Windows 11 Market Share Keeps Declining

DPI said:
I'd gladly pay $199 for a Windows 11 Lite/Premium straight from MS that shipped with 90% less of the monetization stuff present on stock install (similar to LTSC)
Click to expand...
Tbh, from their perspective why would they offer that when people are paying (literally) that much for Retail Pro licenses as-is (even I've bought a Retail license before, hence my disdain at some of the backwards decisions in W11 as a paying Windows customer).

If someone wanted a proper LTSC license my understanding is it's possible by buying a minimum threshold of cheap enterprise software + single Windows LTSC license in one volume purchase but even then the ordering is said to not particularly straightforward. (These may be outdated steps fwiw, I'm not familiar with such licenses.)
 
DPI said:
I'd gladly pay $199 for a Windows 11 Lite/Premium straight from MS that shipped with 90% less of the monetization stuff present on stock install (similar to LTSC), and with no arbitrary restrictions on what could be further opted out of or Uninstalled. More linux-like modularity without needing brute force measures or hacks that may be undone by a windows update.

But there's probably zero chance of an official Windows 11 Lite happening. Microsoft's business model isn't merely selling software anymore, and also the existence of a Lite SKU could create optics problems for the other consumer editions. LTSC seems to get a pass by being gated behind Enterprise licensing and so doesn't directly impact or threaten retail SKUS.
Click to expand...
With the exception of a single remain OEM installer copy of Windows 7 (purchased from Amazon itself rather than a key site) every Windows license I own/use is a full retail Pro copy. I don't want to see a single MS generated ad anywhere in my OS.

As an aside, while I'm not sure about the present Win 11 retail boxes, at least as of Dec., 2022 Win 10 Pro retail copies from Best Buy were a nearly empty box with a product key and a tiny, slow USB stick containing a self-executing copy of the ISO.
 
Teenyman45 said:
With the exception of a single remain OEM installer copy of Windows 7 (purchased from Amazon itself rather than a key site) every Windows license I own/use is a full retail Pro copy. I don't want to see a single MS generated ad anywhere in my OS.

As an aside, while I'm not sure about the present Win 11 retail boxes, at least as of Dec., 2022 Win 10 Pro retail copies from Best Buy were a nearly empty box with a product key and a tiny, slow USB stick containing a self-executing copy of the ISO.
Click to expand...
riiight...
theve been like that for years, since 10 came out, maybe even back into 8...
 
Okatis said:
Tbh, from their perspective why would they offer that when people are paying (literally) that much for Retail Pro licenses as-is (even I've bought a Retail license before, hence my disdain at some of the backwards decisions in W11 as a paying Windows customer).

If someone wanted a proper LTSC license my understanding is it's possible by buying a minimum threshold of cheap enterprise software + single Windows LTSC license in one volume purchase but even then the ordering is said to not particularly straightforward. (These may be outdated steps fwiw, I'm not familiar with such licenses.)
Click to expand...
Bearing in mind, that considering Microsoft's rolling release model, LTSC is essentially frozen in time which can result in compatibility issues regarding certain software - With games being the biggest issue in this regard.

Teenyman45 said:
As an aside, while I'm not sure about the present Win 11 retail boxes, at least as of Dec., 2022 Win 10 Pro retail copies from Best Buy were a nearly empty box with a product key and a tiny, slow USB stick containing a self-executing copy of the ISO.
Click to expand...

I tried to overwrite that USB stick, you can't do it, it's locked.
 
1_rick said:
That's actually good, because it means they can't update the image on it to attempt to force you to use a Microsoft account.
Click to expand...

Except they can if you connect online when installing Windows, when connected online the OOBE part of the installer is downloaded direct from MS servers upon install.
 
