Whoa! Windows 7's market share surged, tripling in users last month

Submitted ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨spicehoarder@lemmy.zip⁩ to ⁨technology@lemmy.world⁩

https://www.pcworld.com/article/2928103/whoa-windows-7s-market-share-surged-tripling-in-users-last-month.html

As the article notes, the increase seems to be driven mainly by users in Asia, where recycling and reusing older hardware is quite common. I wonder if third-party companies are offering extended security patches there, which could make affordable second-hand Windows 7 machines more appealing for people who just need them for browsing or light tasks. It would certainly make sense given recent fiascos and Microsoft’s current stance on AI, especially with generative AI being used to develop system-level code.

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radix@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Windows 7 was used to browse web pages on a subset of sites that use the Statcounter plugin, and mostly in one area of the world.

But that doesn’t make a good headline.
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- pelespirit@sh.itjust.works ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  I think that it’s a possibility for the rest of the world.
  
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- ArchmageAzor@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Could it be that something is spoofing a Win7 signature?
  
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  - ZILtoid1991@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    I personally just edited the registry to stom my Win10 upgrading to 11. If it fails, it’s Manjaro time.
    
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- frongt@lemmy.zip ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Still, it’s unusual for that to happen.
  
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- stupidcasey@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Thanks Microsoft spokesman.
  
  Why is it that these scores are taken at face value until a corporation doesn’t like them? What you think 4% of a random set of servers suddenly started using Windows 7 to bot pages to drum up Windows 7 support?
  
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  - squaresinger@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Look at the data: gs.statcounter.com/…/asia/#monthly-202408-202509
    
    Or more specifically gs.statcounter.com/…/singapore/#monthly-202408-20…
    
    All the data is nice and smooth, slow rises or declines, as usual.
    
    And then all of a sudden in July and only ins Singapore, Windows 7 goes from <2% to 92%. All other asian countries stay about the same.
    
    Does this sound likely to you that 90% of users uninstall Win10 and Win11 in Singapore to install Win7 and all that in a span of just two months?
    
    Or is it more likely that there’s some bug (or some botnet) causing false stats?
    
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Luci@lemmy.ca ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
It’s okay, Windows 10 will be the last version of Windows you’ll need!!!

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- Pat_Riot@lemmy.today ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  It was. Linux Mint has been beautiful since I switched last year. Certainly nicer than windows.
  
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  - Marshezezz@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    My laptop runs so much better now with Mint after getting rid of windows
    
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  - LibertyLizard@slrpnk.net ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    I’m thinking about mint vs Ubuntu. Got any thoughts about which is easier for a tech-illiterate moron like me?
    
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  - SapphironZA@sh.itjust.works ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Yep, Bazzite has been great for me on my gaming PC. Never going back.
    
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  - chunes@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    [deleted]
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- hanrahan@slrpnk.net ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  True enoigj, I chanhed to LMDE from 10 2 yeaes aho. Started on 3.1 (from MS DOS)
  
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CosmoNova@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Possibly from people booting up 15 year old laptops to see if they‘re still running so they can install linux on them before trying it on the big machine. Yes, this is my made up narrative but I believe that more than in a Win7 comeback.

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carrylex@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Image

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TaterTot@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Year of the Windows 7 Desktop?!

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mormund@feddit.org ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Don’t have a link to the thread on Mastodon, but it was only in Singapore. So it is likely a troll or some glitch.

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- spicehoarder@lemmy.zip ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Not from Mastodon, but from looking at the map for September: Map showing 92.09% of traffic coming from Singapore is reported as coming from Windows 7
  
  Here’s a link to the rest of the map You’ll have to mouse over the different countries here, but regardless of whatever the heck is happening in Singapore, windows 7 is still sitting between 15-5% in other countries across Asia. and 10 is still nowhere near the “safe” levels for EoL coming up.
  
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SleafordMod@feddit.uk ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Nobody should be using old versions of Windows that no longer get security updates. Either switch to Linux and install all of the latest security updates, or enable the coming year of security updates on Windows 10, or run Windows 11.

