Windows 8 - Deeper Impressions

[CharlotteTheHarlot]

Any Android smartphone users reading this who can verify (1) whether this location feature can be disabled, and (2) whether the phone keeps working if you do disable the feature?

Yes it can be disabled. Certain functions won't work, like Maps, location tagging with photos, certain other apps that require it. The maps is a strange one. Its not like Google Maps on the website, where it loads up and you type where you want to look at. It automatically tries to set the default map location based on your current GPS and complains about Location Services being disabled.

And as far as "opt-in" this isn't entirely accurate. The phone never asks you if you want to use it or not. In my experience (noting that all Android OS versions and settings added by wireless carriers may be different) it is more of an opt-out scenario. Everyone I know has it enabled on their phones because it is the default setting. It doesn't ask you when you first set up your phone or anything, but you can go turn it off if you want.

Indeed. this is the problem in a nutshell. We have seen in less than a decade the dramatic anti-privacy shift from Opt-In to Opt-Out. It can be stated no clearer. ( RealPlayer and Gator adware must be feeling awfully vindicated these days ).

It is not even debated anymore, all companies have been leapfrogging each other down this road to 1984 Big Brother and Idiocracy with no serious pushback from any quarter. The sheeple are the perpetrators and the victims simultaneously. And it's not good enough to blame government or lack thereof ( is there such a thing? ). The most effective voices are from the citizens and customers.

There are not many avenues of recourse either. The only one I have any faith in is free speech and calling a spade a spade. Labeling Google and Microsoft and the rest as spyware and getting it out into the public consciousness is what I am attempting. Perhaps with the parallel issue of the spooks' data collection and the blurry lines between them, we can piggyback on top of that and make them feel some pain here. We have little choice, failure is not an option. Think of what your kids and grandkids will be facing thanks to the fanboy enablers in their future.

[CharlotteTheHarlot]

Microsoft reportedly narrows down the list of CEO candidates to five ( TechSpot 2013-11-06 )

Microsoft's Search for a CEO to Replace Ballmer Down to a Handful of Candidates ( Maximum PC 2013-11-06 )

Microsoft Narrows Next CEO Candidates Down to Shortlist ( Tom's Hardware 2013-11-06 )

Microsoft reportedly narrows CEO search to about five candidates ( NeoWin 2013-11-06 )

( as mentioned by Formfiller ) All the same names keep popping up and only one of them, the guy at Ford is really external which means they are on the path to screwing this up also. ~yawn~ Maybe they should be considering Gabe Newell who seems to be shadow CEO judging by some other stories concerning Windows games!

Bloomberg: Microsoft COO Kevin Turner also in the running for CEO gig ( NeoWin 2013-11-07 )

( also mentioned by Formfiller ) Oh yeah, that'll go over well! From what I can tell observing from the outside of the company, this person "KT" clearly places in the top three most despised and reviled Microsoft executives. No matter what happens one thing is for sure, there will be big changes coming, probably with layoffs especially because of the influx of Nokia employees. But the promotion of this guy would lead to yet another exodus of whatever good people still remain.

AND HERE IS THE BIG ONE CAUSING NIGHTMARES FOR THE FANBOYS ...

Elop would consider dumping Xbox and Bing if he becomes Microsoft CEO ( NeoWin 2013-11-08 )

Microsoft CEO candidate Stephen Elop reportedly considering dropping Bing and selling Xbox business ( TechSpot 2013-11-08 )

Stephen Elop Mulls Selling Xbox Business and Bing if Chosen CEO of Microsoft ( Maximum PC 2013-11-08 )

According to a Bloomberg report, Elop's first order of business would be to emphasize Microsoft's lucrative Office business. Beyond that, however, he would also consider killing or selling off Microsoft's Bing search engine, as well as sell the company's Xbox business. It's not set in stone that he would do that, but according to Bloomberg, he would certainly consider both options if he deemed them non-critical to the company's overall strategy.

It's safe to say that Elop is no longer the golden child to the MicroZealots at NeoWin!

[CharlotteTheHarlot]

Stardock releases Launch8, Start screen dock for Windows 8/8.1 ( NeoWin 2013-11-07 )

And the natives do not like it.

Microsoft releases Windows 8.1 patch to fix mouse lag while gaming ( NeoWin 2013-11-09 )

So they "fixed" the games through patches instead of the operating system. Games that worked previously on earlier operating systems are now broken because of changes made in the new operating system which came out long after many of these games were published. Yet the fanboys blame the developers in the comments! Notice that they are too cowardly to simply state the truth - "Microsoft Tiles may or may not be compatible with earlier software". In fact they often say the exact opposite: "Windows 8 works on everything that Windows 7 worked on and is even better!". The description of the problem here fits not an operating system at all, but a "software" instead. An "operating system" supports software on hardware, period. Anything else is not an operating system at all, more like a walled-garden.

