Let’s get all IT people together and fight through the hassle to help friends and family switch to Linux
Microsoft tells Windows 10 users to just trade in their PC for a newer one, because how hard can it be?
Submitted 2 months ago by moe90@feddit.nl to technology@lemmy.world
https://www.xda-developers.com/microsoft-tells-windows-10-users-trade-in-pc/
Comments
tfm@europe.pub 2 months ago
Gormadt@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 months ago
I’ve already switched my mom and grandma to Linux, and I’ve personally only got 1 PC still on Windows. Its days are numbered though.
sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
The only PC we have with Windows is my wife’s, and that’s because she plays an anti-cheat game. My desktop, laptop, NAS, and Steam Deck all run Linux.
skytrim@reddthat.com 2 months ago
I switched to Linux on my laptops years ago. Recently, I retired and started playing video games like Skyrim. I play on a Nintendo Switch. I considered playing Skyrim on a laptop so I could use/build mods. I bought a laptop with Windows 11 and spent forty minutes removing the bloat, ads, spyware, ai nonsense, and other dross, fixing it so it did not ‘update’ to restore everything I deleted, and installing my preferred alternatives (browser, search, email etc). It reminded me why I hate Windows almost as much as Mac OS (which is even more controlling). Microsoft have hundreds of engineers ‘enshitifying’ everything. It is more than a full-time job trying to stop them and block their ‘improvements’. I am retired. I have better things to do.
I did not enjoy playing games with a laptop (hurts my arthritis, I prefer using a console and an easy chair) and resented having to reverse engineer everything I installed to keep it running but without sacrificing my privacy so the laptop now just sits in a drawer. It amazes me that anyone still tolerates Microsoft products, or any of the monopolists stuff. Why is anyone still using google search or chrome browser, why bing or any of it? Why is anyone still seeing adverts? Why is everyone still being fed by algorithms? You must chose this - but why? I always sought out better and if it did not exist, I built it, and if I could not build it, I did without. There is a lot of dumbing-down around technology. Back in C20th, we used to build our own hardware, write our own software. We were skilled hobbyists (later I got an M.Sc. to reinforce my hobby skills with theory and even ran a business for a while as an engineer). Around 2000 +/- five years, the monopolists offered ‘help’ in the form of WYSIWYG editors to write code for us or ‘click buttons to register your account’ platforms to host content for us instead of us running our own websites (blogger, wordpress, facebook, twitter etc). They dumbed us all down, farmed us like animals for data and used clickbait to get ad revenue and undermined our politics, culture, even changed our sense of being human. Now old folk can build resources but younger people can only consume. We have to re-skill and resist the seduction of the easy and free-to-use. There’s no such thing as a free lunch. Never trust a tech bro, whether USA or any nationality.
Personally, I want to ‘jail break’ my Switch and make mods for my console version of Skyrim. I can’t do that now as it is illegal but when they bring out the Switch 2 and the old console is ‘obsolete’ and they stop trying to get money for Skyrim, I reckon we tinkerers will get a chance to re-purpose the old console to play the old games in our own way. I reckon some exciting engineering is happening amongst the recyclers and re-purposers rather than amongst the corporates. I only buy second-hand for ethical reasons and to save money. I always install my own software based on AOSP or use a more ethical distro or alternative to the commercial options. I always debloat or degoogle or remove unwanted stuff. I wish that kind of personalisation were more common. There is a zero sum relationship with tech: either the technology controls you, or you control it. I urge you to control your own tech. Don’t be enslaved by it. I feel I am in a minority in wanting sovereignty over my damn phone. It makes me sad.
supersquirrel@sopuli.xyz 2 months ago
Personally, I want to ‘jail break’ my Switch and make mods for my console version of Skyrim.
Why not just get a steam deck?
