Windows 10: the Last Version of Windows?

Windows 10 will be the last major version of Microsoft's operating system.

Microsoft's developer evangelist Jerry Nixon made the announcement at the company's Ignite conference in Chicago last week.

"Right now we're releasing Windows 10, and because Windows 10 is the last version of Windows, we're all still working on Windows 10," he said. But don't let his comments freak you out — Windows isn't going away — far from it.

Microsoft is instead changing the way it distributes improvements for the operating system in the future. Instead of releasing a whole new version every few years, as it's done until now, Microsoft plans to improve Windows through regular updates.

"Recent comments at Ignite about Windows 10 are reflective of the way Windows will be delivered as a service bringing new innovations and updates in an ongoing manner, with continuous value for our consumer and business customers," a Microsoft spokesperson told PCMag.

This jibes with Microsoft's recent announcement that it's killing off Patch Tuesday in favor of pushing out patches to Windows 10 users as soon as they're ready, on a 24/7 basis.

At this point, it's unclear whether Microsoft plans to keep the Windows 10 moniker forever, though. The company does have a history of making frequent and sometimes unpopular name changes.

"We aren't speaking to future branding at this time, but customers can be confident Windows 10 will remain up-to-date and power a variety of devices from PCs to phones to Surface Hub to HoloLens and Xbox," the spokesperson said today. "We look forward to a long future of Windows innovations."