One-year countdown to 'biggest Ctrl-Alt-Delete in history' as Windows 10 approaches end of support

Windows 10 is now just a year from its end of support date, and it is clear that Microsoft's hardware compatibility gamble has yet to pay off. A year from now, on October 14, 2025, Windows 10 will drop out of support. Some users will be able to continue receiving security updates for a fee. Others using Long Term Servicing …

[Mentat74]

And we all know what that means...

- No more unexpected reboots

- No crappy new software being installed without your permission

- No uninstalling of software that you're using and forcing people to download a newer (crappier) version from the store

Of course MS will try and force everybody to upgrade using all kinds of shady tactics before October 2025...

[Richard 12]

Re: And we all know what that means...

Copilot mysteriously pinned itself to my Win 10 taskbar last week.

Mysteriously, because Microsoft explicitly say that pinning must be an active user action, and must never be done programmatically.

Doesn't half look like Microsoft illegally abusing their monopoly power to push an unrelated product - yet again.

[David 132]

Re: And we all know what that means...

And with that infuriatingly and inappropriately chirpy "Copilot just got installed! Check it out!"?

[Benegesserict Cumbersomberbatch]

Re: And we all know what that means...

You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.

[Sudosu]

Re: And we all know what that means...

Just in time for Halloween...

Queue John Carpenter style music with gravely announcer voice.

They thought he was defeated....

They thought he was dead...

They were wrong.

This Halloween he's coming to take his revenge on those who tried to erase him, and nothing will stand in his way.

There is no way to stop him.

He will be everywhere.

No one will be safe from, Clippy.

Clippy VII - Copilot, coming to a computer near you.

[David 132]

Re: And we all know what that means...

>Clippy VII - Copilot, coming to a computer near you.

Will that be on pay-per-view, or payperclip?

[Homo.Sapien.Floridanus]

Re: And we all know what that means...

Frankenstein: Igor, did you get the body?

Igor: Yes master, from the tombstone engraved CLIPPY like you ordered.

Frankenstein: [lightning] Arise, you now have a brain, speak!

Co-pilot: Aaaarrrr.

[David 132]

Re: And we all know what that means...

Ridiculously improbable.

Igor's words would actually be, "Yeth marthter, from the tombthtone engraved CLIPPY like you ordered."

Everyone knowth every thelf-rethpecting Igor hath a lithp.

:)

[Adrian 4]

I only use Windows for legacy sotware, so why would I need to move off 7 ?

"While Windows 10 won't suddenly stop working for users still on the operating system ... " - Doubtless that will be the next innovation.

[Doctor Syntax]

My one and only W10, which I keep more or less as a curiosity, has achieved that with this month's update. It will boot - slowly - to display the desktop but not respond. The lights are on but there's nobody at home. It's completely secure at last. Of course the dual boot Devuan is just fine.

The closest we can get to a momento mori icon seems appropriate.

[David 132]

Some time ago, as I commented here on the Reg at the time, I saw red when my one Windows 10 PC yet again rebooted overnight, destroying my day's work in the process, and I nuked its entire Windows Update subsystem, hacking out Registry keys with the fervour of a gardener dealing with Japanese Knotweed (albeit, rather more permanent success).

As a result I haven't been bothered by updates ever since; no crapware/shovelware being foisted on me unexpectedly, no nags to update to Windows 11, no sudden degrading of Windows components.

Yes, it's out of date and possibly vulnerable; you're all welcome to try and hack it. It's located at 192.168.0.1 - go nuts! :)

[Anonymous Coward]

you're all welcome to try and hack it. It's located at 192.168.0.1

Why is your PC doing on my network? :)

I suspect the greater hazard is the stuff that comes down the wire while accessing (eg browsing) the interwebs.

If you were just running Windows to use an old applications not requiring internet access.

I have W98 running in a vm to access an ancient dictionary application that was long ago supplanted by web only subscription. Etymology wouln't really change much would it?

I couldn't get it to work under NT4 SP6 probably missing a dll or the permissions under NT4 were too restrictive (ie decent) than W98.

[LybsterRoy]

Re: you're all welcome to try and hack it. It's located at 192.168.0.1

-- Why is your PC doing on my network? :) --

Its presumably hacking my DHCP server :(

[John Brown (no body)]

Re: you're all welcome to try and hack it. It's located at 192.168.0.1

"Etymology wouln't[sic] really change much would it?"

Depends. Not so long ago, in English, anyone saying "Check it out!!" would be met with blank stares. Even not so long ago in the USA, "Check it out" was what you did with library books or hats and overcoats in a restaurant/club etc. along with its obverse, "Check it in". Now it seems to mean, "Hey, look at this"

[Simian Surprise]

My computer is pretty good about not rebooting. Actually, really good. Shockingly good, to the extent that I can decide it's end of day and I should do something about that request from IT to reboot for updates, click "reboot", and come in the next morning to everything just as it was and a "no seriously please reboot" message.

[Anonymous Coward]

no seriously please reboot

It did. Then a little later it did again for fun. Then a little later it forgot it had, and did it again. Then a little later it remembered about an urgent security update IT pushed last Thursday, which never actually got queued for install because Windows will NEVER get the hang of Thursdays.

