Does anybody know if when using Windows on a computer but not paying for anything windows related: is windows/ Bill Gates profiting from it? Is it worth installing linux as a protest?
The secret word is “telemetrics”. Microsoft will track your actions and sells the data, just like Google or Apple.
Thanks. Was looking for something like this. Going forward with my decision to do the switch
Linux Mint is the most Windows-like regarding its user interface, so that one probably requires the least learning. Ubuntu is trying to work a bit like Mac OS X, and I actually like that.
And then there are distros that don’t try to be super easy but actively try to help you learn how to do the difficult things. Arch Linux is famous for that.
Ubuntu (and Linux Mint, which is actually just Ubuntu with a more Windows-like user interface) have the best app support, so that might be a factor.
Linux is worth it as the greatest protest to everything that is wrong with technology.
The amount of data Windows and microsoft in general collect is worth billions and going straight to the hands of the US govt. for a price obviously, so yes they are profiting from your use regardless of whether you pay for it or not.
There’s a reason they gave the upgrade to 11 away for “free.”
During a public talk at the University of Washington in 1998, Microsoft founder Bill Gates admitted, “Although about three million computers get sold every year in China, people don’t pay for the software. Someday they will, though. And as long as they’re going to steal it, we want them to steal ours. They’ll get sort of addicted, and then we’ll somehow figure out how to collect sometime in the next decade.”
i just installed mint on my laptop and it runs way better than it ever ran with windows 11 plus it’s super user friendly :)
Wonderful. I’m considering Ubuntu. But I’ll give mint a consideration. Thank you for the tip!
Good thing is that mint is based on Ubuntu so you should already be familiar too :)
Nice mate, thanks 👍
also disable bitlocker first if it’s on you’ll save yourself a lot of pain
I wouldn’t advise on Ubuntu, in the later years it has become more and more closed source and the company rep is in shambles. Go with LMDE -> Linux Mint Debian edition
Not necessarily as a protest, but the answer is always hard yes.
It’s worth it for something more important than as a protest - it means ending Europe’s dependence on Silicon Valley. And in this, every PC switch matters.
(not to mention it’s a pretty good OS - and it’s only going to get better if we make it part of the European autonomy strategy and give it the support it deserves)
People who are only now up in arms about Gates shedding hypocrisy on the climate crisis should look into the long history of abuses Microsoft have made on their way to near-monopoly, including the times when they lobbied and bribed governments, including here in Europe, to lock them and the educational systems into the Microsoft ecosystem. Instead of authorities saving money with Linux and FOSS in general, they spent public money on Windows and Office licenses! (Don’t get me started about how they shouldn’t have even been the benchmark for ECDL courses; having ECDL done should mean one can figure out how to use, say, a simple Linux distribution.)
Go on
They still profit. Windows is increasingly an ad platform with ads delivered directly to your start menu.
You also get included in their user statistics when they report such things publicy, and therefore help toward selling their value as an investment.
Currently using ubuntu, switched in January because my computer can’t swap to 11. I can still dual boot to windows if necessary, but so far it hasn’t been necessary.
So far, haven’t run into issues. Gaming through steam has been minimal effort. Gaming outside of steam a bit more so. VR has been somewhat persnickety, discord needs to be uninstalled and reinstalled to update.
I am in a very weird position because I use my PC on the couch with a 4k projector. Oddly enough linux has nailed the proper text sizing across applications better than windows ever did. Which is weird because my requirements for this kind of setup is kinda niche.
Mostly I swapped because I cannot upgrade to 11 without a hardware update, and new electronics are gonna be painful over the next 4 years.
If you aren’t getting a free update to windows 11, then it’s definitely worth as a protest. Even if you get it for free, it’s less of a stranglehold that windows has over the computer space, and it’s less data they farm off you.
Personally, I don’t think switching your OS “as a protest” is a good idea. Bill Gates is so obscenely wealthy that your protest will have literally zero impact. Not “very small” impact; actually zero. As in, the whole world could abandon all Microsoft products and Bill Gates would still be able to live exactly as he did before. It’s not worth your mental health to let his actions have that level of control over you.
