14 DAY TRIAL // Windows 7 is rapidly approaching its end of support, so now that we’re in the last 12 months of updates, Microsoft needs to begin its typical struggle to make everyone aware of the risks of staying with an operating system that no longer receives patches.
While in the case of Windows Vista, the latest operating system that reached the end of life, the efforts in this regard were more or less minimal, Microsoft needs to do better this time because of a simple reason.
Windows 7 is currently the second most used desktop operating and until not a long time ago, it was the top choice for PC users.
At this point, Windows 7 still has some 36 percent market share, while Windows 10, the new leader of the industry, is pretty close with approximately 39 percent. So Windows 7 remains an incredibly popular choice even almost ten years after its launch.
So now that the Windows 7 support is coming to an end, Microsoft apparently has a more aggressive plan in mind in order to get people off this operating system.
One of the ideas that are part of this strategy is a notification-based system that will be used for Windows 7 users. Basically, what Microsoft will start doing is displaying warnings on Windows 7 devices in order to let users know that the support is coming to an end.
The same notifications will also include learn more links to help users find out more information about what’s happening in January 2020, but also a recommendation to upgrade to Windows 10, which is currently the operating system that Microsoft says offers the best available performance and security.
This means that Microsoft would more or less display Windows 10 upgrade notifications on Windows 7 once again, and although the company says users would be able to block them, many are outraged that the software giant comes down to this approach once again.
These notifications are more or less similar to the ones pushed as part of a company known as “Get Windows 10,” which included messages showing up on Windows 7 users an encouraging them to upgrade to Windows 10 in the first 12 months after its launch.
However, while so many people don’t think this is the right approach for Microsoft, it actually is. And there’s a very good reason for this.
A worrying number of users have no idea that Windows 7 is projected to reach the end of life in January 2020, so this is pretty much the easiest and most efficient way to let them know this is happening. And what’s worse, I met users that didn’t even know which version of Windows they were running, while others believed Windows 7 was the newest Microsoft operating system.
While most people reading technology news are typically power or tech-savvy users, there are way too many other users out there who know little about computers, the end of support, Windows in general, and Windows 7 in particular. For all these, notifications displayed on their desktops is the most efficient way to ensure that once the end of life is reached, they just don’t become sitting bucks for hackers online.
There’s no doubt that once these notifications start showing up on users’ devices, Microsoft would once again come under fire for its aggressive Windows 10 push, but this time, the company really has a good reason to highlight the benefits of an upgrade to its latest operating system.
And despite all of these, not everyone would migrate off Windows 7 before the January 2020 deadline is reached. So what Microsoft must do is reduce this number as much as possible.