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Microsoft Likely To See a Boost in Windows 10 Sales This New Year (fortune.com)
Because many businesses are wary of new software updates, let alone a new operating system, Microsoft could see a significant surge in Windows 10 install base and sales in the New Year. From a report on Fortune: Businesses have been slow to upgrade all of their corporate computers to the latest Windows OS in 2016, according to research by IT services and technology company Adaptiva. Adaptiva said Tuesday that based on its findings, it believes companies are going to be upgrading to the latest version in 2017. Adaptiva based its findings from a survey it conducted over the summer of 300 IT professionals at various businesses. The company said that 41% of the companies it surveyed have been avoiding the upgrade, and some "have gone so far as to actively resist the move by using software to prevent or disable Windows 10 installation." The survey didn't say why exactly companies were avoiding the upgrade, but the majority of respondents that did upgrade "rated the Windows 10 migration process to be somewhat to extremely challenging," the survey said. According to latest figures provided by Microsoft, Windows 10 is running on over 400 million devices.
This is doubtful. 2017 will be the year of desktop Linux.
Why pay for it when you could use it for free, never activating and thus not seeing any ads?
Just add some UserMode Linux kernel, just to have the full GNU/Linux stack for extra geek points.
"Sufficiently advanced satire is indistinguishable from reality." - [Tips: 1DrYakQDKCQ6y52z6QbnkxHXAocMZJE61o ]
And I predict a sharp decline in Windows 10 sales the year after, once businesses have gotten some experience in dealing with the Windows 10 system.
There were large reservations around the frequent upgrade requirements of Current Branch for Business but those are getting worked out as the servicing model matures and the tools to support it, like SCCM, get more robust. That said, a lot of companies do want the new OS because there are a lot of speed improvments, as well as security improvements that include better support for strong (mil spec) encryption out of the box, better protection against malicious "rootkit" like software with tools like Secure Boot and better tech to protect credentials from pass the hash attacks. All this relies on native UEFI support, an area where Win10 is far and away above Win7.
Make all the jokes you want about ads and such in the consumer builds (i dont like it either btw) but as a windows deployment specialist who is fielding regular head hunter calls when they find me on Linkedin, I can tell you Win10 enterprise is very desirable for many companies.
Win 10 is good OS that would be quickly adopted if/when MS decided to remove or make optional bolted-on telemetry malware. Such "feature" is simply not acceptable on a non-free product.
Unless you can get Windows 10 Enterprise, your business is Microsoft's business.. Even if you "castrate" Home and Pro, they still blab your business to Microsoft. And even if you *could* completely disable the spyware aspects of 10, how do you know that MS won't come along and turn it all back on via one of its updates? If you trust MS at all, you have your head in the sand.. The only way to win with Windows 10 is to NOT PLAY.... Let the MS apologists mod me down... It HAD to be said..
THANK YOU, Edward Snowden!! Americans owe you a debt of gratitude (whether they know it or not..)
I don't get this. The entire bump in sales numbers seems to be based on a theory that business haven't upgraded yet, so they will next year. I don't own a Tesla vehicle, but I also will not buy one next year. How does that theory make sense at all?
Sent from my TARDIS
If they stop selling any versions of Windows7, "sales" of Windows10 can only go in one direction. But how many of those "sales" where actually sold retail licenses ("Hi, i actually, really, like to buy a Windows10 License for 300 Bucks!"), and how many where Free-as-in-Herpes upgrades or preinstalled on a new PC?
When you're forced to have windows 10 preinstalled, or your OS upgrades without your permission, I am not sure it could be called 'sales'.
Our company is one that initially resisted a Windows 10 migration. One of the big reasons is that we still rely on some older software that's incompatible with Windows 10 unless you keep a very expensive maintenance agreement current with the vendor, so you can get/use their latest update. In our case, we're trying to migrate off of that product completely in the next year or so, switching to one that's being customized for our needs at this time under a different maintenance agreement.
