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Dear Microsoft


Timbo

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Dear Microsoft.

'Your edition of Windows 10 is no longer valid and requires update to receive new improved benefits.' your message read. Well, something along those lines. My laptop then froze until I installed your update. So I installed the interminable update to your clunky, unwieldy, slow and shambolic operating system for the thumb-typer. The minutes and then the hours dragged by while a laptop that was once speedy, accurate and organized with windows seven tried to gulp down the 'benefits' you promised. I missed online meetings scheduled for weeks. I lost documents I was unable to save due to your damned interference. It's now the following day and finally your update has finished. So what were these wonderful benefits you promised? Ah, I see. You've tried to make my PC like an Apple. Why? There's a reason why serious computer users don't use Apple machines, their tech is ten years out of date! So these wonderful benefits include a clunky, unwieldy, slow and shambolic operating system with features of a system from ten years ago and in addition you have erased all the fixes I had to make to your idiotic operating system in order to make it work in the first place. Thanks a bunch! You're just determined to force me to go all beardy-weirdy and start running LINUX!

And then it gets worse. You messed up your own update, so you forced my laptop to update yet again! So now that my machine has rebooted for the millionth time in the last twenty-four hours I now have a machine that is clunky, unwieldy, slow and has a shambolic operating system with features of a system from ten years ago, with all the fixes I had to make to your idiotic operating system erased and that now attempts to record and report my every keystroke to your headquarters. I've got news for you set of twonks, it ain't happening. LINUX here we come, and if that fails...I will write on the wall at Reedham and get Wussername to pass on my missives!
 

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I had a day like that yesterday! But I have succeeded in dumping my Surface-Pro ( not cheap ) and I now have all my Word, Excel etc running on Android/Chrome. 

Microsoft used to be so good XP etc but now! Boy have they lost their way.

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Last year our Apple Mac Mini got fried by lightning and we got a specialist in to set up the new one and install all the software off the old one. As soon as he was finished and while he was still there, it put up a flag saying updates were ready to install. He told us not to bother with that for the time being and having read your post, I am glad I never did!

We are perfectly happy with it as it is!

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I have windows 10 on the laptop. grrrrrrr!! It decided to upgrade itself over the weekend. I was using it and when finished, went to shut down as normal but got “shut down and upgrade” there were no other options. I couldn’t shut it down any other way. So thought “what the hell” and went for it. It finally shut down about 30mins after so I closed the lid and went about my business. Monday was in a hurry wanted to check emails started it up and “commencing update 20% done”. 50 chuffin minutes later it was ready to use. So what part of “shutdown and update” at the weekend didn’t the laptop understand? Anyway before, I’d press on the icons I wanted and surf through my stuff. Now I turn it on and can go make a cup of splosh while I wait. Then have toast etc in between each press of the button. Ok. It’s not used for business so can wait a while but I’ve lost everything I had stored on there as well. ( insert sad angry face here) why are you not given the option?




Sent from my iPhone using Norfolk Broads Network

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4 hours ago, Vaughan said:

Last year our Apple Mac Mini got fried by lightning and we got a specialist in to set up the new one and install all the software off the old one. As soon as he was finished and while he was still there, it put up a flag saying updates were ready to install. He told us not to bother with that for the time being and having read your post, I am glad I never did!

We are perfectly happy with it as it is!

I've been using Macs since 1986 and when I used them professionally I always updated. Since I have been retired (10 years) I have accepted all the security updates and any Safari updates but have kept the OS at the version that I knew worked for me.

I now have come to a quandary: to be certain of the latest level of security I need to update to the latest OS version which means my old professional graphics software (15 years old) won't work without my updating that as well - much too costly, so I have decided that for the sake of security in these days of more and more sophisticated internet bandits to update the OS..

I will miss Photoshop, but as I have scanned and adjusted all of my old pics (4,000), the colour adjustment tool in Mac Preview will probably be good enough for my present needs.

Vaughan: presuming that your new machine is a Mac, if you are not using any apps/software that is OS version sensitive, I would update with everything Apple send.

If you have any problems don't forget that you can use Apple online Chat for no charge. A couple of years ago I had been remiss about backing up to Time Machine and one morning I couldn't get my mac to boot up. The Chat representative soon worked out it was a hard disk problem and spent nearly two hours with me; sometimes getting me to try various things and others taking over my machine himself until he got it working again.

 

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1 hour ago, webntweb said:

Vaughan: presuming that your new machine is a Mac, if you are not using any apps/software that is OS version sensitive, I would update with everything Apple send.

But then that's the problem is it not? How does the average user know what will and what will not be affected?

When Catalina was released, lots of things did not work. Big Sur is a significant change and I'd expect more of the same.

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1 hour ago, oldgregg said:

But then that's the problem is it not? How does the average user know what will and what will not be affected?

When Catalina was released, lots of things did not work. Big Sur is a significant change and I'd expect more of the same.

Yes first releases can be problematic.

I should have said update to the latest OS but, as Apple release regular bug fixes, wait until they become more stable - Googling usually brings up info as to when the computer magazine experts are happy with a particular release.

I also meant to say that the Apple guy who spent all that time sorting my problem was French and remarkably patient.