[Hazmoid]

Re: no seriously please reboot

Upvote for the HHGTTTG reference :)

[LybsterRoy]

-- why would I need to move off 7 ? --

I'm retired and my "fleet" consists of 2 x W7 laptops (witn MBAM) 1 x W7 desktop (with MBAM), 1 x Linux laptop, 3 RPis running LibreElec and one knackered old PC running W11 (installed via Rufus) just so I can test software I've written (no MBAM - if some virus wants to infect it I might notice on the 1 or 2 days a month it gets turned on).

I'll be interested in reasons to change.

[BobChip]

Why move off Win 7?

Why indeed?

I live and work in a totally Linux world, but I keep a (legal) copy of win 7 on Virtualbox, purely for playing a couple old Win games - such as Riven and its successors. It does not talk to the internet, ever, because that is disabled, so no updates to screw it up or attract bad actors. It just goes on working. If win 10 and win.xx were to disappear tomorrow - as everything I read on El Reg and elsewhere seems to suggest is coming - I would not even know until I read about it in the media. Their demise would pass un-noticed and un-lamented.

M$ is ancient history, and apart from the occasional - equally ancient - game, I have as much use for it as I have for a stone axe.

[iron]

Hardware is not the issue

My 5 year old self-built Ryzen 7 system can handle Windows 11 but is still on Windows 10 despite MS nagging me to "uprade" every so often.

My work laptop has Windows 11 and.... I don't like it.

I don't like the barely functional Start Menu.

I don't like pinned icons being in the center of the screen.

I really, really don't like the retarded new context menu in Windows Explorer that breaks my workflow hundreds of times a day. (or did till I worked out how to disable that PoS)

I don't like or want Copilot or any other LLM based features.

I don't like using my work laptop because it has Win 11 on it.

There is nothing about Windows 11 that I do like and my Steam Deck keeps whispering that maybe I don't need Windows at all.

This should worry MS more that it seems to given I'm a software engineer who has worked with Windows and MS platforms for almost 30 years.

[yoganmahew]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

I'm with you I-Ron. I have the same issues with usability in 11, it's UI seems to be designed to be anti-productive. I spend more of my time at work in WSL now, launching from the command line like the heady days of DOS.

Windows Recall might be a useful feature, if you could trust MS (I don't, LinkedIn is the latest in a long line of MS products that quietly tries to shaft you).

2 kids laptops and a desktop, wife's desktop, my two laptops. None of them upgradable, all of them perfectly cromulent. It's beginning to look a lot like Linux... if only any of the GUIs had a ducking usable cursor.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

I've not noticed a problem with the cursor in lxqt, kde plasma and whatever gnome rubbish ships by default with SLES 15.6. what problem are you having?

[Anonymous Coward]

Well said.

I saw the writing on the wall with W8/8.1 and W10 eight years ago. They FSCK'd around with something that people liked for IMHO, no good reason.

Even Server 2016 broke a lot of my code so I called it a day on 30th Sept 2016.

These days, there are no Windows systems on my network. I have a firewalled subnet for any visitors running Windows otherwise, it is all Linux and MacOS.

[LybsterRoy]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

Out of your 6 complaints I know how to fix one of them - the start menu and pinned icons can easily be moved to the left - right click taskbar, taskbar settings, taskbar behaviours, taskbar alignment

I mean its simple init!

Lots of other stuff can be removed or hidden - took me a couple of hours but my old HP laptop (T7500 4GB RAM) runs about twice as fast with bloat removed (not that it gets run much at all)

[42656e4d203239]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

>>Lots of other stuff can be removed or hidden - took me a couple of hours

Surely the point is that you shouldn't have to move shit around or hide it in a supermarket bag in some undocumented part of the OS. I mean avoiding the leopard is almost as bad as falling down the unlit staircase when looking for the help instructions in the bottom of the locked up OS, right? No... Wait.. those would be the instructions worked out by 3rd parties even more desparate to avoid the UI changes and helpfully posted all over the internet rather than in a local help file.

W11 isn't really an OS upgrade except in the minds of the Microsoft marketeers. It is the first edition of Windows after the edition that was touted as the last ever. If the UI can be rearranged to emulate W10 then surely, on an upgrade, the default position should be to emulate what it is upgrading?

[Anonymous Coward]

Please explain it to me, Re: lots of stuff

"Surely the point is that you shouldn't have to move shit around or hide it in a supermarket bag in some undocumented part of the OS."

But, in frank honestly, how is this complaint different than Linux exactly? You'll spend hours and hours and hours tweaking your Linux desktop to the n'th degree yet when a user needs to do the same on Windows it is a great violation? Am I missing something in the Great Ether here?

[MrBanana]

Re: Please explain it to me, lots of stuff

I think the OP is complaining that having set up their Windows 10 desktop to something useable, moving to Windows 11 mangled it. Thus requiring an unnecessary degree of unmangling to get back to the same state. I've had my KDE desktop set up much the same way for the last 3 Ubuntu LTS upgrades without having to do anything at all. Unlike Windows, changing the underlying OS doesn't feck around with the user GUI.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Please explain it to me, lots of stuff

Exactly this.

It might take me an hour to setup XFCE first time (likely not, though; more like 15min these days since I've worked out how I want it), but it's a fair bet it won't change out from under me with OS updates.

