Now Microsoft is planning to preload another app in Windows 10: Sling TV. While only US Windows 10 users will get Sling TV preloaded without the necessary subscription, it will sit alongside Candy Crush and Solitaire as other examples of what will soon be described as bloatware. Thankfully, it’s easy to uninstall these unnecessary apps, but that doesn’t mean Microsoft won’t add more to the mix in the future. Microsoft used to blame its OEM partners for bundling lots of useless apps on Windows PCs, but now it has itself to blame for doing the same to Windows 10.
More and more ads are coming to products you actually already pay for.
Windows has finally gotten so that the adware crap isn’t infecting it as much, so now Microsoft inserts their own? Wonderful.
Hi,
It’s standard practice to use a monopoly in one area (desktop OS) to make it extremely hard for competitors to compete in another area (malware), so that your own product/s (spamware, spyware, etc) have an unfair advantage.
-Brendan
Windows 7 was the last true “Windows”. Everything after is some sort of horrible “let’s be trendy” attempt from Microsoft, trying to “get down with the kids”. Windows 8 was a flop because it was terrible to use, threw out all the old metaphors and shoved some plasticky mess of square icons at you. Windows 10 is a mess (not necessarily a flop) just because they saw all the crapware and tracking that companies like Samsung and Apple have been getting away with for years and wanted in on the action.
I’ll never like windows 10. I’ll still use it when i need to (and tbh i start a new job on monday with around ~500 deployed Win10 machines…) but at home, i’ll stick to 7 until i have no choice
I agree with the sentiment of your post, but I disagree that Apple has been tracking its users for profit. Despite my admiration for OS X itself, I’m not an Apple fanboy (I sold my only remaining Apple device last year and haven’t looked back) but it’s been my understanding that they are one of the few tech companies that isn’t mining their users for advertising gold.
I also chose to drop Google for the reasons you stated, the icing on the cake being their horrid, practically illegal treatment of Pixel phone buyers. I’ve settled on the Blackberry Passport for a mobile phone, as it is fast, secure, has a real keyboard, and can run Android apps via the Amazon app store and F-Droid.
I’m working on switching to Linux and BSD full time after seeing the OneDrive spam in Windows 10 as well as Cortana constantly turning herself back on (and spamming me with ads) after I turn her off. Most of the reasons I run Windows 10, Steam games, also run on Linux either natively or through PlayOnLinux. I already do anything resembling work on Linux as it stands, so it’s no great leap. I have an old-as-dirt laptop that runs both OpenBSD and Haiku OS exceptionally well so I’m covered for on-the-go computing too.
Morgan,
Edited 2017-03-21 02:45 UTC
I was speaking mainly of desktop operating systems, but given how closely tied iOS and macOS are nowadays, what you posted is likely just as relevant to Apple desktop users.
Sadly, tracking and targeted advertising seem to be the new normal, hell even the ads on this site track the user.
Which is why I will never browse any web page without an ad blocker. No exceptions. Not only do I not want random corporations tracking me, but I’m not willing to open myself to random third-party code from an industry which has proven that they don’t care about security whatsoever.
darknexus,
Even as webmasters we’re often instructed to run 3rd party code on websites knowing fully well that the third party code implicitly extends the attack window outside of our control.
There’s really no reason google should have access to all the websites they have access to via hidden code injection. While google might not intentionally exploit their privileged access as an advertiser on millions of websites, it is nevertheless a serious flaw in the security model for the web with great potential for harm.
Edited 2017-03-21 20:33 UTC
Pay for….but yet, do not own.
How easy is it, really, to uninstall these crap apps if the next forced update will just put them back again? That’s what happens already.
A lot easier than One Drive (can only be uninstalled from an administrative PowerShell session and the uninstall can’t be scripted), OneNote and the XBox and Weather apps (similar, except their uninstalls can be scripted).
There are also a handful of things in the registry you can twiddle to get most of the third party stuff to not re-install during a build upgrade, although that doesn’t work on home edition.
Sling is not actually a bad deal at all, it suits millennial cord cutters pretty well. That said, I know this is still crapware by definition. And unless you’re willing to sacrifice practical use of your computer while watching TV by using an HDMI cord to connect, using Sling on a Roku or something like that… is a lot more practical.
Thanks MS for putting the Candy Crack game on my box! It’s addicting!
Can the Sling TV app play video files like Media Center used too ?
Microsoft, why don’t you just cut to the chase and dedicate a part of the screen to 24/7 advertising. It’s either that or force advertising before you can use Windows at all. Watch advertising to allow keyboard input. Watch advertising to bring the pc out of sleep mode. Watch advertising to connect a usb device. Watch advertising to load an app. Watch advertising to close an app. Watch advertising to do anything… That’s what you’re really after right? You don’t want to be an OS maker anymore, you want to become the king of electronic spam and junk mail. Force everyone on to Windows 10, your advertising platform, and then cram ads down their throats 24/7.
I actually hope your behavior drives as many users as possible to non-Windows OS’es, and you pay dearly for violating & abusing your customers.
ilovebeer,
And so on…
I find it funny that I tend to agree with your posts now. I’m really kind of curious, why the change of heart? I see the same thing happening with many apple fans too, even those who I honestly expected to be lifelong fans. They seem to be more willing to criticize a company they would have previously defended against any criticism. Is this a bi-product of growing older and becoming more cynical, or is there something else to it?
I personally think the corporations themselves are the same greed driven entities they’ve always been. I may not like what they’re doing, but I assume they’ve done the math on paper and it might very well be true that converting customers into products to sell to advertisers is the most profitable way forward, which is why they do what they do.
I was speaking to one of my clients this week and she was complaining about her new windows 10 computer. I laughed it off “that’s microsoft for you”, but the reality is she gave microsoft her money despite her objections to the changes. So while I find myself in agreement with your first quote above, I think most people are just going to let microsoft use them and microsoft knows it.
Edited 2017-03-19 20:25 UTC
As long as all people do is complain but never actually take different action, Microsoft has nothing to worry about. Like you said, despite your clients objections she willingly paid Microsoft for their offering. She knew in advance she was getting a lop-sided deal and still took it. Maybe at some point, when the stars are in the right alignment, `our` behavior may change and `we` might take a real stand against these companies. But today isn’t the day, and neither is tomorrow nor the day after.