As 2015 comes to a close, Windows 10 surpasses 200 million installs

As far as Microsoft's Install Bragging, I see it like a TV network promoting a show's ratings.

We'll take CBS' "Big Bang Theory" (the top TV comedy by far) as an example. You could put "Doggie Doo On Parade" after it, and a certain number of people would not change the channel. (I don't know what actually follows BBT on the CBS schedule, I'd have to look.)

CBS would put out a press release about X number of viewers who watched "Doggie Doo On Parade", not adding "but really, they were just too lazy to change the channel after Big Bang Theory".

I take Microsoft's numbers (or ANY such numbers) in the same light.

And no, I'm not comparing Windows 10 to doggie doo. I LIKE it, remember?

Press releases are not meant to be unvarnished truth. They're meant to put the company in question in a good light, and to put the information contained within in a good light.

Jody Thornton said:

Well that's the reason I wanted to check out the numbers because from where I sit (though I realize this an anecdotal observation), the world around me looks like a mix of iPhone and Android and then Windows 7 on most of our work PCs. Windows 7 seems to be the de facto standard in most offices and homes that I visit. (and yes it's right to include mobile systems like Android and iOS in the mix, because a lot of people simply have abandoned PCs and gone to mobile options [they only use a PC when they have to], and besides, isn't Microsoft trying to get into the mobile game with Windows 8x and 10?)

Simply put, there just doesn't seem to be the same fanfare about Windows 10 outside of this forum. A lot of people that still need a PC seem to stick with Windows 7. That doesn't make Windows 10 a bad system, but it just not a runaway success either. And Microsoft NEEDS this to be a success. If they can't make a big enough dent in the mobility market, they need to preserve their desktop user base.

Your experience regarding offices and homes visited "Well that's the reason I wanted to check out the numbers because from where I sit"

Is a very small proportion world wide and bears no comparison.

Microsoft with its updating through its servers would be a much more accurate method of establishing numbers installed than any anecdotal observation or by sceptics.

jebuchanan said:

I too believe, the Update deadline will be extended past July. Only time will tell.

Best for us consumers, and perhaps best for Microsoft too, is unlimited free upgrade to Windows 10

In other words, Windows 7 users have until its end of life 2020, Windows 8.1 users have until its end of life 2023, to upgrade for free to Windows 10.

Perhaps Microsoft planned the unlimited free upgrade to Windows 10 all along, and only set the free upgrade year to get an initial push going

FrozenCursor said:

Best for us consumers, and perhaps best for Microsoft too, is unlimited free upgrade to Windows 10

Hmmm. Why?

Perhaps if people missed the news they need a bit more time to decide. Really though - another 7 years? Just to decide if they want to try an OS and then restore back if they don't like it?

There is nothing wrong with putting things off for a while but until 2023? I think I could probably get married and divorced twice by then.

Anyway I think you'll end up being correct in the end, sadly enough.

Why sad? I would rejoice if Microsoft indeed offers unlimited free upgrade to Windows 10. And I actually believe that there is a 50-50 chance of this 'unlimited free upgrade' being offered, come the anniversary of the July 29th RTM.

The status quo is, even if you don't experience any problems right now, you never know when the next Windows Update (that is forced on you) will break things. This has happened to too many people for my comfort. You cannot exclude the possibility that it won't happen to you.

I am confident that the issue will eventually subside but it will take time for Windows 10 to mature. Somebody once said "you can't make a baby in 1 month by impregnating 9 women". Things just take time.

Ed Bott is always good for a square answer on a controversial topic.