To encourage better take-up Windows 10 is to be provided free-of- charge ti existing Wkndows 7 & 8 licensees:-

 

 

http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-30924022

 

N

Edited 21 January, 201511 yr by Clunkclick

I've tried the release candidate/ beta version of 10. I'ts ****.

I like the idea of Cortina though; I'm a sucker for old Fords.

Cortana

 

 

Whiff of desperation from the Microsoft campus anyone????? 

 

If Win10 turns out to be as big a lemon as Win8, M$ will be in deep poo, take up of Win8/8.1 is around 10% with 99% of business users shunning it.

 

After burning their bridges by stopping Win7 sales late last year, M$ are betting EVERYTHING on Win10.

But it's only free for the first year. 

 

What happens when it comes to pay for it?  Do they brick the computer until you've paid or revert back to the original OS?

I would imagine that after you have upgraded..Then you will receive full support

As I read it, anyone that upgrades within the first years gets to keep it, if you upgrade after one year of it's release you'll need to pay.

 

Be curious to see how it handles it as windows always seems happier on a clean install rather than an upgrade. Hopefully it'll be possible to upgrade once and then use that key for a clean install.

There's been a mis-interpretation. It's not that it's free for the first year and then you pay, but that it's free if you upgrade within the first year of it being released.

Direct from Microsoft - "a free upgrade for Windows 10 will be made available to customers running Windows 7, Windows 8.1, and Windows Phone 8.1 who upgrade in the first year after launch.*

This is more than a one-time upgrade: once a Windows device is upgraded to Windows 10, we will continue to keep it current for the supported lifetime of the device – at no cost."

If it ain't broke, fix it 'til it is.

It's ok, I like the tech preview. Although I have now deleted the VM.

 

MS are also gambling on the cloud to bring sunshine

 

MS is the only viable mass platform. It will work on OEM sales alone. Why?

 

Apple to dam expensive; hardware lock trend is scary,  and just as bad for 'charging', if not worse. Linux isn't ready for the mass market consumables; yet!

 

I say this as a user of computers since my first one in a hardboard case a while ago, when wood was the in thing for cases. So using dos, multiuser dos, windows, *nix, linux and apple. Windows still has a place, the psychological market share... heck I even brought a lic (8.1) just to use native excel, because it works and works with 98% of other business users who send me excel macro sheets which barf in libreoffice.

 

Selling my mac stuff, now almost totally (barring vm's) embedded in linux. But that's because I can. I'm gambling in 20years time I won't be having to edit conf file s to make my mouse buttons work though, something that did work before I wiped windows of it

 

The only thing I'd recommend, is not to stay on old versions of windows. Dam the cost, keep up. As a web developer I'm pretty close to declaring no support for IE. It's just a pain and has been since http was born.

I'm OK with Windows 8.1

 

For the way I use the computer, once a day hitting of the news and weather sites, a bit if browsing and a some posting on here its fine - no touch screen, just a wireless keyboard with a touchpad. I got all the heavyweight MS applications as a block of tiles, if and when I use them.

 

The idea, in Windows 10, that  app tiles can be grouped into  their own user designated scalable windows running off the Start button is even better for me - less work on the touchpad. 

 

And, Cortana, in a non-office environment, with low background noise seems good - now if they could combine that with gesture control, to me, that would be ideal and really powerfull.

 

They need to get together with the motor manufacturers to produce a voice/gesture controllled in-car infotainment/comms/vehicle control and diagnosis front-end.

 

Cortana telling me that 'Your petrol fuel filter will go unserviceable in 3 days  5 hours on the outbound leg of your annual holiday, you should replace it now" would have great utility for me (See my recent post in the Mk 1 Fabia forum".

 

N.

So...Will you be able to just go onto the MS Win 10 website and download it after you have verified that youre running a pucka MS Windows 7 or 8?

No.

 

I usually give it a couple of years, see what the feed back is and then do it.

 

Apparently, you've got a years grace on this one.

