Worth updating?
Unless your PC/lap is too old or have several driver compatibility issues
Comment has been collapsed.
got an older 7 year laptop think i'll leave with win7, but yeah my rig is like only a couple of years old, so I do feel I should upgrade
Comment has been collapsed.
Well the 2 oldest laps I installed it at home are Lenovo T61 and Acer 5710 both from 2007 I guess, can handle it very well.
Comment has been collapsed.
Well from what I heard windows 10 is NSA 2.0. I personally wouldn't but if you're not too concerned with those things then go for it
Comment has been collapsed.
you heard wrong. you can disable almost all data transfer. what you can't disable (except for Enterprise version) is transfer of anonymous telemetry data. and in case you didn't know - your windows 7/8 does exactly the same.
i don't like that windows transfers data without the possibility to completely disable it. but we should stick to the facts. it's not as bad as the windows bashers on the internet try to make it look. ;)
Comment has been collapsed.
Windows 7 (and possibly 8, not sure don't use it) added Telemetry later in KB updates. You can install something like Blackbird or Spybot Anti-Beacon to block the spying in 7 & 8.
And agree to disagree, but the spying and data collection in Win10 is much worse. Plus you have no control over what software Microsoft installs (or uninstalls) in the form of updates.
Comment has been collapsed.
Thanks for the link to Blackbird. I wasn't aware of that one yet.
Comment has been collapsed.
You can turn off all of that. Which I strongly recommend to every user that they do, including turning off Cortana.
Comment has been collapsed.
you can? huge + to win10 then. That was a concern of mine too, I haven't heard they have used any of that information against their customers yet thou
Comment has been collapsed.
you can disable everything except the so called telemetry data, which is anonymous user statistics (win 7/8 do the same). while i don't think we should necessarily trust big companies, we also shouldn't always think the worst of them without any proof. they say the data is used to improve windows. well, and maybe that's really all that's happening, you know. maybe not, who knows. i mean, i will believe that they're building Skynet or something as soon as someone proves it. ;)
Comment has been collapsed.
Doesn't matter if they actually don't screw around with it, but I want to have control over my data.
Give me an opt-in, like Firefox, and I might share it. ;)
Comment has been collapsed.
then i hope you don't have a facebook, no whatsapp, no smartphone, don't use google and no entry in the phone book. xD
Comment has been collapsed.
It's all about degrees; by using the internet, or any service, you're consenting to giving up some data. At least then you can compartmentalize, and choose what you share. When your whole system is collecting your data, it's impossible.
That's why I don't use Facebook or Google, and have a custom ROM on my phone with no Google Play Services and only open source apps. However, I still use Win7 for gaming...shame on me ;)
Comment has been collapsed.
you don't use Google. what search website do you use then? ^^
Comment has been collapsed.
https://startpage.com , it pulls results from Google.com but anonymizes them first. I'm still trusting a third party with my data, but I feel a little better about it knowing what I do about Google.
Comment has been collapsed.
yeah. there so many threads about downgrading to windows 10. why don't they just upgrade to Linux, ambidot? poor souls
Comment has been collapsed.
Update. Check it for ~2 weeks, then decide if you want to stay on Win10 or revert to Win7. You can easily go back within a month of updating, and (assuming you don't change your hardware) you can always install Win10 again on that machine.
Comment has been collapsed.
Wait, you can revert back to windows 7 after installing windows 10? How?
Comment has been collapsed.
Start -> Settings -> Update & Security -> Recovery
Comment has been collapsed.
Settings --> Windows Update --> Recovery (I think, it's in this area..)
Only remains for a few weeks, and obviously you are SOL if you did something to delete the Windows.old
Comment has been collapsed.
I just installed VirtualBox and installed Windows 10 on it. Made me think. My suggestion if you're unsure? Grab the iso for Windows 10, boot it up as the trial version in your Virtual Machine, and see if you like it.
Comment has been collapsed.
yeah sounds like a good idea, you got links for this?
Comment has been collapsed.
VirtualBox
Download "Media Creation Tool" (the "download tool now" button)
Instructions over here (Note: VB = VirtualBox, VM = Virtual Machine):
- Using the Media Creation Tool, download the Windows 10 iso, and save it on you computer (doesn't need to be on a disk)
- Launch VB
- Follow the setup instructions
- Launch your VB. You'll get an error.
