Why would I want to pre "register" Windows 10 anyway?

On 2015-06-04 10:12 AM, Wolf K wrote:
On 2015-06-04 8:59 AM, Slimer wrote:
On 2015-06-03 9:44 PM, Wolf K wrote:
On 2015-06-03 8:04 PM, Mike Tomlinson wrote:
En el artÃ*culo , . . .winston
escribió:

Windows Store app developers will be very strongly encouraged to
default
to the cloud for data storage.


The Store is not an archiving location for saving locally created
files
to one's machine or the cloud.

Are you being deliberately dense?

People developing apps for the Store will be "encouraged" to write
their
apps such that those apps store the data they generate in the cloud by
default, rather than locally.

Does that make more sense?

I won't use an app that doesn't have a local storage option.

You'll probably be forced to migrate to Linux eventually as a result.
When even Office saves to OneCloud automatically, you know that it's
just a matter of time before more applications take advantage of the
fact that users are more or less forced to use a Microsoft Passport
within Windows 8 and above to save to the cloud.

I like it myself, but I have to admit that I encrypt my documents to
prevent theft.

What's OneCloud? ;-)

When my sis-in-law got her new Win8 machine, she emailed links to her
pictures stored in OneCloud, a PITA to retrieve. She's gone back to
proper attachments.

I've never used Office. Tried it a few times, most recently when I had
to edit a document for a local club about three years ago. It's awful.
Main failing: no Reveal Codes, so I couldn't edit the messed up
formatting left behind by the originator of the document, who had never
mastered Word. I ended up Saving As plain text and reformatting the
whole thing WordPerfect. Piece of cake compared to Word.

Have a good day,

I have a license for WordPerfect Office X6 but still use Microsoft
Office 2013 Pro because I got a license for it for $11. Apparently, as a
teacher, I am entitled to such a rebate (I also get Office 365 for free,
apparently). I like that WordPerfect's define option doesn't require the
installation of other software the way Word does but otherwise, Word is
in every imaginable way a better piece of software than WordPerfect is.
Justification is better in WordPerfect, but it doesn't matter.


--
Slimer
Encrypt.

"Figuring that linux has only 1.5% of any market share as a desktop os, it
also implies that the end user is stupid enough to fiddle with an old WWII
bomb that didn't go off." - GreyCloud

On 2015-06-04 10:31 AM, NEMO wrote:
On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 08:59:25 -0400, Slimer wrote:

You'll probably be forced to migrate to Linux eventually as a result.
When even Office saves to OneCloud automatically, you know that it's
just a matter of time before more applications take advantage of the
fact that users are more or less forced to use a Microsoft Passport
within Windows 8 and above to save to the cloud.

There's always your own cloud server...

Build your own personal cloud server
http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/how-to/so...erver-3378792/

How to: start your own free Cloud Storage server
http://www.androidauthority.com/crea...torage-170060/

CNET DIY: Create your own cloud server
http://www.cnet.com/videos/diy-create-your-own-cloud/

Gizmos Want your own cloud server
http://www.techsupportalert.com/cont...n-your-own.htm

I tried that with OwnCloud and frankly, it's pretty good, but it forces
you to have total control of the server you are using in case you want
all of the functionality. For instance, editing documents within the
cloud requires that you install some of LibreOffice's components which
isn't possible if you are using a virtual host or shared hosting of some
kind. If you running a server from your home using Linux though, it is
just as good as OneDrive if not better.


--
Slimer
Encrypt.

"Figuring that linux has only 1.5% of any market share as a desktop os, it
also implies that the end user is stupid enough to fiddle with an old WWII
bomb that didn't go off." - GreyCloud

On Wed, 03 Jun 2015 17:09:10 -0400, ". . .winston"
wrote:

Mayayana wrote:
| 2. The only route to obtain a readiness for an existing system (device
| and applications) is to install the app **and** Reserve Windows 10
| 3.The app provides the option to 'Cancel' any reservation
| 4. The app can easily be removed by uninstalling the KB via Programs and
| Features/View Installed Updates

So the sleazy adware is required if one wants to
get Win10, but it *can* be removed if one so desires.
Are those supposed to be selling points for sleazy
adware, *or* for Win10?!



If one wishes to run a status check on a systems Win10's readiness,
install the Get Windows 10 app and reserve.
- No other route is in place to allow users to make an informed
decision (now or in the future - it is include in the app).