Teenyman45 said:
As an aside, while I'm not sure about the present Win 11 retail boxes, at least as of Dec., 2022 Win 10 Pro retail copies from Best Buy were a nearly empty box with a product key and a tiny, slow USB stick containing a self-executing copy of the ISO.
Click to expand...
Retail Windows has been delivered this way since Vista, and it's the same for 11. Every one of my Windows copies except for 7 (OEM on DVD) has been a boxed copy. There was a DVD option for Vista, but I think they got rid of disc copies with 8 unless you special ordered it.
Mazzspeed said:
I tried to overwrite that USB stick, you can't do it, it's locked.
Click to expand...
Don't know why you'd want to. If you want to make a streamlined ISO copy just put it on a different USB. You can get 16GB flash drives for less than $4 a piece.
 
Armenius said:
Don't know why you'd want to. If you want to make a streamlined ISO copy just put it on a different USB. You can get 16GB flash drives for less than $4 a piece.
Click to expand...

I wanted to install an updated ISO on the official retail USB stick. I had it, why not use it?

Armenius said:
Retail Windows has been delivered this way since Vista, and it's the same for 11. Every one of my Windows copies except for 7 (OEM on DVD) has been a boxed copy. There was a DVD option for Vista, but I think they got rid of disc copies with 8 unless you special ordered it.
Click to expand...

You can still buy OEM copies of Windows on disc.
 
ManofGod said:
What OS level ads? I have zero, you must be thinking of someone else. :)
Click to expand...

techie81 said:
In before MS white knights come in here and tell you that Windows 11 is perfect and there aren't ads for them - YOU ARE the problem.

Seriously though, Windows 10 was the last version of windows that I will have used. If only MS cared more about innovation and less about ad revenue.
Click to expand...
Yeah...
 
ChadD said:
It's hard to believe people put up with OS level ads. lol
Click to expand...

Which "people?" [H} members? Corporate users?( Does MS stop ads from corporate installs?) Private individuals, sometimes called "normies," a term which I find offensive?
 
I regard the recommended apps section on the start menu as ads. I regard pushing me to login to OneDrive an ad. Using the notification system to push other MS programs and services is an ad.

Just because it’s not a bunch of in your face popups doesn’t mean they’re not advertising in the OS.
 
LodeRunner said:
I regard the recommended apps section on the start menu as ads. I regard pushing me to login to OneDrive an ad. Using the notification system to push other MS programs and services is an ad.

Just because it’s not a bunch of in your face popups doesn’t mean they’re not advertising in the OS.
Click to expand...
I don't have any of those, but I know how to configure basic settings in the control panel and I use a local account. :confused:
 
philb2 said:
Which "people?" [H} members? Corporate users?( Does MS stop ads from corporate installs?) Private individuals, sometimes called "normies," a term which I find offensive?
Click to expand...
i dont have any on my pro insider install. i dont get them with my edu version either. the only thing is see on anything, that ive seen people call ads, are "click to sign into onedrive for this "such-and-such benefit" buttons. re normies; in the context ive used it here im only meaning the general public. no need to be offended.
 
GoldenTiger said:
I don't have any of those, but I know how to configure basic settings in the control panel and I use a local account. :confused:
Click to expand...
They were enabled by default on my domain joined work computer after upgrading from 10 to 11. During the upgrade, without my consent, MS also saw fit to collect all the things I had pinned on my start menu into a “Windows 10 Apps” folder and replace my pins with their preferences and recommendations.

I have since disposed of them by various means, but the ‘Recommended’ section on the Start Menu remains though it is empty. Without a third party program, you can’t get rid of it entirely.
 
I think we might have an interesting anti-trust enforcement case on our hands. I'd be curious to see if the FTC takes up the coercive nature of ending support and forcing people to upgrade to Windows 11. Microsoft isn't technically a monopoly, but they have large enough of an install base I could see them making a carve out for consumer protections and force them to continue support until more computer can swap to 11 more easily. I think it's unlikely, but it's certainly possible.
 
