BEFORE You think you want to Upgrade to Windows 10...

First - my background - I own a small computer business, started in 1979. Yes, 1979, that predates MS-DOS and Windows. 35 years of experience, and no, we still haven't seen it all!

Before you upgrade to Windows 10, DO YOUR HOMEWORK first! Just because the upgrade is free (for now), if you are currently running Windows 7, 8, or 8.1, does NOT guarantee a successful upgrade.
**If you use third party software that is important/crucial to your daily business, make sure it works in Windows 10. Make sure the author SUPPORTS Windows 10.
**Make sure your computer manufacturer supports Windows 10 FOR YOUR particular model! I have seen disclaimers for some models stating there would be no support for Windows 10.
**The same goes for any additional hardware you might be using, including PRINTERS, sound cards, USB attached devices, networking, or be willing to upgrade those devices.
**Microsoft claims you will be able to unwind the upgrade to Windows 10 if the install doesn't work. THIS DOESN'T ALWAYS WORK, OR IS NOT ALWAYS AVAILABLE. The only solution might be a format of your hard drive, loss of your data and any other software, and a new install of all of the above.

And make a backup of important data before you start the install.

One of the reasons Microsoft provides Windows 10 for free (for a limited time) is they have built into the software the capability to profile you (similar to large grocery chain discount cards). So Microsoft now tracks everything you do on your computer, if your computer connects to the internet.

We suggest you wait at least 6 months from the original release date (end of July 2015) before you upgrade, so Microsoft can get the major bugs fixed. It is rumored there would be a "substantial" upgrade for Windows 10 released this fall - we're still waiting...

GOOD LUCK!!

(Yes, we run Windows 10 on at least one system in our business, it was a new install, not an upgrade, and there are still minor issues.)

Oh, and while I'm on my soapbox...
The new solid state drives (SSD's) are much faster, but do not necessarily offer better reliability!! Yes, we have seen them fail.
Please do not rely on flash/thumb drives for permanent backup! These fail as well! (But sure make a pretty blue ARC when static electricity builds up and jumps from your computer to your flash drive as you go to insert the drive into a USB port.)
Treat external hard drives like a carton of eggs. Like a carton of eggs, they do not drop well!

Al Schlafli
Computer Dynamics
www.compdyna.com

and yes, we love our Bighorn!

Hey Al . . .

Thanks for the info!

I've been struggling with trying to make up my mind about the switch.

I started a topic thread here a few months back about this and I put a link to this thread in there.

Here is a link to that conversation: https://heartlandowners.org/showthread.php/53811-Windows-10-anyone

Well not sure where I would stand on this issue but I switched from it and have no issues with it. Software, hardware and user wear all works for me. By the way does anyone know what I mean by USER WEAR? Just made that up sounds good, LOL

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Well not sure where I would stand on this issue but I switched from it and have no issues with it. Software, hardware and user wear all works for me. By the way does anyone know what I mean by USER WEAR? Just made that up sounds good, LOL

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but with over 110 million installations (as of Oct 6th), think things are going well.

BTW...this seems like you are bashing the OS for no reason. Did someone ask for this information?

Al: Great points, I know my Sony Tablet does not support windows 10 yet. They issued a bulletin regarding display problems and etc on the tablet when going to Win10.
I love my win7 on my all in one and will not upgrade it to 10. Thanks for your post!

Oregon_Camper said:

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but with over 110 million installations (as of Oct 6th), think things are going well.

BTW...this seems like you are bashing the OS for no reason. Did someone ask for this information?

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Sounds like someone with experience (35 years) wants to warn you to keep you from MAJOR headaches if you are a Windows user. Thank you!!

I'll stick with my Macs.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Oregon_Camper said:

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but with over 110 million installations (as of Oct 6th), think things are going well.

BTW...this seems like you are bashing the OS for no reason. Did someone ask for this information?

Click to expand...

