Quote:
Originally Posted by eschwartz
I assumed, perhaps wrongly, that since you were mentioning upgrading Windows, your subscription comment was about Windows itself, not an unrelated topic.
So yes, you should've clarified before assuming "you are a Linux person from what I gather so not expected to be up to date on Microsoft"...
OOH, OOH, looks like I might actually have thought before I spoke, instead of being a clueless non-Windows user. 
Who'd'a thunk?
Err, I said they don't nag you. Ubuntu Update Manager for example will IIRC pop up a "Your updates have completed"-style* message as part of the updater GUI (the sparkly download bars, you see  ) which will also alert you if "Some updates will not take effect until your PC is rebooted" or some such*. usually, a kernel upgrade will require this.
Then it shuts up.
A command-line updater, like ArchLinux's pacman, or Ubuntu's apt-get backend, won't pop up anything at all, mostly because it often gets run on a headless server...
Additionally, Ubuntu's desktop environment contains code to add a red bar in the dropdown for the logoff/shutdown/account-switcher tray icon, a simple unobtrusive banner that reminds you that some updates will take effect after the next reboot.
Contrast that to Windows, where the reboot is mandatory and pops up annoying timer messages, something that has admittedly gotten less (but still somewhat) offensive in successive Windows versions. And when Windows does reboot, it must "Configure Updates" for obscene periods of time....
Regarding nagging you to perform updates, neither linux nor Mac nor Windows does that to my knowledge. Windows has a tray icon which you can easily hide, or change the options to make it not check automatically. Ubuntu can be set to check automatically, and if so, will display the aforementioned unobtrusive banner, with a different message. (Other distros have their own ways, addons to the desktop -- none are even mandatory.)
* -- I forget the exact language used, simply because I moved on from Ubuntu a long time ago.
I agree, that is merely what MS claims is the best user experience. For most people it is in fact irrelevant... |
Sorry. I assumed you weren't a Windows person because I have a perhaps false recollection of you saying on more than one occasion that you switched to Linux. Or preferred Linux. If you have never said anything remotely along those lines I am sincerely sorry.
And my subscription service thing was not specific in any way to Windows, and aimed at the several articles I have read that indicate this is a general trend/aim by Microsoft. But they do have a sort of a subscription service, and have had for several years whereby you receive all updates on one or more products including Windows 7 (which AFAIK you get for free anyway). Two friends of mine subscribe, paying annually or monthly, and can install n and update numerous devices/products for no other charge than the subscription. Apparently it is pretty easy to deploy on a fairly wide scale.
I don't call a reminder to reboot for it to work nagging.
It is the constant reminder that there are updates pending, that I dislike. maybe some people can turn it off by setting the options, but it hasn't worked for me.
Last night I disabled updates by selecting never check for updates on my surface Pro 3. Turned of tablet and started it again. This morning there was a big blue update ready to install screen.
Helen