothers stopped using their PC for a tablet. They can skyp with their children and they can send emails once in a while. That's good enough for them, and I saw a lot of that in my entourage.

Like Is aid, windows will never go away, but it's loosing imo a big chunk of the market. Like I wrote before, windows will be left with office work and other particular tasks.

Why do you think Microsoft is in panic mode since 2010ish. They know they have to adjust because the market has changed dramatically.

Now people will game on a console, they will do the social media stuff on mobile devices and do office work with a PC or a MAC. All of this used to be done on windows just 10 years ago. It's changing a lot.

 

[ToineF]

is windows dying tho? Imean it will never really go away and I love the fact that all the hardware and software is compatible with windows. But it just seems like it's running out of steam a bit.

Look at the amount of Win10 downloads and let me know if you still think they're "running out of steam".

it's because it's a free upgrade. That means MS is not making money out of it!

Dont get me wrong, I love windows and I love to built my own computer and play full HD games. I am just trying to be realistic and I tend to see that windows is running out of energy. The chrome books are very good alternatives to cheap windows machine and mac (unfortunately) is gaining popularity. That might be temporary tho.

Also keep in mind that fewer and fewer windows based computers and laptops are being sold. Most people will be just fine with a tablette or even a phone. In this new market, where does windows stand?

You think just because it's free to us that MS isn't making money off it by having everyone use it? Rather naïve, and short sighted.. selling information is where the real $ is at. Yes they're falling behind in mobile territory but they were never ahead there to begin with. For desktop OS, Windows is in no way shape or form, losing it's steam. I don't agree that Mac is "gaining popularity" either, Apple has been on top of the laptop game for years, and it seems to me that lately they've been losing that edge if anything.

Here have a look at this stats:
http://www.statista.com/statistics/272595/global-shipments-forecast-for-tablets-laptops-and-desktop-pcs/

it's clear that people are buying less desktop and laptops. However they are selling more tablets. That means people are switching to mobile devices to do most of their computing needs.

Yes, MS is making money off windows 10 being free. it's a no brainer. What I was referring to is that the fact that is was free, that means the adaptation of the new OS is high. Also the fact that windows8 sucked helps a lot too. I think it would have been a lot different if windows 10 was a paid OS. Actually, we will see after the one year promo is done.

 

[USAFRet]

is windows dying tho? Imean it will never really go away and I love the fact that all the hardware and software is compatible with windows. But it just seems like it's running out of steam a bit.

Look at the amount of Win10 downloads and let me know if you still think they're "running out of steam".

it's because it's a free upgrade. That means MS is not making money out of it!

Dont get me wrong, I love windows and I love to built my own computer and play full HD games. I am just trying to be realistic and I tend to see that windows is running out of energy. The chrome books are very good alternatives to cheap windows machine and mac (unfortunately) is gaining popularity. That might be temporary tho.

Also keep in mind that fewer and fewer windows based computers and laptops are being sold. Most people will be just fine with a tablette or even a phone. In this new market, where does windows stand?

You think just because it's free to us that MS isn't making money off it by having everyone use it? Rather naïve, and short sighted.. selling information is where the real $ is at. Yes they're falling behind in mobile territory but they were never ahead there to begin with. For desktop OS, Windows is in no way shape or form, losing it's steam. I don't agree that Mac is "gaining popularity" either, Apple has been on top of the laptop game for years, and it seems to me that lately they've been losing that edge if anything.

Here have a look at this stats:
http://www.statista.com/statistics/272595/global-shipments-forecast-for-tablets-laptops-and-desktop-pcs/

it's clear that people are buying less desktop and laptops. However they are selling more tablets. That means people are switching to mobile devices to do most of their computing needs.

Yes, MS is making money off windows 10 being free. it's a no brainer. What I was referring to is that the fact that is was free, that means the adaptation of the new OS is high. Also the fact that windows8 sucked helps a lot too. I think it would have been a lot different if windows 10 was a paid OS. Actually, we will see after the one year promo is done.

To me, that graph says two things.
1. The PC people already have is good enough.
2. They are adding tablets to the household mix.

