Windows 10

[Lily Adler]

Cool! I've been thinking of upgrading from my standard notebook from 2012 to a Surface for a while now. I was originally going to get a Surface 3, but now I'm looking at Pro and waiting on the second generation Surface Book.

 

[Iceman]

Sounds good. I knew very little about tablets before buying it and returned one for being too small but I'm very happy with the decision. Can put off upgrading my laptop for a while now.

 

[jfurioso]

bah

i just wanna download it and have it saved on my computer somewhere, then upgrade when i'm ready lol

I think you can, if you dual-boot two copies of 7 in your machine, then upgrade one of them, and keep using the 7 version for as long as you want.\

I use the dual-booting option to have an everyday system with all the stuff in it, and another kept lean for special work that requires the most resources.

 

[Lily Adler]

Sounds good. I knew very little about tablets before buying it and returned one for being too small but I'm very happy with the decision. Can put off upgrading my laptop for a while now.

I've found a Intel Core i7, 256GB SSD, Surface Pro 3 for $700 on Swappa in mint condition, so I may go for that one. I'm looking for something that can primarily be used for graphic design and gaming, which I'm not sure it will be powerful enough to do so.

 

[Arach Knight]

i had Clamshell or something like StartIsBack on Windows 8

i hate live tiles, i hate cortana/siri or anything like that so i would never use them and i don't want to give them access to data. they want way too much user data like you said above, which is ironic to me due to it apparently being so much safer and secure

"Safe and secure" from the perspective of Microsoft means that criminals have an harder time accessing your computer. However, ethically speaking, Windows 10 is perhaps second only to Android when it comes to being the least secure operating system currently shipped. Lack of privacy from the vendor of the software is one of my primary reasons for switching back to Mac and iPhone. Just seemed that Android and Windows were steadily adding "features" meant to assist Google and Microsoft with data mining.

Windows 10 at least has options to allow you to disable all of the mining and tracking, but I don't particularly trust a company that ships software that by default is meant to gather user data. I suppose it is a mixed bag given how data mining is pretty wide spread at this point when using any software or services....

 

[Iceman]

I've found a Intel Core i7, 256GB SSD, Surface Pro 3 for $700 on Swappa in mint condition, so I may go for that one. I'm looking for something that can primarily be used for graphic design and gaming, which I'm not sure it will be powerful enough to do so.

Sounds like a good deal. I don't know much about graphic design but I guess it depends what kinds of games you want to run. I doubt it will be too great with modern pc/console AAA titles but it should be fine with any of the regular tablet-style games.

 

[Lily Adler]

Well I'm entering into the field of software and game development and need a tablet that can be used for that. I've been doing research and it appears many recommend using a MacBook Pro or a gaming laptop for such a purpose. I heard some say the Surface Pro is capable of such work as well. Others though have stated that you can probably use any computer to do so, but I eventually want to get into 3D graphics as well. I built my gaming PC last year to simply test games on it (which I plan to upgrade with a new CPU, MoBo, and GPU), not develop.

 

[Lily Adler]

Also I'm currently on the Redstone build in the insider program for W10 and other than Action Center having priority in the corner over Date and Time and the nitpick of how small the user icon is in the Start Menu, I really like the improvements made. I also got Adblocker for Edge and now I can surf the Hype with no full page ads. Also if you have Windows phone or Cortana for Android and iOS, you can text using your computer.

 

[Iceman]

Well I'm entering into the field of software and game development and need a tablet that can be used for that. I've been doing research and it appears many recommend using a MacBook Pro or a gaming laptop for such a purpose. I heard some say the Surface Pro is capable of such work as well. Others though have stated that you can probably use any computer to do so, but I eventually want to get into 3D graphics as well. I built my gaming PC last year to simply test games on it (which I plan to upgrade with a new CPU, MoBo, and GPU), not develop.

Congrats! Sounds interesting.

