Each version of Windows has traditionally come with a 10 year life cycle of security and reliability updates by Microsoft. This is the time Microsoft is prepared to pay it’s software engineers to fix these issues and roll them out to the world (it’s costly)
Windows Vista was released in 2007 and its time is up in April this year. This means that computers being operated after this date increasingly run the risk of being exploited by malicious websites or emails or by other means, eg music, games, movie downloads.
So, what are the options for people with Windows Vista?
1) Upgrade to Windows 10
This is the route you would need to take if you are running special software that needs a version of Windows to run under. For example, Photoshop, Sage Accounts, A CAD program and most games, although website-based games should run fine under any modern operating system.
The advantage is that existing programs will almost certainly be compatible with Windows 10. The downside is that you will need to buy a licence for Windows 10 which is about £100. Windows 10, like all versions of Windows is more prone to malware than other systems, such as Mac, Linux or Apple’s iOS (as used on iPads)
2) Install an alternative to Windows
If you are only using the computer for surfing the Internet, Facebook, YouTube, Skype etc, you might be interested in an alternative called Linux, which comes in many different flavours (or distributions.) The one I recommend to most Windows users is Linux Mint. All versions of Linux are more resistant to malware than Windows. Linux is also free, and you don’t have to worry about licence keys or getting installation media which are freely available online etc. The downside is that it won’t run all Windows software and may not have drivers for hardware such as printers, or cameras, but in most cases it does.
Here is more information on Linux and here is more information on Linux Mint
If you need help with anything computer related, please give Adam a call on 01646 429233 / 07934453989