mozler

I do agree with you, Doc, that the privacy statement is ambiguous at best, and that people can read more into it than is there.... or a lot less than is there.  It was crafted that way, to be vague, confusing and shadowy. 

As for not scanning emails or conversations?  How do you think they target users with specific ads... based on [users own] key words?  Google and Yahoo have been doing it for yonks, and it has been a great source of income for them, so why would Microsoft, as a business for profit, not want to do it?

Also, and here's the $64,000 question, if Microsoft does NOT scan hard drives, how can if find 'non-preferred' software and uninstall it?   Being this is what the OP is about, it is a pertinent and important question.  For Microsoft to know non-preferred program are on a particular machine, it would seem, it must be scanning hard drives in order to see them.  Surely?

Sadly, the Windows of old is gone, and with Microsoft's business model changing to rival that of Apple's and Google's, there is little or nothing to like or trust about it anymore.  This Windows as a 'service' thing is a bad, bad thing and will sting users more and more as it evolves.  It's not about users and/or their needs anymore, but about profit and what's best for Microsoft.  Users, <read former Microsoft Customers> have become commodities for it to manipulate and use to further its grip on the software market. 

Worse still, Microsoft knows it has a captive market.  People like and trust Apple even less... not to mention its prohibitive pricing.  And then there's Linux, which most will agree is not quite ready for mainstream just yet.... though it is catching up fast.  So, with this captive market, Microsoft knows that Windows 10 will surpass the 200 million devices thus far and pretty much make Apple computers irrelevant... exept to a handful of fanbois.  This is not a good thing!  whether you like Apple or not, it is necessary, not only as an innovator but as an option. 

There needs to be viable alternatives to Windows 10, because if there's not we're all fucked.

Okay, believe that if you want... stick with Win 10.... it's not my privacy funeral.

Sadly, though, too many people are thinking the same way - or are oblivious or simply don't care - thus enabling Microsoft to do as it fechen pleases.

Thats the trouble with the world, people have become too complacent, blaze and/or "tell somebody who gives a fuck".

No wonder we're losing rights and priveleges by the dozen... why governments and corporations believe they have free reign to screw us over time and time again.

That's right!  The modern public LETS them.

Fear, uncertainty and doubt.

Fricken Ugly Duckling. 

Nah, seriously, it's a term people use when others point out the pitfalls of using something they think is okay.... like Win 10, for instance.

Frankly, I don't really care.  I know I'm doing the right thing for me by refusing to accept/install Win 10, and that is all that matters... that I'm not saddled with it, now or ever.

thanks Seth.

Downside of that is that eventually MS will stop supporting Windows 7 and 8.1.

There's always Apple or Linux, etc....

I did as well. No issues.

Yeah, I know, my Windows lifespan is limited, but that's not the end of the world.  As you say, there's always Apple or Linux... not that I'm a fan of Apple, either.  However, having said that, I do have a Mac Mini running the 2nd latest OS, Yosemite, not that I've turned it on in a while, what with moving and setting up house, etc. 

Thing is, while I don't mind using the Mac Mini, I'm thinking more along the lines of Ubuntu, Mint or Robolinux as my main OS... though I recently read a scathing review on the latest Mint distro that pretty much dismissed it as a serious offering.  Hopefully the developers will have resolved the issues by the time I'm looking to Linux for a competent alternative to Windows.  And yeah, I have used the aforementioned distros before, so I am fairly familiar and shouldn't take too long to settle into doing things a little differently.

Reading the znet article makes me feel a whole lot better about Win 10.... NOT!!

We all know that Google and Yahoo store and use all sorts of users personal information... both private and otherwise, so it's no wonder that people are distrusting of those tech corporations who mine users data.  Sure, Microsoft and Apple protect your privacy and data... from other people, that is, but both companies state that they collect personal information for the purpose of targeting users with specific ads, meaning data that collection is not just about anylitics to improve software and services.

FUD.... Fearful. Unwilling. Definot. Okay, that last one's not a real word, but it should be... as a contraction of definitely not.

By the time folks finish reading it, they've forgotten whatever they were going to write to begin with...

Designed with the 'older crowd' in (what's left of their) mind.

If and when, ain't gonna happen... not in Win 10.  MS has 200 million users by the short 'n curlies and it ain't about to let go.

However, with regard to enforced updates, I am seeing more and more 3rd party programs coming out to combat that. 

Here's one of them: Win Updates Disabler 1.3

Oh yeah, and for people who think MS does not scan HDDs.... think Windows Defender.  I mean, seriously, who knows what it is scanning for, let alone what it reports back to MS?

Fortunately, for those as distrusting as I, the above linked program provides a digital tinfoil hat that can also disable Windows Defender.

Oh, and FUD....

Foolish Underestimation of Da-Microsoft.