Software

[Mike Watterson]

You do not need an MS account to register windows or even create users. They HAVE gratuitously removed the GUI to create users on some versions of Windows without a Microsoft account. However the cmd console "net" command will create any type user account and password.
There is now no point to Visual Studio since VB6, and now only useful for 64bit Win10, which is broken. And no point to windows shortly as Win7 support is about to expire. Win 10 Telemetry and GUI are dreadful and an MS account is nearly as bad as Facebook now.

[Crackle]

I just thought I would mention that many of the web links for useful free software utilities are likely to end up broken as the software expires when it is modernised.
I use Visio 2000 for most of my drawing of circuits, with a library of self drawn and imported graphics for the component symbols..
I also use GS View 6 by Artifex Software. It is useful for converting protected PDF files to images.

Mike

[Nick]

Windows 10 is certainly not "broken" - whilst it may not be to everyone's taste, it is absolutely fine for most. I have about 400 hosts running various versions of recent Windows (no XP or 7 any more) and they are rock solid. If you can upgrade from 7, I strongly recommend you do so, if only for security reasons.

For software development, if you use C or C++ etc., consider using the Eclipse framework and the GNU toolchain. In many cases, Clang is now a decent compiler alternative. Depending how sophisticated a developer you are, Eclipse is excellent and user friendly. Like VS, it has seamless integration with a with a whole lot of other tools, like Git etc., is cross-platform, is free and there are 100s of plugins available.

Many MS products have cheap licenses available if you look around: for Windows, core Office as well as Visio and Project etc. Personally, I don't have an MS account - it's not needed.

I also have (at home) several Unix systems as well as a fair few Raspberry Pis doing automation and media-serving.

The new Pi4 does an excellent job as a Unix desktop for not a lot of money.

[Mike Watterson]

After 20 years of selling and supporting MS, I upgraded to Linux Mint.
A windows that has less productivity, less functionality, semi-random lockout from shutdown when you need to catch train/plane/meeting , "loses" drivers after updates, massively slow on updates, privacy issues and spammy apps you can't remove isn't "broken" compared to Windows 7? Really?
I've been using windows since 1990s, UNIX family since 1986, programming seriously since 1979. Maybe Windows 2.0, Windows 3.0 and Windows ME were worse.


I've set up and maintained sites with multiple servers and over 450 NT workstations locked down, remote admin, remote program install. No doubt if it's the day job you can maintain Windows 10 and support the users. However essentially MS has lost the plot.

I give thanks each day that am seeing another one and no longer supporting Windows. Almost all the family and friends are on Linux Mint, LibreOffice, Gimp, Firefox or Waterfox with uMatrix, Thunderbird Email etc and it's great. Zero time spent supporting them.

[Nick]

My professional experience is obviously very different to yours!

We'll just have to agree to disagree 

[ppppenguin]

I've been using windows since 1990s, UNIX family since 1986, programming seriously since 1979.  Maybe Windows 2.0, Windows 3.0 and Windows ME were worse.

Don't forget Windows Vista, 8 and 8.1. Horror stories all.

[Mike Watterson]

Don't need to forget Vista & 8.x because I avoided them.
Never supported either. Removed loads of copies of Vista and replaced with either XP, or much later Win 7. I spent two years replacing Win ME either with Win 98 SE, NT 4.0, Win 2K or XP, depending on the exact year and if the PC was Gaming only, home or Business, though ME and NT 4.0 both beat Win10 in ease of use.

People I know went:
XP -> Win 7 -> Win 10 -> Linux
Or
XP -> Win 7 -> Linux

[Mike Watterson]

My professional experience is obviously very different to yours!

We'll just have to agree to disagree 

No problem.
1) After 2005 I was 100% doing R&D and no longer being paid to do IT support. Only supporting my own stuff and family.
2) A properly supported business with IT experts etc is very different to a home user using PC as tool and not concerned with corporate SW or a small office with NO IT support contracts and no IT experts.
3) We are very much looking at the issues from different directions.

I tell strangers now, and tell the family to tell their bosses etc, that I know nothing about computers. A little lie so I have sanity.

[BusyBee]

You do not need an MS account to register windows or even create users. They HAVE gratuitously removed the GUI to create users on some versions of Windows without a Microsoft account. However the cmd console "net" command will create any type user account and password.
There is now no point to Visual Studio since VB6, and now only useful for 64bit Win10, which is broken. And no point to windows shortly as Win7 support is about to expire. Win 10 Telemetry and GUI  are dreadful and an MS account is nearly as bad as Facebook now.

I am not sure what you meant here but my Visual Studio 2017 recently a message was displayed which indicated that the interface would fail randomly on unlicensed versions. My current experience, although minor, with Linux has been that some commonly used consumer applications are not kept up with (eg on demand TV). I have an old Windows Vista machine (which actually I didn't have any particular issue with) which I have tried with Linux but came across these issues. These things are not so much an issue with me but for the rest of the family things have to work spot on.

I will agree though Mike that Microsoft have lost the plot. I have just had to update a difficult low memory computer as they stated that the Windows 10 software would cease to receive security updates later this year. It used to be a couple of versions or so down the line after several years, but this computer (Windows 10) was only updated with a major update last year. I also notice from Microsoft that new computers will now have to have a certain minimum memory such that Microsoft software can reserve some for update use (good or bad? :/ ). There is also some indications that they may be trying to go Apple's way with only allowing applications provided from their store. At that point Windows would definatlely cease to be a good working tool!

Tracy