My regular laptop was freshly installed with Debian 10 and has been steadily upgraded over the years to 12.7 today. I've never had to re-do or re-learn the XFCE config or layout. I've experimented here and there, e.g. with different screensavers, display managers, clocks, and so on, but not once has a change been surprise inflicted on me; at least, none that I've noticed at all -- XFCE has been upgraded too, of course, but they didn't arbitrarily or unnecessarily change something for change's sake.

The experienced among us would say "well of course, it's Debian". And XFCE. And that's the point, innit?

As an aside, I wonder a bit (though not enough to try it) whether I'd have had the same experience with Gnome instead of XFCE, regardless of the underlying OS.

[mickaroo]

Re: Please explain it to me, lots of stuff

I've been running my Mint Mate desktop now through Uma and Una, Vanessa, Vera, Victoria and Virginia, and now Wilma. Only minor tweaks each time...

Unlike 2000 to XP to 7 to 8.0 (briefly) to 8.1 (briefly), back to 7, then to 10. Each required me to relearn stuff. The 7 to 8.0 move was akin to sticking pins in my eyes.

I shan't have that problem with 11, because 11 ain't ever happening on my computer.

[Hazmoid]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

And another HHGTG reference :) Must be Douglas Adams day

[collinsl]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

Why would you want to avoid the keyboard?

[drankinatty]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

What that means is ... the "Windows" key is now just another meta-key in the Linux keyboard.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

The more they tighten their grip, the more systems will fall through their fingers. I do not have a Windows install on any of my home devices, not even in a VM. Even home lab purposes I have not found cause to keep one around.

Work-mandated tosh, unfortunately, is still a thing. Even then, with nearly every application moving into a browser front end there won't be a requirement for much longer.

Steam and Proton aren't perfect, but bloody good. Some developers seem to be making retrograde steps to reduce compatibility. Presumably at the surreptitious direction of MS. Cough, space marine 2 multiplayer. In the main I can live without a Windows system. A handful of titles I'm interested in go into the "oh well" pile. They're losing out on (some) sales as a result; that's a them problem.

[Ian Johnston]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

I have precisely one Windows (W10) install left. It's on a dual boot ThinkPad X220 which hasn't booted to Windows for years. I googled removal and it all looked a bit complicated so it can stay there until I desperately need the disk space, which ain't going to be any time soon.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

Delete partitions and start again, I would suggest. Windows has a nasty habit of putting it's bootloader into wherever you DON'T want it, no doubt to mess with alternative OS users.

[P38arover]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

I can agree on that MS can screw up your dual-boot systems.

My current W10 desktop will be my last MS OS. I tried W11 and didn’t like it. I’ve oft considered reverting to W7.

I’m moving more and more to Linux (Mint). I need to find a few more programs to be able to wean myself off W10.

[Lost in Cyberspace]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

I run a reg script that turns off the new style right click, puts the menu to the left, turns off Bing search and suggestions on the menu. It makes Windows 11 so much cleaner and more usable as a base operating system.

It shouldn't be necessary though.

Recently, Windows Security started detecting my reg file as malicious. Hey Microsoft, turning off the annoying Bing/MS account pop-ups is malicious - but not your own needy behaviour? /s

[Francis King]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

> I don't like pinned icons being in the center of the screen.

You know that you can change, this right?

[Jamesit]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

Open shell is a good replacement for the start menu.

[Zardoz2293]

Re: Hardware is not the issue

Windows >> Linux (fully converted office and development 2025)

[Anonymous Coward]

Support??

Really??

With support from folk like Julie Larson-Green ("the ribbon")...........

.....and support from folk like Steve Sinofsky ("Windows 8")...........

.....I think we can DO WITHOUT any support from the folk in Redmond, WA......

[iam_sysop]

Making the decision for me --

Microsoft's refusal to make AI components "optional" and defaulted as "not automatically installed without permission" has made the decision for me and my organization.

Linux has the alternative - leaving the OWNER of the hardware in control.

At this point, Windows 11 is nothing more than a data grab mixed in with a nod to hardware vendors to keep them afloat. Meanwhile, millions of pounds of e-waste will be generated by hardware that is perfectly usable - even running Windows 11 (as noted in the article).

[LenG]

Upgrading my linuxhardware

I suspect that a lot of hardware will come onto the market when people are conned into replacing it to run Windoze 11. Should be some good upgrade for my linux boxes mixed in there.

[nematoad]

Re: Upgrading my linuxhardware

Yes. I'm thinking of getting a new old box to replace my old old box and had the same thought.

There seem plenty of quite well 'specced machines out there just now, but would it be better to hold on until the avalanche of perfectly good ex-windows 10 are on the market?

Decisions, decisions.

[Steve Davies 3]

Re: Upgrading my linuxhardware

And they won't have all the 'AI Ready' crap on the motherboard. Joy!

[Doctor Syntax]

Re: Making the decision for me --

In one of his books, more likely The Design of Design rather than TMMM, Brookes said the architect was the representative of the user. I get the impression that Jobs performed that role at Apple. It had to be good enough to get past him.