If it's for work I'd definitely make sure you're getting the most appropriate thing, and as it sounds like you are doing, checking with other people in the industry for advice on it. I know the iMac desktops are really good for this stuff. It was all wasted on me but a big selling point apparently so I guess equivalent macbook pros would be a good bet too. I don't know anything about tablet specifics though and couldn't be bothered to research them too much beyond high-spec and large screen as I needed one very quickly.

Also I'm currently on the Redstone build in the insider program for W10 and other than Action Center having priority in the corner over Date and Time and the nitpick of how small the user icon is in the Start Menu, I really like the improvements made. I also got Adblocker for Edge and now I can surf the Hype with no full page ads. Also if you have Windows phone or Cortana for Android and iOS, you can text using your computer.

Text as in phone text? I have Windows Phone.

 

[Lily Adler]

Congrats! Sounds interesting.

If it's for work I'd definitely make sure you're getting the most appropriate thing, and as it sounds like you are doing, checking with other people in the industry for advice on it. I know the iMac desktops are really good for this stuff. It was all wasted on me but a big selling point apparently so I guess equivalent macbook pros would be a good bet too. I don't know anything about tablet specifics though and couldn't be bothered to research them too much beyond high-spec and large screen as I needed one very quickly.

Well I was looking for something more portable as I'm going to be taking classes on computer programming in the fall. I'm leaning towards this ASUS and Dell I found or the Surface Pro 3. I cannot afford a MacBook Pro, but they are considered the best for coding in Unity.

Text as in phone text? I have Windows Phone.

Yes. Cortana acts as the bridge between your phone and PC. When you get a text on your phone, she alerts you on your PC, and you can type a response via PC if you want and Cortana will send it through your phone.

 

[ComicChick]

"Safe and secure" from the perspective of Microsoft means that criminals have an harder time accessing your computer. However, ethically speaking, Windows 10 is perhaps second only to Android when it comes to being the least secure operating system currently shipped. Lack of privacy from the vendor of the software is one of my primary reasons for switching back to Mac and iPhone. Just seemed that Android and Windows were steadily adding "features" meant to assist Google and Microsoft with data mining.

Windows 10 at least has options to allow you to disable all of the mining and tracking, but I don't particularly trust a company that ships software that by default is meant to gather user data. I suppose it is a mixed bag given how data mining is pretty wide spread at this point when using any software or services....

good post
i'd go apple with computers if i could afford it lol and they offered as much HD disc space.

i like that you can disable the mining and tracking, but i'm not sure i trust the company completely to do so.
i don't like cloud features, i don't sync devices or anything like that and i dont have any interest in doing so.

 

[Silicon Surfer]

I have read some of the many articles on W10 although I have not used it. Supposedly you can turn off some of the info gathering but Microsoft has said that not all of it can be turned off. Among the things I find appalling about W10 is that they have built a keystroke logger into it. What possible legitimate reason could they have for that? I believe that can be turned off. To me it seems like one big integrated mass of malware. What is the point of making an operating system secure from others if Microsoft is going to gather the info itself and sell it. This is only my partially informed opinion though.

 

[Teelie]

I'm loathing the idea of it but I'll have to upgrade to Windows 10 this weekend from 7. Just wish there were more ways to disable all the spyware Microsoft has loaded into the OS.

 

[Lily Adler]

I have read some of the many articles on W10 although I have not used it. Supposedly you can turn off some of the info gathering but Microsoft has said that not all of it can be turned off. Among the things I find appalling about W10 is that they have built a keystroke logger into it. What possible legitimate reason could they have for that? I believe that can be turned off. To me it seems like one big integrated mass of malware. What is the point of making an operating system secure from others if Microsoft is going to gather the info itself and sell it. This is only my partially informed opinion though.

It's supposedly to keep track of your typing habits to improve predictive text on your PC... SUPPOSEDLY!!! I believe there's a tutorial on the internet somewhere to perform registry hacks to ensure they all stay off, but I can't remember where I found it.

