Windows 10

Well, clean install is always best. Upgrading has never been something I would recommend. Fortunately, the OS being messed up isn't a serious permanent problem like a hardware failure. The act of installing Windoze OS X would not be an indication of commitment to continue using it. I'm going to install it if for no better reason than to have a well documented basis for my hatred of it. I already have that, but hating preview builds doesn't carry nearly as much weight.

Yes, my Windows 8 installations are heavily modded. It takes me quite a while on a clean installation to get through all of the mods. I posted a list of them a couple of times and there are more than a dozen registry tweaks and third party utilities, AeroGlass installation, etc. before I am ready to begin using it without needing to have a barf bucket close by.

Installing Linux is one of the rare uses I have actually had for pathetic Intel HD Graphics that is worthy of mention. If I switch my Alienware systems to Intel HD Graphics and complete the OS installation, once installed I can install the crappy Linux NVIDIA drivers and then switch to discrete graphics. That worked well for me several times to install Mint. Otherwise, Linux hangs at boot every time. There could be a console command that I don't know about that would be useful to address it, but the impediments to using it have been significant enough that I have never bothered to invest the time and effort needed to become an expert Linux user.

 

True enough about the higher end gaming. I have no issue with my Single 675m. I know with 17.2 Mint they are upping from 331 to 347 , can't wait till the KDE version is out.

So far I have to keep Windows 7 here for;
1.) video decryption of personal BR disc's
2.) Adobe Lightroom/Photoshop
3.) Ability to play BR's, TBH I rarely do though.

I was a holdout with two networked all in one printer drivers but have found everything I need just not as one package. I would have liked an easy integrated OCR but let's be honest here as of having it for over 10 years I only used it once to test it.

I gave up the constant benching and tweaking a while back. It just had come to the juncture where the hardware was more than fast enough stock for what I was doing. The first SSD was the biggest change, now with the i7 I almost never stress it other than again Video and photo work.

I truly wanted to try it out but that 30 day downgrade thing hangs in my craw. The only way I could accept this is if, and a big if at that, they would on all new machines give an option to downgrade in 30 days as well to either 8.1 or 7.

 

I believe you hit F10 to input a console command (I use mint too, I won't put up with Ubuntu, that crap is more locked down than Windows with its "free amd open source requirement")... Ain't nobody got time for that!!!

Anyway you hit whatever it is to add kernel flags and type nomodeset at the end of the boot string and it works perfectly. The point is... This obsession with free and open source is the cause of the problem with nVidia cards... Nouveau is an open source nVidia driver that doesn't come even 10% close to the official driver but since nVidia won't open source their driver code, distros ship with Nouveau.

I don't have the option of using the Intel at all on the SM-A... It gets worse for the P570WM and the PxxxZM

 

#OT
Mr. Fox, can you please post a link/ point into right direction ? Couldn't find them...
As for the maxwell+AW Win7 doesn't work, I'd have to jump to Win8+, not Win10. Need them very badly to make it closer to Win7..
Thanks !!

 

Almost nothing in my Steam and Origin libraries runs on Linux and most of the Linux ported titles available for purchase are games that I think suck. There are quite a few indie games, but with rare exception indie games generally fall into my least favorite genres. With respect to the hand full of titles that I view as being good games, I'm still not too enthusiastic because SLI doesn't work and I have no interest in single GPU machines. It's a vicious circle of failure and lack of interest for me. I wish it were not so, because I would love to ditch Windoze forever.

I think (just a wild guess based on what I can see as a casual observer) that the primary reasons for this are many Linux power users that contribute the most to development are not overclocking/gaming nuts. They are technically savvy and talented, but have different interests and may not even own the kind of high end machines that many of us take for granted. One of the attractions has always been Linux running better on older and weaker hardware than Windows does on newer and stronger hardware. It's also very popular in poverty-stricken countries where there is no lack of brilliance, but money and access to extreme performance hardware is out of reach.

