CthuluIsSpy: Or I don't have the time to troubleshoot an unfamiliar OS that apparently can't even install proprietary drivers without going through a command line.
On a decent Linux distribution you can install the proprietary Nvidia drivers without a command line...
CthuluIsSpy: Not everything is a binary case of "they must love Microsoft or they hate it". Sometimes concessions have to be made.
Yes. But what are your options? If you have a new PC with new hardware, my guess is that it won't support Windows 7 anymore. So, even if you wanted, you couldn't use an older version of Windows.
Also, if you happen to have a PC that does support Windows 7: You don't receive security updates anymore. Using Windows 7 while connected to the Internet becomes increasingly dangerous. Still, it's your call. But take responsibility, because Microsoft clearly doesn't support this older version anymore, and if you get malware, don't blame them – it was your call!
The same will be true for Windows 10 in 2025...
CthuluIsSpy: Just think about it; installing a new OS and troubleshooting takes time. Not everyone has time to spare. "Laziness" is not part of it. That's a gross oversimplification that fails to understand just how valuable time and expedience is.
I accept your point of view. But still, what are your options? In this case you can stay on Windows 10 until 2025, then either you go offline, or you use Windows 10 solely for gaming (after 2025 don't use it anymore for Internet banking!), and you have to accept the fact that newer games and applications may no longer run on Windows 10 by 2026.
Also, newer desktop PCs and notebooks won't support Windows 10 anymore. Contrary to Linux, Windows is actually rarely installed by end users, because most of the times it comes pre-installed with the device. And if you think that upgrading Windows 10 to 11 (or Windows 7/8 to Windows 10) from within Windows is the same as installing Windows from scratch – think again. It isn't. A lot of users won't get this done correctly, because they don't have the time to spare for troubleshooting and so on. It's not laziness maybe, but it's also something people have somehow managed to not (have to) do anymore: installing an operating system...
CthuluIsSpy: Yes, Windows 7 was good for a Windows OS and was better than Windows 10. I would have kept using it if it weren't for compatibility issues.
In your opinion. I have still both installed on a lot of computers, and I do like Windows 7 a lot, but in the meantime I also like Windows 10. Even Windows 11 is okay to work with. I don't really see that much of a difference to be honest...
To me it's like the difference between Ubuntu and openSUSE. Or between Gnome and KDE Plasma: merely details like icons and styles, but basically the same.
CthuluIsSpy: Correct, TPM has been around for a while. However, there's a difference between "utilizing" and "requiring".
Actually there is a quite manageable workaround for installing a new Windows 11 on an unsupported system. I've done that, on a laptop with a) an unsupported CPU, and b) without a TPM altogether. Haven't tried on a PC without UEFI yet, but I'm curious if Windows 11 would actually run on a PC (desktop or laptop) with BIOS (hence not in UEFI mode).
As a workaround it would probably work if I boot via Clover, which basically loads a UEFI after booting from a BIOS, hence it would be able to then install Windows 11 in UEFI mode, even when the PC doesn't actually have one...
Again, this may be too complicated and too time consuming, so most people won't do that. Most people will just take what Microsoft presents to them: "Your computer cannot upgrade to Windows 11." So they will go and get a new computer, one that comes with Windows 11. Problem solved.
CthuluIsSpy: Windows 11 requires TPM 2.0 which is not present on all motherboards and if not requires installation of a component. Even then it has to be activated, which means digging into the BIOS which is something I'd rather not touch.
Like I said already, the TPM isn't really mandatory except for the compatibility check. Windows will refuse to upgrade otherwise. There are hack though – btw, "unofficially official" by Microsoft themselves – that will allow an upgrade even when the minimum CPU and TPM specs are not met. But without a TPM, you can only fresh-install Windows 11, and you have to know the hack as well (which is also "unofficially official" by Microsoft).
CthuluIsSpy: For what it's worth, I might as well move to Linux after Windows 11 becomes mandatory. If I have to install another OS again I might as well go Linux. With the amount of nonsense MS is adding to their OSs the amount of troubleshooting would probably be the same.
Yes, please do. But you are talking as if Windows 11 is the end of the world, when it isn't. The difference between Windows 10 and 11 is just marginal. If you know how, you can run it with a local user account and without a TPM. And if you want some functions in Windows 10 that require a TPM, you need it right now as well. BitLocker for example.
The new requirements are really more on paper than anything else.
