Windows 10 : are you recommending it or waiting to do so ?

[MnAllstarsTech]

So we all know windows 10 is coming out soon , and i am already getting people asking me if they should go for it right away or just wait.

Me personally i still use and love windows 7 since i don't do much it works fine for me, after a long day of working on computers i don't have time to come home and jump on mines so i don't do much.

So i tell people my personal opinion of waiting , we all saw all the problems 8 HAD and still does in 8.1 so for me i will be waiting for a while.Win 10 doesn't have anything i cant live without so i can wait.

My biggest concern is telling my clients to upgrade right away and then they come back blaming me for what Micro$oft messed up.So are you guys recommending it , are you guys offering any kind of deals on transfer and migration, what are you guys planning with this new release.

 

[phaZed]

Waiting for sure. Telling everyone to hold off for 1 month after the release - then check the reviews and news first.

 

[DonS]

At this point I am telling Windows 8 clients to update immediately. I mean, how worse could it get? lol. Windows 7, wait and see. Win 7 is such a solid OS. Also, telling any business clients that are using proprietary software or systems to hold off on the upgrade until they hear something from their back end support.

 

[NYJimbo]

Like phaZed, I'm telling them to wait at least one month. I told them there will be millions of guinea pigs out there who will go through all the misery and that will create a big knowledge base on how to fix things if they go wrong for you.

Not many people are asking so far. What's funny is that when people pick up their machines from me I sometimes mention Windows 10 and then point to the little "Get Windows 10" icon in their system tray and most either didn't notice it or saw it but have no idea what it is.

 

[nlinecomputers]

Waiting. For one thing we don't have a full picture of what the Free version might limit vs a real purchased version. All free versions might be locked into Current Build updates even Pro which is supposed to offer more control.

 

[altrenda]

I have actually heard more techs having trouble working on Win 8 than I have had clients having problems using it. 8.1 has been relatively stable for my users, although it shows its Windowsness from time to time. And almost all my Win 8/8.1 users are on preinstalls, not upgrades.

But I would never recommend anyone in a business environment use a brand new OS from anyone for the first couple months unless they have to. Let the stability, compatibility, and driver issues settle down first.

 

[NYJimbo]

I've been reading about people trying to downgrade or roll back to Windows 7 or 8 and many people are getting stuck with dead machines. This is happening at a small scale right now, imagine when the software is released wide.

For example, I went here : http://www.thewindowsclub.com/uninstall-windows-10-technical-preview
Scroll down to the comments and then sort NEWEST first and read them. I expect this sort of thing to happen
in huge numbers after July 29.

 

[MnAllstarsTech]

Not many people are asking so far. What's funny is that when people pick up their machines from me I sometimes mention Windows 10 and then point to the little "Get Windows 10" icon in their system tray and most either didn't notice it or saw it but have no idea what it is.

i been getting people calling and asking about it , many thought it was some sort of virus or scam, since many have been getting the call saying its from Micro$oft and that there is something wrong with their machine.

 

[Markverhyden]

Waiting, for sure. Telling everyone to hold of for 1 month after the release, then check the reviews and news first.

Yep. But the problem is people that need something right now. Someone I'm working with has ordered up some new machines. I told him we should get W7 Pro but according to his Dell rep that causes delays vs ordering machines with 8.1. What a pita. I've setup only a handful of W8 machines and they still provide surprises. Most recent was a 8.1 machine. As usual I installed Classic Shell to bring some semblance of what users are used to. Before I had completed setting everything up the EU started accessing her email and clicked on a PDF attachment. New to me, M$ has now included a PDF viewer, and it opened the PDF in the app's W8 tiled mode. Customer called me over wondering what was going on. All I saw was the PDF and a couple of things on the lower right. No obvious menu options. Hitting esc got me out of that. Fortunately installing Acrobat Reader changed the default app and things are good. Still makes me wonder what kind of surprises M$ will have in store for us with 10.

