The way I read it this is for new computers with Windows 7 installed.

I thank you for the update on this, damcoy. My feeling with Microsoft is they use the users to find the glitches in their software instead of THOROUGHLY testing it themselves. Therefore, we are beta users, in essence. I would believe this might be the case in this situation. I have to say no thanks. The number of free labor and hours they would get from me trying to figure out what the heck and why the heck is not worth it.

I'm saddened that I bought a win7 laptop in April, where's my deal microsoft ? My win7 now seems outdated less that two months after I bought it. I want a complementary partial refund.

PC World has said that the upgrade is for those buying a windows 7 machine between Jun 2 (tomorrow) and January 31st next year with a qualifier that states the upgrade must be bought before March 1 2013.

I have had the beta version of the operating system installed for 6 months now. Seems more suited to tablet type touch screen computers than desktop or laptop. Not that I have given it any kind of a serious try out really.

I've read that it is more for touch screen types Owbist. They want to make it usable over different platforms. I sort of lost interest in it after I read that.

Yes Bob and that was why I too lost interest and never really played with it.

I also feel the desktop is almost obsolete now too, I shall no doubt have to upgrade my line of thought on these things sadly.

I have a feeling Windows 7 will be the last M$ OS I use. When XP is no longer supported, if this desktop hardware still works, I'll put a Linux distro on it, use that and my Win 7 laptop. No Windows 8 for me!

This latest win8 works well in desktop configuration from initial reviews. One guy said.. ten minutes of show me how for some of the new features is all most people need.

Microsoft has some kind of win8 training, I assume online... if you attend you get a $20 voucher for the Windows Store, whatever the heck windows store is, but that way you get your win8 free and have five dollars left over for a half of a foot long sub from subway. Hope windows store has a subway shop, must be kind of like walmart huh.

"My feeling with Microsoft is they use the users to find the glitches in their software instead of THOROUGHLY testing it themselves. Therefore, we are beta users, in essence."

Exactly the conclusion I came to seven years ago when I switched to Apple/Mac after almost two decades of MS nonsense. Disappointed to learn that it's still going on.

Microsoft sort of started this home computer era.. makes me wonder when I see the apple/mac bash ...if there was no microsoft, would there be cell phones today that fit into your shirt pocket. Would we even have home computers today if microsoft never existed ?

Jack and Jill Public are unknowingly beta testers for many things, this is not a Microsoft phenomenon.

As for Apple products I seem to have heard more than once that some older apps do not work on newer versions of the iPhone, iPad or iPod forcing owners to buy newer apps. Why did they fail to install a camera on the original iPad and then put an inferior camera on the iPad2 compared with iPhones? No Flash either? Fortunately HTML5 will fix that for Apple users once it becomes mainstream.

I am not an Apple user and my comments are based on reading or hearing these things

"I also feel the desktop is almost obsolete now too, I shall no doubt have to upgrade my line of thought on these things sadly."

Maybe, but in our office getting rid of the desktop and replacing it with something else would mean a radical shift in how our work gets done requiring a significant expenditure of time-effort-money-retraining not to mention adapting the current software we use to a new platform. I just don't see it happening unless Microsoft somehow forces it down their throat. We have about a 100 workstations which are either desktops or thin-clients with a keyboard and mouse wired to our network. It all works well and they won't give that up easily.

I've been out of town.

Yes, O is correct as there is criteria for the upgrade offer. My hyperlink offering reported that it is only new sales.

DA

As far as MS using us to test their wares, sounds like you are talking about doctors and meds instead of computers. LOL I don't like the changes sometimes like forcing something on us or taking something away like Works, but I try to adjust my attitude. If we don't adjust we will be left behind as technology progresses.

AZ,
I understand what you are saying, but Emma makes a lot of sense. If users are not prepared for progress we would all still be using Commodores or in the least Win3.1.

