Live data from Hacker News

Useless Windows 10 Features

howtogeek.com

231–240 of 437 posts

Re: Useless Windows 10 Features

#231
post #4

It’s hard to believe how despite all the telemetry, Microsoft still manages to be so out of touch with their users’ actual needs. It’s almost like there’s a hidden agenda somewhere.

If the telemetry says that many people use these features, are Microsoft out of touch? These are features we don’t use. But other people might. My dad rang me once said that when playing solitaire it kept playing ads. I said he can buy it so the ads go away or find another app that doesn’t have ads. He’s like “ah what ever I’ll watch the ads”. He’s happy and content. Just wants solitaire.

I'm talking about the obviously stupid features like the people hub or Bing search in start menu interfering with local results the user actually wants. Telemetry should obviously show that nobody uses these features successfully right?

Re: Useless Windows 10 Features

#232

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"People need the option to buy the LTSB release of Windows 10" That's just fixing the symptoms rather than the cause. The real solution is for Microsoft to treat its customers with a bit more respect.

> The real solution is for Microsoft to treat its customers with a bit more respect. This company (like most other companies) operates out of greed, and that doesn't go well with respect. They're just trying to milk as much as they can from you.

You can make a profit and treat your customers well.

Re: Useless Windows 10 Features

#233

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's increasingly common everywhere on-line (and off-line). Companies consider advertising an additional revenue stream, and see no reason to not add it regardless of whether the product is paid for or distributed for free.

That doesn't vindicate adding ads to an OS used for business. Apple is able not to do it so why not Microsoft? Desktop OS != Mobile OS Desktop OS != some f website

Of course it doesn't. The cancer of advertising didn't spread to Apple's OS yet. Doesn't mean it won't, though.

Re: Useless Windows 10 Features

#234
post #18

I honestly think that the new tab/news/spam page in IE/Edge is (and has been, forever) the single biggest factor driving people to Chrome and Firefox. Every time you open it you’re greeted with all this complete junk, making the whole experience stuttering and slowing down your flow. I dread having to open IE on systems with no alternative just because it’s always so bad. Edge might actually be pretty good, but I wil…

Hush, you are disclosing the best kept competitive secret of browser wars.

Re: Useless Windows 10 Features

#235
post #38

In case people are really ambitious or adventurous and want to avoid all of this stuff completely, what Linux distro (or other open source OS) is currently trendiest/most useful/relevant? Is it still Ubuntu?

Using Manjaro right now, and it is probably the most straightforward no-nonsense Linux distribution I’ve ever used. (I’m using the xfce desktop version)

Most importantly, I’ve had the least driver issues with Manjaro. (Especially with NVIDIA gpus, which I’ve had nightmares with it on Ubuntu.) It also comes with a nice GUI program in which you can change between kernel versions and GPU drivers (open source or proprietary)

Re: Useless Windows 10 Features

#236
post #2

I agree with this article, but I think it can be summed up as, "People need the option to buy the LTSB release of Windows 10". Microsoft refuses to sell it to consumers. It is an enterprise only option (unless that has recently changed and I am not aware of it). I have one windows 7 machine for playing WoW and it will stay on 7 until I can get the LTSB release of Windows 10 and the ability to turn off 100% of the tel…

WoW works perfectly on linux with Proton, and installing it is as easy as getting Lutris and double clicking on WoW's icon.

WoW classic also works perfectly, if that's your thing.

Re: Useless Windows 10 Features

#237

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm reasonably sure Cortana is what displays the ads on the task bar. I've only seen them on others' home systems. I've absolutely seen ads on my start menu for Candy Crush and other MS Store games, but I shut them down with registry tweaks and the like.. > MS sees no practical reason to keep those games free. It's a removed feature that essentially all users expect to be present. Charging for something like that is…

> Charging for something like that is a good way to make unhappy customers. I don't mean to sound snobby but I have the feeling that people who are emotionally invested in playing solitaire on a PC are the ones who are least likely to uninstall windows on favour of Linux or equivalent

They may very well buy a Mac as their next computer.

Re: Useless Windows 10 Features

#238

In other news, I still cannot disable Windows update on the home edition. I've spent hours and hours and virtually every solution I can find other than giving MS more money to upgrade. Updates keep failing on my machine, which means it just tried again the next day and forces a restart, closing everything I have. Fails day after day after day. I'm not sure why, I frankly don't care. Just ridiculous how impossible it…

> Updates keep failing on my machine By any chance did you run some script or random "de-bloat" tool someone linked? Half of those break Windows Update and cause it to keep failing (either via setting permissions, host file changes, or registry alterations).

Exactly.

Re: Useless Windows 10 Features

#239
post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same here, but maybe the difference is that we install Windows 10 Pro whereas the author is a Windows 10 Home user? The article doesn't seem to state the version they are using. Most annoying is that there are a large number of little bits of functionality that phone home or send information out into the ether: Windows Defender and its submitting of samples, searching via the Windows button, Task Scheduled telemetry…

> maybe the difference is that we install Windows 10 Pro whereas the author is a Windows 10 Home user No, every installation of Windows 10 Pro I've seen had a start menu that was mostly ads (links to Candy Crush, Spotify, Office etc.) - I've also had the OS nag me about giving Edge a second chance. This is in Germany, in case the region matters, and I always deny all spyware as far as possible using the GUI.

    Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers | Remove-AppxPackage
This is the first thing I run on any Windows box I am forced to interact with.

Removes all the junk in the Start menu in one command.

Re: Useless Windows 10 Features

#240
post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Control panel items not showing in the start menu results anymore when you search is also in Win10 and it drives me crazy. It literally looks like the guys designing windows must be using a Mac themselves, or just aren’t computer guys. I just don’t get how things like than wouldn’t annoy them too. My guess is that decision making in large companies is so slow, so bureaucratic, that everyone has given up on shipping a…

> It literally looks like the guys designing windows must be using a Mac themselves, or just aren’t computer guys. Or maybe they're trying to kill the Control Panel all together and switch everyone to the new Settings app, but are aware that doing so immediately would lead to a lot of complaints? So they have both, while slowly nudging you towards using the Settings app so you wouldn't be too angry when you wake up o…

Except that until the functionalities of the control panel have been replicated in the new settings, we still need a way to access the control panel. Hiding those functionalities from search in between just doesn't make sense at all.
Post reply on HN