I've seen you say that second bullet point in multiple posts, but it remains
incorrect. The best way (currently) to make an informed decision is to use
one or more of the TP's. Running the status check to check for 'readiness'
is an awful way to make an upgrade decision. It would tell you absolutely
nothing about whether you should upgrade. It only tells you whether you
*can* easily upgrade, and that's an entirely different decision.

If you wish to tell people to not install the 'Get Windows 10 app' it
and not have the option to determine system readiness regardless of
whether they decide to move to Win10 for free or remain with the
existing operating system and update at an increased cost later...feel
free to provide that advice.

Imo, your not doing anyone any favors. As noted before, for those who
wish to move to Win10, your advice is useless.

Almost none of this thread has been about people who wish to move to Win 10.
You've tried to skew it in that direction, but that's wrong. Instead, it's
about whether to upgrade or not, and a readiness check does nothing to
further that discussion.

On Wed, 03 Jun 2015 19:36:30 -0400, ". . .winston"
wrote:

Mike Tomlinson wrote:
En el artículo , . . .winston
escribió:

Mandate, no. Optional, yes but only and optional for specific apps.

True. But M$ will be pushing the Windows Store very hard, as this is
where the profit lies (cf. Apple and the Apple Store, Android and the
Play Store).

Windows Store app developers will be very strongly encouraged to default
to the cloud for data storage.


The Store is not an archiving location for saving locally created files
to one's machine or the cloud.

That was quite a left turn there. :-) Anyone not buckled in may have been
tossed around a bit.

On Wed, 03 Jun 2015 20:34:10 -0400, ". . .winston"
wrote:

A good reason (if using Win7SP1 or Win8.1) to install KB 3035583,
Reserve Win10 which will run a system readiness check. Once they have
that information available, they can then, and only then make a better
informed decision...i.e. folks have to ensure their existing system
doesn't create issues (software, driver, graphic, network adapter etc.
issues) before even considering or pondering what possible advantages or
disadvantages Win10 brings to the table.

Then, and only then? :-) No, of course not. Long before that, there's an
entire thought process that needs to take place to determine whether a
person wants to upgrade. You've skipped over that step entirely, and not
just above but in multiple posts. I know you know better. This is one of the
reasons why some people are questioning your advice. It simply doesn't make
sense.

Imo, one should take a methodical approach to upgrading any o/s - have a
backup plan for the existing, understand if the system current hardware
and software set will or will not create issues, then and only then
deal/learn what Win10 does or does not bring to the table.

I believe you have that exactly backwards. Your last step should have been
the first step.

On 6/4/2015 11:19 AM, Ken Springer wrote:
If you use cloud apps and storage, if your internet connection goes
down, you're screwed. Plain and simple.

In that respect, the cloud is little different from any other digital
storage media. User practices determine how useful or risky the media
will be.

As I see it, MS has to offer cloud services because they have been
available from all of their major competitors for years. PC users who
are unfamiliar with cloud services have to become educated about them,
but their lack of experience doesn't in any way diminish the value of
those services.

--
best regards,
Neil

On Wed, 03 Jun 2015 22:49:29 -0400, ". . .winston"
wrote:

Char Jackson wrote:
On Wed, 03 Jun 2015 02:41:07 -0400, ". . .winston"

My replies are based on the purpose of the 'Get Windows 10' app deployed
via KB 3035583.

In case you haven't realized - installing or not installing the app has
significance regardless of how it is interpreted as value-added,
non-value added, marketing-ware, junk-ware, etc.

1. The app includes the replacement for the Upgrade Assistant (i.e. it
replaces earlier versions).
2. The only route to obtain a readiness for an existing system (device
and applications) is to install the app **and** Reserve Windows 10
3.The app provides the option to 'Cancel' any reservation
4. The app can easily be removed by uninstalling the KB via Programs and
Features/View Installed Updates
5. Windows 7 OEM and Full version media *and* OEM Pre-built units will
disappear from the marketplace(look for that to happen shortly or
immediately after July 29, 2015) - Home is already gone, Pro will soon
follow.

So far, I see no significant value in the things you've listed above.

There is no other route for folks who wish to move from Win7/8.1 to run
a system readiness check. If you see no value, how would you counsel
those people who do wish to move to Win10 when device and application
issues may be present ? Do nothing and cry later ?

As you've done in multiple other posts, you've got the cart before the
horse. The first step should be to educate oneself about Win 10 and what it
brings to the table. That doesn't have to be done now; it can be done in
bits during the coming year. If, and only if, there's something compelling
in Win 10 then that's the time to worry about 'system readiness'. This bit
of education is by far the most important step, but you consistently skip
over it and jump right to 'readiness'.