Original post was from someone with experience in an area that most of us use everyday. Sharing information on various topics is what this forum is all about. Sounds like somebody wet in your Cheerios......If subject matter on the post is not something you are interested in, ignore it. No need for sarcastic remarks.

SilverRhino said:

Original post was from someone with experience in an area that most of us use everyday. Sharing information on various topics is what this forum is all about. Sounds like somebody wet in your Cheerios......If subject matter on the post is not something you are interested in, ignore it. No need for sarcastic remarks.

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Not sure where I was being sarcastic? I have no interest in Microsoft...not employed by them...have no family employed by them.

Again...I said everyone can have an opinion, but the post just seemed out of place for a forum that is dedicated to the RV industry. I can easily see this being a reply to someone asking, but as the original post, seemed odd to me.

Thank you skyguy in that this is good information, especially for us that are traveling and on the road with our camper and continually keep getting the invitation to upgrade. I haven't thought about compatibility with other programs in that I was assuming that Microsoft had worked these bugs out. Thanks again.

Oregon: It was posted in the Non-RV related forum on a subject we are all familiar with, computers. Checked your Wheaties for yellow milk.

Still not sure why everyone thinks I'm mad and they "Checked your Wheaties for Yellow Milk".

I'd like to hear more about the profiling comment. If that is true, then the DOJ would have issues with it. Can Original Poster please provide more details on this comment? I'd love to look into this more as I have 3 PC's running Windows 10 and if I have issues, I'm not aware of, I need to be educated.

Please post details on this.

skyguy said:

One of the reasons Microsoft provides Windows 10 for free (for a limited time) is they have built into the software the capability to profile you (similar to large grocery chain discount cards). So Microsoft now tracks everything you do on your computer, if your computer connects to the internet.

Click to expand...

If this is the standard tracking stuff, so I can get a better shopping experience, fill in my search bar faster, recommend places to eat while traveling...the bring it on! All browsers are doing the same thing with cookies.

The is the ability for MSFT to hand over data, when asked by the Government. We all want to be safe and some things need to be watched...as you know the bad guys won't let up.

Personally, I could care less what they track on my PC...I'd be willing to allow anyone to see all the web pages I've been to...cause I have nothing to hide.

And of course the phone companies know everywhere you've been and where you stop...down to the second. I actually like going to the Google site and looking back over the year to see all the places I've traveled across the world. If you have a android phone, just Google "location history"...it is pretty fun.

Oregon_Camper said:

Still not sure why everyone thinks I'm mad and they "Checked your Wheaties for Yellow Milk".

I'd like to hear more about the profiling comment. If that is true, then the DOJ would have issues with it. Can Original Poster please provide more details on this comment? I'd love to look into this more as I have 3 PC's running Windows 10 and if I have issues, I'm not aware of, I need to be educated.

Please post details on this.



If this is the standard tracking stuff, so I can get a better shopping experience, fill in my search bar faster, recommend places to eat while traveling...the bring it on! All browsers are doing the same thing with cookies.

The is the ability for MSFT to hand over data, when asked by the Government. We all want to be safe and some things need to be watched...as you know the bad guys won't let up.

Personally, I could care less what they track on my PC...I'd be willing to allow anyone to see all the web pages I've been to...cause I have nothing to hide.

And of course the phone companies know everywhere you've been and where you stop...down to the second. I actually like going to the Google site and looking back over the year to see all the places I've traveled across the world. If you have a android phone, just Google "location history"...it is pretty fun.

Click to expand...

For starters, http://boingboing.net/2015/08/03/windows-10-defaults-to-keylogg.html
There are lots of articles on the same subject, try an internet search on "Why is Windows 10 free?" There are some valid reasons as well. Yep, Big Brother is now everywhere - thanks to technology, it's the world we live in today - I think if you relish your privacy, you'll need to abandon a lot of your technology!

I may have been a bit harsh - but if I can save a few folks the expense of paying a good technician to reverse another errant install, then I have made some valid points. And that is the purpose of this forum, yes? I have learned a lot from this forum, and hopefully contributed an equal share, some pertaining directly to our RV's, some not so much.