 

[TimM]

I'm telling them to wait for a month or two, that if they use Windows 8 and hate it, then they'll probably want to do it. If they have Windows 7 it's less compelling. The conversation usually covers the possibility of early bugs, overloaded servers and Microsoft having some user unfriendly tricks up their sleeves
I'm also carrying a spare laptop with the preview version on it so they can try it out.
I also have one Vista user who plans on installing the Windows 10 preview so they can get the free update.

 

[AliceKlaar]

The Big Book of ITIL , re: Change Management decrees " no new (anything) in a LOB / production environment without a Roll Back plan & testing / eval the new (anything) "

http://www.itilnews.com/ITIL_Change_Management_Process_Roles_and_Responsibilities.html

How it copes with already installed 3rd party software and MS products not purchased / downloaded via the store will be interesting. If they got a year to upgrade why click on day 1 ?

 

[allstarit]

i have already advised all my clients to hold off on the update and if they want to update their pc's to get in early and make a booking.
I have already booked about 5 clients for this upgrade- i am charging to take a full backup of their PC and then proceed with the upgrade.

 

[cypress]

I have gotten a couple of emails and when meeting with clients last week I was asked about Windows 10. Some of them have already reserved their copies. For the Windows 8 clients I told them let's wait a couple months and see how things go, then we can proceed with Windows 10. They are definitely on board with that and upgrading really won't be in an issue with those select clients.

When it comes to Windows 7 clients I tell them to stick with that they have and that I would recommend it over 10 but if they still want to upgrade they can after a couple of months. Business clients it is Windows 7 Pro. Not even recommending Windows 10.

 

[FremontPC]

Yeah, biz... just doesn't make any sense to throw them in that kind of environment. Maybe look and see a few months after the first Service Pack.

Residential, maybe set them up on dual boot after a system image, if they really want to try it out.

 

[Porthos]

Maybe look and see a few months after the first Service Pack.

There are no more service packs for any Windows OS.

 

[glricht]

I've been getting a few inquiries and for my residential customers, I'm telling them to wait until November to allow the dust to settle. For my SMB customers, wait until at least January 2016. And I don't subscribe to the idea that you should upgrade right away if you're using Windows 8/8.1.

My main concern? How long is it going to take us techs to really understand how properly maintain a Win 10 system? Heck, we're all still learning how to properly support Windows 8/8.1.

 

[ccritchie]

I sent out a newsletter this week recommending that they wait. However, if they do decide to upgrade, I outlined the basics of what they need to do prior to making the jump. For most of my customers (residential), backing up the system & getting everything up to date is too technical for them. Therefor, I'm offering an upgrade service for a flat $150.00. I've already had 2 customers tell me that they would like to do this in August, but that there's no rush. I anticipate some customers (particularly some on Windows 7 with older hardware) will have upgrade failures which I will be called in to clean up. August-October might be very busy for us!

 

[commodore64]

I've been getting calls on this as well, many did think it was a virus or something with the logo in the system tray. I've said to wait as well. No reason to be a beta tester, plus driver and other new O.S. issues.

 

[FremontPC]

I wonder if it wouldn't be best to reserve but not install, so you have a valid license when you decide the time is right. Or do you have to install and activate to get the license?

 

[CheddarPCsKP]

We're advising customers to hold off for a month or two - there are of course going to be a few who can't resist pressing the button. We've installed the preview on a few machines here and not had any problems so far, so for Windows 8 customers it's going to be a no brainer I think, once the initial major problems have been ironed out.
Quite a few enquiries are coming into the shop, so we've put together a info sheet that we're dishing out to anyone who asks, and have got a laptop running a preview on the counter for customers to see. Response to the preview has been mixed - Windows 8 users love it, almost without exception, while 7 users are less keen.
We're offering an ugrade service too - imaging the machine before upgrade, running upgrade, etc. August will almost certainly be busy in the shop with failed upgrades (I'm on holiday in the south of France for the second two weeks of August - suspect I'll need the break by then. Mobile will be OFF!).
September is likely even more busy though with students going back up to uni - we always get a surge in repairs in the first week of September with students who've suddenly realised they have one week to get that broken screen / virus / failure to boot / complete lack of laptop sorted. Factor in Windows 10 and it could be like XP End Of Life all over again.