For the record, I don't think it's because you're an MVP. I think it's just
plain old bad advice, but it's so obviously bad advice that I have to wonder
about the motivations behind it.


There is nothing wrong with continued use of Win7 on an existing system,
yet it makes sense to install the app and reserve Win10 and perform a
readiness status (no matter what one decides to do in the next year).

Thanks, that's a refreshing evolution of your previous position that Win 7
is a short term solution. ;-)

For that population of Vista and XP users Win7 is a short term solution.
You don't really believe that MSFT is going to allow the entire OEM
market to continue to sell more than two versions (8.1 and 10)of Windows
on pre-built machines. Home is already gone, Pro will follow.

Please don't move the goalposts again. We're talking about people who
currently use Win 7. Your attempt to introduce people who might want to buy
Win 7 is unwelcome. That's an entirely different group and discussion.


As for making sense to install the app, it only makes sense for people who
are still on the fence regarding Win 10. Besides, for a digital product that
will initially be delivered via the Internet, the concept of "reserving"
anything doesn't make sense.

The 'reserving' issue is certainly a blow to how things use to be done
and tampering with previous expectations (a downloadable Upgrade
Assistant), but as noted above it is the only route to perform an
existing system readiness check for devices and applications. I'd
rather people have all the information available regardless of where
they sit (want Win10, want it for free but wait till the dust settles,
unsure [on the fence?], or willing to pay later) to make an informed
decision.

But as I pointed out above and in other posts, the system readiness check
does absolutely nothing to help educate a person about Win 10 and what it
brings to the table. Your use of the phrase "only route" is very misleading,
mostly because it's wrong. It's not only not the only route, it's not even a
valid route.


Other reasons.
a. Imo, it's bad advice to listen to the proponents suggesting to not
install KB 3035583 and not be able to perform that readiness check
before making any decision on taking advantage of the free upgrade offer
for Win7SP1/8.1.

Fair enough, but I thought we were talking about people who have already
decided.

If you reread my posts on 6/1, I said (shown below in with the qp
bracketing
qp
Reserving via the Get Windows 10 app places the user in a queue for
downloading.

KB 3035583 for me tagged as an optional update - requiring the user to
check the box.

After thinking about, I'm leaning toward it making sense for larger
population. With an impact of about 1 billion devices...if some folks
listened to others around here, that advice to ignore the Get Windows
app installed with 3035583 and upgrading may ultimately fill MSFT's
pocketbook with million$ after July 29, 2016 for Win10 and at the
expense of those same users.
/qp

If they upgrade after the free year has expired, then yes. OTOH, if they've
simply decided not to upgrade, then no.


- the focus was always central to KB3035583, each and every reply
thereafter was based on that KB since it provides the only route for a
system readiness check.

You seem to place far too much emphasis on a system readiness check. That
should be about the last thing a person has to worry about, quite far down
the list of things to do when considering an OS upgrade.


- Maybe it would help if you (or all of us) followed your own advice
and disregarded Mayayana's seek and destroy digressive approach g

In this case, he's doing a fine job of taking you to task for what you're
putting out there. You may not fully realize it, but your viewpoint is
*really* slanted. ;-)


b. There are just too many people running OEM Windows 7 (on
capable-ready-for-Window 10) systems without media (no media, never
created restore disks, followed advice to remove the OEM recovery
partition to gain storage space, don't image o/s, etc.). Upgrading to
Windows 10 provides these folks an ability to obtain a retail Windows 10
license and in the future the ability to obtain media (free or a very
low nominal cost) for that Win10 license.

Realistically speaking, I don't see how upgrading to a new OS version helps
here. The people who are currently working without a safety net will be the
very same people working without a safety net after the upgrade. Which
aspect of human nature are you relying on when you suggest that people who
upgrade will somehow change their behavior?

Ah...the difference was already noted - Win10 will provide a retail
license with the ability to obtain both media and retail product key for
installation at no cost.

I don't understand. We're talking about a pool of users who had a chance to
create recovery media and do any number of backups, yet in this scenario
they failed to do any of that. Now you take the position that offering them
an upgrade to a new OS will somehow coax them into being more responsible. I
don't see a direct correlation between the two things. Is it sort of like
the folks who buy a brand new car and promise themselves they're going to
keep it washed? Is it like the people who make resolutions every New Year?


c. One year goes by fast and the sooner the better to determine the path
to follow - stay with Win7, Win10 for free or a much higher penalty at a
later time.

