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When Windows 10 support runs out, you have 5 options but only 2 are worth considering
ZDnet ^ | April 22, 2024 | Ed Bott

Posted on 05/19/2024 11:57:09 AM PDT by fireman15

Microsoft will officially end support for its most popular operating system in October 2025. Here's what you should do with your Windows 10 PCs before that day arrives.

In less than two years, Microsoft will draw the final curtain on Windows 10 after a successful 10-year run.

That news shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. The end date is right there on the Microsoft Support document that lists "products retiring or reaching the end of support in 2025." The schedule is defined by Microsoft's Modern Lifecycle Policy: "Windows 10 will reach end of support on October 14, 2025. The current version, 22H2, will be the final version of Windows 10, and all editions will remain in support with monthly security update releases through that date."

When a Windows version reaches its end-of-support date, the software keeps working, but the update channel grinds to a halt:

There will be no new security updates, non-security updates, or assisted support. Customers are encouraged to migrate to the latest version of the product or service. Paid programs may be available for applicable products.

That part in the middle sounds encouraging, doesn't it? "Customers are encouraged to migrate to the latest version of the product or service." Unfortunately, that's not a supported option for customers running Windows 10 on hardware that doesn't meet the stringent hardware compatibility requirements of Windows 11. If you try to upgrade one of those PCs to Windows 11, you'll encounter an error message. And Microsoft is adamant that it will not extend the support deadline for Windows 10.

Option 1: Ignore the end-of-support deadline completely

Option 2: Buy a new PC

Option 3: Ditch Windows completely

Option 4: Pay Microsoft for security updates

Option 5: Upgrade your old hardware to Windows 11

(Excerpt) Read more at zdnet.com ...


TOPICS: Computers/Internet; Education; Hobbies
KEYWORDS: linux; microsoft; pc; ubuntu; windows; windows11; windowspinglist
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To: dayglored
Actually, I see that daniel1212's wonderfully detailed post right after my reply to you contains a possible answer to my dilemma about the Win11 taskbar.

I do not know about that, but https://github.com/valinet/ExplorerPatcher enables moving the taskbar to top/bottom/right/left. R. click on empty spot on TB, hit Properties and then Taskbar. Look to options.

Also, there is "A new app called Taskbar11 allows you to place the Taskbar at the top of your screen when running Windows 11. The app is free and available on GitHub'. - https://www.windowscentral.com/free-app-lets-you-move-windows-11-taskbar-top-screen

121 posted on 05/19/2024 7:09:27 PM PDT by daniel1212 (Turn 2 the Lord Jesus who saves damned+destitute sinners on His acct, believe, b baptized+follow HIM)
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To: napscoordinator

My my, how fierce fro someone who coordinates naps.
What are you, a kindergarten teacher?
Clearly female from your hysterical posting.


122 posted on 05/19/2024 7:21:57 PM PDT by doorgunner69 (When tyranny becomes law, rebellion becomes duty)
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To: Reno89519
Myself, even if I wanted to, I wouldn’t use Linux for work, not worth the compatibility issues.

Interesting.

I use Linux precisely for better compatibility. Of course, I'm a Linux sysadmin. However, our company network is MS Active Directory, and we have zero issues adding a Linux system to the AD system. Also, any office-type document is perfectly compatible with what I use. No one on a Windows machine at work knows I produce/edit docs/spreadsheets/etc on Linux.

123 posted on 05/19/2024 7:27:31 PM PDT by ShadowAce (Linux - The Ultimate Windows Service Pack )
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To: PAR35
You got any CP/M computers? I keep one in the closet just in case. I think my father's Commodore with cassette tape drive got trashed a few decades ago, however.

Pre-IBM PC... I have a couple Commodore 64 computers with cassette drives and disk drives, working TI 99/4a computers with an expansion box with disk drives and a cassette drive. Then there are the Radio Shack TRS-80 Computers with cassette drive and disk drive. Atari computers with a cassette drive and disk drive. I have a very interesting Spectravideo SV-328 which was the precursor to Microsoft's MSX standard, their failed attempt to make a dent in the home computer market. Then of course there is the tiny Timex Sinclair 1000.

I believe that the TI 99/4a expansion box (PEB) has a CP/M coprocessor board in it, but I really cannot remember for sure at this point.

Some of them still work but most need new capacitors. Of course, after wasting all that money and effort on “home computers” I switched over to IBM clones and never looked back.

