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Windows 10: should I or shouldn't I?


ComputerGuy

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Like I said earlier, I'll be looking at Apple next year.

You could put Ubuntu or Mint (or any other Linux) on your current computer and not have to worry about what Microsoft may do next. They're free to try and free to keep, attractive interface and no less user friendly than Windows or Mac. This would not be a good project for someone who struggles to create files, attach photos, change browser settings, etc., fine for everybody else.

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Computer pros we know are offering cautions about how Windows 10 opens up a number of privacy problems and consumes bandwidth. Details and solutions at:

Tip — Installing Windows 10‬? Fix 35+ Privacy Issues With Just One Click

...

Sadly, Windows 10 Is Stealing Your Bandwidth 'By Default' — Disable It Immediately

... It seems that it's worth applying some fixes to Windows 10 before using it - as hackers are busy exposing more problems every day.


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I have never seen such an uproar from Windows users about a new release. Well, not since Microsoft Bob... but that was mostly jeers. These security and bandwidth issues are popping up all over the place. I will try to explain:

Privacy issues: Microsoft implemented a "forced email" situation with Windows 8, meaning when you first booted a new Windows 8 PC, you were told to sign in with your Microsoft account. This was not an actual requirement to use W8, but MS certainly made it look that way. Getting past that requirement is rather tricky. The upshot was, while you could now sign in quickly to OneDrive (cloud) and the App store, MS was also collecting tons more information about your computer and Internet use than ever before.

This now extends to Cortana, MS's answer to Siri. Just about everything you do, you've agreed to let them harvest your information. I find this rather unsettling, in a "corporations take over the world" kind of way. So, the JustOneClick program, and others like DoNotSpy, are trying to help us avoid all this invasiveness. At this point, I haven't seen much from the rational Web, about which settings are important and which are simply paranoia... and further, what will happen on an aggragate level if you just switch everything off.

Bandwidth: in this particular case, MS decided that for you to get your updates faster, they would implement a file-sharing system. Without getting too technical, it means when you get an update, it isn't coming just from them: it's coming from everyone else online who has the update already. Picture your computer being connected to hundreds of others. It's a good technology, and works. However...

Your computer also becomes one of the network connections, and others are pulling from you. No, they can't get into your computer files or email this way; that's not the worry. My personal opinion is if you don't tell me that you're doing this, then you're invading my privacy. I need to sign up for this. I need to be TOLD FIRST and asked if this is what I want. Secondly, when others are uploading from my computer, they are taking away my Internet bandwidth. This can potentially slow you down when you're on the Internet for email, Googling, or anything else. And that's another reason we should be asked first.

Stay tuned as this develops.

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The bandwidth issue is very disturbing. I have to download anything of consequence, including updates, overnight, because I can't do anything else online at the same time. I live in SAT and, on a good day, have a Speedtest rating of D-... have go to Africa to find worse ... rating. Just because of the bandwidth issues, I always disable file sharing.

This just sounds bad.

In the article Snowyco linked on bandwidth, MS claims the torrent style distribution is to help people with lousy bandwidth. I'm shaky on the tech here, but that sounds counter intuitive. Isn't it more likely to be a cheap way to push out their upgrade?

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In the article Snowyco linked on bandwidth, MS claims the torrent style distribution is to help people with lousy bandwidth. I'm shaky on the tech here, but that sounds counter intuitive. Isn't it more likely to be a cheap way to push out their upgrade?

Yes. While it can help with lousy bandwidth, it can also hinder because of the corresponding uploads. I minimize my own torrent uploads' bandwidths to help alleviate this, but you can't do the same with Microsoft's plan. The tools ben gmentioned claim t ohelp with this, but I have not yet had a chance to test them. Partly because I won't have W10 on my personal or work computers for a while yet. I will try to test with my W10 test laptop.

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I am playing with Windows 10 on a laptop I seldom use for now. Can't get MagicJack to work but Skype seems OK. There is currently no support for the MJ problem - seems to have trouble with the audio drivers.

