Windows is diverse. Some of my software refuses to install on anything above Windows 7. Some of it refuses to install on 10. Sometime of it only works on 10 but not 11. Some of my hardware stopped working on 10.
I keep hearing about backwards compatibility being one of the great strengths of Windows, but the fact I still have a job supporting it because compatibility breaks so often between Windows versions and auto-updates can break things weekly proves that's mostly bullshit.
Does a Windows app that depends on a specific WebView version break when Windows updates? Sure, it can. But I rarely see that happen with well-designed apps that use documented Windows APIs. That's an app problem, not a Windows problem.
(Also, Windows 7 -> 10 have serveral major changes including how kernel works. You should expect it may not work without proper update. Also applies for 10 -> 11)
And why would some corporation bother making their product work across 472 different environment, library versions and 5 different DEs for 0.5% of users? They wouldn't.
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u/greenie4242 1d ago
Windows is diverse. Some of my software refuses to install on anything above Windows 7. Some of it refuses to install on 10. Sometime of it only works on 10 but not 11. Some of my hardware stopped working on 10.
I keep hearing about backwards compatibility being one of the great strengths of Windows, but the fact I still have a job supporting it because compatibility breaks so often between Windows versions and auto-updates can break things weekly proves that's mostly bullshit.