The Windows 10 S Paradox (Premium)

What does Windows 10 S say about the other versions of Windows 10? That they are unsafe, unreliable, and slow. This is a not a great marketing message.

I've been thinking a lot about Windows 10 lately, as you may know. And this system puts me in a tough spot. It is, after all, the future of Windows, an important step forward that positions the platform for the mobile first, cloud first world. But it is also, sadly, completely unusable today, a non-starter for virtually all users.

Everyone knows that the central issue at the heart of the Windows 10 S debate is its inability to run anything but Windows Store apps. But one thing that isn't debated enough, I think, is the why of that reality. What Microsoft is really saying here is that the "full" versions of Windows are so insecure, so unreliable, and so performance-challenged over time that the hard-stop of Windows 10 S is the only answer.

Put another way, in using any version of Windows that is not Windows 10 S, we are apparently putting ourselves at risk every single day. Every time we boot up our PCs, every time we sign-in, connect to the Internet, download and install some random app, whatever, we are doing something potentially harmful to ourselves.

In the old days, Apple would have marketed the heck out of this, would have mocked Microsoft, Windows 10 S, and PC users endlessly for having this other thing that looks like the real thing but can't actually run the apps that everyone prefers. But Apple doesn't do that now because the Mac is no longer that important in Cupertino: It sold about 60 million iOS devices in the last quarter, but only 4 million Macs. Apple has moved on to a bigger and better future of its own. Now, Google and Android are its targets.

So, hooray for Apple. But we're stuck here with Windows. What's a poor Windows user to do?

Ultimately, we have to vote in our own best interests. And we cast those votes every time we make any decision about the PC we use, the software that runs on it, and the online services to which we connect. Each of those decisions is a trade-off between safety and security on one hand, and usability and productivity on the other. And you never know when the wrong decision is going to come out of nowhere and just bite you in the butt.

And we make these trade-offs all the time. Not as Windows users, per se, but as people.

Maybe you're blasting down the highway at 80 miles per hour because you simply have to be there a few minutes more quickly. And then that text message beeps and you'll just look for one second because you are in control, and are a great driver, and you know the horror stories about what happens to other people, but you're not other people. You're you.

Or you've connected to a public Wi-Fi hotspot and have carelessly started entering the credentials to your PayPal or bank account while sipping an overpriced latte. Because you're bored with Angry Birds and this needs to happen right now. For some reaso...

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