Windows usage Archives

Winsage

October 6, 2026

Microsoft distinguished engineer fires back at anti-Windows 11 rage-bait, says “more developers use Windows” than Linux or macOS

Microsoft Distinguished Engineer David Fowler addressed a viral post on social media that dismissed Windows as a viable operating system for developers, asserting that Windows is the most widely used operating system among developers. According to Stack Overflow’s 2025 Developer Survey, Windows is preferred by 49.5% of professional developers, while macOS is at 32.9% and Ubuntu at 27.7%. WSL accounted for 16.8%, and Linux outside of WSL garnered 16.7%. In contrast, a poll by The Pragmatic Engineer indicated Windows usage among developers at only 12%, with macOS at 61.6% and Linux at 24.2%. The appeal of Unix tooling is significant for web, cloud, backend, and AI developers, while Windows remains popular among .NET and C# developers, Visual Studio users, and game developers. Microsoft is enhancing its Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) to better cater to developers' needs.

Winsage

August 18, 2026

China reportedly orders state agencies to uninstall its government-only edition of Windows 10 — Beijing accelerates planned retirement over data security concerns

China's Ministry of State Security has directed state-linked organizations to remove a tailored version of Windows 10 from their systems, expediting a planned phase-out initially set for February 2027. This directive is driven by data security concerns, although specific vulnerabilities were not disclosed. The customized version, developed by C&M Information Technologies (CMIT), is based on Windows 10 Enterprise but modified to exclude consumer features and ensure updates remain within China. Since its launch in 2017, it has been used by various central agencies. The Chinese government has also encouraged the elimination of foreign-branded computers, leading to the emergence of domestic operating systems. Despite these efforts, as of July 2026, Windows held an 87.64% share of desktop web traffic in China, with Windows 10 accounting for 43.56% of usage. Approximately two in five Chinese desktops still run an unsupported version of Microsoft's software.

Winsage

August 11, 2026

5 years later, Windows 10 refuses to die, and Microsoft just can’t push holdouts to Windows 11

Windows 11 was released in 2021, but Windows 10 remains a significant presence, with approximately 17% market share among enterprise PCs as of 2026. Lansweeper reports that Windows 10 has lost users, dropping from nearly 50% in early 2025 to around 40% by October 2025, and settling at 16.9% a year later. Key sectors using Windows 10 include healthcare (23%), consumer retail (22.7%), small and medium businesses (21.4%), manufacturing (18%), and enterprises (16.6%). Windows 10 has 1,903 active CVEs compared to 652 on Windows 11, indicating a 2.9 times higher vulnerability. About 14% of Windows 10 users receive Extended Security Updates, leaving 2% on unsupported versions. HP reports that 30% of its installed base still uses Windows 10, reflecting a core group resistant to upgrading. Microsoft states that Windows is active on 1.6 billion PCs globally, with a noted 7% decrease in Windows OEM revenue attributed to lower PC demand and the end-of-support effects for Windows 10.

Winsage

July 12, 2026

No, Windows did not fall below 60% market share or lose 15 points to Linux

StatCounter reported a decline in Windows' market share from approximately 79% in April 2026 to 56.55% by June 2026, indicating a drop of 22.45 percentage points. However, this figure was later corrected to 72%, with expectations of a rebound towards 78%. A significant portion of the market was classified as "Unknown," representing 21.45%, likely due to misclassification of devices. StatCounter has faced previous inaccuracies, including a misreported resurgence of Windows 7 and a drop in Google's market share. The company tracks web usage through data from over 1.5 million websites, but acknowledges that its figures are estimates and can be distorted by various factors. Microsoft confirmed that Windows is installed on approximately 1.6 billion devices.