For those who prefer Windows 7 over Windows 8.1 ...

[robert213]

Per a discussion with a salesrep from Fry's Electronics, Microsoft stopped accepting orders for full-retail versions of Windows 7 on DEC 23rd.

Unsure that my previous statement was true, I visited CDW and PCMall on-line stores. I was only able to find OEM versions. The downside to OEM versions is that Windows 7 cannot be un-installed from its original machine and re-installed on another machine. The activation process will not allow this.

For those who prefer Windows 7 over Windows 8.1, purchase full-retail versions of Windows 7 while they are still available at your local retailer's shelves.

[jdk]

Microsoft's dirty little secret is that they only enforce the one computer per OEM version for the MOST RECENT VERSION of Windows.

I have no trouble at all moving OEM versions of Windows Vista and Windows 7 to other machines. The downside is that you have to call Microsoft for a semi-automated activation.

How do I know that it's only the most recent version that they enforce? I tried to do it back when Vista was their main effort, and got denied. I even got denied on the same machine that the OEM disc came with. "Contact your manufacturer." was Microsoft's response.

When Win7 came out, that same Vista Business OEM product key was moved from an AMD laptop to an Intel desktop.

Now that 8 is their main effort, it's trivial to move OEM copies of Windows 7 to other devices.

I have done this dozens of times. This little bit of information even saved me in the field one time, when some idiot loaded the wrong copy of Windows 7 on the commanding officer's laptop instead of the Enterprise edition for which we had a license. When it deactivated after 30 days, activation was just a phone call away.

Microsoft would rather you run an old copy of Windows than a new copy of Linux.

My advice: don't waste any money on Win 7 if you already have a copy. Try transferring the OEM license first. It will save you about a hundred and thirty dollars to try.

Office is the same way.

[Medessec]

In fear that Windows 7 would be the last version of true PC Desktop Windows(Windows 95 style, with a Start Menu, Taskbar, Minimize/Maximize, etc.) I've already built up a lovely collection of Windows 7 Genuine discs... I think I have Home Premium, Pro, and Ultimate 32/64-bit.

Although the information about the OEM activation going between computers is very useful. I'll have to try it myself...

[RealBlackStuff]

Check out why there are so many Slic2.1 BIOS versions around for most Thinkpads from T43 onwards...
http://forums.mydigitallife.info/thread ... y-Thinkpad
With such a BIOS and a set of Lenovo W7 recovery discs you can install W7 whenever it suits you.
You may need to replace some drivers, but hey, that's what we got TSUV for!
You need to search hard though, as a number of links are dead, but can be reactivated if you ask nicely (or search properly).

[A31]

Can I just say that I have Windows 8.1 on my custom-built desktop PC here with a 24" 1080p monitor and I think it's a decent OS for the desktop. I even got on fine with 8 on this machine and screen before I upgraded to 8.1.

Sure, 7 was good, but things can't last forever. Things move on. People were like this with the transition between Windows 3.1 and 95.

Just my thoughts. Don't throw sticks and stones at me because I like 8.1.

Though if you do love Windows 7 and want to install it on your PCs, yeah go and buy a retail copy. But I wouldn't say there's any real rush. I can still buy a brand new retail copy of Vista Ultimate from Amazon - for £165 admittedly (which is a rip off), but I'm sure you'll be able to find new retail copies of 7 for a while yet.

[Medessec]

Sure, 7 was good, but things can't last forever. Things move on. People were like this with the transition between Windows 3.1 and 95.

I took hold of the Windows scene in Windows 98, my first computer ever had 98. So I was kinda born on the Start Menu/Taskbar configuration. And the 3.1>95 and 7>8 transition is much different... 95 was supposed to revolutionize the desktop multitasking experience, for power users and to make home use possible. The 7>8 transition is to introduce an interface that accompanies the tablet and mobile devices in general... it barely benefits the power user. I've never liked tablets and the simpler OS... but that's my personal opinion.

Just my thoughts. Don't throw sticks and stones at me because I like 8.1.

I'm not going to. I have numerous friends who enjoy the Metro interface, and I myself do! It's just... Metro is best kept on touchscreen devices, because it works brilliantly on them. But when it comes to the old fashioned keyboard and mouse, I can't see how anything beats the Start Menu and Taskbar. If you enjoy Windows 8 on a traditional desktop computer, then that's fine... I just don't see how you can do it.

Though if you do love Windows 7 and want to install it on your PCs, yeah go and buy a retail copy. But I wouldn't say there's any real rush. I can still buy a brand new retail copy of Vista Ultimate from Amazon - for £165 admittedly (which is a rip off), but I'm sure you'll be able to find new retail copies of 7 for a while yet.

Oh yeah, I won't doubt that they'll be around for awhile, and for a high price... people will be buying them quite a bit more than Vista. It'll be like the XP>Vista transition a bit.

[A31]

I rarely see or use the Start Screen. For a start, in 8.1 you can configure the OS to boot straight to the desktop (which I have done), and I have all my frequently used programs pinned to the taskbar and being on a 1080p monitor it's plenty wide enough for the 17 or so programs I have pinned on there (and i have room left over). You don't even need to use the Start Screen to shut down in 8.1 - just right click on the Start Button and you can do it from there.

The only time I use the Start Screen is to launch a program which is not pinned to my taskbar. I do have things like My Pictures and shortcuts to my hard drives on the Start Screen too which I use of course, but other than that I don't see or use it too much. So what I'm using is an OS which functions almost exactly like 7, but with some of the added benefits of 8 (faster boot up/shut down, ribbon UI for Explorer etc).