Decko87 said:
I think we might have an interesting anti-trust enforcement case on our hands. I'd be curious to see if the FTC takes up the coercive nature of ending support and forcing people to upgrade to Windows 11. Microsoft isn't technically a monopoly, but they have large enough of an install base I could see them making a carve out for consumer protections and force them to continue support until more computer can swap to 11 more easily. I think it's unlikely, but it's certainly possible.
Click to expand...

Hey, pay for support is available after October of 2025.
 
Decko87 said:
I think we might have an interesting anti-trust enforcement case on our hands. I'd be curious to see if the FTC takes up the coercive nature of ending support and forcing people to upgrade to Windows 11. Microsoft isn't technically a monopoly, but they have large enough of an install base I could see them making a carve out for consumer protections and force them to continue support until more computer can swap to 11 more easily. I think it's unlikely, but it's certainly possible.
Click to expand...

Other desktop OSes have certainly gained some marketshare since the last time, but Windows is still, clearly, a monopoly with market power.

I don't think there's much of an anti-trust case about ending support for older versions though. It's reasonable for OSes to have a finite lifetime, and Microsoft is fairly upfront about it (except when they let a guy say 10 is the last version of Windows; but windows 11 could have been just another annual release of 10, and they'd be dropping support for older releases, which they do).

Anti-trust has changed a bit lately, so maybe, but I don't see the upgrade being a problem. Some of the other tying they do, yeah that could be a problem. But I expect enforcement from the EU before the US on those, and Microsoft is perfectly happy to make EU and US versions different, so that doesn't help me either. Looks like 2025 will be the year of the FreeBSD Desktop for me.
 
GoldenTiger said:
I don't have any of those, but I know how to configure basic settings in the control panel and I use a local account. :confused:
Click to expand...
I never said hey GoldenTiger puts up with.....
Believe it or not the majority of windows users wouldn't understand half the things we talk about in the [H] Forum. Those people are NOT changing settings and editing registry settings. They get the plain old vanilla just installed it with my MS account experience. You know that is true. :)
That experience they get isn't yours. They see tons of MS adds, Windows store ads... windows is full of adds unless you know how to avoid them. I prefer an OS where I choose what to install.... and not what I choose to disable.
 
toast0 said:
Other desktop OSes have certainly gained some marketshare since the last time, but Windows is still, clearly, a monopoly with market power.

I don't think there's much of an anti-trust case about ending support for older versions though. It's reasonable for OSes to have a finite lifetime, and Microsoft is fairly upfront about it (except when they let a guy say 10 is the last version of Windows; but windows 11 could have been just another annual release of 10, and they'd be dropping support for older releases, which they do).

Anti-trust has changed a bit lately, so maybe, but I don't see the upgrade being a problem. Some of the other tying they do, yeah that could be a problem. But I expect enforcement from the EU before the US on those, and Microsoft is perfectly happy to make EU and US versions different, so that doesn't help me either. Looks like 2025 will be the year of the FreeBSD Desktop for me.
Click to expand...
I think it's different this time because of the barriers to upgrading, every machine I own has told me I have to replace it because I'm not eligible for an upgrade based on my hardware configuration. Migrating from XP to 7 or 7 to 10 was a lot more simple. I'm hoping the FTC catches wind of how many machines they're trying to force to become obsolete this go around.
 
DukenukemX said:
This is what I expected to happen instead of people switching to Linux. Now we just wait for Microsoft to start blocking these kinds of programs.
Click to expand...
It’s just manually enforcing the flags and adding the missing dll’s that are included with Pro-Workstation and Enterprise builds, they block those and they are gutting the parts of Enterprise that keep us from having to deal with those. So they can’t.
Besides Microsoft doesn’t even block you from installing known viruses onto your own machine, it will give you a warning but you can do it.
 
