Are you a Windows 1 in 10 (1809)? Or a mighty 80 percenter (1803)?

With the next release of Windows 10 edging closer, users continue to steer clear of Microsoft's October 2018 update.

Figures published by ad slinger AdDuplex show that the Update of the Damned, aka the Windows 10 October 2018 Update, has dribbled its way onto 12.4 per cent of Windows 10 PCs sold.

It's a far cry from the near hysterical rate at which the April 2018 Update was flung out, demonstrating just how cautious the software giant has become after the disastrous debut of Windows 10 build 1809 back in October. Back in the day Microsoft claimed April's effort saw "higher satisfaction numbers" and "fewer known issues" due to its AI boffinry.

Clearly those AI brains rebelled, as Microsoft hurriedly pulled the follow-up, the October 2018 Update, as problems (including a data deletion bug) surfaced.

The update was re-released on 13 November accompanied by a blog post heavy on excuses but strangely light on words like "sorry".

The update was initially only available to users willing to say "1809" five times in front of a mirror click the "Check for Updates" button, and at the end of November accounted for a paltry 2.8 per cent of Windows 10 installations. By the end of year the figure had crept up to 6.6 per cent. Microsoft has now started pushing the code to users with devices its AI thinks can stand the heat and installations have nearly doubled to a mighty 12.4 per cent.

The figures are based on the tracking of apps that are part of the AdDuplex network but are a handy pointer to where things are in the absence of official statistics from Microsoft.

19H1, aka the Windows 10 April 2019 Update, is likely to hit in a matter of months. While it would be nice to pretend that 1809 never happened, the Update of the Damned has been slapped with the Long Term Servicing Branch (LTSB) moniker, meaning it will hang around for another 10 years.

(Confusing as it is, the Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC/LTSB 2019 edition is based on the 1809 build, and has extended support to January 2029. Support for the 1809 build of Windows 10 Home, Pro, and Pro for Workstation editions runs out in May 2020, and May 2021 for Enterprise and Education flavors.)

Still, those confident October tweets of the Windows Insider team could always use the company for the next decade. ®