The closer we get to Windows 10's end of life (EoL), the more we're going to be talking about it. For all the positives of running Windows 11, there's plenty of backlash, and not without reason.
One obvious alternative is Linux, but the OS isn't the only issue. There's a bigger issue that needs shouting from the rooftops.
In a post written by our pals over at Techradar, wherein KDE, one of Linux's bigger names, has declared your Windows 10 PC toast and that they're ready for all Windows 10 exiles, something else stood out to me.
It was this excellent comment by community member, Magma.
“The KDE website accuses Microsoft of leveraging a form of ‘tech extortion’ here – but is this fair?”Microsoft is part of the green agenda, and we are blasted by such large corporations for doing our part to fight climate change, usually by more regulation that adds cost to everything we buy. They can usually be seen promoting recycled materials or sustainability, so we feel good when buying their products. Nothing about Microsoft’s decision to move us to Windows 11 fits into being green, except the color of money.Given the preaching we get from such corporations, yes, it is a fair comment by the Linux group.
Techradar community member, Magma
KDE does also touch upon this issue on its Windows 10 exiles portal:
"You will be forced to spend your hard-earned cash and will be unwillingly polluting the earth and water as your old machine rots in a landfill. The air will also be polluted with the emissions that come from manufacturing and shipping a new device you don't really need."
This needs to be the number one consideration in my eyes through this whole ordeal. Because of a decision taken by Microsoft, perhaps in the best interests overall of its users on a technical level, we're approaching a point where a decision has to be made.
Microsoft's preferred outcome, and that of its partners, such as ASUS, is that if your PC can't upgrade to Windows 11, you simply toss it away and buy a new Copilot+ PC. Business gonna business, am I right?
But this would, in turn, create an absolutely monumental pile of e-waste. All these PCs no longer being used have to go somewhere, right?
These machines, whether through Linux or Chrome OS Flex, are still perfectly usable, and that's where KDE's portal comes in.
"Linux can give new life to your laptop. Combined with KDE's Plasma desktop, you get all the advantages of the safety, stability and hi tech of Linux, with all the features of a beautiful, modern and powerful graphic environment.
And it'll work on the machine you already have. Even machines that are 10, 15 years old can happily run Plasma, a modern, safe operating system that won't let you down."
Part of it is naturally a play to try and get more folks using KDE's desktop environment and software. But there's a real truth behind it.
Linux will keep all of these soon to be ended Windows 10 PCs alive and out of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. I have an Alienware M11X from the early 2010s that's still alive thanks to Linux.
Nothing will last forever, but as Magma's comment above points out, Windows 10 being ended is being used as a hypocritical marketing technique to try and squeeze folks to buy a new PC.
Big companies love to trumpet their green credentials, how they're changing to be more environmentally conscious. But the veil is slipping. It really does look like nothing else matters when it comes to the real green they're chasing.
If you can't budget to buy a new PC, perhaps you should give Linux a go. Whether it's a distro using KDE, or not, I'm a big believer in prolonging the useful life of a piece of hardware. I still run a small home server on a 13-year-old Mac Mini thanks to Linux.
But we can't be quiet about the problem being created.
