Windows 8/8.1 Loses Market Share July 2014

Windows 8 market share down slightly as Windows 7 climbs again- The Inquirer

"The combined total for all versions of Windows 8.x dropped 0.06 percent to 12.48 percent, with most of the drop coming from the latest Windows 8.1, which is due to receive its final update in August.

Windows 7, the Peter Pan of operating systems, has jumped 0.67 percent again to 51.22 percent, its third consecutive month with over half of the market."

 

Not surprising. With XP at its End-Of-Life, most enterprise ITs are turning to Windows 7 rather than risk issue with Windows 8/8.1.

 

Didn't we see the same thing last month? The first time could have been a fluke, but twice in a row? Looks like Windows 8.x has topped out at a 12.5% market share. That's the worst that any MS operating system in history has done. Ever. Vista was a raging success compared to this.

 

I was going to wait a day or so for more links but;

Windows XP Below 25% Market Share, Windows 8.1 Falls

Windows 8.x loses market share for second consecutive month

Windows 8.1, Windows XP market share slipped in July

Microsoft News | Report: Windows 8/8.1 Market Share Slips While Windows 7 Is Still Growing

Windows XP, the OS that just won't die, finally sinks below 25% market share | VentureBeat | Business | by Harrison Weber

http://thetech.com/2014/08/01/windo...e-windows-8-1-loses-share-for-the-first-time/

It seems that since this can no longer be considered a fluke a lot are jumping in. I could have added a ton more links too, but I leave it for those interested to search for them as I am sure there is a post size limit.

 

...what's truly hilarious is that win 8.1 probably is the best windows version Microsoft has actually produced.

I mean, that's not saying much. But it's fairly consistent, the design choices are well thought through to an extent. Keeping the old UI but implementing more aero functionality over the existing window manager (and making the overlay indirectly rendered is a good step towards making it actually have a purpose). This does wonders for not making third party apps cause graphical glitches when calling perfectly legitimate rendering functions as well, or just asking for information about the contexts. So that's progress. Of the kind that actually makes a difference (not that you'd notice from the welcome screen.. ). But things like the fades when opening windows, etc. Things that weren't difficult to implement, and that have been very popular on various desktop environments on linux, as well as with mac obviously.. Notification facility received a major upgrade as well. Very comfortable. Don't need to tweak all day to not get cancer in your eyes from looking at the screen now.

Some of the slightly more fundamental changes actually make sense as well. They've been cutting useless services and differentiated some of the functions in the way they should have done it when they launched win98b.. Boot-time, background services actually shutting off.. lots of good things going on here.

What doesn't make sense is the entire microsoft account requirement. Secure boot as well as the login - and the horrible clutter you're met with at startup - should be optional. The idea to gear this into a platform dependency and a store, asking for credit card information, and so on, is something Microsoft know they can't be trusted with. So gearing it towards that is obviously a mistake, and they're paying for it now.

Same with the fact that you can't get upgrades and fresh isos from Microsoft, even if you have a legitimate license. Why choose to do that, and essentially making everyone who upgrade struggle through a horribly set up content portal, while locking off people who might be willing to give it a spin? Makes no sense unless they want to stop people from trying it out.

Also of course absolutely love the fact that the installer - for the second major edition - will refuse to add it's own entries to a fat16 efi boot partition. And then creates it's own extra partitions, before failing the install, since a primary boot partition already exists. Which again makes the setup create another set of boot-partitions for each new attempt. Things like that - actually not managing to test for issues like that or simply program in a way to avoid those very obvious issues - is so utterly typical Microsoft.

Still - several improvements that actually matter. It's almost up on the level of an xfce desktop from 2003 now...

Other than that - remember what happened when WIndows 7 launched.. That too was the death of the Windows platform.

 

The insult, imo, is made by the MS marketing folks and the guys who choose the UI messages and what to do with the project. Towards the users. And towards the people who worked for MS - and this is not common by any means - people who worked for MS and actually did some decent work.

I mean, I've heard a lot of bad things about win8 from people who have used it a lot. They all make good points about why certain things are braindead solutions that seemingly have been put in there to annoy them to distraction on purpose. I ran into several as well, like I said.

But even then, you can't really claim that any of the other windows versions that have come out were any less broken. Like I said, Win8.1 is marginally less broken than the other windows-versions I've tried. So it's less broken than the other versions when it comes to those specific aspects I mentioned. Making it technically the best windows version that has been released. And that is really all.

 

Why am I not suprised I predicted their market shares wouldn't stink and it turns out to be coming true...I commented that with XP going out Windows 7 would pickup the slack and it seems to be coming true...more is going Windows 7 then having to deal with Windows 8 problems. I read alot on HP user forum where Windows 8/8.1 users lost wifi when switching over or buying a windows8 laptop wifi would drop. And for those on there I told if you had Windows 7 go back and use it til they fix the Windows 8 wifi problems. Without Wifi on laptop your computer is basically paper weight only thing going for it is if it has a Ethernet port of which some are now missing and without that your laptop is worthless...scrap....

 

XP users, especially corporate, heading over to Windows 7 is a no brainer right now. It is surprising how slowly this is happening just again not a surprise that it is. Most will have just too much invested in software to abandon a M$ based solution. About the only way to get most XP users to walk into Windows 8 is if it were essentially Windows 7 SP3 and that well seasoned.

The threads intent is the stagnation of Windows 8/8.1 and even the loss of market penetration. Another issue is Windows 9 is not due out for another year. During this time period other OSs will have a year further to mature (OSX, Linux, Android, Chrome book etc.) while the meat and potatoes (Windows 7) is resting on a 2009' OS and UI. Lastly from what is proposed so far, IMHO, Windows 9 does not show promise in being the Windows 7 killer either.

