Windows 10 access delayed
Microsoft is not releasing upgrade to everyone on July 29
PC owners interested in upgrading to Windows 10 have circled July 29 as the date that Microsoft has said the new operating system would be made available to the masses.
Now Microsoft is suggesting that some of you will have to wait well beyond launch day.
The software, which will be free and deliverable via download, is promised first to the more than 5 million people who helped the company test early builds of Windows 10 as part of the Windows Insider program.
Access will be granted next to consumers who “registered” for a copy of the software, beginning about a month ago.
Writing in a company blog on Thursday, Microsoft’s Terry Myerson, the executive in charge of Windows, said that “on July 29, we will start rolling out Windows 10 to our Windows Insiders. From there, we will start notifying reserved systems in waves, slowly scaling up after July 29th. Each day of the roll-out, we will listen, learn and update the experience for all Windows 10 users.”
Myerson has not given a specific time frame on just how long folks might have to wait before getting notified that the fresh bits can be downloaded onto Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 computers — older versions of Windows aren’t compatible.
But the words “waves” and “slowly scaling ” seem to indicate a lengthy wait.
Microsoft’s cautious approach is understandable, given the ubiquity of Windows and the fact that the company wants to avoid some of the snags that have plagued previous upgrades.
About 1.5 billion people use versions of Windows worldwide. The new software is coming to 190 countries.
Meantime, certain enterprise and educational customers are promised the ability to download Windows 10 starting Aug. 1.