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How To Enable Cortana On the Xbox One Experience Preview (hothardware.com)

Posted by samzenpus on from the cheat-code dept.

MojoKid writes: Part of Microsoft's strategy to unite different devices to a single ecosystem means offering the same services and features across the board. One of those features is Cortana, Microsoft's digital assistant, which is available on Windows 10. It will also be available for the Xbox One, though not until sometime next year, at least officially. Don't feel like waiting? You might not have to. Here's a quick and dirty guide on how to unlock Cortana on the Xbox One, provided you're running the latest Xbox One Experience Preview.

81 comments

  1. Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    Why would someone *want* to knowingly enable this?

    Cortana is spy-ware, and it takes considerable effort to *disable* it???

    What am I missing???

    1. Re:Excuse me....?? by bloodhawk · · Score: 4, Insightful

      most of the world don't give a shit about the MS telemetry (wrongly or rightly), they care about functionality. What you are missing is you can't see past your own concerns to look at what consumers actually care about.

    2. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

      "Consumers"

      Are these the ppl. that used to be called customers?

      Just wondering...

    3. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The fact you can't work that out for yourself says an aweful lot about you. perhaps you should try going to school.

    4. Re:Excuse me....?? by bloodhawk · · Score: 1

      geez if you don't understand basic words then at least learn to google. customers and consumers can be the same or a consumer may actually not be a customer. Not sure what sader, that you posted that or that you spent the time posting it rather than spend 5 seconds doing a google search.

    5. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      Consumers actually *want* this useless feature?

    6. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      yes, So why all the bitching about it? voice search and assistance is extremely useful in a device that generally has no keyboard attached, what is so fucking hard to understand about that?

    7. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      what consumers actually care about.

      "Give me convenience or give me death!"

    8. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Cortana is spy-ware, and it takes considerable effort to *disable* it???

      What am I missing???

      You are missing the fact that every search you perform is already being sent to the search provider. Doing it via voice is a huge convenience in a mobile world, and yes, people WANT convenience.

      You might not, but you are in a 0.01% niche at best. You don't matter.

    9. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      exactly. xbox already catalogs any USB media you insert and sends back this catalog record to HQ when you allow the xbox online. bastards.

    10. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Consumers"

      Are these the ppl. that used to be called customers?

      Just wondering...

      No, that is simply your inability to understand the English language. A consumer is not necessarily the customer and a customer is not necessarily a consumer (though the 2 frequently overlap), in this case it is a consumer targeted feature, not customer targeted. with the xbox an example of this is the customer is frequently the parents while the consumer is the children that use the xbox.

    11. Re:Excuse me....?? by PopeRatzo · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Why would someone *want* to knowingly enable this?

      Cortana is spy-ware, and it takes considerable effort to *disable* it???

      What am I missing???

      What better way to get otherwise tech-savvy people to run spyware on their systems than by making them feel that by using this "leaked" method to enable Cortana on their systems they are cool doing something that's not exactly sanctioned by MS?

      "Hey look, I've enabled Cortana on my XBone Experience Live system without Microsoft's persmission!"

      Microsoft: * laughter *

      --
      You are welcome on my lawn.
    12. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What's even sadder is that you/we have come to accept (to the point that one now risks being insulted for pointing it out) that 'customer' and 'consumer' have become interchangeable. They didn't used to be, but I suppose such is the morphology of language.

    13. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's hilarious that you berated him on his language skills, but completely missed the point he was trying to make. Do you have Aspergers?

    14. Re:Excuse me....?? by FlyHelicopters · · Score: 0

      Why would someone *want* to knowingly enable this?

      Because it provides useful features. It allows me to add stuff to my calendar, read me my mail, tell me the weather, make phone calls, etc.

      I see a future where our houses are setup with remote mics and speakers so we can talk to Siri/Cortana/Alexa anywhere in our homes.

      Cortana is spy-ware

      No it isn't, stop spreading FUD...

    15. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      please explain the point he tried to make. The OP used the absolutely correct term of consumer. He then decided to incorrectly talk about customers. So NO they are not the people we used to call customers, They are and have always been called consumers. Customers are a completely different definition both now and in the past. Yes some people nowadays have trouble understanding this concept and it appears the AC replying was one of them.

    16. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Because it provides useful features.

      No, because you're the average imbecile. That's why you like being spied on.

    17. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Because it provides useful features.

      No, because you're the average imbecile. That's why you like being spied on.