It's quite clear to me, on my very limited experience, that nobody has done that at Microsoft for a very long time if ever. Even things like an animated GIF rather than a proper progress bar while the actual progress figures go 0% for several minutes, 4% for 2 seconds, 99% for about 10 seconds and 100% for a very long time indeed seem acceptable because there's nobody in charge to summon the developer responsible, ask him to explain himself, tell him it's not acceptable and to go back and fix it.

What seems to be the case at Microsoft is that that figure has been replaced by a representative of the company looking to see how well this feature can be monetised. Different units are competing to get their product in on that basis. The fact that the overall product doesn't really meet merchantable standards doesn't matter; it doesn't need to; they have a monopoly with their customers' balls in a vice.

[David 132]

Re: Making the decision for me --

Some person at Microsoft is reading your comment and thinking, "how come we don't use the space taken up by progress bars to show adverts? Who wouldn't love to watch an ad for cool, refreshing Pepsi instead of having to watch a boring green progress bar? Perhaps we could surprise and delight our users by unexpectedly changing their mouse-cursor to well-known corporate logos?"

[ilovesaabaeros]

Re: Making the decision for me --

The progress bar could be a glass that slowly fills with Pepsi!

[mirachu]

Re: Making the decision for me --

Green Pepsi!

[DJV]

Re: Making the decision for me --

Soylent Green...

[Cheshire Cat]

Re: Making the decision for me --

FFS don't give them the idea! I could easily believe they would do this!

[Benegesserict Cumbersomberbatch]

Re: Making the decision for me --

It could be a Three Mile Island nuclear reactor, watch as the coolant slowly escapes...

[Groo The Wanderer]

I'll be installing Ubuntu on my folk's machine when 10 is EOL. Heck of a lot cheaper, easier, and more secure than buying into "Recall" security hell!

[Charlie Clark]

They don't care as long as they can force you to get a Microsoft login

Microsoft decided a few years ago that subscriptions and advertising were the way to go and we're now nearly all, especially companies, sleeping walking along down this road.

[PCScreenOnly]

Re: They don't care as long as they can force you to get a Microsoft login

Got the Groiup Policy

"Accounts: Block Microsoft Accounts". Set to "User can't add or log on with Microsoft Accounts"

still get the blob next to the user names asking to sign on to M$

[David 132]

Re: They don't care as long as they can force you to get a Microsoft login

You must be aware that half the GPOs are, these days, completely ignored unless you have the LTSC or Enterprise versions of Windows :(

[Martin an gof]

Re: They don't care as long as they can force you to get a Microsoft login

"Shared" W10 laptop used by lots of people in lots of meeting rooms, one of whom had for some unknown reason logged in to their Microsoft Account and allowed the laptop to store the details. I came to set a Teams meeting up for someone else and found it auto logging in as this previous user. Could I get the laptop to "forget" about that user? Took me about 20 minutes and had to be done in five different places IIRC:

• Accounts under Settings
• 365 login page in Edge
• 365 login page in Firefox
• Old Teams App (no longer working, but still tries to log you in)
• New Teams App (which seems to reboot itself every time you make such a change and often the change doesn't stick)

Frustrated doesn't cover it. Oh, and then once the new user had finished their meeting, I had to go through half the rigmarole again to get Teams to forget about them, despite assiduously not clicking the "keep me logged in" boxes.

M.

[Neil Barnes]

While Windows 10 won't suddenly stop working

But every single one of 'em will cheerfully run the Linux of your choice.

[LVPC]

Unfortunately, not everything works with linux

Built two high spec pcs in the last 2-1/2 years. The older of the two now runs linux, but minerals is totally broken on multi-screen desktops. Not just for 4k smart TV s (I have 6 connected to the new windbox, and room for 4 more), but even older hardware that USED to work (a pair of Samsung webmaster 1920x1200 screens) that USED to "just work" don't any more, not on the iGPU, not on a couple of old NVidia 1050ti cards, or any combo whatsoever.

This has been a problem for 3 years, no sign of a fix in sight. But no problem - I'll just image the system drive, anything nasty bits it I'll just restore from the image. Everything else has multiple backups on multiple drives On multiple computers, because storage is cheap.

[Groo The Wanderer]

Re: Unfortunately, not everything works with linux

Oh yes, well, multiple high res monitors are clearly a standard use case, aren't they? And seeing as I know people with up to 4 monitors on Ubuntu with ZERO problems, I call bullshit.

[Ian Johnston]

Re: Unfortunately, not everything works with linux

It's so wearily familiar to see someone who reports problems with Linux accused of lying. The very first time I tried to install linux (Mandrake, iirc) was on a dual boot Windows XP / OS/2 machine, and when I followed the instructions to the letter its installed scribbled all over the MBR, which was a little unhelpful. I asked for advice on uk.comp.os.linux and was surprised to learn from several people that I was obviously a lying shill employed my Microsoft.

Linux can have and cause problems. Live with it.

I did get the triple boot working eventually, by chaining boot loaders. I think it went OS/2 Boot Manager -> OS/2 or Lilo -> Linux of Windows, but it has been many years.

[Snake]

Re: Unfortunately, not everything works with linux

They're like children here, "Linux Linux Linux"...while the rest of the world pretty much doesn't care a damn about Linux desktop. They'll whinge while the rest of the world is busy doing business...with either their Windows or MacOS boxes.

