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Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

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Re: Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

#61

Windows 10 annoyed me with its forced restarts. But I liked the idea of never installing another new OS which was the promise. Suddenly, Windows 11. I went out and bought a MacBook as an absurdly overpowered thin client and set up the Windows box as a Linux server running my code. Microsoft’s user experience was so bad it was literally worth it for me to drop $thousands and spend time learning a new OS.

FWIW one can take back some control over this with O&O's ShutUp10 [1] There are also some github gists with powershell scripts to do the same thing, just use care as some of the powershell scripts by random people can leave a system in a wonky state.

[1] - https://www.oo-software.com/en/shutup10

Re: Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

#62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People with absolutely no other option. Linux is fine if you're a developer, but if you're a gamer or artist that needs real GPUs then you're stuck on Windows.

> but if you're a gamer or artist that needs real GPUs then you're stuck on Windows. The Steam Deck would disagree with the first half of that, and I spend an awful lot of time gaming on Linux with the exact same "workflow" as Windows gamers. Can't speak for artists, though my understanding is that it's Adobe, not Windows which has them stuck.

SteamDeck is a step in the right direction but let’s not pretend it’s even 1% of PC gaming.

> Adobe

Adobe, Maxon, Autodesk, etc before we even get into the plug-in ecosystems.

Believe me I’d be running Linux if I could.

Re: Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

#63

I'm still using Win7 Pro for most things. The pc is a dual-boot with Win10 Pro the other OS. I use Win10 Pro when I do GIS or geophysical stuff that is only licensed for that OS. I have a lot of legacy software that runs on Win10 or better but was purchased before those were options. I prefer the interface over any of that 10 or 11 bullshit. My main workstation is a 2008 Dell T5400 that is trying to die. The mobo has…

I'm in the same camp as you. Once Win7 really becomes unusable, I'll drop it and probably move on to a dual boot W10/Linux.

It took my years to get Win 7 just the way I like it and I have 0 interest in spending the same amount of effort on W10 or any other for-profit OS.

Re: Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

#64

This isn't surprising. The launch-time requirement of a TPM imposes an artificial bar (artificial in the sense that it's purely Microsoft-imposed -- it's usefulness is certainly more debatable to the average user) which instantly locked out people who either: - Didn't know what that was and didn't care to learn (probably most people); or - Understood what it was but either didn't have a CPU with a built-in TPM, which…

People in general presumably don’t know and don’t care about the requirements. Most, I’m guessing, wouldn’t even be able to tell which OS version they are running. If their computer with Win10 is compatible it’ll eventually nag them to upgrade. If not, they’ll run it to the grave and the next one they buy will be Win11 - whether they want to or not.

Re: Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

#65
I was really disappointed to find out that you can no longer setup a new Win11 machine without creating a MS account. No internet connection during Win installation? Too bad, can't install Windows 11. I had to buy a USB to network adapter since I couldn't install any of the MB network drivers, since ya know, I was still trying to install Windows...

FWIW: Once logged in, you can create a local account and remove the MS linked account. A small consolation.

Re: Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

#66

I'm still using Win7 Pro for most things. The pc is a dual-boot with Win10 Pro the other OS. I use Win10 Pro when I do GIS or geophysical stuff that is only licensed for that OS. I have a lot of legacy software that runs on Win10 or better but was purchased before those were options. I prefer the interface over any of that 10 or 11 bullshit. My main workstation is a 2008 Dell T5400 that is trying to die. The mobo has…

I'm in the same camp as you. Once Win7 really becomes unusable, I'll drop it and probably move on to a dual boot W10/Linux. It took my years to get Win 7 just the way I like it and I have 0 interest in spending the same amount of effort on W10 or any other for-profit OS.

Agreed. I have managed to get a good bit of experience with several OSes over the years and have always migrated back to Windows but all that changed when Win8 showed up and the direction of the platform became obvious. I am not a SaaS person except for isolated packages that are required for work.

