Topic: The future of MS Windows (Read 41221 times)

cesium133 · « **Reply #100 on:** 01 Sep 2015, 08:24 »

Something that might be of interest to people who are sticking with Windows 7 or 8: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/09/01/microsoft_backports_data_slurp_to_windows_78_via_patches/

(If you've installed Windows 10, you already have this installed...)

bhtooefr · « **Reply #101 on:** 07 Oct 2015, 06:22 »

Microsoft unveils Lumia 950, 950 XL, 550, Band 2, Surface Pro 4, and Surface Book.

Masterpiece · « **Reply #102 on:** 07 Oct 2015, 12:23 »

The Surface book looks fucken sick.

hedgie · « **Reply #103 on:** 09 Oct 2015, 01:32 »

Fine. I'll admit it. That *does* look like some pretty nice kit.

cesium133 · « **Reply #104 on:** 09 Oct 2015, 05:43 »

For $1500, I definitely would expect it to be nice.

cesium133 · « **Reply #105 on:** 13 Mar 2016, 18:19 »

Microsoft keeps getting slimier and slimier about getting people to switch to Windows 10...

http://www.infoworld.com/article/3042155/microsoft-windows/windows-patch-kb-3139929-when-a-security-update-is-not-a-security-update.html

If it weren't for things like this, I might have switched (when I had a spare long weekend to fuck around with all the crap that inevitably goes wrong when upgrading an operating system), but if Microsoft is going to insert things like this into security patches, forget about it.

ankhtahr · « **Reply #106 on:** 30 Mar 2016, 12:03 »

So apparently Microsoft (after becoming part of OpenSSH) decided that the easiest way to use SSH on Windows would be implementing an interlayer which redirects syscalls (basically reverse Wine) and porting most of the Ubuntu userspace. Which allows you to run (almost) any Linux binary on Windows. It gives you a working bash. It gives you apt-get. On Windows.

Holy hell.

Most news outlets currently only focus on bash, but this means so much more.

http://blog.dustinkirkland.com/2016/03/ubuntu-on-windows.html

pwhodges · « **Reply #107 on:** 31 Mar 2016, 01:57 »

Quote from: cesium133 on 13 Mar 2016, 18:19

Microsoft keeps getting slimier and slimier about getting people to switch to Windows 10...

http://www.infoworld.com/article/3042155/microsoft-windows/windows-patch-kb-3139929-when-a-security-update-is-not-a-security-update.html

I'm amused that after telling us how bad this behaviour is, that blog then asks readers for an example because the author hasn't been able to trigger it.

SubaruStephen · « **Reply #108 on:** 31 Mar 2016, 22:30 »

My old PC is still running Vista. How long do you think it'll be before MS forces my computer to upgrade to Windows X?

Because I'm fairly certain that the hardware won't handle it and I'll have to buy a new PC.

Tova · « **Reply #109 on:** 31 Mar 2016, 23:59 »

I could be mistaken, but I was under the impression that Windows 10 is more likely to run well on old hardware than Vista, not less.

pwhodges · « **Reply #110 on:** 01 Apr 2016, 01:00 »

MS won't force an upgrade to Vista any more than they did to XP; they just might try to sell you an upgrade, I suppose.

BenRG · « **Reply #111 on:** 01 Apr 2016, 02:05 »

As far as I can tell, MS isn't so clumsy as to actually force an unwilling customer to update to Win10. That would be just stupid and probably a suicidal move for the company. No, they're more subtle than that. They have 'update now' windows appear where the only two options that appear are 'Update Now' or 'Download Now and Update Later'. You can cancel the update by just closing the windows using the Red-X button in the top right corner but most end users don't have that level of familiarity with the Windows UI. This leads your average end user to think that Microsoft is giving them no choice but to upgrade, hence the grumbles.

There is also the indirect coercion that I'm experiencing to upgrade from Office 2010 to Office 360. Microsoft cleverly implemented an on-line help database with Windows 2007. Help articles were no longer on your HDD but on MS's servers and accessed via the Internet. Then, a few weeks ago, all the help files for all versions except Office 360 were relocated and replaced by a redirect to an advert page for Office 360. This means that, if you have any version of MS Office after 2007, you no longer have detailed help files available without a long, exhausting and far from success-guaranteed search through the Internet via Google or some other search engine. The articles still exist but are in MS's archives as well as a few lesser-known mirror sites.

Microsoft didn't become virtually a monopoly through clumsy bully-boy tactics (at least not with end users; integrators and resellers are another matter entirely). They instead cynically exploit the average person's lack of technical literacy, confusion and fear instead. In some ways, that's worse.

bhtooefr · « **Reply #112 on:** 01 Apr 2016, 08:17 »

Actually, for a few days, they were automatically upgrading machines to Windows 10, and then downgrading back if you declined the EULA.

