Windows 10 Gets Another Year of Support to October 2027

 

 A number of you likely remember the grumbling last year when Microsoft officially ended support for WIndows 10. Because of it's suggested hardware, many users were reluctant to update to Windows 11 as peak performance would mean paying money for upgrades, or getting a new computer. Some reluctantly made the upgrade, wondering if it would mean problems. Others hesitated, as Windows 10 was running just fine on their machine.

 

According to an article by Ars Technica, those insisting on staying on Windows 10 can rest a little easier, at least for another year.  As "Windows 11 usage had only barely surpassed Windows 10 when support ended," they went ahead and extended support another year, to October 2026. But as of now, with a quarter of active computers still on Windows 10, apparently the company has quietly extended support a second year, to October 12, 2027.

 

So those with older machines have a little more time.

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Making The Upgrade to Windows 11

 

 Well, finally did it.

 

 It was last week on October 14 that after ten years of use, Microsoft finally ended support for Windows 10, which in the early days they were calling the last Operating System we would be needing. But as we all know, that would not be the case and Windows 11 was developed. Early on, I heard about some issues, and like many saw no reason to change.

 

But a couple years ago, Microsoft announced support for Windows 10 was ending in October of this year. While there was the option to extend Windows 10 support (article), it would be only for a year. So decided to just go ahead and make the change. So I figured out what to do, and then restarted. 

 

 

So far, things seem okay, just different. One driver had an error message, but that may have been temporary. Getting used to things and figuring things out. So the news will be a little late. 

 

For those who haven't updated yet, there are still ways to do so (article).  

 

Sources: Forbes, PC Magazine  

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Windows 10 October Update Postponed Due To File-Deleting Bug

Windows 10 has had a number of problems since it's release by Microsoft. Last month, it was "warning" users not to use more popular web browsers and use Microsoft's own. But this time there's a more serious problem. On October 2, the "Windows 10 October 2018 Update" was released for Windows 10 insider testers and anyone else whom wanted to go ahead with the update. Soon after, some people were finding important files deleted, including music recordings and pictures. One user posted on the Microsoft forums, "it deleted all my files of 23 years in amount of 220gb. This is unbelievable, I have been using Microsoft products since 1995 and nothing like that ever happened to me." Fortunately, he had backed up his files a couple months earlier, but more recent ones were still gone.

Those whom had already updated were urged to migrate documents in their user directory, and those Windows 10 users whom hadn't to temporarily disable updates. Eventually, Microsoft suspended the update due to the reports of deleted files.

If you use Windows 10, and you're not sure if your computer installed the update, "To check if your system downloaded and installed the update, click the Windows / Start key and then type 'View Installed Update History.' Click that result and then check the last version that was installed. If it wasn't 1809, you should be safe."


Sources: ZDNet, Forbes, Microsoft.com

Bixyl Shuftan

Windows 10 "Warning" Users Not To Use Firefox, Chrome, Pushes Edge Browser

By Bixyl Shuftan

While PC users have been frequently using Microsoft's Windows 10, most pass up it's web browser, Microsoft Edge, in favor of the popular Firefox and Chrome. It's used less than Apple Safari, which is limited to the much smaller Apple computer market. Microsoft's old browser Internet Explorer has gotten a reputation for being slow and buggy, so besides people being used to the more familiar browsers, they may be a little too wary of the old "E"'s problems to try the new one. But rather than try an advertising campaign to convince people to use their browser, it seems Microsoft has instead decided to take advantage of it's operating system to push it's other product.

Lately when Windows 10 users try to download Firefox or Chrome, their installation is interrupted by a popup reminding the user they already have Microsoft Edge, "the safer, faster browser for Windows 10." While Edge may be a fast browser, this popup is not only annoying and frustrating, but it may confuse some less than experienced computer users into thinking the more popular browsers are unsafe.

This isn't the only time Microsoft has been pushy with computer users about choices of browsers. Last year, it's debut of Windows 10 S would not allow users to instal other browsers on laptops.

Microsoft's move isn't just annoying computer owners, but also people in online computer magazines. Matthew Humphries of PC Magazine was polite, "Microsoft, please don't do this. Focus on making your software better, prove to us that it is, and market it as such. You already have the advantage of Windows 10 shipping with Edge." Joel Hruska of Extreme Tech was more blunt, "You are training your end users to expect that with each new Windows release, they must spend time digging through settings to find all the things you stealthily changed and shut them off again. This kind of subterfuge encourages customers to view the update process as fundamentally adversarial, because it requires us to spend time shutting things off rather than giving them a chance to function as intended. It encourages end users to believe the worst about your company’s practices and behaviors. When Microsoft chose to make Windows 10’s upgrade advisor pushier and more aggressive, it didn’t just make people angry; it fed a narrative of distrust and deceit, priming people to believe that MS wanted them to use Windows 10 so it could collect and monetize data based on how individuals use their computers. If you ever wonder why people harbor such suspicion towards Microsoft, take a look in the mirror. It’s because you’ve taught them to. ..."

In the meantime, Windows 10 users grumble about this latest annoyance, which for some may make them wonder if it was worth upgrading from 7 or 8.


Sources, PC Magazine, Daily Mail, Extreme Tech

Bixyl Shuftan

Commentary: Windows 10's Dark Secret

Microsoft is releasing their latest version of Windows: Windows 10. In development for over two years, Microsoft calls it, "the best Windows ever." And the company is giving it out for free. So what's the catch? It seems the Operating System collects quite a bit of your data that gets sent to Microsoft. Nydia Tungsten had a few things to say about it.

Read more in Extra.