They just don't get it. The choice of OS isn't magic the solution to everyone's computer ills.

[LVPC]

Re: Unfortunately, not everything works with linux

Call bulletin all you want, doesn't changes he fact that for at least 3 years Linux suitable bed on the newest high end hardware. 6 different distro (with and without systemd), 3 different pairs of video cards, it might be ok on ancient hardware, but it fails on the newest stuff. And in bizarre ways.

Never had these problem with multi-screen setups 15 years ago. It's not a big in x, it's a kernel bug, and it's not getting fixed because nobody's running the latest and greatest hardware.

Yes, Linux has bugs. Get over it. Not everyone wants to fart around with obsolete hardware. Or has the same end user requirements. If it can't run at least 4 x 4k screens (I currently have 6, and may add 3-4 more)'it's useless except as a one-eyed server connected to a kvm. Definitely not my daily driver.

Anything less than 4 screens is useless to me. You have your needs, I have mine. Linux no longer cuts it as an end user os for me. If it works for you, fine. But the days where I'm going to fart around with modelines and editing modules and recompiling only to have the next update break stuff are long gone. This isn't 1995 any more. And fanboi-ism is so out of style. ALL operating systems have bugs.

[nematoad]

Re: Unfortunately, not everything works with linux

...not on a couple of old NVidia 1050ti cards, or any combo whatsoever.

Nvidia, that might be your problem right there.

I gave up on Nvidia cards a while back as I was always fiddling around with xorg.conf to try and get the cards to work. In the end I switched to AMD and have had no problems since.

Maybe not in your unusual setup but something to think about.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Unfortunately, not everything works with linux

Agree, Radeon and Linux are of the "just works" variety.

I've had Nvidia cards in the past, and they "can work" but usually require more fiddling.

[AJNorth]

0patch for Patching Win 10 after EOL

For those who will continue using Windows 10 after it goes EOL and want security updates without subscribing to those provided by Redmond (should they choose to offer them, at whatever their price), there is 0patch - https://0patch.com/. Several computers under my wing still running Windows 7 have been utilizing their "micropatch" security updates flawlessly since Win 7 went EOL.

From 0patch:

Long Live Windows 10... With 0patch

End of Windows 10 Support Looming? Don't Worry, 0patch Will Keep You Secure For Years To Come!

https://blog.0patch.com/2024/06/long-live-windows-10-with-0patch.html

Two articles:

0patch Explained: How It Works and What It Means for the End of Windows 10

0patch promises to keep delivering security updates to Windows 10 even after Microsoft stops next year. Should you use it? We help you decide.

https://www.pcmag.com/explainers/0patch-explained-how-it-works-and-what-it-means-for-the-end-of-windows

Want to safely use Windows 10 after Microsoft ends support? Meet 0Patch

With 0Patch, you can provide Windows 10 with updates beyond October 2025.

https://www.pcworld.com/article/2456251/windows-10-will-no-longer-receive-updates-from-october-2025-change-that-with-this-tool.html

[webstaff]

Re: 0patch for Patching Win 10 after EOL

See explaining computers recent video.

MS will be selling support extensions for windows 10 for three years.

If your a charity it's $7 for the three years.

If your an enterprise it was 400+

If you are a home user.

Well let's see how many of you want to play chicken before we give you a price.

It's been a decade since I ran Linux mint for my daily gui usage..

I still have the drive somewhere.

But looks like I'm swapping back soon!

[mark l 2]

Re: 0patch for Patching Win 10 after EOL

Do 0patch have access to the Windows source code to be able to make their patches? Or do they wait for Microsoft to release their extended support patches and then reverse engineer what MS have done with their own patches?

[Michael Hoffmann]

My migration plans to Linux

... are coming along nicely (delayed by house renovation. don't ask). With copious research and, not least, some helpful comments from the regetariat, I should be able to bid Windows good-bye even for my gaming rig.

My one concern is my wife's PC. At this time in our lives, she isn't going to change to a Mac, never mind Linux. Unless there were a distro that behaved so much like W10 that she wouldn't notice the difference. Yet, she too took one look at W11 and said "I'm not using THAT!" Never mind that her PC (a NUC - she loves the small size), which is absolutely fine for what she uses it for, wouldn't even meet the W11 requirements. The 0patch folks sound interesting - but I worry that MS will sabotage them or find a way to shut them down.

[Doctor Syntax]

Re: My migration plans to Linux

Why would she want something that behaved so badly? As regards cosmetics, anything with KDE - there's a stack of themes that will make it look like any version of Windows you want. The menu is configurable so you can set up the completely mad W10 version in place of the nicely organised version. Of course she'll insist updates are broken because they can't possible have worked in that time.

[Chasxith]

Re: My migration plans to Linux

When my partner last visited, he borrowed my Ubuntu Cinnamon laptop a few times. He was navigating around its menus with no difficulty - we're talking about someone here who until last week didn't notice the media / volume /brightness keys (or the illuminated keyboard) on the laptop he's had for four years, bless him.

I'd already punted Win11 off that laptop, and my Win10 desktop is likely to get the same treatment next year, along with a separate small W11 SSD that will get used as and when needed (likely with most of the update features ripped out).

Sadly I will be stuck with W11 at work (although I'll be ensuring I only upgrade when they force me to do so....)

