To hear the story from Steve Ballmer, Microsoft is selling copies of Windows 7 faster than the copies can be pressed. The people are buying in droves, with adoption so high it beats all previous upgrade cycles.
After examining the previous upgrade cycles, that really is not hard to believe, as most Microsoft upgrade cycles don’t really get going until the first service pack. That is not an exaggeration or lie. That is how the interested should proceed. The other part of the upgrade cycle question is one that really answers itself, because in no other version of Windows has the beta been so widespread, so available. No other time have interested users been able to try, compare, and also important, check with their friends, on their experiences.
I mean people first off don't have a ton of money this year. It may be selling well on new computers but I just doubt the average user just upgrades the computer they had bought a few years ago. I just don't believe people do that.
The author goes on to state that after much more advertising, and worrying about the sale, he is finally able to sell the unopened copy at the original price he paid, $50. This is pretty sad, considering the fact that no retailer is selling the same thing anywhere near that price. It does not say much for the alacrity of Windows sales at the retail level.
System Manufacturer/Model Number: Tx2500z Tablet Pc/Homemade Server OS: Windows 7 Ult x64(x2), HomePrem x32(x4), Server 08 (+VM), 08 R2 (VM) , SuSe 11.2 (VM), XP 32 (VM) CPU: Turion X2 ultra (oh well came with laptop)/P4 @3.2 (yes P4) Motherboard: IDK HP Motherboard / Intel DG965SS Memory: OCZ Dual Channel 4GB kit/ 1gb Dual Channel Graphics Card: HD 3200 graphics /GMA x3100 (yay for intergrated!!) Sound Card: Realtek HD Audio(mic working, well sort of)/Siig IC-70012 Monitor(s) Displays: built-in Hp 12" laptop screen/ Acer 19" Screen Resolution: 1280x800 /1440x900 Mouse: Logi MX Rev. /MS Wheel Optical 1.1A /Logitech Optical Mouse Cooling: All Air Cooled Internet Speed: College baby but its still routed through vpn to 1536k... Other Info: love my wacom pen and pressure sensitivity...
wished it worked in 7, SUSE for that matter though
...And I wouldn't find it surprising if it truly is "flying off the shelf" compared to prior things. And I think many people will dig up the money to upgrade their OS if it's affordable and relatively guaranteed to work. They'll do that before they go buy an unnecessary fancy sweater, or a couple DVD's, for example.
Microsoft fairly aggressively had cheap pre-orders. Their $30 deal for students is hugely popular. Etc.
Lots of people indeed did the Release Candidate and word spread, so people looked into things earlier than usual. People have largely learned it's backwards compatible and better than Vista in advance.
On the other hand I think something like Vista was known to still be buggy and having lots of issues around its release date. It was also overpriced with people being asked to step into the unknown, and often upgrade their hardware in the process. No thank you.
There aren't backwards compatibility issues or driver issues as happened from XP to Vista. Many people have a perception of Vista as "broke" so they're willing to "fix it" on a machine they use hours per day. XP to Vista was more in the category of "if it ain't broke don't fix it." This is the first time they haven't done things likely to "break" prior hardware, etc. when someone upgrades. Some prior things could render a printer or scanner obsolete overnight and without warning.
And I'd expect computers outside the U.S. are increasingly more widespread, with lots of people ready to improve from XP, and with their own good deals available.
Sure, businesses might take months (or years) to let things settle in before they transition, but from the consumer perspective, Windows 7 was set to move quickly.
And as far as any retailers' numbers, or the guy unable to sell his copy for $50.... I'd expect they're selling more downloads than usual now, especially due to things like that student deal. And most consumers are going to be hesitant buying from some random guy selling a box for $50 -- they'll assume it's stolen, or fake, or a copy not for resale, or a boxed beta, etc., and there's no way they can return it if they have a problem. I know I wouldn't go over around maybe $50 for a boxed thing listed someplace like Craigslist. No surprise there.
Still, it's a lot less than the listed retail value - and he had trouble shifting it to his friends/colleagues - I reckon the PCWORLD writer is 100% correct.
Of course , the big beta availability meant almost every enthusiast who used that bought the pre order deal.