skytrim@reddthat.com 2 months ago
I tried creating a Steam account and was blocked by the revolving captcha security thing - took days to try to get help from their customer care and by the time they got back to me I had lost interest. I spent the waitjng time researching Valve and I decided they are not an ethical business. Made me sad as I loved the idea of a customised-for-gaming-on-console linux OS and liked the look of the hardware. But Valve is a monopolist and has too much market share and too many users and thus too much power - USA politics today shows how big a risk that is. Valve supports unethical business models like ‘rent game to play’, AI-generated junk games and IP violations so it debases game development and hurts indy developers, live-streaming games which is bad for environment. It promotes ‘easy access/always on gaming’ and is thus profiting from addiction-to-gaming, which ix a MASSIVE problem and few gamers admit it. It’s an American corporation and I distrust American corporate culture. Most of which might be said of other console/platforms so its not just Valve/Steam, I feel wary of but the whole industry. I bought a second-hand Switch so did not help Nintendo/Japanese corporate power directly. I bought a bundle of 2nd-hand games on sd card with minimal download content (except for ‘No Man’s Sky’ which constantly updates). I am trying to be an ethical gamer - limit my time gaming to stop me becoming an addict etc. But I admit I am compromised - I spend too much time gaming, being retired its easy to lose track of time. Honestly, I feel like a vegan who wraps bacon in thick wholemeal sandwiches and pretends they are not really eating pigs since its mainly bread. I am ‘a work in progress’.
Itdidnttrickledown@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Bring on the cheap non windows 11 computers. I’ve already told everyone i know if they didn’t want to have to buy another computer for years they just had to start using linux. Then I show them what that looks like if they are interested. I show them that they can put menu/start button at the bottom left if thats what they want. That they can have a the same browser they use and many of the same applications. I’ve had two people willing to try. Most insist that they don’t want to learn anything new. Its depressing but its a boon for me when people start getting rid of their perfectly usable gear.
JoeDyrt@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
Someone has to say it: I bought a MacBook!
Wispy2891@lemmy.world 2 months ago
A MacBook is on the upgrade treadmill even faster than windows lol
JoeDyrt@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
I’ve never had a pc get to 10 years old before upgrading. I fully expect my MacBook to meet my needs (which don’t include rending animations or editing video) for the rest of my life (I’m 65) OR at least 10 years.
Xatolos@reddthat.com 2 months ago
So you went from a 10 year upgrade cycle to a 7 year upgrade cycle?
JoeDyrt@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
I may not have 10 years left in my life cycle!
cheeseburger@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
When will Commerce Secretary Sputnik shill for Windows 11 on Fox?
KingThrillgore@lemmy.ml 2 months ago
Microsoft is getting billions for AI datacenters (they’re now turning back on) why do you buy me a fucking new PC Microsoft
InternetCitizen2@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Why have 1bil when you could have 1.1 bil
ProfessorScience@lemmy.world 2 months ago
I installed linux on my PC a couple months ago. The other day I wanted to log back into my windows partition for the first time in a while in order to clean up some of the files on that partition (even though the drive is mounted in linux, the windows “fast boot” option apparently leaves it in a state that linux considers read-only). Windows apparently wouldn’t let me log in without a microsoft account, instead of just using my regular windows username.
So yeah, that partition’s gone now. No going back!
expatriado@lemmy.world 2 months ago
eli5? people can continue using windows 10 but becomes insecure?
fuckwit_mcbumcrumble@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 months ago
No, the police will show up at your door on October 11th and arrest you on the spot.
If you’re in the US you’ll be sent to El Salvador. If you’re anywhere else you’ll be sent to the US, receive a few tattoos, then El Salvador.
Brkdncr@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Ms will stop supporting windows 10. Windows 11 has hardware requirements for a specific security chip and processors with specific features, so upgrading components isn’t an option.
If you have an old pc you can’t easily upgrade. Theres ways of forcing it to work but it’s not supported.
A lot of businesses will be getting rid of their old pcs so they dont need to deal with the hassle.
Linux will still support and run on the older hardware, so a lot of people are expecting used hardware prices to drop.
rikudou@lemmings.world 2 months ago
And thanks to Proton you can now do pretty much everything that you can do on Windows. Unless you do graphics design.
Blue_Morpho@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Yes. They also added an option to pay for patches.
Pumasuedeblue@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
“Trade in” like theres a dealership willing to give you some kind of fair value for your old computer. That said, if you’re willing to be extorted by Microsoft, then you get what you have coming to you.
LoveSausage@discuss.tchncs.de 2 months ago
Lots of suggestions here. Here is mine peppermint OS. Simple and doesnt brake (debian based)
zer0squar3d@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 months ago
Peppermint OS and Pop! OS are tops top favs.
doingthestuff@lemy.lol 2 months ago
I will take your windows 10 PC and give you a keychain made of DDR2 RAM in trade.
oplkill@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Kinda funny the same statement to Tesla owners, where comments are telling that it’s easy…
Paranoidfactoid@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Linux/BSD blah blah blah