The DRM timebomb

[Skybird]

I decided to put this into Generla Topics, since it is not specifically about a technical probloem, but in essence is a powerpolitical issue affecting whole society.

https://boingboing.net/2016/09/19/hp...ebomb-pri.html

That's why EFF is suing the US government to invalidate section 1201 of the DMCA: because "owning property" means having the "sole and despotic dominion which one man claims and exercises over the external things of the world, in total exclusion of the right of any other individual in the universe" and if every software-enabled thing can be remote-controlled against your wishes and your interests, then we have abolished personal property altogether, in favor of a neo-feudal system of perpetual corporate ownership -- and because an age in which our computers hold our lives in their hands cannot be an age in which it is illegal to tell you whether your computer is working correctly, for obvious reasons.

Things become worse and worse in the digital world. Microsoft'S GWX war against users, or assaulting users to make them using Windows 10 anyone?

I do not own a smartphone, nor do I intend to get one. I have dramatically cut my dependency on Microsoft, and prepare to cut the remaining ties - gaming - as well, although that comes with some dear losses. But the more time passes by, the ore willing I am to take these losses. I just cant stand the foul smell in the air anymore.

I have even started to look for a used, good conserved mechanical typewriter, non-electric. Readiness is all.

[GT182]

We were warned about this by George Orwell in his book "!984". It seems all those doing this to us also read that book too. Well, it was required reading in some schools. Ever sense then we've all been scrod.... the past tense of screwed. And it's only going to get worse.

The same can be said about Microsoft and it's updates. We have no way of knowing what their updates are for and do. And for some we have no way of not installing them.... that I know of. And if we uninstall them, what happens to our computer. It's the same too with their Operating Systems. They dictate how long we can use them even tho we "Paid" for them. When we can no longer use one, why then are we not reimbursed the money we had to spend to use it? My point is XP, the best OS they ever put out. So now we have nothing but problems with their newest crap that cost us even more.

[Eichhörnchen]

I keep an offline gaming computer with XP and wish I could leave it at that, but I need to be online for business so I have to be sure my O/S will remain compatible with all those things necessary for running it... I can't afford to find one day that none of the antivirus or email will work anymore on my old system.

I hate Windows 10 as much as anybody here, but I'm not savvy enough to change over to Apple or Linux... could I still link up with my customers who are still on Windows?

[Oberon]

Sadly, it's the price you pay for admission.

[Betonov]

Sending private parts photos, entertaining the NSA one erection at a time

[Rhodes]

Originally Posted by Betonov

Sending private parts photos, entertaining the NSA one erection at a time

Same here, my derrière must be in NSA portraits by know...

[GT182]

Originally Posted by Eichhörnchen

I keep an offline gaming computer with XP and wish I could leave it at that, but I need to be online for business so I have to be sure my O/S will remain compatible with all those things necessary for running it... I can't afford to find one day that none of the antivirus or email will work anymore on my old system.

I hate Windows 10 as much as anybody here, but I'm not savvy enough to change over to Apple or Linux... could I still link up with my customers who are still on Windows?

There are some still using XP and online too. How I don't know as that's what I want to do with my fresh reinstall of XP Home. And use it for gaming seeing it's a 32bit system... XP Home. It will play SH3, 4 and 5 without all the problems being encountered today. All 3 were built to run on a 32bit system.

Like you I hate 10 and 8.1. But until I can get XP Home to run as I want, I'll stick with 8.1 only. As for Linux, Microsoft says that's what they be using for their next OS build. Nothing like them sticking it to us as they have been doing.

[Eichhörnchen]

Originally Posted by GT182

But until I can get XP Home to run as I want, I'll stick with 8.1 only. As for Linux, Microsoft says that's what they be using for their next OS build. Nothing like them sticking it to us as they have been doing.

I got talked into moving 'up' to 10 from 8.1... wish I'd stuck it out longer.

[Jeff-Groves]

I dumped 10 and went back to 7
It's only a matter of time how long I keep it.

[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by Eichhörnchen

I got talked into moving 'up' to 10 from 8.1... wish I'd stuck it out longer.

I ran into an unrelated problem and had to reformat my computer. Since it came with 8.1 installed it defaulted back to that OS. I've been with 8.1 ever since.

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by Eichhörnchen

I keep an offline gaming computer with XP and wish I could leave it at that, but I need to be online for business so I have to be sure my O/S will remain compatible with all those things necessary for running it... I can't afford to find one day that none of the antivirus or email will work anymore on my old system.

I hate Windows 10 as much as anybody here, but I'm not savvy enough to change over to Apple or Linux... could I still link up with my customers who are still on Windows?