- Go to "Devices" in the VM's menu bar and click "Choose disk image..." in the Optical Drives selection menu
- Locate the iso on your computer
- Go to "Machine" in the VM's menu bar and click "Reset"
- Setup your Windows 10 installation
And that's it, good to go.
Comment has been collapsed.
Unless you really have some hardware that has no drivers for Win10, I'd say go for it. It is a really nice OS.
Comment has been collapsed.
My laptop is too old and there are no new drivers for its gpu that are compatible with Windows 10, so I'm keeping it on 7. My desktop is running Windows 10 and I don't regret upgrading.
It's not like you have anything to lose by trying the upgrade, since you can just downgrade again if you don't like it.
Comment has been collapsed.
I use win10 on my POV tablet, it's very good for that purpose but I would never use it on my pc.
Comment has been collapsed.
want to keep old OS so don't have time to reinstall at the moment & some software doesn't like win10. Dual boot evolves buying another drive
Comment has been collapsed.
It only involves creating second partition.
But you probably didn't do because unless you install Windows and Linux, as nobody expects to be installing second OS down the line.
You can always check if your Windows will allow you to create new partition from your HD.
Comment has been collapsed.
there isn't enough space on my current drive for another OS :p
Comment has been collapsed.
You can revert back to Win 7 without loss of data within 30 days of upgrade. See above.
Comment has been collapsed.
you don't lose anything by updating. so yeah, i would say definitely do it. your windows 7 license will not be altered. so you could just make an image of your current installation and then update. and if you don't like it for some reason, you can always go back within minutes. makes more sense to me than dual-boot, except if you really think you will alternate between both systems.
Comment has been collapsed.
Yea worth the upgrade you only have til the 29th to get it done after that you would have to buy a copy.keep in mind tho that you will loose your windows 7 license so wont be able to dual boot both with the same key.
Comment has been collapsed.
yeah that's what i wanted to know, i do have another licence so could use that one, as with my next build a few more years down the line it will make since to use a newer OS for hardware & such. & yeah that why i'm like I should get it sorted before the end date
Comment has been collapsed.
they will still give it away past that, you know why? coz they are still pushing the WINDOWS STORE and they want to UNITE it with XBOX to have a unique enviroment, and THEY are falling behind HARD(they have half of what they expected by now)
Comment has been collapsed.
Don't update. Do a clean install and migrate your profile with all data. It works and it's painless.
Comment has been collapsed.
I meant a clean install of Windows 10, instead of an upgrade.
Comment has been collapsed.
That costs a lotta money though were update is free
Comment has been collapsed.
no, you should be able to do a clean install with your win 7/8 key.
what i did (on a new pc): install win8, then install win10 update, then make a clean installation. and after that people told me i could have done the win10 full installation without problems, no update required. ^^
Comment has been collapsed.
Staying windows 8.1 with the help of a program that hides all windows 10 spyware whenever i do Windows update.
Comment has been collapsed.
A windows 8.1 complete version gives a windows 10 OEM or complete version please ?
Comment has been collapsed.
as far as i know, you will get an appropriate update for your license. so if you update a OEM version, you get a OEM Win10. but you better look that up, don't take my word on it.
Comment has been collapsed.
Thank you, i search this answer from a long time but Microsoft seems not very understandable about it.
Comment has been collapsed.
As a technical consultant I had way too many issues in Windows 10 so I'd never suggest them as an OS. At least not yet...
The strange thing is that some users have no problems, while others, especially from those that "upgrade" instead of fresh installing, can have huge problems one after the other. Including network connectivity & vpn issues amongst others, or crashes either when entering the new OS, or at shutdowns. Clearly, this OS still needs more patches and service packs, if you ask me.
However if you do happen to do it, at least do it cleanly. Avoid the "upgrade".
Comment has been collapsed.
yeah i tried to "upgrade" on my laptop to win 10 and had huge trouble, no net, the UI was totally bugging, not functioning (couldn't even try to kill explorer.exe and reactivate it...) in the end i wipe my HDD and made a clean install from an iso and then it work correctly.. I don't know why it bugged with the upgrade though
Comment has been collapsed.
