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So why do you buy a Windows PC?

Because most of the software I’ve acquired over the two decades that I’ve been on computer are Windows compatible; I’m comfortable with the Windows environment; and Wine, Steam Proton, MESA wrappers, and DOSBox on Linux don’t yet cover all that I would like for my extensive games collection (I have a Steam Sales/Humble Bundle problem😉).

Now as for the article at hand, I don’t necessarily agree with the whole “malaise” aspect.

• Yes, Intel is in a ditch, but AMD is coming back strong in the x86/x64 space.
• Intel isn’t out of the game yet as it’s 7nm node should be ready by 2023.
• ARM is exciting, but it hasn’t quite bridged the raw power gap with traditional x86 even if its performance to power efficiency is impressive. I’m not saying that ARM won’t get there power wise, but rather that its too early to say that ARM is winning.
• Also, ARM overtaking x86/x64 won’t necessarily mean the end of Windows. There are already versions of Windows that run on ARM and software in the Windows environment that can run on ARM as well as x86/x64. If Intel and AMD are able to hold off the inevitable for another half decade or more and ARM itself continues to gain ground at its current pace; by the time ARM has become an equal or superior option to x86/x64, Windows and enough of its software environment will be agnostic enough to not care who wins.
• Apple is overrated. Apple’s walled garden for apps and locked down environment make it unacceptable to anyone who wants the freedom to tinker. Linux, Android, and Windows (to a lesser extent, but still relevant) allow for developers to experiment and modify software and hardware to solve problems as much as to personalize. Apple is very much a fancy appliance maker as far as I’m concerned.

For all those reasons, I don’t see this as a “Malaise Era”. I’m rather excited. Intel is struggling to get out of the hole its hubris dug for it. AMD on the CPU side is bringing more cores, more threads, new architectural changes, and hardware standards to the masses at better price points. Nvidia along with AMD on the GPU side are pushing graphics forward with ray tracing. Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality are in their infancy and poised to change how we interact with the world around us. Mobile systems, embedded systems, and there software environments are changing and growing every year (think of how Intel NUC style systems and Raspberry Pi style systems have grown in power to performance and changed over their various iterations). Browser developers on the web have moved to evergreen software distribution that allows for new features in cloud apps that take advantage hardware the way traditional programs used to. Apple Silicon is off to a shaky, but still inspiring start (reviewers are saying that if this follows the usual pattern for Apple, then next generation of Apple Silicon will be really impressive). Distributed computing (like Folding@Home) is showing what humans can do together when we use the systems we have to each take and solve a small part of a larger more complex problem. This is a great time to be alive.

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WSlitehorse, Cybertooth

Well, at least if I need Flash I can still get the stand alone exe file from https://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/archived-flash-player-versions.html

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wavy

Why would you set up a virtual machine with less memory than is recommended for even the most minimally functional Windows machine in the year 2020? Even logicalincrements.com recommends that computers built using their “Destitute” tier guide have 4 GB of memory at least.

rick41 wrote:

kwerboom wrote:

Got posted down farther, but I do have two questions. Can I fill it out as I’m not technically a “company”? Will just my name and home address be good enough?

Yes, you can just use your name as the name of the business, and your home address as the business address.  Add “Company” after your name if you’d like.

Thanks for the answer. I may just do that at least for one year to keep the one ancient laptop that I have going a little while longer.

Got posted down farther, but I do have two questions. Can I fill it out as I’m not technically a “company”? Will just my name and home address be good enough?

Really! How would I apply for one? I’m not sure how I would get an ESU license and I don’t want to get ripped off by a scammer or do something that violates Microsoft’s terms of service.

It’s too bad that Microsoft doesn’t let non-business customers purchase an ESU for a home machine.

Well, I for one hope it isn’t intended. Overall and aside from this one bug, 1903 has been pretty good for me.

On Friday (06/28), I updated from 1803 to 1903 and set the delay for Features to 60 days and Quality to 5 days. When I restarted my machine later on, the “Choose when updates are installed” area was gone. So, um, how do I get that area back and when is Microsoft going to fix this bug?

Important: The improvements in this update are not included in the Monthly Rollups released June 11, 2019

Will these patches ever be integrated into a future cumulative patch?

Thank you for the response. I looked over the options on the page and decided to install StopUpdates10.

[kwerboom]

Alex5723 wrote:

No, it won’t. Microsoft’s AI will download and install 1903 on your PC starting this month with no way to defer installation unless you us a 3rd party app.

Well that’s sad news. Do you happen to know any 3rd party apps?

• This reply was modified 5 years, 9 months ago by kwerboom.

I’m confused. I read the article and I still don’t get how the 1803-to-1903 upgrade will go for me. I have Windows 10 Pro with updates set to the “Semi-Annual Channel” and ‘Feature Updates’ deferred for 365 days. Will Microsoft do any of the following 1) honor the 60 day delay between “Semi-Annual Channel” and “Semi-Annual Channel (Targeted)” plus the 365 days I requested for feature updates OR 2) is the 60 days gone leaving me with only 365 days until the next update OR 3) is Microsoft just going to ignore all my settings and update my system before I’m ready. I’m planning to do so between the last week of June and the weekend after July 4th. I just want to do it on my own time after one more backup and after Microsoft has released some more post-release stability/security/performance patches.

I have played Candy Crush on Windows 10. I tolerate its existence. I just don’t see why it’s so special though. The free copy of Peggle I got from Origin is more fun to me.

Also, for the record, I don’t have a smart phone or tablet. I know I’m in a minority now days, but people like me do exist. When I do have to make phone calls away from home or pass some two factor authentication, I use an old $20 Tracfone that can only handle phone calls and text messages.

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Microfix, Lugh, F A Kramer

I was one of those ‘anonymous’ commenters saying I would never download a copy of 1809. Well, I finally broke down and decided to download a copy ‘just in case’. My logic for jumping from 1803 to 1903 was that 1903 would be released at the beginning of April and then I would install thirty days later or roughly in the beginning of May after the pain of upgrading had subsided with Microsoft releasing some patches for 1903. Now it’s been announced that 1903 won’t be released until mid May, meaning I won’t be upgrading to 1903 until mid June. Considering how Microsoft will be targeting 1803 and older builds for immediate upgrade, I’d better have a copy of 1809 on tap just in case things get weird.

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rc primak