Post-apocalyptic computing
Despite having solicited advice earlier, I haven't actually done much to prepare -- as regular readers know, matters of deeper import distracted me. I'm still researching how I can (a) safely stay with Windows 7 indefinitely, or (b) effectively disable the spyware elements of Windows 10. I'd be interested to hear from other netizens who have done, or are doing, those things. (Linux and Apple aren't good options for me.) Also, I gather some systems have a "time bomb" program which will "upgrade" (bah) to Windows 10 even without the owner's action or consent -- so the first thing I need to do now is to find out whether my computer has that, and if so, disable it.
Grrrr. What a pointless hassle. By defecating so copiously upon the preferences of so many millions of its customers, Microsoft has demonstrated once and for all that the free market does not work as advertised.
posted by Infidel753 at 6:17 PM
12 Comments:
Good luck!
I was wondering about your Linux flirtation. I resisted Linux for years. Jumped in 2008 and still afloat. Hope you find a good solution.
Wish I could help you here, but alas, I’m painfully ignorant on things software related.
Hope you find a solution!
XoXo
I converted to Linux when windows XP died, couldn't be happier
I've been using Linux for around 20 years, I think. I've tried so many distros that I couldn't name them all, settled on Debian almost a decade ago. I've had a dual boot (windows/linux) pc and realized the only time I used windows was to do taxes and play a game, haven't done that in some time so I'm formatting that drive after copying the tax forms and using it to upgrade my spouse's pc to Win10, (which we haven't done yet either), main issue for her is a very few programs she runs that don't have Linux compatibility (I'm looking at you AOL< yeah I know).
Pros: All your data can be set up in a separate partition, /home/. Makes upgrading very easy, no files squirrelled all over the place, no registry, etc. Makes backup easy too.
Cons: if you have a windows specific program you can't find a replacement for. I shifted my spouse from MS_Office to LibreOffice, https://www.libreoffice.org/ , she has had no problems with it. She has been using AOL since they went to the web, has so much data she's afraid she'll lose info if she ditches it. (unfortunately, she has already lost a ton of data because one of their updates deleted the folders she had stashed in the /aol directory.)
What programs do you use that deter you from shifting? or is it just having to learn a new system? (don't blame you there!)
Easiest thing to do is to download a live image (for instance at https://www.debian.org/CD/live/), write it to a dvd or usb drive (much faster!) and give it a try, I use XCFE for my desktop, there are other options as well, it's just quicker (for me). If you decide to install it, I recommend that you get a second drive to install it on (if you decide to) so you can dual boot, you'll still be able to access the files from the windows drive, but you have to use something like WINE to run the programs there, something I haven't done.
Sheesh that's long. Any questions, I'll be happy to reply.
I got a really long update on my Windows 7 laptop this morning too. The update took almost 20 minutes to finish. But looks like everything is good so far. Glad to hear yours is fine for now too.
Exact same boat....let fellow travelers know what you find out, please.
I hung onto XP as long as I could. But other programs quit updating and eventually I gave up.
I found this... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hMuKUgUWy0
It explains this... https://www.oo-software.com/en/shutup10
But then there was this... https://www.howtogeek.com/273513/why-you-shouldnt-use-anti-spying-tools-for-windows-10/
And this... https://malwaretips.com/threads/spybot-anti-beacon-v3-vs-o-o-shut-up-10-vs-win10privacy-pros-cons.85091/
A lot of tech sites like O&O shutup10.
I was also surprised at the update! We still use it in 3 computers at work and I have no idea what will happen.
Regarding Linux, I've got too many programs I want to keep using (all my existing Excel spreadsheets wouldn't work with a substitute program, for example), it's too much hassle (and boring) to learn a new system, and I want to keep my existing computer -- it's old but works fine and has a ton of stuff on it. The bottom line is, it's not an option I'm considering. I'm purely looking into keeping Windows 7 or disabling the spyware aspects of Windows 10.
Mary and Jono, I'll be interested to hear how your machines fare, and I'll post (well, grumble) about anything that happens with mine.
Mike, thanks for the links. I'll check those out.
I'm unable to help you but I loved the title today. I thought you might be going to talk about what will happen when (inevitably, I feel) we actually do have a computing apocalypse. My suggestion there would be old-fashioned lead pencils :) Good luck with your issue.
Jenny_o: I couldn't face such a terrifying topic. Fortunately I doubt there will ever be a computing apocalypse. Everything is so dependent on computers now that it wouldn't be allowed to happen.
Post a Comment
<< Home