Start menu ads are officially here with the latest Windows 11 optional update
Start menu ads are officially here with the latest Windows 11 optional update
You're viewing a single thread.
Now for the waiting game as people discover the registry keys to disable the ads.
So far, the toggle is built in:
Either way, these recommendations can be disabled by going into the Windows 11 Settings app, so you can avoid them. However, app recommendations are tied to other content in this section, so you'll miss out on some features by turning it off.
Not sure what else will be "missed". But, my guess is they will be "missed" in the same way that one misses a case of chlamydia.
To me that sounds like you can turn off targeted advertising and now get general random ads.
But that isn't the case. It disables them entirely.
I hope it does.
Really. My start menu has been nagging me "To show your recent files and new apps, turn them on in Settings." since the day I installed Windows 11. Why would I want the start menu randomly changing? I wish you could just turn the section off completely instead of breaking it and making it smaller.
Everybody hates Windows 8 but the Windows UI peaked at 8.1.
Agreed 8 gave me a headache but 8.1 was probably my favorite. Oh well at least we still have Linux, about to switch, is Fedora a good place to start?
yes. being on fedora for last five years, no complaints whatsoever, but i did ditch the nvidia for amd to spare myself the neverending story of nvidia and linux.
That won't be an issue I'm already on a 6950 XT, it's in all my AMD system so I think I should be okay device compatibility wise.
Fedora is good for servers and corporate environments, Mint is good for a familiar desktop, Ubuntu is good for mac users.
Fedora is a great first distro! I do recommend looking at the GNOME ui, as it's what Fedora (and vanilla Ubuntu) use; I really like GNOME but it's not for everyone as it's pretty opinionated and innovative. Linux Mint is another popular choice for newcomers, it uses a very simple UI that will be very familiar to any Windows user.
I was a Windows 2000 fan in the Windows Millenium period.
Is this tied to a registry key though? I do all my Windows cleanup and customization from Powershell/Ansible so having a GUI settings option isn't super useful.
I would expect so. Pretty much all settings in Windows are buried in the Registry somewhere. Whether or not this will be well documented, is an open question. Granted, Microsoft has a habit of changing settings like this, whenever the fancy strike them. So, you'll need to track that setting over time.
On Windows 10 it's also managable through Group Policy, so there should be an underlying registry key. It's the exact same option in the GUI so it shouldn't be too different for 11.
I've used a start menu alternative since I switched to 11. I get the hate for the os but it's all just been a non issue for me.
ExplorerPatcher + Open-Shell = ❤️
Unless they've anticipated this and blocked it like they do with OneDrive. Which they do to frustrate you into buying more storage you don't need to fix the problems they've created intentionally..
What? Just make a local profile. Or use a Pro license and disable One Drive through Group Policy. Or uninstall the functionality through PowerShell.
There's a ton of reliable ways to stop One Drive, you just have to look them up. They have to have these options to disable it for business and government customers. Why are you talking like you don't have any control?
Why does everyone talk about Windows like you can't disable all this shit?
I say it's because Microsoft keeps coming up with new roadblocks to nag you into doing what they want, every month.
So even if it is possible to take 10 minutes to figure out how to disable it each time, you're still left to Microsoft's whims as to whether that will remain effective or if they will throw more roadblocks.
The only way to win is to not play Microsoft's game.
I wasn't trying to disable it. I wanted to move it off my puny OS drive SSD to a huge spin drive. It fought me tooth and nail even though it has a move button. I tried many ways including regedit until I finally gave up and turned it off.
The worst part was when I was trying to manually copy the files and it kept telling me I needed do purchase more cloud storage -- to do a local file copy!
I concluded this obstinance was by design to sell more product. Especially after using Steam to shuffle some of my games around later that same day. Their software is wonderful now!
I am sure corporate and government customers will be furious if there is no way to disable this with Group Policy or Registry Keys.
They don't mention which versions of 11 are getting this so I assume all are getting it. There must be a way disable it on an enterprise level.
The EU is kicking up a stick with Meta atm about forcing its users to pick between ads or a monthly payment.
MS already makes business pay either directly with once off OEM/volume licenses or through your M365 subscription. No way EU will be fine with pay for the software and force ads.
I think you can disable it in settings, it's just on by default
but does it disable the adverts entirely or does it just disable the targeted (recomeded) adverts.
I'm not sure. Personally, I'll look for a debloater script to delete that entirely if I see it.