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- BCBoy911@lemmy.ca ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Agree for a main computer but there’s no risk when using Windows 7 or XP on an offline machine.
  
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  - filcuk@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    If it were offline machines, then they wouldn’t be on these statistics
    
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  - SleafordMod@feddit.uk ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Fair point, I guess some people might want to do that to play old games or something like that.
    
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wuffah@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
massgrave.dev

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polle@feddit.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
A friend of mine was still on win7 and just recently made the switch to linux. In the end the issue was that most of the software stopped working.

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- TonyTonyChopper@mander.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  I hated when software didn’t work on Windows. After switching to Linux my mouse, keyboard, monitor, hard drive, OS, and software don’t work 😂
  
  (this comment is a joke I love 🐧)
  
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False@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
This is almost certainly a sampling error.

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- squaresinger@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  gs.statcounter.com/…/singapore/#monthly-202408-20…
  
  Win7 grows in Singapore from <2% to 92% within two months. All other asian countries stay the same. Yeah, that’s a sampling error.
  
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- yes_this_time@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  It makes me a bit sad that there is a whole article on a (very likely) mirage
  
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Brkdncr@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

One caveat here: Statcounter provides no explanation for this unusual surge, so these figures should be treated with a certain amount of skepticism. Could there be a measurement error involved?*

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- LifeInMultipleChoice@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  A bot farm changed their spoofing to show Windows 7 by accident. /s. But it would be funny if that’s what happened
  
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  - Wispy2891@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    It’s 100% what happened
    
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DarkSideOfTheMoon@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I don’t get why people prefer to go to an unsafe version of windows instead of trying Linux. Nowadays there is many friendly distro.

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- vacuumflower@lemmy.sdf.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  They feel more at home with it. And they shouldn’t be told how to use anything. Windows NT, were it cleared from all the mess, would be a very fine OS.
  
  Or maybe something like AmigaOS or Haiku.
  
  It’s a demand that Linux doesn’t fulfill, some sort of rebirth of Amiga could.
  
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- bytesonbike@discuss.online ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Lack of education and training really.
  
  I only knew of Linux because I saw some dude use Linux in 2012. And then a few years later, I finally decided to try it out as it was easier for work. After a lot of false starts, I finally started switching around 2021.
  
  Going to imagine most people are the same - get experience from it and then have a reason to use it daily.
  
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NateNate60@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
They should make a Windows version called Windows 10P which is the same as Windows 10 but only the bare-bones necessities and no extra crap or required online services, and sell it for $59.99 (seeing that Windows is already de facto freeware). That’s probably an order of magnitude than what they make from intrusive advertising anyway to a single user over the lifespan of a computer.

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- dual_sport_dork@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  This already exists, and it doesn’t cost $60. What you want is the Windows 10 IoT LTSC Edition.
  
  massgrave.dev.
  
  (Brought to you by Carl’s, Jr.)
  
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  - PattyMcB@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Why do you keep saying that? Lol
    
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  - Psythik@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    I use this on my DJ laptop. It’s nice because it doesn’t constantly bother you with bullshit, and is extremely stable.
    
    Anyone still stuck on 10 who isn’t ready for Linux just yet should give LTSC a try. You’ll probably like it. It’s not going away anytime soon, either, because it is used in mission critical things like ATMs and cash registers that need to just work without being bothered with constant updates and reboots nor being bombarded with ads.
    
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- MehBlah@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  No way they will do that. The value for microsoft these days is in harvesting their victims info and forcing them in to their walled garden.
  
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  - FreedomAdvocate@lemmy.net.au ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Walled garden? Windows? Do you even understand what a “walled garden” is?
    
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- jaxxed@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  It would be of lower value to them without the data-gathering and the AI injection.
  
  The data makes them money. The AI helps th justify their investment, but also gives them data to ad to their models.
  
