Re. Column “Three Reasons to Consider Migrating from Windows 7 to Windows 10”

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Since the Editors have posted no feedback link for Richard Hays’ column on Windows 10 migration (Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017 Windows Secrets Newsletter) I am taking it upon myself to start this thread.

Three Reasons to Consider Migrating from Windows 7 to Windows 10 (FEATURE: By Richard Hay)

Re.: the second half of Hays’ article, in which he discusses how much better Microsoft is with Windows 10 at informing users and offering us choices regarding Windows Telemetry and Privacy Settings —

In a word, bunk!

Microsoft with the Creators Update (due out April, 2017) the installation process offers some Privacy Settings choices upfront. Granted. But what so users actually get to control which we can’t control now in Windows 10? Nothing much.

Cortana’s processes still run in the background, no matter what settings, Group Policies or Registry changes we can make. So we still have no way to completely turn off Cortana, stop her snooping and reporting, and perform our Windows Searches as Local Searches. We also can’t driect Windows Search to open up web pages which may be included, in any browser other than Edge with Bing Search. Not if we are using Cortana or Windows Search anyway.

It is nice to have an upfront way to clear out any history which is retained in an existing Microsoft Account, and to have these privacy features in that Account in a convenient format. That is an improvement.

But overall Windows Telemetry still cannot be turned off. Basic Level is still awfully intrusive. Every time Windows or the Store Apps update, a tremendous amount of data flows upstream and we know nothing about what that data contains or how it is to be used. Even the Malicious Software Removal Tool seems to run a telemetry upload each time it is run. I don’t use Windows Defender, so I can’t comment on whether it also does upstream data dumps when it updates or runs.

(In all fairness, I can report that AVG, Avast, Avira and Malwarebytes all do send upstream telemetry every time they are updated. I don’t know the contents of this telemetry any more than I know the contents of Windows Telemetry, but this is not what I want in a security product — even a free one. Not without somewhere some kind of explanation as to what the telemetry is chattering about.)

So no, overall there are few reassurances that the waters are now safe for upgrading to Windows 10 if we have not done so yet. And the reasons in the interface, the constant Shell Extensions and File Explorer crashes when external USB drives are accessed, and many other issues are still there. All these issues mark Windows 10 as still very much a work in progress — (as of April, 2017) two and a half years after its initial introduction to the public. Often Windows 10 development seems to take two steps back for each step forward.

Just my opinion — feel free to disagree.

Lastly, I would like to add a general Error Message to the so-helpful Windows 10 message “Something went wrong…” It should read, “Somewhere, somehow, something went HORRIBLY wrong!” (Moon Mullins comic strip)

-- rc primak

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Re.: the second half of Hays’ article, in which he discusses how much better Microsoft is with Windows 10 at informing users and offering us choices regarding Windows Telemetry and Privacy Settings —

In a word, bunk!

Microsoft with the Creators Update (due out April, 2017) the installation process offers some Privacy Settings choices upfront. Granted. But what so users actually get to control which we can’t control now in Windows 10? Nothing much.

Articles such as Windows 10’s privacy settings will be simpler but more limited with Creators’ Update indicate that users will actually have less control over privacy, not more.

It also looks like the new web-based privacy panel will only be available if you use a Microsoft Account. I haven’t seen any mention so far about using a local account.

Hope this helps…

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Rick Corbett posted:

It also looks like the new web-based privacy panel will only be available if you use a Microsoft Account. I haven’t seen any mention so far about using a local account.

From the screenshots from the Previews I’ve seen, it looks like there are two stages to controlling the data collection in your Microsoft Account. (Remember, Cortana is both local and in the Cloud. Bing Search is primarily in the Cloud, but stores some of its history locally.)

Locally, we can remove Search History and some other collected data, and do everything except completely turn off Cortana and Bing Search. Then we return to the less-chatty Windows Search (which keeps its own Search History, which may still be uploaded from time to time). And Basic Telemetry, whatever that really means.

But to get at everything Microsoft may have collected on us, and to manage the Cloud based aspects of data collection, we must sign into our Microsoft Account. This will be pretty much as it is now, except that as in the OS Settings, the MS Account Settings are supposed to be more in one place and more easily accessible. Which looks to be true, FWIW.

So you don’t always need to be in a Microsoft Account, but you may need to temporarily switch to a Microsoft Account Login, look over and change the settings in the Cloud, and then restore the account to a Local Account. It’s a one-off procedure, so we still can go about our daily business without having a Microsoft Account. Doing so will not reduce our control over Windows data collection.

Currently, every month or so I go back to my Microsoft Account and review the settings, but that isn’t really necessary. Once set, Microsoft Accounts generally respect privacy settings.

-- rc primak

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Cortana’s processes still run in the background, no matter what settings, Group Policies or Registry changes we can make. So we still have no way to completely turn off Cortana, stop her snooping and reporting, and perform our Windows Searches as Local Searches.

“Cortana” isn’t really running once you’ve disabled it. The basic Windows search interface, known as SearchUI.exe, remains running under the larger “Cortana” banner, even though the personal assistant really is turned off. SearchUI.exe uses a very small amount of RAM and only uses CPU when you have the search panel open, so it’s not something you should worry about.
Why Is Cortana Still Running in the Background After You Disable It?

But overall Windows Telemetry still cannot be turned off. Basic Level is still awfully intrusive.

Intrusive? How do you know?

“Diagnostics … to help fix errors you encounter”.

That sounds beneficial to me. Do you assume it’s doing something evil?

Is this any different to what is done by Apple, Google, A-V and other software companies?

Windows 11 Pro version 22H2 build 22621.1778 + Microsoft 365 + Edge

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BruceR posted:

Intrusive? How do you know?

“Diagnostics … to help fix errors you encounter”.

That sounds beneficial to me. Do you assume it’s doing something evil?

Is this any different to what is done by Apple, Google, A-V and other software companies?

No, Bruce, it isn’t much different. Some people don’t like how intrusive these other companies have become either. Especially when their “telemetry” is not related to product performance or improvements. And in all fairness, the other companies don’t give detailed descriptions of what data they collect, when and how they collect data, or how to control it.

BTW, my purpose in starting this thread is not to say that MS telemetry is universally evil. It was my point that users still have little information available about just what is being uploaded during activities which do not seem to be related to Windows Error Reporting, and what Microsoft is doing with this information.

Hays in his article says we now have much greater control over Windows Telemetry than with previous versions of Windows 10. I fail to see this point as proven by anything I’ve seen so far in the tech reviews of the Creators Update Previews. But then, I am not a very technical person.

-- rc primak

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I found Richard Hays’ first article profoundly depressing, especially coming with the announcement of Fred Langa’s indeterminate departure – I hope he is well and returns in one way or another soon. It was like Penton had decided to drop the independent commentators and let Microsoft take over the show. Doubtless a very unfair comment, but that’s how it read, coming on top of the general decline in WS since the sell-out.

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Tandor, I assume you mean the WS Newsletter. I was never particularly impressed with what I saw of it before. Now, what I see of it and read on here doesn’t improve that impression. But Windows Secret Forums have always been excellent and continue to be so. The amount of help that is given is excellent. I trust Penton won’t kill the goose that laid the golden egg and I’ll put up with Industry News if it helps to keep the forum going.

Eliminate spare time: start programming PowerShell

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I’ll put up with Industry News if it helps to keep the forum going.

I have read a few of the SuperSite articles and have found them to be interesting and informative.

Not sure why we can’t comment on them in the WS Forums.

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 8.1 running in a VM

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Tandor, I assume you mean the WS Newsletter. I was never particularly impressed with what I saw of it before. Now, what I see of it and read on here doesn’t improve that impression. But Windows Secret Forums have always been excellent and continue to be so. The amount of help that is given is excellent. I trust Penton won’t kill the goose that laid the golden egg and I’ll put up with Industry News if it helps to keep the forum going.

Indeed, I mean the newsletter and the way it is currently covered on the forum. I certainly don’t have any issues with the remaining parts of the forum, or the contributions from those who post on it.

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Regarding Industry News appearing here with a Read-Only format:

We who still get the email Newsletter have for some time been receiving a daily updates companion newsletter called Tech Connect. It’s a lot like the Industry News in The Lounge. Screen-scraped for the most part from IDG Publications and a few other well-known industry pubs, and I haven’t seen links to Comments or any forum areas.

This is the price we pay for paying to get the newsletter and to maintain The Lounge.

And paying for all of this, yet still receiving Read-Only material which is reposted from elsewhere is one reason I will not be renewing my membership in the Windows Secrets Community.

-- rc primak

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Regarding Industry News appearing here with a Read-Only format:

We who still get the email Newsletter have for some time been receiving a daily updates companion newsletter called Tech Connect. It’s a lot like the Industry News in The Lounge. Screen-scraped for the most part from IDG Publications and a few other well-known industry pubs, and I haven’t seen links to Comments or any forum areas.

This is the price we pay for paying to get the newsletter and to maintain The Lounge.

And paying for all of this, yet still receiving Read-Only material which is reposted from elsewhere is one reason I will not be renewing my membership in the Windows Secrets Community.

Is that only if you pay the higher subscription? I pay the lower level one and get the newsletter but I’ve never seen a Tech Connect.

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I’ve never seen a Tech Connect.

Nor have I.

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Is that only if you pay the higher subscription?

It must be since I have never seen Tech Connect with the $25 subscription.

Don't take yourself so seriously, no one else does 🙂
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My subscription is at the $25.00 level. There may have been an opt-in for TechConnect , or it may be an option on the Manage My Subscriptions item in the paid user account setup. Anyway, it was free, whether it was included or whether I opted in.

-- rc primak

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