Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10? Which do you prefer?

>>> MULTIPLE CHOICE! <<<

Interested in your opinion and your vote, now that Windows 10 has been out for almost a month.

There are some people who still like Windows XP better than everything that came after it. There are some people who think that Windows 10 is little more than a new set of hide-and-seek features puzzles, along with a very, very, very large "Start" menu.

Windows 10 has one feature that none of the others do, and it will really only be of much interest to people who play the latest computer games: DX12... http://www.pcgamer.com/what-directx-12-means-for-gamers-and-developers/ . But, it will be a long time before we see much software of any kind that actually uses DX12.

So, please vote, and let's share info. The internet has been peculiarly silent about either the popularity, or the unpopularity, of
Windows 10. But, after going through the big hit, big failure nature of all of its operating systems since the immensely popular XP, Microsoft would surely like to know, too....

 

Nice thread ... knowing I'm an IT manager it could sound odd, but I still prefer Windows XP [I still use it on a computer in my office !!!]. Anyway among the recent Microsoft OS I prefer Win 7.

Win 8 [and 8.1] have introduced a curious interface which makes a computer look like a smartphone [bad mistake, the first thing I did when I bought my last notebook was to modify it to have the desktop mode as automatic option]. Now with Win 10 [I upgraded my notebook] they have gone back to desktop and they have confined those curious apps in the start menu. I've got a Windows smartphone too and it's too evident that they have copied the smartphones.

I'm just typing using a Win 10, with the new browser "Edge" which honestly I don't like [overall it's not that "original" ... Microsoft has copied a bit here and there ...], so that now I'm using Firefox.

 

I've been told that approximately 66% of all Windows users in the world still use XP, and it doesn't surprise me. I have six computers, Luke, with everything from Windows 95 to Windows 10 (except the despicable "Millennium" edition, and "Vista" -- horrible!). I loved XP, and I loved Windows 98, Second Edition also.

Perversely, I find that I like Windows 8.1 better than than anything commonly available today. In my experience, it's a bit faster than Windows 10, and doesn't have the quirky upgrade problems which simply magnify previously existing problems in Win7 and/or Win8. I don't like or use Edge, and I think of Cortana as a strange, anachronistic distraction, but, I never used to use Internet Explorer or Bing, either. I use a phone almost entirely for texting, and don't own a tablet.

I'm using Opera as my main browser now, and I have it filtered by AdBlock Plus. It's lightning quick. BTW, if you use Chrome, keep an eye on your extensions -- they can harbor PUPs. P.S., I enjoy your posts very much.

 

I like Windows 8.1. Although I'm forced to do some things on the Desktop, I prefer to relax on the Start screen.

I have a low-end PC and all I do on it is Internet, run the News app, set Calendar and Alarms, and on the rare occasion look at maps.

I use Internet Explorer on the Start screen, which is different from the one on the desktop, and it is my opinion that it's full-screen web browsing done right. I especially like the auto-hiding controls at the bottom of the screen.

 

I decided to continue to use Windows 7 and as I have heard that upgrading to Windows 10 could potentially cause various problems to my PC, which may not be suitable for the advanced features of Windows 10. But Windows Update still tries to install Windows 10 along with new security updates for Windows 7 and I disabled the option to download Windows 10.

 

I would like a system that stood the test of time and I didn't have to buy a new system at Microsoft's whim.

 

I have windows 7 on my laptops and am happy with it. Comfortable and use to it which for an old foggie is important. I use to work for FORSCOM G-6 at Ft. Bragg, retired in 2012 and kept in touch with some of my old work buddies. They told me of all the problems they were having with windows 8 and to stay with what I had. Why does microsoft let the army and others be their testing ground I will never know.

I am not interested in windows 10, I'll kept running windows 7 until my laptops go kaput. The way I look at it, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I use google Chrome and I like that also. Much better than IE.