Kugai · « **Reply #113 on:** 01 Apr 2016, 12:26 »

I'm pretty happy with 10 on my Laptop here. Haven't had any issues with it myself and it seems to work OK.

As for Orifice, I get those 'Try Office 360' messages occasionally, but for me I prefer to sitck with Open Office.

Tova · « **Reply #114 on:** 03 Apr 2016, 01:10 »

My Mum is not the most computer-literate person out there, but last time I was over, she told me that she was about to shut down her laptop to take it somewhere and discovered Windows 10 was in the middle of installing. I've no idea whether it installed without her consent or whether she accepted a Windows 10 upgrade unwittingly.

So maybe not force, but they are pushing it pretty hard.

Grognard · « **Reply #115 on:** 03 Apr 2016, 21:34 »

they're pushing it harder than a coke dealer on a slow day.

AND they're using 'security' patches to further the WinX blasphemy.

Sorflakne · « **Reply #116 on:** 05 May 2016, 11:01 »

Quote

No, they're more subtle than that. They have 'update now' windows appear where the only two options that appear are 'Update Now' or 'Download Now and Update Later'. You can cancel the update by just closing the windows using the Red-X button in the top right corner but most end users don't have that level of familiarity with the Windows UI. This leads your average end user to think that Microsoft is giving them no choice but to upgrade, hence the grumbles.

I'm getting this popup almost daily now. I'll probably go ahead and do the update at the end of May, I just don't want to have to migrate all my files over to one of my external drives. Yes, I know the update isn't supposed to mess with your files and whatnot, but it's best to not trust stuff like that when changing your OS.

Grognard · « **Reply #117 on:** 07 May 2016, 20:22 »

I recently installed and HIGHLY RECOMMEND this app:

GWX Control Panel

takes care of the G-D windows popups.

cesium133 · « **Reply #118 on:** 07 May 2016, 20:26 »

Microsoft says they're going to stop in July. We'll see...

Grognard · « **Reply #119 on:** 07 May 2016, 20:37 »

let's hold our breath and lemme sell you a bridge I have in Brooklyn.

LTK · « **Reply #120 on:** 08 May 2016, 03:14 »

Ya know, they do want to start making money off Win10 at some point...

Storel · « **Reply #121 on:** 26 Jun 2016, 23:44 »

Okay, I have a Win8 laptop, and when I first got it I downloaded a shareware program called Classic Shell from IvoSoft to make it usable (i.e., give it a proper Start menu). I've heard that Win10 restores the Start menu, so before I upgrade to Win10, would you recommend that I uninstall Classic Shell? I'm concerned that it might interfere with Win10 otherwise.

pwhodges · « **Reply #122 on:** 27 Jun 2016, 01:02 »

Certainly with other start menu replacements (Start*, for instance) it is cleaner to uninstall before the upgrade. You may wish to install a Win10 equivalent, though, because the new start menu may still not be to your taste (it isn't to mine).

Storel · « **Reply #123 on:** 15 Jul 2016, 15:34 »

Quote from: pwhodges on 27 Jun 2016, 01:02

Certainly with other start menu replacements (Start*, for instance) it is cleaner to uninstall before the upgrade. You may wish to install a Win10 equivalent, though, because the new start menu may still not be to your taste (it isn't to mine).

Sorry for the belated reply; I rarely venture out of Comic Discussion, so I kept forgetting to check here for replies.

That's what I figured, thanks! I'll see what the new Start menu looks like before I decide to replace it. They've made substantial changes to it in the past that I've learned to live with; my main problem with Win8 was that it doesn't even HAVE a Start menu!

doombilly · « **Reply #124 on:** 03 Aug 2016, 13:16 »

Don't worry, with Windows10 your start menu will just stop working and you'll have to go through several fixes to get it back. Then it'll happen again.

Storel · « **Reply #125 on:** 28 Sep 2016, 21:30 »

Okay, I use headphones plugged into the jack on my laptop a lot of the time, so the sound from my computer doesn't bother my wife in the next room. My biggest annoyance with Windows 10 so far is that every time I accidentally or intentionally unplug or plug in the headphones (and they get accidentally unplugged a lot, with four cats around). it pops a message saying

Quote

Information
You just unplugged a device from the audio jack.
Realtek HD Audio Manager

or

Quote

Information
You just plugged a device into the audio jack.
Realtek HD Audio Manager

How can I turn this off?? It never used to notify me either way before I "upgraded" to Win10, and I liked it that way! The one when I plug it back in is especially annoying. I know I just plugged something in, it can't happen by accident!!

