Windows 7 — Still Popular But It Might Be Time to Switch

Windows 7 -- Still Popular But It Might Be Time to Switch

The time is coming soon when Microsoft will no longer offer support for Windows 7 users. While Windows 7 users may have justifiable reasons to not upgrade to Windows 10, there are equally solid reasons to consider making the move to the current OS.

According to NetMarketShare.com, of all the Windows active operation systems Windows 7 is still leading Windows 10 three years after the latter was released. As measured by Internet activity from September 2017 to 2018, over 42% of users still connect online compared to just under 35% for Windows 10 users.

You can understand some reluctance of people or companies not wanting to upgrade, but now that Windows 10 has settled in and vastly improved after its many iterations, what is still holding 10-adverse users from making the leap to the latest and greatest? Here are the pros and cons or staying with 7 and pros and cons of going with 10.

Do You Really Have Software and Hardware Compatibility Issues?

The changes that Windows 10 requires have had many of the Windows 7 holdouts claiming, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!”.

Windows 7 has accumulated hundreds, if not thousands of third-party apps and proprietary in-house software. In addition, many of the 16-bit apps from previous versions of Windows are still accommodated in Windows 7. Few of any of these apps work in Windows 10 or do so with issues. Maintaining legacy software is the main reason Windows 7 users (and mostly by corporate users) have not upgraded. Likewise, unavailable, updated hardware drivers for legacy peripherals have also kept many users from moving to 10.

Microsoft eliminated Windows Media Center in 10 and made it difficult to run DVDs. Windows Photo Viewer and Movie Maker can we installed in 10 but probably not worth the hassle. Numerous third-party applications replace these losses but are not free.

Security and Privacy is a Juggling Act

On the one hand, Windows 10 has significantly better watchdog security than Windows 7 ever had. On the other hand, Windows 10 accumulates a massive amount of data about user habits and seems to be watching wherever we go online.

Even with additional third-party security software installed, Windows 7 systems have proven to be more vulnerable to malware infections. Security experts at Webroot.com  reported that last year Windows 7 averaged 63% of malware infections while Windows 10 had 15%. Microsoft monitors malware and virus intrusions 24/7 and sends security patches automatically as needed to Windows 10 machines, usually in the background to not affect current user work.

But system updates are also a major complaint Windows 7 users have about 10. In Windows 7 you can turn off all updates but that is not possible in 10. Microsoft treats Windows 10 as an ever-evolving system, virtually tethered to Redmond. As anyone who uses Windows 10 experiences, updates, be they large or small, can come at any time with few exceptions and trigger the  ‘do not turn off your computer’ message while the update is downloaded and installed. Windows 7 aficionados seize on this, pointing out that Windows 10 users do not ultimately control their systems.

Lost Interface Familiarity: Interior Decorating Gone Amok

For many Windows 7 users, if Twitter posts are to be counted, the Start menu was the end for them. If you’ve been using Windows 7 since its debut in 2009 and wisely did not move to Windows 8 and 8.1, the design differences between the menus, let along the placement of features, was like speaking in the Tower of Babel. In other words, utter confusion.

The Start search bar in Windows 7 was plain and simple and was good for finding documents, images, and apps on your PC. Start in Windows 10 is in the same location but uses the digital assistant Cortana which also searches online and offers customized lists, weather listings, and more. In other words, handy, but not so plain and simple.

The Start menu also expanded big time in 10. Sure it can be user customized to make it simpler but out of the box it comes loaded with Microsoft Store games and live, flashing tiles that can be considered distracting. In other words, handy, but not plain and simple.

Microsoft also swapped out familiar Control Panel tasks to Settings but still kept the now-diminished Control Panel to further confuse previous version users accustomed to the all-in-one panel. In other words, a required learning curve instead of plain and simple. You don’t have to be a Luddite to not appreciate this switcheroo.

Despite All this, I Still Think You Should Upgrade

For its advanced security alone the move to 10 makes sense. That combined with its more modern interface and better tethering to the Internet provides an ultimately better performance online and off. The way you upgrade can determine the satisfaction of the move to Windows 10. Probably the easier way to get Windows 1`0 is to buy a new PC or laptop with Windows 10 already installed.