124 posted on 05/19/2024 8:12:31 PM PDT by fireman15 (Irritating people are the grit from which we fashion our pearl. I provide the grit. You're Welcome.)
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To: doorgunner69

You are an idiot. Insulting how much you intensely hate the military. Disgusting.


125 posted on 05/19/2024 8:28:11 PM PDT by napscoordinator (DeSantis is a beast! Florida is the freest state in the country! )
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To: Revel
Meaning that Microsoft expects people to throw them away. That has a huge environmental cost. So where is congress?

One of the primary points of posting this thread was to let people know that most capable computers can run Windows 11 just fine whether or not Microsoft has blessed them. It is very easy to get around Microsoft's blessing. Windows 11 was released on October 5, 2021. From that time there have been constant rumors that Microsoft was going to stop allowing computers that didn't meet the minimum requirements to take updates. It essentially just hasn't happened.

The latest shock headlines were about computers that didn't have at least TPM 1.2 weren't going to work if they took the latest update. TPM 1.2 came out in 2009. If your computer was released 15 years ago... it might be time to think about getting a newer one.

126 posted on 05/19/2024 8:34:05 PM PDT by fireman15 (Irritating people are the grit from which we fashion our pearl. I provide the grit. You're Welcome.)
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To: dayglored

Sorry I once again forgot to ping you to this thread. My goal was largely to let people know that there are ways to cope with the end of service of Windows 10 next year. As with any thread relating to Windows it went sideways almost immediately with mostly people venting about Microsoft, Bill Gates, Linux, and everything but how to cope with Windows 10’s impending demise.


127 posted on 05/19/2024 8:40:59 PM PDT by fireman15 (Irritating people are the grit from which we fashion our pearl. I provide the grit. You're Welcome.)
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To: daniel1212

It is already being done. Rules are set regarding vehicle emissions and features. EV’s are being pushed on us in legal ways. Appliances are being tampered with. The list goes on. Yet Microsoft can obsolete perfectly good computers Purely for nefarious reasons.


128 posted on 05/19/2024 9:48:32 PM PDT by Revel
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To: fireman15

First you reasoning is nonsense. The criteria is not in how old it is but if it can still meet demand. An I 7 processor can take almost anything thrown at it. Especially any windows software. And they were still being sold a lot less than 10 years ago.


129 posted on 05/19/2024 9:54:40 PM PDT by Revel
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To: fireman15; daniel1212
> Sorry I once again forgot to ping you to this thread.

No worries, I happened to be online and saw it pretty early. :-)

> ... it went sideways almost immediately with mostly people venting about Microsoft, Bill Gates, Linux, and everything but how to cope with Windows 10’s impending demise.

Yeah, that's unfortunately pretty common. OTOH, Win10 isn't actually dying, per se, it'll keep running, just like Win7 (and even older releases), but it will get increasingly risky to use on the internet due to lack of updates.

I have a VM of Win7 that I keep around to run some legacy apps that won't run on Win10, but I only run them locally, I don't use that VM for anything else. Which is a shame in a way, because IMO Win7's UI was the best Microsoft ever produced, and it's a joy to work on compared to the newer ones. Oh well.

Fortunately daniel1212 posted some interesting links to 3rd party utilities that may ease the pain of Win11 (and Win10). My company is switching to Win11 because we have to, and I expect to hear complaints from the users, so it'll be handy to have some useful answers pre-vetted.

130 posted on 05/19/2024 10:01:47 PM PDT by dayglored (Strange Women Lying In Ponds Distributing Swords! Arthur Pendragon in 2024)
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To: napscoordinator

“Hate the military” kindergarten teacher?

What do you know about the military?
Seen some on TV?


131 posted on 05/19/2024 11:11:24 PM PDT by doorgunner69 (When tyranny becomes law, rebellion becomes duty)
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To: fireman15

As a Win7 fan I refused to upgrade to Win10. Somehow I was forced to use Win11, and I like it, with a few graphical tweaks.


132 posted on 05/20/2024 2:11:34 AM PDT by Mr. Blond
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To: Highest Authority
How will this affect my VIC-20?

Software on fragile cassette tape?

Vic

Just wow. I had a glorified typewriter with a green screen, built like a tank but unsupported by anyone. There must be a website "graveyard" for all this stuff.

133 posted on 05/20/2024 3:46:34 AM PDT by MikelTackNailer (NewRome Tacitus)
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To: doorgunner69

Your worse then possible. I’m just grateful you are 80 years old.