Also the Student deal is stupidly cheap ( in the US at leat). A lot of those will buy it - who wouldn't otherwise.
I think you will find that the term "flying off of the shelf" or off the shelves is more of a figurative term rather then a literal one in the sense 7's introduction in general terms has been better received overall compared to how things went for the previous versions.
When you look back even XP's response and interest took time especially after SP1 there thet broke the 137gb barrier as new larger capacity drives were coming about compared to the limitations on partition sizes seen with the previous versions.
One good example would be remembering 500mb upto 4-5gb drives for the old 9x -ME machines to the average 160-500gb presently seen for desktops. All this of course is progressive anyways while now the age factor along with the price reductions seen for 7 compared to Vista are another large draw while actual physical inventory of 7 disks is behind there!
Speaking of Staples on 10/22 only a few stores actually had a limited number of disks to start off while the larest model laptops were seeing 7 preinstalled on those! To get 7 here the retail disks had to be shipped out from a warehouse not simply bought over the counter. Dummy sleeves were reserving the assigned locations for each edition upgrade or full then.
I guess you could "the shelves were bare" rather then seeing disks being sold at a pace instore!.
Computer Type: PC/Desktop System Manufacturer/Model Number: Custom builds = 2 OS: W7 Ultimate x64/W10 Pro x64/W11 Pro Triple Boot - Main PC W7 Remote PC Micro ATX W7 Pro x64/W11 Pro CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 975 Deneb 3.6ghz - 965 2nd remote pc Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-790XTA-UD4-Gigabyte GA-880GM-D2H remote pc Memory: Kingston Hyper X DDR3 1600 1.5v 16gb - Hyper X Fury 8gb 2nd Graphics Card: MSI HD Radeon 5750 1gb - MSI HD Radeon 6450 on mini tower Sound Card: Creative Labs X-Fi Xtreme Audio P - Realtek onooard 2nd case Monitor(s) Displays: ASUS VW199T-P 19" HP 2082a Main-HP 2082a 20" remote pc Screen Resolution: Asus 1440x900 - HP 1600x900 Keyboard: AZIO L70 Backlit Letters Gaming - ONN Cordless/USB Mouse: MSI DS200 Programmable, Logitech Cordless PSU: Corsair 750TX - primary / Corsair CX600 - second Case: Antec 900-2 - SSD compatible / NZXT Vulcan mini tower Cooling: Zalman CNPS9900A Hard Drives: WD Black 1TB HD per OS W7, W10, and pending W11 presently on 500gb OS Drive - Pending Triple 1TB HDs for Spanned Storage/backup volume
Single 2TB external USB enclosure, single 1TB System 7 Host/Boot drive, Pending 8TB external HD for system image b Internet Speed: 30mbps upgrade - primary hard wired - mini tower usb WiFi Browser: Cyberfox, WaterFox 64bit FF variants, FireFox x64, Pale Moon Antivirus: GFI VIPRE Internet Security 2014 on W7 2016 beta on W10, Other Info: Accomdata fan cooled usb 2.0 PIDE/Sata II, III external enclosure.
Sambient usb/eSata PATA/Sata II, III external enclosure.
Computer Type: PC/Desktop System Manufacturer/Model Number: CUSTOM ASSEMBLY OS: W7 Pro x64/W11 Pro CPU: AMD Deneb 3.6ghz - 965 Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-880GM-D2H remote pc Memory: Kingston Hyper X Fury 8gb Graphics Card: MSI HD Radeon 6450 DVI Output Sound Card: Realtek onooard Creative or Other separate PENDING Monitor(s) Displays: VIZIO 32" LCD TV Separate LCD Pending Screen Resolution: 1600x1080 Keyboard: ONN Cordless/USB Logitech Cordless Mouse: ONN USB/Cordless - Logitech Cordless PSU: Corsair 600W - THERMALTAKE 600W spare case Case: NZXT Vulcan mini tower Cooling: Twin 120mm Top Fans - 240mm Side Cover Hard Drives: WD 500GB OS Host/Boot WD Green 1TB Storage/Backup Internet Speed: DSL 5G Browser: MS Edge, FireFox, WaterFox x64, FireFox Nightly Other Info: OS Testing-Remote Access to Main TeamViewer
What incentive is there for the average computer user to upgrade to Win 7? I think the average user sticks with whatever OS came on their computer and is not willing to pay any amount to upgrade. My sister, for instance, is a pretty typical computer end-user with a desktop running XP and a laptop running Vista and has no desire or intention to upgrade either of them. When she buys a new computer it will most likely have Win 7 and she'll use that only because it's the OS that came with the computer.
