More than once, the Redmond giant has found itself in the strange position of having to release a hotfix to "update an update" of its operating systems. Yesterday, it had to do the same with Friday's post about Windows 10 and the Insider program. In reality, we are facing a new version of the article, which makes the situation a bit clearer. In short, there is a way to get Windows 10 free of charge... as long as the user agrees to the terms.
We went from disaster to catastrophe, and from there to a cataclysm of planetary proportions in public relations matters. Being forced to update an article twice leaves a rather poor image in Redmond, which has been promising over the past few months to simplify the entire process of updating, obtaining licenses, and other similar actions.
The story began last Friday. An article on the Windows blog implied that participants in the Windows Insider program with their preview installations would receive a final, activated copy of Windows 10. 24 hours later, the first update appeared, partially undoing what the original content said, and emphasizing that only Windows 7 SP1 and Windows 8.1 were enabled to get a free copy, as part of the initial offer that will last twelve months.
Now then... Gabe Aul spent the entire weekend answering tweets, to such an extent that confusion nearly reached critical mass. This led to a second update of the article, where today more specific questions and answers appear. The picture is divided into two: Does the user wish to remain as a participant in the Windows Insider program beyond July 29, 2015, or would they prefer to leave and install the final version of Windows 10? If they choose the former, they don't have to do anything else. The Windows 10 technical preview installations associated with a compatible Microsoft account will continue receiving updates past July 29, 2015. Preview users can keep that copy of Windows 10 if they agree to be beta testers of the operating system for an extended period. Each update for the preview of Windows 10 will have an expiration date, but Microsoft will release new patches to extend the period. The most conflictive detail here is that Redmond expects those installations to have been done on "legitimate Windows devices". What exactly is a legitimate Windows device? We have no idea.
Legally, the second option is simpler: Those who wish to leave the Windows Insider program will fall under the rules of the original offer. If the preview was installed on Windows 7 SP1 or Windows 8.1, the user will get Windows 10 at no cost and remain activated. Otherwise, they must return to the previous operating system, or continue using that Windows 10 build until it reaches its expiration date.
From a certain point of view, everything seems to indicate that Microsoft's intention is to turn pirates into beta testers, and that is something that, according to the comments on the Web, hasn't gone down so badly. Needless to say, software marked as preview is not recommended for daily productive use, but if the alternative is paying a minimum of $120, I think more than one user will decide to take the bet.
