Dia on 2/6/2015 at 15:46
Imagine my surprise to logon to my PC this morning and find this offer available. Anybody else here get the little (white) Windows icon (offering a free Windows 10 upgrade) in their task tray? Of course, the actual downloading of Windows 10 won't be available til July 29th, but I thought, why not? I'd read (somewhere) that Windows 7, which is what I've been using since I got my newer PC, will be transitioned out (as in no new updates, etc.) much faster than any other previous Windows OS has been in the past, so I decided it would be a good idea to sign up for the upgrade asap. One of my concerns is how compatible the games I've been playing will be with Windows 10, though. I can't seem to find any FAQs on that subject. I just read that Microsoft is offering this free upgrade to "hundreds of millions of people"; sounds like a real deal, considering that it'll cost around $120 if you have to buy it outright. One thing I do know is that one of the first things I'll disable is 'Cortana'; sorry, but Siri has proven aggravating enough, imo. :p
At first I thought this might be some kind of scam, but after having read that the offer is for real I'm somewhat more reassured. I think. Thoughts, please?
P.S. Please keep in mind that I am NOT tech-savvy and refer to my TTLG buddies for that kind of advice on a regular basis.
Renzatic on 2/6/2015 at 16:41
It's legit, and I'm using Win10 now. It pretty much adds in everything I've wanted to see in Windows: an expose-alike, virtual desktops, smaller taskbar. The new browser is slick as hell (though I want my extensions, damnit :mad:), and even Cortana is surprisingly useful. The only thing it doesn't fix is Windows always spotty font rendering. But hell, I'm used to that by now.
I'd say it's worth the upgrade.
heywood on 2/6/2015 at 16:54
Microsoft's planned end-of-life date for Windows 7 is 14 Jan 2020, so you don't have to worry about going without critical updates and security fixes if you decide not to upgrade.
For Windows 8 users, this offer seems like a no-brainer. But for Windows 7 users who aren't interested in Metro apps and the Microsoft app store, I don't really see the point in upgrading.
They're making a big push to get everyone off of Windows 7 for some reason that isn't entirely clear yet. People are speculating that they're desperate to get their app store to take off. But the way to do that is to sell more Windows tablets, not to jam it down the throats of desktop and laptop users who aren't that keen on touch-optimized apps anyway.
I'm going to take a wait and see attitude about Windows 10 and the upgrade offer, which is supposedly going to be available for a year. But most likely I'll just stick to Windows 7 until I need to buy a new laptop.
Renzatic on 2/6/2015 at 17:02
Quote Posted by heywood
For Windows 8 users, this offer seems like a no-brainer. But for Windows 7 users who aren't interested in Metro apps and the Microsoft app store, I don't really see the point in upgrading.
If there's one good thing about Windows 8 that's been carried over to Windows 10, it'd be the leaner memory footprint, and surprisingly substantial boost in performance. Plus there's the fact Win10 will be the last big version OS, with all the updates being delivered iteratively in a rolling release fashion. And lastly, you can reset the OS back to its initial install state with the touch of a button, without having to rely on recovery media a'la Win8.
Oh, and completely redesigned control panel. HALLELUJAH!
Yeah, on the surface it looks like fancier Windows 7 with some extra UI bling, but there are good reasons to grab it. I mean comeon, it's free for a year.
DiMarzio on 2/6/2015 at 17:28
And it says that you can download it once it's available and install it when you feel like it, so no reason not to sign up. Just dump it in your Dropbox or whatever and start burning it to DVDs like a maniac once Win10 gets commercial :sly:
Volitions Advocate on 2/6/2015 at 17:28
Been using Win 10 Tech Preview for a few months now. (Insider preview now)
Currently on build 10074 and I'm hooked. Had it on my laptop up to this point but I just upgraded my desktop from W7. I really like 10 even if I'm not huge on the Metro apps. It is a bit weird jumping straight into it having never used windows 8, but the learning curve isn't too steep.
Renzatic on 2/6/2015 at 18:15
Going on the slow ring, huh? I'm on the cutting edge, with the new icons, and cleaned up UI.
...which flakes out on me on occasion. WOOO!
And you know, Metro/Modern apps aren't so bad when you can run them in a window. That was the thing that made Win8 so bad. The big start screen didn't bother me so much, but having two different types of apps that required two different sets of controls and two different ways to manage them was kinda janky to say the least. Win10 fixes that, and probably takes it a bit too far back in the direction of the desktop, because a lot of people are saying Win8 still offers up the better touchscreen experience, even with tablet mode/Continuum/whatever it's called.
faetal on 2/6/2015 at 18:18
Quote Posted by heywood
They're making a big push to get everyone off of Windows 7 for some reason that isn't entirely clear yet.
Probably the same reason they pulled support for XP when they realised their newer operating systems weren't moving units the way they wanted. As a developer friend of mine once said "Windows' biggest competitor is Windows". XP was a great OS after the SPs went in, so Vista tanked and even the very decent W7 dragged it heels. My guess is that W7 is stealing sales from 8/8.1 and they are worried it might eat into W10, which would be murder for their shareholders.
Renzatic on 2/6/2015 at 18:20
I think it's because MS wants everyone on a common code base for the sake of simplicity. That, and they want to kiss everyone's asses after 8 ticked so many people off.
Caradavin on 2/6/2015 at 18:31
I'm getting it. I am surprised that I'm getting it because I normally shun new OS's until the kinks are all worked out. But, this time, I'm going for it. :sly:
