Living with operating system updates and upgrades

Microsoft is not the only company that likes to put a gun against your head to make you move from one operating system (OS) to a new one. Google is following – and rather gladly it seems – in the footsteps of the maker of Windows.

Living, or coping should I say, with the frequent updates of the OS that runs your device is part of the pain, of the price you have to pay for using computers, tablets and other similar digital equipment. Microsoft Windows probably is the most famous of all the OS that make you suffer these changes.

There are the periodic updates of one given OS, and then there are the big changes that introduce a completely new one, what IT people call upgrades. Downloading and installing updates say to Windows 8 is one thing and upgrading from Windows 8 to Windows 10 is another. For some the latter may turn out to be a traumatic experience.

Now Google has announced the upcoming Android O, the new version of the OS that fuels 90 per cent of the world’s portable devices. This week has seen countless web-based tech sites channelling the news.

From the working name (“O” is but a temporary one), to the list of features that it will bring, there are more uncertainties than certainties, except for a couple of sound facts. The first is that the upcoming release is a sure thing, not just an Internet rumour, and the second is that one of the main improvements will be a significantly longer battery life — not a minor point, by any measure. I’d gladly make the change if only for that!

As for the actual release date and a detailed description of features we have to wait and see.

Some sites like Android Central go bravely for it and tell you “Everything you want to know [about Android O]…”. Pro audio sound, a feature that has been lacking so far in smartphones and tablets, and significantly enhanced Bluetooth connectivity, are two of the promised goodies that Android 8 is supposed to treat us to as well. If this proves to be correct, it would constitute a major boost to mobility.

To give credit where it is due, Google Android OS updates and new versions have never been as hard to implement or to follow as Windows’. However, one must also keep in mind that the size, the weight and the complexity of Windows are in another league, therefore more or less justifying the difficulty.

Despite the work and the hassle associated with going through OS updates and upgrades, one should look at the bright side. Be it Windows or Android, so much has been improved over the years that one has to admit that overall, upgrades are worth the trouble in the end. Just take Windows 10 and compare it to Windows XP; it surely calls for a LOL!

I look forward to Android O, asking myself whether there is any chance to see it running Samsung’s anxiously awaited Galaxy S8 smartphone. This summer maybe?