We're going off topic here anyway. This threads is about buying Windows 7...

[Medessec]

For a start, in 8.1 you can configure the OS to boot straight to the desktop (which I have done)

I'm really glad they added that... But it's just... the biggest issue I have is that there is no more Start Menu, it's just the Start Screen. And they have the swipes and corner clicks to open those side menus, it's basically Windows 7 that has been made explicitly simpler and with higher contrasting colors, and quicker and cleaner. All these attributes are (to me) optimizations best suited on tablet or other low-power embedded hardware.

If I really had to use Windows 8, there are free programs that replace the Start Menu and limit or remove the Start Screen. I could simply mod Windows 8 to work the way I wanted it to. It's what a couple of my friends have done... but I can't take advantage of the speed optimizations of Win 8 anyways. All my computers are already insanely powerful and lack UEFI booting... the feel of how snappy my machine is isn't phased much by whether it's running Windows 7 or 8.

We're going off topic here anyway. This threads is about buying Windows 7...

True-but the name of the topic is "For those who prefer Windows 7 over Windows 8.1"... I think it's safe to do a little Win 7 vs. Win 8 banter, especially if not too many other people are interested in this topic.

[Temetka]

I've run every Microsoft OS to ever leave Redmond.

Windows 7 is a very, very good operating system. But so is Windows 8.

I would be running Windows 8 right now, but for one thing. Aero glass. I love, love, love aero glass. I see no reason for it's removal from Windows. And for that reason alone, I will not be using Windows 8. I use the Windows Explorer UI all the time in my IT job, so moving to the flat metro UI and lack of shiny really bothers me. Windows 7 looks great and that matters to me.

I would love to have the improved boot and explorer copy dialogs in Windows 7 though. That graph which is shown during copy/move operations and offers real-time finish estimates is nice. I would love to have that in Windows 7.

[A31]

Yup I've used pretty much all of them too.

At first I was disappointed by the lack of Aero Glass in the final version of 8 (because the first Developer Preview did have some kind of Aero effects), but I've gotten used to it now. No different to really looking at XP to be honest...

[Summilux]

Interesting thread, especially OP and jdk's posts.

Sure, 7 was good, but things can't last forever. Things move on.

That is not a satisfying line of thought. The question is not whether things should move on or not, but whether changes are made with sound reasons and acceptable implementations or not.

Want to add a new interface? Great, be my guest.
Want to add a new interface AND shut down the one I'm currently using (i.e. actually force your novelty onto me)? Now that's a whole different story. Gotta prove me that it will practically benefit me and will be, in effect, at least as convenient as what you intend to replace.

Microsoft hasn't been convincing with the Win 7 to Win 8 switch. They got trashed.
Lenovo hasn't been convincing with the 7-row/non-island to 6-row/island switch. They got trashed.
Lenovo hasn't been convincing with the button trackpoint to buttonless trackpoint switch. They got trashed again.

When companies forget the basics of ergonomics, it naturally and legitimately backfires.

[A31]

That is not a satisfying line of thought. The question is not whether things should move on or not, but whether changes are made with sound reasons and acceptable implementations or not.

Want to add a new interface? Great, be my guest.
Want to add a new interface AND shut down the one I'm currently using (i.e. actually force your novelty onto me)? Now that's a whole different story. Gotta prove me that it will practically benefit me and will be, in effect, at least as convenient as what you intend to replace.

For goodness sake, you boot up the PC, click 'Desktop' and there you are - the 'traditional UI' is back. Windows Explorer is there, all your desktop icons are there, and all the stuff you've been used to since Windows 95. So they're not really 'shutting down the interface you're using' because 99% of the time - you're still using it.

And then when you want to open a program, just go back to the Start Screen, find the program you want, and there you have it. I personally don't see what's so difficult? As I've said anyway, I pin most of my stuff to the taskbar, so I rarely see the Start Screen anyway.

Microsoft hasn't been convincing with the Win 7 to Win 8 switch. They got trashed.
Lenovo hasn't been convincing with the 7-row/non-island to 6-row/island switch. They got trashed.
Lenovo hasn't been convincing with the button trackpoint to buttonless trackpoint switch. They got trashed again.

When companies forget the basics of ergonomics, it naturally and legitimately backfires.

Nobody is forcing you to upgrade. If you don't like what comes next, then just don't buy it.

If you don't like what comes after Windows 7, either keep using 7 until support is discontinued in about 2020 (still another 6 years left on it), or look at another OS. Maybe OS X or Linux. For the record, this time last year I was sitting at my PC, running Windows 7, and hating on Windows 8, saying pretty much exactly what you're saying. Then I actually tried it and used it everyday as my main operating system on my machine and I started to quite like it. Sure, it took time to get used to it, but I picked it pretty quickly and now I like using it. The only thing stopping me from enjoying it in my early days of using it were bad AMD graphics drivers which didn't like working with Photoshop on Windows 8, but once those were updated, I was back on 8.

If you don't like the newer ThinkPads, then just buy into another brand the next time round. There is endless competition out there. Somebody else will have what you're looking for, I'm sure.

You don't have to necessarily stick with Microsoft and Lenovo - which I'm sure you already know, but it won't be long before I'm running Windows 8.1 on a ThinkPad with a 6-row keyboard. You'd love that combination.