For me, the decision was rather obvious and easy. Win 8.x was a big step
backwards from Win 7, which itself was a small step backwards from XP, for
the way I use the OS. I've checked out a couple of Win 10 TP's and I don't
see any effort toward reversing the previous damage. By the way, you left
out the option to stay with 8.x, above.

That's a valid point - stay with 8.x (8.1 more specifically, one can't
really stay with 8.0, it stops being supported in Jan 2016).

One "can't" stay on an unsupported OS? ;-) Surely, you jest.

I don't really see any benefit to keep 8.1 once 10 arrives on a 4 yr old
machine capable of 8.1.

Maybe the real question you should be asking is, what is the benefit to
upgrading? Surely that's just as important as asking why you should stay
with what you have. Upgrading an OS is a non-trivial task and probably
shouldn't be performed without a perceived benefit.

Feel free to do whatever you wish...but I suspect in time, you'll be
eventually be running Win10 or Win 10.x+1....and maybe before the free
year runs up, if later then at some increased cost (hardware and
possibly software).

If I change my mind and decide to do the upgrade to 10, it won't be because
it's free, (nothing is free). There would have to be some value before I
take that step. I don't completely rule it out, but so far I'm not seeing
any value to me. If you can think of anything, please post about it and I'll
consider it.

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 10:12:37 -0400, Wolf K wrote:

I've never used Office. Tried it a few times, most recently when I had
to edit a document for a local club about three years ago. It's awful.
Main failing: no Reveal Codes, so I couldn't edit the messed up
formatting left behind by the originator of the document, who had never
mastered Word. I ended up Saving As plain text and reformatting the
whole thing WordPerfect. Piece of cake compared to Word.

I take a slightly different approach, and as a result, I don't miss WP's
reveal codes feature a bit. Instead of fixing bad formatting, I simply apply
the formatting that I want. It's very fast and easy that way, although
purists might wonder what lies beneath the surface. For me, I'm more
interested in what the final product looks like.

Am 04.06.2015 um 16:43 schrieb Neil:
On 6/4/2015 4:16 AM, Jonas Klein wrote:
Am 04.06.2015 um 01:35 schrieb . . .winston:
What might be more appropriate before you worry about your
own backside is what you think or expect to default to the
cloud in Windows 10.
Provide details then maybe your customers will have a chance
of being supported properly.

In the long run I'll have to use MS Office 2016, MS Office
2020 or
whatever it will be called. What I read so far scares me.
For instance:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office_2016 and
especially
"Features include: built-in cloud access to create, open,
edit, and save
files in the cloud straight from the desktop, ..."

Even if the cloud is the default for file storage, it is
unlikely to be the only option. In your case, you'd simply
need to change your file location to a local drive. No big
deal.


I'm not so sure. Will it be as easy as a piece of cake or as
easy as deleting every occurrence of my name from the Internet?

Werner Obermeier wrote:

Everything that I did on Windows, I can do just as easily on Linux,

When I see this advice in newsgroups, I advocate
"trust but verify" as a policy.

At the current time, Windows 10 Preview is still
available for evaluation. You can use a spare disk,
download the ISO, burn a DVD, install it,
test it, see how easy it is, whether it solves
your problems, or whatever.

You can do the same thing with Linux. Separate hard
drive (so GRUB doesn't overwrite something),
install it, use the BIOS boot to select which
disk to boot from. I've had at least one
recent distro, which would not boot on the
machine (it might even have been Ubuntu x32
booting on my over-the-top test machine). A user
would be sorely disappointed, if the boot process
stopped, as that could mean the end of the experiment.

Once you have your copy of Linux onboard, it allows
evaluating these claims, and seeing whether everything
is as easy-peasy as they claim.

I'm fluent in both... and don't consider them to be equal.
But I also don't proscribe. It's up to you to test them,
and discover this for yourself, one way or another.

LibreOffice is an Office replacement, available for both
Windows and Linux. In my testing, it has yet to deliver
exactly the result I was looking for or expecting. It
is the "crown jewel" of Linux, appearing on lots of distro
DVDs by default. It is a fantastic "shell" of a program
(it "looks" like an Office replacement), but the "meat"
underneath leaves something to be desired. While I had
high hopes for LibreOffice when testing different
versions, at the current time it has been removed from
this computer. On Windows, it can interfere with the
free Microsoft Viewer collection (wordview etc).

For the next couple of months, nothing prevents
a person from testing programs like that, in either
OS environment.