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As a side note, a lot of the time it’s simply the tech is old and out of date. 
You may have a graphics card that’s worked well for the last five years but is no longer supported by its manufacturer and it’s drivers are out of date. 
same with software, still works but it’s 3 generations old

I run a gaming pc. Nothing is more than 2 years old, Windows gets reinstalled every year, never had a problem 

the problem with Microsoft and Apple is that people hold on to their tech a lot longer now and keeping everything current is getting a serious problem 

If your keeping a proper back up of data then a reinstall will work wonders

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55 minutes ago, Cheesey69 said:

As a side note, a lot of the time it’s simply the tech is old and out of date. 
You may have a graphics card that’s worked well for the last five years but is no longer supported by its manufacturer and it’s drivers are out of date. 
same with software, still works but it’s 3 generations old

I run a gaming pc. Nothing is more than 2 years old, Windows gets reinstalled every year, never had a problem 

the problem with Microsoft and Apple is that people hold on to their tech a lot longer now and keeping everything current is getting a serious problem 

If your keeping a proper back up of data then a reinstall will work wonders

All valid points Cheesey,

I think Microsoft have never been particularly bothered about users with older kit and lesser specification, despite protestations of innocence. If they have considered it at all it is when advertising the minimum spec. required to run their operating systems over the years. It seems built into company DNA that users automatically run out and upgrade everything to latest levels.

Having looked (And laughed) briefly at a Microsoft page of Hardware requirements for Windows 10

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/minimum/minimum-hardware-requirements-overview

I would point out that Windows is supposed to run but nowhere does it say it will run well !

I would say performance is very much related to three basic issues, memory, processor and graphics adaptor all of which I have kept an eye on from the early days of Windows 3.1. A further consideration is what you use it for.

I have a preowned laptop with i5 processor 8gb (Upgraded from 4gb) memory and built-in graphics adaptor that has handled anything thrown at it quite well. This is now mainly used when aboard.

My main desktop machine has a spec. way in excess of this, suffice to say I love it.

The one problem I do have is with Microsoft's updates. Although, in theory, it is possible to go to the update page in settings to see what is waiting to install it is not always an option in the early hours after a hard day rooting around NBN, Youtube, Instagram and various banking, communication and miscellaneous issues.

Last night, on shutdown, I was invited to click on "Update and Shutdown" so I did, thinking it was just the usual. On start-up today I get the new version of Microsoft Edge, their browser, staring me in the face and keen to burrow into all parts of my system, with no warning at all. Second time of trying but at least last time it hadn't gone this far. I gently eased out of it and will spend the afternoon making sure no settings have been changed and any reports are still switched off (I've been a Firefox user since the days it was Netscape Navigator).

I did flirt with Linux and found it interesting but the physical effort of transferring many years files, and learning the new programs to deal with them is too much, not to mention writing off the investment in the programs I have bought.

 

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When my last Windows laptop was in its final throes of death by Windows bloat ware, I partitioned my hard drive and installed Linux Mint. It was a very positive experience and I was still able to access documents, photos etc on the Windows part of the drive via the Linux file manager. When that machine finally died, I bought a Windows 10 machine and will do the same again, which will push it on for another couple of years.

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17 hours ago, webntweb said:

I should have said update to the latest OS but, as Apple release regular bug fixes, wait until they become more stable - Googling usually brings up info as to when the computer magazine experts are happy with a particular release.

You do appear to have used the phrases 'computer magazine' and 'experts' in the same sentence and I don't believe it was ironic :default_norty::default_norty:

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56 minutes ago, oldgregg said:

You do appear to have used the phrases 'computer magazine' and 'experts' in the same sentence and I don't believe it was ironic :default_norty::default_norty:

If you dig deep enough, away from the popular magazines, there really are some people who know what they are talking about.

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yesterday I had to set up a new win 10 work laptop, stopping it using edge for everything was a pain, change the default apps- eg pdfs to acrobat, and you still have to go to the file types and change it there too. our company internal software is optimised for chrome, it just doesnt work with edge.

 

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Btw, if you set your Internet connection to "Metered" in Windows control panel, you will be asked whether or not you want to download the updates. I learned this when I got stuck with a £29 bill because I had tethered my laptop to my mobile just as Microsoft has decided to foist a large update on me.

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Microsoft are a nightmare.

Usually I get some notification when they are trying to force another update on me and I keep defering it for as long as I can.

This time there was no warning and I switched the Laptop on yesterday to find it doing a load of updates.

They have now completely messed up my system.

As soon as the thing booted I was having that damn edge browser thrust in my face.

It should have been easy to get rid of it but nothing seemed to work.

All my setting have been messed up and some of my programs no longer work correctly.

Windows 10  has been a pain from the word go.  Yet my old laptop which ran Windows 7 was excellent.

I replaced it earlier this year and found I could only buy a machine with window 10.

My mind logically thought that as soon as I had got it home I would clear the hard drive and install Windows 7.

This is where I found another Microsoft Nasty.

The processer in the newer machines is now hard wired in some way so it will only work with Windows 10.

It looks like I am going to have to do a complete re install to sort out the mess caused by the latest update after which I will see if I can set up a dual boot with Linux.

I am currently typing on a very old machine loaded with linux Mint which works fine thank goodness.  It is just very old and heavy.

Think eventually I may follow Polly and go down the Mac route.

 

 

 

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I have been told that a lot of the recent updates were about security. I’m very happy these days not to have to purchase and install additional software to protect my personal computer, but instead rely on Microsoft.
Our work IT department has been sending us more messages about the importance of updates since lockdown. They also say that Universities and other organisations are subject to far more threats than previously. Our neighbour’s son, who has been staying in MK during lockdown is a lecturer with another Uni. He is currently unable to work because his institution has had their IT systems compromised.
Don’t delay on updates!

 

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