 

I prefer 7. I use 8.1. I do not trust Win10 so I rolled back to 8.1

 

Win ME was a mere commercial operation and it was really poor. "Vista" was horrible. Nothing else. Having to put Vista machines in the domain of the society I noted all the troubles of interaction with other OS versions [all Microsoft OS, so ... why all those problems?].

I knew "Cortana" [I have seen it appearing on my Win smartphone before of the upgrade on the notebook] and I decided to avoid it [actually is a tremendous distraction for who wants to waste time, but I imagine that a certain range or persons could enjoy it ... there is a market for such a product].

Regarding Win 8.1, it was a "natural" improvement of Win 8 and it fixed some problems of the previous version. It works generally well. The annoying aspect [for me, it's a matter of likes and dislikes and usage habits] is the METRO interface which covers the desktop. There was a simple factor ... you saw no more your background image on the desktop. This made the notebook, or the PC, anonymous.

I repeat, that was a wrong marketing strategy [many users downloaded shells to have desktop mode back]. Win 10 has fixed this. And I do wonder why at Microsoft they took such a curious decision ... but as professional of the sector, I know the answer ... total compatibility of different platform = same OS on all platforms [today my smartphone has got nothing to envy to a common notebook as for CHIP, RAM, HD ...].

 

Agree completely! Einverstanden!

Giving Windows 8 users a beneficial upgrade to 8.1 and a "Classic Start" shell is all most people have needed. Now, I never see anyone using the tiles on Win 8, and nobody uses the "charms", either. Again, it seems that Windows 10 is a faster Windows 7, with an enormous Start Menu.

Do you think that MS will release DX12 for Win 8.1? Personally, I do not. The company is trying to cement its relationship to desktop and mobile users, and that means cramming as many people into Win 10 as fast as possible (hence, the free upgrade to Win 10 from 7 and 8.1).

So what's new in Win 10 besides Cortana, Edge, and DX12? Evidently, a considerable amount of weird upgrade problems with certain hardware configurations. BTW, the one testbed system I have Win 10 running on now was an uncluttered, fairly simple Windows 7 Home desktop computer before I upgraded it. This particular upgrade went very smoothly, with no problems of any kind. It seems that most of the strange problems with the upgrade are happening to people with notebook computers. At least, that's the impression I'm getting. Cheers!

 

Microsoft says they will actively support Windows 7 until the year 2020, so you should be doing just fine for at least four more years. I like Win 8.1 mostly because it is so fast, especially on my one system that has an SSD hard drive. From post screen to desktop in about 10 seconds. Typical Win 7 boot time is about 1 1/2 minutes, with a typical, spindle hard drive.

 

Well, it looks like only three of us has an opinion about Windows 10, or any other currently used MS operating system...?

Fine. I was trying to find another area of interest that could give us a few moments' distraction from the usual political "trench warfare" we see in this Forum, but it's also just possible that even though everyone who posts here uses a computer, very damned few of us know anything about the operating systems of the computers themselves.

One final word about Windows 10 -- if you decide to do the upgrade from 7 or 8 or 8.1, be very certain that you stick around to respond to the upgrade process during nearly all of the two hours this event will require. It will want responses from you, and if you aren't there to give them, the whole thing could either abort itself, or get (*)(*)(*)(*)ed-up in peculiar, mysterious ways that nobody, including Microsoft, is commenting on. I've SEEN it. Cheers!

My advice? If you're happy with Windows 7, or Windows 8.1 -- DON'T do the Windows 10 upgrade for a few more months, if then....

 

I can't stand Windows 8. The move to 8.1 improved the interface which was only good if you had a touchscreen monitor but it was not just an incremental change to usage, it was a dramatic move which pissed alot of people off.

In addition, Windows 8/8.1 makes it nearly impossible to get into safe mode if you have an OS that is bent out of shape.