Keep XP off the web. ALWAYS. Its a mine waiting to be stepped upon and blowing you up. Physical disconnection to the internet is the only way to go.

Use a second platform for your online needs. Surfing, emailing you can easily and perfectly do with a Linux Mint system, a dual boot, even a Mint installation on a bottable USB stick (if you install to a USB stick, you can even save and keep working files, emails etc.

Win7 gets mroe and more zombified by Microsoft and turned into W10, all the "telemetry" sniffware, aneforcment of foul and broken updates got reverse-engineered into it. More and more of the "featureS" W10 gets criticised for, got engineered into W7 as well.

I would do precioius work, sensible work and such on a system not running unde rmicrosoft anymore, and preferrably offline. Transfer files you need to send or receive, to another, online platform and send/receve it from there. Be aware that you still run infeciton risks.

Microsoft has done its best to make things tricky, treacherous and untrustworthy, and it now slowoly starts to dawn upon people. The good and easy computer times are over. Its now about handing over our property rights, and freedom. For superficial concepts of "comfort".

If you want a relatively free and secure online platform, Apple and Google are no alternatives to Microsoft. You only have Linux of any form.

Try Mint. As a Windows user you will be surprised how smooth the transfer can be. There are hickups, yes. But most likely fewer ones than you now fear.

You are German, right? Get the Mint introduction book by Dirk Becker. Its perfect to you get you set up. I used it myself as a starting point. The new version for Mint 18 is about to be relased next week, I used the book for verison 17.

https://www.amazon.de/Linux-Mint-/me...ds=dirk+becker

https://www.amazon.de/Linux-Mint-pra...+linux+mint+17

Using Mint 17.3 instead of the new 18.0 is no bad idea, btw. You get long time support nevertheless, and the 17 version has most issues ironed out, while 18 is new. Not that I have run into issues with it.

[Commander Wallace]

Originally Posted by GT182

We were warned about this by George Orwell in his book "!984". It seems all those doing this to us also read that book too. Well, it was required reading in some schools. Ever sense then we've all been scrod.... the past tense of screwed. And it's only going to get worse.

The same can be said about Microsoft and it's updates. We have no way of knowing what their updates are for and do. And for some we have no way of not installing them.... that I know of. And if we uninstall them, what happens to our computer. It's the same too with their Operating Systems. They dictate how long we can use them even tho we "Paid" for them. When we can no longer use one, why then are we not reimbursed the money we had to spend to use it? My point is XP, the best OS they ever put out. So now we have nothing but problems with their newest crap that cost us even more.

There are other options besides apple and Microsoft operating systems. I and a number of other people here have been working with open source Operating Systems. Linux with the Wine add is one of them. The developers of these systems want the end user to be able to control when and how these system are updated. In addition, these open source operating systems can be tailored to suit specific needs.

Skybird and a number of others have been carrying the banner for these various operating systems and it may be worth your time to take a look at them. I have used them and have found them to be exceptional. Mine even looks like windows XP / 7.

[GT182]

Sounds good Commander. Do you have any links for what you're using. I'd like to check out some options. Thanks.

[Reece]

Originally Posted by Commander Wallace

Skybird and a number of others have been carrying the banner for these various operating systems and it may be worth your time to take a look at them. I have used them and have found them to be exceptional. Mine even looks like windows XP / 7.

Yes but how well do they run:
Games
Ham Radio software
Software like Google Earth, Photoshop, Firefox, Outlook Express, Wavelab.
I still use XP, I'll have to update soon, my computer is getting old, the hard drives could die anytime!!

[Commander Wallace]

Originally Posted by GT182

Sounds good Commander. Do you have any links for what you're using. I'd like to check out some options. Thanks.

I sent you the links to 3 of them. I hope this helps you.

Originally Posted by Reece

Yes but how well do they run:
Games
Ham Radio software
Software like Google Earth, Photoshop, Firefox, Outlook Express, Wavelab.
I still use XP, I'll have to update soon, my computer is getting old, the hard drives could die anytime!!

To be honest Reese, I have no idea how these are used in conjunction with a ham radio. What you and GT 182 should know is that you can have multiple operating systems on a single hardrive and can boot into any one of them on startup. That means you can have a windows system for your games and the other systems for browsing. The other OS systems have a feature which can partition your hard drive upon installation and dedicate a percentage of your hard drive to the new OS. The bad part is that Microsoft may be able to infiltrate the other systems through the Windows OS you already have.

The wine feature allows Linux to run windows applications and software. It should allow games as well. Rockin Robbins knows more about that than I do I'm sure. He has a youtube video of SH4 running on a Linux system with a wine feature. A number of these systems are 32 and 64 bit. The 32 bit systems don't use a lot in the way of resources, including memory and can coexist with XP systems on older computers.