Windows 11
 | Author:
Victor Sample
Vic Sample: MT43 News Treasurer |
Microsoft is now rolling out Windows 11. New PCs come with Windows 11 installed. Windows upgrades are “upgrading” users to Windows 11.
Should you upgrade to Windows 11? In general, you should upgrade to new versions of software including Windows. You don’t need to do it right away but over time your old version of Windows will become obsolete and you will find that some of the software you use, like web browsers, will become outdated and newer versions won’t run on old Windows systems.
As a rule, I like to wait a year to upgrade. Let more intrepid people find the bugs in the new version.
With Windows 11 the more important question might be CAN you upgrade to Windows 11?
Security concerns require newer chip technologies to run Windows 11. A month ago, we had three laptops, all at least four years old. They do not meet the Windows 11 criteria and cannot be upgraded. If you have acquired a new PC in the last few years it probably meets the new criteria.
For the last two years, one of our PCs has reported the battery will not charge. Lately, it started shutting itself off. So we bought a new laptop that had Windows 11 on it. I only noticed very small differences. I was pretty underwhelmed.
Windows 11 is primarily a different appearance with new icons, new placement of the start menu and an improved Microsoft Store. None of that is of particular interest to me. There are a few new capabilities for IT specialists (the guys in a company that do all the installation and maintenance of PCs), but I didn’t see anything compelling me to move to Windows 11 right away.
My recommendation is that at some point in the next year you upgrade to Windows 11 if your PC is capable of running it. There is not a lot of difference and staying reasonably current is good.
How can you determine if your PC is capable of running Windows 11? Microsoft provides a tool that will tell you if you can run Windows 11. Do a Google search for “PC Health Check Application” and go to the Microsoft Support page (there are other pages that will come up, use the Microsoft page) and follow the instructions.
If your PC is not capable of running Windows 11, stay on your current version of Windows. You may never have to upgrade. Microsoft may drop the new criteria (unlikely), or you might decide to buy a new PC and it will probably come with Windows 11.
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