More Windows 10 development highlights from BUILD 2015

[tribaljet]

As stated before, local accounts are a bare minimum requirement, same as SmartScreen disabling being possible.

I still remember when installing Windows allowed for component selection prior to installing. Just make the usual "express/custom" install option, it can even have express selected by default so it would act the way it does now and would only take an additional click to progress.

[GuidoLS]

My guess, going on past version of Windows, is that you'll probably be able to turn off some features like Cortina and One Drive or just not use them, but I highly doubt they can be removed.

Personally i would love to see a more modular version of Windows that had the ability to remove unneeded/unwanted features, sadly I don't think the code base could be unpicked or that Microsoft even considers that not everyone may want such great features.

Cortana (Search) is removable. I've not found a way to remove One Drive, as it's not listed as an app or feature. It can be turned off (or, more specifically, be set to not start with Windows), and some people are reporting that they've just deleted the actual executable.

[GuidoLS]

Want to very strongly emphasize that any postings I'm making on Windows 10, especially features, functions, etc, come with the following 2 words at the end of every posting -

SO FAR.

It's obviously all subject to change.

Seriously, folks - if you have access to something as archaic as a P4 with 512mb of ram and 20gb of space, download the 32 bit ISO (or 64bit if you have the proper cpu), burn to dvd or USB stick, and install and play with it, and make your own decisions. Yes, it actually runs quite well on older machines, and has a lower minimum requirement than Vista did.

[Jonj1611]

Its a shame a lot of that advert had an awful lot of touch and pen things going on. Neither which I have on my PC.

[Splash]

Just installed the latest build from scratch in a VM. Onedrive pops up and asks if you'd like to activate, and it's running just fine with a local account. If I go to "sync your settings" it's mostly greyed out, but that's expected.

Not found a service related to Cortana, but I've not looked particularly hard as yet.

[Saracen]

So far, yes. It's either on or off.



Cart before the horse - second question should be fourth, and vice-versa. If you disable cloud services (like Cortana, it's on or off), then nothing goes out to the cloud. If you enable cloud services, AND you have an MS account, your settings, at minimum, will be saved, and usable across multiple devices (things like themes, backgrounds, and highly encrypted wi-fi passwords if you use them - so far).



I haven't tried on the latest build, as I did a direct upgrade, but as of 10049, the option was there, although I did not make any attempt to set up a local only account. I will confirm, 100%, that if you have set up an MS account, you are NOT required to be connected to the net, although you will still be required to know and use your credentials (username and password). And again, that removes any need (or connection) to the cloud.



Answered and expanded upon under number two, but yes. .....

Thanks for the detailed comments.

But for clarity, in relation to Cortana, being "off" isn't necessarily the same as "disabled".

For instance, disabled means it's not running. "Off" may, and I stress may simply mean it's not responding to user voice input. But if you can activate it via voice command, such as by saying "Cortana on", then it's been active all the time, but just not responding to user input. That, though, doesn't tell us about what information gathering may be going on in the background.

A similar concern exists about cloud integration. One aspect of that is if I choose to use cloud services (which I will not, EVER) to store my data. Another is if MS are using integration to store their information about my activities, without my explicit agreement, using cloud integration facilities. Turning off the first doesn't necessarily mean the second is disabled. I want to be sure, certain, that my PC is not capable of cloud storage, because I don't want any form of account, MS or otherwise, with cloud storage attached/linked.

As for downloading and trying it, um, no. Not unless things have changed. Fiest issue is that, unless it's changed, you need an NS account to download trials. I don't have or want an MS account. Second, the privacy aspects of the tech preview were utterly unacceprsble to me, and no way will I agree to that. I understand why MS do that, on a beta, but with those provisos it makes the tech previews unavailable to me.

See, I regard MS and Google in much the same way as I regard a politician saying, pre-election, "we have no plans to .... <whatever>". All that means is currently they have no plans, but it doesn't mean they haven't considered doing whatever, and just decided to defer making actual plans until after the election.

So when I read press statements, or T&C's for that matter, I always look to see how it can be interpreted in their best interest, not what I hope it means for my best interest.

I don't trust MS, any more than I trust a political promise, so in the absence of a flat-out categorical statement that they won't do something, I assume by default that they at least might do it, and very possibly will do it. Hence my scepticism over "off" versus "utterly disabled".

[GuidoLS]

Off is off. It's not running in any of the process lists. It won't respond to the mic in my headset (which it will do when it's on). And if you don't have a mic installed, you're already ahead of the curve.

It is on by default - you need to turn it off. But the switch, at the very least, seems to operate as reliably as turning off your lights via the breaker.

[Saracen]

Off is off. It's not running in any of the process lists. It won't respond to the mic in my headset (which it will do when it's on). And if you don't have a mic installed, you're already ahead of the curve.

It is on by default - you need to turn it off. But the switch, at the very least, seems to operate as reliably as turning off your lights via the breaker.

Again, appreciate the input.

Sorry to push the point, but Kinect wasn't off when it was off, because it could be turned on by voice command. What worries me is the mindset where off might not be off. As for process lists, with all due respect, it might not be obvious that what's running is a Cortana service or process, or it could be started, operated and stopped by another process, and/or under an innocuous name.

Agreed, though, without a mic I'd be ahead of the curve. I do, however, extensively use voice dictation software. I do tend to unplug the headset when not in use, but cannot guarantee that. For that matter, as MS emphasise, you don't need voice to 'benefit' from Cortana, as it monitors other input streams. So not necessarily much ahead.