My ex primarily uses her iPad. Why? Because it was 'free' with whatever cellphone crap plan she has. She still uses her laptop to actually do anything beyond Skype and Facebook.
She was also about to buy a 5 pack of Kindle Fire tablets. "Buy 4, get the 5th free!" Why? For xmas presents for the grandkids.
I talked her out of it. "No, the 6 year old does not need a tablet!" Had it not been for my voice of rationality, that would have been a 6-1 sales advantage in favor of tablets. Totally meaningless, but that what the numbers would have shown.
I'd be willing to bet that a LOT of those numbers actually represent 'toys', instead of 'computing devices'.
Buy him some LEGO instead.

All I'm saying is, you can't look at just raw sales numbers. Usage hours, and what they are using them for, is the key.

 

[jimmysmitty]

is windows dying tho? Imean it will never really go away and I love the fact that all the hardware and software is compatible with windows. But it just seems like it's running out of steam a bit.

Look at the amount of Win10 downloads and let me know if you still think they're "running out of steam".

it's because it's a free upgrade. That means MS is not making money out of it!

Dont get me wrong, I love windows and I love to built my own computer and play full HD games. I am just trying to be realistic and I tend to see that windows is running out of energy. The chrome books are very good alternatives to cheap windows machine and mac (unfortunately) is gaining popularity. That might be temporary tho.

Also keep in mind that fewer and fewer windows based computers and laptops are being sold. Most people will be just fine with a tablette or even a phone. In this new market, where does windows stand?

You think just because it's free to us that MS isn't making money off it by having everyone use it? Rather naïve, and short sighted.. selling information is where the real $ is at. Yes they're falling behind in mobile territory but they were never ahead there to begin with. For desktop OS, Windows is in no way shape or form, losing it's steam. I don't agree that Mac is "gaining popularity" either, Apple has been on top of the laptop game for years, and it seems to me that lately they've been losing that edge if anything.

Here have a look at this stats:
http://www.statista.com/statistics/272595/global-shipments-forecast-for-tablets-laptops-and-desktop-pcs/

it's clear that people are buying less desktop and laptops. However they are selling more tablets. That means people are switching to mobile devices to do most of their computing needs.

Yes, MS is making money off windows 10 being free. it's a no brainer. What I was referring to is that the fact that is was free, that means the adaptation of the new OS is high. Also the fact that windows8 sucked helps a lot too. I think it would have been a lot different if windows 10 was a paid OS. Actually, we will see after the one year promo is done.

To me, that graph says two things.
1. The PC people already have is good enough.
2. They are adding tablets to the household mix.

My ex primarily uses her iPad. Why? Because it was 'free' with whatever cellphone crap plan she has. She still uses her laptop to actually do anything beyond Skype and Facebook.
She was also about to buy a 5 pack of Kindle Fire tablets. "Buy 4, get the 5th free!" Why? For xmas presents for the grandkids.
I talked her out of it. "No, the 6 year old does not need a tablet!" Had it not been for my voice of rationality, that would have been a 6-1 sales advantage in favor of tablets. Totally meaningless, but that what the numbers would have shown.
I'd be willing to bet that a LOT of those numbers actually represent 'toys', instead of 'computing devices'.
Buy him some LEGO instead.

All I'm saying is, you can't look at just raw sales numbers. Usage hours, and what they are using them for, is the key.

Tablets also include hybrids, like the Asus Transformer or Surface/Surface Pro etc. I wouldn't be surprised if the new Surface book would not be included in Tablets. Yet I consider them laptops since they hold PC hardware and not ARM hardware.

Oh and yes, Lego are better for kids. Help to develop imagination, creativity, problem solving and building skills. Things kids who stare at tablets/TVs all day seem to lack.

 

[USAFRet]

Tablets also include hybrids, like the Asus Transformer or Surface/Surface Pro etc. I wouldn't be surprised if the new Surface book would not be included in Tablets. Yet I consider them laptops since they hold PC hardware and not ARM hardware.

Oh and yes, Lego are better for kids. Help to develop imagination, creativity, problem solving and building skills. Things kids who stare at tablets/TVs all day seem to lack.

I have a Transformer. It's great, for what it is. Small, light, running Win 10, insane battery life.
Guess what I'm using right now? Not the Transformer...

 

[ToineF]

To me, that graph says two things.
1. The PC people already have is good enough.
2. They are adding tablets to the household mix.