      What the fuck is up with all these moron troll posts? is it one guy or are their a heaps of morons that don't understand the difference between telemetry and spying? google, apple, Sony, MS all collect telemetry. Whats more if you are on fucking xbox or playstation everything you do is already well and truly recorded. learn to communicate moron or just better still fuck off. Most of us really don't give a shit that telemetry or server side processing happens, if they at sometime in the future decide to instead use that for spying I still don't give a shit, if they want to know I read the news each evening or search for latest game reviews then they are welcome to it.

    18. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      if they at sometime in the future decide to instead use that for spying I still don't give a shit

      Which clearly proves that you're the average imbecile.

      Plus, telemetry is not the only windows 10's privacy hole, Cortana is much worse.

    19. Re: Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Marketing For Nerds! Advertising that matters.

    20. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I think it's aspergers. Autism maybe? Either way he's thinks he's better than you. Lennart? Is that you?

    21. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why do you keep switching from your registered account to AC? You use cortana and then you even think you're intelligent enough to fool anyone?!

    22. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How many microsoft PRs have voted up this comment and downvoted the parent? Same story one month ago when all the Win10 privacy issues came out: the vast majority of posts were anti-MS, but for some strange reason the very few pro-MS ones were upvoted, which clearly goes against statistics.

    23. Re:Excuse me....?? by MobileTatsu-NJG · · Score: 1

      No, those terms are not inter-changeable.

      --

      "I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)

    24. Re:Excuse me....?? by FatdogHaiku · · Score: 1

      what consumers actually care about.

      "Give me convenience or give me death!"

      Would you settle for convenience and death?

      --
      You have the right to remain sentient. If you give up the right to remain sentient, you will be elected to public office
    25. Re: Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Oh, I see... It's voice activated spyware. That makes it special.

    26. Re:Excuse me....?? by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      I see a future where our houses are setup with remote mics and speakers so we can talk to Siri/Cortana/Alexa anywhere in our homes.

      Well, no. Your home, fine. My home, no. On the other hand, when I can get a Free and open source natural language recognition system which I control and for which I write the rules (including firewall rules) then I might consider doing something like that. Probably, though, I'll want to just wear the microphone, perhaps with a Trek-like combadge. That does raise problems when trying to use the computer while naked, but one could install a button/switch to enable full-room audio. I'm not particularly thrilled about all the intelligent devices that I already own which contain microphones which I cannot disable. Damned if I'll add more to my house of my own accord.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    27. Re:Excuse me....?? by FlyHelicopters · · Score: 1

      Well, no. Your home, fine. My home, no.

      And that's ok, I would never suggest you have to do that, it should be optional.

      On the other hand, when I can get a Free and open source natural language recognition system which I control and for which I write the rules (including firewall rules) then I might consider doing something like that.

      I'm ok with that as well. Choice, it's a good thing.

      ---

      That being said, don't be shocked if the outside public world ends up with microphones and speakers at some point all linked to central servers. Maybe the various servers will all use the same public mic system, but answer to their own names.

      So you can say "hey Siri", and she'll respond, you could have someone else say, "hey Alexa", and she'll respond, and so on.

    28. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I see a future where our houses are setup with remote mics and speakers so we can talk to Siri/Cortana/Alexa anywhere in our homes.

      Well, no. Your home, fine. My home, no. On the other hand, when I can get a Free and open source natural language recognition system which I control and for which I write the rules (including firewall rules) then I might consider doing something like that. Probably, though, I'll want to just wear the microphone, perhaps with a Trek-like combadge. That does raise problems when trying to use the computer while naked, but one could install a button/switch to enable full-room audio. I'm not particularly thrilled about all the intelligent devices that I already own which contain microphones which I cannot disable. Damned if I'll add more to my house of my own accord.

      And then just pray that you don't interact with an Apple, Microsoft or any number of other products that do the same thing. It's nice to hope that you can stay anonymous, but it's becoming a fulltime job with the ultimate choice being whether to use something that's convenient or not. Even then, what to prevent something like Goggle glass to record you being somewhere? That's the reality of today and until there are laws passed to protect you, you're screwed.

    29. Re:Excuse me....?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Last week's European Justice Court's ruling showed us that in some civilized countries your dreams are illegal. And I wouldn't be surprised if the same court ruled that Win10 has to be banned in the EU as soon as there will be the first lawsuit.

      Obviously mentally handicapped people like you might wish a "public mic system", but that doesn't mean it will be allowed to happen.

