What will you do when Windows 7 ends?

BorisTheAnimal · 21 Mar 2016

ThrashZone said:

Best to have your free cake and eat it too :)
Long way down the road to not using win-7.

Yeah I know it will take some time until it ends Microsoft just said it will lift the ban of older OS's for Skylake.

Lady Fitzgerald · 21 Mar 2016

BorisTheAnimal said:

ThrashZone said:

Best to have your free cake and eat it too :)
Long way down the road to not using win-7.

Yeah I know it will take some time until it ends Microsoft just said it will lift the ban of older OS's for Skylake.

Actually, MS merely moved up the data another year. Skylake users now have until late 2018 to upgrade to Win 10 to keep getting all updates instead of late 2017.

ThrashZone · 21 Mar 2016

Win-7 will still receive Important updates to 2020 even on Skylake is what I read.

thelma · 21 Mar 2016

whs said:

AddRAM said:

What is this all about ? Windows 7 will never end

Exactly - as long as you stay on the same machine, nothing will happen. And the fact that there will be no new updates is good news. At least we will not get any new bugs either.

Yes, simple as that

thelma · 21 Mar 2016

Lady Fitzgerald said:

Emmar said:

Thanks LF for your reply. I heard more positive comments here about desktops versus laptops, than I have heard anywhere and I agree. I would really hate to have to rely only on a laptop.

I agree about having to rely only on a laptop, even if only because I'm spoiled by having three 24" monitors.

While I much prefer a laptop (actually, what I have are little 15" notebooks) over a tablet, I still much prefer a desktop over a laptop. I only use my notebooks (one at a time, the other two are spares I bought while I could still get them at a good price with Win 7 installed on them) when travelling or, very occasionally, if my desktop rig is down for maintenance or mods.

This isn't intended to put down tablets and laptops. They do have their uses and accomplish those uses very well. Many people have tablets, laptops, and desktops; some have only one or two of the three. It all depends on each person's own needs and preferences. Many people also use their smartphones to replace computers, often having the smartphone only.

Also depends on how much you can spend, there fore I am happy with just a given 12-year-old laptop

remm · 21 Mar 2016

Windows 7 is not ending in this house until they pull my W7 machine from my cold, dead hands.

The bugs have been worked out for years. Drivers plentiful, and most new hardware will be backwards compatible for at least a decade AFTER Windows officially stops supporting. And with creative tweaking, it will go beyond that.

Only reason to look for a new OS down the line (like 2030s) is if there is new sftw I need that won't run on W7. Even then I would bet there will be plugins for W7 (similar to WINE for Linux) that will allow newer programs to run on 7.

As far as many ppl are concerned, W7 is the last great [and comparatively private] OS from Windows and a great deal of energy will go into prolonging its usefulness, imo. And using Sandboxie with it (as I have stated in these forums upteen times before) negates the need for a real-time AV, protecting the OS from any online threats by keeping all online activity within the sandbox which can be configured to be deleted after each session, or persist if one prefers, which is still perfectly safe.

So there is no reason to do anything when support for W7 stops. In fact I already stopped updating it. Tired of sifting thru the M$ B$ telemetry, 10, etc... My OS works great on my hardware. No updates necessary.

mjf · 21 Mar 2016

ThrashZone said:

Win-7 will still receive Important updates to 2020 even on Skylake is what I read.

The last thing I read was in line with LF's comment - ie. 2018 for Skylake processors. Maybe things have changed?
If I build using Skylake or the next generation Intel I'd move with the times and go Windows 10 (pro probably). I use a computer to run applications and if Windows 10 is a reliable OS for that purpose then I'm content.

Emmar · 21 Mar 2016

Thelma, I am very lucky that I can buy what I want and as far as computers go I buy the best I can find. I will stick with 7 until it dies.

ThrashZone · 21 Mar 2016

mjf said:

ThrashZone said:

Win-7 will still receive Important updates to 2020 even on Skylake is what I read.

The last thing I read was in line with LF's comment - ie. 2018 for Skylake processors. Maybe things have changed?
If I build using Skylake or the next generation Intel I'd move with the times and go Windows 10 (pro probably). I use a computer to run applications and if Windows 10 is a reliable OS for that purpose then I'm content.

I believe there's just a tad bit of confusion of what supporting really means is all
Security updates are not culled out just because one might have skylake :)
Win-7 is win-7 no matter which mobo or cpu it's running on.

A lot of people will probably dual boot until they get tiered of it.

Layback Bear · 21 Mar 2016

Just my thoughts.
Those of us that like Windows 7 will use Windows 7 for a long time. That doesn't mean we can't try other operating systems.
We also have the option of using more than one operating system and more than one computing device.

Computing as always will move forward quickly. I really don't have a problem with that. As a matter of fact, I like it that way.
Just because I can't always afford the newer things and methods doesn't mean I don't like them.

On the other side of the coin. Just because it's new doesn't mean that is something that is needed or wanted. Somewhere their is a balance and we as users just have to find that balance.

As a home user I can wait and see what is next and take my time to choose my next move.
Big business and industry don't have it so easy.
Constant big changes to a operating system like W-10 is not wanted. When one has thousands of computers that constantly
need major changes is not a option. Constant upgrading your operating system will not be free in the future and will be very time consuming. These are two thing that big business and industry do not want and will not except. That is why so many hung on to XP for so long. In my opinion that is why they are going to hang on to Windows 7 for a long time.

My opinion again/still.
Microsoft has 4 markets they desire.
1. Enterprise
2. Phones
3. Poke and Go
4. Those of us some where in between.

Those betweeners have to be realistic.
Microsoft or any other major supplier of computer software or hardware are not going to develop new products that will work on old hardware.
I'm a betweener.
Which means I really don't count for much in the computer world. It also means I have time to wait and watch so when the time comes I will be able to make a educated move to my new hardware and software.
The same method many of us used from Windows 95 up through all the changes that have been made.
We adjusted and adapted. Betweeners will survive past 2020 and yes we will still be complaining.