The tips, ads, and recommendations you see will be more generic and may be less relevant to you.
And this is treated as a bad thing?!
The number of ads you see won’t change, but they may be less relevant to you.
Send only info about your device, its settings and capabilities, and whether it is performing properly.
In other words, even after turning off all the settings, your data still gets collected.
The rest of the installation process wasn’t fun either. It was worded in this weird, condescending tone, like “Let’s get everything set up for you”, and “Let Cortana help you get things done!”.
Thank goodness for FLOSS and GNU/Linux.
Wait until you get to the screen that asks you if you want to share your data with their 300 friends.
(we will share your data regardless of your choice :/ )
Its nice to be asked tho lol
If linux had all these settings on installation everyone would be saying that it’s to hard for normies to install
Piholing the windows telemetry domains helps some. But yeah, you aren’t wrong.
Personally I’m using: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/d43m0nhLInt3r/socialblocklists/master/Windows/windowstelemetryblocklist.txt
But that update date gives me some pause, so someone correct me please.
I currently use the nextdns list (as well as all of their other native tracking lists):
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nextdns/native-tracking-domains/main/domains/windows
You don’t strictly need a PiHole. You can also import a giant
hostsfile.PiHole if you want it network-wide (also covers mobile devices and TVs) -
hostsfile if you only need to modify one machine.It’s a great piece of software.
Shoutout to the PiHole team!
thanks for the link!
Yeah, Windows sucks. I recommend the LTSC version for minimized tracking. But even then, I had to use third-party software and hacks to minimize it further. I don’t ever plan to go back after switching to Linux.
What’s that
LTSC is the enyerprise/business version that have extended period for patches with less bloat. It’s similar to LTS with Ubuntu.
LTSC sounds great or else there must be something like MicroXP for windows 10/11 where someone has debloated it down to the bare bones.
@BananaOnionJuice @Neon_Shadow Tiny11 is a project where windows 11 has been stripped down to the absolute barebones, there may still be some telemetry that needs to be disabled (O&O shutup is good for that). It’s designed to work on older machines with as little as 4gb ram, so it would be perfect for running in a VM, in fact that’s what I’m planning to do.
This is most people’s reaction to using Windows for any reason.
Removed by mod
Yeah, those granpas asking me to fix their machines are like, “and, what do we do with my OneDrive which I don’t understand what it is?”
Let’s narrow it down to normal ppl :) 'Cause those having nothing to hide are enabling enshitification.
Yea, it’s really shitty.
Enterprise folks don’t have this problem because they use the WAIK (or whatever it’s called now) to customize the installer.
Anyone can use it, and from what I’ve read, the Win10 generation of the kit is much easier to use than previous versions (which were pretty bad).
But yea, this stuff is awful.
Checkout things like WinDebloat, Privatezilla, Winaero Tweaker, and LoveWindowsAgain. There’s some overlap between them (as they were built for different purposes), but they all pretty much kill telemetry at the service or installed level (as in remove the components providing telemetry).
Yea, it’s BS you have to do this. And screw MS for this crap.
I think the pro version doesn’t have most of this too. I’ve never seen an ad in w10 and 11
They don’t show explicit banner ads or anything, but every now and then there will be links to “recommended software” in your start menu’s app drawer or the notification thing in the bottom right (not the taskbar, that foldable drawer thing).
You can disable those as well, but not by default.
Candy crush is what they put as “recommended software” if I remember correctly.
I had this on my first installation a few years ago, but then never again. I’m using Pro.
LTSB or LTSR I forget which. Toss some classic shell in there, boom, Win 10 like you remember Win 7 was like. Too bad they fucked up 11 so bad I switched to Ubuntu.
It’s LTSC (Long Term Service Channel) nowadays - It’s the LTS version of Windows 10. Fewer updates, more stability of your OS in general. It’s neat!
No Windows Store by default, but it’s possible to install that separate, should you really need it.
Only issue is some software won’t install the longer the LTSC version is out.
First time?
Not to mention being forced to create a MS account if you’re online.
