Windows 10 for free, there has to be a snag??

[M.Chapman]

 

Beware things given away for nothing. Basically Beta testing. Something a lot of us don't do if it is called "Beta".

 

Yes, it's pretty easy to crowdsource even unpaid guinea pigs these days.

 

Or even "ambush them" with a sneaky download....

[John Mitchell]

 

 

Beware things given away for nothing. Basically Beta testing. Something a lot of us don't do if it is called "Beta".

 

Yes, it's pretty easy to crowdsource even unpaid guinea pigs these days.

 

Or even "ambush them" with a sneaky download....

 

 

Yes, they're still snapping at my heels. I'm going to try to fend them off for awhile longer.

[Betty LaRue]

My husband has a new computer with Windows 8 on it. He's not connected to the Internet, though, so there should be no problem. Sneaky downloads can't happen if you've slammed the door. Can't get viruses, either.

 

But he can mess with photos to his heart's content.

[M.Chapman]

Problems continue. http://www.techtimes.com/articles/114370/20151209/users-complain-windows-10-november-update-causes-wi-fi-issues.htm

 

For whatever reason the Microsoft update system seems to have stopped trying to install the massive Windows 10 November update on my Windows PC and has installed several smaller patches instead, which currently seem to be working OK.  

[Jill Morgan]

I've had two updates this week, no issues with either, except Windows keeps changing my default browser to Edge.

 

Jill

[Bryan]

Win 10 tried to update again tonight, another unprompted event. All appeared well, got through to 100% ready, but checking Update under System tools I am still getting the message that the update was not successful.

 

Can't say I'm overly concerned, other than the time wasted in going through the process, the system has been doing most of what I want - except for for Photo Viewer which persists in ordering photos differently to my Explorer settings.

[Bryan]

Updated to the latest release of Win 10 tonight!

[Number Six]

After two weeks with Windows 10, I've just reverted to Windows 7 (an option available for 30 days after "upgrading"). While my initial feelings were that the unsolicited move to Windows 10 was an anti-climax, a few niggles started to highlight that Windows 10 is still a very immature system.

 

I had binned the Edge browser from the start (no option for viewing favourites on the LH side), and subsequently had a quick look at the Mail app. The app itself was very clunky and irritatingly, it introduced a requirement to log-in to Windows after power up/re-start. Then, for no obvious reason, the Settings option (essentially the Control Panel) refused to launch. Googling revealed that these were common issues with work-rounds/fixes but looking at all the other moans and gripes on related forums (& here) did not inspire confidence.

 

So, nothing too earth-shattering during my 2 week 'trial period' but insufficient confidence to be stuck with Windows 10 after the initial 30 days. Believe there will be another 3 yrs of support for Windows 7 (with SP1), which will probably see my current PC out. Hopefully Win 10 will be on SP1 by then.

[Number Six]

Further to my above post, I decided to check on my Windows Updates to see if the reversion back to Win 7 had left me up to date. It hadn't.

 

There were 12 important updates (which I normally download/install automatically), and I then noticed a one liner stating that one optional update had been selected for download/install. Yes, you guessed it, this turned out to be the upgrade to Windows 10. Plus, the main Update page had defaulted to "Give me recommended updates the same way I receive important updates".

 

So, I am now on the "Check for important updates and let me decide" option, and will occasionally look at recommended updates 'manually'.

[M.Chapman]

After a couple of months using Windows 10, I'm probably going to revert back to Windows 7 too. There's just too many things that don't work properly in Windows 10 for me.

