The future of Windows in personal markets

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SirHumphreyAppleby

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#1979447 18-Mar-2018 20:12

TwoSeven:

I suspect Windows isn’t just limited to just one market segment. So I find it odd that something developed for a specific niche market could be billed as a ‘replacement’ for something that competes across quite a few market segments.

Windows serves a number of markets well, but this thread relates primarily to the personal market. There, we are seeing increasing pressure towards linking Microsoft accounts with your desktop, and removal of features which are considered 'business grade'.

A clean install of Windows 10 now gives you at least three opportunities/reminders/hints to switch to using a Microsoft account when installing with a local account. Many of the local group policy settings are also now only available in Enterprise editions, or no longer functional in Windows 10 at all. The 'prosumer' end of the market is being pushed to either jump to a business model, or be limited by the consumer offering.

I don't see Windows going away in the personal market, but I do see it becoming primarily a platform for delivering apps and marketing. A few weeks ago my lock screen was advertising some Microsoft 'thing' I wasn't interested in.

mdav056

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#1979448 18-Mar-2018 20:12

I run software which has only ever been developed for windows, both at home and at work. From home, it's helpful and efficient to work on pretty well the same interface when I vpn into work machines.

Everything is running nicely, and I'd hate to try to change OSs, and application software; and to work out how to ensure continued access to many years of data.

And anyway I'm too freaking old to change! Long live windows.

gml

MikeB4

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#1979463 18-Mar-2018 20:38

I would drop my laptop and mac for a PixelBook if I knew i could manage my vast photo library with it.

Here is a crazy notion, lets give peace a chance.

mattwnz

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#1979496 19-Mar-2018 00:16

SirHumphreyAppleby:

A few weeks ago my lock screen was advertising some Microsoft 'thing' I wasn't interested in.

The way MS pushes through advertising into windows 10 annoys me, especially as it is a paid for product. I don't recall previous versions doing this, or if they did, it wasn't as in your face.

amiga500

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#1981124 21-Mar-2018 17:11

As a far too frequent distro and operating system hopper, I do like Windows 10 'digital entitlement' 'digital license' activation system - I can try Windows 10 every few months and it activates automatically.

Some things have improved - such as printer setup, this has become very easy and automatic at least with the printer I have.

Each time I try Windows 10 I run into something really annoying. A few weeks ago I tried installing it with the internet active and I accepted the option of doing updates as it installed. Big mistake I ran into a rogue update that was causing all sorts of problems for people who actually relied on Windows 10 to get work done. My desktop was unusable with Edge frozen. I had to research the problem using my phone.

Most recently I found that unpinning apps from the start menu was not working - when I rebooted the PC they had come back. When I looked for a solution online the fixes looked really complicated & came with disclaimers that they may not work after another update. And the fixes were not something a casual user would want to try. Could MS be quite keen on users not being able to hide Candy Crush and other rubbish?

It just seems to me that the quality and care and attention to the product is not there. When I bought Windows XP Home the disks came in gorgeous packaging, & just oozed quality. I think that MS making 90% of their revenue from other products has quite a lot to do with the quality issues of Windows 10.

amiga500

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#1983573 26-Mar-2018 15:51

My latest grizzle about Windows 10 is about the time and date settings not working properly. This is not a failing CMOS battery, or dual boot issue, as time and date work perfectly with Windows 7, Linux Mint 18.3, and Xubuntu 16.04 when these operating systems are installed on their own. I won't bore you with all the details but if googled it proves to be a very common issue that has not been fixed yet.

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