Windows 10 Update -- worth it?

If you connect the machine to the internet, it is good practice to update for the security patches alone.

They've gotten better about the updates working properly.

 

Yes, Apple is the same way, sadly.

Once upon a time they all published good release notes so you could easily predict how a given upgrade would affect your stuff.

This made it easy to plan and execute updates. Now they make the details a secret, so I tend to delay/stall/prevent updates until something breaks.

 

I just let the updates slam in as they arrive, but that’s a mixed bag. I used to be able to assign hot keys to programs; now I’m “not an administrator” and no more assignations allowed.

 

We are in a similar situation to you. We are running Windows 10 which for now has automatic updates - but - Microso0ft says at the end of this year Windows 10 will no longer receive updates. Running their Windows 11 update checker on our old desktop says it is unable to be upgraded to Windows 11.

I think our countermeasure will be to switch to a used - somewhat new- iMac or Apple mini.

I have reached my breaking point with Windows end of life and no support philosophy on their product line and will indeed end their life in our home as an operating system.

Our kids all use Mac/Apple products and have been encouraging me for many years to make the switch to Apple products. They never seem to have update issues or problems with product end of life support with their devices. One of the kids is still using an Apple iPhone SE model that they like because of its size that they have had for years and years.

I have stuck with Windows because of my familiarity with Microsoft Office Suite and all its applications but am sick also of the no product support and end of life decision for late Office Suites and will be switching to some generic software suites that come very close to functioning as complete substitutes of the Microsoft Office Suite. I actually have been checking some free software that has similar suites to Microsoft Office making sure it opens spreadsheets and will let me do the tasks I am accustomed to and is secure.

 

I seem to have seen that discussed here before. Did it not come down to:

• You do, I assume, have the ability to sign in as administrator on the box?
• But if you do that and then assign hot keys, you are assigning them for the administrator and not for Mendel, so they won't work for you when you're just being Mendel.
• Signing in as Mendel and using "Run as Administrator" to do the hot key settings is the ticket.

 

I've had to wrangle Apple, Microsoft and a few flavors of linux for 30 years. It's very easy to jump between Microsoft and Apple these days, easier than ever before.

Apple has been making good hardware for years, and I just moved into a brand new 2023 macbook and I'm really blown away by the performance. The new trick is doing the whole system in a single chip. Should contribute a lot to durability & reliability. The build quality is top notch.

The 2015 model I moved out of just got taken away by the better half, she has plans...

And the old 2010 macbook before that is still running like a top though ironically it now runs Windows 7 specifically for access to offline legacy stuff as it is a pre-TPM machine.

 

Our experience with Apple hardware mimics yours. Our youngest kid is still using the MacBook Air they got in their freshman year of high school as they complete their college degree. We did have to replace the screen when they shut the Mac Book hard with a metal pen between the keyboard and the screen but that was their fault not Apples.

I should probably get a laptop rather than an iMac but may be suffering from old persons reluctance because I am so used to a desktop at home. An iMac with a wireless keyboard and wireless mouse might be a good first baby step.

 

I haven’t managed that yet.

If you touch type a laptop will hamstring that.

 

my late 2013 macbook usually works fine. but every so often, the cursor will jump all over the place without me touching it, rendering it useless.
advice on the web doesn't address a virgin laptop with nothing connected to it.

other times, the battery will get burning hot for no reason.

i cannot complete updates anymore either, even though they drive me crazy with reminders, and auto updates is checked.

 

I do touch type - thank you for mentioning this point!

 

Lots of people touch-type on laptops. It can work fine, but don't take it for granted.

Your work surface needs to be the right height, and your glasses (if applicable) need to be dialed in for a nearer display than in a regular desktop setup.

Then there's the keyboard itself- some feel great and others are terrible. My 2015 mac was great, I could go full speed. Totally different design for the 2023, I can't go nearly as fast.

And thanks to the wonders of USB and bluetooth the same external keyboards will work on any computer now. Get a slab you like! I use a nearly 30 year old Northgate Omnikey on my desk. Just something about the deep travel and clack it gives...

 

For what they charge, Apple hardware better be good.

 

agreed. i spent 2k on this mac, compared to $700. dells. it's lasted twice as long, but that's a big spread.
i'm considering going back to windows after this mac experiment. but the tie in with the iphone is nice..

 

So how much are you asking for this Mac? <GRINS>

Bob Wilson

 

I've had to buy them for work for almost 30 years.

There was a period in the late 90s when Apple customers were definitely not getting their money's worth. Today it is the other way around, the gear is ridiculously well made.

I stick to a small, old low-end iPhone because I'm old enough to.

 

You can get the hardware reliability in a PC if you want to spend the money. Most don't, so when they go Apple, the difference stands out.

 

I wouldn't - even though I personally own a $150 lease return Dell running an i5 and Windows 10 for IOT stuff.
The only reason I still run Windows on it is that it has not aggravated me enough to ditch it for Linnix.

I just checked with the mother-ship and I can get a Refurbished 13.3-inch MacBook Air Apple M1 (8 gig ram/256g SSD) for $764.00+ttl.

I got my CFO one a couple of years back and since then I have been completely replaced by her as her tier-1 technical support....almost like I did it on purpose.
For reasons that I need not explain, I got her a new one instead of a CPO.

I'm FAR from being a shill for the apples.
In fact, they're still the company that I hate to love and love to hate.
HOWEVER (comma!)
Their gear is OK in build quality for the price point, and if you're still rocking a throwback-10-year-old apple-book-thingy, the new M1 might be the last computer with a hinged lid that you will ever have to buy.
You'll also be able to on-board all of the stuff from your usta-Mac to the new one more easily.
I have found the Apple's CPO gear to be indistinguishable from new including warranty converge, but you can (and people do) pony up the extra $150-200 for a new one.

You can get an $800 Dell, but then you'd be stuck with Window's Fisher-Price interface and their 'even worse than Apple' planned obsolescence policy.

I'll get in on the bidding for the old hulk btw....

 

Used Windows machines (desktops and laptops, Dells, IBMs, and Lenovos) for most of my working life because that's what my job required. Switched to a 15" MacBook Pro within two years of retiring and worked remote during Covid, using MS Teams for meetings and MS Office for Mac with absolutely no issues. Not a fanboy but I currently have a 24" iMac with the M1 processor (system on a chip) since I don't need a laptop anymore. Wife has a 13" MacBook Air with the same M1 chip. We both have iPhones. Everything works seamlessly. Best part is I get Apple's Veteran's discount on everything I purchase, along with trade-ins.