1. Intermittent failure to boot (thread stuck in driver)
2. Serious lags in file Explorer (moved or deleted files don't always show as moved or deleted unless I close and reopen file Explorer)
3. Slower than Windows 7
4. Significant increase in Internet bandwidth usage. Before Windows 10 I was always under 10 GB/month. Since upgrading I've been close to double that each month. This is partly down to the repeated Windows 10 has made to install the huge "November update", which has failed every time so far. But I'm not sure what else is causing the significant increase in my downloads. Unfortunately I have a 10GB monthly cap, and have to pay for usage over this. So for me the Windows 10 update has not been free..
5. I've recently found that my HP all in one Printer/Scanner (only 2 years old) will no longer scan under Windows 10. It has the latest driver. Printing also freezes part way through documents for no obvious reason. I didn't have any of these problems under Windows 7. The Windows 10 "devices" interface is also much worse.
6. I dislike the inconsistent user interface. In some areas the menus and fonts are big "dumbed down" and bold, presumably to suit a touch interface. But, as a result, menus don't fit on the screen, and have to scrolled unnecessarily, and have useful options missing.  In other areas the menus reverts to the old "Windows 7" style with smaller font and closer spaced format.
7. I hate the forced updates. When I come to shut down my PC (the only way for a secure shut down) it's a real pain to find Windows 10 has other plans, and starts installing an update and tells me not to turn off the PC.

All in all, I wish I hadn't upgraded to Windows 10. To revert to Windows 7 I'll probably have to go through an awkward reactivation of Windows 7, now the 30 days are up, as I suspect my original Windows 7 licence key has been deactivated. Windows 10 is loads better than Windows 8, but still isn't as polished as Windows 7.

[wiskerke]

After a couple of months using Windows 10, I'm probably going to revert back to Windows 7 too. There's just too many things that don't work properly in Windows 10 for me.

1. Intermittent failure to boot (thread stuck in driver)
2. Serious lags in file Explorer (moved or deleted files don't always show as moved or deleted unless I close and reopen file Explorer)
3. Slower than Windows 7
4. Significant increase in Internet bandwidth usage. Before Windows 10 I was always under 10 GB/month. Since upgrading I've been close to double that each month. This is partly down to the repeated Windows 10 has made to install the huge "November update", which has failed every time so far. But I'm not sure what else is causing the significant increase in my downloads. Unfortunately I have a 10GB monthly cap, and have to pay for usage over this. So for me the Windows 10 update has not been free..
5. I've recently found that my HP all in one Printer/Scanner (only 2 years old) will no longer scan under Windows 10. It has the latest driver. Printing also freezes part way through documents for no obvious reason. I didn't have any of these problems under Windows 7. The Windows 10 "devices" interface is also much worse.
6. I dislike the inconsistent user interface. In some areas the menus and fonts are big "dumbed down" and bold, presumably to suit a touch interface. But, as a result, menus don't fit on the screen, and have to scrolled unnecessarily, and have useful options missing.  In other areas the menus reverts to the old "Windows 7" style with smaller font and closer spaced format.
7. I hate the forced updates. When I come to shut down my PC (the only way for a secure shut down) it's a real pain to find Windows 10 has other plans, and starts installing an update and tells me not to turn off the PC.

All in all, I wish I hadn't upgraded to Windows 10. To revert to Windows 7 I'll probably have to go through an awkward reactivation of Windows 7, now the 30 days are up, as I suspect my original Windows 7 licence key has been deactivated. Windows 10 is loads better than Windows 8, but still isn't as polished as Windows 7.

 

The bandwidth problem is well documented: to speed delivery up, Microsoft uses some of your bandwidth to send the updates or the whole product to other clients. Like BitTorrent.

From Wikipedia:

Windows Update also uses a peer to peer system for distributing updates; by default, users' bandwidth is used to distribute previously downloaded updates to other users, in combination with Microsoft servers. Users can instead choose to only use peer-to-peer updates within their local area network.

This is the link from that Wikipedia article on how to disable that.

(Sorry for that broadcast starting automatically - re: your bantwidth.)

 

wim

[M.Chapman]

 

After a couple of months using Windows 10, I'm probably going to revert back to Windows 7 too. There's just too many things that don't work properly in Windows 10 for me.

