I'm pretty sure someone will come up in the next months with some software to override Win10 privacy settings. I laughed when I received my Asus PC for work a few months ago and saw that Classic Shell (for Win 8) was already pre-installed on it. If even famous PC builders includes 3rd party fixes.... ^o^

Odd question but, what happens if your system goes bellyup after the 12 months update for free grace period is over and done with?.

Ok, installed Win 10, disabled (hopefully) all the fluff features (like phoning home etc). So far it doesn't seems neither better nor worse than Windows 7, though there are some extra hoops for some stuff and some configurations are pretty limited.

Mind that according to MS those settings get reset automatically after a while.

You gotta love the new restrictions.
For quite a while, "new" doesn't mean "better" or "with more features" anymore but rather the opposite (not counting the keylogger, trojan-army and rootkit-features).

I'm sure that there'll be something like "XPantispy" for this one too but obviously MS is fighting stuff like this in a sneaky way now.

Change HKLM\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\AU key, value NoAutoUpdate to the desired one. Or use the Group Policy to set it. Same way as it was since at least 2011.
The script is there for the simple users that are afraid of messing something up if they try to do that on their own.


The script is there for ease of use. The options are the same ones that were there since 2011 at least, minus the "Don't update" one in the windows update menu.

Does the acronym UAC ring a bell? That kind of warning? The one most "normal users" said it was an annoyance, turned it off, and never used it again?
Software or hardware? If software, install Win10 again, skip the serial check, then go online to authenticate.
If hardware, install Win10 again, then contact Customer Support, explain your situation and see if they give you a new activation or if you'll have to obtain one yourself.
That's weird. Cortana on my installation is off. Not only that, it tells me that with my region and language (Greece, EN-US) it's not available. Could it be that it was set correctly instead of just pressing buttons?

I just want to say, that I appreciate JMichs constant checking of facts everywhere even if he is supporting the dark side atm as it seems and wish we had someone here as eager to explain how to tweak your Linux the right way as JMich is doing for Windows.

Sigh.. you still focus on single elements, instead of the context.
I don't care if it's a script\hack\registry key\GP\magic ritual\etc: they're all unnecessary annoyances, the important part is the missing simple option like before.

I cannot believe you fail to understand the difference.
It's like saying that using the handle to open a door is the same as removing it from its hinges..

UAC was s**t, because it was an annoying popup showing up every second.
It was an obvious failure, but I bet you still like it.

For me the only acceptable compromise would be:
- add a clear text warning directly in the options.
- ask the users if they prefer a simple Windows mode (all auto configured) or an advanced one (all toggable).

I once heard exactly this argument from a carpenter when I tried to get him to finally repair it after years! Seriously!

Something funny about a guy that started the installation of Windows 10 and left it unattended:
http://img-9gag-fun.9cache.com/photo/aynBAjy_460s_v2.jpg

And again. People who do need to turn automatic updates off and choose what updates they need to install should have no problems using the advanced tools of Windows to do so. People who can't do that without a simple switch do not need to turn off automatic updates and choose what updates to install.

And here we are. If you think UAC was shit, then you won't understand why removing said simple option is a good idea. Same way why UAC is one of the best things to have happened in Windows, even if it is copying the su command of Linux.


Edit: And if you want a door analogy, it's not the handle. The door to the storage shed is locked, and while you used to have the key in your pocket, as well as the super having a key, your neighbor, and a close friend of yours, you currently do not have the key yourself, so you have to go ask the key from one of them to access the storage shed. You still can access it, but you have to jump through a few more hoops, even though the hooping option was there when you also had the key yourself.

Kek.

but with that argument you could remove 50% of the system setting dialogs, right? I mean I have a neat dialog to change my prefered DNS server or set a WINS server manually , but a dialog to set my update options is discarded because it is too advanced?

I'm not sure, i think i heard somewhere you had to enable cortana manually... Although it would probably be rather quick in asking you... As for Non-US it might have to do with some privacy laws that prevent them from enabling it, laws which are becoming more rare in the US.

Also keep in mind anything you use Cortana through WILL go through Bing. I remember seeing a demo (for a windows phone) getting responses from her and every one of them included bing search results. I also remember it having a distinct bias for microsoft products, like asking her if you should get a Xbox or Playstation, she'd always urge you to get MS's product. Very likely it requires the database otherwise the voice commands have no real intelligence in the responses.

DNS and WINS addresses are needed much more often than the need to block updates. And while netsh is available, and quite useful if you need to do changes often, people still prefer to go with the network connection properties.
Should there come a time when the network interface is configured automatically, and changing it will cause problems more often than it will solve them, then yes, I do believe removing said dialogue would be the better choice. But with the current mess of IPv4 and IPv6, the changes are needed.

I decided to go for it. It certainly wasn't "smooth as silk", but I finally got it up and running and things tuned how I want them. I posted some hints here.

(It turned out the 3rd attempt at the upgrade after 2 rollbacks and some further prep was a charm.)

Why should I need to ask the key for my shed to other people? (the company who built it)
I'm not a kid and they shouldn't pretend to be parents worried about dangerous tools in the shed.
.
Exactly, but let's do 100% to be safe :P