News - Microsoft announces Windows 10 (video)

[LSG501]

Ubuntu "not really a major OS", it's the 2nd most popular Linux distro, so basically what you're saying is that the "Major OSes" are Windows and OSX and that's it? Pardon me for disagreeing ... vehemently ... remember that the Microsoft statement was "Windows must exist, from IoT devices to datacentres" which means not just looking at the desktop, so I'm going to argue strongly that Linux MUST figure, hence you can't just disregard Ubuntu with a flip comment!

Obviously Linux has it's place, it's just not a major OS in terms of 'normal' people, I'd bet that most users of Android don't know it's based off linux, same as OSX is based of unix. Linux has about 2% of the desktop pc marketshare (wikipedia so might be off some)..... and you say ubuntu is the second most popular of that meaning at most it has 1% of the marketshare, even vista has higher than that and that was hated as much or more than windows 8 was. As much as linux is great for servers in terms of desktop usage (which is my reference considering we're on about 'desktop' windows not the server version) it doesn't have the reach of OSX and Windows, it's that simple.

As to VM, can't see any reason why not, win 8 was fine doing that and I would expect them to maybe even offer that, they offer vm's for 'web browser testing' after all.


Going back to Windows 10....
Been reading a bit more and I'm actually curious about how the 'last major version of windows' is going to work... if they go subscription based they are going to get a lot of people going sod it and sticking with what they have, I'm not going to pay for updates/fixes/patches to an OS that I've paid for, it will be xp/win 7 all over again.

One more thing. MS stress they see the future as being the cloud. I do not. I do not want ANY of my data on the cloud, ever, under any circumstances. Yet, MS are building cloud intetration in, to an ever-increasing extent. So, provided that integration requires me to actively do something to activate it, like creating a cloud account, to initiate ANY posdibility of data being uploaded, then I'm happy. But if my data can end up being uploaded, without my explicit specific intent, by any form of setting simply being wrong or that I haven't known about or forgotten, then that is a red-line for me. And unlike Obama, when I say red line, I mean it.

Don't worry the EU will likely pick up on it and send MS a big fine Like you I don't mind cloud integration and as daft as it sounds I kind of trust MS more than Google/Apple with my data although I wouldn't put 'private' stuff on there. In my opinion they will need to separate cloud and user somehow due to business users.

[Bagnaj97]

April Fools article from 2013 - "Microsoft skips 'too good' Windows 9, jumps to Windows 10"

[McEwin]

So its 95 good, 98 bad, 98SE good, ME bad, XP good, Vista bad, 7 good, 8 bad, 9 good, 10 bad... doh!

[Spud1]

One more thing. MS stress they see the future as being the cloud. I do not. I do not want ANY of my data on the cloud, ever, under any circumstances. Yet, MS are building cloud intetration in, to an ever-increasing extent. So, provided that integration requires me to actively do something to activate it, like creating a cloud account, to initiate ANY posdibility of data being uploaded, then I'm happy. But if my data can end up being uploaded, without my explicit specific intent, by any form of setting simply being wrong or that I haven't known about or forgotten, then that is a red-line for me. And unlike Obama, when I say red line, I mean it.

I know the intent of your post and your general attitude to data security, but given that "The Cloud" is just a marketing buzzword for "The Internet" (along with I must add, "The Internet Of Things"), the very fact you are posting on Hexus means your data is in "the cloud". If you own a smartphone or use any internet service with your real name, again it's in "the cloud" already.

"The Internet" in general is the future and what is perhaps better termed as Remote Storage is probably more of the problem, but again for the vast majority of people it will be the way to go. Vastly cheaper, just as secure (although perhaps a bigger target than your personal hard drive) and so much more convenient. Windows 8 started down the cloud route and although skydrive/onedrive etc is pretty rubbish, simple things like sharing start screen configs between devices and backing up settings for a re-install is a huge benefit. I love the idea of being able to run my tablet, work and home PCs are one device, and thats only possible via an internet/cloud based system.

Of course it should be optional - I may be an advocate for remote storage/"cloud" computing but it shouldn't be forced on anyone. To date it's not with Windows - hopefully that will be continued.

[TheAnimus]

One more thing. MS stress they see the future as being the cloud. I do not. I do not want ANY of my data on the cloud, ever, under any circumstances. Yet, MS are building cloud intetration in, to an ever-increasing extent. So, provided that integration requires me to actively do something to activate it, like creating a cloud account, to initiate ANY posdibility of data being uploaded, then I'm happy. But if my data can end up being uploaded, without my explicit specific intent, by any form of setting simply being wrong or that I haven't known about or forgotten, then that is a red-line for me. And unlike Obama, when I say red line, I mean it.

