that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of Windows 10,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And, by opposing, keep Windows 7/8.1.
My apologies to my readers who may be Shakespeare or Hamlet fans….
With about 60-days left until the ‘free upgrade’ period ends on July 29th there is still time. But, chances are if you haven’t upgraded by now and have managed to avoid falling victim to Microsoft’s MSFT 454,46 +2,87 +0,64% “dirty tricks” to get you to upgrade, you likely don’t plan on going to Windows 10. In your case Windows 7 or 8.1 are working out just fine for you still. Those with Windows 7 may find it nearly impossible to perform Windows Updates, but that should change after the Get Windows 10 upgrade period ends. Remember too, Microsoft will still support Windows 7 until January 2020 and Windows 8.1 until January 2023. Windows 7 and 8.1 are NOT going to stop working after July 29th (as much as Microsoft wants you to think this).
So, should you take advantage of Microsoft’s free offer? My answer is no. If you really, really want Windows 10 then go out and buy a new PC (preferably from a retailer which will allow you to return it within a certain time if you decide you don’t like Windows 10 after all). While Microsoft claims it should be a smooth upgrade, from my experience (and from that of other IT professionals) upgrading an Operating System never goes smoothly. There may be certain on board hardware (graphics card, sound card, etc.) that don’t have Windows 10 drivers and therefore won’t function correctly (or at all). It is always best to do a clean install of the new operating system. Further, with the ‘forced updates’ in Windows 10 there is a greater chance of an update ‘bricking’ your machine if you have upgraded to Windows 10.
Plus a new machine that is running Windows 10 is likely going to have features such as a touch screen which are better designed to take advantage of the Windows 10 interface. Plus, all the onboard hardware is already works with Windows 10 and will have the needed drivers already installed.
You may be thinking, “But, wait doesn’t Microsoft allow us to ‘roll-back’ if we don’t like Windows 10?” In theory yes, but how smoothly that works I can not say. I would not be surprised if that process still leaves remnants of Windows 10 on your system. It may not even work at all. You might be better off (or even end up having to) doing a full recovery as long as you have backed up all your date and have your Windows 7 product key or retrieved your Windows 8 key ahead of time. Then once you are done with that it is time to spend the next day or so installing all your applications and (may be) installing Windows updates.
Still want to upgrade to Windows 10 now?