My ex primarily uses her iPad. Why? Because it was 'free' with whatever cellphone crap plan she has. She still uses her laptop to actually do anything beyond Skype and Facebook.
She was also about to buy a 5 pack of Kindle Fire tablets. "Buy 4, get the 5th free!" Why? For xmas presents for the grandkids.
I talked her out of it. "No, the 6 year old does not need a tablet!" Had it not been for my voice of rationality, that would have been a 6-1 sales advantage in favor of tablets. Totally meaningless, but that what the numbers would have shown.
I'd be willing to bet that a LOT of those numbers actually represent 'toys', instead of 'computing devices'.
Buy him some LEGO instead.

All I'm saying is, you can't look at just raw sales numbers. Usage hours, and what they are using them for, is the key.

That's exactly what I was saying. People are moving away from the traditional PC when it comes to social media like facebook and skype. I would bet that more than half of her emails are sent from her phone and/or tablet. The question I was asking earlier is what is left for the traditional PC?

People are using less and less their PC and more and more their tablets and phones to do simple tasks which is enough for most people.

Anyway, time will tell as to where the PC market is going, but to see MS go, it looks like the desktop's future is not looking so bright unfortunately.

 

[USAFRet]

To me, that graph says two things.
1. The PC people already have is good enough.
2. They are adding tablets to the household mix.

My ex primarily uses her iPad. Why? Because it was 'free' with whatever cellphone crap plan she has. She still uses her laptop to actually do anything beyond Skype and Facebook.
She was also about to buy a 5 pack of Kindle Fire tablets. "Buy 4, get the 5th free!" Why? For xmas presents for the grandkids.
I talked her out of it. "No, the 6 year old does not need a tablet!" Had it not been for my voice of rationality, that would have been a 6-1 sales advantage in favor of tablets. Totally meaningless, but that what the numbers would have shown.
I'd be willing to bet that a LOT of those numbers actually represent 'toys', instead of 'computing devices'.
Buy him some LEGO instead.

All I'm saying is, you can't look at just raw sales numbers. Usage hours, and what they are using them for, is the key.

That's exactly what I was saying. People are moving away from the traditional PC when it comes to social media like facebook and skype. I would bet that more than half of her emails are sent from her phone and/or tablet. The question I was asking earlier is what is left for the traditional PC?

People are using less and less their PC and more and more their tablets and phones to do simple tasks which is enough for most people.

Anyway, time will tell as to where the PC market is going, but to see MS go, it looks like the desktop's future is not looking so bright unfortunately.

Ah, but if it had not come 'free' with her cellphone thingy, she would not have one. She'd still be using the laptop.
It's only very recently that tablets and phones have become powerful enough and cheap enough to replace some of the PC functions. So of course sales are going to go up.

Whichever....consumption vs creation.
This is how we arrived at Windows 8. "One OS to rule them all"

 

[ToineF]

To me, that graph says two things.
1. The PC people already have is good enough.
2. They are adding tablets to the household mix.

My ex primarily uses her iPad. Why? Because it was 'free' with whatever cellphone crap plan she has. She still uses her laptop to actually do anything beyond Skype and Facebook.
She was also about to buy a 5 pack of Kindle Fire tablets. "Buy 4, get the 5th free!" Why? For xmas presents for the grandkids.
I talked her out of it. "No, the 6 year old does not need a tablet!" Had it not been for my voice of rationality, that would have been a 6-1 sales advantage in favor of tablets. Totally meaningless, but that what the numbers would have shown.
I'd be willing to bet that a LOT of those numbers actually represent 'toys', instead of 'computing devices'.
Buy him some LEGO instead.

All I'm saying is, you can't look at just raw sales numbers. Usage hours, and what they are using them for, is the key.

That's exactly what I was saying. People are moving away from the traditional PC when it comes to social media like facebook and skype. I would bet that more than half of her emails are sent from her phone and/or tablet. The question I was asking earlier is what is left for the traditional PC?

People are using less and less their PC and more and more their tablets and phones to do simple tasks which is enough for most people.

Anyway, time will tell as to where the PC market is going, but to see MS go, it looks like the desktop's future is not looking so bright unfortunately.

Ah, but if it had not come 'free' with her cellphone thingy, she would not have one. She'd still be using the laptop.
It's only very recently that tablets and phones have become powerful enough and cheap enough to replace some of the PC functions. So of course sales are going to go up.

Whichever....consumption vs creation.
This is how we arrived at Windows 8. "One OS to rule them all"

Well, the 'one OS' thingy has been in the works with android way before Windows. Android is now selling more devices than windows. Windows 8 sucked big time and you couldn't have universal app, unless you coded for each device.