I think you might find that they offer two levels of this to, one for consumers, where everything is a too the cloud type model, one to businesses which is letting you control everything at much greater cost.

From the liveblog it appears that they are wanting to make 9 more business friendly, I am guessing they had a lot of bad feedback for 8 use in corporate set ups, which is a shame because Direct Access rocks.

[demothon]

Even though I never used the app store from Windows 8 and I never used any of the pre-installed apps or the Metro interface, I must say I was really impressed with the performance boost and stability that Windows 8 introduced. If this line is kept and the update boosts these 2 points even more than I am surely going to use it. My Windows 8, and the 8.1, notebook never crashed on me, never gave a "Blue" screen, never had any OS related problems so I think this was a good update for Windows. Also I was impressed with the new Internet Explorer which was much faster than the older versions, even though not supported by most web pages.

[DanceswithUnix]

MS is aiming at all of those with one OS. How successful they'll be will come out in time but it's fair to say that no other OS that has more than say a 2-3% share of ALL of those usage types has done it.

Microsoft have been banging on about having a single platform since the release of Windows NT (ie the point at which they thought they had a shot at playing with the big boys). It was hogwash then, it is still hogwash now. There is an old Unix idea that a tool should do one thing and do it well. As long as MS insist on polluting features from one platform to another it will continue to be second rate across the board.

I think Google got it right when they went for ChromeOS for laptop/desktop and Android for phones & tablets. Keep them apart to make them better. That seems to be working nicely too: https://www.npd.com/wps/portal/npd/u...nnel-pc-sales/

[spacein_vader]

So its 95 good, 98 bad, 98SE good, ME bad, XP good, Vista bad, 7 good, 8 bad, 9 good, 10 bad... doh!

If you're including 98SE as a separate entity then 8.1 deserves its own entry too. But that would make it 'good', which I guess doesn't fit the narrative.

[ZaO]

Not exactly new, they skipped from Word 2.0 to Word 6.0 back in the 90's, probably because WordPerfect was on a higher number and higher numbers are better right?

Surprised they didn't go the whole hog and call it Windows X.

Yeh it's happened before. I guess there can be technical reasons for it. Like, the actual version number in relation to the progress/updates that have been made. But I can't help but feel this is just a marketing stunt!

So its 95 good, 98 bad, 98SE good, ME bad, XP good, Vista bad, 7 good, 8 bad, 9 good, 10 bad... doh!

Haha I never actually saw what the big problem was with Vista. I used it and got on well with it. But when Windows 7 came out, I thought, THIS is what Vista should've been!

[Flash477]

Surprised they didn't go the whole hog and call it Windows X.

Probably because Windows is an OS and they didn't want people referring to it as OS X, thus getting confused with Apple's OS

[aramil]

Downloading now!

[Saracen]

I know the intent of your post and your general attitude to data security, but given that "The Cloud" is just a marketing buzzword for "The Internet" (along with I must add, "The Internet Of Things"), the very fact you are posting on Hexus means your data is in "the cloud". If you own a smartphone or use any internet service with your real name, again it's in "the cloud" already.

"The Internet" in general is the future and what is perhaps better termed as Remote Storage is probably more of the problem, but again for the vast majority of people it will be the way to go. Vastly cheaper, just as secure (although perhaps a bigger target than your personal hard drive) and so much more convenient. Windows 8 started down the cloud route and although skydrive/onedrive etc is pretty rubbish, simple things like sharing start screen configs between devices and backing up settings for a re-install is a huge benefit. I love the idea of being able to run my tablet, work and home PCs are one device, and thats only possible via an internet/cloud based system.

Of course it should be optional - I may be an advocate for remote storage/"cloud" computing but it shouldn't be forced on anyone. To date it's not with Windows - hopefully that will be continued.

Well, I kinda agree, up to a point. "Cloud" does seem to be a very ambiguous term, depending on who uses it, the context they use it in, and even what point in time they used it.

MS have certainly used it in varying ways, but I think you can assume what they mean is essentially Azure. We see aspects of it in OneDrive, aspects if it in Office 365, aspects in SaaS, PaaS, and so on.

Also, we've seen a slow but remorseless drive to integrate and unify. One aspect of that is the ubiquitous MS Account, one email, one sign in, all services. We see everything from a desire to get us all hosting our data on servers in MS data centres, accessed though MS applications, provided by MS paid-for services on MS hardware. Or, at an absolute minimum, hosted on cloud services, and preferably MS.

These big corporates want to be a one-stop-for-all shop. They want us storing our data files, backing up our devices, keeping all our settings, basically, living our e-lives and I-lives utterly dependent on them ans services they provide.

