Wow!! Microsoft is ahead of schedule. Originally, they weren't going to release Windows 10 until 4th quarter of 2015. Today they have announced an official launch date of July 29th.

What to expect?

Windows 10 will be a free upgrade to users of Windows 7 or Windows 8. To get your free upgrade you will need to reserve a copy. You do that by running the Get Windows 10 App. The Get Windows 10 App is available through Windows Automatic Updates and will automatically install if you are running Windows 7 with Service Pack 1 or Windows 8.1. There are some exceptions to this, for instance, if you are running an Enterprise version of Windows then you are not eligible and your system has to meet the minimum system requirements for Windows 10.

What are the minimum requirements? You will need at least a 1 GHz or faster processor, 1 GB of RAM if running 32 bit windows or 2 GB RAM if running 64 bit windows. You will also need 16 GB of free hard drive space and a graphics card capable of running Microsoft DirectX 9 with WDDM driver. You will also need a Microsoft account and internet access.

When you have met all of the above requirements, you will be able to reserve a copy of Windows 10. Once reserved, 10 will automatically download when available and notify you when complete so you can perform the install when it is convenient.

If this is something you would like pursue, then you will need to verify Automatic Updates is turned on. That feature is found on the control panel. Once in the control panel look for windows updates and verify the settings are on automatic. The rest will happen automatically.

All of the media hype says this is wonderful. This is flawless. This is the hot fudge on your Sundae. Experience tells me there are going to be mishaps. Normally, the mishaps involve non-standard software. By non-standard I'm thinking specialized accounting programs and specialized devices that gather data. Basically, anything that was not created by Microsoft can be considered “non-standard”. My recommendation is to proceed with caution. Be diligent with your backups. If you need assistance setting up a backup device, either as an attachment to your computer or sending your data to a secure offsite backup center as part of a disaster preparedness plan, then please contact us. We have several affordable options. Read about them here.

I will spend this month playing with the Windows 10 preview. Next month I will tell you what I think.

In the meantime, enjoy this video from Smarter Every Day about an engineer learning to ride a backwards bike.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFzDaBzBlL0

~Janet