 

IMHO, the reason you've got hundreds of thousands of users still stuck on XP in the business World, is that they either haven't got the money to change and/or that tbey are fearful to make the change in case they screw-up their business records. This particularly applies to small businesses and sometimes the backwaters in big organisations. I've seen system units that are stuck on floors of offices doing vital financial calculations which are just left for years, as long as they continue to work unupdated or serviced because the current junior management are not IT savvy and know next to  nothing about something that was installed by a generation of management years ago and are afraid to take the initiative off their own bat in case they drop a goolie. . So the thing just sits thereuntil it either breaks down or it gets swept up and replaced in some top-down IT equipment replacement scheme.Perhaps if MS offered to do a changeover service, businesses would be more up-to-date

 

N.B. All my softsare, including MS, is Persian Gulf i.e. Genuine bedouin.

Edited 22 January, 201511 yr by Clunkclick

I presume, from the blurb, that the Windows 10 licence allows you to run multiple copies without charge in the first year ?

 

 

N

I'll probably invest in a couple of SSDs and run the upgrade and keep the old installation to hand.

Cortana

Whiff of desperation from the Microsoft campus anyone?????

If Win10 turns out to be as big a lemon as Win8, M$ will be in deep poo, take up of Win8/8.1 is around 10% with 99% of business users shunning it.

After burning their bridges by stopping Win7 sales late last year, M$ are betting EVERYTHING on Win10.

Lee knows how to spell it, it was a jest.

As for win 8 not penetrating the market, it's because of business sales.

Businesses went NT>XP professional > windows 7 business.

Businesses and public sector organisations can't update on a whim, and any decisions are going to be for 5+ years. So they go with stable and comfortable.

The tab touchscreen design of windows 8 was a step to far, and with no way to bring back the classic windows experience for the everyday office worker with standard screen, most have moved to Windows 7 as their xp upgrade.8.1 came just too late.

Another thing Microsoft did was try to be greedy when vista came along having home, home premium, business and ultimate editions and pin hopes on stinging users who upgrade their version because a feature is missing. There was no version for cash machines, POS etc etc.

Despite cutting this now to 3 versions, the memory of vista is still strong in people's minds. As I understand, Windows 10 will revert back to XP like versions. A home version, a business version, and enterprise for POS etc.

 

As for win 8 not penetrating the market, it's because of business sales.

 

 

No, the figures I read were split into business and private; almost 90% of the Win8x "users" had no choice because it was pre installed on their new toy, anyone with any gumption built their own PC and stuck Win7 on it (or wiped and "upgraded" a new Win8 PC to Win7).  Yeah, there are tens of thousands on people who installed and run Win8x, but that is a tiny drop in the number of WinBoxes out there.

 

I run WinXP and Win7 boxes, the XP boxes havent had any security issues or hacks despite all the hype, having to use less than reputable connections while in China*, and visiting more than a few dodgy websites.

 

* For weeks Avast was screaming blue murder about the network I was on being hacked and reporting to a known dodgy address; but nothing I could do as the owner was away and I was locked out of the control panel - both via Wifi AND when trying a physical ethernet connection to the router.

MS (like BB) made a stupid decision to abandon their core and chase the consumer money that was being spent on iStuff. Totally missing the point that those people were buying it because it wasn't MS.

 

I think they're getting back in the game now. The shine has come off iPads etc for work and the Windows Tablets (proper ones) are actually pretty good and usable. In CEO land everyone has iPads so the Surface3 is becoming the thing to have. Workers are asking for laptops again not iPads.

 

 

BB is the same. The Passport might not be popular in consumer iThing land but the professionals I know with them say they are brilliant tools (not toys). Quite a few others (with smaller hands) waiting on the Classic.

Edited 23 January, 201511 yr by Aspman

Grip ? IT organisation ?

 

The bloke doing the presentations has an Emo haircut ! 

 

Usual IT fairyland.

 

N

Great I did some new bay windows as they are draughty !