Posted on 11/24/2019 9:12:44 AM PST by dayglored
Windows 7 support lifecycle
Microsoft made a commitment to provide 10 years of product support for Windows 7 when it was released on October 22, 2009. When this 10-year period ends, Microsoft will discontinue Windows 7 support so that we can focus our investment on supporting newer technologies and great new experiences. The specific end of support day for Windows 7 will be January 14, 2020. After that, technical assistance and software updates from Windows Update that help protect your PC will no longer be available for the product. Microsoft strongly recommends that you move to Windows 10 sometime before January 2020 to avoid a situation where you need service or support that is no longer available.
Dayglored's note: This site page has lots of Question And Answers regarding the upcoming Windows 7 end-of-life, including:
What does end of support mean for me?
What should I do?
Can I upgrade my existing PC to Windows 10?
How can I upgrade to Windows 10 for free?
What happens if I continue to use Windows 7?
Can Windows 7 still be activated after January 14, 2020?
Will Internet Explorer still be supported on Windows 7?
Will Microsoft Security Essentials continue to protect my PC after end of support?
What if I'm running Windows 7 Enterprise?
What about Windows 7 Embedded?
Can I move my existing programs to a new Windows 10 PC?
How will Windows 7 end of support affect my Microsoft Office apps?
“Disc”?
I suppose there are still DVD copies available, but all I see these days are USB flash drives. Or download from Microsoft’s site — you can download for free, and install, but you’ll need to purchase an activation code from Microsoft or a licenses reseller.
That way, Win10’s update hassles don’t take down the whole computer (host), backup is trivial (copy a VM disk file), restore/rollback is trivial (copy it back). Never, ever, allow Win10 to update without a recent backup.
I can see installing Win10 on the metal if you need screaming performance, e.g. gaming. But other than that, I don’t consider metal install a good option.
But I’m lucky, my mom has been a computer jockey since 1990 when I got her a Compuserve account so we could email each other. She’s still very active on Facebook and email.
Thanks. Do you know what percentage, roughly, of Windows applications would run in it okay? I am wondering, for example, about the Finale music scoring app.
Fewer forced spyware installation attempts.
Outlook — it has its own email app.
Excel, Word, etc. — there is an MS Office compatible version of office. It is pretty good.
There are basic editors but nothing fancy. Specific Windows programs will probably not be supported.
for later
To be clear, you will still be able to run the programs as installed. And Word and Excel will always be compatible — newer versions of excel and word will be able to read your old version files (maybe 10 years from now).
As an example, google chrome will no longer be supported under Windows 7. So if you want to use functions like Drive, even youtube, they may no longer work.
I would look into third party virus protection software and their support. This will replace the windows virus protection software that will expire.
McAffee may continue to support older OSs like Windows 7. But check.
+1.
Get Norton 360 and MalwareBytes, and use CCleaner. I’vw never had a virus hit any of my machines, wo/ Norton 360 nailing it.
bttt
I really liked Vista. My brother has my old laptop and the Vista is still going strong.
So I’m a Win 7 die-hard, and using Office 2003. They make me happy. Win 10 makes me cry. If they’ll no longer update 7, I think that’s a good thing. Every time MS upgrades, things get worse. (MHO)
“I even have a few programs written in Borland”
I used to have Borland’s Paradox database management, and Sprint word processing. They were powerful, but never really took off.
“It would help the economy if you bought a new system.
Please do your part to help the economy. I suggest a MacBook Pro.”
if you want us to buy a new computer, send us the money.
Right now I am for all intense and purposes ... broke. I have a furnace that is about to go out at any time but can’t afford to fix it, plus a boat load of other car repairs that drained me.
But my old laptop works just fine, why should I be pushed to buy something new.
I’ll just have to take my chances next year with the PC and visit only a few websites I know are good.
“Yes. Mostly because companies that make programs for Windows will not be releasing new programs for Windows 7.”
Thanks.
I think I’ll upgrade to Windows 10 and get used to their vanilla configuration.
Another question: is there an annual fee when you use Windows 10, or a fee if you want them to send you updates?
I’m so old I can remember when Bill Gates was a poor financially insecure college dropout and Windows was a costly piece of **** that never worked as advertised from the get-go.
As a retired self-employed IT Consultant, I (and many others like me with STEM knowledge and hands-on/can-do experience) want to thank Bill Gates (and his so-called operating system) for providing us the career and above average income provided by the IT industry over the previous years.
I say hooray for Windows 10 or whatever version is yet to come, the future looks bright for those that choose to engage in the many opportunities this field will offer.
OTOH, Windows 7 does look like the lesser of two evils at this time.
Probably, but for now it still works with the W7/8.1 Product Key, plus I got an older version of Windows 10 (1609 & 1709) and installed them just fine using my W7 Product key.
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