Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu • Hacker News Board

Re: Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu

#221

Post by pupppet » Tue, Apr 18, 2023, 7:06 PM UTC

Marsymars wrote: post #49

orev wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don’t get to change the definition of words just because it fits your argument better. App Store is not the core user interface , it’s a separate app. There’s no reason to go into the iOS App Store unless you want to install something new. Updates are installed automatically so you never need to see those ads. Core user interface would be things like the Home Screen, Settings icon, etc. (and yes, the badges in Se…

I find this response kind of puzzling. I'm telling you about my subjective use of iOS. As far as I'm concerned, the App Store is a core part of iOS. iOS isn't a useful OS without the App Store. I can't install apps or manually update them without seeing ads. It's not really a matter of definitions, it's simply a matter of how I use iOS. I've prefaced all my comments on this subject by pointing out that I'm describing…

It completely makes sense to find ads for apps in the App Store.

Re: Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu

#222

Post by Kye » Tue, Apr 18, 2023, 7:08 PM UTC

r00fus wrote: post #213

Kye wrote: post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With a 256GB SSD? Please. Some of us use computers for creative work and don't want to pay absurd markups for soldered on SSDs and RAM.

Yes, for most people it's fine. Cloud storage is a thing, and so is cheap external storage.

Well, they didn't qualify it that way. So no, it's not "perfectly usable." It's perfectly usable for people who don't do much with it. If I need a modern mainframe terminal, it barely matters what laptop or OS I use.

If I need to hold 2TB of samples and have room for 2TB of video I'm working on and prefer it onboard, I can't get that at any price on a MacBook Air, and a soldered on 2TB is hundreds more than plopping a 2TB in my laptop's spare slot. In fact, I can max it out with 8TB storage and 64GB RAM for the markup to get a 2TB SSD/16GB RAM Air.

You see the problem. I'm not saying everyone needs it, but the broad claim that a $999 Air is perfectly usable has some large and varied edge cases. If a $999 Air were enough for me, then I would have put a new battery in my old laptop and put Linux on it instead of upgrading. Apple's lineup was considered and dismissed for the absurd markups on storage and RAM.

Re: Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu

#223

Post by wing-_-nuts » Tue, Apr 18, 2023, 7:09 PM UTC

giancarlostoro wrote: post #67

JohnFen wrote: post #54

> As Microsoft puts it: “We are continuing the exploration of badging on the Start menu with several new treatments for users logging in with local user accounts to highlight the benefits of signing in with a Microsoft account (MSA).” What is Microsoft really thinking here? You have to go out of your way (and probably do a web search) in order to figure out how to install Win 11 without using a Microsoft Account. So…

I went ahead and installed Linux the moment I realized I had to go through a ton of hoops in order to install Windows 11 offline. I'm only ever going to use Windows for work machines that someone else is paying me to use, and even then, I might just start asking for a Mac instead. I'm over this awful OS nonsense they're doing to Windows. Whoever is in charge of the OS clearly does not care. If I were manning the ship…

I've been using linux as my primary desktop for the past 20 years. Is it perfect? No, but it's damned powerful for development, fast, and fully customizable.

Ironically, my love of linux on the desktop has also kept me gaming on console. I've strongly considered building a pc and the thought of having to use windows (proton has come a long way, but a lot of games I'd like to play aren't supported) is enough to give me pause. I get the feeling that I'd mainly use WSL except for gaming.

Re: Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu

#224

Post by hef19898 » Tue, Apr 18, 2023, 7:10 PM UTC

pbz wrote: post #167

These kinds of changes just make the OS look cheap (like a bazaar of sorts). They're visually ugly, but easily ignored (I rarely open the start menu). What I'm more concerned / annoyed by is the trend of Windows fighting with you. For example, try to disable the real-time antivirus protection. The UI makes it look like it's off, but then it turns back on by itself. Then you go to group policy to make it explicit that…

Maybe time fro another, huge, anti-competitive fie from the EU, like when back when MS did all those shenanigans around internet Explorer? I wouldn't be surprised of we see similar proceedings in the next years around cloud services (everything from OneDrive to Azure and equivilants, Office, you name it) once the EU is done with mobile devices.

Re: Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu

#225

Post by dmonitor » Tue, Apr 18, 2023, 7:11 PM UTC

mattferderer wrote: post #132

causi wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You should've learned having taste is an instant disqualifier for employment at Microsoft after Windows 8.