Paul

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 16:36:17 -0400, Wolf K wrote:

On 2015-06-04 3:20 PM, Char Jackson wrote:
On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 10:12:37 -0400, Wolf K wrote:

I've never used Office. Tried it a few times, most recently when I had
to edit a document for a local club about three years ago. It's awful.
Main failing: no Reveal Codes, so I couldn't edit the messed up
formatting left behind by the originator of the document, who had never
mastered Word. I ended up Saving As plain text and reformatting the
whole thing WordPerfect. Piece of cake compared to Word.

I take a slightly different approach, and as a result, I don't miss WP's
reveal codes feature a bit. Instead of fixing bad formatting, I simply apply
the formatting that I want. It's very fast and easy that way, although
purists might wonder what lies beneath the surface. For me, I'm more
interested in what the final product looks like.

See my reply to Slimer.

I did. I think it probably boils down to familiarity and using the tools
that a person is most comfortable with. I'm much more comfortable with Word.

On 6/4/2015 2:37 PM, Char Jackson wrote:
On Wed, 03 Jun 2015 22:49:29 -0400, ". . .winston"
wrote:

Char Jackson wrote:
On Wed, 03 Jun 2015 02:41:07 -0400, ". . .winston"

My replies are based on the purpose of the 'Get Windows 10' app deployed
via KB 3035583.

In case you haven't realized - installing or not installing the app has
significance regardless of how it is interpreted as value-added,
non-value added, marketing-ware, junk-ware, etc.

1. The app includes the replacement for the Upgrade Assistant (i.e. it
replaces earlier versions).
2. The only route to obtain a readiness for an existing system (device
and applications) is to install the app **and** Reserve Windows 10
3.The app provides the option to 'Cancel' any reservation
4. The app can easily be removed by uninstalling the KB via Programs and
Features/View Installed Updates
5. Windows 7 OEM and Full version media *and* OEM Pre-built units will
disappear from the marketplace(look for that to happen shortly or
immediately after July 29, 2015) - Home is already gone, Pro will soon
follow.

So far, I see no significant value in the things you've listed above.

There is no other route for folks who wish to move from Win7/8.1 to run
a system readiness check. If you see no value, how would you counsel
those people who do wish to move to Win10 when device and application
issues may be present ? Do nothing and cry later ?

As you've done in multiple other posts, you've got the cart before the
horse. The first step should be to educate oneself about Win 10 and what it
brings to the table. That doesn't have to be done now; it can be done in
bits during the coming year. If, and only if, there's something compelling
in Win 10 then that's the time to worry about 'system readiness'. This bit
of education is by far the most important step, but you consistently skip
over it and jump right to 'readiness'.

I would agree with you if this was 2005, but many things have changed
since then. Perhaps the most significant is that most people are not
likely to be able to educate themselves about what a new OS brings to
the table. For most of the two decades between 1985 and 2005, people
used their computers in pretty much the same way. But, during that
period, a paradigm shift in the way people work was taking place, and to
accommodate those changes, a lot of new devices were introduced along
with unique UIs and features requiring users to be a lot more
knowledgeable than before in order to do their jobs and manage their
content.

IME, starting with Vista, things became increasingly technically
complex, beyond the ability of users to understand the implications well
enough to determine whether an upgrade was in their best interests. For
example, how many do you think understood the implications of relative
resource allocation? Could it be that their dislike of Vista was, at
least in part, due to the fact that that one change "broke" some of
their apps, even though it got around some serious limitations of XP?
After all, they love Win7, which is functionally Vista V2 and was
introduced after most app developers had time to correct their bad habit
of trying to access system resources in discrete locations.

Based on the number of posts over the last year from otherwise
knowledgeable folks, I'd say that few of them can evaluate the
compatibility of a new OS by reading the specs or looking at screen
shots. For those who can and do make use of the "new" OS functionality
and are not near the end of their time as a computer user, there is a
need for some way of evaluating what they own with what is coming next
to know how to plan their expenditures. Why is that so unreasonable?

--
Best regards,

Neil

On 2015-06-04 4:31 PM, Wolf K wrote:
On 2015-06-04 1:48 PM, Slimer wrote:
On 2015-06-04 10:12 AM, Wolf K wrote:
[...]
I've never used Office. Tried it a few times, most recently when I had
to edit a document for a local club about three years ago. It's awful.
Main failing: no Reveal Codes, so I couldn't edit the messed up
formatting left behind by the originator of the document, who had never
mastered Word. I ended up Saving As plain text and reformatting the
whole thing WordPerfect. Piece of cake compared to Word.

