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German authorities are waking up to a Windows 7 headache, with approximately €800,000 required in order to keep the elderly software supported a little longer.
Microsoft had long been warning users, both enterprises and individuals, that the end of support was nigh - 14 January - and made available various ways of keeping those updates flowing.
Alternatively there is always the option of a migration to Windows Virtual Desktop (WVD) with three years of free-ish support (because, y'know, you still have to pay for those Azure resources).
Finally, customers that had ponied up the cash for an E5 subscription could also be entitled to an extra year of Windows 7 security updates, through to 2021 (assuming the subscription stays active).
Blighty's very own NHS is an example of just such an organisation, having splashed the cash for some E5 goodness.
The position in which the German government now finds itself might raise a wry smile somewhere in Seattle.
(Score: 2) by barbara hudson on Saturday January 25 2020, @03:03PM (3 children)
SoylentNews is social media. Says so right in the slogan. Soylentnews is people, not tech.
(Score: 2) by toddestan on Saturday January 25 2020, @03:17PM (2 children)
Well, by your standards quite old Androids are getting security updates too if you count apps. Actually, in some ways the fragmentation in Android means that developers are forced to support crusty old versions of Androids as phone makers (I'm looking at you Samsung) won't update the OS after a year or two. Whereas on the Apple side, an iOS version quickly goes into not supported status once iOS version+1 is out.
The reality of it is that both iOS and Android completely and utterly suck and the whole world of mobile is a train wreck. That's why I'd really like a few more players in the mobile world. Even Microsoft could do better than Apple and Google.
Though I can't blame you for not being interested in iOS 13, as it's a buggy pile of dog shit. iOS 12 is much more stable and usable, probably the iPhone 5S with 12.4 was the best iPhone Apple has ever made (and probably will ever make), if you don't mind the walled garden of course.
(Score: 2) by barbara hudson on Saturday January 25 2020, @05:58PM (1 child)
Neither Android not Linux are getting updates on old android phones. Which is one reason for the proliferation of malware-infested Android apps - it's a known soft target.
So no, according to any normal definition of "update", old Android phones are not getting updates.
And yes, all smartphone operating systems suck the bag. That's because we're stuck with a development model that prioritizes the various walled gardens rather than the vendors concentrating on the central OS and letting the market decide for the rest.
I don't want YouTube. I don't want Google. I don't want Gmail. And yet with Android I can't get rid of them. I don't want Facebook or Twitter, and yet some versions of Android come with them pre-installed and marked as "system" so you can't delete them. I don't want pre-installed 3rd party spyware that will "help me manage my email" while forcing everything through their servers (I was floored when I saw this on another woman's Android phone - she cannot bypass it and use her provider's mail servers).
I don't want Pocket, so screw off, Firefox. I also don't want a Firefox account. I also don't want to be reminded about it at random intervals. What were you thinking, people? Don't you STILL not realize that people don't like being nagged? And let me disable images, javascript, and css on a per-site basis.
I could go on, as most of us could. We're screwed.
SoylentNews is social media. Says so right in the slogan. Soylentnews is people, not tech.
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Saturday January 25 2020, @07:11PM
There exists a KDE-based smartphone, but I don't know how good it is.
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.