Microsoft could miss an opportunity with Windows 11 (Premium)

I really like Windows 11. And I write this knowing that this system was built for the masses and not for tech freaks like me. But now that I’m on my third version of the new platform — after only one release leaked, the first official release, then the first revision via a cumulative update — I can already see the old Microsoft and the old Microsoft problems are settling in. And while it’s not too late for the software giant to avert disaster, I have a feeling it’s going to fall into the same old trap of trying to please everyone. And that’s a shame.

What Windows 11 should be is a mulligan, a takeover, not so much for Windows 10 but rather for the combined and often superfluous additions that Microsoft has made to Windows on multiple versions. In the past, I have likened Windows to an architectural dig, where new layers of technology are built on layers of older technology which in turn are built on layers of even older technology. It’s easy to find Windows Vista-era user interfaces in Windows today, and there are even bits of the Windows 95-era if you dig long enough.