The main ones were the Windows Media Centre, the bundled games, the desktop gadgets and the built-in DVD compatibility. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardianĭo you miss any features from Windows 7? Microsoft dumped several things in the transition via Windows 8. Microsoft Paint remains after an outpouring of affection from fans. Hindsight often makes the old stuff look clunky and out of date. Try using Windows 10 for six months before having a play with an earlier version. That persuaded me to stick with the free upgrade. I changed my mind after using Windows 10 for some time, because it did more and worked better. I kept it on my desktop PC, which doesn’t have a touchscreen, instead of moving to Windows 8. I shared your love of Windows 7: I recommended people to move to it as soon as possible and stick with it for as long as possible. (Full screen apps in Windows 8 is a classic example but Microsoft fixed that in Windows 10.) New versions of Windows always provide more stability and better security, even if they get other things wrong. Some people cling to obsolete versions of Windows but eventually most of them recognise they would have been better off if they had moved earlier. My best suggestion is just to get used to Windows 10. This is a powerful incentive to migrate from Windows 7 to Windows 10. After that, there will be no more security updates, except for companies that pay an annual fee that doubles every year. What would you suggest? ElizabethĪs most Windows 7 users know – and if they don’t yet, Microsoft will nag them about it soon – Windows 7’s support stops in January 2020. I now have a Lenovo laptop which has Windows 10 installed, but to be honest with you, I preferred Windows 7, which was on my last two computers.

Windows 7 basic colours