My new PC will be delivered this week. I’ve never used 11. I’ve had 8 all this time. I spent the extra money to get Windows 11 Pro in the hopes I could avoid more annoyances that way. I just wasn’t willing to jump into Unix.

I just want the desktop and not whatever new horrors Windows tries to force on you since 8. I have a Charms Bar killer app for 8. Why anybody would want super annoying non-desktop crap is beyond me.

  1. What can I do to eliminate annoyances - bloatware, spyware, etc.

  2. What should I do to protect my privacy from Microsoft? I want to turn everything off that reports to the fucking MS mothership.

  3. What apps, utilities, etc should I install? I’d like to use non-MS apps and utilities instead of whatever garbage comes with Windows.

  4. What apps, utilities, etc should I avoid?

  5. What am I forgetting to ask?

  • Thordros [he/him, comrade/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
    4·
    15 hours ago

    100%. I forgot this. Microsoft made this impossible to do without opening a command prompt during install, disabling internet, and rebooting. There are 3rd party guides available.

    This is weirdly easier on the Home version. Just pretend you’re a stupid asshole, and keep entering a username when it asks for an email to a Microsoft account. It eventually gives up and just lets you make a local account.