Doesn't running Windows 10 LTSC [0] solve like 90% of what these scripts try to accomplish but do so in an officially supported way.
[0] https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/whats-new/ltsc/
Reclaim Windows10
91–100 of 207 posts
Re: Reclaim Windows10
#92[deleted]
Re: Reclaim Windows10
#93Earlier quoted context omitted.
Thanks for the info; I've been concerned enough about Windows 10 telemetry (etc.) to avoid it, and when I saw this script I thought "ohhh maybe I can just do this?"--so you saved me. Do you have a rec or a resource? I haven't looked seriously at this so if it's just like "google it" mea culpa, but it seems like there's a lot of misinformation and what not out there. I saw "O&O ShutUp10" in a sibling thread?
I think I would think about specific Windows Telemetry that you want to disable and more importantly, why (i.e. "What's the Threat Model around Microsoft knowing this"). Because the vast majority of the telemetry collected by Windows is simply to make Windows work better - things like "Upgrade failed because $REASON" or "$DRIVER is causing performance problems". You can see a lot of the kinds of telemetry that Window…
Developers can also enable the Diagnostic Data Viewer and directly see all the telemetry events that Windows sends in the JSON forms that it sends them: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/privacy/diagnostic-...
Re: Reclaim Windows10
#94Earlier quoted context omitted.
Siri/spotlight does web searches, maps are included, location tracking baked in under the disguise of find-my (Microsoft also has a find-my alternative), there is an advertiser id built into mac too https://developer.apple.com/documentation/adsupport/asidenti... Really the only thing different is Apple has made it seem beneficial to users where Microsoft just comes off spammy.
That stuff is all optional and off-by-default, though; you have to either say yes on installation or opt in afterwards.
It's not all optional and off by default... They only ask about sending debug data to app developers, siri, and I believe find-my. Apple is a little worse since they try to force you into entering your credit cards for Apple pay.
Re: Reclaim Windows10
#95Nearly all of these "clean up" scripts are a horrendous idea to run on your machine, I see right at the top that this script disables SmartScreen, a service that absolutely should not be disabled unless you want your machine to get owned. It then proceeds to set your current network as Private (aka "open all the ports") regardless of which network you're connected to - hope you're at home! Other changes are completel…
I haven't used Windows for a long time but a look at the script makes me think people wouldn't be resorting to such measures if Microsoft wasn't including stupid crap in their operating system. > Disabling Telemetry breaks Windows updates > Automatic web searches in start menu > Application suggestions are silently installed (wat?) > Allow MS to collect activity history > Location tracking > Map updates (who the fuck…
Microsoft already asks you to enable/disable these features on first setup.
Re: Reclaim Windows10
#96Earlier quoted context omitted.
How is that a good feature? Just because something is not commonly used it stops being good? When most software was proprietary and FLOSS was nascent, MS argued that FLOSS was bad, was that right? Conversely, just because something is used more, does that get the automatic stamp of approval? More than 2 Billion people use Facebook every month, do you consider FB to be more likely to be good for someone? What kind of…
No. Smartscreen is not meant to single-handedly solve the entire problem of malware. It is just meant to warn you when you are running software that isn't commonly used. It is nothing more than an attempt to provide the user with a useful heuristic. It does not make moral judgements about the software you use like you are saying here.
But this is empirically not a good heuristic ?
Re: Reclaim Windows10
#97Nearly all of these "clean up" scripts are a horrendous idea to run on your machine, I see right at the top that this script disables SmartScreen, a service that absolutely should not be disabled unless you want your machine to get owned. It then proceeds to set your current network as Private (aka "open all the ports") regardless of which network you're connected to - hope you're at home! Other changes are completel…
Well, the "Smart" screen says that WinMerge and KDiff3 are malwares. Naturally I trust both of them more than so called SmartScreen because unlike Smartscreen, I can inspect their code. Yes, the binaries can contain malware, but the first principles tell me that trustability score is inverse of what is being reported by MS. Naturally I have disabled Smartscreen and Windows defender and admin rights alerts and bajilio…
“ I don't run unauditable things like Smartscreen on it.”
You mean, like Windows?
Re: Reclaim Windows10
#98Nearly all of these "clean up" scripts are a horrendous idea to run on your machine, I see right at the top that this script disables SmartScreen, a service that absolutely should not be disabled unless you want your machine to get owned. It then proceeds to set your current network as Private (aka "open all the ports") regardless of which network you're connected to - hope you're at home! Other changes are completel…
I haven't used Windows for a long time but a look at the script makes me think people wouldn't be resorting to such measures if Microsoft wasn't including stupid crap in their operating system. > Disabling Telemetry breaks Windows updates > Automatic web searches in start menu > Application suggestions are silently installed (wat?) > Allow MS to collect activity history > Location tracking > Map updates (who the fuck…
> Map updates (who the fuck uses maps on a PC?)
Who doesn't?
Re: Reclaim Windows10
#99Earlier quoted context omitted.
It sounds like you, sir or madam, need to get rid of Windows entirely. May I suggest macOS (and Parallels running Ubuntu Linux if you like WSL)?
macOS isn't any better in that regard. Some software takes 30+ seconds of Apple "verifying" before the application is even launched.
Besides the recent outage snafu, when does this happen?
I haven’t seen it.
Re: Reclaim Windows10
#100Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think I would think about specific Windows Telemetry that you want to disable and more importantly, why (i.e. "What's the Threat Model around Microsoft knowing this"). Because the vast majority of the telemetry collected by Windows is simply to make Windows work better - things like "Upgrade failed because $REASON" or "$DRIVER is causing performance problems". You can see a lot of the kinds of telemetry that Window…
I don’t have a problem with the telemetry on windows. I’m unsure why everyone gets so upset. MS isn’t collecting stuff to shove advertising down our throat. It’s getting usage to figure out what’s wrong with windows and make it better. As you say. I have issue with Facebook and Google blatantly collecting whatever they can to build profiles of us all to shove advertising down our throat that isn’t even relevant to us…
> MS isn’t collecting stuff to shove advertising down our throat
maybe if MS wanted people to believe that, they wouldn't put so much advertising in their OS