Computer Type: PC/Desktop System Manufacturer/Model Number: Home Built desktop, Dell G15 5511 Gaming laptop,MS Surface Pro 7 tablet OS: W10 Pro desktop, W11 laptop, W11 Pro tablet (all 64-bit) CPU: 3.7Ghz 8700K i7, i7-11800H, i7-1065G7 Motherboard: ASUS TUF Z370-Pro Gaming in desktop Memory: 16G desktop, 16G laptop, 4G tablet Graphics Card: AMD Radeon RX580, RTX 3060, Intel Iris Plus Sound Card: High Definition Audio (Built-in to mobo) Monitor(s) Displays: Samsung U32J59 32" (2x), 15.6", 12" Screen Resolution: 3840x2160, 3840x2160, 1920x1080, 2160x1440 Keyboard: IBM Model M - used continuously since 1986 Mouse: Microsoft Pro IntelliMouse PSU: Corsair CX 750M Case: Antec 100 Cooling: CM 212+ Hard Drives: 500G SSD for OS; 2T, 10T & 15T HDDs for Data on Desktop, 1TB SSD laptop, 128G SSD tablet. Internet Speed: 400M down 8M up Browser: FireFox Antivirus: Windows Defender Other Info: Built my first computer (8Mhz 8088cpu, 640K RAM, 20MB HDD, 2 360K floppy drives) in 1985 and have been building them for myself, relatives and friends ever since.
Each person has their own specific needs as a rule. For many presently running XP without problems especially those not familiar with building custom cases or knowing how to set up dual OSs and things like that they simply get the newer version that comes on the next premade system when the old boat is showing signs of wear.
For those who build an updated system with the latest hardwares they tend to be the first to jump on a newer version for what that will support which may not be seen with any previous version. For those now running 7 and with the right cpu and board in particular they can take advantage of the new XP Mode on the latest Windows Virtual PC in order to run old XP programs that wouldn't go on Vista or have been not to be installed or run on let's say the 64bit 7 as one example.
As of 2010 another item that 7 will readily support while other older versions won't at first without some type of patch will be the new USB 3.0 standard being introduced next year. For those who likely be wanting to use the newer usb devices that come out with the 3.0 standard while backward compatible to 2.0 and 1.1 standard ports the new boards to come out will be an incentive to take full advantage of the faster bus speeds.
As far as Windows itself each new version offers features particular to that version only not seen on the previous. For those who watch some of the new tv drama series you may have noticed one or more shows where a large projection screen has thing being moved around on it when the actor passes his hands over it as the newer touch screen support is evident there.
And for those who do quite a bit more then check the mail and the weather reports online as well as browse a shopping site finding out what the latest is capable of is another reason they will choose to upgrade the OS. You have to look at what more then just one or two people are looking for in order to see why.