All that said, you should switch to Linux because it’s a better OS (as long as it does what you need).
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If you’re using Windows, you’ve paid for it one way or another.
True. It came pre installed on my PC I bought 4 years ago. But yeah, you’re correct. This is the reason to why I was questioning the decision to install Linux. But I think I will install Linux anyway.
That’s great! It requires a bit of research and adjustment but it’s well worth it.
Nah there’s easyyyy bypasses. Takes more time to figure out which ones are legit than it does to unlock.
In this day and age I’d recommend against pirating your OS. How can you be sure the hack you’re using is legit? And that MS won’t cut off your access to security updates in the future?
Mine is not pirated, it’s paid for. I found it preferable to crack the licensing than log in with a Microsoft account. I also had your attitude based on experiences in my youth but these aren’t really the same.
It is worth installing GNU/Linux.
Windows is not making money on sales only. They collect data and then they sell them to data brokers. Those brokers then sell the data to advertisement agencies to serve you adds. Even if you buy just one item based on those adds (which may be unconscious choice) you have already paid. Even if you buy nothing based on adds, microsoft already got the money.
I do recommend linux but be aware of letting people to push you into something you don’t want to do. Linux community can be very enthusiastic 😅. Top three to recommend are Linux Mint (most windows like design), Fedora (most stable) and Pop OS (best with nvidia gpu). Only one of these is favorite of mine but I will not tell you which, just search for them, look at screenshots and you will see what suits you.
I think the most windows like desktop environment (DE) is KDE. So I try to limit my windows to Switcher recommends to distros that use KDE by default.
So my recommendations would be:
- KDE neon (Ubuntu/Debian based)
- Fedora KDE (Fedora)
- EndeavourOS (Arch based, least noob friendly)
I would also recommend they do some poking around DistroSea
Yeah Linux can be troublesome if you’re dual booting on a single drive. Updates can break the GRUB. Also it’ll take a while to optimise your workflow (like finding replacement for Windows apps).
Good reminder ⬆️ 😊
Isn’t Ubuntu The most used distribution? How come it isn’t in your top three? Not judging, just wondering. It feels to me it’s reasonably user friendly and its large user base makes it the easiest to find support online for if you’re a Linux newbie.
On Ubuntu:
Ubuntu: despite having a huge mind-share as the beginner distro, Ubuntu suffers from it’s parent company’s policy to make Ubuntu kinda-Linux-but-not-really and a second-rate citizen compared to their Ubuntu Pro commercial product. Some of the worst takes in recent years have been pushing Snaps super agressively in order to get some “vendor-lock-in”, proprietary walled-garden ecosystem with exclusive commercial apps, forcibly installing snaps even when explicitely asking for a .deb package through apt, baking ads and nags into major software or only delivering critical security patches to Pro customers. …
Ubuntu Linux is the most popular distribution but it uses the Gnome desktop by default, which many Windows users may find to be a stumbling block since it looks and acts nothing like the Windows desktop. The standard distribution of Linux Mint uses the Cinnamon desktop, which is much closer in look and feel to Windows, and it is based on Ubuntu so most users can benefit from the technical support of the Ubuntu community.
[Edit: corrected “Linux” to “Ubuntu Linux.” thanks [email protected].]
[Ubuntu] is the most popular distribution but it uses the Gnome desktop by default, which many Windows users may find to be a stumbling block since it looks and acts nothing like the Windows desktop.
Just use Kubuntu.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a fan of it or anything (especially because of the “snap” nonsense), but it is the easiest to get working because things like Steam officially support it.
Unfortunately that uses the Plasma desktop which looks similar but is much more complicated to (re)configure and less like Windows. It might drive a switcher away through frustration.
You don’t have to reconfigure it, though. I know it’s not a very “Linux-y” thing to say, but it really is okay to just install it and then leave it alone.
I myself have done basically nothing to my Plasma configuration except changing to a dark theme and setting my own wallpaper.
