Now...as far as moving to W10 is concerned....I see from previous posts that everyone is aware that Microsoft will stop supporting W7 on Jan 14, 2020....you do NOT have to upgrade to W10....it just means that you will not get
any more security updates...OS patches etc....gradually over time you might become a virus magnet....depending on how good your anti-virus is....But I would think that you could run another year maybe two before you really HAVE to do SOMETHING...and Linux or Mac are both viable options.......
Have to? Not at all.
In my world, the Opsys is of only medium utility, not the star of the show. The app is the star. So the judgment of what I HAVE to do is made from the app, not the Opsys product.
When and if my apps stop working for me, then I'll consider the opsys approach. I did it before when I went from XP to W7.
Example: SolidWorks is something I use. They upgrade every year. Thus far, I've done quite well with my latest version at 2015. W7. I tell clients to save off to generic formats (if by chance they are providing geometry) and everything works fine. No fuss- no muss.
My larger competitors are all latest-version/W10 but they are large corporations and I am a Small Business. Large Corporations have no choice. Their legal dept and their exec leadership have zero clue about computers so the safe path is latest-on-latest (except hardware :snicker
to keep 'safe'. I don't have to outlay that expense.
And as I don't have government contacts and don't believe in bilking the taxpayer, I'll never be their size, anyway (sorry, that isn't meant to be political, but genuine business)
I got into Mac at 3.1 and stopped at 9.1, never got into X because it didn't bring anything to my studio. I continue to do all kinds of music with full midi/audio integration. Didn't HAVE to upgrade after 30 years because I don't care about the opsys, only about the results.
NOBODY is going to PREVENT you from continuing to use W7....In fact...Keep W7 but disconnect it from the internet...no worries...ever...
Why disconnect? I have an XP box from over 15 years ago that still does internet just fine. In fact, it's main use it to transfer from ftp sites when large data is involved.
I have a RISC box that still uses Netscape! (A bit short on features, but it can be persuaded
Hardly my first choice, but I've done it.
Neither seem to be virus magnets.
Now yes, I can agree - I have 3 W7 boxes that have never been connected to the net and never will be. No worries. That's mostly because I simply use the internet, it's not my lifeblood, and besides, computers are really cheap. So having a box more-or-less dedicated to a purpose is safe, inexpensive, and easy. I don't have to be-all and end-all in a single box. My studio is 2 Macs and 2 PCs and never connected to the net. No worries, just like you say.
But I also don't do online gaming. I'll admit complete deference to anyone else on that subject.
In a large corporation, the accounting dept won't allow such processes. They won't allow a Craigslist computer in the house. I don't keep engineering data or music files on the same box as anything that talks to the net. I can reach across with a USB stick/drive when i need transfers. That's pretty darned safe.
My online unit (a laptop) is a my "road whore". It might be infected with a lotta stuff, but I really doubt it. It's been reloaded twice in the last 8 years running W7 and runs great right now. It's twin is loaded with Mint 19.1 and will soon be my go-to net/email/etc. laptop and this one will get one last cleansing.