Windows 8.1 Causing BSOD When Creating Ramdisk. Yes, we have another Windows 8.1 problem, Houston. ( Tom's Hardware 2013-11-05 )

Softpedia is apparently trolling the Microsoft Community Forums looking for Windows 8.1 issues, as the site has come across another issue regarding ramdisk creation and the new Windows update. Previously,- the site discovered forum threads regarding Windows 8.1 locking up, forcing users to reboot or turn the PC off completely and restarting (to clear the memory).

[...]

Microsoft responded by saying the error is caused by a driver bug check during boot, and that Windows 8.1 users should make sure that all drivers have been updated. If not, users should update all drivers and then check to see if the ramdrive issue persists. But Windows 8.1 customers are flooding the thread with complaints that the provided generic solution does not work.

Sure sounds like a 'feature' and not a 'bug' at all. At bootstrap the OS finds something not signed or approved and stops working. This is to be expected in a Walled-Garden, get used to it. I do love the advice about "users should make sure that all drivers have been updated". Keep in mind the target demographic here is MetroTards who want to poke and swipe and be completely rid of such technical details. This is a consequence of squeezing together two audiences into one box, the veteran expert users, and the 'Tards. If only one operating system is offered, then one or the other customer must be sacrificed.

[CharlotteTheHarlot]

The Xbone saga continues ...

Xbox One cloud servers could reboot in mid-session if they are updated ( NeoWin 2013-11-06 )

Xbox One's cloud service updates could cause reboots mid-game ( TechSpot 2013-11-08 )

The problem is caused by the console's frequent, required, cloud updates. Microsoft has already announced that the system will require its cloud service to be up to date on a regular basis. But what exactly is the issue here, and how is it going to affect Xbox gamers? Bruno stated the following during a presentation at GDC Next:

"Once in a while, rather frequently actually, the host OS will require an update, meaning the physical machine is going to get rebooted whether your code is running or not," he explained. "Thats a problematic thing for a game, and oftentimes it's in the middle of a multiplayer session. Weve worked very hard to overcome that, but thats not to say its going to be a reality in every case."

Miserable complainers, always whining about this or that! Now they are moaning about mid-game system reboots. Spoiled babies. The cloud is your friend. Leave Microsoft alone! /SARC

For a glimpse into the impenetrable me-only narcissistic mind of a fanboy, consider this comment: "Hint: they're not going to be updated in prime time." which is an ignorant attempt at rationalization ( and with NO sarc tag ) that translates to 'they'll only do these updates during off-peak hours Yep, that magic off-peak hour on planet Earth is what time exactly?

Xbox One will be a paperweight without day one update ( NeoWin 2013-11-08 )

Xbox One won't play 3D Blu-ray movies at launch ( NeoWin 2013-11-09 )

Something like this really shouldn't be surprising except that only a week ago the news that the PS4 needed a day-one update caused the MicroZealots to crack jokes and celebrate. And now we get the corresponding story about Xbone also needing a day-one update. Cognitive dissonance is strong in these threads.

Microsoft Finds Its Way Back to PC Gaming, Plans to Launch Several First Party Titles ( Maximum PC 2013-11-07 )

Microsoft planning to bring more first-party titles to PC ( PC Gamer 2013-11-07 )

Microsoft now focused on 'core' PC games after Windows 8 launch's casual titles ( NeoWin 2013-11-07 )

Not going to bother quoting the little quoted tidbit of lip service that the Microsoft executive spouted, it is merely a defensive rear-guard action in the multi-front war they have managed to get themselves into. What we're seeing here is their realization that the patience of actual Windows users has run thin and the little positive feedback they receive from their fanboy enablers cannot sustain them alone. With Gabe and Valve on the job now and serious consideration given to alternative operating systems, distribution methods, input devices and low level API's instead of Direct-X they are waking up to the fact that their dictatorial days might be over.

Microsoft extends support for parts of Skype Desktop API ( NeoWin 2013-11-06 )

Speaking of cognitive dissonance, the handful of commenters who even showed up here failed to connect the dots. The ancient ten-year old Skype which was launched just 2 years after Windows XP has gotten a lifeline tossed its way. Windows XP still slated for execution on schedule though.

[CharlotteTheHarlot]

Former Microsoft employee talks publicly about online hate after Twitter comments ( NeoWin 2013-11-07 )

In April, Adam Orth was a man working pretty quietly at Microsoft Studios as a creative director and was about to leave the company thanks to a new job offer. That was before he went on his Twitter account and posted the following message: "Sorry, I don't get the drama around having an 'always on' console. Every device we have is 'always on'. That's the world we live in. #dealwithit".

That simple message was enough to create what Orth now calls an "Internet firestorm" of hate against him personally from many game enthusiasts.

