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Windows 7 in 2016 - Bad Idea?

botrytis said:
Well - for the amount of people that have upgraded, who have not had issues, it is the best system by far. Well, those updates are the 'security' updates that are important. Don't blame MS if you don't put in the security patches and then get a virus, etc. Not their fault. You have 4 more years of free support for Windows 7, then it is dead like Windows XP.



The commercial version of Windows 10 IS NOT like that. The IT guys are idiots sometimes. You can turn off sharing, I guess your "IT expert' is none too bright, it is one click and it is done. Many of the so called 'IT Experts' are just following corporate instructions , verbatim, w/o really understanding why.
Click to expand...

It's not just one click. There are at least a dozen features that need to be manually disabled, otherwise you have the equivalent of a keystroke logger that shows EVERYTHING you do. MS also made two upgrade files fir Win7 that completely violate your privacy on that platform, as well. They can be removed.
 
Chip Chester said:
The question is not "7 bad?" but rather "is 10 worse?". The security issues are not so much security with the outside world, but with Microsoft itself sniffing down every search you make, log-in credentials of every network you attach to, etc. The OS is the virus. They have pre-downloaded W10 files to W7 users without consent, changed the Windows update priorities so that some people have been changed over automatically without choice or consent, etc. You have to actively prevent 10 from installing itself.

And the "IT dept. can turn off the snooping" only applies to corporate licenses, not the standard home user license.

I don't allow W10 devices to log on to my network, even as a guest. Google up the horror stories, or look on slashdot, etc.

Remember, if it's free, you're the product.

Chip
Click to expand...
MS has announced that they would share any and all of this collected data with ANY government agency WITHOUT a warrant or court order.
 
Jeezus, I opened a can of worms! I use no tracking and script blocker software liberally. And TOR for searching and browsing in paranoid mode. And Spideroak for cloud storage.

I would just rather avoid the extra time and effort of an upgrade, that's all.

Thank you all for your input. Carry on with the thread if you wish.
 
Yes by all means carry on with this thread. I've been waiting for AK to take up this topic. There's plenty of discussion elsewhere. I've told you all I know and I've said all I've got to say. I learn a lot of good computer info from you guys so ...

:lurk:
 
While I'm a little annoyed with the pre-download issue (OK, a lot annoyed, although a couple of quick & dirty registry hacks fixed that) as I have an HTPC running 8.1 + Media Center, by and large, I'm fairly satisfied with Windows 10 on my desktop and work machines. If you want secure browsing, you can try Chrome, but really, in order to have a completely secure browser, you need to use something like Tor (this goes for Apple, Linux, etc. as well). Microsoft doesn't "sniff(ing) down every search you make" any more than Google does. There are certain defaults you can modify in your configuration to minimize what (anonymized) data gets sent back to Microsoft, but to define it as a virus is scaremongering.

And it's not really free - Microsoft is saving money on development and test resources by moving people off of less secure legacy OSes, and you will have to pay for Windows 10 after the 1-year release anniversary if you haven't upgraded prior to this date.

-D
 
Oh, goody, after it's no longer a free upgrade, they can't very well install it with no approval, so we're all good there.
Except, they can just load it as an update, then mine your browser cache data for your CC info, and go ahead and charge it. (Caution, hyperbole zone...) It literally sells itself.

Google is also very nosy, and I don't know anyone who thinks Chrome is anywhere close to private. Big data is after all it can get before people realize the dangers and look for alternatives. Huge chunks of the population will stumble along, blind to the dangers. That's what they're counting on.

Chip
 
Weird-Al-Foil.jpg


;)

-D
 
Still using XP at home, and Win7 on my audio gear setup. No issues.

Have Win10 at work. No way in hell am I switching on my audio setup, even tho its free. Cannot stand 10. Tons of crap I don't need, which sounds like ccoyle's situation.

With respect to Chris Brown's post, 10 is just too much of what I don't need. I detest the layout, and finding things is rough for me. Win7 has worked fabulously for what little I require.

Your results may vary.
 