I've only used Windows 10 briefly but it was enough to know that it has glitches that they will hopefully iron out in the next few months. I like the virtual desktop that they are introducing, but haven't really spent any time with it.

Conclusion: My PC is 7 until I see that 10 is fully up and running. If I happen to get a computer with 8/8.1 on it, I will format the hdd and put Win7 or 10 on it.

I may get a laptop in the next few months and will likely put Linux on it since I've been using it more and more and have always been a fan of Linux.

 

Been there done that. It kept trying to fix itself and couldn't and kept me trapped in that nonsense for awhile.

 

I like XP better than the later Windows, but XP is no longer a real choice. If I were buying a new computer, I'd go for Windows 10. I'm about to upgrade my Windows 8.1 computer to Windows 10. I'll leave my WIndows 7 computer alone. I hate Windows 8, in terms of the user interface. I've heard that Windows 10 is closer to Windows 7 in interface.

 

Same here. I ran chkdsk and the computer wouldn't boot Windows so I had to use the recovery console since I couldn't get into safe mode... Chkdsk was stuck. Virus scanner wouldn't run. Dism wouldn't complete. I finally used a livecd to do an offline check of the SMART info and it turned out the hdd failed in multiple categories...

 

I've played with Win 10. The desktop did feel more like the traditional Windows desktop. Plus, it has some nice features from what I've heard. I need to take a closer look at it.

 

I'm a Linux and OSX guy after converting in 2009 from Windows. I still use Windows (7) daily at work, having just upgraded in the last year from XP. But I prefer the sleekness, speed and ease of use of Linux and OSX. I found myself, being a household with 8 computers, more of an IT support guy at home rather than just a user. It was constant heat issues on laptops, sluggish performance, upgrades that didn't always install smoothly, printing failures, disconnects with wifi, and other problems from machine to machine that just prompted me to move to Linux. Following using that for several years, I broke down and bought a couple MacBook Pros. I have never looked back and both Linux and OSX just work when others require significantly more support.

Thankfully I'm comfortable in a terminal having gotten my computer start under DOS. I still use a terminal in Linux where it's faster than clicking through menus to get something simple done (like updating). That experience came in handy with a Windows virus on a kids' machine that locked me out of Windows Explorer, couldn't use a browser to download and install anything, and my antivirus that didn't work anyway was locked down. I was forced resort to a command prompt to figure out what .exe was running that shouldn't be, navigate to the folder where it was located, and then delete it permanently. After that I was just done with Windows because there's no way anyone else in my house would have been able to fix it short of throwing it away and buying a new machine. I reloaded that machine that ran like crap anyway with Linux and it still hums along beautifully this many years later as if it's fairly new.

 

Windows 10 now has a problem with its "Error Reporting Service" with some computers. It causes your desktop screen to flash uncontrollably, and even worse, you lose control of your ability to use your mouse or keyboard (not that it would do you any good anyway).

You have to boot in Safe Mode (it's all been changed in Win 10) and then go and de-activate the Error Reporting Service and one other thing. I'll try to get more details. What a bunch of stupid bull(*)(*)(*)(*)!

One thing I can tell you -- if you try to reboot into Safe Mode and Windows 10 decides that at the same time it has decided to do "updates", you won't get the desired reboot into Safe Mode, and the (*)(*)(*)(*)ing updates won't load, configure, or install properly, either. They'll all be undone and you'll be right back where you started. I'd rather spend my time surfing porn....

I'm glad I only put this Win 10 crap-pile on a test bed computer. I'm more convinced than ever that I'll be sticking with Win 8.1 for a LONG time to come.

 

None of the above. I wish Windows would just go away.

 

Apart from growing up with Macs, my story is similar. Linux is a far better alternative to the Mac than Windows, and even game developers are starting to get with the program (as Linux also gets with the program for gaming, admittedly). Linux runs better than Win on the same hardware and is wonderfully stable. Even bleeding edge Fedora Linux is more stable, and it also means having a choice of GUIs (so glad for MATE!).