Why?

Because once they've got you doing that, statistically, they've got you for the long-term.

Let's face it, my recent decision to shift my primary machine from Windows to Ubuntu was a wrench, a learning curve and a right nuisance. And that's JUST the operating system. It's not all my service access, system settings, data files, and so on. It's enough of a pain shifting bank accounts and transferring direct debits, etc, that most people don't do it. Similarly, it's a pain shifting broadband suppliers so again, there's huge inertia resisting people's inclination to switch. Ditto utility accounts.

The "cloud", at least as MS see it, is essentially oligopolistic behaviour, and it'll be monopolistic if they can get away with it. They want a firm grip on all our electronic gonads. And they aren't getting that sort of grip on mine. Not without a fight, anyway.

You mentioned smartphone. I don't have one, and privacy is a major part of the reason why. Every time I'm tempted, I hit the same snag - privacy, versus MS and Google.

You mentioned online services using my real name. The only one I can think of is the actual ISP, and while they know my details, I do take steps to keep them from getting much detail on my activity. I can't think of anything else, off-hand, that I do using real name. Maybe I've missed something, but I can't think of anything .... though it's getting harder, especially re: government services, like car tax. But where I can, I do such things in person, at a post office.

So while I can't guarantee to keep 100% of data about me off the net, I can keep the profile of data about me to an absolute minimum. What I can ensure, and I think you know it was what I was talking about, was the data I create on my PC. Specifically, files.

Most of that, I can be 100% sure stays off the net, or cloud, because it's done on machines that do not have any access to a net connection. The rest, I want to be SURE that some build-in cloud integration is not "helping" me by backing up files to MS servers unless I explicitly intended to do. Which I won't.

I have a "smart" TV. How smart is it? Not very, 'cos it's not connected to the net. Never has been. Similarly, a Freeview PVR. That has smart capabilities, but nothing that I want badly enough to give it net access. So, I use that Smart TV, and recorder, as "dumb" devices. My TV is exactly that, a screen for watching broadcasts, timeshift recordings of broadcasts, or my substantial DVS collection. And that suits me.

My main objection is one to the principle of where MS have, in their own words, declared themselves to be heading, which is utter reliance on MS for increasing computing services, be it email, file storage or ever thinner net clients.

That may be where the world goes. I will not go with it. Ever. At the moment, I keep all my "data" locally, and will continue to do so. Should that, in my lifetime, become impossible, say because I can no longer buy hard drives or local storage of some other form (like SSD), then I will go offline before handing my life over to MS or Google. Or other such.

I'm not reliant on computers or technology. I don't need it. I use it because it suits me, but if it stops suiting me, I'm quite willing to stop using it. And I'm entirely serious about that. It is NOT necessary to have a computer, a smartphone or an internet connection to enjoy life, certainly not for me. And if having them becomes more of a pain than a convenience, I'm entirely up for giving up all three. I'm not there yet, but given the direction of travel of MS, etc, I can quite see me 'going dark' at some point. As suggested by my "dumb" TV, I'm happy enough with minimal net access that I have right now, and it wouldn't take much for me to dump even that. About the only thing I'd really miss is Hexus, and you lot out there. But if it comes to it ....

[ZaO]

Don't worry, Saracen. If the market for computer hardware on the consumer level died out, I'm sure someone would end up making parts and selling them. It'd probably just be about whether you can trust those parts to not be doing things they shouldn't be doing. Can we even trust the hardware we're all running now, though? Some people in the know (such as, the guys who created and maintain Tor) would say not. I don't think you need schooling though

[Bane2087]

So its 95 good, 98 bad, 98SE good, ME bad, XP good, Vista bad, 7 good, 8 bad, 9 good, 10 bad... doh!

Why does everyone always forget Windows 2000? I've had a bash with the tech preview and it really really feels like windows 8.2. Maybe there's more to come or under the hood but currently it seems like 3 or 4 changes and most of those can already be achieved with 3rd party software on Windows 8.

[Saracen]

Why does everyone always forget Windows 2000?

Probably because that was intended to be and marketed as a business OS, whereas Windows, Win 2, Win3.x, Win95, ME, Win98 and Win XP were all marketed as consumer OSs. By Vista, and certainly by Win7, it was more a case of 'One OS to rule them all ....' if you'll excuse the literary reference. But considering MS and my view of their cloud objectives, completing that reference will make clear where I think they're going.

[ZaO]

Have you guys seen the privacy policy for the Windows 10 test thing? Jesus..... I'm not going anywhere near it. I instantly started looking up Linux distros haha...