1. Intermittent failure to boot (thread stuck in driver)
2. Serious lags in file Explorer (moved or deleted files don't always show as moved or deleted unless I close and reopen file Explorer)
3. Slower than Windows 7
4. Significant increase in Internet bandwidth usage. Before Windows 10 I was always under 10 GB/month. Since upgrading I've been close to double that each month. This is partly down to the repeated Windows 10 has made to install the huge "November update", which has failed every time so far. But I'm not sure what else is causing the significant increase in my downloads. Unfortunately I have a 10GB monthly cap, and have to pay for usage over this. So for me the Windows 10 update has not been free..
5. I've recently found that my HP all in one Printer/Scanner (only 2 years old) will no longer scan under Windows 10. It has the latest driver. Printing also freezes part way through documents for no obvious reason. I didn't have any of these problems under Windows 7. The Windows 10 "devices" interface is also much worse.
6. I dislike the inconsistent user interface. In some areas the menus and fonts are big "dumbed down" and bold, presumably to suit a touch interface. But, as a result, menus don't fit on the screen, and have to scrolled unnecessarily, and have useful options missing.  In other areas the menus reverts to the old "Windows 7" style with smaller font and closer spaced format.
7. I hate the forced updates. When I come to shut down my PC (the only way for a secure shut down) it's a real pain to find Windows 10 has other plans, and starts installing an update and tells me not to turn off the PC.

All in all, I wish I hadn't upgraded to Windows 10. To revert to Windows 7 I'll probably have to go through an awkward reactivation of Windows 7, now the 30 days are up, as I suspect my original Windows 7 licence key has been deactivated. Windows 10 is loads better than Windows 8, but still isn't as polished as Windows 7.

 

The bandwidth problem is well documented: to speed delivery up, Microsoft uses some of your bandwidth to send the updates or the whole product to other clients. Like BitTorrent.

From Wikipedia:

Windows Update also uses a peer to peer system for distributing updates; by default, users' bandwidth is used to distribute previously downloaded updates to other users, in combination with Microsoft servers. Users can instead choose to only use peer-to-peer updates within their local area network.

This is the link from that Wikipedia article on how to disable that.

(Sorry for that broadcast starting automatically - re: your bantwidth.)

 

wim

 

 

Already disabled that when I installed Windows 10, and I've just checked it's still turned off. I also turned off automatic sharing of my Wi-Fi access with people in my contacts folder. It's downloads to my house that have shot up,

[wiskerke]

Already disabled that when I installed Windows 10, and I've just checked it's still turned off. I also turned off automatic sharing of my Wi-Fi access with people in my contacts folder. It's downloads to my house that have shot up,

 

Send them a bill ;-)

 

wim

[Betty LaRue]

I remember when Microsoft had a great product. Before my Mac changeover. When XP came out, I rushed to get it and loved it.

What the heck has happened? Are there a bunch of clowns on the design team now?

[Bryan]

I think that it's a move to a new business model. Rather than have users pay upfront, they want to sell advertising space and maybe other services. I don't detect overmuch altruism in the switch, but, in truth, if I can disable most of the associated garbage, I'm happy to have a new and updating operating system for free.

 

My one remaining gripe, and I know of fixes online that don't work for me, is the replacement of Photo Viewer with a singularly useless (for my purposes) product. I can get PV to work, but irritatingly, it won't display shots in the order specified by Explorer. This is something that is really useful for a final 100% pixels check on/comparison of  images before uploading. Yes I can do this in LR and PS, but PV is so very much quicker.

 

I've provided feedback on this issue, and there's loads of other people banging the drum, but if you also have the problem please bend Mr Microsoft's ear.

[M.Chapman]

My one remaining gripe, and I know of fixes online that don't work for me, is the replacement of Photo Viewer with a singularly useless (for my purposes) product. I can get PV to work, but irritatingly, it won't display shots in the order specified by Explorer. This is something that is really useful for a final 100% pixels check on/comparison of  images before uploading. Yes I can do this in LR and PS, but PV is so very much quicker.

