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Microsoft: Windows 10 is the last version of Windows

Microsoft Corp.’s Windows 10 operating system will be the last version of Windows as we know it, a developer evangelist from the company said this week. This does not mean that Microsoft is killing off its operating system. In the future Microsoft will bring innovations and updates in an ongoing manner and there will be no more huge releases of the platform. At least, Microsoft says so.

“Right now we are releasing Windows 10, and because Windows 10 is the last version of Windows, we’re all still working on Windows 10,” said Jerry Nixon, a developer evangelist at Microsoft, speaking at the company's Ignite conference this week, reports The Verge.

Mr. Nixon indicated that the future is “Windows as a service”, which means an entirely new usage models for end-users and a new business model for Microsoft. The world’s largest software developer has been thinking about making major changes to Windows for years now and Windows 10 will include a number of radically new things.

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Microsoft has altered the way it develops and delivers Windows with its next OS. The upcoming Windows 10 will be fully modular and Microsoft will be able to update every single component independently to the core OS. This also allows building versions of the operating systems for different kinds of devices.

While the idea of a fully modular OS means that Microsoft will theoretically be able to add new features to Windows 10 forever, there will probably be hardware limitations, which will prevent certain functions from working on every single device. The concept of modularity also means that we will either not see any new major releases of Windows going forward, or Microsoft will introduce them once in many years (e.g., once in a decade). Keeping in mind all the uncertainities, the software does not want to talk about Windows 11 name, for example.

“Recent comments at Ignite about Windows 10 are reflective of the way Windows will be delivered as a service bringing new innovations and updates in an ongoing manner, with continuous value for our consumer and business customers,” said a Microsoft spokesperson when asked to clarify the future of Windows. “We aren’t speaking to future branding at this time, but customers can be confident Windows 10 will remain up-to-date and power a variety of devices from PCs to phones to Surface Hub to HoloLens and Xbox. We look forward to a long future of Windows innovations.”

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A couple of years ago a rumour revealed Microsoft’s plans to introduce an operating system that would heavily rely on cloud technologies. No details were unveiled at that time, but one thing that is clear at the moment is that modularity is definitely not the final step in the evolution of Windows.

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KitGuru Says: Modular OS with upgradeable components is definitely a cool feature that will in many ways revolutionize user experience and Microsoft’s business. But with great power, comes great responsibility. What if an end-user does not want a certain upgrade? What if Microsoft wants to radically change graphics user interface of its OS? What if an upgrade ruins user experience on outdated machines? What if an update is not compatible with certain third-party apps? There are a lot of questions that Microsoft will need to answer in the coming months.

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21 comments

  1. Meh

  2. What a rare sight… Its internet explorer!

  3. Davis Kunselman

    So does this pretty much confirm that Windows will be a subscription service? I would absolutely hate to have to pay every month to us my OS…

  4. Doesn’t sound like a subscription service to me.

  5. Such an old build! IE doesn’t even exist anymore!

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  7. I thought the same.

  8. ImpedingMadness

    It does sound like a subscription, to some degree.
    Modularity equals to independence to some degree which means they can make the parts of the OS something similar to DLC in games and even worse they can put subscription on some services. It’s like another form of windows 8 and 8 pro
    Depending on their moves, I might have to hop on linux boat+windows VM.

  9. If microsoft charges me for my operating system. I’ll go back to windows 7, hands down, or use Linux. By thuis point, I’m quite satisfied, with staying away fropm subscription services, or critical quality of life features barred behind pay walls.

    Do not do what the pc gaming market has done to infuriate the gaming culture. Doing so, will further burn people whove yet been exposed to the market practice on a much grander, global scale. In this (Worst case scenerio) Microsoft wouldn’t do it.

    And if they did, they better be ready to face the wrath, the reaction from the community would likely result in the creation of windows emulations. Further spawning another linux os, likely devoted to applications similar to wine. It would not surprise me in the slightest.

    While such things are big undertakings, and highly difficult walls. I’d imagine the only way, and reason for it to be scalled is. You piss over your customers. 😛

    On the bright side, it does offer up a wonderful bit of good potential too. I’ll wait patiently to see how it all plays out, but I do plan to upgrade.

  10. They have thousands of employees working on this build of Windows; how do you expect them to cover the cost of that if people expect Windows to be free? They don’t make nearly enough hardware themselves like Apple to warrant releasing it for free. In my case I hope they release a good OS like Windows 7, keeping to the usual good-bad-good-bad release cycle they have done. At the end of the day you pay for what you get – Usually.

  11. Jason Mckinnon

    This is why im keeping win7. I dont want forced updates and i definitely dont want my pc to run kike my phones.

  12. Davis Kunselman

    If windows 10 is the last version of windows, then everyone will either pay a single fee upfront and never have to pay for an OS again, or Microsoft will charge a monthly fee. If there is not another version of windows to come after Win 10, then they won’t be making any money off of their OS’s after the initial purchase of windows 10. So, in my eyes, it seems like windows will pretty much have to be a subscription service or something like ImpendingMadness mentioned with “DLC” or some other service that requires their OS to use.

  13. I think it’s simply too early to say, and any speculating tends to amount more to scaremongering than anything useful. I don’t think it would really be in their interest to alienate users in that manner, especially with alternative platforms becoming more and more viable all the time. That said, it’s not like Microsoft hasn’t made more than their fair share of errors and customer service disasters in the past.

  14. you obviously didn’t read the article -.-

  15. Oh dont get me wrong, but the first fear is that they’ll put it behind subscription services. Some of us, can barely afford to pay bills, or keep things up. In the case of a subscription service it could be very deadly, unless it was cheap.

    due to the volume of windows users they could get by on $2, easy. In such a model. I I dont expect free things, I just want what I pay for in a sense, I can’t afford the best;. I’m simply fearing for the worst, which is heavy monetization practices.

    Where they’ll lock features behind paywalls, for exorbant prices beyond their worth. At the same time tho, it does offer a great deal of potential. As long as they don’t put security updates, and performance improving such to be paid for. All is good.

    Features, and service packs, of some kind. I think I can understand if its a major upgrade. Or some random feature a business might employ heavily, but not so much every home user. OR a feature that is for a niche, but in demand enough that people want it.

    As long as it is somehow reasonable. But its sort of pointless at present to make arguements, and so, it’s just a waiting game until I can get a hands on view of the finished product.

  16. Nothing anywhere indicated that this would be a subscription service. Given the way Windows works now, it still won’t be.

    There is also the fact that they confirmed this last year when the same issue comes up. Try not to jump the gun next time.

  17. Pay for a single up-front fee, then in 3 years when Windows 10.X comes out, pay for that upgrade. Its no different than it is now, other than its them building on one platform and avoiding entire OS reinstalls every few years.

  18. Via http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/456817/scitech/technology/microsoft-to-make-windows-10-upgrade-free-but-not-with-pirated-copy

    “Meanwhile, Ars Technica said Windows 10 signals a new way of doing business for Microsoft, which charges via subscriptions instead of up-front licenses.”

  19. I can feel it in the air. Office 365 style.

  20. well many game run window 7 and window 10 do not have driver for old grafic card. well me still use window 7 more stable..

  21. I don’t see where he jumped the gun guy. Chill out. I see where he voiced very relevant issues, that many of us fear, in the growing evolution of Microsoft and its product line.