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Microsoft's 'Recall' feature can't be uninstalled after all

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Re: Microsoft's 'Recall' feature can't be uninstalled after all

#121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They've got their own version of Windows and licensing. They're not running Windows 10 Home lol. They've got their own LTSC type thing. DoD works directly with Microsoft. None of this applies to them.

I have worked in National Defense, held a security clearance, etc. and can confidently say you are mistaken. Microsoft is not maintaining a separate build of Windows for DoD. They may have bespoke licensing agreements and support contracts, but military and DoD workstations run regular windows.

They are, however, maintaining a separate cloud, and parent is not mistaken; windows professional running under group policies is a different animal than windows home

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/office365/servicedescripti...

>> Subscriptions in the GCC High and DoD environments include the core Exchange Online, SharePoint, and Skype for Business features. Given the increased certification and accreditation of the infrastructure, there are some feature differences between the general commercial Office 365 offerings and those available in GCC High and DoD.

Re: Microsoft's 'Recall' feature can't be uninstalled after all

#122
post #102

Currently using Ubuntu as my main driver, replaced Windows. I wouldn't really say the user experience is as good as Windows. Apps hang more often, steam freezes and restarts more. Games crash more often. All problems I wouldn't have on windows. Even though Linux has gotten really far, I wouldn't be using it if windows wasn't so shit now.

> I wouldn't really say the user experience is as good as Windows I use Windows mainly for work. The user experience is terrible. At least 10 years ago it had a usable GUI, now it is a mess. Crashes are normal. Security theater is _security_.

>Security theater is _security_.

I've noticed that Windows 11 (on multiple computers) will often display a flash of whatever programs are currently open on my computer before it gives me the login prompt after I wake the computer from sleep. That should never happen. It's yet another nail in the Windows 11 coffin for me.

Re: Microsoft's 'Recall' feature can't be uninstalled after all

#123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was thinking you keep around a dedicated temp file you resize as required.

doing this would destroy your file system performance (almost as much as using Windows). SSDs are much faster when not close to full since it let's them do things like use the unfilled capacity as an SLC write cache.

Do normal users require maximal SSD performance? So long as they can launch Chrome, the super app is going to handle all of their needs.

Re: Microsoft's 'Recall' feature can't be uninstalled after all

#124

Unfortunate. Luckily, Windows itself can be removed. It's incredible how much Microsoft is resting on their laurels in terms of seeing Windows as insurmountable and so consumers must take whatever Microsoft decide to dish out. I would have been totally resigned to this fact a decade ago, but middle-school+ kids these days don't use Windows - they use Chromebooks. A huge minority of them use iPhones. Familiarity with…

> When these kids grow up and get to make procurement decisions, are they going to be as tolerant as today's staff of whatever overreach Microsoft is going to try with Windows in the future, or are they - and their peers - going to be much more accepting of non-Windows solutions?

Management will make those decisions and choose Windows because of the surveillance features built into it.

Re: Microsoft's 'Recall' feature can't be uninstalled after all

#125

National Defense runs almost entirely on Windows workstations, including "high-side" or classified networks. I can't imagine the powers that be are too thrilled with this feature, and much like the Intel TPM High Assurance bit, I bet there's an undocumented way to remove it.

"National Defense runs almost entirely on Windows workstations, including "high-side" or classified networks." Windows is "military-grade". That's a laugh. In case of doubt I am referring to the US practice of marketing certain products as "military-grade". Perhaps to suggest something like, "If it is good enough for the military, then it is surely good enough for the civilian."

Windows for Warships: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Submarine_Command_System

Re: Microsoft's 'Recall' feature can't be uninstalled after all

#126
Is that not consistent with how Microsoft always introduced its "features"? Especially all the crap that came since Windows 10/11.

First you could still create a local account after there was backlash against cloud-everything, nowadays a local only Windows is quite complex to set up.

The Cortana/search bar stuff was also regularly re-enabled or parts of it made non-configurable, with them only occasionally backtracking. Not to speak of the ads that are included nowadays.

Their strategy generally seems to be boiling the frog when it comes to pushing these features onto the users, whether they want it or not.

Re: Microsoft's 'Recall' feature can't be uninstalled after all

#128

Currently using Ubuntu as my main driver, replaced Windows. I wouldn't really say the user experience is as good as Windows. Apps hang more often, steam freezes and restarts more. Games crash more often. All problems I wouldn't have on windows. Even though Linux has gotten really far, I wouldn't be using it if windows wasn't so shit now.

I switched to Ubuntu on my work machine and had to go back to Windows for most of the same reasons you pointed out. Also, AppImage is so awful.

What's wrong with AppImages? They're basically .exes

Re: Microsoft's 'Recall' feature can't be uninstalled after all

#129

Literally no one wants this “feature”. Microsoft has lost their collective minds.

>Literally no one I can see most people, and by that I mean the rest of the world outside Techiestan and Hacker News, will want or perhaps even need this feature. Having the computer literally show you what you were doing is super duper handy for Joe Average who doesn't computer and certainly doesn't care about learning to computer.

Even Joe Average will appreciate how fucking creepy this feature is when they surface private information that they never told the computer to store.

Re: Microsoft's 'Recall' feature can't be uninstalled after all

#130
post #60

I had to replace an aeging Windows laptop recently, and MS (and to a lesser extent Apple) going all-in on this kind of AI boondoggle finally gave me the shove I needed to go Linux-only (not dual booting as I'd done in the past, or WSL as I've been doing more recently). Framework made the landing soft, and I'm really excited to never look back. I wish this were a more accessible path for non-tech people.

> I wish this were a more accessible path for non-tech people. It should be forbidden to ship PCs with Windows preinstalled, unless the user made it a conscious purchase decision (and offered to choose between several options). I suspect fewer and fewer users would be willing to fork hundreds of bucks for something that's objectively terrible (and only getting worse), tech literacy would only improve as a result. But…

When the first Asus Eee laptops came out they had Linux installed. They later also did Windows XP versions.

This was the first (and probably only) time you could find Linux machines in most mainstream computer stores. The Linux version was better than XP in every way you can measure: cheaper, faster, easier (more optimized for those 7" screens). And these "netbooks" were just intended for browsing the net, so it doesn't matter all that much which system you run.

I worked at a computer store at the time, and the Linux machines sold poorly. People wanted Windows, because that's what they're used to. Consumers are very price-sensitive, but many opted to pay more.

All of this was a long time ago, but I doubt it would be very different today. Microsoft really doesn't need a "lobby" to keep the majority of machines Windows by default. People want what they're used to, because that's what's working for them. why do you think there is so much complaining every time Gnome or Firefox changes something?

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