Microsoft recently announced the "end" of Windows, with Windows 10 being the "last version" of the company's dominant operating system.
This was reported by the British news network BBC, citing relevant statements by Jerry Nixon, a senior Microsoft executive.
The company later confirmed Nixon's statements, announcing that in the future, Windows upgrades will be made available in a "continuous manner." Specifically, instead of new individual versions, Windows 10 will be optimized through regular upgrades, according to the company.
Nixon made these comments during Microsoft's Ignite conference held last week in Chicago, USA.
In its statement, Microsoft said that Nixon's statements reflect the company's intentions for changes in the way it develops and markets its software.
"Windows will be available as a service that will deliver new innovations and updates on an ongoing basis," the company said in its announcement, adding that it expects Windows to have a "long run in the future.".
According to the announcement, the company has not yet reached a decision on the new name for any operating system beyond Windows 10.
“There will be no Windows 11,” warned Steve Kleinhans, a vice president at Gartner, a research firm that tracks Microsoft. He went on to say that the company had deliberately avoided using the name “Windows 9” in the past, opting instead for “Windows 10” as a way to mark a break from the past, when it had separate versions of the operating system.
However, he stressed that the system followed by Microsoft had caused problems for both itself and consumers.
"Every three years or so, Microsoft would create the 'next great OS,'" he said. "Developers couldn't contribute, and suddenly a new product that was based on what consumers liked three years ago," he added.
Kleihans went on to say that most of Microsoft's revenue from Windows comes from sales of new computers that incorporate the operating system and that this is unlikely to be affected by the change.
“Overall, this is a positive step, but it does carry some risks,” Kleihans said. “Microsoft will have to work hard to be able to deliver new upgrades and features,” he said, adding that questions still remain about how enterprise customers will adapt to the change and how Microsoft will provide support.
"This doesn't mean that Windows is going to go into hibernation and we'll never see it again," Kleihans told the BBC. "In fact, we're set to see the opposite, with the speed of Windows upgrades taking a new level," he added.
Source: iefimerida.gr
