Windows 11 due soon?

Microsoft have been dropping hints for weeks that Windows 10 would be replaced by Windows 11, including a Windows 4-pane window graphic where the patch of light from the window is two long vertical panes, forming a number 11. Also a developers conference scheduled for 11am. And a YouTube video of Windows bootup sounds that lasts – you guessed it – 11 minutes. Although there are some claims the page has been around a while, the Micrsoft support website says updates for Windows 10 Home and Pro will end on October 14, 2025. (It wouldn’t be surprising if security patches are available a bit longer though.)

There is no information about how transformative (or disruptive) a change to Windows 11 would be. Some SDR transceivers, such as the £6800 Expert Electronics MB1 PRIME and Apache Labs new Andromeda radio have Windows 10 PCs built in. And a lot of modern transceivers have USB interfaces, so anything that affects drivers could be a real issue.

Microsoft seem to see the benefits of open-source, having bought GitHub a while back. Although it seems unlikely – Windows 10 has been supporting elements of Linux for a while – could they save themselves a lot of development cost and move over to a Linux/Unix base?