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From: RonB <ronb02NOSPAM@gmail.com>
Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.advocacy
Subject: Re: Microsoft will force Windows 11 installs to use Microsoft account
Date: Tue, 1 Apr 2025 05:38:19 -0000 (UTC)
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On 2025-03-31, CrudeSausage <crude@sausa.ge> wrote:
> On 2025-03-31 02:10, RonB wrote:
>> On 2025-03-30, CrudeSausage <crude@sausa.ge> wrote:
>>> On 2025-03-30 3:00 a.m., RonB wrote:
>>>> On 2025-03-29, CrudeSausage <crude@sausa.ge> wrote:
>>>>> On 2025-03-29 2:12 a.m., RonB wrote:
>>>>>> On 2025-03-28, CrudeSausage <crude@sausa.ge> wrote:
>>>>>>> ... it confirms the removal of a popular bypass.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> It looks like local accounts will be a thing of the past, on PCs anyway.
>>>>>>> Linux will be the last remaining option.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> <https://www.windowscentral.com/software-apps/windows-11/microsoft-will-force-windows-11-installs-to-use-a-microsoft-account-confirms-removal-of-popular-setup-bypass>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> The final reason to not install Windows on any partition at all. Zero
>>>>>> interest in a Microsoft account and about the only time I boot into Windows
>>>>>> (already) is to update it. So, basically, if you don't have a connection to
>>>>>> the Internet you can't install Windows. Another win for Linux.
>>>>>
>>>>> The concept of non-local accounts is actually unnatural to a lot of
>>>>> people who aren't too familiar with the way computers work. As I was
>>>>> doing the tech meeting for my school board a few weeks ago (I'm one of
>>>>> two tech representatives for my school), I noticed that a few teachers
>>>>> were complaining that Windows automatically displayed personal photos to
>>>>> the students (since the computer is connected to a projector in class)
>>>>> whenever the machine would go to sleep. I replied that it might not be a
>>>>> good idea to put personal content on the OneDrive account. They had no
>>>>> idea what I was referring to. Then, another teacher complained that they
>>>>> had taken a screenshot on one computer and that the screenshot was then
>>>>> available on another. They thought it was hacking or something. I had to
>>>>> inform them that logging into Windows is done through a Microsoft
>>>>> account, in this case the one tied to the school board. If they take a
>>>>> screenshot or add any content to their personal folders, those folders
>>>>> are synchronized with the web and then back to whatever computer they
>>>>> use on which they use their Microsoft account. I also informed them that
>>>>> this was a _feature_, same as it on Macs that do the same thing, and
>>>>> that they actively have to disable it. I then explained how they could
>>>>> do so.
>>>>>
>>>>> I'm rambling, but it shows how people expect content to remain on the
>>>>> computer it was created or saved. The content of synchronization across
>>>>> devices, for better or for worse, doesn't seem right. Obviously, it has
>>>>> lots of benefits because it is available to you wherever you are and
>>>>> whatever device you use. However, it also means that Microsoft (or
>>>>> Google or Apple) has access to that content as well. At best, they will
>>>>> store it on their servers and not bother you; at worst, they will scan
>>>>> your content for politically correct wording and edit it for you or call
>>>>> the authorities because a cute photo you took of your naked one-year-old
>>>>> is believed to be child pornography. There used to be an option to opt
>>>>> out at installation, not anymore. You can opt out from within the system
>>>>> later on, but finding the option to do so might be a lot more
>>>>> complicated than you expected.
>>>>
>>>> The only account I sync online is Simplenote. No pictures, just text and
>>>> mostly just stuff I'll forget if I don't "write it down."
>>>>
>>>> I guess I do have Google Drive, but I only upload stuff up like screenshots
>>>> or short screenplays that I want to share and I fully realize that Google
>>>> has access to this stuff, but I don't care. Anything I don't want to lose or
>>>> I don't want to share, I don't upload anywhere.
>>>> backup locally.
>>>
>>> Getting older, I'm preferring to back up onto my own external hard disk
>>> despite the availability of OneDrive and things similar. For documents
>>> and photos, there is no doubt that Microsoft offers convenience though.
>>> Back in the day, we had one machine and if we lost our photos, we really
>>> felt like garbage if we didn't bother to back them up. Now, we're using
>>> at least two and if one of those devices were to fail, it's nice to know
>>> that those photos are still on the other machine as well as the online
>>> server. It's especially useful for users who get affected by malware
>>> that encrypts their personal data.
>>>
>>> At the same time, knowing that Apple is constantly scanning user
>>> accounts to "look for illegal material" doesn't comfort me in any way.
>>> To give you an idea, when my father-in-law sent me a photo of my boy
>>> taking a dip in his little swimming pool when he was over, I immediately
>>> freaked out because I knew that to Apple or Microsoft, that's not a cute
>>> photo of my son: that's potential child pornography.
>> 
>> What I'm doing for backing up my data now is getting $1.49 USB to SATA
>> cables and buying 2.5" 500GB (7200) SATA hard drives for about $10
>> (shipped). A cheap, faster thumb drive. I don't know how many pictures you
>> have or how big they are, but a 500 GB drive can hold quite a few.
>
> For this Linux machine, I use a 2TB HD I pulled out of its original 
> enclosure and put into a $10 one I bought at Canada Computers. As far as 
> I know, people usually throw out these $80 external hard disks after a 
> year or two because the operating system no longer detects the drive. 
> People assume the drive is dead, but the reality is that the connector 
> on the enclosure and the wire provided are both complete shit. If you 
> open it up and put the drive into a different one, it works as expected.
>
> I could have just thrown it out and bought another, but I don't feel 
> like throwing something I know I can get working out. It does its job as 
> a complement to this $150 laptop and its aging 128GB SSD.

Sounds good. I like it when stuff is reused instead of thrown out.

-- 
“Evil is not able to create anything new, it can only distort and destroy 
what has been invented or made by the forces of good.”  —J.R.R. Tolkien