But realistically? That's only a product used by a small sub-set of our employees who deal directly with Finance / Accounting issues.
We found ourselves deploying Windows 10 to anyone else who needed a new PC, simply because we standardized on the Surface Pro 4 as the default hardware moving forward. (We have a lot of highly mobile workers involved in sales/marketing or creative design - and for those who aren't on Macs, they keep demanding a portable that's as light and thin as possible - with the drawing pen a big plus for a few situations. So the Surface Pro 4 just made the most sense to appease the majority of them while keeping things within our budget as long as we buy the model with the Core i5 CPU, 8GB of RAM and the 256GB SSD in it.)
We did some "piecemeal" upgrades of other HP "Elitebook" laptops and Dell Latitudes out there as well. And the results? The move from Win 7 to 10 caused us a little initial pain, building a customized image that we felt was suitable for our users. (We wanted to make sure the "Metro" tiles on their START button only displayed the applications relevant to us, for example. No need for things like XBox or Candy Crush to show up prominently there! And we had a couple of situations where we had to make sure printer drivers on our Windows servers were upgraded, so the shared printers would still work properly for the Win 10 folks.) In a couple of cases, the Dell computers needed a BIOS upgrade before they'd complete the Win 10 upgrade properly, too. But overall? Things generally work fine. Most user issues/questions after the migration are centered around new features in Windows 10 they didn't understand how to use. One "gotcha" has been the "tablet mode" feature in 10. Some of the HP laptops have motion sensors in them that were probably intended only to detect a fall or shock, to power down spinning hard drives. But Win 10 uses it anyway to determine if the PC is "rotated", and tries to switch everything on screen into the tablet-friendly touch-screen mode. Needless to say, that's not good on a non touch-compatible laptop, AND it doesn't even sense the rotation motion reliably. It just winds up switch modes somewhat randomly when the PC is moved around.
My company just got settled in with Win7 last year. I doubt they are ready for a Win10 transition so soon. We still have to run the 32-bit version of Win7 for some application compatibility.
Now that you can no longer buy Windows 7 licenses, I'm sure that Windows 10 license sales will go up.
Actual Windows 10 installations will probably not go up nearly as much, though, because many of those licenses will be used to activate with Windows 7 with the downgrade rights of the license.
What's the matter with Slashdot? Why has it become a Microsoft's propaganda vehicle?
Lol yeah, first they say that companies go out of their way to avoid Win10 installations, and from that they conclude there will be more installs in 2017!
A textbook case of Non Sequitur.
With past versions of Windows a business could wait until it was stable and then upgrade, but with Windows 10 it is in constant development and is never stable. Once to twice per year Microsoft is doing an Windows 10 "update", which is actually a whole new operating system download and completely new installation. It's supposed to transfer everything across, but it actually fails miserably and destroys your computer. To make matters worse the updates can remove features or settings that you use.
The constant state of flux that Windows 10 is in would create chaos in your companies IT infrastructure. Windows 10 is all about what Microsoft want with no thought at all given to the customer/user.
Given that it's the end of Windows Pro 7 sales on PC's. Now all you have is Windows 10 to choose from. I don't see Chromebooks killing sales, or Linux of any flavor. Enterprise will embrace Win 10 in increments and the consumers have little choice now but to also buy into Windows 10. Chrome OS won't impress many and Linux desktop might be a few geeks dream OS. But it's not winning over a lot of users, in fact just the opposite appears to be happening.
Yeah - it works great. One warning though - we can see one of your laptops has some faulty keys, and that makes reading all your business secrets, pin numbers and so on a bit difficult. Please contact us, so we can point out your faulty device. We know you can afford a new one with ease....
Microsoft.
... provided Microsoft decides that all those who enjoy the "free upgrade" option will have to start paying regularly.