Every system that I upgraded had some sort of hardware issue once it was complete. All the way back to Windows 95 days this has been a problem with "upgrades". They either work or they don't. All issues were corrected by a clean install though.
Comment has been collapsed.
I'm a pc technician and had the same problems. Had to revert to previous OS my customers which "inadvertently" "upgraded" to win10 because of various issues (mostly performance, but stability too).
On top of that, I've read about so many problems with games compared to previous OSs (which often are graphics drivers problems, but other times it's because windows itself...steam forums are full of that), and it also lacks many UI features compared to previous versions, plus it constantly works in the background for updates and other stuff (in a similar fashion to win8), that makes cheap laptops feel like they are 10 years older than they actually are.
Sometimes, the upgrade was done by old people that really didn't know what they were doing, but other times it was due to kids in the house that just wanted that new OS because "latest is always better, right?", or because it's easily linkable with their xbox account, with notifications and shiny buttons.
And so their parents had to take their pc to me to fix the problems, which obviously can't be fixed without removing win10, and so I had to add RAM and try to lower disk activity to make things better, but that didn't help as much as reinstalling windows7 (the recovery time had expired). Money and time wasted.
It all depends on what you need it for, I suppose. I'm a developer and technician and I fear the day that my win7 will stop being supported. I like control in my system, and MS gives less and less to each new OS, but seriously win10 is a joke in that respect.
You'll always have a chance to go win10 in the future, but as others has suggested, you can always try it in a VM or install alongside your win7 in another partition/disk.
MS got most of their win10 users with that "free" promotion, but one should wonder why they tried to push it that hard since it doesn't seem like they ever needed to do anything like that to make people upgrade in the past.
Comment has been collapsed.
If you update it: do the clean install. Don't keep the 'upgrade'.
I've done both. (After upgrade I just reinstalled after a few tests).
Fresh reinstall is the way to go.
Comment has been collapsed.
Keep in mind that Win10's default settings suck and you need to spend a good few hours customizing the system (options, settings, background, etc)
If you like to use tiles / have a visual software library, get a third party app called PinMore. Its great (turn steam games into tiles!)
I would recommend waiting until August. That's when Win10 is getting a major update. Last time it got a major update, it screwed with the settings.
Comment has been collapsed.
Don't update if you value privacy at all, or want to have any control over your pc settings and updates.
http://itvision.altervista.org/why-windows-10-sucks.html
And if you do get Win10, at least use something like Blackbird to disable (some) spying.
Comment has been collapsed.
Only the Professional, Enterprise, and Education editions of Win10 can defer updates. Regardless, you can only delay updates for a few months or so, and you can't choose which updates to install. You're only delaying the inevitable, MS still has full control of your system.
Comment has been collapsed.
The Group Policy Editor can change most of these settings. There have also been some third-party methods made for Home users without access to GPE settings and for those without technical savvy.
Comment has been collapsed.
AFAIK, telemetry can only be disabled fully via GPEdit in the Enterprise version of Win10. I am aware of several tools that restore some privacy to Win10, such as Blackbird, but should we really have to rely on 3rd party tools to retain our privacy? Also, with closed source software who knows what's really going on under the hood, or when one of the forced updates will break said tools?
Comment has been collapsed.
Telemetry has been added to Windows 7 as well and was already present in Windows 8. No one got upset about it until they found out that it was a part of Windows 10. Most didn't even know that it was already in 8 until 10 was announced. It's not a big issue and was overblown from the start.
We have always relied on third party tools for privacy. An anti-virus program can fall into this category even. Any good tool will be updated as necessary. Most of these tools only change registry settings anyway and can be done manually if you know what you are doing.
Too bad there isn't an update that fixes peoples thinking. Most people writing articles about how bad security is in Windows 10 probably have a smartphone and use it regularly. They lost any form of privacy they had left as soon as they purchased and activated it yet they complain about Windows 10? Hypocrites!
Comment has been collapsed.
Actually, there was an uproar when Microsoft started adding telemetry updates to Win 7 & 8. It's a different issue entirely than the telemetry already present in Windows 10, I'm not sure what sources you're getting your information from.
Many users like myself opted to disable automatic updates, and review KB's manually for privacy issues. Also installing a tool like Blackbird or Spybot Anti-Beacon is a good idea for any Windows user concerned about privacy.
