What Windows is overall the best to you and why?

[KrazyT]

Said Win 10
My PC is like a big console, 95% is playing, rest is browsing.
I can't remember the last bsod i've encountered, means the os is stable enough

 

[Bill_Bright]

They won't. It's just a rumor.

Sure hope you are right.

 

[gurusmi]

Oh no.

I don't doubt you for a second, but I'm afraid you inadvertedly might have started a pissing contest with that sentence.

I didn't want to start any discussion. I decided on my own for me and my company that for me the time of windows ist mostly over. With my next rig i will leave the windows train. All compatibility tests ran fine. For some minor programs i use a 2TB service partition with windows. But the main OS is residing on a 4TB SSD running ZorinOS. Everybody can do what they want to. And i decided that i don't need to accept the habits of M$ any longer.

 

[Conti027]

Started on Win 3.1-ish but I voted for ME since that's OS that made me learn so much more about computers, I was always having problems with it.

 

[NSX05]

Sure hope you are right.

I think if they did that, it would tank the operating system. Microsoft might be stupid, but it isn't that stupid.

 

[gurusmi]

I think if they did that, it would tank the operating system. Microsoft might be stupid, but it isn't that stupid.

How a company can be stupid if they know how to make money. That's the major task of every company.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Microsoft might be stupid, but it isn't that stupid.

Ummm huh??? I guess you never saw Windows 8 "Metro UI".

W8 Metro UI

The developers certainly are not stupid. MS has some of the best in the world. But the developers, sadly, don't call the shots or control the purse strings. If the marketing weenies and C-Level execs would let the developers do their jobs, I have no doubts Windows would be the OS just about everyone would totally love.

 

[NSX05]

Ummm huh??? I guess you never saw Windows 8 "Metro UI".

W8 Metro UI

The developers certainly are not stupid. MS has some of the best in the world. But the developers, sadly, don't call the shots or control the purse strings. If the marketing weenies and C-Level execs would let the developers do their jobs, I have no doubts Windows would be the OS just about everyone would totally love.

I have. Windows 8 was a terrible choice, however Windows 8.1 was perfectly fine.

 

[Lew Zealand]

10 at this point.

Being a Mac user but tacitly supporting Windows at my job since the 2000 days, I found 2000, XP and 7 to be usable though 2000 and XP had their pain points. 7 was quite good but I switched to Windows as a primary use OS (for gaming reasons) with 10 and frankly, going to Windows 10 from OS X was easy. Even 7 is more inscrutable from a Mac perspective but 10 really was not. Easy transition.

I still run 10 on most of my PCs but am installing 11 and getting used to tying it down (goddamn MS forces a lot of things on that need to be turned off).

As for other OSes, I never had problems with Vista but I used it late in its tenure after the bugs had been worked out. Not sure I was ever cursed with Me. 8's UI is a f**** mess, full stop. W95 and W98 were barely tolerable but functioned OK once you found your way around. Using W3.11 was a disaster from a Mac perspective, like it was trying to do things differently to maybe not look like it was copying? And doing a LOT of it wrong.

 

[Bill_Bright]

I have. Windows 8 was a terrible choice, however Windows 8.1 was perfectly fine.

I agree but not the point. I was replying to your comment that MS was not that stupid they would get rid of the taskbar. I merely illustrated how they could be. And certainly, nobody with any experience could honestly say they would not make the same mistake twice.

 

[64K]

As for other OSes, I never had problems with Vista but I used it late in its tenure after the bugs had been worked out.

Vista could have been better received but to the average user it was just too different. Even discounting the fixes to the OS that were needed people didn't understand why their PC was asking for permission to run what they already clicked on to run (UAC). Then there were the drivers issues where manufacturers got caught with their pants down and didn't have Vista ready drivers quickly. The final blow was the OS seemed like a slow resource hog compared to XP because it required more RAM. I remember seeing a lot of PCs at stores for sale being described as Vista ready with 512 MB RAM. That was enough for XP but not for Vista.

 

[NSX05]

I agree but not the point. I was replying to your comment that MS was not that stupid they would get rid of the taskbar. I merely illustrated how they could be. And certainly, nobody with any experience could honestly say they would not make the same mistake twice.

I understand, however we're now coming from a point in time after the fact. I do think Microsoft would learn from that dreadful mistake.

 

[Bill_Bright]

I do think Microsoft would learn from that dreadful mistake.

Except the mistake was shoving down everyone's throat a totally foreign, in looks AND feel, user interface and just assuming everyone would automatically love and accept it. I am sure they learned their lesson there but that was WAY more than just doing away with the taskbar.

I note there is the option, and many use it, to automatically hide the taskbar now. Not me - but that's me.

 

[NSX05]

Except the mistake was shoving down everyone's throat a totally foreign, in looks AND feel, user interface and just assuming everyone would automatically love and accept it. I am sure they learned their lesson there but that was WAY more than just doing away with the taskbar.