But if you have a machine with twice the minimum hardware requirements and is not more than a year or two old, upgrading in place makes sense. Microsoft optimistically claims minimum requirements for upgrading to 10 are a 1 GHz processor, at least 2GB for 64-bit systems, at least 16GB free hard disk space, and a graphics card capable for Microsoft DirectX 9. While that might get you to a Windows 10 machine, it will work like a snail on a rainy day.

Free upgrades are no longer offered so it pays to shop around. Direct from the Microsoft Store comes at the suggested list price but Amazon and other online retailers can have lower prices and may not require a download but an actual copy on DVD.

If the above is not enough to make the remaining Windows 7 users move to 10, take note of the last days of support Microsoft will give to the various versions. Note that even the first versions of Windows 10 have their support days numbered.

My Recommendation for Text Support: Windows 10: The Missing Manual 2^nd Edition

There’s a boatload of Windows 10 instruction and tips books out there but the Missing Manual series comes closest to the manual the operating system should have come with. The second edition catches up with the April 2018 Update and offers author David Pogue’s hands-on how-tos, where-tos, and what-tos and includes an online extra with all the web addresses and downloadable software mentioned in the book. It is singly the best hand-holding companion to an otherwise complex operating system.

Windows 10 Update Experiences Another Potential File/Data Loss Issue

Microsoft’s struggles to get their sixth overall feature update for Windows 10 out into the public domain has taken another hit this last week.

After releasing the October 2018 Update at the beginning of October and then having to pull it just a few days later due to a serious data loss issue, Microsoft has been testing a couple of cumulative updates to address that issue. Over the last two weeks, Windows Insiders have been testing those in the Slow and Release Preview Rings. The latest version brings the feature update to Build 17763.104 but now the company has another potential data loss issue to address. I suspect they will test a fix for this before they consider re-releasing this update to end users.

News of this latest issue has been floating around for the past week or so and involves the process of copying files from inside a compressed zip archive. After several stories about this across the web, Microsoft has now acknowledged the problem and is offering a workaround until a fix is pushed out.

First, let’s look at the problem with the file copy and paste process from within these compressed archives on the Windows 10 October 2018 Update:

If you copy or move files from a .ZIP file (without first “extracting” the contents) into a new destination folder that contains duplicate filenames or is write-protected, you don’t get a “Do you want to replace these files” prompt. It will appear that the files were overwritten, when in fact the copy action for those files is not executed and files have not been overwritten.

(Emphasis ours.)

There are three scenarios where files could be lost during this process:

1. Copying from a compressed (.zip) folder to a regular folder.
2. Moving from a compressed folder to a regular folder.
3. Copying from a compressed folder to a protected folder.

One of the nice features of Windows 10 is the ability to natively look inside a zip archive and work with those files including copying or moving them out of those without extracting the content to an uncompressed directory. Until this issue is addressed by Microsoft in another cumulative update for the October 2018 Update, users will have to change their habits while working with zipped archives.

Microsoft is currently recommending that users extract all files from a compressed archive into a new destination directory in order to prevent files from being lost.

If you have worked with files in zipped archives since installing the October 2018 Update — that is if you got a hold of it before it was pulled back by Microsoft — you might be able to recover those files using one of the following methods from Microsoft.

Restore files from the Recycle Bin

• Open the Recycle Bin
• Locate item
• Right-click and select Restore.

Restore files from Temporary File Directory

• Open the Run command box by simultaneously pressing Windows logo + R keys.
• Type %temp% and then click OK to open the Temp folder containing temporary files.
• Locate the file or folder. On the ribbon, select Move to and choose a location or folder to move the file into.

Unfortunately, if you have emptied your Recycle Bin or cleaned up files in your Temporary File Directory, it is likely your files will not be recoverable at this point.

For now, whatever you do, avoid copying/cutting files from within a compressed zip file to prevent any data loss. I would expect to see a cumulative update this week to address the issue, but I suspect this is going to delay the release of the October 2018 Update until sometime in November. However, don’t expect Microsoft to change the marketing name of October 2018 Update or the official name of Windows 10 Version 1809 because of this delay.