Giving up the constant benching and tweaking for me is a really bad option because it is my primary form of entertainment and pleasure involving computers. Gaming is secondary, but still ranks a close #2. Take away both, or diminish them and nothing is left that I am passionate about. Although you would not know it by my involvement here, social media is the lowest on my list of great things about computers. I like helping people solve problems and talking about my overclocking and gaming hobbies, and it ends there pretty much.

Better to have a multi-GPU laptop without any support for Intel HD Graphics support than be shackled with a single GPU machine that has it. It's nice having it for a very limited number of reasons, but I view it as the least valuable feature of my Alienware systems.

Check the index in my signature. There are some links there for what you are asking about.

 

I checked it first before posting but missed the thread " make win8 a better prduct"...dayum !
thanks

 

There are so many links in that post that I have to use my browser "find" feature and type a key word to take me to what I am looking for. Hard to see the forest for the trees.

Some of them contain dated information now, but should still offer at least a little value.

[Quick Tips] Installing Windows 8 "The Fox Way"

[Quick Tips] Making Windows 8 a Good Product also see [Quick Tips] More Details About Making Windows 8 a Good Product

[Quick Tips] Turn Off Driver Signature Enforcement in Windows 8

Spoiler: Mr. Fox's List of Windows 8.X.X Tweaks

 

Okay first thing, Steam has a ton of Steam play and Linux games... And the library grows all the time.

My second point... I actually feel insulted for your characterization of Linux users... I have personally used it since 1998... Back when setting up XFree86 actually was more involved than installing Windows 3.1 and getting it into Super VGA even with the right drivers. Most of us use it because we enjoy the challenge and the power. There is no kernel more efficient than a Unix/BSD/Linux SMP core. I can render a full CPU limited fractal in half the time I can in Windows because the kernel with its scheduler is so much more efficient and the load balancing is legit. I've always had mid-high range machines and I still enjoy messing with Linux. I see the potential if they would get together and stop forking and come together... But until that happens it will always be an OS for those who know how to turn their C:/> to a yellow Bart Simpson with ASCII... I honestly think if you grabbed Arch or Gentoo and built Linux from scratch, you would have a hugely different opinion.

Phoronix Test Suite puts every other benchmarking suite in history to shame. It has something like 180 benchmarks and just recently added Unreal Engine 4. Name a Windows benchmark that is so thorough. I'm not kidding either... It took a couple hours to install every test. A lot of that has to do with the archaic package management of dpkg but the point is, nothing like that exists in Windows. SLI support is nonexistent though... Which is a big "stick it" from nVidia.

If it wasn't for the nVidia 9400 in my R1, when a certain vbios bricked my cards... Three times... Due to an XTU incompatibility I didn't know about until a certain D2 told me about it... I would have had to send my machine back and pay whatever penalties I would have in order to have Sager fix it. Which likely would have been full retail on two new cards... But because I could set the system to run hybrid sli I was able to boot on the 9400 and flash those cards back. There are some benefits to having alternative graphics options...

 

Sorry, not sure why you would feel insulted after I said it was a wild guess based on observations as a casual observer. But, since you were insulted, let me apologize because that was not my intent.

Whenever I have gone looking on the web for solutions to Linux problems, most of what I am able to find is other folks looking for the same answers and not finding them, extremely outdated, incomplete, or too technical for me to understand as a noob Linux user. Most of the tutorials I have found only make reference antiquated hardware and software. I haven't looked in about a year or two because I gave up trying to make it work. Maybe my Google searching wasn't effective, but it was always too difficult to develop a passion for it.

I realize there are exceptions. You may just be exceptional (and we already know that to be true). I started tinkering with Linux at least as long ago as that, but I've not been committed to developing a strong skill set in that environment because I could not find enough information to make it fully workable Windows replacement and the limited amount of excellent software was always too difficult for me to ignore.

I think part of the reality here is there is going to be a limit to what level of excellence we can reasonably expect from a platform built around "free" and volunteer contributions. I like free stuff, but I'm willing to pay for amazing. The growing lack of amazing stuff (and overreaching control) from Micro$haft is why we are having this discussion, LOL. Otherwise, I would have no compelling reason to explore Linux.

