Microsoft to Offer New Win7 Users Win8 Pro Upgrade at $15

[stephenkendrick]

[citation]However, with its new OS due in less than six months, Microsoft wants to make sure customers don't hold off on purchasing computers in the mean time.[/citation]

From what I read, Microsoft may well see a crescendo of purchasing activity up until the launch, followed by a drop in sales as Windows 7 PCs dry up. That is unless they sort out (get rid of) Metro on the desktop.

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]AndrewMD[/nom]Windows 95 was a major change from what Windows looked like previously. How do you think people felt back then? I can tell you a lot of people did not like Windows 95 back then because Microsoft increased the processing, memory, and hard disk requirements. Even though it said it could run on a 386, it could never run anything useful. Right around that time period, Intel had three processors to deal with, 386, 486, and their newly released Pentium. If you don't like Windows 8, then don't buy it. However, if you are in the IT field, it is stupid not to learn it. Even if major businesses do not pick it up and transition to it when it is released, their agreement contracts with Microsoft mandate that they transistion to it evenutally.[/citation]

Since it came out, the start menu was changed, not replaced, up until Metro. That is what I was saying. This is a more radical departure from the original start menu than ever before. I did not say anything about how different Windows 95 was from 3.11 and older (which technically weren't really OSs, just programs that ran on top of DOS, if I remember correctly) because that was not what was referred to by Vladislaus' comment. In fact, I didn't even say (in that comment that you replied to) that there was anything wrong with Metro and that it should not be learned to be properly utilized. I fail to understand how what you said effects what I said at all, besides fortifying my point. If I'm somehow missing something, would you mind clarifying further?

 

[Guest]

after trying WIndows 8 preview... they'll need to practically give it away. I cannot see non-technical older people abandoning their current windows environment for Windows 8. I think msoft will have a harder time switching people than they did from XP to Win7 ... at least Win7 was a big improvement over the past.

My feelings are that if people are faced with such a shift in Windows 8 ... they are going to think to themselves ... "well why not try a Mac or why not try Linux". I think Microsoft is in big trouble. They are a day late & a dollar short to the web-centric applications dance as well as the cloud. Even though azure is very good its still so microsoft centric and I just don't see the world changing at this point.

Look at AWS EC2. Over 5000 AMI's are publically available for just Ubunut ... search and you'll see just over 1300 for Windows Servers. And if you don't like Ubuntu ... you have choices of CentOS, Fedora, RHEL, Debian, OpenSuse.

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]blazorthon[/nom]Since it came out, the start menu was changed, not replaced, up until Metro. That is what I was saying. This is a more radical departure from the original start menu than ever before. I did not say anything about how different Windows 95 was from 3.11 and older (which technically weren't really OSs, just programs that ran on top of DOS, if I remember correctly) because that was not what was referred to by Vladislaus' comment. In fact, I didn't even say (in that comment that you replied to) that there was anything wrong with Metro and that it should not be learned to be properly utilized. I fail to understand how what you said effects what I said at all, besides fortifying my point. If I'm somehow missing something, would you mind clarifying further?[/citation]

Also, I have every intention of using Windows 8 and then using freeware to customize it's UI how I see fit. Unlike some people here, I'm more than willing to spend a few minutes getting it how I want it. Windows 8, as an OS, is a clear upgrade over Windows 7.

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]just_sayin[/nom]after trying WIndows 8 preview... they'll need to practically give it away. I cannot see non-technical older people abandoning their current windows environment for Windows 8. I think msoft will have a harder time switching people than they did from XP to Win7 ... at least Win7 was a big improvement over the past.My feelings are that if people are faced with such a shift in Windows 8 ... they are going to think to themselves ... "well why not try a Mac or why not try Linux". I think Microsoft is in big trouble. They are a day late & a dollar short to the web-centric applications dance as well as the cloud. Even though azure is very good its still so microsoft centric and I just don't see the world changing at this point.Look at AWS EC2. Over 5000 AMI's are publically available for just Ubunut ... search and you'll see just over 1300 for Windows Servers. And if you don't like Ubuntu ... you have choices of CentOS, Fedora, RHEL, Debian, OpenSuse.[/citation]

Non-technical people won't even consider Macs unless they already use one and for the most part, they wouldn't even know of Linux anyway, so it's not even a known option and even if they have heard of it, they wouldn't know enough about it to consider it, let alone to actually install it themselves.

