Microsoft releases Windows 10 tool to hide/block updates

[Saracen]

I find it amusing that the OS hasn't released yet and already they are back-tracking on features I said they would need to.

Obvious problems, are obvious.

Yeah, but .... they may just try to bluff/bully their way through, like they did, initially, with the Metro/Start button thing.

It's about numbers, innit? Some people, me included, aren't upgrading to Win10 unless certain things change, and/or others are ... 'clarified' .... to my satisfaction.

But do MS give a .... hoot? Not unless VERY large nunbers of people decline to upgrade, they won't. Which, by the way, is exactly why I think it's 'free' for those upgrading for 12 months. It's an attempt to forestall a Win8-style revolt/rejection, or at least hold it down to sufficiently low numbers that they can hold up their .... ummm .... 'digitus impudicus' to that group.

Will 'free' work? Maybe I have an unrealistically low opinion of the masses, but .... probably, yeah. And if so, that bodes poorly for any significant backtracking.

[Corky34]

Yeh this is gonna be a big issue if that's how it is! Is this to make us fork out extra for the Pro version just so we can pick our own drivers? Haha..

The problem is Microsoft have become very circumspect in what an updates does, IIRC two security updates have been issued already for the release day build that contain a security update rolled into patches that include numerous feature changes, I think the days of exclusively security related patches are over.

[ZaO]

The problem is Microsoft have become very circumspect in what an updates does, IIRC two security updates have been issued already for the release day build that contain a security update rolled into patches that include numerous feature changes, I think the days of exclusively security related patches are over.

Personally I wouldn't be too bothered if it was just operating system stuff they were forcing updates on, as long as it doesn't affect any privacy related stuff. I'm mainly worried about being forced to have driver updates for my hardware. As most of us know, the latest driver isn't always the best driver, or even one that will allow you to boot the os and not get blue screens!

[Froggywoggy]

Hopefully if enough people use this tool Microsoft will include the (basic)feature as standard. Otherwise it seems like a bit of a desperate attempt to make the premium version of Windows different.

[bluevaping]

The things my grandma puts up for cutting edge PC gaming. I just wished she made sweaters instead.

[tekgun]

So I just went to System Properties > hardware tab > device installation settings > there you have the option for Windows to download device driver software or NOT.

[Corky34]

So I just went to System Properties > hardware tab > device installation settings > there you have the option for Windows to download device driver software or NOT.

Now do you go getting all logical on us.
Joking aside that prevents ALL downloading of drivers from Windows update, what if you want to be more selective in what gets updated drivers, or don't want to install a certain non-driver related update?

[worldmaker]

I want this problem [http://www.computing.co.uk/ctg/news/2420044/backlash-grows-over-privacy-in-freemium-windows-10] solved before I even think seriously about evaluating any change from my current system.

Even then I may skip another generation or two (Win2000 served me well for 11 years, not worried about rushing into any troublesome updates).

[ZaO]

I want this problem [http://www.computing.co.uk/ctg/news/...um-windows-10] solved before I even think seriously about evaluating any change from my current system.

Even then I may skip another generation or two (Win2000 served me well for 11 years, not worried about rushing into any troublesome updates).

I'm not sure there is anything to skip. Didn't they say this would be the last version of Windows?

[Saracen]

.... Didn't they say this would be the last version of Windows?

Yes, in the sense of major (chargeable) upgrades. Future feature changes/additions are, apparently, to be implemented via the automatic, slipstreamed background "update" process, one at a time, rather than a major "release" like W7, W8, etc.

But, presumabky, things will still evolve, so the Win10 you'd get if you buy/install it in 5 years time msy be very different to the one we have now, because by then, it'll have had 5 yeats of "updates".

Putting that another way, I think the idea is that we just buy Windows. Whether we buy it now and it upgrades for years, or you buy in 5 or 10 years and install the 'current' system, you'll have the same codebase.

[ZaO]

Yes, in the sense of major (chargeable) upgrades. Future feature changes/additions are, apparently, to be implemented via the automatic, slipstreamed background "update" process, one at a time, rather than a major "release" like W7, W8, etc.

But, presumabky, things will still evolve, so the Win10 you'd get if you buy/install it in 5 years time msy be very different to the one we have now, because by then, it'll have had 5 yeats of "updates".

Putting that another way, I think the idea is that we just buy Windows. Whether we buy it now and it upgrades for years, or you buy in 5 or 10 years and install the 'current' system, you'll have the same codebase.

Yeh I get that.. But I just meant, what can you skip exactly? The functionality will surely improve with future upates etc and "Windows 10" in years to come will be very different to what it is now, but if you don't like the privacy concerns at this point, then I can't see it getting any better, so it's not like you can just wait until Windows 10 - 2020 version or something The future of everything computer related looks worse and worse when it comes to privacy and security. Just thought worldmaker might not have realised how they're doing things..

I think anyone who doesn't specifically need Windows should try and find a Linux alternative, or something similar (not Apple or Google). You shouldn't have to worry this much about what your operating system is doing with your data. And I know you'll agree with me on that one

[Jonj1611]

Have you tried a linux alternative then ZaO? How have you gotten on with it?

I have tried many of the years but have always come back to Windows as it does everything I need it too. I have most privacy things turned off but it is what it is I guess so you either use it or have to find an alternative, if you can find one that suits you that is.

[Saracen]

Oh, I do agree, ZaO.

