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When it comes to Windows, I want to try free. Free Windows 10 that is. And it is intriguing in that it will run on an ancient Core 2 Duo 1.83 GHz relic with just 2 GB of memory installed.
I don’t need to own a $1,500 PC in order to run Windows 10. That’s wherein the most recent, colossal realization for cross-platform users that Microsoft does indeed do “free” better than Apple when it comes to operating systems, lies, too.
Apple’s OS has been free since Mavericks, but you needed a fairly recent piece of Apple hardware in the form of a Macintosh in order to use it. That would be in most cases, if you weren’t going to cobble together a system that included a Mac Mini as your CPU, an iMac. Hence the $1,500 price tag referenced above regarding Windows 10 not requiring as hefty a computer hardware investment. Windows 10 runs on minimally spec’d machines like the aforementioned less than 2 GHz Core 2 Duo with bare bones RAM installed.
I got the usual irritated Apple fans when I wrote my first post on how when released, Windows 10 would be taking Apple’s free OS by storm. This latest piece seeks to address some of the combative Apple fans who believe I am firmly in Microsoft’s camp when it comes to anything OS or hardware related.
Without further ado, here are some of the comments that made it to our inbox and the responses:
I gave up on MS a long time ago…. I don’t trust them, and will never use their software. I don’t care if they paid me. Never again!
That’s unfortunate. The business world hasn’t given up on MS. To the contrary, if your workplace is a corporate environment, Apple and Macs are sadly invisible. That said, if you are lucky enough to run your own business and can afford them, Macs are a wonderful machine for both business and personal use.
Same here.
You can’t rely on MS not to make it so you have to relearn how to navigate the O/S and apps you’ve used for years.
I don’t have computers so I can learn and relearn how to use them. I have them so I can accomplish the task at hand.
I think blind loyalty sometimes comes with a short memory. OS X introduced changes that necessitated getting used to things like the dock. But, I’ll grant you that systems like Vista and even Windows 8 created learning curves with respect to PC’s and where things could be found. It does seem like just when you learned to shut down by accessing the “start” menu in XP, Microsoft switched it up again. All this said, the speed and stability of both the mature versions of Vista and Windows 8, in my view offset the interface nuances that needed re-learning. We humans tend to adapt quickly to changes in computer operating system desktop environments—whether it’s Apple’s, Microsoft’s or the Linux community’s.
“It has had quality issues that won’t go away though”….. what a fallacious line of bulls**t.
Thanks for the redacted bullshit. It is common knowledge that OS X has had network share problems since Mavericks. Apple’s schedule of releasing annual OS upgrades has precluded its ability to get a handle on all of the bugs in its OS. Apple would do well to address bugs reported by developers and end users. It has left a mar on its reputation for quality hardware and software. Until it actually takes quality seriously again, Apple’s OS will continue to wither in terms of being highly evaluated and rated by users in the know. Hopefully, and as recently rumored, Apple’s non-distorted and future reality will include the devotion of adequate resources to improving user experience. Its focus needs to be on quashing bugs before it releases newer versions of OS X.
Yeah.. Windoze has never had any bugs…
Bias much, Bob?
And this…
“… just the thing that the sleeping Redmond giant needs to restore some of its revenue-generating luster.”
How would giving Windows away for $0 restore revenue-generation?
And this…
Does anyone know how long MS has been spewing crap like this?
More than 20 years.
Yehp. Windows NT was going to put Unix out of business… that was in 1993.
And, if anything, Windoze(TM) sucks way more now than it did then.
These hurt as much as any criticisms. I am one of the original Apple fan boys, but I’ve since grown to appreciate the pros and cons of all platforms. The previous article on Windows 10 was not about bugs for both Windows and OS X. It was my contention that Microsoft’s “free” strategy is better than Apple’s because it actually is “giving away” the OS to certain users but is charging everyone else. Corporate America will still be paying for Windows. Even small businesses running Windows 7 will most likely not be able to make the transition to Windows 10 during the year after its release that it is available “free.” Microsoft, due to the fact it charges for Windows (and will continue to do so) has to address end user bugs in a timely fashion. It has historically done so.
At one time Apple did a better job than Microsoft in this area, but since “free” Mavericks, their quality has noticeably stagnated. The lack of urgency or attention to address ultimately significant, embarrassing issues like buggy networking file shares remains one of the best examples of how “free” actually means inferior and uncaring for Apple.
Windows 10 is an opportunity for Microsoft to make some inroads in the consumer space while still generating the revenue it always has in the corporate sector—a pretty good “free” OS strategy if you ask me.