[MJI]

Re: My migration plans to Linux

We moved 7 to mint

Old PC was XP then 7

It worked but was getting unreliable.

So built new PC.

Linux Mint

Wife gets on well with it, just different cosmetics

Then I have to VPN to a shitting 11 PC which downgraded while I was on a holiday and missed the roll back.

Luckily it has notepad++ but still miss the basic notepad for quick looks.

Really miss paint so drag home and use kolourpaint

[Doctor Syntax]

Re: My migration plans to Linux

If you can install on it, try Pinta.

[Michael Hoffmann]

Re: My migration plans to Linux

Interesting that you should say so. Our HTPC *does* run Mint and with some picture-laden notes she's quite fine in navigating around a minimalistic xfce. Hmm, maybe I can build on that and use it as a gateway drug.

That said, she is professionally tied to the hip with anything with "Office" in the name. The whole horror show, from Word to Projects to, ulp, Teams, and everything in between. Not her choice, her clients.

[Missing Semicolon]

Re: My migration plans to Linux

Install one of the distros that uses Mate, and set it up Redmond style.

[collinsl]

Re: My migration plans to Linux

Or use Cinnamon, which is basically already there from install

[Anonymous Coward]

This is great

I love hearing lemmings scream as they go over the edge following every piece of sh*t Microsoft throws at them. Whine whine whine whine whine whine whine whine and they still keep buying the turd, why would Microsoft improve anything? They can literally throw anything at windows users, like for example, capturing everything you are doing on your pc and beaming it into their machine learning black hole of deleted privacy rights for use at a later date and the lemmings will keep paying good money for the abuse. I couldn't give a toss anymore, only wish the repeats weren't posted every week or so on here.

[david 12]

Out of support == no internet.

Out of support == no internet.

Not immediately of course, but the browsers and the frameworks take their que from MS, and they "no longer support" (or some cases, choose to break) versions that are "out of support".

Once the frameworks are gone, the web pages are gone, and the internet gradually becomes unusable: I've already got sites I can't connect to on Win7 or 8.

[fromxyzzy]

Re: Out of support == no internet.

Chrome is particularly bad about this, which means that every web thing that relies entirely on Google's frameworks like Steam and those stupid Electron containers may have problems (even Edge because MS have absolutely no foresight), but much like the folks in the comments telling people to switch to Linux: Firefox still works on Win7 without issue.

I recently switched to Floorp, a Firefox fork with a silly name and an obsession with privacy. All the updates, none of the weird nonsense Mozilla is trying to sneak in now that Google has totally abandoned any pretense towards privacy and user control and Mozilla thinks they can get away with it.

[Andy The Hat]

Re: Out of support == no internet.

my prediction is on the first patch tuesday after EOL "they" will "discover" and issue a patch for a major security hole in Win10 ltsc just to scare the crap out of other users.

[Sorry that handle is already taken.]

This is making me wish I played games on console rather than PC

Migrating to Linux would be a lot simpler...

[Groo The Wanderer]

Re: This is making me wish I played games on console rather than PC

Steam will run 90% of my games with "proton experimental" enabled and the occasional command line tweak from the online protondb site.

[Sudosu]

Re: This is making me wish I played games on console rather than PC

I have Steam and Origin (under Steam) working very well on my Debian machine...Epic is next.

I am interested to see how unreal engine works, I have an AMD video card.

[Sorry that handle is already taken.]

Re: This is making me wish I played games on console rather than PC

I'm aware, but some of the remaining 10% are significant.

[anthonyhegedus]

Never finished

That’s the thing about Windows and the rest of Microsoft’s nasty load of crap software (I’m holding back here…). They keep changing things.

Take one example: locking your screen used to be a matter of clicking on start, then your user name then Lock. It’s been like that for years. Suddenly, last month, it changed to you having to click the power button instead, and then lock.

WHY???!

It’s just a change that introduces an albeit small cognitive load when trying to lock your computer. But that small extra effort is compounded multiple times with all the other daft stupid things that have changed for no reason in Windows 11. I could go on, and list all my gripes, but they’ve been mentioned in other comments.

What does seem to be a pattern though is that MS’s software is Never Actually Fucking Finished! They endlessly confuse and tease people, forcing them into some as yet unknown way of working (probably involving forcing you to set up a Microsoft account).

Not content with that, they’re making the old stuff stop working. Like Microsoft Outlook. And Windows 10. They are going to be the single biggest cause of landfill in the history of technology. Companies like MS have a responsibility to try to keep these things working as long as possible.

[Khaptain]

Re: Never finished

Win + L = Lock, it's been there for a very long time.

[anthonyhegedus]

Re: Never finished

You try explaining that to the average user!

"Windows key? Which one's that? Do you mean? Press it? Shall I hold it down? I've pressed it and I've pressed L nothing is happening. Do I have to hold down L? Oh you didn't mean the control key then?" and so on...

Yes I knew about win-L.

[MJI]

Re: Never finished

I never found the 10 power button, easier to type shutdown. (work PC and my scanner software VM)

Then I was told it was in grey.

I replied why not red?

Knowing command line helps, easiest way to get any config screen.

But this site is proving invaluable

http://www.yolinux.com/TUTORIALS/unix_for_dos_users.html

[Sorry that handle is already taken.]