It is amazing as things could have been so different. If they would have just listened to the their own consumers! I mean really, in the end isn't this just who they are trying to sell the OS/UI too?

 

Technically, I suppose you're right. But if they're not buying, the idea is that they need to change the sales-pitch, not the product. Microsoft has always worked like that.

 

They have tried just about every trick they could to push the OS. A few underhanded ones IMHO as well but as we can see..

 

What's even more astonishing is that for awhile MS was selling Win 8 licenses at $15, then you factor in Tablets, Windows Phones all running Windows 8/8.1 and it's a pretty damning statement wrt Windows 8/8.1 and how it has under performed sales wise.

I've never been a hater of the OS. I was vocal about all the inconsistencies and design gaffes made wrt Windows 8/8.1

To MS credit they owned up to their screw ups and set out to give users a Windows that was not as polarizing as the initial release. I have actually come to like the shortcut menu at the Start button. In fact I stopped using StartIsBack even though I still have access to that menu. Windows 8.1 is far more tolerable now.

If MS doesn't include a Start Menu in the final Update as leaked pics indicate then that means Windows 9 can't release soon enough for MS.

 

No, the O/S will sale itself just like Windows 7 is doing...off the mark there. One didn't listen to what TANWare just said did they..."Not Listening" is the problem-do that and W8 would sell like any other previous O/S without heavy marketing efforts not having to force feed down users throats. This is a Consumer based Economy and if you fail to notice it-another competitor will come to take your place....that's Business 101......

 

In regard to the bolded part, many companies have invested in specialized software that ONLY works on Windows XP - not Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, 9, or anything newer. This explains why they are in no hurry to migrate away from XP despite the risks (or in the case of some, why they are willing to pay Microsoft lucrative contracts for specialized support), but the very reason that the newer versions of Windows do not run their software means such companies are now, more than ever, at a place where other operating systems are much more viable options. The only real advantage of Windows 7 over Red Hat or Ubuntu (as a couple of Linux examples) is the familiar user interface. That familiarity goes away with Windows 8+, so in my opinion there is a greater than ever appeal of Linux versions or even simple web portals such as Chrome OS over Windows for future ecosystems.

 

I stayed away from the proprietary situation but agree it is there as I have seen it. With that software though porting over to newer DotNet or ASP etc. is usually easier staying with a Windows based OS. Also for now there is the true Office Apps as well. We still have a year or so before Windows 9 and this could make a huge difference. Especially in the case where a lot of these XP holdouts do not see progress in Windows 9 to their liking.

 

OSX and Linux market share were down as well according to that original post. It appears that the massive glut of Win 7 business machines sold as companies finally finish their XPocalypse upgrade (my company included) is eating into everyone's pie.

For people predicting/hoping that Windows Threshold will be more like Win7 than Win8.0 (at least as an option), this once again suggests that that's a good idea (which is consistent with what we already know about Threshold). For people hoping/predicting for an exodus from Windows to non-Microsoft OSes, nothing about these statistics supports that.

 

That's a understatement...for bad a Windows 8 is people aren't going to just leave Windows for OSx or Linux as some like to dream that's all it is a dream....Windows is too far entrenched to be pushed out also Windows O/S will run on a variety of hardware which by themselves are cheap and anyone can buy and build that is what made Windows such a good O/S to have it can run on even the worse of hardware setup and not only that but "Driver" support is the critical component here of which some in OSx or Linux seem to miss without that your up the creek. And also price Windows is far cheaper then OSx and Linux free isn't always the best here..So there comes down to alot of factors that make Windows a dominating O/S not just because it is a Microsoft Product but it does it good being the first O/S GUI when it came out with 95 and every since then never looked back.

 

For some companies like where I work (construction/millwork) we have mostly old CNC, edgebanding and dowel machines. These machines are $100k plus easily and are very specialized even to what OS can run them. I've inquired as to seeing what it will take to upgrade our oldest CNC machine to something modern OS wise and it is very expensive. Not only do you need to buy the new computer/software from them, you also need to change out quite a few parts from them to the tune of easily going over $20k. We still have a Win 95 computer running a machine but most of them are XP. Our newest CNC is Win 7 based.

Also, we have some super old programs that make the G Code for the machines. The programs work great but getting them to work on our Win 7 workstations can be a pain sometimes. I'd love to upgrade everything but getting management to approve the costs when in reality nothing is broken is pretty much impossible.

Its not just black and white why some companies keep XP and even older OS's around. I'd love to have Win 7 on everything but had to settle on just getting the normal workstations on it. We have zero plans on ever getting a Win 8 computer.

 

In this case, it might be worth your company's while to pay MS for an extended support contract so you can keep going with XP.

 

In some of cases, you could have those machines almost completely isolated to minimize the risks anyways.

 

Do people really need more "support" for XP, it's been working for over 10years straight.

 

This is what I would do. I too work in a CNC shop, so I can definitely relate.

Fortunately none of our equipment is that old, so we dodged that bullet.

But basically plan to firewall/DMZ those machines off from the rest of the Internet, and your chances of problems drop off sharply.

 

As fuel to the "the Win7 thing is all businesses" fire,

Steam Hardware & Software Survey

Steam says Win7 continues to slowly decline, and Win8.1 continues to slowly increase. In fact, Win8.1 and Win8 went up more than all the Windows that went down combined (which means people bought computers!). Even 32-bit Win8/8.1 went up ever so slightly, which makes me a little angry. !!

So when you take a segment of the computer population that is primarily home users, this is more of the dynamic.

 

Several types of businesses still need XP security updates. Broadcasting being one major market. Lots of XP Pro hardware still in use. And upgrading it major expenditures, including replacing expensive broadcast grade audio cards (AudioScience powers most live assist and automation packages in this industry).

 

Support = security updates, and I'd say it's important.