Let's see with windows 10, they might get back in the game, but who knows. Windows phone is a joke (I have one btw), the tablets are ok, but selling very few compared to ios and android. Where is Windows headed?

 

[SpeedEnforcedByAircraft]

Personally? Currently, I run a little Mini ITX build with an AMD A10-7870K and a Radeon R7 250X, in and out of crossfire (yes, it's not officially supported, I make the two do it only for Folding@Home). I had a Windows 7 license from a previous build, and this being my first SSD based build before I make something totally awesome on the Skylake platform, I timed the boot at 11 seconds, cold boot to desktop. Upgrading to Windows 10 felt like a step backwards: Multiple displays became a hassle instead of a convenience, I don't care about apps but can't uninstall them, the Start Menu is super sluggish, the Task Manager doesn't provide nearly enough control as I would like it to, and my computer noticeably slowed down from all these sudden background services that I don't even need, without the option to disable any (touch running on non-touch monitors?). I especially hated the Control Panel, they turned it into a children's toy. I don't know where to find anything in the settings anymore. And don't get me started on Cortana. I didn't even take the risk of pushing the downgrade button; I backed up everything important and wiped the drive, and then reinstalled Windows 7. I'll probably upgrade come June 2016, but it feels highly ignorant of any desktop or power users. I can see myself enjoying W10 much more on a tablet than any desktop computer.

Seems like you spent 5 minutes and said "it's not exactly the same!" and gave up. Funny considering the Task Manager and Control Panel are pretty much identical to past windows. You're talking about "Settings", which is NOT control panel. Start menu is definitely designed for looks, but right clicking it now gives you all the good options that tech guys would want. Also multi monitors is definitely easier on Win10. Sounds like something was just wonky with your upgrade, nothing some tweaking won't fix. The background services you CAN disable, and you can tell Cortana to shut it as well.

Despite your suspicions, I stuck it out with Windows 10 for a full 2 weeks. I suppose it's because I'm a keyboard surfer, and I use shortcuts a dime a dozen, but a lot of them change in 10 for the new aspects of it. I saw that whole Settings thing there too, but isn't that redundant to have on a desktop system? As for background services, I dunno what does what, but I'm not taking any chances, and I don't believe that Cortana can be permanently shut down, they had a privacy debate about that one. I suppose the reason why it all runs slow is because I'm running it on an A10-7870K, but we'll see.

 

[Daniel Hart]

Personally? Currently, I run a little Mini ITX build with an AMD A10-7870K and a Radeon R7 250X, in and out of crossfire (yes, it's not officially supported, I make the two do it only for Folding@Home). I had a Windows 7 license from a previous build, and this being my first SSD based build before I make something totally awesome on the Skylake platform, I timed the boot at 11 seconds, cold boot to desktop. Upgrading to Windows 10 felt like a step backwards: Multiple displays became a hassle instead of a convenience, I don't care about apps but can't uninstall them, the Start Menu is super sluggish, the Task Manager doesn't provide nearly enough control as I would like it to, and my computer noticeably slowed down from all these sudden background services that I don't even need, without the option to disable any (touch running on non-touch monitors?). I especially hated the Control Panel, they turned it into a children's toy. I don't know where to find anything in the settings anymore. And don't get me started on Cortana. I didn't even take the risk of pushing the downgrade button; I backed up everything important and wiped the drive, and then reinstalled Windows 7. I'll probably upgrade come June 2016, but it feels highly ignorant of any desktop or power users. I can see myself enjoying W10 much more on a tablet than any desktop computer.

Seems like you spent 5 minutes and said "it's not exactly the same!" and gave up. Funny considering the Task Manager and Control Panel are pretty much identical to past windows. You're talking about "Settings", which is NOT control panel. Start menu is definitely designed for looks, but right clicking it now gives you all the good options that tech guys would want. Also multi monitors is definitely easier on Win10. Sounds like something was just wonky with your upgrade, nothing some tweaking won't fix. The background services you CAN disable, and you can tell Cortana to shut it as well.

Despite your suspicions, I stuck it out with Windows 10 for a full 2 weeks. I suppose it's because I'm a keyboard surfer, and I use shortcuts a dime a dozen, but a lot of them change in 10 for the new aspects of it. I saw that whole Settings thing there too, but isn't that redundant to have on a desktop system? As for background services, I dunno what does what, but I'm not taking any chances, and I don't believe that Cortana can be permanently shut down, they had a privacy debate about that one. I suppose the reason why it all runs slow is because I'm running it on an A10-7870K, but we'll see.