Also you want to make sure to turn off advertising id which is the big one that data mines your device for MS to send to advertisers to give you relevant ads online. Google and Apple do the same thing and it makes me roll my eyes.

 

[ComicChick]

i didn't know about the keylogger. that's even worse

 

[Lily Adler]

Text as in phone text? I have Windows Phone.

Yes. Cortana acts as the bridge between your phone and PC. When you get a text on your phone, she alerts you on your PC, and you can type a response via PC if you want and Cortana will send it through your phone.

So Microsoft is moving this feature from the Message app and moving it to Skype.

 

[Sex]

Cortana must be stopped.

 

[Iceman]

So Microsoft is moving this feature from the Message app and moving it to Skype.

Oh. Well I'm about to start using skype regularly at least.

 

[Lily Adler]

They're apparently trying to create an iMessage competitor.

 

[X Knight]

I'm looking forward to the Anniversary Update.

hopefully, Edge will be improved enough to be a viable browser and replacement for IE.

I'm getting so sick of using IE. It constantly crashes, freezes, slows, etc.

I've tried other browsers like Fire Fox but I'm just so used to IE and I know my way around IE.

but man......it's been such a pain in the a** to use.

 

[Lily Adler]

Edge is behaving much better in the Redstone/Anniversary builds. I have not experienced any crashes or devastating hiccups yet. The addition of Adblock Plus also makes my browsing experience all the more delightful.

 

[Iceman]

Well I was looking for something more portable as I'm going to be taking classes on computer programming in the fall. I'm leaning towards this ASUS and Dell I found or the Surface Pro 3. I cannot afford a MacBook Pro, but they are considered the best for coding in Unity.

Weird, thought I'd responded to this before. Yes Macbook Pro may be the one to get in the longer term but those look fine for now. When are you thinking of buying? After a bit of time with the Surface Pro I'm very happy with the purchase. It does everything I needed of it. A relief as it's the first tech product I've bought in a long time without doing proper research (due to how quickly I needed it).

 

[Teelie]

I realized I have until the end of July to upgrade so I'm putting it off for another few weeks. Maybe the Anniversary Edition will help fix some of the concerns I have with it even if it won't be released before August.

 

[Lily Adler]

Weird, thought I'd responded to this before. Yes Macbook Pro may be the one to get in the longer term but those look fine for now. When are you thinking of buying? After a bit of time with the Surface Pro I'm very happy with the purchase. It does everything I needed of it. A relief as it's the first tech product I've bought in a long time without doing proper research (due to how quickly I needed it).

I'm waiting to see what my classes require and if my current laptop (a Samsung running on an AMD APU) can handle coding, pixel art, and 3d rendering. If not, then I'll save up to purchase one or the other. I really don't care for Apple products, but I'm aware they are the preferred tool for many. Hopefully a Surface Pro can handle it or one of the laptops above (I'm going back and forth on the Dell because my setup is black and blue themed ). I can't afford a Pro as new, so I'm hoping to find a bargain on either the 3 or 4.

 

[Iceman]

I'm waiting to see what my classes require and if my current laptop (a Samsung running on an AMD APU) can handle coding, pixel art, and 3d rendering. If not, then I'll save up to purchase one or the other. I really don't care for Apple products, but I'm aware they are the preferred tool for many. Hopefully a Surface Pro can handle it or one of the laptops above (I'm going back and forth on the Dell because my setup is black and blue themed ). I can't afford a Pro as new, so I'm hoping to find a bargain on either the 3 or 4.

Cool, look forward to hearing what you eventually end up with. I am mainly Microsoft ecosystem now (Windows Phone, XBoxes, pc, gaming pc) and don't take advantage of most of the features of my Apple products, but I do like having them for their differences. I bought the iMac mainly because I'd heard it would have much less chance of viruses than my pcs.

Ha, black and blue sounds good. Apart from my iMac which is grey (and all accessories), everything else is black for me.