Re: Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

#67

This isn't surprising. The launch-time requirement of a TPM imposes an artificial bar (artificial in the sense that it's purely Microsoft-imposed -- it's usefulness is certainly more debatable to the average user) which instantly locked out people who either: - Didn't know what that was and didn't care to learn (probably most people); or - Understood what it was but either didn't have a CPU with a built-in TPM, which…

> Understood what it was but either didn't have a CPU with a built-in TPM, which is a fairly recent feature, or didn't have a motherboard with a TPM socket.

Or, like me, understood what it was and realized it is not what they want on their machine.

Re: Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

#68

This isn't surprising. The launch-time requirement of a TPM imposes an artificial bar (artificial in the sense that it's purely Microsoft-imposed -- it's usefulness is certainly more debatable to the average user) which instantly locked out people who either: - Didn't know what that was and didn't care to learn (probably most people); or - Understood what it was but either didn't have a CPU with a built-in TPM, which…

> Understood what it was but either didn't have a CPU with a built-in TPM, which is a fairly recent feature, or didn't have a motherboard with a TPM socket. Or, like me, understood what it was and realized it is not what they want on their machine.

Also totally plausible. I had a TPM fail on me earlier this year (fortunately on a machine without anything irreplaceable on it), and it was enough of a hassle to recover that I'm just going to pass on using one for the foreseeable future.

Re: Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

#69
post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People with absolutely no other option. Linux is fine if you're a developer, but if you're a gamer or artist that needs real GPUs then you're stuck on Windows.

> Linux is fine if you're a developer Eh. I still don't want to waste my time fixing boot issues. And still prefer multiple screens to 1, which does not work well yet.

> And still prefer multiple screens to 1, which does not work well yet.

I see people say this all the time, but I use multiple screens on linux on multiple distributions, across intel/AMD/nvidia, and on voth X and Wayland without issue.

Am I missing something?

Re: Windows 11 runs on fewer than 1 in 6 PCs

#70
I've been a Windows user from Win98 until Win10, until I finally migrated to Linux and had to use mac for some time as well. The good, bad and ugly of windows:

The good:

- It works out of box in many more cases than Linux. Mac is, of course, better, but only because it only works on strictly controlled hardware. Linux is much harder to setup on a random hardware, especially if it's new (I'm having real trouble with my Fedora on Amd Zen4 7950x and Nvidia Rtx 4090 right now).

- Many games only work on windows. This is changing, fortunately, but for the moment Windows is the only platform to play many titles.

The bad:

Using windows is becoming harder and harder in each release. What was nicely organized in a control panel is now a maze of many windows. When you click an option, you are usually taken to a window with very few options. If you need something else, there is no clear way to know where to go. You might click a link and a legacy control panel item shows up. Or this window might navigate somewhere else. You cannot have multiple instances of settings window open. If I'm experimenting with something and I need to make a change to sound settings, I need to start over and find that page. I can go on and on, but using Windows 11 is many ties more complex than 7. It seems they want to mimic Mac, but what they forget is that their users are those who did not choose Mac for one reason or another. Becoming a less interesting copy of Apple has failed MS times and times (RIP Windows Phone), but they keep insisting on it. Give me any Linux desktop, or mac, or a phone, and ask to make a change to a setting. It's much faster than doing the same on Windows 11, even if you've been an experienced Win 10 user.

The ugly:

Windows is hostile to its users. It installs many apps that I cannot uninstall some. Forces me to use a Microsoft account. I want my machine to be predictable and transparent, it is not: I don't know what my online account is sharing with MS. I don't know how to turn things off. Even things such a preventing a web search in start menu requires going to regedit (or gpedit). You don't feel that you are paying a company to serve you. This would be good for a free OS. But one that costs multiple hundreds? No, I should trust you, I can't.

So on my new machine I tried Win 11, but I'm not convinced to buy it (cost is not a problem after spending 5k+ on hardware).

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