Win10 doesn't seem to have the Control Panel any more, but it does have something called Settings. I can't find anything in Settings that has anything to do with audio, though, and I can't find anything about the Realtek HD Audio Manager in any menu on the system. Anyone know how to kill this stupid notice?

Edit: Okay, I just discovered that you can bring up a lot of stuff related to the audio system if you right-click on the little speaker icon in the system tray -- the one that just lets you change the volume setting if you left-click it. Still can't find anything to disable those stupid notices, though.

bhtooefr · « **Reply #126 on:** 28 Sep 2016, 21:52 »

So is there another speaker icon in the notification area? Maybe a red one, or a diagonal gray one? This is what it looks like on my machine:

One problem is that this is so vendor-specific, so it may be called the Realtek HD Audio Manager, or it may be called something else entirely (Dell Audio on Dells, for instance).

You're looking for an audio manager that isn't the Windows one, and that has an option called "Display icon in notification area".

On my system, here's the option you're after:

Storel · « **Reply #127 on:** 28 Sep 2016, 23:01 »

Bingo! My icon looked the same as yours, but it comes up as "Dell Audio" and the settings window looks completely different. But it did have an option called "Display icon in notification area", and turning it off did kill the stupid notices! Yes, thank you!! If you're ever in San Francisco, let me know and I'll buy you a drink, or a coffee, or something like that.

Edit: However, it also stops showing that particular speaker icon in the systray (which is what I would expect that option to do, not turn off plugged/unplugged notices), so if I ever want to fiddle with any of the other options, I can't now.

bhtooefr · « **Reply #128 on:** 28 Sep 2016, 23:12 »

So, funny thing, the Control Panel still exists in Windows 10, but it's somewhat hidden. Just search for Control Panel, you'll find it. (I think if you search for Dell Audio, you'll find the control panel in question directly, too. I'd verify, but I don't have a modern Dell here, and I'm not at work (and I work for Dell, and run Windows 10 on my primary work machine, so you'd think I'd know this off the top of my head), so...)

Storel · « **Reply #129 on:** 28 Sep 2016, 23:17 »

Hah! Thanks again. That's two drinks I owe you now. One more hot tip and I'll have to buy you lunch.

Edit: And yes, searching for Dell Audio works too.

Edit 2: Ooh, ooh, after searching for Control Panel, if you right-click on what it brings up instead of double-clicking it, you can use the "Pin to Start" option! Now I don't have to search for it ever again! Hahaha! The world is mine, now!

Masterpiece · « **Reply #130 on:** 20 Oct 2016, 05:43 »

Reg the Control Panel, you can also find it if you right click on the Windows Button.

And the message you're seeing is just a notification your audio drivers are giving you, it's not default Windows behavior.

Masterpiece · « **Reply #131 on:** 20 Oct 2016, 05:44 »

...and that was twenty days ago. too late I presume.

Storel · « **Reply #132 on:** 31 Oct 2016, 02:23 »

Quote from: Masterpiece on 20 Oct 2016, 05:43

Reg the Control Panel, you can also find it if you right click on the Windows Button.

Ooh, nice! Thank you.

Quote from: Masterpiece on 20 Oct 2016, 05:43

And the message you're seeing is just a notification your audio drivers are giving you, it's not default Windows behavior.

Since it didn't start happening until I upgraded to Win10 -- and I hadn't made any changes to my audio drivers -- I had no way to know that until bhtooefr told me how to fix it. I don't know if the Win10 upgrade somehow updated my audio drivers, or if it simply reset a setting that had always defaulted to the opposite setting, but either way it certainly seems to be Win10's fault.

Quote from: Masterpiece on 20 Oct 2016, 05:44

...and that was twenty days ago. too late I presume.

Plus it had already been covered by bhtooefr, but thanks for responding!

Masterpiece · « **Reply #133 on:** 31 Oct 2016, 02:40 »

cheers

This post was sent from inside my phone!

bhtooefr · « **Reply #134 on:** 08 May 2017, 19:31 »

So, Microsoft's attempt to compete against Chromebooks in schools boils down to an edition of Windows that only allows Store applications to run, Windows 10 S.

There's talk of improved battery life with 10 S (due to the only running apps being ones that are aggressively killed/paused like in a modern mobile OS), faster logon (important for school computer cart usage), and improved security.

However, it was launched alongside the Surface Laptop, which is an... odd... decision. I feel like university students (the claimed intended market of the Surface Laptop) would really benefit far more from 10 Home or 10 Pro (although until the end of this year, there's a free upgrade to 10 Pro for Surface Laptop buyers), and 10 S is a SKU that really only makes sense for K-12 education. It almost feels like this is a device made specifically for dogfooding (much like the Chromebook Pixel), and if they sell some units, hey, that helps pay for it...

THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)

Author Topic: The future of MS Windows (Read 41221 times)