Do you think Windows will be around much longer?

Yes, but as I keep pointing out, their market-share is on a device type with declining usage. They may be around for a long time to come, but if they don't do something to gain mobile market-share and fast they will continue to decline in importance.

 

I've unloaded everything from my laptop and put it on Google Drive. Google's online apps take care of almost every software need I have. I do need to find a better html editor. But I lay my bets on Google.

 

Considering how long the Windows environment has dominated information technology, it is not going away anytime soon. There are just too many people who use it out of habit, so many business processes dependent upon said and too many applications that people use everyday in every market. That said, Microsoft royally screwed up during the mobile revolution. It is hard to imagine they'll ever be a serious player in that niche. That and there are now viable alternatives on the traditional notebook and workstation market. So I don't see Windows "going away" anytime soon, but the complete market dominance of said is gone and fading.

 

I think it's still early days but if windows carries on creating products like windows 10 then there demise will be all that quicker. This new generation is more accepting of other operating systems besides windows, so Microsoft has to pull it's act together or it will loose total dominance of the market much sooner than what they think.

 

You mean millennials? Hardly. In fact, we are coming up on a shortage of desperately needed tech professionals because this generation is great at playing games and using social media, but they are not very tech savvy as a group.

What makes things worse, is older people assuming these guys understand technology because they grew up with it. This is ridiculous, it's a little like assuming generations that grew up with cars are automatically auto-mechanics.

Young people aren't more or less accepting of other operating systems. Much like cars, they gravitate towards what is affordable and easy to use, and already prevalent. They just want to turn it on and have it work. Google and Apple beat them to the punch and got their ideas out front and center while Microsoft was still worrying about the PC market. Microsoft is late to the game with mobile devices, that is the reason that they are suffering.

The average young person doesn't even know that Android is Linux or that iOS is a stripped down and modified Unix. They don't know what they are really using or understand the how and why of of an OS.

 

^ Agreed. I've worked professionally in IT for decades, and am now in management, and I've noticed this phenomenon too. If anything, the younger generation is less able, or willing, to figure out how to do complete a difficult tech task, work around an issue, or troubleshoot a technical problem. I suspect it is because those of us that came before were forced to make it work, with technology that wasn't particularly mature, while those that came after are used to, and expect, it to "just work".

 

There are two companies that had great early vision when it came to to the internet and modern devices.
The problem is, they never acted on it in a timely matter.

Microsoft:

1. They didn't even use their own software for internal servers for years and years because it simply wasn't as functional as Unix like alternatives.
2. They displayed touch screen tablet PCs running Windows as a concept and as proto-types long before they made any serious moves into the market. These promising displays were followed by mediocre at best efforts and less than stellar products.

At&T:

1. Any of you remember that commercial in 1993 predicting and showing technology that exists today for mobile computing? AT&T thought they would be the ones to bring it to us, but they really weren't.
2. AT&T also blew their chances of taking a place in history with packet switching and building networks that became the internet. They pretty much ignored advances made with ARPANET because it didn't come from them and actively got in the way of other networking efforts because they weren't privately funded. They were involved with NSFnet funding to a degree, but had actively lobbied against Scientist and Universities trying to fund networking to share super computers prior to that.

 

That's exactly what I wanted to get too . If you put a smartphone in front of a person that has never used one before, it doesn't matter how old they are, whether they are 9 or 90, if you swipe in front of them, they will instantly pic it up. Technology has just become so much easier to use.
I find that this younger generation even cares less what OS they are using then what the older generation does, they weren't subject to as much brain washing as the older generations were. As you say just as long as it works and it does what they want it doesn't matter how it gets there.
I still think that in the case of the pc market Microsoft is going to be around for sometime or at least while most of the computers sold come with windows installed (to be honest this has been there saving grace if it wasn't for this fact microsoft would have lost more ground much earlier, no one is going to pay $150 for a OS if they can get it for free).

 

I really don't call what they're using as Technology, but rather the absence of it.

They're using devices that were designed to remove the user from the understanding and foundation required to do things correctly and at the lower levels of the system as pointed out above, while fooling the public and the latter-day versions of computer specialists calling themselves "IT" to somehow think that is "ok" or acceptable when really, it isn't.

It's a decline and decimation of computer users, computer specialists, and the future of computing all in one fell swoop.