134 posted on 05/20/2024 4:15:42 AM PDT by napscoordinator (DeSantis is a beast! Florida is the freest state in the country! )
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To: Revel; dayglored; fireman15
It is already being done. Rules are set regarding vehicle emissions and features. EV’s are being pushed on us in legal ways. Appliances are being tampered with. The list goes on. Yet Microsoft can obsolete perfectly good computers Purely for nefarious reasons.

But when you purchase a license to use the "mind" of the hardware, versus owning that programming, then that is what they can do, and which in the interest of collective security has some warrant (Windows has become safer).

However, the problem with viruses etc. is usually due to careless "driving" and not the OS.

And you can imagine how the Left would want to require ideological "safeguards" into computing, which search engines are doing (Google no longer even indexes most of my site).

I consider further development of Trusted Computing (TC) to potentially be something dangerous and which the gov. could consider requiring for all.

Trusted Computing (TC) is a technology developed and promoted by the Trusted Computing Group.[1] The term is taken from the field of trusted systems and has a specialized meaning that is distinct from the field of confidential computing.[2] With Trusted Computing, the computer will consistently behave in expected ways, and those behaviors will be enforced by computer hardware and software.[1] Enforcing this behavior is achieved by loading the hardware with a unique encryption key that is inaccessible to the rest of the system and the owner.

TC is controversial as the hardware is not only secured for its owner, but also against its owner, leading opponents of the technology like free software activist Richard Stallman to deride it as "treacherous computing",[3][4] and certain scholarly articles to use scare quotes when referring to the technology.[5][6]

Trusted Computing proponents such as International Data Corporation,[7] the Enterprise Strategy Group[8] and Endpoint Technologies Associates[9] state that the technology will make computers safer, less prone to viruses and malware, and thus more reliable from an end-user perspective. They also state that Trusted Computing will allow computers and servers to offer improved computer security over that which is currently available. Opponents often state that this technology will be used primarily to enforce digital rights management policies (imposed restrictions to the owner) and not to increase computer security.[3][10]: 23 

Chip manufacturers Intel and AMD, hardware manufacturers such as HP and Dell, and operating system providers such as Microsoft include Trusted Computing in their products if enabled.[11][12] The U.S. Army requires that every new PC it purchases comes with a Trusted Platform Module (TPM).[13][14] As of July 3, 2007, so does virtually the entire United States Department of Defense.[15]...

The Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Free Software Foundation criticize that trust in the underlying companies is not deserved and that the technology puts too much power and control into the hands of those who design systems and software. They also state that it may cause consumers to lose anonymity in their online interactions, as well as mandating technologies Trusted Computing opponents say are unnecessary. They suggest Trusted Computing as a possible enabler for future versions of mandatory access control, copy protection, and DRM.

Some security experts, such as Alan Cox[27] and Bruce Schneier,[28] have spoken out against Trusted Computing, believing it will provide computer manufacturers and software authors with increased control to impose restrictions on what users are able to do with their computers. There are concerns that Trusted Computing would have an anti-competitive effect on the IT market.[10]...Trusting networked computers to controlling authorities rather than to individuals may create digital imprimaturs.

Cryptographer Ross Anderson, University of Cambridge, has great concerns that:[10]

TC can support remote censorship [...] In general, digital objects created using TC systems remain under the control of their creators, rather than under the control of the person who owns the machine on which they happen to be stored [...] So someone who writes a paper that a court decides is defamatory can be compelled to censor it — and the software company that wrote the word processor could be ordered to do the deletion if she refuses. Given such possibilities, we can expect TC to be used to suppress everything from pornography to writings that criticize political leaders.Trusted Computing Group members have refused to implement owner override.[34]

Because a Trusted Computing equipped computer is able to uniquely attest to its own identity, it will be possible for vendors and others who possess the ability to use the attestation feature to zero in on the identity of the user of TC-enabled software with a high degree of certainty. ...Critics point out that this could have a chilling effect on political free speech, the ability of journalists to use anonymous sources, whistle blowing, political blogging and other areas where the public needs protection from retaliation through anonymity.

Since 2004, most major manufacturers have shipped systems that have included Trusted Platform Modules, with associated BIOS support.[47] In accordance with the TCG specifications, the user must enable the Trusted Platform Module before it can be used.

