[giancarlostoro]

I've stopped using Windows as a Microsoft fanboy (I use C# to put bread on my table). I loved Windows, I think it peaked at 8 (yeah I know, unpopular take!) because 10 started out niceish, but went downhill and has been going downhill since, and Windows 11 is similar, just downhill to the max.

I wish Microsoft would separate their marketing shenanigans from Windows more drastically and stop requiring online accounts. My OS should be able to fully install and function without any internet, and continue to do so.

I'll default to buying Macs and Linux first systems instead.

I do hope these new Nvidia laptops see Linux flavors, I'd love to buy one. Maybe System 76 might build one? Not sure.

[dijit]

> I think it peaked at 8

Practically every benchmark agrees with you, aside from the Metro start menu, it was solid.

[1attice]

I am old enough to declare it peaked with Windows 2000, which was mercifully a version of NT that crashed less and had a UI that was intended for serious use, rather than consumer market thrills.

Which is why it was on the market so briefly. Every commit since has been for the bottom line, not the user.

[cobbaut]

NT 4.0 did not crash that often if you rebooted it weekly (not uncommon at the time). And it had a simpler menu.

But I agree about W2000 being peak Windows.

[rvnx]

Same with iOS 18, "Windows 2000" was great, then Apple went downhill with iOS 26 "Windows ME"

[quintu5]

You're the first person I've seen call out 10 as going downhill. What were your complaints about 10?

I migrated to macOS for development years ago and going back to Windows for development always felt gross, but I never had any issues with windows for entertainment/general productivity workflows. It's only once I tried 11 that I noped out for everything other than use as a Steam launcher.

[dijit]

10 was universally understood to be terrible, we're revising it to be good because we're comparing it with 11.

That was the start of telemetry, it was forced on people with an upgrade pop-over that if uncancelled would just upgrade your PC...

Windows 8 may have got rid of the start menu, and Windows 10 did bring it back, but in a weird hybrid form with "live tiles".

Home users lost the ability to defer or decline Windows Updates.

Windows 10 also shipped with pre-installed apps like Candy Crush, and later versions introduced adverts in the Start Menu...

[giancarlostoro]

> Windows 8 may have got rid of the start menu, and Windows 10 did bring it back, but in a weird hybrid form with "live tiles".

Windows 8 eventually caved and added it back in. I'll sound crazy, but I didn't mind it taking up the whole screen. Windows 8 gave me this interesting feeling that my OS was wrapping around an older version of Windows with Metro, and for whatever reason I loved it. I also did have a touch-screen laptop that I loved, hell I still have it... I bought it the week Windows 8 came out... and it runs Linux now.

[giancarlostoro]

> I noped out for everything other than use as a Steam launcher.

I definitely recommend you spend a weekend checking out either Ubuntu or EndeavourOS (Arch based) and install Steam, enable Proton for all games, and add the "bypass" for native games to play natively (I forget where this setting was) and you will be shocked how many games play on Linux just as well as they do on Windows, in some cases better.

[dayvid]

7 was amazing. I was checked out from 8 on. I hope MacOS isn't repeating the 8 mistake with their recent MacOS updates. They seem to want to converge on one OS for every platform, watering down the experience across the board