Computer Type: PC/Desktop System Manufacturer/Model Number: Custom builds = 2 OS: W7 Ultimate x64/W10 Pro x64/W11 Pro Triple Boot - Main PC W7 Remote PC Micro ATX W7 Pro x64/W11 Pro CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 975 Deneb 3.6ghz - 965 2nd remote pc Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-790XTA-UD4-Gigabyte GA-880GM-D2H remote pc Memory: Kingston Hyper X DDR3 1600 1.5v 16gb - Hyper X Fury 8gb 2nd Graphics Card: MSI HD Radeon 5750 1gb - MSI HD Radeon 6450 on mini tower Sound Card: Creative Labs X-Fi Xtreme Audio P - Realtek onooard 2nd case Monitor(s) Displays: ASUS VW199T-P 19" HP 2082a Main-HP 2082a 20" remote pc Screen Resolution: Asus 1440x900 - HP 1600x900 Keyboard: AZIO L70 Backlit Letters Gaming - ONN Cordless/USB Mouse: MSI DS200 Programmable, Logitech Cordless PSU: Corsair 750TX - primary / Corsair CX600 - second Case: Antec 900-2 - SSD compatible / NZXT Vulcan mini tower Cooling: Zalman CNPS9900A Hard Drives: WD Black 1TB HD per OS W7, W10, and pending W11 presently on 500gb OS Drive - Pending Triple 1TB HDs for Spanned Storage/backup volume
Single 2TB external USB enclosure, single 1TB System 7 Host/Boot drive, Pending 8TB external HD for system image b Internet Speed: 30mbps upgrade - primary hard wired - mini tower usb WiFi Browser: Cyberfox, WaterFox 64bit FF variants, FireFox x64, Pale Moon Antivirus: GFI VIPRE Internet Security 2014 on W7 2016 beta on W10, Other Info: Accomdata fan cooled usb 2.0 PIDE/Sata II, III external enclosure.
Sambient usb/eSata PATA/Sata II, III external enclosure.
Computer Type: PC/Desktop System Manufacturer/Model Number: CUSTOM ASSEMBLY OS: W7 Pro x64/W11 Pro CPU: AMD Deneb 3.6ghz - 965 Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-880GM-D2H remote pc Memory: Kingston Hyper X Fury 8gb Graphics Card: MSI HD Radeon 6450 DVI Output Sound Card: Realtek onooard Creative or Other separate PENDING Monitor(s) Displays: VIZIO 32" LCD TV Separate LCD Pending Screen Resolution: 1600x1080 Keyboard: ONN Cordless/USB Logitech Cordless Mouse: ONN USB/Cordless - Logitech Cordless PSU: Corsair 600W - THERMALTAKE 600W spare case Case: NZXT Vulcan mini tower Cooling: Twin 120mm Top Fans - 240mm Side Cover Hard Drives: WD 500GB OS Host/Boot WD Green 1TB Storage/Backup Internet Speed: DSL 5G Browser: MS Edge, FireFox, WaterFox x64, FireFox Nightly Other Info: OS Testing-Remote Access to Main TeamViewer
What incentive is there for the average computer user to upgrade to Win 7? I think the average user sticks with whatever OS came on their computer and is not willing to pay any amount to upgrade. My sister, for instance, is a pretty typical computer end-user with a desktop running XP and a laptop running Vista and has no desire or intention to upgrade either of them. When she buys a new computer it will most likely have Win 7 and she'll use that only because it's the OS that came with the computer.
The mentality of most computer users. Thats the problem with selling copies of an OS at a store. Just don't bother. Offer it online, and those who want it will buy it. Just package it in new computers and stop trying to advertise or sell it outside.
Those who want it (us) will go buy it and upgrade. Your average person will just buy a new computer when they need it and use what comes with it.
System Manufacturer/Model Number: Hera OS: Windows 7 Ultimate x64, Mint 9 CPU: Intel i5-2500k Motherboard: ASUS P8P67 Pro Memory: 2x 4Gb Corsair VENGEANCE DDR3-1600 Graphics Card: NVidia GeForce N260GTX Twin Frozr Sound Card: Realtek HD OnBoard Audio Monitor(s) Displays: ASUS 24" Monitor Screen Resolution: 1920x1080 Keyboard: Razer Tarantula Mouse: Razer Lachesis PSU: Cooler Master Real Power Pro 750W Case: Cooler Master Haf 932 Cooling: Fans Hard Drives: G.SKILL Phoenix Series 60GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3R 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA II Internet Speed: not fast enough
The mentality of most computer users. Thats the problem with selling copies of an OS at a store. Just don't bother. Offer it online, and those who want it will buy it. Just package it in new computers and stop trying to advertise or sell it outside.
Those who want it (us) will go buy it and upgrade. Your average person will just buy a new computer when they need it and use what comes with it.
For all of you that are into flying and things connected like I am ha ha :geek:
Here are a few of my fave links :)
FlightAware - Flight Tracker / Flight Status / Flight Tracking
Track any flight most based in USA are best to follow.
Top 50 Air Traffic Control Audio Streams |...