Fair enough. I can see how if you're a shortcut guy it would be hard to adapt to. And it's DEFINITELY redundant to have "Settings" which is basically like you said a super dumbed down version of Control Panel. But just wanted to make sure you knew C.P is still there, and is the same as before! As for Cortana, she's been quiet as a mouse since I disabled her, and I haven't even seen the name "Cortana" at all since then.

EDIT: Just saw this on PC world, which if true, is super disappointing to me:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/2991394/windows/the-windows-control-panel-will-eventually-be-killed-says-microsoft.html

 

[jimmysmitty]

To me, that graph says two things.
1. The PC people already have is good enough.
2. They are adding tablets to the household mix.

My ex primarily uses her iPad. Why? Because it was 'free' with whatever cellphone crap plan she has. She still uses her laptop to actually do anything beyond Skype and Facebook.
She was also about to buy a 5 pack of Kindle Fire tablets. "Buy 4, get the 5th free!" Why? For xmas presents for the grandkids.
I talked her out of it. "No, the 6 year old does not need a tablet!" Had it not been for my voice of rationality, that would have been a 6-1 sales advantage in favor of tablets. Totally meaningless, but that what the numbers would have shown.
I'd be willing to bet that a LOT of those numbers actually represent 'toys', instead of 'computing devices'.
Buy him some LEGO instead.

All I'm saying is, you can't look at just raw sales numbers. Usage hours, and what they are using them for, is the key.

That's exactly what I was saying. People are moving away from the traditional PC when it comes to social media like facebook and skype. I would bet that more than half of her emails are sent from her phone and/or tablet. The question I was asking earlier is what is left for the traditional PC?

People are using less and less their PC and more and more their tablets and phones to do simple tasks which is enough for most people.

Anyway, time will tell as to where the PC market is going, but to see MS go, it looks like the desktop's future is not looking so bright unfortunately.

Ah, but if it had not come 'free' with her cellphone thingy, she would not have one. She'd still be using the laptop.
It's only very recently that tablets and phones have become powerful enough and cheap enough to replace some of the PC functions. So of course sales are going to go up.

Whichever....consumption vs creation.
This is how we arrived at Windows 8. "One OS to rule them all"

Well, the 'one OS' thingy has been in the works with android way before Windows. Android is now selling more devices than windows. Windows 8 sucked big time and you couldn't have universal app, unless you coded for each device.

Let's see with windows 10, they might get back in the game, but who knows. Windows phone is a joke (I have one btw), the tablets are ok, but selling very few compared to ios and android. Where is Windows headed?

Android as a One OS was only done after HoneyComb, which was a tablet OS then they finally had one OS. Even so, Android is not quite as powerful as Windows and they way Microsoft is doing it is way before anyone else, with unified apps on the different platforms and Continuum.

I like Windows Phone over Android. Even after almost 2 years my wifes HTC One M8 with Phone 8.1 is still as fast as it was the day she got it yet even my Galaxy S6 shows signs of slow down, an issue that has plagued Android for the longest time.

 

[ToineF]

I like Windows Phone over Android. Even after almost 2 years my wifes HTC One M8 with Phone 8.1 is still as fast as it was the day she got it yet even my Galaxy S6 shows signs of slow down, an issue that has plagued Android for the longest time.

Ironically the main criticism of windows is exactly that.

But you know very well like me that better doesn't always mean the winner.

 

[jimmysmitty]

I like Windows Phone over Android. Even after almost 2 years my wifes HTC One M8 with Phone 8.1 is still as fast as it was the day she got it yet even my Galaxy S6 shows signs of slow down, an issue that has plagued Android for the longest time.

Ironically the main criticism of windows is exactly that.

But you know very well like me that better doesn't always mean the winner.

Windows Mobiles biggest issue are apps. Hopefully will be fixed in 10.

As for slow downs, since 8 I have not experienced that like I did with 7 and previous. Maybe it is how 8/10 handle themselves in the background more efficiently or it is just better designed.

