Microsoft: Still a Thing

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Thad
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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Thad » Thu Mar 19, 2015 1:45 pm

Now MS PR is hemming and hawing a bit about the free upgrade for pirates.

If a device was considered non-genuine or mislicensed prior to the upgrade, that device will continue to be considered non-genuine or mislicensed after the upgrade.


The Ars article asks the pointed question, "what does that even mean?" MS isn't saying yet. Maybe it'll work for awhile and then expire or something. I hope they're not foolish enough to try the "you can't get security patches if it's pirated" trick again.

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Thad » Fri Mar 20, 2015 3:53 pm

OEM's no longer have to include an option to disable Secure Boot.

I'm STILL trying to figure out how to get my wife's computer to boot from fucking USB, so this is not exactly welcome news.

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Thad » Fri May 01, 2015 1:34 am

Mobile Windows 10 to have a compatibility layer for Android apps. It's not 100% compatible with the API's, but it's something.

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Esperath » Fri May 15, 2015 12:11 am

pisa katto

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pisa katto

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Caithness » Tue May 26, 2015 10:19 pm

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Mongrel » Tue May 26, 2015 10:28 pm

I'd be more surprised if those things STOPPED getting made at this point.
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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Caithness » Tue May 26, 2015 10:48 pm

I just think it's kinda hilarious that Microsoft is taking the initiative in commissioning them instead of waiting for the inevitable fan-created one.

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Lyrai » Tue May 26, 2015 11:22 pm

A BABY OGRE wrote:I just think it's kinda hilarious that Microsoft is taking the initiative in commissioning them instead of waiting for the inevitable fan-created one.


This way they can control the aspects of her, instead of waiting for fans to create one who's defining characteristic is "crashes into things and ruins your happiness"

Like Windows ME-Tan

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby patito » Tue May 26, 2015 11:32 pm

That's why ME-tan is so endearing though, unlike these corporate sponsored ones.

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Mongrel » Tue May 26, 2015 11:35 pm

I suspect the fans will just draw comics with this as a visual model but still doing whatever dingbat shit it is Win10 does.
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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Büge » Wed May 27, 2015 11:57 am

"O-onii-san, I'm sorry I lost your files!"
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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Mothra » Thu May 28, 2015 9:56 am

Yeah if ME-tan was just adorably clumsy and forgetful we would probably be pretty forgiving of the ol' tyke

The future of QA is optimizing user sympathy

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Esperath » Mon Jun 01, 2015 12:31 am

Just got a Windows 10 upgrade button on my taskbar. You click it and "reserve" a download for when it's available. It'll automatically download and then you can install whenever.
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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Esperath » Mon Jun 01, 2015 12:35 am

pisa katto

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pisa katto

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Mongrel » Mon Jun 01, 2015 10:49 am

I've got it too now.
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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Thad » Sat Jun 13, 2015 9:08 pm

Installing the latest Windows 10 build right now.

Brentai wrote:Apparently it's entirely possible and not a hack or anything to run Windows 10 without a Microsoft account, but it's still grossly buried under the option to create an account.


If that was the case in a previous build, it's not in the current one; there's a "Skip this step" option clearly visible right underneath the option to register. I mean, it is technically under the option to create an account, but I wouldn't call it grossly buried.



ETA: Well this is new: Windows 10 correctly detects my graphics card, installs the correct drivers, and sets the resolution correctly, all by itself.
...actually installing the latest drivers from nVidia fucks everything up and leaves you with a shitty default graphics driver (and, in my case, no working audio), so I would recommend not doing that if you're running the preview. Presumably this will be fixed by release next month.

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Thad » Sat Jun 20, 2015 1:22 pm

According to Ars, the free upgrade program now includes the preview release. So if you're, say, running a Windows version that might not be legit and you're not sure if it'll work with the upgrade, or if you're planning on doing a new build anyway, or what-have-you, it sounds like you can head on over and download the preview release, install it now, and upgrade to full next month. (And then you can either stay with the stable release or continue to get updates from the testing rings.)

Caveat: apparently you can't do it with an offline account; you HAVE to sync your login with a Microsoft account.

But I don't see what's to stop you from creating a one-off account with an MS login, using it to connect once, and then either deleting that user from your system outright or just leaving it sitting there unused in case you ever need it again.

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Thad » Mon Jun 22, 2015 10:07 pm

Or not.

Microsoft clarification kinda clears up free Windows 10 license confusion:

Beyond that, Windows 10 users are split into two camps. The first camp is made of those who want to remain in the Windows Insider program. The Insider program will continue after July 29, and Microsoft will continue to use it for beta testing and soliciting end-user feedback. Anyone who sticks with the program will continue to receive a steady series of activated, genuine operating system releases. As with any other Microsoft beta, these updates will be timebombed; after several months, they'll expire. But new versions will be provided long before those timers ever hit.

The second camp is the one that wants to opt out of the Insider program and stick with the stable release on July 29. This group will need a valid Windows 7, 8, or 10 license. Without a suitable license, the operating system will eventually expire. If the Insider builds were installed as an upgrade to Windows 7 or 8, they'll remain activated once they switch to RTM. Microsoft hasn't said what the story is if a clean installation of Windows 10 is performed; we imagine that there will be some way of entering a suitable license key to satisfy the operating system that it's suitably licensed.

Functionally, this creates a way for people to use Windows 10 forever without paying. They just have to stay in the Insider program and make sure to keep their systems updated so they never hit the expiration. But if you want a stable release build, you'll need to either have a qualifying Windows 7 or 8 license or pay for a Windows 10 license, with no backdoor route to getting one for free.

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Thad » Fri Jul 17, 2015 12:18 am

RTM is go and rolling out to some of the testers running the preview release. Not all at once -- oddly, my living room computer saw the update (and installed it automatically without fucking asking me; I am going to have to figure out how to disable this "feature") but my office computer didn't. I mean, I understand them spacing the updates out so their servers don't melt, but one of the features of Win10 is that once you download an update once, you can install it over your LAN instead of having to hit their servers again, and it seems like that should have triggered for the other computers in the hosue. (At least the one already running an earlier version of Win10.)

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Re: Microsoft: Still a Thing

Postby Thad » Mon Aug 03, 2015 4:42 pm

David Auerbach's got a good piece on Slate about Windows 10's crappy default privacy settings and how to fix them. I'd figured out about half of them on my own (the obvious ones; not tying your login to an MS account and disabling the Start menu's internet search "feature") but the other half were a lot less discoverable.

tl;dr you're going to want to go to Settings -> Privacy Settings and click through each and every single menu there to see what all Microsoft is sharing and disable the stuff you'd rather they not share.

And while I've stated in the past that I think MS's automatic LAN sharing of updates is a great idea, what I didn't know was that by default it's Internet sharing of updates, which is almost certainly something you don't want. (My immediate reaction to this was "Oh, so THAT'S why my Internet connection has sucked for the past month," but that's probably unrelated; while there have been a few times I've experienced slowdown, checked my bandwidth, and seen a mystery upload, most of the time when my connection is bad I don't see anything getting in or out. So it's probably the usual "Cox is terrible (but still maybe the least terrible ISP)" reason.)

There's a lot to like about Windows 10, but usual "wait for the service pack" cautions apply. You've got a year to get your free upgrade; if you don't have a reason to rush, then the first rule of Tautology Club. If you do upgrade, though, you should probably read that article.

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