[James Long]

I too am happy with Win 8.1. I will probably plunge for the free Win 10 upgrade but not until much later this year. I also have a Win 7 laptop that I will upgrade and probably do that much sooner than changing my desktop computer.

I am happier with Win 7 than 8.1 ... if Win 10 is a free upgrade forever (not a lease after the first year) and runs like Win 7 I'll go for it. I do not want a subscription operating system (although the way work pays for licenses and support, they basically have been using a subscription operating system for years).

 

[James Long]

With previous versions of Windows there were lines that could not be crossed. Signatures that the operating system looked for to see if it was being cloned to a new machine or was the "same machine" being upgraded. The basics (adding and removing cards in a PC or replacing a drive) do not seem to bother windows but changing motherboards usually triggered the "new computer" alert. The less physical changes at one time the more likely the OS would accept the upgrade.

I expect that Windows 10 will have a similar line that one cannot cross.

I wish there were no line ... but the license for Windows seems to be for the life of the machine. I have bought several machines starting with Windows 3.1 and operating system licenses for each (even though the old machine went to recycle or cold storage).

Unfortunately a balance needs to be set ... while I'd gladly buy one license one machine and not put one license on multiple machines I am not naive - I know that there are those who would put one license on ten machines or one hundred (or share it with friends or people they don't even know on the Internet).

 

[James Long]

One is reserving their place in line for the download ... which will be sometime no earlier than the release date.

Microsoft does not have the bandwidth nor support system to upgrade every eligible machine on the same day. So they will be rolling it out beginning on the release date until all reservations are filled.

 

[James Long]

I seem to remember Microsoft linking to a website to ask for $135 when I had a couple of "non-genuine" XPs at work (purchased by a co worker). There were several steps from the error message to the payment screen ... not the usual "virus pop up" type of ask for money. And it was a legitimate way of making the copy legal.

I have not had experience with illegitimate copies of anything newer than XP. The "don't change too much hardware" issue has been there since XP. Microsoft makes it easier to buy another license than make an old license work.

 

[James Long]

Microsoft always figures out a way to make using old versions of Windows difficult. The assault on Vista started a couple of months ago with a change to the desktop preferences that, by default, prevents some applications from opening their windows. It can be worked around, but this was just the first recognizable volley.

I still have one XP machine running (I'd like to replace it with Windows 7). I use it for a specific automated task not browsing etc. It has not gotten any worse since it became unsupported (the biggest problem is with the power supply).

I did not have any problems with my Vista machine until the hardware died a few months ago. Everything opened fine, upgrades installed, every piece of software I downloaded worked when installed. I did not see any "assault" by Microsoft on Vista.

 

[James Long]

Windows 7 ... I'd agree. Windows 8.1 ... can't wait till next Wednesday (and hope I'm near the front of the queue).

 

[James Long]

I would only use that if you really know what you're doing.

Exactly ... there have been updates to previous and current versions that needed to be rolled back and hidden due to unforeseen conflicts (testers can't catch everything). Permanently rejecting an update should be a rare event.

 

[James Long]

Windows 10 download is complete on my PC and the upgrade is available. Now it's wait and see before installing.

Mine too ... I am being asked to schedule the install.

 

[James Long]

Microsoft had a brain fart this morning and attempted to download Windows 10 on my PC.

I was having problems with Windows Update on Monday Night/Tuesday Morning. I purchased a reconditioned Win 7 Pro machine to replace an XP device that is wearing out. I powered it up and activated it Monday evening and ran the first set of Windows Updates to bring it up to current. The first set ran fine but when I attempted to run Windows Update again to catch the second wave Windows Update was not available. The error messages blamed Windows Firewall but there was nothing I could do to get the system to work. I thought the rebuilt computer was a dud ($65 through a reputable company). But I tried Windows Update again at 8am and everything is fine and up to speed.

It was either a problem at Windows Update or all of my bandwitdh was being consumed by my computer and my wife's computer downloading the final files for Windows 10. I have not checked her machine to see if it is "ready to install" like mine.

 

[James Long]

Well ... 60 minutes of waiting as the OS installed then 15 minutes of reboot/setup waiting and I'm on Windows 10.
Pain free (so far).

Lenovo Flex 2 laptop ... upgraded from Windows 8.1 Home to Windows 10 Home (64 bit).

 

[James Long]

There is an option on Windows 10 to "Choose how updates are installed". I have chosen "Notify to schedule restart" instead of "Automatic". Windows promises "You'll be asked to schedule a restart to finish installing updates."

That should work for me. I have software I run 24x7 where I'd rather do the reboots on my schedule.

