Your Final Final Reminder: Free Windows 10 Ends Today
Windows without blinds
This is it, ladies and gentlemen. The Windows 10 icon of doom has entered the final stages of its apocalyptic countdown. You have mere hours left to install Microsoft's latest operating system for free. After that, you will have to pay $119, says the computing behemoth. At the time of writing there are about 12 hours remaining. But you will have less because I have had to run the news post gauntlet to get this information to you. BUT WAIT, there are still some important things to consider before you hit the panic switch.
Firstly, there are the lingering concerns about privacy to think about. Unless you are settings-savvy, the new Windows will track an enormous amount of information about you and beam it all back to daddy Microsoft. This includes location history, message data, contacts, and calendar data. Just last week, France's national data protection body said that the OS collects data far in excess of what is necessary. It's nothing that Google doesn't hoover up every time you switch on your Android but all of it will be used to produce tailored adverts and, let's face it, eventually be stored by the governments of the world. If you are getting ready to download, be sure to follow Alec's guide to change these settings for the better.
That isn't the only problem though. Today folks are complaining that the anniversary update of Windows 10 Pro Edition (it is now one year since the launch) is stripping users of important powers. Most notably, the power to deny the OS from automatically installing unwanted third-party apps. This complaint is leveled at the Pro Edition though. It's not clear what changes, if any, have been made to the Home Edition you will likely be downloading.
If you have been put off by these points and find yourself sticking by your fusty old pal Windows 7 or 8, there is good news for you. The GET WINDOWS 10 OR DIE icon will finally disappear. Windows has promised that the aggressive push notification will be phased out soon after the offer expires. There's no guarantee it will not return. But by then, maybe humanity will be prepared.