There is so much news that gets published every day covering either
Windows or Apple and yet I try not to give into the temptation to post
every article to the list that personally captures my interest as I
don't want to overwhelm readers of this list with a ton of articles. I
personally might be interested in Windows 10 but I realize that some of
you are using Windows 7 or 8.1. If I published every news article that
had to do with the Mac or the iPhone your inbox would be flooded and
reading this list would turn into a chore, which I don't want.
Therefore, I try and maintain a balance and post articles that I think
might have the widest appeal for the most amount of people. Sometimes I
might fail and, if I do, I'm truly sorry. However, I'm reposting this
from WinSuperSite as it applies to users of Windows 7 or 8.1 who are
considering upgrading their systems to Windows 10, which is a free
upgrade for those users until July 29, 2016. Btw, I predict that
Microsoft will extend that offer and will make it free beyond that date
but it's officially free up to that date as of now.
It seems that an update for both Windows 7 as well as Windows 8.1 was
released to fix issues with the upgrade process. In theory, this means
that upgrading your systems to Windows 10 may present fewer hassles than
it did in the past. As Merv and I have both stated, both during the
phone conference and on this list, there are things you should do to
prepare your system for the upgrade, particularly if you're using
certain screen readers and enlargers. This upgrade is not your typical
ten-minute update procedure we're used to with the monthly updates from
Microsoft. Users of JAWS and Window-Eyes, in particular, should check
with FS or AI Squared regarding what they are recommending for their
users. Having said that, here is the article.
winsupersite.com
Microsoft works to improve Windows 10 upgrade experience
Dec 2, 2015 Richard Hay
As of the last official count, which was provided almost two months ago,
more than 110 million systems are now running Windows 10 around the world.
At that time, I took a look at the numbers of upgrades over time and
there were already indications of a slowdown in the adoption rate for
Windows 10 since it was released on 29 July 2015. The new OS is still
outpacing its predecessors by a significant amount but the frenzied
pace, which was not going to keep going forever, has certianly slowed down.
Without updated momentum numbers from Microsoft since early October it
is hard to know just how much adoption has slowed in the last two months
but the numbers will have seen an increase from a few areas.
First, the release of the Windows 10 November Update, the first
significant update to the OS since it was released in July, which was
made available on 12 November 2015, should have brought in new
upgraders. The addition of the capability to activate the Windows 10
install using a Windows 7/8 product key may also encourage more users to
take on the upgrade.
Second, somewhere around 15 million Xbox One consoles will be added to
that list since it received the Windows 10 based dashboard upgrade last
month.
Finally, Windows 10 Mobile devices will be added to the count with the
addition of the recently released Microsoft Lumia 950 and 950 XL devices
plus all the handsets that will receive the released version of Windows
10 Mobile sometime this month.
However, the most significant numbers are always going to be generated
by users upgrading their current eligible systems to Windows 10. We also
know that many of you, based on your comments throughout the site, have
had some very poor upgrade experiences and subsequently reverted back to
your previous OS as a result.
Well it appears Microsoft is working to improve that upgrade process for
Windows 7 and 8.1 users with the release of two new updates on those
systems.
KB3112336 (Windows 8.1) and KB3112343 (Windows 7) were both made
available yesterday through Windows Update to address and reduce the
number of failed upgrades:
This update enables support for additional upgrade scenarios from
Windows 7 to Windows 10, and provides a smoother experience when you
have to retry an operating system upgrade because of certain failure
conditions. This update also improves the ability of Microsoft to
monitor the quality of the upgrade experience.
Of course, many will key in on that last sentence about Microsoft being
able to better monitor the quality of the upgrade experience and fire
back up the privacy rhetoric unfortunately.
The reality is that there are more PC configurations out there in the
wild than many of us can even comprehend so Microsoft needs to monitor
when and why upgrades fail or succeed in order to improve that process.
It is not about what website you browsed today but what it was on your
system that impacted the upgrade process.
I will add that in my own experience performing a true clean install of
Windows 10 has resulted in minimal issues and at this point, if you have
your data backed up and protected, that may work better for you as well.
The November Update for Windows 10 is available through the Media
Creation Tool and can be used to perform that bare metal installation.
This suggestion comes from the fact that Rod and I both run Windows 10
on the HP Spectre x360 using the same BIOS and hardware drivers yet we
both have significantly different usage experiences with the OS.
Let us know how your upgrade or clean install goes towards improving
your overall Windows 10 experience.
Have you graded Microsoft's progress on Windows 10 yet?
--
David Goldfield
Assistive Technology Specialist
Feel free to visit my Web site
WWW.DavidGoldfield.Info
You are invited to visit the moderator's Web site at WWW.DavidGoldfield.Info
for additional resources and information about assistive technology training
services.
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