Re: Never finished

Shutdown: Windows key, right, right, enter

[collinsl]

Re: Never finished

Only if you have the taskbar horizontally at the bottom of the screen. Otherwise pressing right does nothing.

[G40]

So? Suggestions please…

All this bitching is great for the bile express but, please, suggest a realistic alternative to W10.

[Dagg]

Re: So? Suggestions please…

The problem is the church of linux push for linux. The problem being is if it don't run correctly under wine or there is not a realistic linux version of your application or your hardware doesn't have the linux drivers then you are screwed!

[Blue Shirt Guy]

Re: So? Suggestions please…

I'm pretty sure Microsoft are not "the church of linux". Nobody is pushing to get rid of Windows 10 other than Microsoft.

[Doctor Syntax]

Re: So? Suggestions please…

"or your hardware doesn't have the linux drivers then you are screwed!"

If it doesn't have drivers because the H/W's too new then they'll be along any time soon but then you'll not be in the wavering about upgrading 10 to 11 group anyway. If it doesn't because it's too old then how on Earth can you be running Windows because Linux has the reputation of supporting older hardware than Windows.

And you can always try running your irreplaceable Windows app under Windows of your choice in an isolated VM for safety.

Basically you have 3 choices. Put up with Windows until Microsoft finally screw you irretrievably. Use Mac if that does what you want. Look a how to make Linux work for you. But stop beefing about Windows and then complaining Linux isn't Windows.

[Dagg]

Re: So? Suggestions please…

If it doesn't have drivers because the H/W's too new

Wrong, the hardware is about 3 years old but has never been supported under linux. It is under Windows and Mac. Or in the case of a printer it will sort of works under linux but you are not able to head clean or head align.

And you can always try running your irreplaceable Windows app under Windows of your choice in an isolated VM for safety.

Tried it and instead of being able to fully use the features of both screens together you get a little window. And runs so slow.

I'm not the one beefing about windows. I just get pissed off with the attitude that linux will fix everything, linux is the solution, linux is mother, linux is father...

I will and I want to change to linux ASAP once it is able to deliver what I need and solve the problems that I have.

[Doctor Syntax]

Re: So? Suggestions please…

"suggest a realistic alternative to W10"

Anything from a typewriter and calculator upwards according to need.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: So? Suggestions please…

"All this bitching is great for the bile express but, please, suggest a realistic alternative to W10."

And Windows 10 gets a very decent 10 years of free support. Today's 'news' is simply that the last year of that has now started.

The replacement (Windows 11) has already been out for many years, and the upgrade is free.

It seems that many commenters here simply take every opportunity they can to complain.

[Yes Me]

Excellent news

> But for the rest, just 365 days remain until Microsoft halts updates.

Good news indeed.

> While Windows 10 won't suddenly stop working for users still on the operating system, stopping security updates will inevitably leave customers increasingly vulnerable to attacks.

Alarmism, for people who take a little care.

My laptop will break one day - that's when I'll stop with Win 10.

[Grunchy]

Windows as a Linux app

I run Win10 inside a container in Virt-Manager on my Ubuntu workstation, I actually have several of them in there for various purposes. What I did was I created one VM with the “Ghost Spectre” edition of Win10 which is pared down to the bone of upgrades, security, all that nonsense; then cloned it about 6 times. I have a single share folder that Windows can see, through which all data enters the Microsoft environments, and which I safely backup each time I ever fire up Windows (WAY less frequently these days). If some hacker figures out how to hack my windows and damage something I can restore the snapshot in about 30 seconds.

It’s funny, I finally discovered the perfect environment in which to run Microsoft, and now I barely even use it anymore! Go figure.

[Anonymous Coward]

W11

It’s not quite that bad, really.

(Runs away)

[Tubz]

Inaccurate reporting, Windows 10 Home and Pro will go EOL while Enterprise LTSB will go on until 2027 and even then, I suspect Microsoft will offer 3 years paid extended support at a nice markup per licence.

[OAB]

Read the second paragraph.

[Anonymous Coward]

I did.

[VoxDei]

Not a chance

My computer does everything I want it to, and I'm a gamer. If the only thing it won't do is run Windows, under no circumstances will I shell out £1k for a new gaming PC just because Microsoft tried to force an upgrade on me. It will be Linux for me (already prefer it at work), and once I've demonstrated to myself that Windows is no longer needed for gaming, I won't be coming back to Windows.

Your customers can tell when you're trying to screw them Microsoft. It doesn't make them happy.

[awomanmanhasaname]

Just move to a rolling Debian Distro

[Anonymous Coward]

Bloated corpse finally burps its last…

To be replaced by younger but even more bloated corpse.

That’s truly progress.

['arold]

What was that post Windows 2000 version of Windows that wasn't shit??

10 was gothic right? 8 was the Steven Sinofsky car crash. Was it 7 that was alright???? XP was shite until SP2.

Mac / Linux user here, but I saw them at the workplace.

[collinsl]

Re: What was that post Windows 2000 version of Windows that wasn't shit??

XP SP2/SP3 - good

Vista - bad

7 - good

8 - bad

8.1 - middling

10 - good

11 - ??? (it's basically a reskinned 10)

[Khaptain]

Re: What was that post Windows 2000 version of Windows that wasn't shit??

