No.

By following Linux lead ;P

I'm going to squint and pretend I'm not missing a joke, and just point out that Linux is an incredibly versatile framework and that most of them typically do have a portable install.

I'll go for it. I've been waiting for Windows 8(.1) to pass like a bad kidney stone (same with Windows Vista). I'd be missing losing Windows 7, but I'll make sure I back up my machine first.

It's odd though, because every even version of a Microsoft OS has had its share of calamity. Maybe they're calling it 10 to break that image? :)

I don't like the mandatory sign in with microsoft account. A few builds ago you could still skip it (in a not-so-obvious way). If you did skip it, later in Windows you would get a feedback form stating they noticed you did not sign in with a microsoft account and wanted to know the reason.

Well as of the recent builds, that option to skip sign in is gone...(so I wonder what they thought of the feedback lol).

I hate this cloud BS. Obviously the real reason is to funnel potential customers into their app store. They have seen the success of Apple and Google's app stores and they desperately want to replicate that. Their mobile OS has no market leverage so they have to turn to their prime mover which is OS on desktop (and this app shit is even in their friggin server versions of Windows too btw).

Well I don't know about Apple, but with Google's Android, I at least still have the option to skip sign in. I just wish Linux was more useable because I want to jump ship.

Does anyone know what upgrading to 10 from 7 will do for those of us with non-OEM copies of Windows 7?

So - I have Windows 7 Professional and as it's not an OEM copy, I can install it on a new motherboard whenever I upgrade my machine. From Windows 8 onwards, I understand that all copies of windows now have the OEM limitations (i.e. link to one motherboard only, cannot be installed on another machine even if you retire your original motherboard).

Assuming my understanding is correct, will the upgrade be linked to one mobo only? Will I be able to uninstall 10 and put 7 on another machine and it still work?

Largely I'm interested in keeping my copy of 7 installable as I can always install a 32bit install of it for backwards compatibility.

Like 99.9999999999% of the Windows users, I will "upgrade" to Windows 10 when it comes preloaded on a new PC that I buy sometime in the future (maybe in a few months, or few years, from now; who the heck knows). And I do it because Windows 10 is the only preloaded option offered at that point with new PCs and only with guaranteed support for years to come, not so much because I really feel I need it.

As it happens, today we are going to buy a new Android phone, and now I am trying to figure out whether to buy one LG model with has Android 4.4.x, or one which has 5.0 Lollipop (both cost about 199€). Newer Android is better, right? But then I read some reviews that 5.0 causes some problems and has stupid flaws at this point on that phone (e.g. no visible clock on the main screen, no sign light for missed called or incoming messages, etc.), so maybe go with the 4.4.x model for now... The 4.4.x model has a bigger screen (5" vs. 4.7"), and maybe it is possible to upgrade it to Lollipop 5.0 later (when it is mature) with CyanogenMod or such.

Awww... but I guess it is still possible log in offline with the MS account.

I have a Google Nexus 5 with Android 5.1 Lollipop. I haven't noticed any issues with it. It is made by LG. Nexus devices usually get the Android updates first. You also do not have to wait for the OTA updates to automatically come down and can just flash the factory image directly. Also they are easy to unlock with a simple command, unlike other phones which need exploits and workarounds to bypass the locked bootloaders.

Here are the factory images for all Google Nexus devices:
https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images

Thing is, the Nexus 5 is getting a bit older now and it may not be on the google play store anymore and the Nexus 6 is expensive...
I don't think there was an option to sign in offline (maybe if you disconnect ethernet it may work?). I think after you sign in and actually get into Windows you can then setup the old standard local accounts. I read that somewhere, but have not tried it myself.

Not slept, so excuse if this is daft..

MS account etc, is that for mobiles you`re on about or for Win10 too?
I`m damned sure I don`t want to have to log online any time for any little thing & not just because I`m lumbered with mobile internot...

As for cloud, screw that too.

Windows 10 on desktop. Windows 8 has the same thing where you can log in with a microsoft account. But it is optional. It was also optional in the tech previews of Windows 10 until very recently where it seems it is now mandatory.

Thanks for reply.

Optional would be tolerable, mandatory £&!"&* that!.
In that case, I hope someone comes up with a "fix" for that or Microshaft see sense & get shot of it.
Guess I don`t have to worry about making a dual boot HDD any more then :)

Wait, what? You mean to tell me that you need to sign-in on some mscloud just to be able to use the operating system (W10)??? This is nonsense, can anyone confirm or linky?
Thanks

I didn't find any mention of it when I did some searches shortly after installing build 10041. (I guess people don't care or not many have tried a fresh install of the latest builds?). I guess if you updated from an older build you wouldn't notice since you do not go through the whole installation and setup from scatch again. I have read you can set up local accounts after you sign into Windows with your microsoft account, but by that stage you already had to create an online account anyway so wtf...

The microsoft account thing is not new. If you have installed Windows 8 you have problably seen the same thing, but you could ignore it and just create a plain old local account and pretend that microsoft account stuff does not exist. You obviously can't use the microsoft store without a microsoft account though. So in Windows 10 build 10041 it seems the option to ignore the microsoft account and just create a local account is gone. Seems you need to sign in at least once with a microsoft account after install.

Had a quick nosey & found:

System requirements

Basically, if your PC can run Windows 8.1, you’re good to go. If you're not sure, don't worry—Windows will check your system to make sure it can install the preview.

Processor: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster

RAM: 1 gigabyte (GB) (32-bit) or 2 GB (64-bit)

Free hard disk space: 16 GB

Graphics card: Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM driver

---> "A Microsoft account and Internet access"

Someone showing that you can skip it, although Microshaft`ll probably "fix" that at some point, or perhaps (albeit unlikely) this is just there for during testing...

http://windowssecrets.com/forums/showthread.php/166628-Remove-Your-Microsoft-Account-After-Installing-Windows-10

Yeah that was the old way to "bypass" signing in with a microsoft account. The option to "Sign in without a Microsoft account" was cleverly hidden in the "Create a Microsoft account" screen. That is the old way that used to work. That option does not even exist in build 10041. I hope this is just because these are tech preview builds and they are just changing stuff. But it does not send good vibes when a change like this makes it into even a tech preview...