Poor baby, mistaking Twitter for a personal diary that he can write his thoughts into and no-one will read or respond to. This is called peer review ( or better yet, p2p review : ) which is so thoroughly lacking in the world today in insulated boardrooms and political offices. Hey Adam, #dealwithit!

Internet Explorer Has a New Anime Girl Mascot ( Tom's Hardware 2013-11-09 )

Wannabe Hipsters. This could very easily have been from the Onion or the Daily WTF.

Panasonic's 20 inch Windows 8.1 tablet coming to U.S. in January for $5,999 ( NeoWin 2013-11-08 )

~sigh~ A bigger waste of money I cannot imagine ( and that's really saying something these days ). Talk about betting on the wrong horse. Panasonic seems incapable of making logical decisions which pains me to say since I have always liked their stuff. They just threw in the towel with plasma TV's being discontinued after failing miserably at marketing ( and evolving ) them properly. It is such a shame because they are arguably better than LCD tech except for power efficiency. You would think they could make 30 inch plasma computer displays ( preferably higher than 1080 vertical ) by now, something a lot of people would jump on. Instead they jump to 4k LCD.

Security and Privacy ...

The CIA pays AT&T more than $10 million annually for foreign call logs ( TechSpot 2013-11-07 )

The publication claims the CIA supplies AT&T with the phone numbers of suspected terrorists. From here, the wireless provider is able to comb their database for call records attached to a given number. These records include valuable information such as the length and date of phone calls. In the event that a call is placed to or from an American number and involved an international caller, the CIA reportedly asks AT&T to mask the identity of the US-based number for legal reasons.

In case you were wondering, the arrangement is said to be different from the tactics the NSA uses to collect phone records although they likely duplicate some of their programs. It appears to have been started sometime before 2010, was put on hold at some point then reinitiated once again.

Thing is, we now know that this is just one of many prongs in a multi-pronged approach. Prior to this past summer this wouldn't even be news at all, in fact it is pretty much the same thing from the old Ma Bell days that existed throughout the cold war and probably started around World War II. The newsworthy portion IMHO is that they are actively being paid out of the taxpayer wallet and this adds a new dynamic which is that they are selling their services to the spooks which makes it even easier to say "yes" to requests. It is probbaly safe to assume that payola is involved in all the other cases we now know of. Citizen privacy is fungible, it is a commodity that exists only until someone offers to pay for access.

[jaclaz]

I would like to remind all the peeps that one of the basic needs for selling something is to find someone actually wanting to buy what you want to sell.

So, WHO exactly could be interested in a "game division" that (seemingly) loses a zillion bucks a year since several years?

jaclaz

[bpalone]

I would like to remind all the peeps that one of the basic needs for selling something is to find someone actually wanting to buy what you want to sell.

So, WHO exactly could be interested in a "game division" that (seemingly) loses a zillion bucks a year since several years?

jaclaz

Well, maybe they would be throwing in some of those lucrative Patents, that they hold over the heads of the Android phone makers?

Just a thought.

bpalone

[jaclaz]

Very possible , but still it would make little sense.

According to the mentioned article:

http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-earns-2-billion-per-year-from-android-patent-royalties-2013-11

the "patents" have something like 95% margin, please read as 100% less the costs of the lawyers .

And you have to do NOTHING but to collect the royalties (no investments, no R&D, no press statement, no risk of making a bad product - as you are not making any product), all you have to do is to convince the other people (and/or Courts) that you are entitled to cash the money.

Let's say that you have (do you remember fourth of fifth grade?) a bath tub where a tap pours one gallon water per minute and the hole at the bottom of the tub lets exactly one gallon per minute go waste.

Now if the idea is to not let the water go waste you have two choices:

1. close the tap
2. put a cork in the hole at the bottom

but if the idea is to not let the water go waste AND take a bath you only have the second option available.

The idea of selling the whole set to someone else (which may be able to put a cork in the hole or to increase the water pressure and thus the flow from the tap) may or may not help in not letting the water go waste, but won't let you take a bath anymore.

But of course this is "top level" finance, and taps and defective bath tubs are just for the kids .

jaclaz

[bpalone]

the "patents" have something like 95% margin, please read as 100% less the costs of the lawyers

Very true that it doesn't make any sense. But, if you are trying move a TURKEY you sometimes have to add something to make it more appealing.

Now, we don't know but maybe a few changes in structure would make Xbox profitable. That is something we are not privy to, so we are speculating at best. But if they were to throw some the more questionable Patents (they all are in my opinion, but that is another topic), they might sweeten the pot enough to attract someone. One of the large cell manufactures might run the numbers and say, that it is worth money just to extinguish the royalty payment and then sell the Xbox unit for a deep discount or just terminate it.