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You'll need to check your Startup files, your various browser add-ons, your anti-virus tool, your network settings (to see if it is always searching for networks, in File Manager), Windows Updates, your hibernate and sleep file sizes, how much room is left on your C: drive, and a variety of other things that can thrash your disk. Also, start in Safe Mode and see if it happens when all your third-party drivers are off.

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Windows 10 news: just days after Windows 10 was launched, Microsoft had to release a bunch of patches (called KB 3081424) to correct some serious problems being reported by users. For many users, the patch would not install properly, and computers went into an endless reboot cycle.

Now this week, they released another set of patches (KB3011436), partly to repair the damage that the first set of patches had caused. However, this patch has caused many PCs to suffer the same problem as the first patch. Understandably, users are now a tad leery about any updates. The problem is, unless you have the highest-end versions of W10, updates with patches are mandatory. (unless you like to hack around in Windows at the expert level, where there are ways to prevent updates).

More reading: http://www.infoworld.com/article/2970853/microsoft-windows/windows-10-patch-kb-3081436-triggers-endless-reboots-just-like-its-predecessor-kb-3081424.html

http://www.infoworld.com/article/2970172/microsoft-windows/block-forced-windows-10-updates-using-a-metered-connection.html

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A third set of patches was released a few days ago, to try and repair all the other patches. That's three full major patches. Also yesterday, a Preview build was released for users on The Insiders program, which anyone can become a part of. According to the Microsoft blog about it, it's mostly fiddly stuff; says nothing about repairs. However, all new versions always include all previous repairs, and it has been noted many, many times through the years that MS will also use the opportunity to slip in other fixes. You can read about it here: https://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/08/18/announcing-windows-10-insider-preview-build-10525/

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A third set of patches was released a few days ago, to try and repair all the other patches. That's three full major patches. Also yesterday, a Preview build was released for users on The Insiders program, which anyone can become a part of. According to the Microsoft blog about it, it's mostly fiddly stuff; says nothing about repairs. However, all new versions always include all previous repairs, and it has been noted many, many times through the years that MS will also use the opportunity to slip in other fixes. You can read about it here: https://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/08/18/announcing-windows-10-insider-preview-build-10525/

Thanks for the warning about the bogus emails. I had at least three sitting in my email box unopened, so they went to email oblivion today.

Is it safe to assume that the little box that pops up on the screen about Windows 10 is legit? However, I'm not planning to install it until AFTER all the fixes, for certain.

Speaking of scams, when I turned on the computer today, a screen popped up from someone in the Ukraine wanting a ten dollar contribution for installing a translator and other programs. Weird. Where is this stuff coming from?

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The little Windows white box that sits on the lower right of the screen, in the tasbar, is the legit thing. At least until someone figures out how to scam that.

It is very hard to get "real" information about where all this spyware crap comes from. Yahoo will tell you they broke into your computer via the network to steal your contacts, and yet there is absolutely no trace on the PC that anything has happened. I suspect hackers are breaking into Yahoo's servers, and they are too chicken-poop to admit it.

Flash, which runs almost all the Internet's animations, videos and soundtracks, has become a huge problem. It's full of security holes. That's where I think the majority of hackers are getting the junk onto our machines. We run something on a perfectly legit website, and meantime some nasty code comes flying down the pike. There's no indication it's happening, and it probably doesn't do any damage until the machine is rebooted. That's why Adobe is constantly sending out updates, which are a HUGE pain, but are now absolutely necessary. I used to tell people to ignore them unless a site specifically requested the later version, but now I must admonish users to always update Flash if it asks you too... to help prevent this scumware taking over your life.

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30 Day Windows Experiment Lasts Only a Week.

Gee, I wish I could find some uplifting breaking news about Windows 10. (Meantime, a new build was released today for Windows, for the Insider Program, with bug fixes. (https://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/08/27/windows-10-insider-preview-build-10532-for-pc/) The big news? They use the phrase "consistency" issues instead of "inconsistency", lol.

This story is from a Windows expert, who wanted to give W10 a month of daily use... but could not. http://windowssecrets.com/top-story/thirty-day-win10-experiment-lasts-only-a-week/

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