Once upon a time, I was a Windows user. I began using Windows with the 3.0 release under the lure of "multi-tasking". Since that initial thrill of being able to alt-Tab over to different running applications, I've always had a Windows box running (or limping) on the current Windows rev. Although, initially, Windows was only a "GUI for DOS", it was a huge improvement in terms of usability and aesthetics.
Even though Microsoft has never been one to worry about my trust, I've been loyal if not openly critical, of their product. I even went so far back in the early-early days (Windows 95) of learning how to optimize the registry and other performance-improvement tricks so as to maximize my Windows experience.
I've had various spats with the Redmond giant over the years:
* TCP as a 3rd-Party add-on to Windows because Microsoft didn't feel that users needed anything more than Netware over UDP.
* IE6: worst browser, ever. (Speaking as a, then, front-end web developer.) I remember one company I worked for refusing to support IE6 for our product. Users were told to download Firefox before calling support.
* The BSOD - countless hours lost waiting for reboots.
* Windows ME - only useful if the only app you ever ran was Solitaire.
* Microsoft's general refusal to follow agreed-upon standards and protocols, sometimes not even following their own guidelines and published standards. (How many Microsoft Engineers does it take to change a light bulb? None, they just define darkness as the new standard.)
* Windows Vista - terribad release and damn near completely unusable.
* Disabling standard samba protocols making them available only in the Pro version of Windows and then disabling the ability for "power" users to add the functionality in Windows Home.
* Windows 8 - the first iteration of "do not presume to tell us what you want, you ... users... WE will tell you what you want."
* Security has always been a nightmare under Windows. Script kiddies gleefully harvesting countless systems, boxes turned into bots within minutes of appearing on the 'net.
* Please wait while we look for a solution to your problem. Seriously? Has this ever worked for anyone?!?
Angst on the internet abounds. People reporting various problems with upgrades, rollbacks, new installs, updates, and the continuous stream of sev-1 fixes on "patch Tuesday". Waking up in the morning to see that the Windows box has rebooted itself, again, resetting your work screen.
Windows 10 was the proverbial straw. I couldn't take it any longer. I hated the flat, lifeless interface, the ubiquitous adware, the tweaks that were required to recapture some semblance of privacy. The telemetry and calling home coupled with Microsoft's policy of rolling over and exposing their soft underbelly on every law enforcement request.
I shut of the Windows box as a test to see if I could live a productive life without Windows 10 and using only Linux, ChromeOS or AndroidOS as my operating systems. And using a PS4 or Xbox-360 for entertainment.
And, after 100 days of no Windows boots, I learned that yes, yes I CAN LIVE WITHOUT Windows! And, as it turns out, quite happily! My stress levels were way down because I work with operating systems that treat me like an adult and listen to what I want instead of telling me what it thinks I need. Linux has been my stable working environment for years now. As a developer, I won't use anything else. (Yes, I've done development work on Macs. If you Mac users didn't have container tech, you'd still be trying to figure out homebrew.)
I've took my Windows 10 to the next level -- I deleted it and replaced it with Mint 18...a derivative of Ubuntu 16.04. I considered a dual-boot but, after 100 days of Linux, I realized that I didn't need Windows-specific software. I found literally everything I needed on Windows was covered by either Linux (FOSS) or by my PS4 (Fallout 4, Doom, No Man's Sky, etc.)
I missed out on all the pain of the July update! I didn't get any partitions deleted, I didn't have to hold my breath during the install, killing goats and lighting incense, praying that the upgrade would take. None of that. I've even stopped reading all the rants about how much Window's 10 sucks.
I don't care. At all. About Windows. I'm finally free! After almost 30 years of Windows being in my life, like an engorged tick attached to my neck, I can not focus on work instead of trying out tricks to get things to work. My systems do what I need them to do, without back-talk or asking me if I am super-super-duper sure I want to do this. My internals are fully exposed and I'm free to do whatever I want with them! My operating system trusts me!
So, readers, I hereby propose the "Windows10 challenge". Free yourself. Shut off the Windows machine and see if you can get by with other operating systems. (I'd imagine for the majority of the world not already on tablets, that ChromeOS would be just dandy!) After your 100 days, nuke Windows10 out of your life.
Taste life anew! Open a real window - breathe the fresh air and start to enjoy your first day as a stress-free computer user where everything works! Leave the world of mandatory reboots behind! Stop asking your computer for permission to be productive and start using it!