I've been watching the growing list of Steam titles supporting Linux with great interest. It is getting better, but I'm still not impressed. This may reflect a difference between my personal preferences in gaming genres versus the personal preferences of those who are gaming on Linux. Most of the games I like the most are built around the DirectX API. My interests in gaming genres is extremely narrow. I really hate the Steam queue thing because I click "not interested" on probably 98 out of 100 titles that they think might interest me. I have about 200 titles in my Steam and Origin libraries and have completed probably 15 of the 200 because the others bored me too much to continue playing them.

That may be true, but for fun, I mostly do my overclocked benching for points and ranking on HWBOT.org and I didn't notice that benchmark listed among their leaderboards. Until I see Linux benchmark leaderboards at HWBOT.org, Linux won't be a good option for me. Again, this is a reflection on my interests and does not diminish or disqualify what others may value. AIDA64 has a nice suite of benchmark tools as well, but there are no leaderboards at HWBOT for them.

Yes... lack of SLI support is the critical deal-breaker for me. Last time I checked (which was when I was still and ATI/AMD GPU fan) there was also nothing for CrossFried users. That may have changed because I lost interest in AMD when 7970M CF was a dismal failure. I've never looked back, but I am starting to pause and take a few glances with all of NVIDIA's recent GPU crippling shenanigans.

 

Do all the Clevo drivers work properly in 10? Like Creative Soundblaster XMB3, fingerprint reader, Hotkey etc.

There is Windows 10 Pro. I think you can still control updates with that one.

 

The latest information I've read is that in Pro and Enterprise you can control/delay the common updates, but not the "security updates". These are still forced

 

From what I've seen, you can delay any update in Pro/Enterprise, but they must happen eventually. People can "opt in" to an "insider program" of sorts where they test updates first, and if any problems/instabilities happen there, the updates are pulled/adjusted/etc before later people get it. But with Windows 10 Home, you have no choice at all about delaying/waiting.

I'm dead certain there'll be some form of mod (for all I know it might be built into Start 10) that prevents updates from being forced, but it's really stupid when you don't even have the ability to deny updates. The last time I had a game (far less a regular program) that refused to run without updating was Mortal Kombat Arcade Kollection using GFWL, because the second GFWL detects that an update exists, it wishes to update for you and will not let you run it without updating (at least for that game; I remember Fallout 3 not requiring updates, etc). I think Microsoft are being beyond retarded with this one. I actually care fairly little that Win 10 Home users don't have the option... I actually feel that is a GOOD thing, since most of them are so computer illiterate that they can barely understand anything beyond "install chrome/firefox, go on facebook/twitter/youtube". And I'm being very general and very condescending with that statement, but it's true. My mother has a java programming undergrad certificate and proceeded to install two separate antiviruses on her windows XP PC and each AV blocked the other and viruses just moved in and started growing a farm while selling bootleg DVDs to the CPU and RAM. Or something like that. Why did she do that? Because I told her what was a good AV and my cousin (who has not moved on in tech knowledge since 2005) told her what was a good one, and she listened to both of us at the same time. This woman with a programming certificate and a master's degree in another field. Or the time my father downloaded a song via a torrent and asked where it was saved, so I told him "open computer" and he LIFTED THE SIDE PANEL OFF THE TOWER.