Oh, and I play with Apples as well! I actually prefer the design of their Operating System - but, did you know almost 50% of the reviews for Apple's latest upgrade only rate it ONE STAR???

Al

skyguy said:

Oh, and I play with Apples as well! I actually prefer the design of their Operating System - but, did you know almost 50% of the reviews for Apple's latest upgrade only rate it ONE STAR???

Al

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Al, I haven't upgraded to El Capitan yet, either, just because I'm never an early adopter of a new OS. My software for my business has to catch up and run stable before I jump.

Sadly, since Steve Jobs passed I think their quality control has started to slip. "Release it cause it's time, not because it's ready" seems to be the goal. ((Sigh))

But it's still not like a MS product, thank goodness.

I had to work at my career in a PC environment for 4 years, was the worst hardware experience ever. Far more issues then we ever had at the Mac based workplaces in my 25 yr career.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Although I had a posting on a similar Windows 10 thread, I feel like I am somehow responsible for some of the animosity here. Can't we all believe that everyone who posts here just wants the best for all Heartland owners and give them the benefit of the doubt? Remember what Thumper's father told him in Bambi: "If you can't say somethin' nice, . . . . . ."

How about a windows ten question? It looks like there is no way to open all my Microsoft works files with windows ten. Is this correct? I know it was discontinued, but I thought there would at least be a way to convert them. I have no need for office. Any ideas. Also how can I disable the touchpad? Thanks.

pegmikef said:

How about a windows ten question? It looks like there is no way to open all my Microsoft works files with windows ten. Is this correct? I know it was discontinued, but I thought there would at least be a way to convert them. I have no need for office. Any ideas. Also how can I disable the touchpad? Thanks.

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On a laptop, you should be able to disable the touchpad by plugging an external mouse into the USB port for it. Prior to Windows 10, I had to use the little button on the touchpad to disable it. Never liked the touchpad, anyways. I have not had any problem using my Office files from previous versions. Or are you referring to the old Microsoft Works program, which was a scaled back Office program? Never used it, even though it was pre-loaded.

JohnDar said:

On a laptop, you should be able to disable the touchpad by plugging an external mouse into the USB port for it. Prior to Windows 10, I had to use the little button on the touchpad to disable it. Never liked the touchpad, anyways. I have not had any problem using my Office files from previous versions. Or are you referring to the old Microsoft Works program, which was a scaled back Office program? Never used it, even though it was pre-loaded.

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Thanks John, right after I wrote that I figured it out. I had already set my mouse up, but the pad on my HP was still active. I ended up going to the control panel and selecting mouse. Instead of showing me the mouse device, it showed me the touchpad device and there was a disable option. Worked like a champ.

Yeah, I am talking about the preloaded Works program. I used Office when I was working and as a DOD contractor I was able to buy it at a very discounted price, but it was pretty old so I never loaded it on my newer machines since the works did everything I needed. It looks like I can save any of the documents as Word documents and then they will be recognized because .doc is one of the options, but I was hoping someone knew of an easier way to use them. Does this WPS thing come with Windows 10 or is it just a trial version that they will want me to by later?

I've been using Open Office, price is right (free) and it reads about any document existing including Word and Works. I'm guessing on Works it's been years since I used it.

Since I do a lot of PowerPoint presentations, the full Office program (less Access) is what I need. I would like Access, too, but it's cost prohibitive for as much as I would use it.

JohnDar said:

Since I do a lot of PowerPoint presentations, the full Office program (less Access) is what I need. I would like Access, too, but it's cost prohibitive for as much as I would use it.

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You can use Office 365 for $6.95 a month, which includes Access. -- Go to Office.microsoft.com

If you have a Microsoft account with OneDrive, you can use all of the Office products for free. Scroll just a bit, to where you see "Get Started with online apps now" https://www.office.com/