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Comment by shepherdjerred | Hacker News Reader

It's uncharitable of you to consider my opinion as being contrarian versus being genuine preference.

Alternatively you could have chosen to be curious about my response that deviates from your understanding.

I've used Windows 97 onwards, macOS around Mavericks, and various desktop Linux distros from around 2013.

I would have told you that I like Windows 11 (LTSC) because it is much more visually pleasing than 7/8/10. The OS works reliably and I overall enjoy using it much more than the Linux distros I tried out before the LTSC build was made available.

I like macOS Sequoia (and iOS 18) because Siri has gotten substantially better and I'm excited about Apple Intelligence. iOS 18 adds RCS which has been great and I actually do like Photos quite a bit, but I only moved to iCloud Photos while I was on the beta, so I can't compare to the old Photos app.

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I'm the same, I've basically upgraded on release or shortly thereafter to every version of windows since Windows XP, and the only one that actually felt bad and I rolled back was Vista. Windows 8 was a tad whacky, but since windows 10 things have been pretty dang stable, which I'll remind you is 9 years old. Windows has been pretty consistent for a long time at this point.

IMO a lot of complaints about new OS versions are just a plain psychological aversion to UI changes. I always try and give them a go with an open mind, and most of the time it's honestly just fine if not actually a bit better in some way.

That built in advertising is definitely aesthetically pleasing. It just makes the whole UI pop.

This is another unnecessarily snarky reply.

I’ve specifically mentioned the LTSC build when mentioning Windows 11, which does not have the normal bloat.

The consumer version of Windows 11 is terrible IMO, but that’s more a business decision than a technical one.

It's also worth pointing out that advertising in Windows is localized (I suspect mostly in the US).

I am outside the US, I'm running Windows 11, and I see no ads.

The LTSC build isn’t the totality of Windows 11, it’s even missing major features.

You can defend advertising as ‘a business decision‘ but this is an actual product they are shipping as Windows 11. LTSC is also compromised due to business decisions, so there’s no clean option.

What is Windows 11 LTSC missing? I use my Windows PC mainly for gaming & light web browsing/studying/coding.

I did have to manually install some Windows components I needed, e.g. the Windows store, but other than that I haven't had a single issue in the last few months I've been on it.

I'm not going to defend the normal version of Windows 11 (it sucks), but, again, the LTSC build is excellent.

It’s an issue over time, LTSC 2024 just dropped so it seems fine today.

But in time you’ll see hardware compatibility and API features missing, at least based on earlier LTSC versions. Which is why I said it’s a business issue not an issue with that version of Windows. It’s stuff like not being able to use the latest Bluetooth or WiFi versions and occasional software compatibility problems.

If you’re fine using the same hardware and software for years as intended then it’s not a major problem, but it’s designed for ATM’s and medical devices not gaming etc.

Isn’t LTSC pretty yarr to get?

Yes. I would pay any reasonable amount, but Microsoft doesn't make it available to consumers, so I don't feel bad about it. I found it here: https://massgrave.dev/windows_ltsc_links

They include instructions for verifying the ISO integrity. Activation uses their tool but I believe the method is straightforward to do on your own.

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