The Linux kernel has included trusted computing support since version 2.6.13, and there are several projects to implement trusted computing for Linux. In January 2005, members of Gentoo Linux's "crypto herd" announced their intention of providing support for TC—in particular support for the Trusted Platform Module.[48] There is also a TCG-compliant software stack for Linux named TrouSerS, released under an open source license. There are several open-source projects that facilitate the use of confidential computing technology, including EGo, EdgelessDB and MarbleRun from Edgeless Systems, as well as Enarx, which originates from security research at Red Hat. - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trusted_Computing#Criticism

Note that while Trusted Computing relies on the now required (by W/11) Trusted Platform Module (and a TPM is provided by nearly all PC and notebook manufacturers in their products), that being the ultimate hardware system where the core 'root' of trust in the platform has to reside, it is the further development and implementation of Trusted Computing that I am wary of.


135 posted on 05/20/2024 4:34:26 AM PDT by daniel1212 (Turn 2 the Lord Jesus who saves damned+destitute sinners on His acct, believe, b baptized+follow HIM)
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To: Revel
First you reasoning is nonsense. The criteria is not in how old it is but if it can still meet demand.

I have no idea what point you are trying to make. Windows 10 is a fine operating system... the only thing that is changing is that Microsoft will stop providing free security updates approximately a year and a half from now. Microsoft will continue producing updates for another four and a half years, but they will be charging most people and organizations for them. You will have the option of using 3rd party software that will provide security for newly discovered vulnerabilities.

The other option is to upgrade to Windows 11 which can be done easily on the vast majority of hardware currently able to run Windows 10. This is true even on equipment that has not been officially blessed by Microsoft. The complication is that If your hardware does not have TPM 1.2 which was standardized by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) in 2009... then you are going to have some additional challenges and vulnerabilities. I would remind you that Windows 10 was not officially released until July 29, 2015.

The reason that I started this thread was to start a discussion on what is currently going on with this situation and what the options are for people currently running Windows 10. I do thank you and others for all of the loud wailing along with hand wringing and other forms of amusing “the sky is falling” behaviors. It is a good example of how whiny our society has become.

No, there is nothing nonsensical about my reasoning. You are barking up the wrong tree. My collection of vintage computers goes back to the late 1970s and is rivaled by few other hoarders of vintage items. I still have the first “home computer” that I ever purchased, a TI-99/4a along with earlier “digital” kits that came from many years previous to that. I began soldering electronic components together in the 5th grade.

Very few people spend more time patching up very old things than I do. I recently finished a ten-year long self-imposed project where I revamped a 120-year-old derelict house. I have restored player pianos from the same time period along with wind up phonographs. I have a 1942 Cadillac that I have brought back from the dead after it sat in a marsh for 30 or 40 years. I could go on and on. But you should get my point by now.

Your posts appear to have been written by an ungrateful spoiled kid. Microsoft is not obligated to keep holding you by the hand while the world moves on. No one is making you throw away or stop using your old gear. This was meant to be a discussion about the best ways to cope with the changing times... instead thanks to you and others it devolved largely into a whine fest of nonsense with a few bright spots from those who have made an attempt to contribute something helpful to others.

136 posted on 05/20/2024 6:49:11 AM PDT by fireman15 (Irritating people are the grit from which we fashion our pearl. I provide the grit. You're Welcome.)
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To: daniel1212

Thanks for all the excellent and informative contributions that you have made in this thread.


137 posted on 05/20/2024 6:51:37 AM PDT by fireman15 (Irritating people are the grit from which we fashion our pearl. I provide the grit. You're Welcome.)
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To: Mr. Blond
As a Win7 fan I refused to upgrade to Win10. Somehow I was forced to use Win11, and I like it, with a few graphical tweaks.

I have to admit that I was in the same boat. I installed Never10 software on my Windows 7 computers to keep them from migrating to Windows 10 against my wishes. It was new hardware that came with Windows 10 that eventually convinced me to migrate most of my computers. I have still got a big tower running Windows XP with high end audio recording equipment installed in it that I fire up every once in a while.

138 posted on 05/20/2024 7:07:22 AM PDT by fireman15 (Irritating people are the grit from which we fashion our pearl. I provide the grit. You're Welcome.)
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To: fireman15

Or try Linux.


139 posted on 05/20/2024 7:19:38 AM PDT by wastedyears (The left would kill every single one of us and our families if they knew they could get away with it)
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To: wastedyears
Or try Linux.

That actually is part of option 3 in the article. My preferred flavor is Ubuntu Studio which has a lot of content creation programs pre-installed. But I have to admit that I still prefer Windows for most of my computer time.

140 posted on 05/20/2024 8:20:43 AM PDT by fireman15 (Irritating people are the grit from which we fashion our pearl. I provide the grit. You're Welcome.)
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