Bing Wallpaper showing Ad for Harry Potter and Fantastic beasts box set

Since this thread is mostly people complaining about Windows, here are two more fun anecdotes

1. I installed a new Windows-only gaming setup. Out of the box it was able to figure out how IPv6 networking works here but didn't get IPv4. So for the 10-20 minutes it took to fix that I was able to see what's a priority for Microsoft (so it works even with just IPv6) and what's non-critical so you can demand IPv4

    Adverts everywhere: Critical, Ipv4 not needed
    Turning *off* the adverts: Non-essential, need Ipv4 or you can't change this

2. In my day job we look after the software which runs exams. For obvious reasons this software cannot do anything except present your exam and accept whatever your answers are. The University doesn't have buckets of money and almost all its machines run Windows, so exams happen on Windows. With a locked down environment you can still write the formulae you were supposed to memorize on your tits and then wear a top you can pull down to look at them "discretely" the same as in a paper exam, but you can't ask ChatGPT to write your essay about Singapore's housing policy for your politics exam or have it tell you whether the X-ray in figure 1 shows evidence for options A, B, C or D in your 3rd year medicine exam.

Despite the fact that this software is as locked down as we could possibly make it, and so the machine definitely cannot "install OneDrive" even if the student really wanted to instead of taking their exam, Windows will still sometimes interrupt their exam to ask them if they want to install OneDrive.

Recently had to install some stuff on a Windows laptop, test it, then ship it out to a customer, and my god the culture shock coming from Mac (and previously Linux and before that Windows)! Randomly selected (and not particularly good at that) rotating wallpapers, random unrelated facts on the log in page. Had to nuke as many of them as possible, but they don't make it easy.

I'd be more surprised if this was the first time Microsoft did this.

I checked the download page[0] and next to the download button they say they will do this

>You will also receive in-app notifications with promotional offers from Microsoft

[0] https://www.bing.com/apps/wallpaper?pc=w011&brand=bing

Not true for me. Not sure where author is and why (s)he is seeing this (wallpapers seem to be country based.)

https://bingwalls.com/

or

https://bing.com/ and use the < > to move through history.

I recently wiped Windows off my wife's machine after the last straw broke with Windows - it gave her a full screen prompt after a reboot that forced her back to Edge and copied all of her local documents to OneDrive.

She only plays a handful of games and browses the web, Bazzite was a no-brainer replacement.

Microsoft seems determined to destroy every bit of remaining customer goodwill. Who approved this ad?

I don't think it is the first time they do this, at least on one occasion, they have shown an ad for Tomb Raider on the lock screen.

And I am evidently an minority here, but I don't really mind. I don't really have a problem with ads, I have a problem with annoying ads. Popups, banners, billboards, notifications, video segments, etc... they grab your attention and take up valuable space, I hate these, and I think everyone else does.

But here it is just a wallpaper that happens to be branded, it is not particularly distracting, in fact, I find it pretty good overall. I like this simple, low contrast style for a wallpaper on the background.

And that Tomb Raider lockscreen image from before was more than good, to me, it was one of the best!

Of course, you may have different tastes, but and I can easily imagine someone being unaware that it is an ad (or not caring) and making it his new default.

I understand why people wouldn't want this, but I didn't expect that much outrage. I mean, it is Windows 11, and you are letting Microsoft pick wallpapers for you, what did you expect? Getting to see the wallpaper behind all these much more intrusive ads, notifications and AI crap seems like a rather impressive feat. So much that I would have expected people who got there to have given up on complaining, or better, given up on Windows. And the author runs an "insider preview", talk about masochism!

I had these features off on Windows where possible. However I can’t imagine using Windows these days. The only time I switch to Windows is to play Marathon/Destiny these days. Other than that, I have no reason to use it. I imagine so many others would have a similar experience.

I would've paid 5x for a unshittified windows build. WSL is a truly impressive VM for dev work.

But I had to go to Linux and I suspect MicroSuck is in very deep financial shit with LibreOffice and Linux offering far better user experiences.

> Why this level of nickel and diming. This is atrocious UX, its ad over entire screen, For a moment I thought I installed some adware malware.

Our definition of 'malware' has really drifted, then. This is absolutely, positively, 100% malware. Just because it comes with your OS doesn't mean it's not.

Satya Nadella said he was going to make Windows less cr*p. Having a wallpaper advert is clownish and grotesque, so did he lie?

Is it clickable? As in do they get Click-through rate (CTR)? Otherwise it is really hard to calculate any value for these.

Meanwhile, this site is covered with ads that are impossible to close

Microsoft has zero pride in their operating system and no respect for their users.

Ads on install, ads in the start menu, ads in the toolbar, ads in wallpaper, ads in notifications, ads on the lockscreen, ads in widgets, ads in file explorer...

Are people in non-3rd-world countries really using Windows?

Business as usual. Just wait until the start-menu icon is a Coca-Cola logo :D

There was a time when I cared about wallpapers but nowadays my PC is just used for videogames.

Anything actually important is done on my smartphone.

No, no, no. Guise. You’ve got it all wrong. Microsoft cares about Windows and its customers again. Don’t trust your lying eyes.

It’s a big initiative and you know Microsoft is always serious about those.

https://www.windowscentral.com/microsoft/windows-11/what-is-...

This and the LG TV spying scandal that's also on the front page really highlight for me how unpleasant, shitty, and invasive tech has become. Yeah, I know you can use Linux, at least for now (I do). But things are moving in a bad direction. It's almost to the point of making me, a lifelong computer dork, want to go outside and touch grass. Unthinkable.

I’ve used this for many years on a random windows box, and it’s usually very nice. This is the first time I’ve seen this. And man, give me a fucking break. What’s the argument, Microsoft needs the money? Get a grip guys, it’s ok to do things for goodwill or because it’s cool. Not every last dollar is worth chasing. This is like watching Elon Musk rooting around in a summer festival port a potty for loose change.

Maybe surgeons and dentists should tattoo ads onto bigcorp execs faces unless they spot and correctly fill out the quintuple negated opt out hidden on page 97 of their medical care clickwrap agreements.

Edit: And of course now the playbook: if the backlash is strong enough the mea culpa, then 6 months later kill it out of spite.

There's 11 Fantastic Beasts films?

Cry me alligator tears.

It's been years since Microsoft has went from OS to advert ridden surveillance OS.

If you have been abused by Microsoft for years, recognize the abusive actions against you, know you have Linux alternatives, and you still choose abuse... Well, this is a YOU problem.

You can choose Linux. Works super well these days. But this is a YOU problem if you keep choosing MS Windows and their ongoing abuse and enshittification.

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