I eventually got to create a local account on my laptop by putting it into airplane mode using the keyboard shortcut. Why is Microsoft so desperate to force even power users to use an online account?
Control and telemetry. You’re the “coppertop” putting $ back into Microsoft.
I get that that’s why they want ordinary users to create online accounts but irritating the small but vocal number of power users that this change affects seems like it costs more in goodwill than it gains in data.
I’ll offer this as a power user: I do everything I can to avoid feeding back info to the corporations. I shut off telemetry, usage stats, block ads, actively monitor updates for undesirable changes, don’t enable quick start or other background software, don’t enable a lot of startup software or processes….etc etc. basically to prevent them looking over my shoulder as much as possible.
So if you’re that kind of power user it actually works against Microsoft’s interest to allow you to opt out, you’re already “costing” them lost opportunity to make money.
And of course we have to deal with the fact that getting the software “free” means you don’t own it and have to play by their rules.
Power users are more useful from a telemetry perspective. Chances are I can predict the basic grandma and grandpa use patterns, but power users represent interesting and novel use cases, feature ideas, etc.
Install windows normal (disconnect ethernet if you’re on desktop and see if that helps) then use Chris’s debloat tool to create a microwinodows iso and reinstall. It even lets you remove defender if you wanted to. I did that and also stopped all the feature updates so it doesn’t mess with my Linux drive. Just let security updates through. This all can be done through that one script I linked above.
Thumbnail says “ris tit” and makes me like Chris Titus even more.
😂
I intend to make Win10 the last windows I use
Guess I will keep my Windows 11 installer ISO around and won’t download the updated one.
I imagine Windows Pro licenses probably still let you create a local account to address the business-need-air-gap market. But I imagine they’ll come for those, too, eventually.
Just use temporary email or email aliases
And if someone else registers your e-mail address later, can they take over your account?
Im a Kolab Now user, somebody else can’t take a aliase im currently using, and even if i stop using it they can’t see the email history because aliases aren’t new email, it’s just fowarding to your actual email.
“Just accept corporate overreach”
No thanks. Give an inch and they’ll take a mile every time.
it’s not just an email, they want you to have a whole microsoft account to tie all your stuff to.
that’s what temp email or aliases are used for, but i guess knowing microsoft they’ll ask you excessive amount of verification everyday so it’s probably useless in that case.
