[eddie1960]

I am sure their proximity to each other will result in even better service by both. Good service can be a primary reason for selecting one machine rather than another as the differences between brands and models continues to become more nominal.

Good service is a primary factor when i buy whther in my job or for personal use. Price/value is always a factor but a small premium for better service is usually well spent

[lightbox]

For what it's worth, I had good service from Dell way back around 2000-2002. My then laptop (an Inspiron Pentium 4 machine) started having video corruption issues. They sent a technician to my residence the next day and replaced the graphics hardware on the spot.

I'm not sure if Dell still operates that way, in lieu of retail stores. However if I buy another Dell it will probably be through the Microsoft store.

[narual]

You realise that mainstream support for 7 has ended? Why have your clients chosen to stay on an 8 year old operating system?
10 works very well. It has all the nice things of 8, but few of the irritations. Most importantly - it almost never falls over.

That Surface machine is very pretty. And, about the same money as I'd have to spend on a new i7 laptop that will run my CAD software well. Tempting!

You "do realize" that you're mistaken? Windows 7 is supported til 2020. They stopped adding new features in 2015. They still provide enterprise support and security updates.

My clients use it because it works perfectly well in a corporate environment and they have zero reason to move to a new os. My former employer before I started consulting used XP til 7 was about a year old, too. They don't need to get into a silly pissing match over using the "latest and greatest" desktop OS. They'd still be on xp for most of the users if it hadn't gone full EOL. Almost all the software non-developer employees use would happily chug along on an xp box (office, in-house and web-based apps).

I'm sure there are a few test boxes at the two larger clients running 10 to see how it meshes with the rest of the environment, what conflicts it causes, etc, and a few 2016 servers in a test network somewhere, with assorted systems cloned onto them to see what breaks during the upgrade, but I'm also sure they won't be going to the majority of workstations til 2019, if not later. Hell, I'm currently working on a contract to port applications I wrote prior to 2010 from a 2003 server to a 2008 server. Maybe we'll push it to 2012 after everything works in 2008, maybe not (the move to 64 bit was the significant change).

[MarkJerling]

You "do realize" that you're mistaken? Windows 7 is supported til 2020.

I did say Mainstream Support.

Client operating systems - Latest update or service pack - End of mainstream support - End of extended support
Windows XP ---------------- Service Pack 3 -------------------- April 14, 2009 ------------------ April 8, 2014
Windows Vista ------------- Service Pack 2 -------------------- April 10, 2012 ------------------ April 11, 2017
Windows 7 ------------------ Service Pack 1 -------------------- January 13, 2015 ------------- January 14, 2020
Windows 8 ------------------ Windows 8.1 ---------------------- January 9, 2018 --------------- January 10, 2023
Windows 10 ----------------- N/A --------------------------------- October 13, 2020 -------------- October 14, 2025

Extended support is not quite the same thing as mainstream support. See https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/17140/general-lifecycle-policy-questions

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Last edited by MarkJerling; 01-19-2017 at 11:31 PM.

[RobA_Oz]

... The Microsoft Store isn't quite up to Apple Store levels yet, but they are getting there, and if my experience is any indication they really are trying. This is not Steve Balmer's Microsoft, and that's a good thing.

Both of those things are good for the consumer. We shouldn't get involved in tribal wars about manufacturers or operating systems, because they're only tools. You should choose the tool that suits your own purpose and style. The really good thing about the new generation of leaders in both camps is that they seem to be going out of their respective ways to concentrate on product competition, rather than tribal warfare. The word doesn't seem to have trickled down to some unfortunates who rely on association for their sense of identity, though. Not that I'm saying anyone here is like that, of course.

[MarkJerling]

I did say Mainstream Support.

Client operating systems - Latest update or service pack - End of mainstream support - End of extended support
Windows XP ---------------- Service Pack 3 -------------------- April 14, 2009 ------------------ April 8, 2014
Windows Vista ------------- Service Pack 2 -------------------- April 10, 2012 ------------------ April 11, 2017
Windows 7 ------------------ Service Pack 1 -------------------- January 13, 2015 ------------- January 14, 2020
Windows 8 ------------------ Windows 8.1 ---------------------- January 9, 2018 --------------- January 10, 2023
Windows 10 ----------------- N/A --------------------------------- October 13, 2020 -------------- October 14, 2025

Extended support is not quite the same thing as mainstream support. See https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/17140/general-lifecycle-policy-questions

I'm always a late adopter. But, what I do is I take one machine to the latest operating system about 3 months after release and see how that goes. Then, at 6 months, I migrate a second one. If I experience no major issues, I migrate the other machines after about a year. I've done this with '95, XP, 7, 8 and 10. I skipped Vista. (I suspect I was not the only one to give Vista a miss!, LOL)

[lightbox]

The word doesn't seem to have trickled down to some unfortunates who rely on association for their sense of identity, though. Not that I'm saying anyone here is like that, of course.

Surely you don't mean to also say that Pentax isn't the best camera brand

[RobA_Oz]

Surely you don't mean to also say that Pentax isn't the best camera brand

Beats me. What would I know? I just take photos that (sometimes) make me happy.

[reeftool]

Both of those things are good for the consumer. We shouldn't get involved in tribal wars about manufacturers or operating systems, because they're only tools. You should choose the tool that suits your own purpose and style. The really good thing about the new generation of leaders in both camps is that they seem to be going out of their respective ways to concentrate on product competition, rather than tribal warfare. The word doesn't seem to have trickled down to some unfortunates who rely on association for their sense of identity, though. Not that I'm saying anyone here is like that, of course.

Unlike some of my Harley riding friends, I've yet to see people walking around showing off Microsoft or Apple tattoos, or a camera manufacturer for that matter.

[MarkJerling]

Unlike some of my Harley riding friends, I've yet to see people walking around showing off Microsoft or Apple tattoos, or a camera manufacturer for that matter.

You know, I've never had a hankering to get myself a tattoo - But a Pentax one would sure look nice.... Now, I just have to decide where to put it. Any suggestions?!?