 

 

I can highly recommend Breeze Browser Pro. It all has a 100% (or any other magnification) side by side comparison mode of 2 to 4 images with matched pan and scroll. It also allows the image view order to be specified. Also allows jpgs and raws to be seen as one. It's also very, very quick. No need to import. 

[Bryan]

 

 

 

I can highly recommend Breeze Browser Pro. It all has a 100% (or any other magnification) side by side comparison mode of 2 to 4 images with matched pan and scroll. It also allows the image view order to be specified. Also allows jpgs and raws to be seen as one. It's also very, very quick. No need to import. 

 

 

Thanks for that, I  took a look and I'm sure it would do the trick, but it costs $69 and Photo Viewer is (was) bundled with Windows.

 

I've come across another problem with Win 10, it appears to disable my Epson scanner driver whenever it updates. I then have to download and install a new copy. Not critical, but what an unnecessary pain!

[Bryan]

Apologies, double post.

 

 

[M.Chapman]

Microsoft seem to be getting even more aggressive at forcing the upgrade to Windows 10 which, given the level of bugs and patches on top of patches going on at the moment seems crazy.

 

From Forbes.com

 

Windows 10 “Free Upgrades” Becomes Worse

 

Microsoft has been persistent in forcing Windows 7 and Windows 8 users to upgrade to Windows 10. Over the last couple weeks, Microsoft started to implement changes that prevents Windows 7 and Windows 8 users from having the option to choose whether to upgrade. Forbes contributor Gordon Kelly recently highlighted three changes that prevents users from choosing whether they want to upgrade:

 

1.) Reversing User Settings – Microsoft has been silently changing Windows 7 and Windows 8 user preferences without any warning. Specifically the Windows Update ‘AllowOSUpgrade’ setting has been resetting itself at least once per day, according to GWX Control Panel developer Josh Mayfield via ComputerWorld. The GWX Control Panel program can be used for preventing Windows 10 from installing itself, but now the upgrade prompt keeps reappearing since ‘AllowOSUpgrade’ setting has been resetting every day.

 

2.) Removing The Decline Option – Microsoft has removed the “decline” option for upgrading to Windows 10. Previously, the options were “Upgrade now” or “Start download, upgrade later.” Now the only options are “Upgrade now” or “Upgrade tonight.”

 

Full article here.

 

Edit: I read elsewhere that if you click the small red X close menu button (top right), it is it taken as "decline". So even though there's no "Decline" button, you can get out of it, for now at least.

[Betty LaRue]

Looks like Hitler is at the helm.

[John Mitchell]

Just as a heads-up, I had to have some work done on my five-year-old PC recently, and my very experienced repair guy told me that he doesn't recommend upgrading to Windows 10 if you have an older machine. He didn't get into specifics but said that there are "issues." Looks like I'll be stickin' with lucky Windows 7.

[Ace]

Just updated my daughters windows 7 with 10. Many parts mainly Office will now not work save etc. Going for a system restore. However updated my windows 8 to 10 without problem. Think twice about doing it for windows 7 though !

[Jill Morgan]

Just updated my daughters windows 7 with 10. Many parts mainly Office will now not work save etc. Going for a system restore. However updated my windows 8 to 10 without problem. Think twice about doing it for windows 7 though !

 

It really does seem that the issues are from those updating from Windows 7. As John mentioned, perhaps some of the older PCs don't work well with Windows 10.

 

Jill

[Johnnie5]

Godwin’s Law is an internet adage that is derived from one of the earliest bits of Usenet wisdoms, which goes “if you mention Adolf Hitler or Nazis within a discussion thread, you’ve automatically ended whatever discussion you were taking part in.”

[Betty LaRue]

Just as a heads-up, I had to have some work done on my five-year-old PC recently, and my very experienced repair guy told me that he doesn't recommend upgrading to Windows 10 if you have an older machine. He didn't get into specifics but said that there are "issues." Looks like I'll be stickin' with lucky Windows 7.

How can you do that, John? I thought this thread says you have no choice, the update takes over your computer.