Windows needs to die.

 

People I know with great gaming rigs have turned now to consoles only. I've got an i7 rig with a DX12 capable card, but I may not be doing a hardware upgrade for at least another year, if then.

Most of Linux is open-source (I think), and so you're "on your own" with problems. That said, I am really beginning to dislike Windows 10. As is so often the case, MS didn't think this thing through before it released it. It's not as jarring and inscrutable as the original Windows 8, which was the "Obamacare" of Microsoft operating systems. But, Win 8.1 fixed all those original problems. Parenthetically, I wonder how anybody's going to fix Obamacare...?

Oh, for the "flashing screen" problem you boot in Safe Mode (big fun) and go into Component Services and DISABLE two items:
1. Problem Reports and Solution Control Panel Support.
2. Windows Error Report Service.

When you first see them, they show up as "stopped", but in "Manual" status. You must change "Manual" to "Disable".

Then you reboot back into normal-mode, which, for some reason takes about five times longer than usual. Thanks a lot, Redmond! I hope you boys got big, fat bonus checks for rolling out a messed-up Windows 7 with a HUGE Start Menu. Bravo....

If the MS "brain-trust" retrofits Windows 8.1 with DX12, I can't think of one reason why anyone would rather run Windows 10. And don't even get me started on Edge and Cortana....

 

I'd have no real interest in modern consoles for a few reasons. I don't need to play "socially" with a bunch of low-IQ 12-year-olds; I'm not fussed with playing the latest, greatest title; I don't even put much time at all into playing games; I prefer being up close to my screen so I can see what's happening easily; I tend to like PC games that don't translate well to console play, including FPS, RTS and RPG; I like being able to play my games in Russian (previously did so in German) as a language study aid whenever possible, and that is not likely to be an option on a console; new consoles are still expensive, and their games likewise, and their titles are likewise pricey; I'll also point out the total choice of controls PC tends to offer - I can use a controller if I want, but neither am I forced to use one, but can use a mouse and keyboard very easily, and the latter is best for the games I like to play anyway.

Plus, it's kind of cool having one machine that does "everything," and does it well - including some things simultaneously, like playing music in Rhythmbox while running a game and letting me use the buttons on my media keyboard to control it with no effort.

Cortana... Buahaha! My main machine is a desktop. It has a nice 2.1 speaker system attached. No mic, no camera, no use whatsoever for that Cortana thing, which I understand serves as sophisticated spyware as well.

 

I wish Linux and Windows could be friends, so we could duel boot, the option in rom or something, with no ability of a duel boot side to spy on the other partition or delete or resize it without express permission of the other OP; but one has to blame Linux (some distributions) for spying on Windows partitions by default, when Windows by default couldn't even see into a Linux partition.

For the six years I ran Linux--after an XP computer died one month after the warranty ran out, rust, the motherboard actually rusted, and I decided to use old machines and not buy anything--most of my hardware were paperweights. The lag time for drivers is so long in some cases that they become paperweights on Windows a decade later, and Linux still can't work with them.

 

Yeah, did get a piece of hardware to work by modifying the kernel once, had to turn off updating it though. Unless there is a really big demand, there are no drivers, Palm OS was out of date, dead, before they actually could sync some of them. Once did get a IR pod to blink, never got it to work.

There isn't much of a difference between Third Party and Open Source, if you can read code, all of it, and have months to do it, if the only Gem to have syntax highlighting in OneNote is a Chinese one, and Microsoft doesn't get it; privacy policies GOD all mighty, they are meaningless if you can't see the code. It is like the I-Pad not getting that people can't take notes with a fat ass finger. Still I like Windows because WINE couldn't run most stuff, and only now can they run my favorite game (Civilization/Steam; haven't tried it though, so no endorsement). For some reason I had to reinstall Civilization beyond earth for Windows 10, maybe has to do with the new graphics options that game has.