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So Windows 11 leaked which is interesting because Microsoft said that there wouldn't be a Windows 11 and the conference where they will likely formally announce it hasn't even happened yet. But of course with 4chan being 4chan it surfaced. A past version of me may have been excited about such a thing, in fact a past version of me may have even gone and obtained the ISO and installed it on one of the extra computers lying around then bragged to people about how I have Windows 11. But current me doesn't really care at all.
Ever since I fully dove into Linux I've been happy that I haven't had to deal with Windows, I still have a Windows computer but I only use it for a handful of things because it is a terrible operating system and I have no control over it. Proprietary software terrifies me I can't trust a program that is likely to be spying on me and I definitely can't trust a program that could update to a state where I get lost using it or have to fix things, and trusting an operating system that does these things is absolutely foolish.
The last time I intentionally updated Windows was probably around two years ago, it of course occasionally forces me to update it without my permission because apparently Microsoft doesn't trust me to manage my own computer, but I believe the version of Windows 10 I have running on my computer is still a 2019 release. I stopped updating Windows because it seems like every time I do things break, and keep in mind that I use Arch Linux a Linux distro allegedly famous for breaking on updates (in my experience this has not been the case). Things break in Windows 10 more often than they do in Arch Linux, isn't that amazing? The common programmer joke that goes along the lines of starting out with seven bugs fixing one and then having seventeen bugs is not something that should apply to product releases.
My phone is several months out of date as well, neither of the main phone operating systems are nearly as bad as Windows but I still don't like updating them. The reason that phones and computers should be kept up to date is that the most up to date versions should be the most secure, and if you are running a business this would be essential for all of your company's hardware, but if you aren't doing that and you aren't doing many sketchy things with your phone or computer then this is not as big of a priority. When given the choice between a less than 1% chance of a hacker spying on me and a 100% chance of whatever company makes my software having an easier time spying on me I'll take the hacker anytime. I'm reminded of this every time I go to a new state and my phone gives me a notification about COVID-19 information in the area and asks me if I want to opt-in to contact tracing, I wish I could downgrade my phone so that this would not happen. I only upgrade fixed release operating systems when the new release contains a useful feature that I want, I shouldn't be forced to update when I don't want to.
While we're on the topic of hackers let's talk about another thing that can compromise your computer, viruses. Now I'm not a moron and I know that Windows is not the only operating system with viruses and that it has the most because that is what 90% of desktop users are running, but it is incredibly easy to get a virus on Windows while in the case of other operating systems you actually have to try to get one.
It is so easy to get a virus on Windows because the way that you install a program onto a Windows machine is absolutely stupid. Does anyone who knows anything about computers honestly think that downloading code from some random website then running that code on your computer is a good idea? I don't understand how anyone could possibly think that this is a good idea because it is just asking for trouble how can anyone do this and not expect to get a virus, but since the death of CDs this has become the standard method of installing a program on Windows. Of course the Microsoft Store exists now and, while it pains my free software using soul to say it, the Microsoft Store should be how people install programs on Windows. But of course the Microsoft Store was so poorly implemented and launched that it is an even bigger joke than Microsoft Edge, so now we live in a world where hundreds of millions of people believe that running code downloaded from random websites is a good idea, this is why getting a virus on Windows is easy.
But enough about old Windows problems, what's new with Windows 11? Well from what I can tell nothing revolutionary, mostly just aesthetic changes. Now those of you who have spent time watching soyboy Linux content on YouTube might be expecting me, as a Linux user, to go on some rant about how there are so many Linux desktop environments that look so much better and they are so much more customizable than Windows and you can do more with them and bla bla bla, such a rant would be pointless. I of course like to have my computer look a certain way but I recognize that I am in the minority, normal people don't care and the most customization they will ever do is change their wallpaper. (This is the reason that Linux will never dominate, normal people don't care enough to switch)
There are of course a few other observable changes but nothing game changing, I could of course be wrong since we are talking about an operating system that hasn't even been announced but even if there is something new the aesthetic changes and higher number will be all that normal people actually care about. Microsoft could introduce some revolutionary new feature and nobody would use it, normal people are set in how they use a computer and they don't want to change, Windows 8 was hated because it took away features that people had become used to using, Windows 8.1 exists because people wanted them back. Tech journalists will likely all talk about how great Windows 11 is but the switch will likely cause more complaints from actual users than praise, normal people don't like change.
But with that being said Windows 11 is a great move for Microsoft even if it doesn't change much, it is a great way for them to generate publicity that they haven't had in a long time and a great excuse for them to ask for your money. I won't be buying a new computer with Windows 11 and I probably won't upgrade my Windows 10 computer to it, even if it is free, I have no use for an operating system as bad as Windows, I'm sure I'll be forced to use it at some point but I could really care less about Windows 11 or Windows 12 or Windows 20, there are much more important things in the world to concern ourselves with.