I note there is the option, and many use it, to automatically hide the taskbar now. Not me - but that's me.

I think Microsoft was hoping that touchscreen laptops and especially Windows Phone would take off more than they ever have.

But if they can come back from that, they can work out that the taskbar is to be a permanent fixture of Windows. We already saw backlash when Windows 11 was first released with the taskbar centred. Microsoft knows at this point that the taskbar is best left alone, and if they still don't, users will make sure that they do.

 

[Palindrome]

Rose tinted glasses made me cast my vote for XP. Probably spent too much time in 3D Pinball though.

 

[Bill_Bright]

I think Microsoft was hoping that touchscreen laptops and especially Windows Phone would take off more than they ever have.

I explained their reasoning way back in post #56. And yes, it was to get folks to buy Windows Phone.

Microsoft knows at this point that the taskbar is best left alone

I've been working with MS since the mid 1970s when I was stationed at Kirtland AFB in Albuquerque and the Air Force was just starting to get into personal computers. I was also a Microsoft MVP for 11 years where I was privy to much inside information (with NDAs that still apply). I would not pretend for a second to know what Microsoft (at least the marketing weenies and C-level execs) thinks is best to leave alone.

 

[KLMR]

Windows 10 which one? 1607? 1809? 2004?
Windows 10 is the biggest "configuration" nightmare I've seen and I've suffered. Lots of menus LOST or hidden arbitrary. Configuration items changing at each version: appearing and dissapearing. Less and less versatile over the years (continuous ofuscation). Absurd UI decisions from start to end: new control pannel, new start menu 3 times, notification area. Did you suffer the brightness slider for laptops? Who is in charge of QA? Wordpad? Calculator??? Why?? Why some powertoys are not integrated with windows?

It became usable at 1909 or so. Then the 2XHY nightmare started.

RADIUS manual configuration, lost.
Per NIC configuration, hidden.
Advanced sound configuration, hidden.
Detail hardware configuration, hidden.
Programs installed, hidden.
Local accounts, hidden or lost.
Local or network backups, hidden or lost.
most basic accesories, lost.
file handling options hidden or lost.

Windows should be the OS where stuff works, and configuration, tweaking and setup can be made by UI.

Stuff you cannot do at 2024, integrated-with-windows easy-to-access or functional:
- hardlinking folders
- Proper local backup and recovery (for my grandma) instead of to the fucking onedrive.
- Proper android/apple integration.
- Proper color management (ICM) and HDR check and calibration.
- Per program docking/virtualization for "users" (Do you want to install/run this program docked? Yes, No)
- Separated partitions for windows and user files (for fast recovery)
- Proper Remote desktop / Desktop extension with other devices (your phone or laptop desktop integration).
- Integrated hyper-v (removed)
- output bitstream audio test and control for surround sound. ASIO support, WASAPI configuration.
- no cleanup of unlinked updates and registry entries
- WHY THERE IS NO WAY TO ONE-CLICK TRANSFER A PICTURE/VIDEO FROM MY PHONE TO MY COMPUTER WITHOUT ANY CLOUD, INTEGRATED WITH WINDOWS BY WIFI?

- SEARCH in your files and folders with the confidence that if nothing is found there is actually nothing.

Handwriting utilities /tablet utilities? Forced because of tablet marked demands. Now dead.
DX12 only? Many people proved W7 was able to DX12.
CPU Scheduler Update? Forced by Windows Server Editions. And because desktop CPUS have trully evolved over the 2015-2022 period.
Security? ...
- Programs: Ok
- Drivers: Ok
- Personal data: lost in many updates. Almost forced to full cloud your stuff.
- Windows defender: Ok
Now on par with other OS, congratulations.

What else did W10 brought?
Ah yes, the bash and linux integration? Forced by Server Editions.
Ah the RGB control on the OS.

Each versions goes backwards. Like office. OFFICE IN 2024 USES THE SAME FUCKING DIALOG FOR CROSSED REFERENCES SINCE OFFICE 2003. But its called 365.

 

[Tomgang]

I choose windows 7. I really liked it and i liked it the most of all windows i have tried. I have yet to reałly try windows 11. But from xp to 10, 7 is my favorite of the bunch.

Second after 7 must be 10. It good but there is something about 7 that i better like, difficult to say what it is throw. Windows 7 is my favorite because it just worked and was so beautifully painless to use and trouble free, at least for my use. I was an early adopter of 7, so then the RC (release candidate) came out, it was goodbey to xp and vista for good. The RC version all ready ran really great. I was on 7 until support ended and was forced to win 10, sadly. So now i use windows 10 with classic shell that allows for a windows 7 look a like start menu in windows 10. With that 10 is not so bad. But i do miss 7 to be hornestly.

I least liked windows vista and 8/8.1. vista wa just to heavy to run on the hardware that was to offer back then and needed a more refined version (i all ways said win 7 was what vista should have been from the beginning) and 8 was just to fixated on table and touch screen use, that i felt Microsoft lagged proper desktop support/use.

