A visual guide to Windows versions

This post is basically just a bunch of screenshots designed to help people identify which version of Windows they're running. Please note that wallpapers, colours and themes can be changed in most versions of Windows, so don't get too focused on the details.

Windows XP

You should already know if you're running XP. At this point, it's probably the most recognisable operating system interface of all time. If this is you, you should upgrade quick smart. Microsoft have officially abandoned XP and it's now full of unpatched security holes.

Windows Vista

You should also already know if you're running Vista—as it's about the most miserable experience you can have on a computer. Vista is probably the biggest turd Microsoft have flung at the public since 'ME'. As with XP, you should upgrade from this version of Windows as quickly as possibly—firstly because Microsoft will be abandoning it in 18 months, but also just for the sake of your own sanity.

Windows 7

7 is basically what Vista should have been. As such, it can be difficult to tell the two apart at first glance. One feature 7 has that Vista lacks (I think) is a little rectangular button/area at the far end of the taskbar which can be pressed to hide and unhide all open windows. If your taskbar has such a thing, congratulations, you're running Windows 7. It's probably the oldest version of Windows you should realistically be using at this point.

Windows 8/8.1

Windows 8 is distinctive in that it doesn't have a start menu. Instead, when you click the little window icon in the bottom left-hand corner, it takes you to a screen full of "live tiles".

8 was almost universally panned for trying to bolt a smartphone interface onto a desktop operating system. Having said that, I do know people who like this approach a lot. Each to their own, I guess.

Windows 10

10 feels like a bit of a hodgepodge. Clicking on the window icon now brings up something that mixes the menu from 7 with the live tiles from 8—sort of. There's also a secondary menu called "action centre" that pops out of a little word balloon over on the right-hand side.

Maybe the most distinctive feature of 10 is that it supports virtual desktops, which can be accessed by clicking the icon that looks like two overlapping rectangles.

And that's it. I hope it helped you work out what's running on your machine. If not, you can try going into "Control Panel" and then "System Information" or "About This Computer" or whatever it's called on your version. … Oh, and no, I didn't skip over Windows 9—Microsoft did.