Windows 8 - End of Support - Announced for - Jan. 10, 2023

[triplets_93]

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/end-of-support

I got a pop-up notice when I did my most recent Microsoft Windows monthly update for Windows 8.1

Their webpage is encouraging me to upgrade to Windows 11, but admits that would require a new PC...

At the bottom of the webpage is the FAQ about Windows 8.

We do not currently offer free upgrades from Windows 8.1 to either Windows 10 or Windows 11. If you want to purchase a copy of Windows 10 or Windows 11, please see links above or contact a retailer to find out about options. Note: The upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11 is currently free.

I also saw that the support for Windows 7, had ended on Jan. 14, 2020.

 

[The Fonz]

I have clients still using Win 7 with no issue( companies)
if you want something up to date go Linux and you won't regret it .....it is 100% free

 

[terra]

Bill Gates and Microsoft is the modern version of the Robber Baron John D Rockefeller and Standard Oil.

 

[triplets_93]

Bill Gates and Microsoft is the modern version of the Robber Baron John D Rockefeller and Standard Oil.

My Samsung Chromebook from Google has reached it's end of support... It's not that old. Why the Planned Obsolescence???

I still mourn the end of service for my 2003 Dell Desktop with Windows XP Pro!!! I keep it sitting on my desk as a Monument to Technology...

 

[terra]

My Samsung Chromebook from Google has reached it's end of support... It's not that old. Why the Planned Obsolescence???

I still mourn the end of service for my 2003 Dell Desktop with Windows XP Pro!!! I keep it sitting on my desk as a Monument to Technology...

XP was to me the most stable and easy to use program Microsoft ever put out there.

 

[The Fonz]

My Samsung Chromebook from Google has reached it's end of support... It's not that old. Why the Planned Obsolescence???

I still mourn the end of service for my 2003 Dell Desktop with Windows XP Pro!!! I keep it sitting on my desk as a Monument to Technology...

Planned Obsolescence 100%
trust me win7 and even xp could still work with no issue they are just trying to scare people with this update business
Now you can install mostly any Microsoft software on Linux with crossover or wine this way you avoid windows OS completely

 

[Creeper]

Microsoft promised us Windows 10 would be the last numbered version. Windows 10 was supposed to get updated into new versions. But in just a few short years Microsoft went back on their words.

I have a few Windows 10 PCs and a few Windows 7. The still provide Windows 7 security updates but not bug fixes and functionality enhancements. Windows 7 is incredibly stable though.

But this is why I will not pay for a new operating system. Look at it this way. If you pay MS $140 for Windows 11 Home (not OEM which has limitation for use) it's like paying Microsoft about $35 per year to use their software. And this does not include their MS Live account they push you to set up.

 

[Creeper]

I have clients still using Win 7 with no issue( companies)
if you want something up to date go Linux and you won't regret it .....it is 100% free

I was running Ubuntu for a while on my desktop. It's nice looking, runs well, it is "light" compared to the disk and memory hog Windows has become, but at the time is was a bit cumbersome to use when it came to certain functions, like installing a new graphics cards and install the manufacturer's drivers. It was not quite there yet. It is 100% free though. My problem is I am using a lot of apps that run on Windows only. I am sure there are apps that do the same things on Linux but that would require a lot of work for me to move everything, install those apps and learn to use them, etc. I will stay on Windows 7 and 10 until they no longer function. Then I might make the transition to Linux again.

The cool thing though is people have developed apps that can read MS files like outlook files and convert them into files that run on Linux apps.

 

[Jammer]

Do you want to know what really, really sucks? It's the cellular companies dropping support for 3G. I have literally thousands of systems out there dying because their systems stopped supporting 3G. I cannot upgrade to newer technology because there is a huge backlog for it.

 

[The Fonz]

I was running Ubuntu for a while on my desktop. It's nice looking, runs well, it is "light" compared to the disk and memory hog Windows has become, but at the time is was a bit cumbersome to use when it came to certain functions, like installing a new graphics cards and install the manufacturer's drivers. It was not quite there yet. It is 100% free though. My problem is I am using a lot of apps that run on Windows only. I am sure there are apps that do the same things on Linux but that would require a lot of work for me to move everything, install those apps and learn to use them, etc. I will stay on Windows 7 and 10 until they no longer function. Then I might make the transition to Linux again.

The cool thing though is people have developed apps that can read MS files like outlook files and convert them into files that run on Linux apps.

Zorin OS,Linux Mint,Q4OS with KDE's Plasma,Elementry OS,Deepin Linux and more they are all great replacement for windows and mac as they are easy to learn
Deepin linux for example is loaded with apps for almost anything you can imagine ....some Linux distros will run blazing fast even on a Pentium 3.

 

[SlammedZero]

Oh good ole' Windows 8. I remember installing that back in 2012. Was definitely an.......interesting.......version of Windows. Back when the tablet craze was happening.

Like mentioned above already by a few people, XP was my favorite. That OS was just rock solid. Miss those days!

 

[viman96]

If someone is not familiar with Linux and not the type person that enjoys digging in to learn a new skillset then stay with Windows. Linux is free in the sense you can install it and get updates. It also means many times you are on your own to find a fix or workaround for issues. If you want to learn Linux and keep your Windows desktop then install Windows 10 or 11 because both support Linux (multiple versions).

 

[jsb357]

Windows VISTA is where it's at!

 

[terra]

Windows VISTA is where it's at!

To a lot of computer users Vista was a four letter word.