Whether or not corporations collecting your data, and using it for their own purposes or sharing it with governmental agencies, is a "big issue" depends on your perspective and your ideals. For me and many other people it is a big deal, for you it isn't.
I agree that we have often relied on third party tools for privacy, but we haven't always had to worry about our operating system collecting our data, keystrokes and files and sending them to other sources. Worse still that this behavior is by default cannot be disabled without alternative means.
Perhaps in your perfect world there would be an update that makes everyone think the way you do, but I'm thankful that we still have freedom of thought and speech. Privacy in the digital world may be dwindling, but myself and many others are doing our best to hang on to the little we've still got left. What you do with yours is your own prerogative.
Comment has been collapsed.
If you don't care about privacy or security whatsoever, then go ahead and update because there are some improvements with Windows 10 over Windows 7. If you do care about your privacy and security, however, then it is an extremely terrible decision to "upgrade" to Windows 10.
Personally, I will never use Windows 10 for as long as I live and I consider anyone who does so to be either extremely naïve, ignorant, or careless about their own privacy and security. Whether you refrain from doing so, as well, is entirely up to you.
Comment has been collapsed.
Many of the "features" that WIndows 10 has in that regard, have been added to Windows 7+ through updates..
Comment has been collapsed.
So personally I feel it's actually better to upgrade to WIndows 10 and then use a tool like ShutUp10.
Comment has been collapsed.
Only through Windows Updates, and those updates can be either hidden and ignored or removed through various programs. Unlike those updates on Windows 7, many such "features" are integrated into the Windows 10 operating system and thus can only be disabled, not removed entirely. This is true for many of the privacy and security liabilities in Windows 10.
As far as I'm concerned, Windows 7 is the last relatively safe operating system by Microsoft Corporation. Anyone interested in upgrading their operating system should look into Linux and GNU/Linux rather than whatever latest malware M$ has recently put out.
Comment has been collapsed.
You actually can not know what the OS does in the background without ever telling you about. If you are afraid that Win10 is all about NSA, then you surely must assume that the NSA also forced MS to give them the very same access through Win7 as they have it with Win10. Conspiracy ahead: you might actually be in focus if you refuse to go to 10 b/c/ you think you have something / think you can hide (Kappa).
Comment has been collapsed.
Windows 7 is probably unsafe, too, but there are at least ways of hardening the OS, weeding out privacy and security flaws, and removing the M$'s tracking capabilities. None of this is true for Windows 10, and it may never be (or at least won't be for a long time). At least Windows 7 has been around long enough for software to be developed that can effectively combat the privacy and security flaws in it. The same is not the case for Windows 10, and I question whether it ever will be.
For those using Windows 7, I would recommend immediately harden the OS; fully encrypt the data with VeraCrypt (TrueCrypt has critical security flaws and I don't trust the other options); and disable, remove, and replace all Windows programs while working toward switching to Linux or GNU/Linux.
Comment has been collapsed.
Yeah, but those updates are optional and can be disabled. Also, they're not integrated directly into the system.
Comment has been collapsed.
Do you use a cell phone or tablet? Then you'd better throw them away. They have had these same features far longer than Windows has and you can't turn them off in most cases if you want your phone to still work.
Comment has been collapsed.
You have to assume that all cell phones are insecure, because the radio, modem, bootloader and bootrom are closed source and can often access the kernel. Still, there are some good open source roms out there that can at least help retain some privacy (without Google play services, and closed source apps). Some examples are OmniRom which I use, and Replicant - fully open source, but only supports a few devices. F-Droid is good for obtaining open source apps without Google Play.
Comment has been collapsed.
Didn't you just question me in another part of this conversation about using 3rd-party tools to make Windows 10 work your way? What's the difference between doing it to your PC and doing the same with your phone?
Comment has been collapsed.
A custom ROM is a completely different operating system for your phone, not a third party tool. It's like the difference between using Windows and Linux. F-Droid is a third party tool, I mentioned it because it's a nice alternative to Google play and it's open source.
Comment has been collapsed.
It is extremely unwise to use your smartphone (which is what I assume you're talking about, since older generation cellphones generally don't have such issues) for activity which may be incriminating or otherwise includes sensitive personal information you would rather not have disclosed. While some smartphone operating systems, such as Android, can be hardened and somewhat improved with various tweaks and applications, even using Tor on smartphones isn't completely safe. The same applies with tablets and smart watches.
