I’m going to use Linux even harder now!
God, they’re poison. I literally paid for Windows.
EDIT: Settings > Personalization > Start and turn off the toggle for “Show recommendations for tips, app promotions, and more.”
Don’t even have to dig into the arcane realm of the Group Policy or the Registry. It’s incredibly straightforward.
Original comment: I would be surprised if this isn’t easily toggleable through the Settings menu, Group Policy, or Registry keys.
Microsoft isn’t going to pull this shit on their Business and Government customers without an easy way to disable it. 99% of the time those same options can be used on Pro installs through having the same Group Policy options. Maybe 80% of the time you can also just find what the Group Policy option changes in the registry and then apply it to Home installs as well, but I find that Pro license is worth the slight price difference (or slight effort to spoof your license for free).
With most of these sorts of articles, they’re more interested in clicks than putting any effort into guiding people to the solution.
To be crystal clear, it is bullshit that Microsoft keeps pulling this shit. I’ve just also never encountered them doing anything like this without leaving a workaround or way to disable it.
Starts as proof of concept to get you used to it. Toggle it off, hide it, but it exists. It’s there in the code. Next step is to gradually remove the option to say no. They already tried forcing people to upgrade to Windows 11. They’ll just try harder. It’s too much money for them to ignore.
The last time I paid for a Windows license was around 2012. I bought a Windows 8 Pro license for $40. I have been using the same one ever since, and it has never given me an issue. I even used it on a few friends’ PCs.
My laptop is Linux, but my desktop is still Windows 10. My work laptop is Windows 11, and I even used Windows 11 on my desktop for about 6 months before I decided to wipe it and go back to 10. I have given Windows 11 a very fair chance, but when Windows 10 goes EOL, I will be migrating my desktop to Linux as well.
I just find things like modding games much easier with Windows rather than having to jump through a bunch of hoops to get them working in proton. Hopefully they can improve that in the next year before I switch.
Imagine paying for an OS to have ads in it. 🐃💩
Thankfully we have Linux/BSD
It doesn’t matter that you can disable it, this stuff shouldn’t be in the OS in the first place
Yeah, it really sux that Ububtu made this acceptable and Windows copied them.
You’ll downvote me, but it’s true. They did it first with fucking Amazon ads over a decade ago.
Glad i shifted to linux about a year ago, so far so good!
I finally deleted Windows 10 on Sunday. Ubuntu too. Now Debian is my only OS. I realized that every time I log into my Windows partition, it’s got a trillion updates to install because it’d been weeks since I last logged in. So why bother?
If I really need it for something again, I’ll just virtualize.
Windows Update Blocker (WuB) is great, has CLI to use in scripts, and effectively turns off Windows updates and prevents the dickhead “Windows update medic” or whatever service from re-enabling updates. No need to modify registry or GPO. When you want to check for updates, you just click a button in WuB! I love it and even use it in my VM for work.
I realized that every time I log into my Windows partition, it’s got a trillion updates to install because it’d been weeks since I last logged in. So why bother?
I remember that feeling. It’s like a rite of passage.
It would be a hallowed moment in my memory, except I think I remarked “well, fuck this noise!”, which kinda spoils the moment.
My thing is I’ve got years of experience in Linux. I began using Ubuntu in 2012 because my laptop’s hard disk failed, the sticker with my product key had worn away, and I wasn’t paying $100 for another copy of Windows 7.
I’ve only been noncommittal about it this this long because of my Steam library. But with the Steam Deck and Proton being so damn good, and all my games working just as well on Linux as they did in Windows (many times, better), I just stopped using Windows altogether.
So there I was, staring at GNOME Disks for a couple hours. Knowing that like a bad relationship that was doing something for me, but also hurting me, it was best to break things off. And then I nuked that bitch lol
Literally 5 seconds in Google to find how to disable. No need to dig into Group Policy or the Registry.
Settings > Personalization > Start and turn off the toggle for “Show recommendations for tips, app promotions, and more.”
Same setting that controls a lot of the anti consumer shit I’ve been seeing articles about lately, like it trying to force you onto a Microsoft Account when you have a local one. Do yourself a favor and just skim through the Settings menus and disable any settings related to reccomendations. They mean ads.
It’s bullshit that Microsoft keeps pulling this shit, but the setting is straightforward as hell. Plus, I’ve never had this setting reset itself due to updates (yet).
It’s only a matter of time before it’s not an option anymore. Every shitty new behavior they put in is an easy-to-use option at first, then a registry setting or policy, then even that goes away and it gets baked in.
its because people are too attched to using the native option. Theres nothing stopping people from using 3rd party start bars for years now. Conceptually to me, complaining about the start bar is almost akin to complaining about things in internet explorer, when 3rd party options exists.
Think how agressive Microsoft puts ads in edge. theres absolutely nothing stopping a user from switching browsers to ignore that. Start bar is the same.
It’s a matter of trust. This is just the latest in a long and increasing train of Microsoft abusing their market power. They have proven, time and again, that they cannot be trusted.
Anyone who tries to pull an “I have altered the deal, pray I do not alter it further” gets a lifetime boycott.