 

[hst101rox]

In order to upgrade to Windows 10 for me, I'd like more than just 49 color options for the color of the task bar, start menu and the borders around windows. Windows 7 and 8 has an infinite selection of colors.
Also, the start menu. It has been a while since i have tested it, but it was with the RTM version or later. My 'all programs' are sorted with some subdirectories and sub-subdirectories. This hierarchy does not display with the win10 start menu, even though the directories are still there. I believe it lists it as one long list of shortcuts and files (if I have anything else than shortcuts there). Also, not all files and shortcuts in this hierarchy are visible in the start menu! Some just don't show up.
Installing Start10 and enabling the Windows 7 start menu, it works fine.
So really it's just the color selection. I don't understand why Microsoft would TAKE AWAY the infinite color options.

And yes you can completely disable Windows Updates by disabling the service. and Windows Defender by renaming the executables while in safe mode.

 

[gangrel]

And yes you can completely disable Windows Updates by disabling the service. and Windows Defender by renaming the executables while in safe mode.

There's another way to disable Defender. Defender was irritating me...wanting to scan my system, saying "oh, it's not safe!" Horse hooey. A bit of searching, and bingo. You can use the group policy editor to do this.

Microsoft needs to understand something. Actually...so does BitDefender, to a degree. Both of them throw out alarms MUCH too easily. When we get bombarded with "your PC may be at risk!" or, in BitDefender's case, a red flag, and a notification because its definition update failed *one time*...and BitDefender updates frequently...it's the boy who cried wolf. Oh, it's just that damn, pointless one again, I won't even bother looking. Not a great idea.

On the "will Windows die?"...no. Steam threatens consoles, IMO, more than PCs. I also agree that PC hardware has matured. The last couple of generations haven't shown big performance gains; they've shown major efficiency improvements. Overall system prices are way down, for general-purpose systems...integrated graphics can easily replace any external card. But these aren't reasons for upgrades...especially for companies buying 1000 of them. I also suspect that a generally slow economy for the last several years has forced businesses to retain existing systems.

As far as tablets go...I don't necessarily see the rosy future. Tablet hardware isn't mature; it does consistently improve. But how many new models are we seeing? Of them, how many are moving to a laptop sans keyboard, with 9 and 10 inch screens? A point was made that tablets are best suited as content consumers...yeah, well, Amazon sells Fire tablets as a hook into their ecosystem. Content consumption. On the go. They're no threat to a desktop.

It probably is true that Windows will lose its Rhonda Rousey armbar-level grip in the overall market. There may be a fracturing among conventional desktops, gaming boxes/consoles, and portables...but Windows has a leg up even here, in terms of trying to develop interoperability. But, never lose sight of one thing: the average office worker uses a Windows desktop PC running Office. That's a massive, monolithic core user base that will not defect; there is no real viable alternative for them. Switching OSs means switching apps, which means converting content and retraining users. That's a big, fat, LOUD

NO!

because those costs, plus productivity losses during any changeover, are much, much greater. This is why businesses are insanely conservative, in part, about migrating.

 

[TJohn]

Installed in TS140 Lenovo server, Old Dell Optiplex GX520/Pent-D/2006, HP G60 laptop, ASUS i7 laptop, wife's 5yr old Acer laptop.
All have Samsung SSD primary drives. Server has multiple internal and external TB drives.
Had ONE issue. Windows latest driver for the old broadcom 57XX on-board Ethernet chip had to be rolled back. The new one did not work. Others report the same for this model broadcom. I anticipate a new driver. Old one works fine.
The only negative to me is loss of control over updates...when/disable, etc. I do not understand why ms has done this.

 

[jimmysmitty]

And yes you can completely disable Windows Updates by disabling the service. and Windows Defender by renaming the executables while in safe mode.

There's another way to disable Defender. Defender was irritating me...wanting to scan my system, saying "oh, it's not safe!" Horse hooey. A bit of searching, and bingo. You can use the group policy editor to do this.

Microsoft needs to understand something. Actually...so does BitDefender, to a degree. Both of them throw out alarms MUCH too easily. When we get bombarded with "your PC may be at risk!" or, in BitDefender's case, a red flag, and a notification because its definition update failed *one time*...and BitDefender updates frequently...it's the boy who cried wolf. Oh, it's just that damn, pointless one again, I won't even bother looking. Not a great idea.

On the "will Windows die?"...no. Steam threatens consoles, IMO, more than PCs. I also agree that PC hardware has matured. The last couple of generations haven't shown big performance gains; they've shown major efficiency improvements. Overall system prices are way down, for general-purpose systems...integrated graphics can easily replace any external card. But these aren't reasons for upgrades...especially for companies buying 1000 of them. I also suspect that a generally slow economy for the last several years has forced businesses to retain existing systems.