  2. MS is kind by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

    We're lucky to have such generous overlords that allow us to enable the spyware early!

  3. Digital "Assistants" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    Dear [Evil Corporation], please rape my privacy. Thank you.

  4. Cortana by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    How about an article that explains how to BURN IT WITH FIRE?

  5. avoid link by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    how about linking to the original poster of how to do it, or the youtube video or any one of a number of good sites instead of shitty hothardware coming late trying to cash in on clicks by reposting what everyone else has done.

  6. Am I missing something? by Bozzio · · Score: 2

    There are four comments so far claiming Cortana is spyware but none of them offer any evidence of this. Is this just typical Slashdot irrational MS hatred, or am I missing something?

    --
    I just pooped your party.
    1. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is Slashdot. Besides the Microsoft hatred you mention, there's also the rampant paranoia of being watched by governments, corporations, or both. The fact that something like Cortana can be attacked from both angles makes it even more appealing to attack.

    2. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      allegedly, it does minimal processing locally, and stores all its data on a remote server?

      after searching for "cortana implementation architectural diagram "
      i found this, which looks somewhat legit... http://www.jenunderwood.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/2015-07-16_1-47-42.png

      according to http://www.neowin.net/news/details-emerge-on-cortanas-first-major-update-launch-in-india-and-future-on-windows-and-xbox-one

      "One of the best features of Microsoft's digital assistant, Cortana, is that it can be updated on the back-end, without the need for the user to do.."

      so i think its fair to assume that cortana is.. for the lack of better word.. something that indexes YOU.

    3. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      Just go take another junkie nigger dick up your asshole, M$ faggot.

    4. Re:Am I missing something? by bloodhawk · · Score: 4, Insightful

      It is actually getting pretty bad here now. Slashdot has always been fairly anti MS, but usually with good reason and people that had some basic skills in explaining why. the amount of crap posts you see nowadays is really a little unfathomable. I personally associate it with the next generation of users that don't seem to have any social skills to argue their case beyond spewing hate.

    5. Re:Am I missing something? by fyngyrz · · Score: 1

      The fact that something like Cortana can be attacked from both angles makes it even more appealing to attack.

      Is that your angle?

      --
      I've fallen off your lawn, and I can't get up.
    6. Re:Am I missing something? by MacTO · · Score: 2

      I suspect that it is because Cortana allegedly sends data back to Microsoft's servers for processing. For people who don't trust Microsoft, it is easy to equate this to spying even if there is no evidence of Microsoft using the transmitted data for anything other than fulfilling user requests and to improve the functionality as well as reliability of their products.

      That being said, those Microsoft haters are useful. While their information may be unreliable, they are helping to inform people of Microsoft's data gather practices. Once people know about those practices, they can search for more reliable sources of information to determine how Microsoft's data gathering affects them.

    7. Re:Am I missing something? by fyngyrz · · Score: 1

      Same as Amazon's Echo/Alexa.

      Although I hope to heck it's smarter than "Alexa" is. The way Alexa deals with human language is... pitifully simplistic. The speech recognition itself is good, but from there on, it's a morass of completely naive "if THIS IS SPOKEN then DO THAT" statements. No smarts whatsoever.

      IOW, if the recog is...

      "turn on the lights" ...but the user says...

      "turn on my lights" ...you get nothing.

      So you add it...

      "turn on the lights"
      "turn on my lights" ...but the user says...

      "lights on, please" ...you get nothing.

      Developing an application is literally an exercise in guessing everything a user might say that is relevant to your thing, and then providing an appropriate response for that voice input. Anything you didn't "can" in advance won't work. There is no provision for any kind of actual understanding of what is being said, no grammar handling, no understanding of anything, really. It just matches speech-to-text input with canned phrases.

      --
      I've fallen off your lawn, and I can't get up.
    8. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      For people who don't trust Microsoft

      I don't trust a government that can force a corporation to hand over data without oversight. I don't trust a government that lies to me.

    9. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It also helps that it's for a next gen console and no one cares about them. The Xbox One may be killing the PS4 in the US, but this current console generation is basically DOA across the board. The Wii U is a disaster to the point Nintendo is already working on a replacement, the PS4's largest selling point is that it isn't an Xbox One, and the Xbox One just dropped the price $100 in an attempt to convince people to buy them already.