So yes, I would recommend physically destroying any smartphone, tablet, smart watch, or analogous device once you are through with it, and not only because digital file sanitization on such devices are unreliable at best due to wear leveling mechanics related to the flash memory they use. Generally, tossing the device in an industrial wood chipper, trash compacter, or blast furnace can do the trick (same applies with all memory drives), though taking the device apart and smashing the individual drive to bits is even better. There are, of course, other methods of physically destroying memory drives (or at least the data on them), such as degaussing for hard-disk drives.
Such devices are significant privacy and security liabilities. It's best be very careful when using them, even if you live a squeaky clean life (that includes no digital piracy). If the device is already "dirty", so to speak, and you want to permanently erase any and all data (and be certain about it), then plan to physically destroy the device, acquire a new one, and maintain better privacy and security practices when using it in the future. Given the increasing prevalence of state surveillance, it may be wise to do so once you are retiring the device regardless of your practices, habits, and interests.
Comment has been collapsed.
Making a poll would take you nowhere, I made one myself last month (without the potato option), and I got a 50-50 response.
The few things you should know are:
- the free upgrade is available only until July the 29th,
- Starter and Home version will be upgraded to get Win 10 Home, while Enterprise and Professional versions will become Win 10 Pro;
- you can revert back to Win 7 within a month from the upgrade,
- if I get that right, your old Win 7 license should still be valid;
- after upgrading and validating your Win 10 "license", you should immediately do a clean Win 10 install,
- most of the reported problems lies within the upgrade process itself, not with Win 10.
Before upgrading, do a bit of research on your hardware to see if there're compatible Win 10 drivers.
Be aware that Win 10 Home has mandatory updates that you can't disable, however you can delay them if you set your internet conection to metered.
Comment has been collapsed.
Spent a bunch of time reading through this thread to finally get to what I really needed to know here. Do you by chance know what Windows 7 Ultimate will upgrade to? Also, from what you wrote it sounds like the license for the previous OS will still be valid in the future should you wish to do a clean re-install of that?
Comment has been collapsed.
Windows 7 Ultimate will upgrade to Windows 10 Pro.
Regarding the license, although I have no definite proof, I'm positively sure it would still be valid;
afterall, the Windows 10 free upgrade doesn't actually give a true license, it just validates your hardware with Microsoft's servers.
Comment has been collapsed.
Thanks for all the info, much appreciated!
I was thinking I may upgrade/clean install just to register the hardware but stick with Windows 7 for the time being (while having the option to go to 10 later).
Comment has been collapsed.
10 reasons why you shouldn't upgrade to Windows 10
http://www.pcworld.com/article/3092365/windows/10-reasons-why-you-shouldnt-upgrade-to-windows-10.html
Comment has been collapsed.
- Use VLC.
- Gadgets were disabled way back in Windows Vista days due to security issues. You can still use them but do so at your own risk. There are many articles on how to get them to work in Windows 10 if you really must have them.
- Only affects OneDrive power users. Most people already use Dropbox.
- Group Policy can be used to change your Windows Update settings. If you have Home version you can download a few programs which will give you control as well. Most viruses and malicious software propagates on unpatched computers. I can't even begin to tell you how many PC users that I know were still running pre-SP1 Windows XP and Windows 7 installations because they couldn't be "bothered" with updates. These people are the reason why MS had to take a more aggressive approach. If you are actively using your PC it won't just reboot while you are in the middle of something unless you ignored the update dialog until the timer runs out. Pay attention and you can always postpone any update until you are done doing your work.
- Telemetry was added in a recent Windows 7 update and has been present all along since Windows 8. It is also present in every Android and iDevice used today. If you're worried about privacy issues from it then you should also throw away your cell phone and tablets and never use any apps that require location services.
- I only saw ads after first installing Windows 10. The "Get" applications have always been there in one form or another and can be deleted. Ads can also be turned off. Don't use Cortana or Edge browser to avoid most of what this article mentions. Don't use Microsoft's apps either (use other recognized 3rd-party ones instead) to avoid any ads.
- Their "aggressive upgrade tactics" no longer apply once your system is upgraded to Windows 10. Biased author? Ah yes, It's PCWorld.