FWIW, I'm using a HiFimeDIY USB Sabre DAC with Windows 10 and it sounds fantastic. However, I understand given optimization (or my aforementioned Media Center HTPC).

-D
 
botrytis said:
The commercial version of Windows 10 IS NOT like that. The IT guys are idiots sometimes. You can turn off sharing, I guess your "IT expert' is none too bright, it is one click and it is done. Many of the so called 'IT Experts' are just following corporate instructions , verbatim, w/o really understanding why.
Click to expand...

Without getting argumentative.

Actually the hell with It I will.

Calling a IT person a Idiot is off the mark. They take enough abuse as it is.

That being said I guess I personally am a Idiot also because after turning off the sharing following the simple guides on the net I guess my dumb ass found some other things still sharing.

Many things. And I am on the "Professional" version.

Its a joke IMHO and you can call some other respected security experts on the net idiots also.

Frannie
 
After thinking about this a little more.

Calling another professional an idiot without even being in the field yourself is a bit much is what I am saying.

Or even knowing all the facts.

Its wrong , unprofessional , disrespectful and silly to advance some fanboy/fangirl love of a Operating system.

This type of slamming is NOT why I come here. And I take offense to this because as a IT professional people being told this on forums like AK turns around and makes our jobs harder.

Frannie
 
I do remember a lot of bitching when 7 came out. "What's wrong with XP?! I'm not getting 7 because that would be stupid when XP works just fine! Steve Gates isn't getting any more of my money!"

Fast forward to now, rinse and repeat.

I'm just waiting for the go ahead from some of the software that we use to switch this box from 7 to 10. Have two machines running 10 now and couldn't be happier.

Oh, and show me the proof where MS has inserted key loggers into 10.

Murray
 
In Win 10, go to Settings/Privacy to manage what info MS collects. Look at General then Speech, inking and typing.

Murray
 
Here is why many will not upgrade to Win-10 (myself included):
Microsoft Admits Windows 10 Automatic Spying Cannot Be Stopped
http://www.forbes.com/sites/gordonk...unstoppable-windows-10-tracking/#78184c442f4a

I am in charge of the health of my machine. I have never had MS be worth a tinker's _____, regarding support of their OS. They have broken my machine several times, via Window Updates, but that is about it. Once I buy it and install it and optimize it, it is mine. No one needs to know what is going on inside, unless I say so. PERIOD!

I am a pretty good hacker. Any kind of data logging can be hacked, and tweaked to do ones bidding. Nope. Not this little gray duck, you don't.

Enjoy,
Rich P
 
skippy_ps said:
I do remember a lot of bitching when 7 came out. "What's wrong with XP?! I'm not getting 7 because that would be stupid when XP works just fine! Steve Gates isn't getting any more of my money!"

Fast forward to now, rinse and repeat.

I'm just waiting for the go ahead from some of the software that we use to switch this box from 7 to 10. Have two machines running 10 now and couldn't be happier.

Oh, and show me the proof where MS has inserted key loggers into 10.

Murray
Click to expand...

Its not about any stupid Key Loggers which is a overreaction. Its about peoples data , actions , locations and what not being sucked into Redmond to be regurgitated as some monster.

Honestly all Microsoft has to do is make it easy to turn this crap off by default.

Heck even the most bogus site that asks you for info has a simple check box warning you and offering an opt out.

Frannie
 
Darksyde said:
Cortana never stops running .
Click to expand...

BTW great thread and I know I wasn't going to say any more but this is great stuff. I knew there was something really fishy going on when I was working on an image file in irfanview - took a potty break - and when I got back Cortana had been scouring the internet for other images I "might like" and had downloaded them and was displaying them. WTF? You can kill Cortana by quickly renaming the directory that she lives in.

You can find out how by googling it. But then the first time an "update" comes along (more like a fresh layer of BS than an "update") Cortana comes back. So you have to go figure out how to disable the update "service" to keep Cortana in her coffin. I'm not a computer / OS expert but I don't think I've ever had an OS that right out of the box got on wrong side of me and thereafter was a determined stubborn adversary. Like I said before - the best thing about Windows 10 is researching how to give it a beatdown.
 
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