Because companies can only go so long before their machines have to be upgraded, New hardware will most likely equal upgraded OS. Also MS is nearing the third major update so effectively SP3 even though not labeled as such. And Windows products are usually accepted as stable by SP2 so IT depts. are going to be more willing to accept the upgrade.
ewwwww
is easily parted.
IMHO, anyone paying money to Microsoft deserves all the grief they get.
With the forced updates and the data slurping it is nothing more than malware.
Switching from Win7 Cost Money, has Risk, and returns Nothing.
Business wants to put it off, and They can not figure out why?
Windows 7 goes end of extended life on January 14, 2020.
If the XP to 7 migration is anything to go by then you're going to get an uplift of Windows 10 installations by corporates starting around 6 months before that date.
Why migrate any earlier when Windows 7 works just fine and still gets security updates?
Avantslash - View Slashdot cleanly on your mobile phone.
Ok, sounds like you addressed the usability, logistical, and other tech issues about Win10 at your place of business.
However you did leave out the elephant in the room aka "Telemetry" and its related security issues. That kinda is a big thing and I guess you and those in charge just view it as a non-issue?
Really, I know what I'm doing...Ohhhh, look at the shiny buttons!
Is it possible to at least configure things so that Microsoft doesn't vomit unwanted applications onto your system right on first install? I was livid when I installed a fresh clean copy and suddenly I had Candy Crush and a bunch of other useless apps that I didn't want, need, or ask for, just magically appear on my machine.
>Because many businesses are wary of new software updates, let alone a new operating system, Microsoft could see a significant surge in Windows 10 install base and sales in the New Year.
If they are so "wary of new software updates" they should not get W10 at all! It is an update primadonna KNOWN for it's forced updates & causing difficulty in many PCs. It is KNOWN that non-enterprise / home users are viewed as the beta test bed for updates, whilst enterprise can delay.
So in other words, "Many businesses are wary of new software updates and therefore decline to update to W10 at all."
FTFY
>We found ourselves deploying Windows 10 to anyone else who needed a new PC, simply because ... ...Simply because that's what comes with new PC as default OS. No reason to write as if that was some heroic, pushing of the envelope, edgy decision.
There's a reason W10 sales are 'increasing' and it's because it comes with the computer.
Guess what? Computers now come in black instead of old beige, screens are now LCD instead of clunky CRTs, and keyboards are chiclet styles pads instead of full height mechanical buttons. Are customers going out of their way to find such modern qualities? Or are they just what's on the shelf... the de facto standard if you will.
You embrace it because you have to.
_
They "could" do a lot of things. But are they pulling the plug on Win 7 sales, completely? Win 8?
If so, they might get a boost from suckers and the clueless mundanes who have no alternative to run certain software titles.
I COULD become a millionaire in 2017. So what?
Because companies can only go so long before their machines have to be upgraded
Yeah and that's 2020 for Windows 7 and 2023 for Windows 8. By then it's likely that Windows as a platform will be completely irrelevant and passe.
This sentence makes no sense:
Because many businesses are wary of new software updates, let alone a new operating system, Microsoft could see a significant surge in Windows 10 install base and sales in the New Year.
If businesses were wary of Win10 in 2016, why would they flock to it in 2017? My prediction is that businesses which are still using Win7 will continue using it until long after it sunsets in 2020. All their software still works without having compatibility issues and they won't have to buy new licenses for Office.
Oh, you mean like an iPad or Galaxy Tab, each of which dwarf the marketshare of all Surface products combined?
In the serious editions of Win10 used by larger organisations, telemetry mostly is a non-issue. They don't have the same compulsory phone-home behaviour as the Pro/Home editions used by small businesses and home users do.
If you disagree, post your argument. (-1, Overrated) isn't your personal censorship tool for views you don't like.
Yep, for now there are still options to buy new PCs and run older versions of Windows (legally), though only if you're willing to jump through a few hoops at this point. There will be more serious questions when that possibility is also removed, which isn't far away now in business planning terms.