      Not to mention that Slashdot's continuous libeling of gamers has driven pretty much anyone who might be interested in these consoles off the site. The only people who might comment on this are anti-MS trolls.

    10. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      am I missing something?

      Yes, you're missing the fact that they are smarter than you. Or, in alternative, they don't work for microsoft.

    11. Re:Am I missing something? by FlyHelicopters · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I suspect that it is because Cortana allegedly sends data back to Microsoft's servers for processing.

      Apple's Siri and Amazon's Alexa both do the same thing...

      News flash, both services are popular...

    12. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      If you even need to be explained why cortana is spyware (or better: windows 10 as a whole), then there's no reason for you follow this website, because it has been widely covered in at least a dozen articles over the last two months, so either you didn't read them or you're a troll. Just go to TMZ and forget about intelligent topics.

    13. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There are four comments so far claiming Cortana is spyware but none of them offer any evidence of this.

      Fact 1: Cortana sends data to Microsoft servers.

      Fact 2: Cortana is known to be difficult or confusing to disable. That is, people who follow Microsoft's instructions to "disable" Cortana can later find out that it has actually not been fully disabled (as can be demonstrated with a wireshark trace).

      Both facts are easily verifiable with Google searching.

      Combining facts 1 and 2 together, a reasonable person would assume that Cortana is spyware. Thus, the burden of proof is on Microsoft to explain how Cortana could not possibly be spyware. Such "proof" would require Microsoft to somehow demonstrate that all the supposedly-"disabled" Cortana data it's receiving is (1) not being examined by anyone, and (2) is being immediately and permanently deleted -- and it's unlikely that Microsoft would be transparent enough to provide convincing evidence of those two things. Until Microsoft offers that proof, it is reasonable to assume that Cortana is spyware.

      So when people say that "Cortana is spyware", it is shorthand for: "It is reasonable to assume that Cortana is spyware until proven otherwise, and such proof is extremely unlikely to ever be provided".

    14. Re:Am I missing something? by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      this is slashdot, we think you should be smart enough to find basic information if you cant keep up, otherwise we are not here to babysit you

    15. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Cortana is a central pillar in xBox already - Halo is the game that made xBox successful.
      Oh, you mean THAT Cortana. The Siri wannabe spyware report it to Nutella voice thingy. If you still don't believe its spyware, maybe you should not be online at all.

    16. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Funny thing there: Apple can't send everything back. It just can't. Limited bandwidth, and you pay a fortune per megabyte for it.

      Microsoft tried to get vision and audio 24/7/365 with the XBone. Remember what Penny Arcade had to say about the Xbone? On the positive side, Microsoft made it really easy to choose between consoles in this generation... And then microsoft backtracked like hell to get sales.

      Contana looks like XBone Spyware Mark 2. We've already had automated unwanted downloads that exceeded bandwidth caps. Cortana want's a 24/7 internet connection or your computer doesn't work. Plus forced upgrades with features we don't want, need, or desire. Telemetry bullshit deliberately mislabeled to get folks to install it.

      I think microsoft may have bit the big one here. My old windows software applications work better under Linux & Mac OSX with WINE & DOSBox than they do under modern Windows (7/8/10). That used to be microsoft's big selling point. Now they don't have backward compatibility. And cost, a $25 Raspberry Pi will suffice for most industrial desktop applications. LibraOffice is awfully well priced compared to Office365 subscriptions. The list goes on and on...

    17. Re:Am I missing something? by FlyHelicopters · · Score: 1

      Be careful, that tinfoil hat is on really tight...

    18. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If you don't know the answer, then there's no point asking for the answer?

    19. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Cortana want's a 24/7 internet connection or your computer doesn't work.

      Funny, I've used three Windows 10 machines, each of which had periods where they couldn't access the Internet and Cortana was set up on each one. I was still able to use the desktop and my applications just fine. Where are you pulling this from?

    20. Re:Am I missing something? by Bozzio · · Score: 1

      I don't think it has been adequately covered. I still find people on here who confuse the Windows 10 release with the Insider Preview (which was designed to collect usage data).

      There's a lot of FUD going around and very little fact.

      --
      I just pooped your party.
    21. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Thanks for contributing absolutely nothing to the conversation.

    22. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't use Cortana because she requires you to consent to creating a location history. If you turn off GPS under Windows 10, you lose voice search. That's not actually a secret though. One of Cortana's main selling points is that she will automatically learn where you live and work, and adjust the information displayed accordingly.

    23. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't think it has been adequately covered.

