Hey Reader,

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On the 14th of October 2025, Microsoft ended support for Windows 10.

It will no longer receive security patches, bug fixes, or technical assistance.

At the same time, 400 million PCs cannot be upgraded to Windows 11.

Each of those PCs has an owner.

A human being who has used this PC for several years.

The device contains their private photos, personal documents, and bank information.

Hackers will steal it all as soon as they find a way.

And the countdown has already started.

You never chose Windows, it was assigned to you

Microsoft gives you two alternatives: upgrade to Windows 11 or buy a new PC.

They’re implying you want to stay on Windows and that you don’t have an alternative.

But have you ever considered why you are using Windows in the first place?

I grew up as an average person without any technical mentors around me.

In school, university, and my first jobs, I only used Microsoft Windows.

It was only in my mid-twenties that I realized there were other operating systems out there.

Reflecting on this, I had the following insight:

If you use Windows, you are not using it because you chose it.

Society trained you to accept that Windows is the operating system you should use.

If you do not choose your operating system, you will be assigned one.

Take charge of your choices. Don’t let society decide for you.

Now is a great time to think about your next steps.

This is not about computer usage. It is about your autonomy.

I Refuse To Live As A Slave

Autonomy means “the quality or state of being self-governing.”

This word has been the guide for all my life’s choices over the past fifteen years.

There was a point in my life when I could not relax or have a social interaction without consuming alcohol.

I needed to smoke marijuana to fall asleep.

In other words, I was completely dependent; I was NOT autonomous at all.

In terms of work: I had to show up at the hospital at a specific time and had no control over my schedule or holidays.

I often had to work evening and night shifts. This messed up my sleep patterns even more.

Being dependent on substances and having no control over the work I did was the worst time I’ve experienced in my life.

One night, staring up at the sky, blind drunk after my first bottle of vodka that day, I decided I had enough.

And I turned my life around.

I pictured the life I wanted:

• I wanted to be sober
• I wanted to work from home
• I wanted to work in the tech industry

9 years later, here’s what my life looks like now:

I’ve been sober for seven years.

I’m a Senior DevOps Engineer and a Microsoft MVP.

I own a business that I work on full-time.

I don’t have a boss; I am my own boss.

I’m in complete control of what I work on, where I work, and who I work with.

Recently, I returned from a 3-week trip where I drove around in my van in France while working on the things I love.

Every day I’m helping others achieve the dream of a remote career in the tech industry.

This is what autonomy looks like for me.

But how does this relate to Windows 10?

Autonomy in Software

I told that story to illustrate how important autonomy is to me and what it did to my life.

As someone who works in the tech industry, I spend the majority of my day interacting with computers and using software.

Since this is a huge domain of my life, I have the same desires for autonomy here as well.

Through my DevOps learning journey, I have fallen in love with self-hosting and open-source software.

I still have a long way to go, but my end goal is to have most of my digital life stored on my own servers.

I want to serve the media I own by running open-source apps.

I want full control over my data. I don’t want to share it with companies, especially without my consent.

And most of all, I don’t want big tech companies to decide when I should throw away my PC and buy a new one because they refuse to give me access to their updates.

Because here’s the truth: Microsoft will keep creating updates for Windows 10 for three more years.

You can get them for one year if you pay for them.

Enterprise customers will still receive updates for 2 more years after that.

They are doing the work. They are keeping Windows 10 secure.

But they won’t give you the updates. They’re letting 400 million people be hacked by choice.

You Spend 12 Hours a Day on a System You Don’t Control

Here’s why Windows 11 is a threat to your autonomy.

You are now forced to create a Microsoft account during the installation of Windows 11.

There are a couple of workarounds, but Microsoft is spending a lot of time and effort on blocking all of them.

Why do they want you to create an account so much?

The account lets them create an identity that links all the data they collect about you.

Microsoft collects usage data from all Windows 11 and Windows 10 users. It is standard operating procedure.

By default Windows 11 will track which applications you use most and use that to suggest other apps or settings changes.

In other words, it will show you ads in the start menu.

By default, Windows 11 will collect samples of your typing and speech input “to improve its handwriting and voice recognition”.

This means parts of what you type or say to the computer, like through dictation or Cortana, might go to Microsoft’s cloud for analysis.

I am going to repeat what I wrote because it is important:

By default, Windows will track which apps you are using and use that for advertising other apps. It will send snippets of what you type or say to Microsoft.

While Microsoft provides some settings to control data collection, you cannot completely shut it off in standard Windows 11.

On Windows 11 Home edition, the most you can do is opt out of “optional” diagnostics but basic telemetry will still run.

I did some research and there are some ways to completely block it off, but let’s be honest here:

Do you genuinely want to use something that is designed to collect extensive data from you?