Microsoft will still be around in the server market even though they messed up their chances to be big in the mobile market when the time was right. Under Satyan Nadella, Microsoft is trying to merge together linux and Windows gradually, while still maintaining control over it. What this will ultimately do (if successful) is ruin the separation and degree of alternatives and choices users still might have by steering the millenials in the direction of Windows and (years from now) saying it is the "best" version of linux and windows combined to groups and audiences who don't know better.

It isn't brainwashing at all with an OS choice in previous days, but the lack of knowledge from the current generation that is using and interacting only at higher levels as they're taught to, without knowing how to do much or anything with the real system that powers it underneath it.

This does, of course, lead to the control and isolation of that knowledge to only a select few ultimately when all is said and done, and what people know and are able to do in the future to come will be watered down and always able to be compromised or controlled by those who want it to be.

The kids today are unaware of what real technology is. And they are unaware that they are unaware of what the real technology is, because they are taught not to care, are removed from it by force, are told that the real technology is the high level virtual IDE they're using several layers away from the real system, or a combination of all of these.

There's scary times ahead for the future, competence, security, and ability of computer technicians, administrators, and programmers.

 

Fortunately, what has been one of Linux's weakness to get into the laptop market will be it's biggest strengths. If there are programmers that don't agree with project or product the normally will brake away and start their own project. This happened when some programmers didn't agree with what Ubuntu was doing with their desktop enviromente and simply got what was working well in Ubuntu and ended up creating Mint, when they decided to start charging people for using Openoffice there were programmers that broke away and created Libreoffice.
There will always be those that will go against the main stream and all we have to do is thank them and support them. Unfortunately the great majority will never really understand what these people have done for them. Without them we would still be completely monopolized by Microsoft like we were in the past.
We are living in a time that we are seeing the future in the making, what happens in the next few years will dictate what the next decades have in hold for us.

 

Windows will probably continue to be popular for quite some time. They own the largest market share in the industry, by far. This is partially because they have many loyal fans. Also, most software developers mainly develop software for windows, including games developers. But I think the real reason why Windows continues to be so popular is simply because most people have become used to using it. When people think of a computer, PC, or laptop, they think of Windows. Plain and simple. And they continue to use Windows even after Microsoft has made so many silly mistakes.

 

I would have to think that they will be around for some time. What I will say is that I can see them changing course and not really focusing on the operating system anymore (which I guess is Windows, so I think I am thinking more of Microsoft, but too late now). I think that what we saw with them phasing out Internet Explorer we might see with Windows, but of course, that is not to say that Microsoft will not be a major player in the industry. Thanks for sharing.

 

When I bought my new equipment, I decided on one Chromebox and 2 laptops. I absolutely need one laptop. But I realized last night that I might have done better to get a Chromebook, instead of that second laptop. The Chromebook would not require as much maintenance. I was dealing with antivirus and malware issues last night, and since I have the 2 laptops I had twice the work. With the Chromebook I could have eliminated 1/2 the problem.

 

Chromebooks are not impervious to malware.

 

I strongly beleive that Windows will stay as a leader in the market for a while... how long? No idea, but one thing we can be sure of... Windows is not saying goodbye anytime soon. And if it ever does... it won't go without a very tough fight! That we can be sure of But seriously, I don't see any strong rival... at least not one that matches Windows OS.

 

I think that's what we always think whenever we run into a problem. I'm sure if you had bought the chrome book and ran into some sort of problem you would be thinking, why didn't you buy a laptop it would have given a lot less hassles.

 

Keep in mind that Microsoft knows that "slow and steady wins the race". They aren't rushing to develop new and new technologies, but rather they focus on improving the already existent technologies.

Moreover, keep in mind that the main income comes from corporations who are using Microsoft a lot. They are not relying on us to sustain their company, but rather focus on satisfying the big clients, which in turn, will remain Microsoft users for quite a while.

 

I love my Chromebook, and it really does make me weary that Windows is even needed much anymore. Of course I know that it is and it will be around, but just on a personal level I would not really notice if it disappeared, never to be seen again. It really makes me curious to see what ten years from now will look like, but I guess we have to wait and see. Thanks for sharing.

 

Yes, it definitely will. Chrome and other similar OS caters to a niche market. They will not be able to replace Windows in the near future. Windows will also evolve to cater to any changes that these niche operating system brings to the table.

 

I have worked in IT for over 20 years and windows isn't the dominant product or force in the industry. Dominant desktop market share for home users is not the same as dominating information technology. Desktop computer demand has been on a steady decline for over a decade and when it comes to server environments Windows has never been the dominant operating system. The internet and then later the web was was built on Unix and Unix like systems such As NeXT and Linux.