*Sob, Sob* My Last Windows 7 Update

Automatic Washer - The world's coolest Washing Machines, Dryers and Dishwashers

Help Support :

launderess

launderess

Well-known member
Platinum Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2004
Messages
20,635
Location
Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage
Oh what ever shall I do?

Noticed little icon on lower right side of computer all day, but didn't really bother. Finally early evening got blue screen message from MS reminding one that today was 14 January and afterwards Windows 7 would no longer be supported.

Kind message also advised one to be "safe" and buy a new computer with Windows 10 installed. What cheek....

Will have to take one's chances going it alone as am not rubbishing a perfectly good desktop just to make Mr. Bill Gates even more wealthy. [this post was last edited: 1/15/2020-05:33]
 
As has been mentioned before try a Linux Live USB, you might like it.  I use Linux Mint, dual boot either windows or Mint and rarely ever use Windows unless there is a program or two that really require it.

 

You can easily try various flavors, free, on a USB stick.  Pretty easy to import your bookmarks and such.  While not totally immune Linux is much harder to hack into so security is quite good and updates generally do not require a reboot or many minutes to install.  My systems run 24/7 for months at a time before a reboot.
 
 
Yeahbut there may be complications upgrading to W10.

The Christie digital projector management software doesn't work on W10 last I'm aware.

The backup software I've been using for years would require another $$$ update to work with W10.

Etc.
 
Unknown if/when this offer expires

I'm not any Windows expert, but I recall hearing of these updates. From what I've heard recently, the offer officially has long since expired. But it was apparently oddly still possible to do the free upgrade, and I think I've read articles talking about these upgrades in recent months.
 
Will have to take one's chances going it alone as am not rubbishing a perfectly good desktop just to make Mr. Bill Gates even more wealthy.

 

You probably won't be alone (although the specific reason for not upgrading might vary--a big reason I keep hearing in one computer user Facebook group is "I hate Windows 10!")


 

I'll post a link to an article talking about Windows 7 in the age of no support. It's not something I'd do, and it's <strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">not</span> something I'd suggest others do. But this article does have some good discussion of the various issues.</strong>

 

One issue this article mentions that dooms any hope of keeping Windows 7 going forever is that at some point in the future, web browsers will stop supporting Windows 7. Even past security issues, some sites may stop working with outdated browsers.

 

Windows 7 end of support - What to do next guide

Guide discussing the end of support for Windows 7 and considerations for continued use, including security, hardware, performance, and functionality, alternatives like Windows 10 and Linux, and more
www.dedoimedo.com www.dedoimedo.com
 
<strong>I use Linux Mint, dual boot either windows or Mint and rarely ever use Windows unless there is a program or two that really require it.</strong>

 

<strong><strong><strong>I've used Linux for years. It's now my primary OS.</strong></strong></strong>

 

<strong><strong><strong><strong><strong>There is a lot of fuss about "can't run all the software Windows can!" But Linux has software that does all the basics (web browsing, word processing, etc), and for a lot of people--including me--it's more than enough.</strong></strong></strong></strong></strong>

 

 

As has been mentioned before try a Linux Live USB, you might like it. 

 

It's amazing how well the live USB approach works. It's probably  not as fast as a hard disk install, but it can be good enough to get a real sense of how a given Linux distro will work. I was trying different distros a few months ago, and it live USB sticks were so great! I could create a stick, play with the distro, get a feeling for it, wipe that distro off the USB stick and try something else.

 

And at least one distro is even designed work with the idea that it can be used long term off a USB stick.

 

 



While not totally immune Linux is much harder to hack into so security is quite good and updates generally do not require a reboot or many minutes to install. 

 

<strong>It's worth pointing out that any system connected to the Internet can in theory be compromised. But it's a <span style="text-decoration: underline;">lot</span> less likely to happen with Linux than Windows.
</strong>

 

 
I was trying to triple boot, Windows, Mint and Cinnamon Ubuntu but ran into issues with disk partitions.

 

I have two programs not compatible with Linux, but they are rarely used so no issues- other than the interminable update Windows makes me go through when I have to use them.

 

If you use Ubuntu using UNetbootin to create a USB drive you can specify space to keep settings and such from boot to boot.
 
I've not had any trouble with multiple partitions and multi boot. But I'm not using Windows, and my comptuer is old--pre UEFI.

 

I think I'd even read a suggestion of having Windows on its own hard drive. I think one issue with Windows might be it installing its own boot loader when doing routine updates, but I can't remember for sure.

 
 
I can get Win 10 for free AND am not interested.

I don't care for win 8 or 10, which is the same thing with a few changes.

I won't do 10. I hate the look of it. I hate the way it works. I won't do it.

Things to consider:
1. As long as you have a computer Anti-Virus program this up to date, your computer should be safe because it's the first line of defense.

2. Win 7 has a LOT of users even today. Microsoft has pulled this crap before claiming they were going to stop "supporting" it. They set other false end dates years ago.

3. This is a stunt to sell more computers. Are they going to claim next year that 10 will be coming to an end and we'd need to "upgrade" to another, slightly different, overpriced, computer and operating system? I'm not buying it.

4. Any computers you don't use online are not affected.
 
You might be pleasantly surprised how well Win10 runs on your machine. I've updated some *really* low-end systems to Win10 with success.