 

[Reverend Conehead]

I have clients still using Win 7 with no issue( companies)
if you want something up to date go Linux and you won't regret it .....it is 100% free

I've been using Kubuntu Linux since 2013. I switched specifically because I couldn't stand Windows 8. I do run Windows 7 under VirtualBox so that I can run a few Windows programs I didn't want to let go of. I have Win 7 blocked from accessing the Internet, and I have all updates shut off. But I don't even use Win 7 that often. I can do everything important in Kubuntu.

 

[Reality]

If you are going to run desktop linux as a Windows replacement, one option to consider is Linux Mint with the Cinnamon desktop as it is designed to be like a Windows version of linux.

As @Reverend Conehead pointed out, it is possible to run VMs (virtual machines) for Windows in linux but there are a lot of free linux software alternatives for popular Windows applications so that is only necessary really if you have specific Windows-only software that you need to use.

The main disadvantage of linux versus Windows is for gaming, but even that is slowly changing over time with applications like Steam and WINE.

The biggest obstacle most new linux users have is finding software to replace their old software. Fortunately, this is much easier now due to a lot of applications offering web-based versions of their applications in browsers or being built with universal programming languages or packaged in things like electron to make them multi-platform friendly.

My advice to you or anyone who is considering switching from Windows to Linux for the first time would be to do your research before you switch, not after.

In other words, go through all of your Windows software that you use and make a list. Then look for linux alternatives for those applications before you switch so you will know what you will be giving up (if anything) by doing so.

 

[Reverend Conehead]

If you are going to run desktop linux as a Windows replacement, one option to consider is Linux Mint with the Cinnamon desktop as it is designed to be like a Windows version of linux.

As @Reverend Conehead pointed out, it is possible to run VMs (virtual machines) for Windows in linux but there are a lot of free linux software alternatives for popular Windows applications so that is only necessary really if you have specific Windows-only software that you need to use.

The main disadvantage of linux versus Windows is for gaming, but even that is slowly changing over time with applications like Steam and WINE.

The biggest obstacle most new linux users have is finding software to replace their old software. Fortunately, this is much easier now due to a lot of applications offering web-based versions of their applications in browsers or being built with universal programming languages or packaged in things like electron to make them multi-platform friendly.

My advice to you or anyone who is considering switching from Windows to Linux for the first time would be to do your research before you switch, not after.

In other words, go through all of your Windows software that you use and make a list. Then look for linux alternatives for those applications before you switch so you will know what you will be giving up (if anything) by doing so.

I 100 percent agree with that assessment. I first tried Ubuntu Linux on an old laptop that wasn't my main computer anymore. That way if I screwed anything up, it wasn't a big disaster. My main computer was still untouched. You can also create a Linux-bootable thumb drive. That way you can check out the distro and see if you like it without installing it on any PC. It's slow, however, so I prefer to try it on a non-essential PC first.

Yes, Linux Mint is also a very good distro. I went with Mint/KDE for a while, and it was great. However, Mint discontinued their KDE version, so I went back to Kubuntu. Mint/Cinnamon is also a very good choice. However, I wanted to stick with a KDE-based distro. KDE has built-in customization that I like such as being able to swap the Ctrl and Caps lock key. It's also possible in Mint/Cinnamon, but it's more of a hack. It's not built in, at least it wasn't when I tried it. However, Mint's interface is wonderful. I nearly went with it. If I ever decide I don't want KDE anymore, I'll probably go with Mint.

 

[Reality]

I 100 percent agree with that assessment. I first tried Ubuntu Linux on an old laptop that wasn't my main computer anymore. That way if I screwed anything up, it wasn't a big disaster. My main computer was still untouched. You can also create a Linux-bootable thumb drive. That way you can check out the distro and see if you like it without installing it on any PC. It's slow, however, so I prefer to try it on a non-essential PC first.

Yes, Linux Mint is also a very good distro. I went with Mint/KDE for a while, and it was great. However, Mint discontinued their KDE version, so I went back to Kubuntu. Mint/Cinnamon is also a very good choice. However, I wanted to stick with a KDE-based distro. KDE has built-in customization that I like such as being able to swap the Ctrl and Caps lock key. It's also possible in Mint/Cinnamon, but it's more of a hack. It's not built in, at least it wasn't when I tried it. However, Mint's interface is wonderful. I nearly went with it. If I ever decide I won't ant KDE anymore, I'll probably go with Mint.

I have friends who are very loyal to their linux desktops including KDE and Gnome-based desktops.

As you know, most linux distributions are based a small number of core linux foundation distributions like Debian, Redhat, SELinux, Arch, etc. Ubuntu, Linux Mint and many others are based on Debian, CentOS comes from RedHat and so on.

Because of this, there is a growing movement in the linux community to separate the desktop from the linux distribution completely to the point that you can choose your desktop for any linux you install.

There are some really great looking linux desktops available, so it would be nice to be able to choose, or better yet .. switch on demand, to a different desktop as needed.

I rarely ever use the linux desktop as I spend almost all of my time at the linux command line, but there are some recent desktops that are definitely making it more enticing to use them.

 

[Creeper]

Windows update just screwed me again. Windows 10 is the biggest mistake I have made in a long time.

 

[viman96]

Keep in mind switching is a big leap in how you manage the computer. Linux is much more command line based. Even with the UI, it is still considerably more command line. Editing files can be very different. Most modern Linux distros come with some type of "notepad" that can be used but they are fairly limited. Learning VI or VIM is not easy but well worth the effort. Many Linux distros essentially comes closed where as Windows is fairly open. This is specifically for ports that you may need to enable for software or apps to work. Also many drivers that come bundled with Windows will not be with many Linux distros. Simple things like adding a printer can be a time consuming process because the vendor did not build a driver. So in addition to what Reality mentioned about reviewing the existing software you currently use, you should also review your home network and anything your computer connects to or connects to it.