If you disagree, post your argument. (-1, Overrated) isn't your personal censorship tool for views you don't like.
for shame!
The downgrade rights are not just for Windows 7, they are for almost every version of Windows going back to Windows NT 3.51. So they are not going anywhere.
Because companies can only go so long before their machines have to be upgraded
Yeah and that's 2020 for Windows 7 and 2023 for Windows 8. By then it's likely that Windows as a platform will be completely irrelevant and passe.
This. My company is still on Windows 7, and have no plans to migrate any time soon (as in, over 24 months out). Actual security (well, known holes that are patched or monitored at least), control over upgrade application and compatibility with other enterprise software beats the Win10 roll-the-dice upgrade process and constant telemetry model.
Sounds like someone in the Windows marketing bubble is getting reamed over unrealistic projected 2016 adoption rates for their malware-disguised-as-an-OS.
"I love animals! Some are cute, others are tasty, what's not to like?" - Betsy Schroeder, Jeopardy contestant
The unsigned article in Fortune reads like a Microsoft PR plant.
At least they took the MS PR Logo off before they republished it.
Running with Linux for over 20 years!
Honestly, yes - the phoning home / telemetry issues really are NOT huge concerns for us.
Our company doesn't have to be compliant with any of the multiple initialed government standards like HIPAA, FURPA, or what-not. So there's that.
But realistically, when your business standardizes on using the most popular operating system in the world (which I think is fair to say is Microsoft Windows), and you make an effort to secure your environment in other ways (a firewall in place, anti-virus software with central management and updates, spam filtering on all incoming corporate email, a corporate VPN provided for connecting back in to the office from remote sites, and ensuring all the computers and applications receive regular update patches), you should have a functional, relatively secure environment for people to work in.
The fact that Microsoft might be "spying" on what our users look at online, or keeping tabs on their Cortana search requests, or whatever else they're analyzing as the OS is used? That's something I think you wind up having to file under "part of the package deal of using Windows", under the circumstances. Is there any evidence Microsoft *ever* did anything malicious with user data of this sort that they gathered up? Are companies out there who were ruined when Microsoft distributed their intellectual property to competitors after sucking it down via standard mechanisms built into Windows itself? I'd have to say no.
I know there are many in the Linux community who find the whole thing completely unacceptable. But there are a lot of things people take issue with on principle when they're talking about their individual computers or devices and personal data. Things tend to be different for businesses, where corporate information is trusted, every day, with employees or even freelance workers who could theoretically leak all of it out to competitors or otherwise cause corporate espionage with it. You have to learn to put some level of trust in people (or other companies you partner with), and carry insurance to help mitigate financial problems when that trust is misplaced and things go wrong. Perhaps you even get the courts involved, if you can put together enough evidence of what happened to you after the fact.
It's a balancing act though.... How much value do you get from using a product, vs. potential risks or downsides of it helping itself to certain types of information that flow through it?
You also aren't their customer because they don't even think you really have a choice. You are the product. Facebook style.
Post trust fake news slashvertizing.
Bash is free software (as in speech) on all platforms. But GNU/Linux itself is not free as in beer for those who need to replace an incompatible laptop with a compatible one. Furthermore, laptops warranted by their manufacturer for use with GNU/Linux, such as System76 or Dell XPS, tend to have a higher sticker price than entry-level laptops warranted for use with Windows 10.
Is ths increase counted by the number of computers?
Or the number of people who actively seek out the OS ?
Biiigggg difference there, both as an indicator of sales and microsoft agression.......
1. Use a packet sniffer, see what ip:port telemetry connects to, and try to infer data formats
2. Write software that connects to telemetry, and feeds it more or less random garbage
3. Distribute to protestors (such as open-source fanatics) who will submit lots of garbage data.
4. Use high bandwith, spend their capacity and then some . . .
!profit, for them
Microsoft forced win10 onto customers so it will see a boost of Windows 10 sales this year. Yeah, fuck Microsoft.