The latest I did was a 2009-era netbook, which originally came with the stripped-down ULCPC version of Windows XP. So that's four generations of newer software on it (XP, Vista, 7, 8, 10). The low-end Atom N280 processor is literally less than 2% of the CPU power of what you can find in a new laptop, yet Win10 installed without a hitch. It's slower to use than it was with XP of course, but it's still a functional machine (and importantly, patched and safe to use on the internet) more than a decade after it was built.

If you want to try it with low risk, one option is to clone your hard drive (or SSD) to a new SSD, then swap the drives and perform the Win10 update. If you don't like Win10 after doing that, just put your old drive back in.
 
I use Linux and highly recommend it, depends on your needs of course. I use Mint XFCE. It does everything I need.

My partner uses Windows, was using 7 till a few weeks ago, we did the free upgrade to 10 and it was much easier than we expected. All went swimmingly and the computer works somewhat faster than before. We did the upgrade, not a wipe-and-reinstall, it kept all files and software installed. We backed everything up first, of course.

we may still do a wipe-and-reinstall in future, as it still runs a bit slow at times, though not as bad as it was before.

A simple google search of "free upgrade windows 7 to 10" will give many matches, some say that you can't upgrade for free, only a new install, but during installation the installer detected an existing install of 7 and offered to upgrade and keep all files and software so I crossed my fingers and said yes - it worked.

 

Personally I much prefer Linux Mint. Easier interface, less trouble and drama, fabulous software all free, and the warm inner glow of participating in a community driven project.

 

My partner needed to resize some photos and didn't have any photo editing software so I opened the files on my computer and used GIMP to resize and gave them back. (Of course GIMP is available for Windows too.)

 

 
 
I've been using Linux Ubuntu for years. I find it's more than sufficient for my personal needs. My only complaint is that moving disc partitions is more complicated than with Windows 7, which is also on the same laptops.

My only issue is that I do video interpreting for several companies, each of which have their own software. None of them work out of the box on Linux so I'm sort of stuck with upgrading to Windows 10. I am not amused.

Aside from being inherently somewhat more secure than Windows, Linux has another advantage: Economies of scale. If one's planning to write some sort of malware for windows it requires 'X' amount of resource investment. Windows has 'Y' number of users who're potential targets. For Linux your 'X' is a lot larger and your 'Y' is a lot smaller. I.e. greater investment required with less potential payoff.

Mac offers greater security than Windows for the same reasons. However, there's one big difference.... No matter how old your computer is, there's almost definitely at least one flavour of Linux that'll run smoothly on it. AFAIK, it's extremely difficult to install a mac OS onto a computer originally designed for Windows and the system requirements are MUCH higher.

Jim
 
My biggest complaint is the look and redundancy of 10.

I'm not going to look at anything ugly black, gray, green, or hideous blue.

Show me how to get 10 to look like this: vs. ugly on page 2

without all those redundant "tiles" and I will entertain the possibility of 10.

Strict rules: I do NOT DO millenium grunge. No Ugly.
Put my foot down on this 15 years ago. It's not changing.
It doesn't matter if it's interior decor, movies, cars, clothing, habits, computers, appliances..... NO GRUNGE.

bradfordwhite-2020011902255101838_1.png

bradfordwhite-2020011902255101838_2.png
 
Windows XP

We are still running Windows XP on one computer. I need to copy some files out of it and probably get rid of it. It has Firefox which still has some security. I also have a SONY VAIO laptop which had Win 7 and I let it convert to Win 10. I finally got a current computer with Win 10 and redid the SONY from scratch and I will say it works much better. I copied all of the files on a usb drive and still have all of the software on CD's so I can reinstall if I want. The new computer is really nice mainly because of the Solid State Drive, really fast start up and really fast updating. Of course no CD drive but I bought a cheap outboard one for my software. I still like Turbo Tax on a CD.

I really like Windows 10 and the tiles are only on the tablet version, which I can use as my new computer is a two in one. Another great idea even if I do not use the tablet form much. I would rather have a real keyboard. I am using Firefox and Norton security along with DuckDuckGo for search. But the main thing I like is that SSD drive.
 
>> We are still running Windows XP on one computer. I need to copy some files out of it and probably
>> get rid of it. It has Firefox which still has some security.

Mozilla hasn't updated Firefox for WinXP since late 2018... Sorry to say it, but you really don't have any security at all running an OS and browser that are both so far out of date...

www.computerworld.com

Firefox calls it quits on antiquated Windows XP, Vista

Mozilla has ended browser security updates for the outdated versions of Windows; the only Top 5 browser still supporting Windows XP is Opera.
www.computerworld.com www.computerworld.com
 

Similar threads

launderess
Countdown To End Of Windows 7 Has Begun
2
Replies
22
Views
23
kb0nes
kb0nes
volsboy1
Stans Heating and Air destroyed my heat pump.
Replies
4
Views
5
ken
ken
joeekaitis
Windows 7 Directly to Windows 10 Creators Update: Heck, Yeah
Replies
3
Views
4
joeekaitis
joeekaitis
P
Your advice needed re: end of Windows XP support...what to do?
2
Replies
20
Views
21
passatdoc
P
P
Windows 7 was not my idea
2
Replies
21
Views
22
cadman
cadman

Latest posts

Back
Top