Xp was fine, but not without its few troubles and wierd things to happen rarely but they dit occurs.

Now i will soon be forced to win 11 as 10 updates end October 2025. So i'll see if 11 can beat 7 and be on my top list of best windows or it will get a place lower down on the list.

 

[lilhasselhoffer]

7. Peak between the era of required internet and the functional pig.

That seems a bit harsh, but my first 64 bit OS was xp. Getting drivers sucked mightily, and the whole jump from basically USB nothing to SATA was enormous. Once I got that beast running there were a few opportunities to use extended RAM programs...which was great...but just not enough. 7 was the first time I had a stable and easy 64 bit experience, MS didn't want to market to me in my OS, and the updates felt like they mattered.


I second windows 10...because it'll be the last time we had any control over our OS...despite still being several hundred dollars if bought at retail...because I need to waste space on candy crush every frickin' new install. Yeah...8 was an abomination because of interface and 11 is an abomination due to you being held hostage.

 

[Wirko]

I think Microsoft was hoping that touchscreen laptops and especially Windows Phone would take off more than they ever have.

It's ironic that just a few years earlier they had no clue how to make a mobile UI. Windows CE 6.0 was an almost exact copy of Windows 98, UI-wise. But it came out in late 2006, at the same time as Vista! I'd have forgotten that OS long ago but recently a handheld barcode scanner/computer found its way into my hands, and it still worked. 240 x 320 in colour, haha.

 

[lexluthermiester]

Sure hope you are right.

If they try it they will have an even bigger uproar then when they tried removing the Start menu from Windows 8. They would be fools to themselves if they did. It would guaranty the death of Windows as a computing platform.

 

[Wirko]

Just one tiny detail: the system font (either the font itself, or the rendering engine) has been consistently getting worse since Windows 98. MS Sans Serif was used back then. A raster font, as it should be. I carried it over to 2000 and XP (I think I even took the font files from 98). Gave up with 7. Windows 11? I've had occasional contact with KDE and Gnome over the last two decades, font rendering has always seemed their weak point, and now 11 has reached the same low level.

when they tried removing the Start menu from Windows 8

They just replaced it with an experiment, which after a lot of trouble evolved into Windows 10's start menu tiles. Those are great, actually they are one of the very few things I'd want to see backported to 7.

 

[PierreJG]

I Picked Windows 98 but the standard Win 98 is not the one I refer to. Windows 98 SE was the most stable Windows ever created in my opinion but it had one flaw and that is if you entered incorrect network settings, it would delete all your network files.
My Least Favorite is Windows Vista and Windows 11. Windows 11 has a lot of features that add to Windows 10 but it also takes more time for some things I do. Well Vista, I am pretty sure everyone knows what went wrong there

PS: My old time Fav is Zorin OS but unfortunately some work stuff that I need for work only works on Windows...

 

[Bill_Bright]

If they try it they will have an even bigger uproar then when they tried removing the Start menu from Windows 8. They would be fools to themselves if they did. It would guaranty the death of Windows as a computing platform.

As you know, Lex, I typically am one to jump in and defend Microsoft as they are so often unjustly accused of something they did or didn't do, or something they have no control over.

Getting rid of the taskbar is NOT talking about code development decisions, but rather "marketing" and "policy" decisions. History has shown us over and over again that the marketing weenies and C-level execs seem to have a habit of making foolish decisions.

Perhaps it might be useful, or at least informative it not interesting to note that Windows is a relatively small cog in Microsoft's revenue machine.

As seen here for 2023, Operating systems accounted for only 10% of Microsoft's revenue.

Total Revenue	$211B	100%
Product LIne	FY2023 Revenue	Share of Revenue
Cloud Computing Services	$80B	38%
Cloud Office Suite Software	$49B	23%
Operating Systems	$22B	10%
Gaming Consoles	$15B	7%
Employment Listing Platform	$15B	7%
AI-Enabled Search Engine	$12B	6%
Other	$19B	9%

So maybe the marketing weenies and C-level execs just don't care how Windows users feel or what we think.

It would guaranty the death of Windows as a computing platform.

See, that's the thing. History has also shown over and over again, that most of the time, Windows users adapt and eventually just accept what Microsoft throws at.

I will also point out that the operating system is just the launching pad for our apps. Once we are in our browsers, games, word processor, etc. do we (should we?) really care (that much) what the OS looks like?

 

[Halo3Addict]

If I take off my rose-tinted glasses, there's no way I could go back to Windows previous to 11. Windows 10 might be my least favorite, the UI and hidden/inconsistent menu elements were a nightmare to navigate. I think I jumped straight to 11 once it released.

Windows 7 was great, but it's missing so many features of Windows 11 that I use everyday, mostly the virtual desktop feature. Microsoft is finally starting to streamline the UI. There's also built-in integration for Hyper-V (maybe Windows 7 had this and I was unaware) and Linux subsystem. Much better multi-monitor and widescreen support. For me it's a no-brainer