Microsoft reminds us Windows 7 RTM support soon ends
Microsoft has killed off a bunch of products lately, moving forward to new and "improved" platforms, even making changes to company logos. The concept isn't foreign in the tech industry -- everything changes, almost daily. Yesterday Live Mesh died, soon Messenger will follow it to the grave. Today Microsoft reminds us that Windows 7 RTM's days are numbered.
It is not that we didn't know this day was coming -- the company gives plenty of notice about these things. The irony here is that many businesses are just now moving to the platform from XP. Hopefully most had the foresight to move all the way to Windows 7 Service Pack 1, or later. That version of the operating system will enjoy much more life before being shut off. Microsoft's Stephen Rose points out "mainstream support continuing until January 13, 2015, and extended support continuing until January 14, 2020".
However, as for the RTM, or non-SP 1 version, the date is fast approaching -- April 9, 2013. That is just under two months to get your things in order.
This is not to say your computer will suddenly fail to boot that day. It simply means that Microsoft will no longer issue updates and that you could soon become vulnerable to attacks and malware. If you care to risk it then you can continue running the OS for as long as you wish. Heck, you can still install and run Windows 95 if you would like -- I have an install disc I will sell you cheap.
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