Windows 8 & Windows phone had a lot of good things going for it that would eventually get no resources & thrown out. They also had many design ideas borrowed by iOS & Android.

I’m glad Windows ate shit trying to get into mobile. Maybe it was functional, but Windows is fucking ugly compared to iOS, MacOS, and even Android.

Re: Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu

#226

Post by soraminazuki » Tue, Apr 18, 2023, 7:12 PM UTC

com2kid wrote: post #142

dotty- wrote: post #134

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think Apple recurringly hounds you to sign in when you hit "Do it later" though. I read "Do it later" here as a subtle reminder that "the option is not gone. You can do it later on your own in your system settings if you want", as opposed to "ok we'll ask you again later unprompted :)"

Everytime my BT headphones connect, Apple Music opens up. Own and iPhone and you are reminded quite often of the benefits of an iCloud subscription. Try setting up an iPhone w/o an apple account for that matter, or using an Android phone (that hasn't been de-googled) without a Google account. Not to mention, users expect their files to be with them everywhere. IMHO Microsoft should make OneDrive free with some obscen…

> Everytime my BT headphones connect, Apple Music opens up.

You make it sound like there's code to show you ads when you connect a BT headphone. I can't confirm this despite using it daily.

This doesn't happen with AirPods. Nor does it happen with a Sony headphone. So it's not behavior baked into the OS.

I'm also sure you meant Music.app, not Apple Music. When I open Music.app on a Mac, it shows me the local songs. It's also possible to hide Apple Music in Music.app.

Re: Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu

#227

Post by wing-_-nuts » Tue, Apr 18, 2023, 7:12 PM UTC

Kye wrote: post #126

Scarbutt wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

$999 macbook air is perfectly usable?

With a 256GB SSD? Please. Some of us use computers for creative work and don't want to pay absurd markups for soldered on SSDs and RAM.

Do what I did. Buy a xps 13 (dell has 'developer edition variants of these, so it fully supports linux). I actually bought the windows version because it was cheaper, instantly wiped it on boot and installed linux. I've upgraded to a 1tb ssd and might upgrade to a 2tb ssd given how cheap they are right now. Great experience though!

Re: Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu

#228

Post by skilled » Tue, Apr 18, 2023, 7:15 PM UTC

First it was Apple who fucked up the butterfly keyboard and out of spite I just said "no thanks" and bought a HP laptop with a beefy GPU instead. Never looked back, until now.

I'm using Windows on the said laptop and just in the last couple of months they have started adding more and more "interactive" horseshit that is simply meant to peddle their Edge browser and Bing search engine.

I mean, did you know that Microsoft Teams can hijack your Dev Console and interpret a HEX color code as a phone number? It literally hijacks the console and interrupts you from doing any kind of debugging.

My next purchase is 100% going to be Apple again since I've heard great things about the new chips and keyboard issues seem to be solved also. Microsoft is just doing dumb stuff right now, like really dumb and anti-user. Needless say, they have no shame to do this towards their paying customers, too.

Re: Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu

#229

Post by torh » Tue, Apr 18, 2023, 7:16 PM UTC

A few weeks ago I got fed up with Windows 11. I remember I had to unplug my machine from the internet while installing Windows 10, and in a weak moment I must have accepted upgrading to Windows 11.

It was probably bound to happen, because the question kept popping up all innocent looking: "Hey, want to install a security update... and while you're at it, Windows 11?"

Well, back to me being fed up. I've installed Linux (Ubuntu, since it turns out DisplayLink drivers suck on anything else), and I'm quite happy with it. It works and it doesn't brother me too much. I don't see any reason to install Windows again.

Re: Microsoft plugging more ads into Windows 11 Start Menu

#230

Post by causi » Tue, Apr 18, 2023, 7:17 PM UTC

mattferderer wrote: post #132

causi wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You should've learned having taste is an instant disqualifier for employment at Microsoft after Windows 8.

Windows 8 & Windows phone had a lot of good things going for it that would eventually get no resources & thrown out. They also had many design ideas borrowed by iOS & Android.

They also had many design ideas borrowed by iOS & Android.

Yeah, because it was a gods-be-damned mobile experience in a desktop operating system.