Even if offline…
But It can be bypassed with dodging and weaving (shift+(some button) the bypass command thingie…)
Safe to say that normal people won’t be casually bypassing it
With win10 you should be able to click the small text to get a local account but yeah I think with newer win11 installers you have to be off the internet for a local account. And then when you do log in with your MS account to save your license (important when using a Win7 OEM key to license win10) it would convert your profile to online, and then you had to “do steps” to put it back to local. Annoying af
When installing Windows 11, say you want to log in with your Microsoft account, then when it asks for email address and password enter a@a.com and any random password. It will say the account has been deactivated and let you create a local account. No need to be offline.
Not on Win10 and you can get around it on Win11
I love the “Let’s finish setting up your device” popup that prevents me from using my VMs regularly.
Like some condescending peddler trying to slam-dunk your agreement as a foregone conclusion.
Come on, buddy, let’s do those remaining tasks, let’s have Microsoft scan your face, tell Microsoft about your phone, let’s go and install those Microsoft apps on your phone, too, and then we finally buy that Office subscription and store your important files on Microsoft’s server and we should really get around with switching to Microsoft’s web browser.
And the only option you get is “Yes” or “Remind me later.”
If you turn it off (and it needs to be turned off in two places), it’ll be back on as soon as Microsoft publishes the tiniest update to any of its unwanted services. Harrghrrr! (artery popping sounds follow)
Turn off “Offer Tips and Tricks to finish setting up this device” ( At least for me that was permanent. Otherwise you might use something like O&O shut up 10, also the setting is per user )
Yes, I do that on all my VMs about every 3-5 weeks when it turns itself on again.
ShutUp10 is the GOAT.
I remember installing Windows XP. sigh.
I had one of the 23 machines in the world that ran Windows ME flawlessly. :(
I was lucky if everything worked. Usually it had troubles with peripherals, network, or even the USB drive it was on. But none (?) of this crap.
I still don’t get why people keep defending it. Win+e doesn’t even open to a panel that lets me open the c drive without clicking other shit and waiting for it to appear first. An update also just put the search bar back on the task bar when I explicitly disabled it as soon as I got through the bad default options for days during the install. It also added copilot. Auto update is also supposed to be disabled.
While I’m at it fuck every dev that uses libraries/framework/etc that is known to not work in wine. There are thousands of better ways to be a shitty dev.
The only reason I don’t completely despise Windows is because it, along with Mac OS, has made computing available for the masses. The average person doesn’t have the time to learn how to use a computer. They just want to use it. That in my subjective opinion is a good thing. A very strong, and valid argument could be made that it’s a faustian bargain, probably because it is.
Yeah. I’ve been wanting to adopt Linux as a daily driver, but unfortunately there are programs that simply aren’t made for anything other than Windows/Mac. I seriously do hope programmers start investing more in software for Linux so that I can make the switch permanently.
See if the software is compatible with Wine, a compatiblity layer for Windows software to run on Linux.
I still don’t get why people keep defending it.
With microsoft being the most valuated company in the world rest assured that many of the people defending their products are getting paid to do it.
PR team hard at work.
Win+e doesn’t even open to a panel that lets me open the c drive without clicking other shit and waiting for it to appear first.
I have been seriously considering creating a “graphical registry editor” that would be feature-focused and could be both portable (for one-off application) and installable (for constant on-login resetting of any changed preferences). Just open it up, browse the offerings, select the feature mods you want, apply and restart.
There is a lot of File Explorer shit that you can do to mod it back to WinXP days. Had to do this to a Win11 install for my Octogenarian father who has become very intolerant of unexpected changes, and while it needs regular maintenance to “keep”, it has worked out well for him.
Every time I have to install Windows, even in VMs I install Atlas with it, getting rid of all bloat and unnecessary shit. But even with that it’s a horrible experience compared to what KDE and Gnome deliver.
This is why if I ever have to get win10 on a VM on my laptop, I am absolutely not updating, ever. Not even gonna give that VM Internet access. Anything I’d need it for, I can passthrough a thumb drive with the files I need. I would hope to God they don’t have a way to hoover up data without internet connection and with no macrohard account connected.
If you have any basic computer skills it’s really not an issue. You can turn off pretty much anything. I can’t remember the last time I saw an ad within Windows tbh.
This is just fearmongering at its worst. It’s like me saying Linux is only for IT companies running servers because it’s unusable for a normal person as the UI is janky and it’s all code based.
Shows gun “Can I please borrow your money?”
“H…how much?”
“Not a lot, just 5 billion”
Same vibe.
“You can also opt out, and only have to give me 1 billion.”
