The legacy of Windows 7 - last of a breed?

Is Windows 7 the last version of a standard Windows GUI/system? This basic configuration has been with us since Win3.1. Even OS/2 copied the look and feel of the Windows operating system.

I mean, the Start button and the Start menu were standard for years: You can click on Start, w/One Click, and see an overview of your computer. In Win7, the desktop IS Windows. There ain't no other.

It may be that we will look back on Windows 7 in the future with nostalgia and fondness. As it may be the very last version of a very familiar user interface- that might forever be changed with the onset of Windows 8.

Share your thoughts.

If Win 7 is the end of its line and Win 8 is to be M$'s future, I foresee the end of M$. If M$ keeps going the direction it took, starting with Win 8 and Office 365, then I will be looking for alternative programs, hardware, and OS to replace Win 7 when it reaches EOL.

Win 8 is a great OS for internet surfers, tablet users, and phones. It is highly dependent on touch screens making it impractical for serious content creation on PCs. Some of the features that enhanced content creation in Win 7 are now missing form Win 8. Win 8 simply cannot meet my needs as well as Win 7 does.

What really disturbs me, however, is the direction M$ is taking toward a closed system similar to Apple's, software subscription instead of owning a license, and cloud computing. The cloud can be very useful but it isn't going to be anywhere close to being a replacement for desktop computing for a long time, accessibility and cost being the biggest stumbling blocks right now. Not everyone has affordable, unlimited access to the cloud right now.

What really disturbs me, however, is the direction M$ is taking toward a closed system similar to Apple's, software subscription instead of owning a license, and cloud computing.

Yes... The cloud... Obviously something made up by elitists. Put the power (of everybody's computing) into fewer and fewer hands.... That is always a recipe for success....

I believe that Windows 8 is a NICE little OS around here. Although it is quite exaggerated to be used on touch screen interfaces and learning it without the use of touch screen can be very hard, it is not so bad at all. And IMO, if you use a mouse, it can be quite easy to multitask and simply, you can work faster. From only one place you can get to many places in a time without losing any track. I feel that it is a bit sad that Windows 7 is going to be the last of its kind, but I feel that MS could do something to make it more easy for Windows 8, right?

Windows 7 will likely be the last Microsoft OS to go on my two desktop PC's. Unless things change that is. Metro's dual monitor unfriendliness is a show stopper for me on my main Desktop. It's a PITA more times than its not. I have 8 on my new laptop, for now. I've been tempted to put Windows 7 on it too but I'll wait and see what 8.1 brings.

aritra2116 said:

I believe that Windows 8 is a NICE little OS around here. Although it is quite exaggerated to be used on touch screen interfaces and learning it without the use of touch screen can be very hard, it is not so bad at all. And IMO, if you use a mouse, it can be quite easy to multitask and simply, you can work faster. From only one place you can get to many places in a time without losing any track. I feel that it is a bit sad that Windows 7 is going to be the last of its kind, but I feel that MS could do something to make it more easy for Windows 8, right?

Win8 is not that bad, as you say. I purchased a laptop w/Win8. It's OK. I use it on occasion. It is a bit faster than Win7, IMO.

But when I switch back to Win7 on my dual-boot pc, it's like going back to a legacy.... in more ways than one. Windows 7 is like 'real Windows', the Windows we've known and loved for about 15 years or more. The 'look and feel' of Win8, while it's an OK OS, is very different than Win7. Like I said, Win7 seems to be the last version of a breed of days gone by...

Not if the market has a say.

gregrocker said:

Not if the market has a say.

Maybe you heard different. The rumor I heard is that MS will pop a Start button in the bottom left corner in the next iteration of Win8, that will navigate the user to the existing Win8 Start menu. Maybe you heard something more Win7-like?