As far as tablets go...I don't necessarily see the rosy future. Tablet hardware isn't mature; it does consistently improve. But how many new models are we seeing? Of them, how many are moving to a laptop sans keyboard, with 9 and 10 inch screens? A point was made that tablets are best suited as content consumers...yeah, well, Amazon sells Fire tablets as a hook into their ecosystem. Content consumption. On the go. They're no threat to a desktop.

It probably is true that Windows will lose its Rhonda Rousey armbar-level grip in the overall market. There may be a fracturing among conventional desktops, gaming boxes/consoles, and portables...but Windows has a leg up even here, in terms of trying to develop interoperability. But, never lose sight of one thing: the average office worker uses a Windows desktop PC running Office. That's a massive, monolithic core user base that will not defect; there is no real viable alternative for them. Switching OSs means switching apps, which means converting content and retraining users. That's a big, fat, LOUD

NO!

because those costs, plus productivity losses during any changeover, are much, much greater. This is why businesses are insanely conservative, in part, about migrating.

I have been using MSE/WD since launched as my primary scan system with MBAM and SAS as secondary scanners. I also keep a thumb drive filled with portable scanners just in case. I rarely get bugged by MSE/WD to do anything. In fact that is one of the reasons I like it, it also has the lowest false positive rate of any system I have ever used. Not sure why you keep getting flags, maybe you are going to sites or downloading bad programs.

As for the migration, I think it is overblown. My wife went from 7 to 10 and seems to have easily adopted it. She also seems to be fine with 8.1 for the most part.

In my job we are in the sand, gravel and construction business. The majority of people we work with are not by any means tech savvy. Just turning on a PC is high tech for them. And the office people are not much better. But we have been moving them all to Windows 8.1 and none have seemed to have massive issues learning to navigate it. It is not that vastly different apart from the Start Screen.

If low brow construction workers can learn to us 8.1 then office workers can. They are just stubborn.

 

[USAFRet]

As for the migration, I think it is overblown. My wife went from 7 to 10 and seems to have easily adopted it. She also seems to be fine with 8.1 for the most part.

Exactly. We recently went on vacation, and the two laptops we took are both Win 10.
The wife currently uses Win 7 at home. I gave her one of the devices, and off she went.
No learning curve needed.

People use applications, not the OS.

 

[LetsPlayThisBro]

As for the migration, I think it is overblown. My wife went from 7 to 10 and seems to have easily adopted it. She also seems to be fine with 8.1 for the most part.

Exactly. We recently went on vacation, and the two laptops we took are both Win 10.
The wife currently uses Win 7 at home. I gave her one of the devices, and off she went.
No learning curve needed.

People use applications, not the OS.

But you have to admit Win8 had a learning curve and was way too slanted towards touchscreens. I still say they should just make 2 OS's one for touchscreen and one for kbm. Or even a toggle switch option to pick one or the other. I think Win10 is like that but I've never used it yet so don't know. But that would have been the best option IMHO.

 

[USAFRet]

As for the migration, I think it is overblown. My wife went from 7 to 10 and seems to have easily adopted it. She also seems to be fine with 8.1 for the most part.

Exactly. We recently went on vacation, and the two laptops we took are both Win 10.
The wife currently uses Win 7 at home. I gave her one of the devices, and off she went.
No learning curve needed.

People use applications, not the OS.

But you have to admit Win8 had a learning curve and was way too slanted towards touchscreens. I still say they should just make 2 OS's one for touchscreen and one for kbm. Or even a toggle switch option to pick one or the other. I think Win10 is like that but I've never used it yet so don't know. But that would have been the best option IMHO.

Which they mostly reverted with Win 8.1, and reverted even more with Win 10.

I have Win 10 on multiple devices, both touch and non-touch screen. It acts just the same.

 

[LetsPlayThisBro]

As for the migration, I think it is overblown. My wife went from 7 to 10 and seems to have easily adopted it. She also seems to be fine with 8.1 for the most part.

Exactly. We recently went on vacation, and the two laptops we took are both Win 10.
The wife currently uses Win 7 at home. I gave her one of the devices, and off she went.
No learning curve needed.

People use applications, not the OS.