And guess what? THEY'RE NOT NEARLY THE WORST ONE I'VE SEEN. NOT EVEN CLOSE. So yes, letting those people have antiviruses and updates and whatnot they don't need to think about? Just fine. But the minute you run into someone like me or Mr. Fox (ironically, his entire list of Windows 8 customizations excepting forcing test mode and using smartglass is what I did the day I first tried Windows 8; I just went through the list to realize I did it all anyway) you don't simply "decide you know what's best". If you knew what was best, Start 8, Classic Shell and StartIsBack wouldn't exist, and the Windows Vista update (which you COULD NOT REMOVE ONCE INSTALLED) that broke plug and play USB support by demanding a driver (which did not exist) be supplied would not have ever existed. I'm STILL annoyed that the whole UI got progressively user-friendly (aka hiding advanced options so people don't inadvertently break their PC by being stupid when fiddling with things) with every iteration of Windows since Vista. Vista wasn't perfect, but I didn't have to google where microsoft hid <insert slightly random but very useful feature's configuration settings/menu here> every time I wanted to make a change to something on the freaking PC. When programmers got lazy and programs I used would break various things on my Vista install (I even remember this guy would flat out BSOD if he opened Mumble on his Vista install), I was forced to move to Windows 7 (which they actually coded properly for) even though I never liked it.

Anyway, come year's end we'll see if people managed to fix Win 10 yet.

 

Isn't the Enterprise Edition of Win10 can control full update system like Disabling / Choose the updates which they want. While Pro users can only postpone & Home users can't do anything ??
If the Enterprise ED also fails to do so, then its over. Dead Win10 !!

 

That's the question... is someone able to confirm if ALL (even security updates) can be disabled in "Pro" and/or "Enterprise"? It's clear that it can't be disabled in Home Edition, but what about the other two choices?

To be honest the latest source I've read was from february, and I don't know if it is correct with "security updates still forced". But I have a really hard time searching for any actual information about that issue...

 

IIRC, Im sure that Enterprise Edition offers seamless control of update system, plus it offers 2 channels - Feature updates & Security updates. Feature channel updates are tested beforehand (stability, integrity) on Home, Pro editions then they push them to Enterprise Edition's channel, leave choice to user...

Windows7 Professional was fine over Ultimate, So is Win8 Pro over Enterprise but this Win10's Pro is sucky compared with its Enterprise edition...

In the end, it's all hazy with this whole Win10 RTM it's not worthy at all for an "RTM" tag as it will have bugs since day 1, Preview builds with keyloggers, notification updates, stability, auto updating of drivers, update system, 30-day limitation of rollback license issues, scaling issues, compatiblity issues etc..

 

If I even go down the Windoze OS X path I will likely shoot for Enterprise so I can completely shut down updates rather than "schedule" them. If securing the Enterprise version is made unnecessarily difficult by the Remond Mafia, I may totally exploit the no-cost/no-commitment offer by doing exactly what I have with Windows 8.1 and just make Windoze OS X my "disposable" OS in a dual boot system. I can use it for specific things where it might do better (for example, with Windows 8.1 the only thing it is useful for is Fire Strike). The rest of the time it boots Windows 7 by default and Windoze OS X is completely ignored. I'd like to move away from dual-booting, but I need an OS capable of replacing Windows 7 in a manner that is to my complete satisfaction. 8.1 could not do it, and from everything I am seeing so far, Windoze OS X won't be able to do that for me. It looks like it's not even good enough to replace Windows 8.1 as my "disposable" OS at this point. If I have to surrender a license, I have several unused Windows 8 Pro licenses that can be sacrificed. There is no way I am going to give up a Windows 7 license at this point.

 

As far as I can tell, you MUST eventually install updates. Maybe "delaying" them lasts a week. Or a month. Maybe 3 months. Who knows? But EVENTUALLY you must be up to date.

 

I could see quite a few large corporate IT departments having a *huge* problem with this approach...and they are the ones who MS should be concerned about...as in *really* concerned.

 

Absolutely. The Fortune 500 company I am employed by (and I am assuming most of the rest) absolutely will not stand for Micro$haft dictating that all updates are eventually applied. Many are blacklisted and offer no security enhancements or other value. I've never been a fan of applying patches on patches on patches unless the original software was such a terrible mess that it needs the patches to simply function correctly. If it takes that level of patching, then it calls into question whether it should have even been installed in the first place.

The reason I disable Automatic Windows Updates is because they are applied indiscriminately, can introduce significant problems and cause performance degradation on machines that are functioning flawlessly.