      Yes it has. No one should be forced to reinvent the wheel in every new discussion. Search for "windows 10 privacy", here or with google, and you'll find all the answers that you clearly don't like.

    24. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Funny, you don't know what a network gateway is, you clearly wouldn't be able to use one (otherwise you wouldn't be a windows user), hence you never found out that windows 10 connects to microsoft servers even when cortana or any other privacy-sensitive feature is turned off, as it was documented even by notoriously microsoft-friendly ArsTechnica:
      http://arstechnica.com/informa...

    25. Re:Am I missing something? by Sasayaki · · Score: 1

      I'm getting pretty sick of this too. What happened, Slashdot? We used to be all about the tech, right or wrong. Now it's just "M$ suxx and are evil!!!" in every thread that Microsoft's mentioned.

      It's annoying, and even self-defeating for Microsoft haters; it makes it a lot harder to take their serious points, well, seriously. If they're always going to be critical of Microsoft no matter what, and are willing to go total ad hominem when nothing else works, how can an uneducated observer take anything they say seriously?

      --
      Check out my sci-fi book "Lacuna" at http://goo.gl/MVxX8
    26. Re:Am I missing something? by jandersen · · Score: 3, Interesting

      There are four comments so far claiming Cortana is spyware but none of them offer any evidence of this. Is this just typical Slashdot irrational MS hatred, or am I missing something?

      I don't think it is 'irrational MS hatred', and you do youself as disservice to describe those whp have a view different from yours when you use this sort of language.

      Looking back over history, I think it is very understandable that there are many who distruct Microsoft. Back in the early days, Microsoft was actually seen as cool and on the forefront, but we then seen to betray the ideals of their admirers, when they seemed to become increasingly greedy, anti-competitive etc. For a very long time they resisted implementing even basic security, they kept making claims that were obviously wrong (like 'the mainframe is dead' etc), thereby appearing to be either incompetent or dishonest - or possibly both. They have improved many things in recent years, that's true, but often at gun-point and often their improvements seem to include unwanted extras, like the forced upgrades that you apparently need to be a Windows expert to stop (Yes, I know there is an 'easy' option somewhere, but I doubt the average user would even know enough to look for it).

      So, as for Cortana: if you have had any experience with speech recognition (like the automatic telephone systems that you speak to) and understanding natural language (try Google Translate), then you know just how hard a time they have understanding spoken words, especially if you are dialect speaker, and you'll know that computers have difficulty understanding the meaning of ambiguous statements that real people would pick up without difficulty. The obvious solution to these problems is to put a staff of real people in a call center and let them understand and answer, when the computers have to give up.

      And of course, the computing power needed to implement even basic speech recognition and natural speech analysis means that it wouldn't fit into the average laptop, let alone a Windows mobile. All of which leads to the obvious conclusion, that Cortana, Siri and the like must communicate with one or more call centers, and it would be surprising if that traffic was not collected and used 'to improve services' - ie, target users with adverts. I'm sure, if somebody were to read the small print, it would be implied that you give them your permission to do so, simply by brething in the vicinity of a Windows or OSX system.

    27. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The Xbox One may be killing the PS4 in the US

      U.S. current-generation hardware sales in August as its PlayStation 4 trumped the Xbox One for the fourth consecutive month. The company has outsold Microsoft for U.S. console sales each month of 2015, with the exception of April.

      http://www.geekwire.com/2015/s...

    28. Re:Am I missing something? by Bozzio · · Score: 1

      Man, you don't need to talk down to me.

      I'm a regular on here and I have been reading all the Windows 10 coverage. That's how I know it's been light on facts and heavy on FUD.

      It surprises me just how many of today's slashdot readers gobble that up without questioning the source.

      I know it's almost a tradition here to not read the article, but it used to be that the readers at least applied some critical thinking.

      --
      I just pooped your party.
    29. Re: Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Newsflash: Micrsoft is not. It's related to their hegemony, their OS and the generally crappy user experience that comes from changing the UX with little or no reason or benefit, like the Ribbon, Bob or the requiring permission to change your hardware configuration. Of course the plethora of unscrupulous business practices over the years didn't help either.

      Too bad Linux distros confused the average user for so long.

    30. Re: Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why the fuck should I accept MS telemetry just because everyone else is already doing it, especially when Win10 requires me to sign up for their lame ass App Store in order to regain Photos and Mail is broken. MS is floundering without their Borg commander.