11 is the training ground for things web based and Lego style settings pages that drive you nuts.

It's a shame because I like 11.

[stupid-frakking-handle]

Why no runtime compatability checks?

Given that MS has not implemented any runtime checks on the HW compatability stuff (checks only happen during install), I suspect they have a contingency plan to drop these requirements sometime between now and the EOL date for Win10. Much less of a reputational risk for them to have Win11 with some features not fully enabled than a millions of unpatched Win 10 systems.

[StrangerHereMyself]

Mint

I hope Linux Mint will start advertising to entice Windows users to install Mint on their PC's and laptops to keep them going indefinitely.

I really believe this will make a huge dent in desktop Linux's market share. It could even lead Microsoft to extend their support for Windows 10 if too many jump ship.

[Dagg]

Re: Mint

I hope Linux Mint will start advertising to entice Windows users to install Mint

Tried it and reverted back as the only thing that worked as before was Firefox. Tried wine and the stuff I could get to run sort of ran but was slow and strange display artifacts. Things like a hidden dialog box rectangle that locked a part of the screen.

[StrangerHereMyself]

Re: Mint

Well good for you, but I'm sure Linux Mint will work just fine for hundreds of million others.

[Trigun]

I don't particularly like Microsoft's attitude of "your device is actually our device" where they install things after an update without asking. As such, I've "downgraded" from 11 back to 10 (even that has a bit of it) and will be probably going to Cinnamon when windows 10 goes EOL. Also, one thing I don't want is AI as part of my OS and that seems to be the direction Microsoft is going. Nope. No thanks. Not having an OS who's vender thinks it owns peoples' computers having AI based stuff running in the background.

[Pete 2]

Adiós!

> PC shipments don't seem to be experiencing the hoped-for wave

Maybe they are. But it's a wave of goodbye.

There are now many more ways for employees to connect t their work. Phones and tablets are much more common - plus cheaper and less complicated for the employer.

PCs have dominated for forty-odd years, their stranglehold will not continue forever. And as Microsoft insists on making them harder and more intrusive to use, they are only speeding their own demise.

[Doctor Syntax]

Re: Adiós!

I'm not sure PCs will go away. A long time ago computing meant a central server, mainframe or mini with terminals. That meant it was limited to those businesses which could justify that sort of setup or could have some standardised facility such as payroll serviced by a bureau. PCs extended it to businesses that couldn't afford that and individuals and, by their flexibility, to use cases that the central services didn't meet. Cloud and web have extended the central server option to anyone willing to pay a subscription and who accept, or perhaps are overlook lock-in. But fashions come and go so it's likely that cloud will come to be seen as just as inflexible as the centralised systems of old and the flexibility of the PC will see it return in some form or other.

[Kev99]

The updates seems to cause more problems than ignoring them. I never had a lick of problems with win7, but then I never clicked on unknown links, opened unknown emails, and didn't download every file some noodlewooler claimed was copacetic.

[Marty McFly]

Why do we tolerate this???

"While Windows 10 won't suddenly stop working for users still on the operating system, stopping security updates will inevitably leave customers increasingly vulnerable to attacks.

Am I the only one seeing an inherent conflict of interest here?

Security updates are being used as leverage to encourage users to switch to Windows 11. If Windows wasn't so full of security vulnerabilities, then Microsoft would not have that leverage. Seems to me this is not much incentive for Microsoft to fix their problems & produce secure code in the first place.

[spoofles]

No, never...

A rather timely critical issue with the largest share of WIntel processors in the marketplace presently would never be used to push users on to new boxen and cough, Ultra series...

No, no , never...

[John Brown (no body)]

Windows 10, The last OS you'll ever need!

So,does anyone know when MS stopped using that line? Or have they wiped it from history and now pretend they never said it?

(A quick search tells me they never actually said it, it was a developer (one of theirs?) and it caught on - still, it makes for a good dig at MS :-))

[marknzl]

They're bluffing

I'm not budging off of Win10. It does what I need, and I like my taskbar vertical down the side.

Surely the EU or US government will step in and call this out as a national security issue. Effectively MS will be extorting millions of businesses and people to pay for extended support to prevent their devices being taken over and encrypted. Will they send around virtual people with baseball bats if you miss a payment? Have they found a loophole to the potential banning of ransomware payments?

[aeastham]

Meltdown and Spectre

My PC is compatible with windows 11 except for having a 7700k processor with Intel design bugs in it. Why isn't everyone up in arms about this?

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Meltdown and Spectre

I held onto a perfectly good 6700K more or less up to the point Intel discontinued "support" in 2022. OS support was fine, provided you didn't look at the MS variety. It made useful DragonflyBSD box.

Your 7700k, intel dropped support for that in March this year.

The rolling support arrangements suck but if you want to do anything involving the internet going unsecured's problems are well known. Put an XP or 2000 install on open internet today and it'll probably be pwned within a matter of hours. Probably also true of Vista or 7, though I can't say I have tried. There isn't generally the nostalgia requirement for those systems unlike older OS and older software with dependencies on XP, etc.

Linux dropped 386 and floppy support relatively recently; we didn't hear too many complaints about that... And if you did have one, you could always pick an older kernel.