- With every Windows release older software has been rendered obsolete. This is nothing new. I have not run into anything that I used before that doesn't work on Windows 10. Some required patches but this is normal. It's up to the developers to keep their software updated with the times and with so many alternatives these days if my favorite quit working due to lazy development I would just move on to newer and better.
- Same with hardware. I have heard of no hardware issues except from people using hardware that probably should have been retired years ago. If you are still using a device that the manufacturer has since updated to a newer version then why should anyone support your obsolete device? If your 10-year old printer no longer has drivers that work for a newer OS then maybe it time to get a new printer instead. Newer ones will most likely have more features and operate more economically anyway. AT&T no longer services my Motorola Razr either. Sad days. Gonna finally have to get a new phone.
- If we all stuck with the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" attitude we would still be using the abacus. This is one of the stupidest arguments I have ever heard and writers need to stop using it.
There isn't a single reason that this article states that should keep anyone from using Windows 10.
Comment has been collapsed.
[QUOTE]
There isn't a single reason that this article states that should keep anyone from using Windows 10.
[/QUOTE]
Except for forced ads where you actually have to actively avoid using stuff that could be handy for stuff. Like Oh the search feature in downs to help you find files and stuff and the fact that you are not fully able to turn them off.
Or the telemetry that they send back that you are not able to turn off.
Or the inability to turn off updates that you do not want just because Microsoft thinks they know better.
Or the fact that if you keep putting it off, you get forced into a reboot even if you are in the middle of something thats very critical and should not be shut down in the middle of doing.
Those are all good reasons not to upgrade.
There is also the if Windows 10 does not offer you any thing more then what you use already there is no reason to upgrade. If you don't use any games that are DX12 or you have no video card that uses it, you have no reason to upgrade.
If windows 7, or even 8/8.1 does everything you need it to do, there is no need to upgrade. I stuck with Windows XP till I was forced to upgrade because I got new upgrades to my hardware where I needed to use a 64bit OS and XPs 64bit OS was not very good. So I jumped to 7. Heck I still use some software from 1998 because functionality it works better then other software of the same type thats much newer. Thats about the oldest piece I use and most of it is much newer stuff. So yes, sometimes "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" works just find for people and if they know how to protect themselves they should be allowed to do it.
All the "protections" Microsoft has built into windows 10 would work just fine even if people had the ability to turn some of it off. And the stuff that is not protections should be able to be turned off specially when you are paying for the OS.
Comment has been collapsed.
More reasons you shouldn't upgrade to 10: http://itvision.altervista.org/why-windows-10-sucks.html
I like this article more, it's also from a former M$ employee.
Comment has been collapsed.
Actually, I am using my home-PC since 4 years now and I have so many little programs I need and so many configurations I permanently use, that I do not want to upgrade on Windows 10. I will 100% forget to install something or something will be incompatible (for example: Older games like Mafia 1 will not run on Windows 10). It sucks that Forza will come out for Windows 10 only, but I have The Crew, so I won't need a Forza.
On my laptop, I bought a Windows 10 license (laptop came with Ubuntu). However, as I am only using my laptop for surfing and programming, I am thinking of going back to Ubuntu, because it runs way faster. Thus, if I ever feeled the need of Windows 10 on my home-PC, I would just deinstall Windows 10 from my laptop and install the license on my home-PC.
Comment has been collapsed.
I won't. I don't need Windows 10 for anything on my current computer. The next one will have it ofc.
Comment has been collapsed.
I wouldn't do dual boot unless you wanted linux as 1st/2nd system. Having 2 windows(es) is really unnecessary since everything works smoothly on 10 as it was on 7.
I recommend updating, then creating installation disk and doing clean install. Remember to disable all "spy" transfers to MS during installation.
Win 10 is quite good. Boots really fast (although I bough SSD too so that's the main reason, but still...). Haven't had a single problem since I installed 7 months ago.
I really liked W7 and didn't want to upgrade, but I bought new PC and was like "ah what the hell" and upgraded. I don't regret it.
Comment has been collapsed.
So should I update my Windows 7 to Windows 10? was thinking dual booting my Windows 7 then updating the new boot? so can keep my old win7, is this easy enough to do? worth doing?
Comment has been collapsed.