With the proper due diligence on their part, which they may be totally incapable of managing effectively, there would be a way for the OS to differentiate between truly critical updates (critical as in extremely serious, imminent danger and immediate threat) and recommended updates. The critical updates would be Micro$haft fixing its engineering flaws that universally affect all systems running their OS, as opposed to using the shotgun approach to fix bugs that might only exist on some machines.

It would be easier to swallow "Home" and "Pro" being required to install the small number of updates that actually rise to the engineering level of crisis. The rest should be left to the sole discretion of the machine owner/end user to apply, schedule or forever ignore.

 

W7 here. I would like to keep my updates down but how do you wade through the sheer number especially after a clean install, i.e., what is truly critical and what is not, go by strictly important updates or filter that manually?

Without a doubt, after a clean install there is that moment when doing updates that there is a small performance change in the system.

 

You don't like additional click for program's volume control? Try to switch button-combo of language switching and you will be shocked.

 

I make it easy for myself. I don't install any of them on my personal machines any more. I don't even run antivirus software on my Alienware or Clevo machines any more.

I am very selective about where I go and what I download, so the risk is less. The "security crisis" is designed to drive security software sales. The risks are all very real, but the sense of urgency has a lot to do with end user behavior, downloading, installing and web browsing habits. I am not advocating others take the same risks that I do, just saying what I do and why I am willing to take them. Everything in life involves risk and criminals will always exist. I now use drive images to fix my very infrequent malware problems rather than Micro$haft patches. I am willing to accept greater risk in exchange for uncompromised performance because that is where my priorities are. I keep sensitive files stored on removable media, so the only at-risk information on my system is what gets stored by my web browser. I use an encrypted password manager, so there's not much to steal. At the first sign of unexplained increases in CPU or memory utilization, abnormal drive read/write activity, or any other unusual behavior, I restore a known clean drive image and everything is back to normal within about 15 minutes... no fuss, no muss.

You can view the list of critical updates and see a brief description of what they are for. When I was still convinced I needed them and took the steps to install them manually, I was looking at the list of installed updates on my corporate system and installing the same ones. If you identify the critical security updates that apply to the operating system itself the list is much smaller than all of the so-called "Important" and "Recommended" updates.

 

I would go with the toss of all AV on my machine if I were the only one using it. Because I keep mine so safe I let the kids use mine for financials etc.. Funny, since installing Linux, they walk up to the machine to log in but can't figure how to get to their Windows profile so the machine is used arbitrarily alot less.

 

You do realize guys that at one point we'll be forced to upgrade to Windows 10 for one reason or another?

 

Not all of us. Not by a long stretch.

 

Yep. Nobody forces me to "upgrade" to anything. My take: WinX has nothing I want, but it still lacks a few things I do want. Conclusion: They can keep their stuff. I'll be happily using Windows 7 until at least 2020. As a matter of fact, I may be buying a new mobile workstation this fall, and of course it will come with Windows 7.

And, if they still don't have a compelling OS by 2020, and still feel that they should let those Twitter/Facebook/WhateverSocialCrapoftheDay kids with their 140-character attention span design operating systems, oh well, time to leave Microsoft. Too bad, we had a good time for almost three decades, but all good things must come to an end, I guess.

 

I won't. I only need Windows 7 now just for off line functions.

 

I operate in that general mode now, careful where I go and what I download. All shields are up full and browser settings tight including host file redirects, Keypass with a password & keyfile using auto-type obfuscation, bitlocker, and since I'm always learning of my shortcomings in knowledge - just try to be extra careful and tighten things more.

For years I never ran anti-virus because of performance hit and I don't trust anti-virus much in general but I do have MSE (it's light) and it has a couple of times caught an ad infection - but even those were a simple matter of clearing the history cache and poof. I run Malwarebytes once a week, takes ~7 minutes.

I also run the machine for daily use in a standard account and do maintenance and repairs in the admin account.

All in all I'm probably a good candidate for trying the reduced WU method.