We have a whole bunch of Dell XP SP2 systems in our building. Six in our office alone. Ours are going to be replaced by a governmental entity due to security, non-MS software demand, and future anticipated expansion. You can bet many of the other offices will have to replace their systems via their budget as their offices have systems integrated for use with our data.

And, we did survive without a burp when we switched from Win98 and Win2000 to WinXP.

Bobbie,

Hope you are sitting down. You know how I was dragged kicking and screaming into the post Win98 era as I loved my Win98 system. And, yes you know I love my Vista system even more and have defended it for all the bad publicity it received. My plans right now is to buy a entry to mid-level laptop with W8 just so I can play. See why I said I hope you were sitting down.

Even though I think there is way too much going on now with the Internet, and can only guess as to what the future will bring we users have a choice. Be part of it or allow it to pass us by. Do I think everyone with a W7 should race out and purchase a W8? Of course not. However, two generations of O/S behind could become the future limit.

DA

My first was 98, then ME, XP, then Vista and now W7. I like windows 98, Vista and especially XP. I found nothing wrong with Vista except an occasional white screen. I was checking with a clerk about "what's new in W8", I decided to wait for a new toy and after reading this thread I found I made the right decision.

DA, yes, I'm sitting down, but I think I'm pretty serious about what I wrote. I have a tablet besides the XP desktop and Win 7 laptop. But at my age, I think I'm about finished buying new systems or even new OS. That's why I wrote that I'll continue with Win 7 and some form of Linux on my desktop after XP is no longer supported, if I'm still around that long.

We are moving the end of July to a life care retirement community, and for the first time I'll have REAL BROADBAND. I don't consider the 3G service I have broadband at all as it isn't much faster than satellite, which is truly not broadband. Hopefully I won't have a restrictive limit on the amount I can use, so I'll finally make use of my Wi-Fi tablet. It's the HP TouchPad which I bought on EBay right after the "fire sale" at a good price, and I have done several things to it to make it faster, but I've never really been able to use it because of the limits I have on the band width I can use. So I'll really be playing around with it, and there are a few developers still working with Web OS, plenty of apps for my use, and a bluetooth keyboard for when I really want to make use of it. So there's plenty to learn there and keep me busy.

grandms, I hope you have cable in your new home, it's wonderful.

I look forward to getting a new computer, setting it up and learning the new system. W7 was harder to learn than any of the other OS I have used.

It is the little things that frustrate me. Learning things like tablets e readers, etc.. I just buy them as "toys", I guess I don't have the drive to learn them like I do with the PC. I am 75 and have a bit of a memory problem, but not with the PC. I just reformatted my PC and had no problem at all.

I was doing fine until DA reminded me of my Commodore 64 and sitting there waiting for something to load from that tape drive. And those 40 character lines on the tv which served as the monitor. Trying to format a document with 80 characters on a line from that display is probably started me losing my mind. Thinking of still using that is enough to finish me off.

I loved my Win 98 machine. I remember rebooting and rebooting, but it was worth it. So much better than 95.

Jane

Isn't it nice to recall favorites of the past? Emma, I'm 81, so I don't know how many more years the Lord will give me on this earth, but I'm still enjoying life and most of the new technology. Yes, I will have cable, so, as I posted, for the first time I'll have true broadband and I know I'll love it.

Interesting thread. I am 73 and I started with the Commodore 64. In fact, my oldest son still has it in his basement. Next was windows 3.1 and then finally windows 95. I loved windows 95, and resisted going to 98 for a long while, but was very happy with it when I did. It was a great operating system. I still have 3 windows 98 systems in this house. All still work perfectly and will do anything that I want them to do. I have 3 XP systems here too, (one is a netbook), and I really like windows XP too. My newest computer is a Vista, and I like it well enough, but rarely use it because, I do not like the flat screen monitor at all. I have used windows 7 and its ok, but like grandms, I probably will not be going to windows 8. I will leave that for all of you that are younger and will most likely need to keep updating your systems. :-)))