Have a good day,

I have a license for WordPerfect Office X6 but still use Microsoft
Office 2013 Pro because I got a license for it for $11. Apparently, as a
teacher, I am entitled to such a rebate (I also get Office 365 for free,
apparently). I like that WordPerfect's define option doesn't require the
installation of other software the way Word does but otherwise, Word is
in every imaginable way a better piece of software than WordPerfect is.
Justification is better in WordPerfect, but it doesn't matter.

Every imaginable way?

OK, list five, please. Persuade me. ;-)

Be aware that the deal-breaker advantage for me is that WordPerfect can
read and write *.doc/*.docx files, but Word can't (won't, actually) read
*.wpd files. For that reason, I routinely use only three formats for
sending documents to other people: plain-text, RTF (which is plain-text
plus minor formatting), and PDF.

Anecdote: I had to update a booklet for a local club, a *.doc file. When
I updated the text-block on the cover page, the surrounding graphics
went all over the place. In WP, I could've used Reveal Codes to find and
correct the mistakes the original author had made. The most common
mistake is to use Tab for shifting text and images into place, BTW. I
was pretty sure that is what original author had done. In WP I could
have removed all useless or interfering format codes, en-bloc if there
were in-line, and then dragged the graphics where I wanted them. I tried
dragging the graphics in Word, but dragging one shifted all the others
in unpredictable ways. It also shifted the text. Bah! So I copied the
graphics as separate files, copied and pasted the text into a WP page,
inserted the graphics, and tweaked their positions. Simple and quick,
what I should've done without farting around with Word, which I did
because I thought editing a *.doc file in Word would be useful
experience. Since then I've not used Word. Apparently, there's a trial
copy of Office on this Win8 machine somewhere. It can rest in peace.

Have a good day,

Let me say that I would prefer to use WordPerfect if that is possible.
After all, I'm a Canadian and feel that it makes sense to support a
local product. Unfortunately, it's kind of hard to argue with a Office
Pro license which is either free or 11$ at most when a more limited WPO
license would cost me at least 200$. Either way, they both do what I
need for them to which is process words so whichever direction I go in,
I'm happy.


--
Slimer
Encrypt.

"Figuring that linux has only 1.5% of any market share as a desktop os, it
also implies that the end user is stupid enough to fiddle with an old WWII
bomb that didn't go off." - GreyCloud

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 17:43:50 -0400, Neil wrote:

On 6/4/2015 2:37 PM, Char Jackson wrote:

As you've done in multiple other posts, you've got the cart before the
horse. The first step should be to educate oneself about Win 10 and what it
brings to the table. That doesn't have to be done now; it can be done in
bits during the coming year. If, and only if, there's something compelling
in Win 10 then that's the time to worry about 'system readiness'. This bit
of education is by far the most important step, but you consistently skip
over it and jump right to 'readiness'.

I would agree with you if this was 2005, but many things have changed
since then. Perhaps the most significant is that most people are not
likely to be able to educate themselves about what a new OS brings to
the table. snip

I'm not sure I understand that perspective, and the snipped text didn't help
me to see what you were getting at.

If anything, it's probably easier than ever to gather information, if one so
chooses. Win 10 articles are trickling out from various sources, and soon
there will be a flood of them, just like we've seen with every other new
Windows release. The pundits will hash and rehash the good and the bad,
which in its raw form may be too much for some people to digest, but over
time things will rise to the surface where they can be easily picked over.
Along with that, there are the Tech Previews for anyone who cares enough to
get a firsthand look, although I suspect most people will simply go with the
flow.

Based on the number of posts over the last year from otherwise
knowledgeable folks, I'd say that few of them can evaluate the
compatibility of a new OS by reading the specs or looking at screen
shots.

Those are never good ways to evaluate an OS.

For those who can and do make use of the "new" OS functionality
and are not near the end of their time as a computer user, there is a
need for some way of evaluating what they own with what is coming next
to know how to plan their expenditures.

Thanks. We're in agreement.

Why is that so unreasonable?

Huh?

OneDrive provides the option to send a link for sharing. If done
properly the recipient has to do nothing but click the link. Options to
view or save the files will be present.

e.g.
http://1drv.ms/1H4o1N2



Actually, first it redirects and then it loads
an entirely javascript page. I see only a blank
white page with no script enabled. This is
becoming an increasing and unnecessary problem.
People who don't know better post images to
online commercial services, which usually involves
ads, tracking and required script.