    31. Re:Am I missing something? by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      I still find people on here who confuse the Windows 10 release with the Insider Preview (which was designed to collect usage data).

      You're the one who's confused. The hullabaloo about the Windows 10 release is that in fact they did not remove the windows spying instrumentation from the release OS, that in fact that stuff defaults to on in the release OS, and that in fact you can not physically disable all the phoning-home even by setting the preferences options which claim to do so.

      There's a lot of FUD going around and very little fact.

      Thanks for your contribution.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    32. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      We don't need to understand the need for Microsoft's "telemetry" or spyware program to declare it as such. The fact is you don't know what data is being collected, where it's sent, or why; this is nobody's fault other than Microsoft. This program has to be labelled correctly as spyware especially since microsoft is not following the CEIP preference selection and is tracking users who specifically opt out.

    33. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The source is ArsTechnica, which is probably one of the most pro-MS websites on the internet:
      http://arstechnica.com/informa...

      By the way, for how long have you been doing PR for MS?

    34. Re:Am I missing something? by Bozzio · · Score: 1

      Thanks, I'll take a look at that article tonight.

      And I find it funny that you immediately jump to the "MS shill" angle when someone chooses to wait for hard facts before hating MS.

      Again, I miss the old slashdot. Kids today.

      --
      I just pooped your party.
    35. Re:Am I missing something? by Bozzio · · Score: 1

      Source or it didn't happen.

      --
      I just pooped your party.
    36. Re:Am I missing something? by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      Source or it didn't happen.

      Source: We've discussed it here on Slashdot extensively, including traces, mitigation, etc. Where were you? If you'd been here, you'd know.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    37. Re:Am I missing something? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Funny, when we block the IP addresses for microsoft telemetry at the router, which is the only way to do it, Windows stops working. Now who do I believe? You? Or my own eyes?

      How do you know it couldn't access the Internet? Was their no network connection? No WiFi? Or just no DNS nameserver lookups?

    38. Re:Am I missing something? by Bozzio · · Score: 1

      I guess it didn't happen then because "trust me" and "you suck" aren't sources.

      --
      I just pooped your party.
    39. Re:Am I missing something? by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      I guess it didn't happen then because "trust me" and "you suck" aren't sources.

      I'm not doing your homework for you. If you want to appear knowledgeable, you're going to have to go forth and become knowledgeable. I already have the knowledge, and I'm not getting paid to point you towards it. My life will not be impacted in any way by you thinking less of me, except that I have one more fun new target to insult when you cross my path. I will not spare you even though you are unarmed with wits.

      Those of us who actually care about the correct answer to the question of whether Microsoft is intentionally spying on its user base and lying about whether you can disable telemetry already know, because the information is readily available. And then there's you, a shill spreading FUD about people. You're a liar, and there're already many of those on Slashdot so you are redundant and uninteresting.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  7. Configure Settings? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Because Cortana never forgets . . .

  8. Rol... "Experience" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The experience is a synergistic avatar for our manageable and scalable Java-based enterprise management solutions based on a scalable ARM architecture rooted in cloud-based computing employing RAID-27 storage architecture on **Oracle(c)(TM)(R) back end hardware.

    **Note to lawyers: Oracle is a trademark of Oracle.

  9. Get on board by fyngyrz · · Score: 2

    It's more like "give me convenience or your competitor will"

    Siri. Cortana. Echo. S-voice. Google voice. etc.

    Pretty sure that at this point, it's either get with it, or be left behind. And yes, "behind" is the right word. Services will begin to be delivered by default this way, count on it — if you don't have access, you won't have the services, either.

    --
    I've fallen off your lawn, and I can't get up.
    1. Re:Get on board by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's more like "give me convenience or your competitor will"

      Oh ok. That's much better.

    2. Re:Get on board by fyngyrz · · Score: 1

      Well, unless you like being dead, yes, it is. :)

      --
      I've fallen off your lawn, and I can't get up.
    3. Re:Get on board by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Pretty sure that at this point, it's either get with it, or be left behind. And yes, "behind" is the right word. Services will begin to be delivered by default this way, count on it â" if you don't have access, you won't have the services, either.

      Joe the Average Idiot has expressed his unrequested opinion about mankind's future. Thanks. Now look for the latest episode of "keeping up with the katrashians".

    4. Re:Get on board by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's cute how you think you're not an average idiot. As if any other kind of person bothers with the low-hanging fruit that is Kardashian-bashing.