ChadD said:
I never said hey GoldenTiger puts up with.....
Believe it or not the majority of windows users wouldn't understand half the things we talk about in the [H] Forum. Those people are NOT changing settings and editing registry settings. They get the plain old vanilla just installed it with my MS account experience. You know that is true. :)
That experience they get isn't yours. They see tons of MS adds, Windows store ads... windows is full of adds unless you know how to avoid them. I prefer an OS where I choose what to install.... and not what I choose to disable.
Click to expand...
Again, they're basic settings in the control panel and using a local account. Anyone who wants to, can. It took me all of a couple of minutes on my first ever windows 11 installation, with no guides from the internet. It isn't "what ChadD puts up with".
 
  • Like
Reactions: ChadD
like this
ChadD said:
I prefer an OS where I install things I want... not one where a company installs what it likes. It's hard to believe people put up with OS level ads. lol
Click to expand...
What OS does that(unless you are configuring kernels, compiling from scratch etc etc? Seriously, I get what you are saying, but if we are splitting hairs, this is disingenuous. You can't completely avoid it, unless you are the most meticulous person on earth. There are only temporary lesser of evils.
 
GoldenTiger said:
Again, they're basic settings in the control panel and using a local account. Anyone who wants to, can. It took me all of a couple of minutes on my first ever windows 11 installation, with no guides from the internet. It isn't "what ChadD puts up with".
Click to expand...

You mean the settings panel with the poorly designed UI, not the control panel. Furthermore, it's five steps that shouldn't be necessary to begin with - Especially for the fat part of the Windows user bell curve that call the Chrome browser 'Google' (as in Google search).
 
GoldenTiger said:
Again, they're basic settings in the control panel and using a local account. Anyone who wants to, can. It took me all of a couple of minutes on my first ever windows 11 installation, with no guides from the internet. It isn't "what ChadD puts up with".
Click to expand...
Correct I do not. :)
MS has been making their OS more annoying every release for years. That is just a fact.
 
4saken said:
What OS does that(unless you are configuring kernels, compiling from scratch etc etc? Seriously, I get what you are saying, but if we are splitting hairs, this is disingenuous. You can't completely avoid it, unless you are the most meticulous person on earth. There are only temporary lesser of evils.
Click to expand...
That is a fair point... however there are many distros that essentially compile from source with very little else being done to anything. Your point is fair yes you do have to choose sometimes who you trust. MS is not a company I trust. I might not compile every bit of my system from source, and sure I trust many packages and distro maintainers. I am not at all worried however about "features" in my system being flipped from disable to enable on me. Or packages being deactivated or new ones showing up without my say so.

I hear MS has relented on their recall feature.... saying it will now be disabled by default. We all know what is going to happen there. It will be baked in... and it will woops get turned on at some point. Eventually they'll remove the option, and sometime after that they will remove the registry tweak that allows power users to disable it anyway. At least with Linux if a DE, or framework or what have you goes in a direction you dislike you can just run something else. (or wait 2 hours for someone to fork it lol)
 
4saken said:
What OS does that
Click to expand...

A vast number of Linux distributions do exactly that. To state otherwise is disingenuous.

Yes, software can leak private information, even software compiled from scratch (does anyone go through every library, every dependency, every script such software relies on - Going through the source code won't be enough) - But comparing Windows and Linux in relation to outright privacy simply highlights that Windows isn't even in the ballpark.

Not hating on Windows, it's simply the reality of the situation when personal data makes bank.
 
Last edited:
4saken said:
What OS does that(unless you are configuring kernels, compiling from scratch etc etc? Seriously, I get what you are saying, but if we are splitting hairs, this is disingenuous. You can't completely avoid it, unless you are the most meticulous person on earth. There are only temporary lesser of evils.
Click to expand...
You can add and remove anything you want with all Linux distros. Arch in particular is basically a command prompt where you manually install what you want. At some point with Arch you'll do something like sudo pacman -S konsole kate firefox just to get a bare bones UI with web browser. That's pretty much installing what you want.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top