Essentially, as I said, I just don't trust MS on this, so absent categoric assurances on privacy, I don't trust Win10 either.

[GuidoLS]

"As of now" -

You can actually remove the search function entirely via what passes for the Programs and Features section of the settings area. I'm not sure if it's intentional or not, nor do I know if it's permanent or not. We'll know when it's released. I'm obviously not in a position to state anything categorically about the finished product. I am more than competent in figuring out which processes are which, though (not that you implied otherwise) and I *AM* completely confident that Cortana is not active on my system presently. When I beta test, I beta test. I intentionally try to break things - and that includes turning things off in ways that I'm sure weren't intended. Needless to say, I have caused things to crash, and to stop working completely.

I'm not *as* privacy minded as you are. We all have our levels of comfort, and we all have our reasons, and that's entirely cool. I am confident in my current level of privacy. And I will continue to monitor that part, specifically. And if it changes, you can bet your last coin I'll be screaming from the roof tops at the top of my lungs. Or at least posting on every tech site I participate at. Because I'm likely to fall off of a ladder and break my head, and then nobody would know... and I'd have a major headache.

[crossy]

I'm more worried I'll be carted of in a straight jacket for talking to my PC. I already feel a right charlie when i mistakenly think someone talking on a blue tooth earpiece is talking to me, it's going to a nightmare in an office environment with everyone talking to their PC.

Office I'm in uses Lync pretty extensively (replacing desk phones) so I can't see wally-taking-to-Cortana-on-headset being any different to wally-talking-to-wife/girlfriend/mistress-on-headset that I have now.

I haven't tried on the latest build, as I did a direct upgrade, but as of 10049, the option was there, although I did not make any attempt to set up a local only account. I will confirm, 100%, that if you have set up an MS account, you are NOT required to be connected to the net, although you will still be required to know and use your credentials (username and password). ...
Everything else has been BYO, and I've not had a single program that loaded and ran properly on Windows 7 fail to load and run properly on Win10. That includes multiple games, Office 2007, LibreOffice, MSI Afterburner, CCleaner, Malwarebytes, etc.

Thanks for that, especially taking the time out to do a pretty good overview. Maybe Hexus should get you to do the next W10 review?

As for downloading and trying it, um, no. Not unless things have changed. Fiest issue is that, unless it's changed, you need an MS account to download trials. I don't have or want an MS account.

I realise it's a point of principle but I'd be content to register a "burner" account that I used only for this kind of thing and nothing else. I've found those kind of handy for those annoying s.o.b.'s who insist on you supplying an email address before you can continue with whatever you were doing. I appreciate where you're coming from though - as I've said before I'm not interested in roaming accounts especially if that roaming data also contains my network (and other?) passwords.

[Output]

There is the option to try it out without using a Microsoft account, though it's hidden a little - in the setup I think it was a matter of choosing the "Sign Up" option, and then one saying something like "I'll connect my account later" to make a Local account.

As for getting the Windows 10 isos without requiring an account, I was able to successfully download it from http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/w...so-update-1504 without issues (which I found via https://www.theverge.com/2015/4/29/8...d-april-update). I have no idea whether any information is still sent off if you set various settings to "off" in the Settings though.

I haven't really tried anything with my (Virtualbox) installation yet, but it does seem to leave a lot of empty space in the Start Menu when I unpin all of the live tiles. I had been hoping that doing that would cut all of the now unused space and make the Start Menu revert to the size of the one from Windows 7, but I haven't yet seen a way to do that if that is the case.

[Corky34]

Thanks for the detailed break down so far GuidoLS, more out of curiosity than anything else, but would I be correct in assuming Cortana is a separate program (app).
From what you have described so far it seems like removing it from the Programs and Features section would remove the related folders, dll's, and .exe

Office I'm in uses Lync pretty extensively (replacing desk phones) so I can't see wally-taking-to-Cortana-on-headset being any different to wally-talking-to-wife/girlfriend/mistress-on-headset that I have now.

What about the wally (me) who keeps saying sorry and what because i think someone just asked where the nearest pharmacy is, heaven forbid if your name is actually Cortana.

[directhex]

Well, Windows 10 still has some big, unanswered questions as far as I'm concerned.

First, can Cortana be truly, thoroughly and utterly disabled?

You get a request for permissions on first launch. Deny it, and Cortana is disabled. My Cortana search box is now a basic Bing web search.

Second, is it snooping in MY data and uploading to the cloud in ANY other way? If it is, MS can stick it.

If you disable Cortana, and don't save anything in the OneDrive folders, then no.

Third, are local accounts still available, because I DO NOT want an MS account?

Yes. I had no network connectivity (no driver) at install, and it created a local account. It later merged it into my MS account when I tried to use the app store.

Fourth, can I completely disable ALL cloud uploading/integration?

None of that works with a local account

[crossy]

What about the wally (me) who keeps saying sorry and what because i think someone just asked where the nearest pharmacy is, heaven forbid if your name is actually Cortana.

I'm wondering if we'll see a similar situation with Cortana's hot-word to that for "Ok Google". Say that in a crowd and watch how many other people's phones respond. Heaven help us if Brian Blessed gets an Android phone - he'd set off an entire building!

Oh, and don't have a discussion about 70's Ford car or a certain Italian holiday location - I can just see it now, "yep, it was an ok Cortina" and ping, up comes the "assistant" on your desktop.

[Zhaoman]

No news on Surface Pro 4 yet? And still no release date. I'm hoping it comes out before September so I can do my upgrade in the summer.