I think we're talking about different things here.
I'm talking about buying a new PC from a major vendor that comes with Windows 10 pre-installed but lets the customer replace that (legally) with Windows 7 or 8.1 post-sale. This is still allowed if the vendor offers it, but they aren't allowed to supply new machines with 7 or 8.1 preinstalled any more, only 10. I can't immediately find a reference, but I've seen reports that similar moves by Microsoft will prevent even selling new machines with those downgrade rights in a year or so.
I suspect you're talking about more general provisions under enterprise licensing agreements or some sort of developer programme. There are other schemes that Microsoft runs that let people do all kinds of things, but they aren't necessarily available to someone who just went to dell.com and bought a new XPS laptop.
If you disagree, post your argument. (-1, Overrated) isn't your personal censorship tool for views you don't like.
Neither of which is a makeshift laptop. The reason Surfaces are used is that they work as Windows laptops, and they can be taken around w/o being anywhere near as unwieldy as a laptop.
Easy enough. Don't use microsoft - i.e. don't use windows. Windows is not needed to make a PC productive - it is merely a common case.
Attach a keyboard. *BOOM* makeshift laptop. It's like you've never even used a tablet before.
Also the Samsung Galaxy TabPro S is a two-in-one Windows PC.
For Windows 8 and 10, OEM downgrade rights only apply to the Pro editions. If you buy a new PC with one of those and want to downgrade, make sure you aren't getting Home edition.
Year of linux coming and other options, IBM has a few hundred thousand OSX installs and they aren't the only ones.
Uh, no! Neither Android nor iOS have the breadth of business applications that Wintel has. The Surface is a Wintel platform, which can be used either as a laptop or in tablet mode. The Galaxies or iPads are media consumption devices, good for watching YouTube or playing games, but not much more. Not so w/ Surface, that is primarily used for content creation
Helpful information: "The tally of Windows sales does not decrease when I replace Windows with Linux"
From the Slashdot story: "According to latest figures provided by Microsoft, Windows 10 is running on over 400 million devices." How many of those were people who were tricked into accepting an "upgrade"?
A Network World article says: Windows 10 is possibly the worst spyware ever made. Quoting: "Buried in the service agreement is permission to poke through everything on your PC."
Meeting:
Sathya Nadella: Folks, our OS business will dwindle if we don't innovate. After Windows 98, there has been no "real" invention. So anyone come up with ideas real quick.
CTO: We have already failed at this for the past two decades. But I think I have a solution.
Sathya Nadella: Really? What is it?
CTO: There is this new fangled thing called "machine learning"..
Sathya Nadella: okay, okay, tell me quick the idea..
CTO: Instead of us doing the hardwork to innovate, we let the machine do it.. We can implement by putting spyware in our next release. Only downside is user privacy will be rui..
Sathya Nadella: Okay I think I have heard enough. Let us do that.
Shareholders: Amen to that.
No, that's kind of advertisement and perhaps a bait to get a few users going to the Windows store, and there was a story that the GPO policy which can control that is only available on Windows 10 Enterprise, not Pro.
Figures.
"Sales are in the toilet, so next year HAS to be much better!"
Not if they discover Linux, though.
Android nor iOS have the breadth of business applications that Wintel has
Uhh, yes, they do. Google has an entire range of business apps as does Google Play and the Apple Store.
The Surface is a Wintel platform, which can be used either as a laptop or in tablet mode.
In other words: A tablet with a keyboard
The Galaxies or iPads are media consumption devices, good for watching YouTube or playing games, but not much more.
The Galaxies and iPads run UNIX-like OSes. Attach a keyboard and you can produce whatever content you want.
Not so w/ Surface, that is primarily used for content creation
Except nobody uses Surface to create anything. It's a tablet running Windows.