The other computer, it gets tortured with social sites. As evidence, this machine has got everything up to par security wise as mine and even in this condition cannot stop the operator from pressing ok and installing a PUP. These are a real itch to get rid of. In the time it takes to get it out I could have restored a lean image.

 

OK, the FAQ http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...ndows-10/5c0b9368-a9e8-4238-b1e4-45f4b7ed2fb9 says the following:

This means, that Professional users can control everything manually, even Security Updates. However what does that mean"cannot be deferred indefinitely"? I don't get that point. Does it mean that after a certain timeframe I'll get a forced download and install?

However a german magazine claims

The last phrase basically says that: "if you delay for more than 8 months, there are no updates anymore". This means if you not update for 8 months you'll never ever get updates again? Not even the ones from the first year or what?

 

Deferred = postpone, put off, delay.
Indefinitely = forever = confusing, vague, uncertain. You will have to take them at some point that they prescribe. After they figure that part out.

Yeah, that's crappy because it is forced acquiescence - accede and submit.

Microsoft is a control freak. Remember the joke: resistance is futile, you will assimilate.

/Barf

 

Ok, but at least it means you can control any updates. And if you ever choose to have new updates, you could update all those missing old updates in a huge chunk, and are then free to go for the newer updates I guess. Sounds like the perfect candidate for service packs.... almost bet they'll come

 

On a sidenote: the whole story of "last Windows" is quite unbelievable. It that were the case we would only get Windows 10 in the year 2030 and then need to update that from ground up... 15 years of updates. Unlikely. And what about all these computer manufacturers with preinstalled Windows? They would have to update from ground up as well...

Naaw... B.S.... just doesn't sound viable. I bet there will come standalone Windows 11, Windows 12, Windows 13 or whatever they want to call it "Windows 10.1, Windows 10.2, Windows 10.3".

I call bullsh!t on the "only updates anymore"...

 

I don't think it's reasonable for them to say 'never', so I reckon for the time being they'll go with the whole "Windows 10 is the last operating system & will only get updates from now on" thing, until the point that the business model is not working & then they'll change their approach. I doubt they'll be inflexible about the future of their operating systems.

 

Waiting to watch this new Win10 get flopped like the first Win8 RTM & the 8.1.1 being much better vs the 8 RTM. They never learn from their mistakes...

Win7 is the new XP, They know about the Win7's huge popularity among all classes of users, heck even the Oculus Rift (FB & M$'s cash backed inc) announced with the Win7 support...I'm sure it will give a tough competition. Until a real successor comes up just like the Vista disaster, Win7 fixing it but this time maybe after 2 iterations..8 and 10.

But I'm worried about the new M$'s direction, The Dark Ages..Hope there is light at the end of the tunnel.

 

Must agree...

Now that I know which version fits to my requirements, I investigated (again) the Windows 10 features compared to Windows 7 - and most of them are obsolete in the everyday use. Wtf? I suddenly can't find a reason to upgrade anymore...

 

Windows 10

Say goodbye to Internet explorer and say good bye to patch tuesday, W10 Home does windows updates as they come out and Win 10 Pro users can defer updates.

Cheers
3Fees

 

At the moment there is not even a spark at the end of the tunnel. Until they can get rid of this service idea and actually come up with some other reason for a PC's existence they are going to do this device marketing shift. They have given up on the consumer PC and what it was.

 

Just thought of another example of where 8.1 soundly trumps 7; copying files. Not only can transfers be paused but duplicate files can be ignored. This is really important for transferring extremely large folders (i.e. Steam games) to external HDDs.

That, along with much faster boot times and better optimisation for SSDs are why I cannot go back to 7 - ever.

 

Yea..very sad
Loosing the smartphone market to Android and iOS completely, the XB1 unable to beat PS4 in all realms , clinging on to that Halo franchise is saving it from becoming extinct & some nasty funding tactics for timed exclusives ignoring the PC gaming, Failure of Win8+ & Now it's like they want as many users with them thanks to stupid #free-update marketing with a new tags and some shiny features (trade off being - breaking the original features to a much higher extent). That doesn't justify the Win X being / should be crippled just to gain more user base instead its a shameful act, the sad reality is there will be huge % of users willing to jump for the Win10.

