Windows 10

Windows 10
About
Classification	Operating System
Developer(s)	Microsoft
First Release	August 2015
Development status	Active
Engine	NT 10.0
License	Paid
Website	Microsoft.com
Requirements
R.A.M.	1GB for 32-bit, 2GB for 64-bit
Processor	1GHz (or SoC)
Permanent Storage	16GB for 32-bit OS, 20GB for 64-bit

Microsoft Windows 10 is a version of Microsoft Windows, for consumer devices. The tech giant released '10' to the public in August 2015. As when Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 were rolled out, Windows 10 was also offered (somewhat aggressively) as a free upgrade for a limited time to users of the earlier operating systems. Despite this, many Windows users did not like the new system, and tried to avoid getting forced over to it. Like it's immediate predecessor, Windows 10 supports ARM processors, as well as x86 and x64 processors.

Most people that had a valid copy of Windows 7, 8 or 8.1 were eligible for a free upgrade for one-year following the release date, July 2016, although surface models were not eligible for the upgrade. Enterprise editions of Windows 7 and 8 upgrades to Windows 10 were also not free. Now that this window of time has closed, Microsoft intends for all of its customers to purchase licenses.

Up until a few months before the end-of-service date for Windows 7, it was still the most popular desktop operating system. However, when that end of service date (January 14, 2020) arrived, Windows 10 had just barely risen above Windows 7 in popularity. Even months after this, Windows 7 remained very popular.

Security and Privacy Concerns

There have been concerns over the lack of privacy offered by Google, Facebook, and Microsoft for a many years. Essentially, these companies own all of many individuals' data. With Windows 10, however, these concerns increase even further due to the sophisticated and invasive feedback and advertising systems built in.

Windows 10 may have been a free upgrade for most current Windows users, but there are major security and privacy issues in the operating system itself. The End User License Agreement (EULA) states that Microsoft has access to not only the metadata of your files, but their full content, how often the user accesses them, for how long the user views them, and when, just for starters. There are techniques to disable obvious built-in spyware on part of Microsoft within the operating system, but as Windows is a closed-source operating system, no user no matter their skill at computing can be sure of their privacy protection. For those concerned about this, migrating to GNU/Linux is a viable and sensible option to protect one's rights to privacy and security on their personal and work computers.

"Final Release"

Microsoft was believed by the public to have announced that Windows 10 would be its final release of the Windows operating system. This did not mean that Windows would no longer exist, but simply that from then on, they apparently intend to release updates and patches to Windows 10 only. They presumably intended to avoid any further systems that must be installed onto a blank partition. From that point on, it was believed that they intend to periodically release new builds of Windows 10, each of which will be supported for 6 months. When support for the current build is coming to an end, the user is automatically updated to the newer build. However, with the release of Windows 11, this was obviously called into question. Whether this claim was, in fact, made by Microsoft, or this was an industry-wide misunderstanding is still up for debate, but the latter option seems likely.