I also recommend changing "Choose how updates are delivered" and either turn off update sharing or disabling sharing updates with PCs on the Internet. Mine defaulted to "PCs on the Internet" ... I do not need to use my uplink bandwidth to update stranger's machines.

 

[James Long]

that is because when in other forums guys instead of answering questions from women ask them personal information and things like that.

Then you have your choice ... either make a display profile change that gives a hint of a gender or cut the entire rest of the world slack when they assume the wrong gender for you. One cannot ask to remain anonymous in gender then complain when people get it wrong.

(And if you get "personal questions" report the posts or PMs and moderators will take action where needed.)

That being said ... moving on.

 

[James Long]

I recently read an article that stated that Windows 10 will be the last named version of Windows. Nothing but updates, no new OS ever again. Don't remember where I read it. Can this be true?

That is the claim. The last Windows you'll ever need.

 

[James Long]

Exactly. I think it will be similar to OS X. The OS X of today bears little resemblance to the OS X of 2001.

The downside with keeping one name "forever" is when there is a major version change that makes the new version so different from the old that a different name helps. If Microsoft would have had a "just call it Windows" attitude years ago how would one know if someone was talking about Windows 95 or the latest release?

Enforced incremental updates to Windows 10 will help. In theory Windows 10 installed in 2015 and updated should be the same as Windows 10 installed in 2020 with only hardware differences on newer machines.

If there is a major IU change we may see a Windows 11. Or some other compatibility line that Microsoft wants to draw so they can say "we do not support Windows 10" without confusing people. Perhaps they will need to give a version level that is the oldest supported.

Most of the software vendors I deal with only support the latest release. If you report a problem the first thing they ask you to do is run all the patches and get up to the current release. Then they will work with you on the issue.

 

[James Long]

I was thinking of THEIR software (the vendors). Not supporting 16.1023 because 16.1024 was released three days ago and their first tech support tip is to run the updates. (Never mind what 16.1024 fixed or what your problem is ... update then call if the problem persists.)

Vendors demanding specific versions of Windows are a separate issue. Don't run all patches lest something new breaks their product. "Windows 7 only ... we have not vetted Windows 10." There are still some vendors stuck on Windows XP. I'd put them in the "extremely slow" category. (I'd like to put them in the "no longer a vendor" category, but there are some systems that are hard to replace. Fortunately none of the systems I "own" at work are XP.)

 

[James Long]

There have been many stories of folks having their PC upgraded to W10 when they did not want it. In some of these, the upgrade failed and the PC had become unusable.

There are plenty of "stories" on the Internet about many topics. Some of them are not true.

Then there is the viral Youtube video of the weather lady who had the W10 upgrade ad appear on her green screen weather map. MS has gotten a lot of criticism over these tactics.

So blame Microsoft for not properly managing your PC? If the station IT guy was more proactive the alert would not have happened on air. But ignore things long enough and eventually one will get bit.

One might as well complain that a new email pop-up contained a pornographic subject line and blame Microsoft for the popup.

 

[James Long]

Last night my wife updated her Windows 7 machine ... and I decided to update my Windows 7 machine. There was a countdown on the screen letting us know how many hours and minutes we had to accept the free offer.

I had to run Windows 7 updates first and managed to accept the update and start the Windows 10 download before midnight. The download completed around 1am and I had a Windows 10 machine before 4am.

Both my wife and I decided to upgrade so we will not need to worry about Windows 7 end of life.

 

[James Long]

Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 1607 Build: 14393.969 (KB4015438) rolled out today. Moderate download/install/reset time.

Sigh. I just got my computers happy with the last update.

 

[James Long]

I just want better control over when the computer will reboot. I still have not figured out how to stop the machines from giving me a short notice then killing what I keep running.

 

[James Long]

Jun 16, 2020 ---

ATTENTION: Feature Update for Windows 10 Version 2004 has been released. When you Check for Updates you will be asked when to start the download procedure. This is a very large program. "SIGNIFICANT" time is needed to download/install/restart this update. After installing this update a lengthy restart will begin. Your PC will restart several times. When restart is complete your PC will be running Windows 10 Version 2004 Build: 19041.329. After installing this update you will need to install 2020-06 Security Update for Adobe Flash Player for Windows 10 Version 2004 (KB4561600) and 2020-05 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8 for Windows 10 Version 2004 (KB4552929). Moderate time is needed to download/install/restart these two updates.

I realized a couple of days ago that although my laptop runs slow for a couple days downloading then forces a reboot to install updates that it just installed a May update a couple of days ago. I manually started this June update and it has been downloading and installing for more that 24 hours. Hopefully I can catch up soon.

I have a couple of Win 10 machines that I run unattended. I'm not sure I want to look how far they are behind. They normally reboot within a day of the updates on my main machine.