All speculation and worth just exactly what was paid for it. NADA.

bpalone

[TELVM]

Panasonic's 20 inch Windows 8.1 tablet coming to U.S. in January for $5,999 ( NeoWin 2013-11-08 )

... Panasonic's hardware specs for the U.S. version show that it will have Windows 8.1 Pro, with an Intel Core i5 processor inside with a 1.9GHz clock speed. The tablet will have 8GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD storage ...

Wow, what an awesome price/horsepower ratio .

[jaclaz]

Wow, what an awesome price/horsepower ratio .

And apparently you will also need a power generator as:

http://www.neowin.net/news/panasonics-20-inch-windows-81-tablet-coming-to-us-in-january-for-5999

The 5.27 pound tablet has an estimated battery life of up to two hours.

I thought that the general idea in the long term for portable devices was to increasingly have devices that allowed to work play for around 8-10 hours like a cellular phone does since a few years (you get home and plug it in to recharge it, you get it the morning after fully recharged and the charge lasts until you are back home) .

Which is BTW another aspect of the new BYOD syndrome, your employer saves money because you pay the energy to power your device that you use in order to work fake working play for him/her.

jaclaz

[Tripredacus]

It doesn't ask you when you first set up your phone or anything, but you can go turn it off if you want.

Yes, it normally asks it at first setup, at least Samsung's do, example:

http://www.knowyourmobile.com/samsung/samsung-galaxy-s4/20099/how-set-your-samsung-galaxy-s4-first-time

jaclaz

Google Location is something new, which is their reaction to getting sued for recording Wifi passwords. It isn't the same as the main GPS function of the phone. Location a separate Google applet that handles just what is mentioned (at least publicly) in that guide.

Internet Explorer Has a New Anime Girl Mascot ( Tom's Hardware 2013-11-09 )

Wannabe Hipsters. This could very easily have been from the Onion or the Daily WTF.

Well it is another OS-tan, which isn't new and I believe pre-dates hipster culture (if that is such a thing.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Os-tan

I'm actually surprised it took this long for an official IE-tan to exist. I'm fairly sure there was one before, but maybe just not an officially supported product.

[Formfiller]

The Xbone saga continues ...

Xbox One cloud servers could reboot in mid-session if they are updated ( NeoWin 2013-11-06 )

Xbox One's cloud service updates could cause reboots mid-game ( TechSpot 2013-11-08 )

The problem is caused by the console's frequent, required, cloud updates. Microsoft has already announced that the system will require its cloud service to be up to date on a regular basis. But what exactly is the issue here, and how is it going to affect Xbox gamers? Bruno stated the following during a presentation at GDC Next:

"Once in a while, rather frequently actually, the host OS will require an update, meaning the physical machine is going to get rebooted whether your code is running or not," he explained. "Thats a problematic thing for a game, and oftentimes it's in the middle of a multiplayer session. Weve worked very hard to overcome that, but thats not to say its going to be a reality in every case."

Miserable complainers, always whining about this or that! Now they are moaning about mid-game system reboots. Spoiled babies. The cloud is your friend. Leave Microsoft alone! /SARC

For a glimpse into the impenetrable me-only narcissistic mind of a fanboy, consider this comment: "Hint: they're not going to be updated in prime time." which is an ignorant attempt at rationalization ( and with NO sarc tag ) that translates to 'they'll only do these updates during off-peak hours Yep, that magic off-peak hour on planet Earth is what time exactly?

Actually the fanboy mindset is not narcissistic at all, it's masochistic. All this stuff doesn't benefit the fanboy in the slightest, but he is willing to take it "for the team".

The "team" being in this case an anonymous corporation, to which the boyz have no actual meaningful relationships with (apart from using their products). This makes it even way more pathetic than nationalism, religious extremism and similar extreme devotions to a (group-) identity.

Edited November 11, 2013 by Formfiller

[JorgeA]

The IE "SmartScreen Filter" in its most current incarnation:

Windows 8 users benefit from App Rep security, NSS Labs finds

The analysis does point out some downsides, including the tendency to occasionally block legitimate apps from smaller but unknown software firms as well as the fact that App Rep allows Microsoft to record the name of every downloaded file as well as the IP address it was pulled from.

This is the first time I recall seeing this stated in so many words. (IIRC, previously the question of whether MS can know what you're dowloading lay mainly in the realm of speculation.)

--JorgeA

Edited November 11, 2013 by JorgeA

[jaclaz]

This is the first time I recall seeing this stated in so many words. (IIRC, previously the question of whether MS can know what you're dowloading lay mainly in the realm of speculation.)

--JorgeA

Not really, we have been there (and read that):

http://log.nadim.cc/?p=78

http://withinwindows.com/2012/08/24/thoughts-on-the-windows-smartscreen-scare/

jaclaz