One way of looking at it, and I'm increasingly doing it, is to separate what I NEED to do, and say, online, from what I've just become comfortable doing. And to think about where I do it. Privacy has always been a concern, though, and for two reasons. One, sometimes data being duscussed, transmitted or exchanged, has been financially sensitive, like bank account routing and account info. That, I've long done encrypted, and paranoid though it may seem, often dual encrypted, meaning the data, such as email bodies, is PGP encrypted, but even if you broke that, the data inside needs to be, erm, interpreted using a procedure not EVER transmitted via the net. It's effrctively a cipher inside an encrypted mail. And secondly, data I've been entrusted with has sometimes been extremely commercially sensitive to clients, such as access to bud documents, board minutes, etc. It's not just my data I've needed to protect.

All of which led me to think quite hard about exactly what I NEED to do on any machine that has an internet connection. If raw data is provided to me on CD, manipulated, converted and prettied up in PDF's, and returned to the client, with work done on a machine that has no internet connection, it can't be hacked, and can't have viruses, trojans etc that can leak data because even if they are there, they can't talk out.

Ths machine I'm using right now, for instance, does not and never has had ANY personal data on it, or at least, not beyond vague and oblique refefences that I'm putting out there anyway. I do very little online buying, and NEVER on this machine. I don't do online banking at all.

You can't avoid some privacy risk, but you can dramatically reduce it. The price is also dramatically reducing the benefits of some web services. We all have to decide the balance. My choice is heavily weighted towards privacy and the more intrusive software and/or services get, the more I back of doings things on net-connected machines unless I really have to. And really, very rarely do I have to.

Increasingly, web freedom is being silently eroded, not even primarily by governments but by corporates, and tbe price is one I'm less and less willing to pay. Sadly, I'm probably the exception not the rule, or governments would have acted to reign in such flagrant privacy hijacking as indulged in by MS, Google and others. Which they yet may.

[ZaO]

Have you tried a linux alternative then ZaO? How have you gotten on with it?

I have tried many of the years but have always come back to Windows as it does everything I need it too. I have most privacy things turned off but it is what it is I guess so you either use it or have to find an alternative, if you can find one that suits you that is.

I've tried a few, yes. I've come back to Windows everytime so far. In the past it was mainly down to there not being many good games available. Now that the game situation is good enough for me, I'm currently in the process of seeing if I can make Linux work for me again. But I have a bunch of expensive software I use for making music, which I'm not going to just ditch. If I can work something out, whether it be running Windows in a virtual machine to use my software, or something else like Wine or even dual booting if I have to, then I will do it. I really hope I can get something sorted.

As for those that don't have any specific need for windows, they'd be just fine on Linux. I'm not an expert on all the different distros, but, Linux Mint seems to be pretty popular these days for it's ease of use right out of the box. I'm told to avoid Ubuntu due to Canonical selling user search info to Amazon.

Oh, I do agree, ZaO.

One way of looking at it, and I'm increasingly doing it, is to separate what I NEED to do, and say, online, from what I've just become comfortable doing. And to think about where I do it. Privacy has always been a concern, though, and for two reasons. One, sometimes data being duscussed, transmitted or exchanged, has been financially sensitive, like bank account routing and account info. That, I've long done encrypted, and paranoid though it may seem, often dual encrypted, meaning the data, such as email bodies, is PGP encrypted, but even if you broke that, the data inside needs to be, erm, interpreted using a procedure not EVER transmitted via the net. It's effrctively a cipher inside an encrypted mail. And secondly, data I've been entrusted with has sometimes been extremely commercially sensitive to clients, such as access to bud documents, board minutes, etc. It's not just my data I've needed to protect.

All of which led me to think quite hard about exactly what I NEED to do on any machine that has an internet connection. If raw data is provided to me on CD, manipulated, converted and prettied up in PDF's, and returned to the client, with work done on a machine that has no internet connection, it can't be hacked, and can't have viruses, trojans etc that can leak data because even if they are there, they can't talk out.

Ths machine I'm using right now, for instance, does not and never has had ANY personal data on it, or at least, not beyond vague and oblique refefences that I'm putting out there anyway. I do very little online buying, and NEVER on this machine. I don't do online banking at all.

You can't avoid some privacy risk, but you can dramatically reduce it. The price is also dramatically reducing the benefits of some web services. We all have to decide the balance. My choice is heavily weighted towards privacy and the more intrusive software and/or services get, the more I back of doings things on net-connected machines unless I really have to. And really, very rarely do I have to.

Increasingly, web freedom is being silently eroded, not even primarily by governments but by corporates, and tbe price is one I'm less and less willing to pay. Sadly, I'm probably the exception not the rule, or governments would have acted to reign in such flagrant privacy hijacking as indulged in by MS, Google and others. Which they yet may.

Definitely. It's important to figure out that balance of convenience vs privacy. I feel like I've got mine figured out. Using Windows feels like it is pushing me too far from where I'm comfortable with. Hopefully I can find a way out of using it. I like the sound of your setups though with the different hdd's and computers. If I was willing to put in a little more effort, I'd probably have something similar going on

[worldmaker]

...
Putting that another way, I think the idea is that we just buy Windows. Whether we buy it now and it upgrades for years, or you buy in 5 or 10 years and install the 'current' system, you'll have the same codebase.

Thanks for that reminder. Yes, I my still "skip" a few months/years to see how it evolves, or devolves.

[ZaO]

Thanks for that reminder. Yes, I my still "skip" a few months/years to see how it evolves, or devolves.

Privacy issues won't get any better. Trust me..