Wow, I had to check that it's already been "years" since Windows 10 was first released --- a little over 4, to be precise. No one I know actually likes it, the closest has been "tolerate". MS has done a great job of dragging its users through the mud and beating them into submission.
Windows 7 is unrefined? I have the opposite experience. Windows 7 feels like a finished product, that in addition is designed to help me work. Windows 8+ feels more like a Linux distribution in comparison, with inconsistent features & UIs everywhere, as if they were just a mash-up of random packages made by random open-source developers with no leader nor common goal. Actually the only thing that can be compared to a goal is that all the features are in some way or another designed to get in my way, waste my time, compromise my privacy, and just in general prevent me from doing actual work.
Yeah, but only for the hardware you have - the upgrade path seems to force you to a 10 OEM license, I went 7 pro (non-oem) to 10 pro, then changed motherboard, so had to buy a new copy of 10 pro oem, then that CPU stopped working and had to buy a new CPU & motherboard, and so finally I'm on running my own KMS server - fuck paying for windows a 3rd time.
I've had a pretty good run of calling the MS support line and getting them to reactivate if Win10 deactivates due to a hardware change. Takes 5 minutes, maybe. Occasionally if you're on an upgraded-from-win7 or 8.1 OEM license the service agent will tell you that it can't be done for OEMs but hanging up, calling back and getting a less fastidious agent on the line is easily done.
Agreed, though - paying 3 times for the same software would be insane, especially at MS prices