Such a waste of resources, They've become pathetic regarding the true PC experience perspective
Seems like only a miracle can deliver an os from M$ for enthusiasts...

Spoiler

M$ + Ngreedia, C'mon..

EDIT: Teracopy ftw for 7/8/10

 

A 'true' PC experience doesn't exist. It is whatever you want it to be. Personal Computers!

 

I only braid my ribbon cables with the highest quality nylons

 

That file copy thing is also my biggest reason I prefer 8 over 7. I do many TB of data transfers every month across multiple PC's and I love that pause feature, very handy and saves me tons of time. I used to stop them mid copy, and either have to start over or try to figure out what hadn't copied yet manually so I can continue the operation.

 

Teracopy handles file transfers better than any version of Windows. I didn't need Windows 8 for that, but had I not been using Teracopy Pro already, and did not know a better option already existed, no doubt that definitely would have been a nice added-value feature.

The 'PC Experience' is partially what you want it to be, partially what they want you to have, and mostly determined by whatever they decide give you to work with. You never know what you don't know, but it's not usually very difficult to identify what you have lost, or what has been taken away, or what they have decided they have a right to block you from doing. And, therein lies the problem. This is what destroys the 'PC Experience' for some folks... especially enthusiasts and power users.

You can give me a couple of nifty features, which I might actually get really excited about... but, once you start telling me that I can't do something I used to do, and still want to do, or take steps to make it where I actually cannot do them, then I suddenly stop caring about those nifty new features. At that point focus shifts entirely to successfully defying all of their control measures and being able to continue doing whatever I want to. Whether that ends up being third-party software, tweaks, registry hacks, firmware mods, reverse engineering, or simply avoiding the product altogether because it's more trouble than it's worth, depends on how far out of their way they have gone to interfere with and ultimately ruin the 'PC Experience' for the sake of forcing their will on me.

(Note: In context of the above, "you" is a first-person reference to Micro$haft or any OEM that doesn't allow me the freedom and autonomy to make my own decisions, not any individuals participating in this discussion. References to "I" and "me" includes all like-minded comrades.)

 

RTM? Windows 10 build TH1 Professional/Home 10240 available on both fast and slow ring

Maybe on July 29th this build's name will change to RTM?

My download is almost done....updating from build 10166

 

LOL, what feature is that, DX-12? The copy files is a good thing but there are plenty of 3rd party apps for things like this. TBH I do not do enough file copying for it to make a substantial difference.

I will be the first to admit though for non-numa multi core CPU's, Windows 8+ holds the crown. a 10% increase in efficiency in non optimised single threads over Windows 7. Even Windows 7 with the Bulldozer patch looses by 5% over Windows 8+. Now these are the Multi die AMD and Intel chips (IE. C2Q).

 

All of my physics-based benchmark results are better with Windows 7. Windows 8 and newer does something nasty that impairs CPU performance on my Alienwares and my Clevo. Not sure if it has improved since I stop participating in the Insider Preview, but Windows 10 took that failure up another notch and further impaired CPU performance compared to Windows 8 and its updates.

 

What are these "much faster boot times" you are speaking of? Those are fairytales. There is no meaningful difference in boot times between modern SSD-based PCs running Windows 8.x versus 7. Any typical ultrabook boots Win7 from an SSD in about seven seconds. Perhaps (I don't know) you can bring this down to five seconds with Win8.x, but then the question really is, who cares?

As for file copying, as has been pointed out already, there's dozens of free alternatives out there that accomplish the same thing.

 

Build 10240 has no watermark

 

Windows 8.1 has fast boot which is sort of like a mix between hibernate and a 'clean' boot.

 

It hasn't improved. If anything, it has gotten worse. On my end, build 10162 was showing about a 1000 point drop in physics score with 3DMark 11 when compared to Windows 7. Windows 8 would only show roughly a 500-600 point drop when compared to Windows 7.