Even if you can turn everything off, do you still trust them to do what they say?

Here’s the real reason why Microsoft wants you to upgrade to Windows 11: They want to farm as much data from you as possible.

I will write about why this is a problem in a future newsletter, but for now I will say this:

Any data that is collected can be stolen and used against you.

You don’t want all your typed data linked to your Microsoft account.

I’m not saying Microsoft will do evil things with this data.

But evil actors can steal the data and use it against you.

Future governments may have a different perspective on personal data. They might want to know what you’ve been doing.

If you don’t store that data, it can’t be used against you.

I cannot make the decision for you about whether to trust Microsoft with your data.

But I encourage you to read this section again and notice what you feel.

If this makes you feel uneasy or curious, please keep reading.

Because you have a choice.

You can take this opportunity to take back control of your digital life.

The Alternative

I spent the majority of my life thinking that Windows was the only option.

That situation has changed for the better.

The best alternative you have today is Linux.

Linux is an open-source operating system. It powers 96% of web servers worldwide, every Android phone, and most cloud infrastructure.

But here’s the mistake most people make: Linux is not just for servers.

There are about 80 to 100 million people using Linux as their daily workstation already.

And I’m one of them.

I’ve been daily driving Linux for several years (with a couple of breaks due to work obligations).

I’m typing this on an Arch Linux system that I built myself from scratch.

Some of you may have tried Linux before and had a bad experience.

I was one of those people too.

I always had problems with sound, screen sharing and running video games in the past.

These problems taught me a ton about Linux, but prevented me to make the switch completely.

Things have improved significantly over the past few years.

Wayland now ships by default on many distributions. (Don’t worry if you don’t know what that means yet).

Even on Arch Linux I never have problems sharing my screen anymore.

And video games? Steam handles most of that automatically out of the box.

Honestly, using Linux is a completely smooth experience now.

Sovereignty: You Should Control Your Own Computer

When you switch to Linux, you regain control over your computer.

There is no forced account creation with a big-tech company.

There is no telemetry. You don’t have to jump through 100 hoops to disable all the spyware.

There are no ads in your start menu and no expiration dates.

There is no “app store” and you can finally download programs again and run them as you please.

Running Linux is what using a computer should feel like: you’re in control of the software on a device YOU own, without any expiration dates.

This is the path towards digital autonomy.

Knowing Linux Will Make You Money

Most of the important computers in the world are powered by Linux.

This means that there are a lot of jobs that require you to know Linux.

If you want a job in tech, having Linux skills will benefit the following roles:

• Software Engineer
• System Administrator
• DevOps Engineer
• Cloud Engineer
• Platform Engineer
• AI Engineer
• Infrastructure Engineer

These roles generally command six-figure salaries and enable you to work remotely.

Linux Is The Path To Autonomy

I truly believe that mastering Linux opens the gateway to an autonomous life.

Running botfarms on Linux servers taught me the skills I needed to land my first tech job.

Now I make multiple six figures and I can travel through Europe in my camper van while doing work I love.

I know how to operate and manage my computer on a deep level, and how to host open source software.

Now I encourage you to reflect on your current situation.

Do you dislike your current job?

Do you wish to work from home?

Do you wish you had the skills to achieve true autonomy, but you don’t know where to begin?

If you answered ‘yes’ to any of the above, you should check out KubeCraft by clicking here.

KubeCraft is where I teach the Craft of the Kubernetes Engineer, which hundreds of my students have used to land well-paying remote tech jobs.

But landing the job is the first step towards autonomy. Next we’ll work on your digital sovereignty and how to move from salaried worker to independent business owner.

I’ve walked the path and built a complete system that others can use to achieve the same.

An Autonomous Life in Work, Software and Mind.

But even if you’re not ready for that transformation yet, here’s what you must do:

Do Not Run Windows 10

The main thing I want you to take away from this newsletter is:

Do Not Run Windows 10

If you do, you are choosing to run an operating system that lacks security updates.

As soon as a breach is found, hackers will exploit it and they will steal your data.

My advice is to switch to Linux, and here’s how I can help you with that:

You can get my free guide about learning Linux by clicking here.

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This newsletter was very different than my usual content.

It took me 12 hours to research and write, but I enjoyed going deeper than usual.

If you liked this style and if you want me to do more of it, please reply to this email so I can get a sense of your thoughts.

I read all of them.

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Stay safe, and strive for autonomy,

Mischa

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P.S. My DevOps career was the gateway to a remote and autonomous life. With the right skills you can go from a salaried job to making multiple six figures as a freelancer in a few years. I did the same. Join KubeCraft and build the life of your dreams. You can do it.