 

[Guest]

Interesting Laptop only. I've not tried 8 but leap from 7 to 8 I don't see as ground breaking ( from XP to 7 was an enormous leap) however if I had gone with my gut and took the opportunity to get a touch screen monitor for my PC at a knock down price then I may of considered upgrading as it is, I didn't, as I couldn't really see the use of a touch screen for my desktop.
I can bet you that they are offering this on laptops only because, as you may well know, whenever you upgrade hardware in your PC and I'm not just talking the Hard Drive, Windows detects the system changes and asks you to verify your OS normally re-entering the key. Er Go if you upgraded hardware on your desktop hardware from July Windows identifies new PC and therefore eligible for $15 dollar upgrade.
If they do it for desktop PC's I shall be doing my long awaited hardware upgrade and getting a cheap copy of Windows 8 to boot, I hope.

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]AWeakling[/nom]Interesting Laptop only. I've not tried 8 but leap from 7 to 8 I don't see as ground breaking ( from XP to 7 was an enormous leap) however if I had gone with my gut and took the opportunity to get a touch screen monitor for my PC at a knock down price then I may of considered upgrading as it is, I didn't, as I couldn't really see the use of a touch screen for my desktop.I can bet you that they are offering this on laptops only because, as you may well know, whenever you upgrade hardware in your PC and I'm not just talking the Hard Drive, Windows detects the system changes and asks you to verify your OS normally re-entering the key. Er Go if you upgraded hardware on your desktop hardware from July Windows identifies new PC and therefore eligible for $15 dollar upgrade. If they do it for desktop PC's I shall be doing my long awaited hardware upgrade and getting a cheap copy of Windows 8 to boot, I hope.[/citation]

I've replaced my hard drive, my CPU, my graphics card, my sound card (integrated audio failed), my RAM, and a few other minor things, all without needing to re-verify my OS, on several machines with many different versions of Windows, several of these machines were even OEM machines. Is there some sort of requirement for needing to re-verify that I managed to miss? The most that Windows has ever asked me to do was rerun the WEI on some of the newer OEM machines and even then, it was optional.

 

[eddieroolz]

Back in the day, Microsoft offered free upgrades from XP to Vista. I guess they want $15 this time around.

 

[jdwii]

Blazorhon, No one wants to learn how to use the OS people want what they were used to, you'll see, And to use 3rd party software to get back the start menu(the one that does not override your whole screen) is dumb this is not linux.

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]jdwii[/nom]Blazorhon, No one wants to learn how to use the OS people want what they were used to, you'll see, And to use 3rd party software to get back the start menu(the one that does not override your whole screen) is dumb this is not linux.[/citation]

... Yes, I can see how people can be too lazy to go to softpedia.com, download ViOrb and ViStart (two very small, free programs), and then install then. Yes, a sub five minute fix for getting the start menu back is such a horrible thing, it could only take the most insane enthusiasts to attempt...

Blame M$. I showed a quick fix for the only problem with Windows 8. Flaming me for explaining how to fix a problem is beyond ridiculous.

 

[jdwii]

No its ridiculous to think people should have to do this, it needs to be a option not something someone else has to fix, Under linux this is ok but for Microsoft its not and i'm telling you businesses will not by into this, their interface will fail. I personally don't even think its going to compete will with the Ipad. No flaming if anything your the one doing that with everyone's comments.

Sorry but i just don't think people should have to download add-ons to make their interface better.

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]jdwii[/nom]No its ridiculous to think people should have to do this, it needs to be a option not something someone else has to fix, Under linux this is ok but for Microsoft its not and i'm telling you businesses will not by into this, their interface will fail. I personally don't even think its going to compete will with the Ipad. No flaming if anything your the one doing that with everyone's comments. Sorry but i just don't think people should have to download add-ons to make their interface better.[/citation]


If you look at the first thing I say in the comment that you just replied to, you'll notice how I said "blame M$". I never said that people should have to manually change the UI to fix a problem with it that M$ caused. In fact, I've said that Metro should be optional several times now. However, it isn't, so tough shit. I offered a way to fix that and was flamed for it. That is even more ridiculous than M$ not making Metro optional.

Metro is there to stay, so I offer a solution to it. On top of that, I offered a quick, easy, and free solution. If you don't like it when people offer solutions to fix problems, well you have a problem and really, I don't care. Take this as you will, but complaining in a reply to me about M$ screwing us over and then me offering a solution to the problem is just stupid.