But you have to admit Win8 had a learning curve and was way too slanted towards touchscreens. I still say they should just make 2 OS's one for touchscreen and one for kbm. Or even a toggle switch option to pick one or the other. I think Win10 is like that but I've never used it yet so don't know. But that would have been the best option IMHO.

Which they mostly reverted with Win 8.1, and reverted even more with Win 10.

I have Win 10 on multiple devices, both touch and non-touch screen. It acts just the same.

Agreed, 8.1 was good, so other than the privacy issues going on with 10, which with some work can be worked around, 10 is a win for MS.

 

[jimmysmitty]

As for the migration, I think it is overblown. My wife went from 7 to 10 and seems to have easily adopted it. She also seems to be fine with 8.1 for the most part.

Exactly. We recently went on vacation, and the two laptops we took are both Win 10.
The wife currently uses Win 7 at home. I gave her one of the devices, and off she went.
No learning curve needed.

People use applications, not the OS.

But you have to admit Win8 had a learning curve and was way too slanted towards touchscreens. I still say they should just make 2 OS's one for touchscreen and one for kbm. Or even a toggle switch option to pick one or the other. I think Win10 is like that but I've never used it yet so don't know. But that would have been the best option IMHO.

Yes but again the fact that the commoner working class I work with can figure it out without me intervening tells me that most normal people who learn to pick up and adopt a new interface in a Smartphone can also learn Windows 8.1 and even more 10 will be easier to learn.

 

[LetsPlayThisBro]

As for the migration, I think it is overblown. My wife went from 7 to 10 and seems to have easily adopted it. She also seems to be fine with 8.1 for the most part.

Exactly. We recently went on vacation, and the two laptops we took are both Win 10.
The wife currently uses Win 7 at home. I gave her one of the devices, and off she went.
No learning curve needed.

People use applications, not the OS.

But you have to admit Win8 had a learning curve and was way too slanted towards touchscreens. I still say they should just make 2 OS's one for touchscreen and one for kbm. Or even a toggle switch option to pick one or the other. I think Win10 is like that but I've never used it yet so don't know. But that would have been the best option IMHO.

Yes but again the fact that the commoner working class I work with can figure it out without me intervening tells me that most normal people who learn to pick up and adopt a new interface in a Smartphone can also learn Windows 8.1 and even more 10 will be easier to learn.

Compared to 8... 8.1 was a lot more intuitive. I'm saying 8 was where the hardest learning curve happened. Taking out the Start button was about as stupid as Coca-Cola changing it's formula. Both returned after that misstep. It didn't hurt Windows as much if only because so many OS purchases are automatic based on the hardware you buy. I know a lot of people who buy a new PC or laptop when a new OS comes out. Then again I know of at least one person still on XP and he's not a tech type who just prefers it, he just didn't need a more powerful machine, until recently now he's shopping.

 

[vesp3r]

I got Win 10 on my office computer, windows 8.1 on my personal laptop, windows 7 on work laptop and windos xp on my old desktop... Comparing them for some time and i dont see much changed things. I dont struggle at all learning any of those OS but for some reason i just dislike win10. I was hardcore win7 supporter when 8 came out, then the 8.1 tempted me into try it and i quickly got used to its features and stayed on it... i cant say the same for windows 10 however. Its true i had alot of issues when i first upgraded to 10 but i doubt that set my mind as i had issues with 8.1 upgrade too. Who knows, maybe when they release SP and few more updates i might actually like it, but for now there are only 2 things i like about it - Edge and dx12

 

[LetsPlayThisBro]

I got Win 10 on my office computer, windows 8.1 on my personal laptop, windows 7 on work laptop and windos xp on my old desktop... Comparing them for some time and i dont see much changed things. I dont struggle at all learning any of those OS but for some reason i just dislike win10. I was hardcore win7 supporter when 8 came out, then the 8.1 tempted me into try it and i quickly got used to its features and stayed on it... i cant say the same for windows 10 however. Its true i had alot of issues when i first upgraded to 10 but i doubt that set my mind as i had issues with 8.1 upgrade too. Who knows, maybe when they release SP and few more updates i might actually like it, but for now there are only 2 things i like about it - Edge and dx12

Are they coding any games to DX12 yet? I mean I game a lot so I do feel kind of stuck to going to Win10 at some point, but I'm not sure how useful it is right now. I don't think I'll ever go for another browser, I'm too attached to Google Chrome.