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- morphballganon@mtgzone.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Computers that are too new for Windows 7 come with Windows 10 preinstalled on them though. Who would buy an extra copy? You can debloat Windows 10 with a debloater tool
  
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  - NateNate60@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    People who build their own computers, AKA the group most likely to complain about this
    
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- SharkAttak@kbin.melroy.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  How about a Win 7 Remaster? Since there's been a lot of them recently.
  
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1984@lemmy.today ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Its so dumb. Linux is the only way to actually get out from under the thumb of Microsoft and its so easy these days to switch.

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- the_crotch@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  
  Linux is the only way to actually get out from under the thumb of Microsoft
  
  Aside from macos, bsd, ChromeOS, android, iOS, and templeos, sure.
  
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  - 1984@lemmy.today ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    I dont think being under the thumb of Google or Apple is any better. And Linux is just a much better choice than bsd for almost all people. That being said, I was impressed go learn that hacker news run their entire site on a single server wirh bsd. :)
    
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tio_bira@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Tbf proton evolving fast as he doing, soon i won’t even will need windows beside my workplace notebook

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- hornywarthogfart@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Switched to Linux a couple years ago and at this point it is rare that a game doesn’t “just work” and even rarer when it still won’t work after trying other versions of proton in the Steam compatibility settings for the game.
  
  Depending on if there is a specific game you know doesn’t work that is a deal breaker for you, it might be fine at this point to switch. Just throwing that out there. You may not need more compatibility than what is available.
  
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  - prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Yeah I think a lot of people don’t understand how far it’s come. Often even games that Steam lists as “unsupported” will work with some very light tinkering.
    
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  - tio_bira@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    How moddings tool like MO2 and the mods from nexus are behaving on Linux ?
    
    Also, PCVR, playing HALF LIFE ALYX, Arizona Sunshine, OpenMW VR are huge deal breakers for me
    
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rozodru@piefed.social ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
within the past month? what all these people in Asia suddenly found a stockpile of machines with Win7 on them and all, collectively, decided “yeah lets just use these”?

I don’t buy it.

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- themachinestops@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  It is spoofed someone wants people to thinks it it Windows 7.
  
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SnoringEarthworm@sh.itjust.works ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Any chance this will lead Microsoft to re-evaluate its use of AI?

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- TheGrandNagus@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Absolutely zero.
  
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- magic_lobster_party@fedia.io ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Why should we hope for that? Let’s use this moment to embrace Linux instead and never look back.
  
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- NaibofTabr@infosec.pub ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  lol no, VC funding line goes up
  
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- Tollana1234567@lemmy.today ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  no it wont, if google is doing it this aggressively to thier own devices, MS doesnt want to be left behind
  
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BilSabab@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
It’s almost as if there’s a demand for meat and potatoes OS.

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ozymandias@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
they’re using AI to generate system level code?
holy shit this is the dumbest way to destroy civilization

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kepix@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
win7, my beloved. that uxtheme.dll got patched so many times…

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SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I still have my old Win7 pro disk with unlimited installs :p

I didn’t think i would ever use it, but I’m also not ever gonna use win11, so maybe upgrading from 10 to 7 will be my plan for my windows needs if they are both gonna be insecure anyway.

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Kailn@lemmy.myserv.one ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
So more ppl are re-purposing old, legacy win7 machines despite security risk…
Completely clueless about anything linux or floss in that matter wether even if there where lighter distros with better hardware support & enough apps for everyday office needs & more.

Like win7 can’t even run any UWP apps, photoshop or steam anymore.
It’s great livin’ in 2025

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FalseTautology@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
JFC I wish I could go back to win 7, I had to get win 11 and I’ve never hated an os like this in my life. My favorite part is how I have no control over it changing the things I actually use. No sorry, my favorite part is how right around the time an update is about to come out my windows starts crashing and locking up. It’s amazing.

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vacuumflower@lemmy.sdf.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
If the world weren’t networked the way it is now (I’m not against global connectivity as a thing, just how it works now), any kind of old software and hardware could be used. Because security and things breaking without the Internet are the main reasons why people update.

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HugeNerd@lemmy.ca ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Yes indeed.

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