Microsoft will make Cortana mandatory in Anniversary Update

[Jos]

Microsoft’s Windows 10 Anniversary Update is arriving soon and along with a raft of new features and deeper Cortana integration. In fact, the virtual assistant is set to replace the standard search function altogether in the upcoming software update, and users will no longer be able to disable Cortana after the Anniversary Update.

“With the Windows 10 Anniversary Update, the search box is now Cortana," Microsoft said in a statement. "Customers can expect the same great search experience powered by Bing and Microsoft Edge with the added benefit of Cortana’s personality.

Currently, Windows 10 users can disable Cortana from within the Settings menu, limiting the search bar to scanning files, folders, and apps. With Cortana enabled you also get web searches, notes, reminders, voice commands and so on. Of course this also requires access to more of your personal information and data.

Understandably some users are upset that Microsoft is forcing Cortana on them -- on top of removing Google as an option for web searches and also making the Windows 10 Anniversary Update mandatory. That said, if you really don’t want Cortana for some reason, you can still hide the virtual assistant or limit the information it has access to.

According to Microsoft you can opt-out of Cortana’s suite of personalized services, use it to search the web without losing in or hide Cortana and the search box in the taskbar altogether. You can also head to Start> Settings> Privacy> Speech> Inking & Typing and toggle an option called 'Stop getting to know me', which stop it from learning your typing inputs.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/65766-microsoft-make-cortana-mandatory-anniversary-update.html

 

[Trillionsin]

And I'll do the best I can to remove and disable it!

Edit:

According to Microsoft you can opt-out of Cortana’s suite of personalized services, use it to search the web without losing in or hide Cortana and the search box in the taskbar altogether. You can also head to Start> Settings> Privacy> Speech> Inking & Typing and toggle an option called 'Stop getting to know me', which stop it from learning your typing inputs.

I dunno, doesnt seem all that mandatory... though I'm sure there will be several other ways to disable her.

 

[Kibaruk]

In all fairness, what I've seen with using W10 is that they are renaming the search into Cortana, which does the same and a bit more. Is this useful for the average Joe? I don't think so, hell I don't see any usefulness for myself.

As a disclaimer, my personal computer has been running W10 since the first updates started rolling, in which I disabled Cortana mainly because I didn't like the positioning of the bars and how everything turned around it. A couple months later got a new work laptop and disabled it also crippling a lot of the search functions, which sucked heavily, that laptop ended up breaking down due to hardware failure and got another one which I only hid the bar without disabling it, it's not bad and you don't see it if you don't want to but... forcing it is not a good move IMHO.

 

[Evernessince]

So users must now agree to give cortana unmitigated access to their PC if they want to use basic functions like search? Yeah, that disclaimer about cortana needing access to a laundry list of your data and sensors isn't worrying....

I'm happy I stuck to windows 7. Microsoft is so far out of touch with their customer base it's not even funny. At the rate they are going they are going to keep making their OS more and more like a mobile OS with all the negative data sharing that comes with it. Microsoft should know that businesses and their average desktop users don't want that crap. It's funny that a company doesn't understand the reason for it's own success.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

They can make it a mandatory update but that doesn't mean to say that I'll use it, which I won't.

 

[Adhmuz]

So lets say I've completely removed anything and everything Cortana related, will Microsoft re-download all the files I've deleted off my system and try to re-enable it with this "mandatory" update. I've also set up my OS to never update on it's own via group policies so do I still have the option to not download this "mandatory" update? Or will it simply cripple the OS from getting future updates...

I'm more than positive there will be a way around this, there always is, Microsoft makes some pretty lousy software after all, it's just annoying that they try as hard as they do to make you use their BS when in all honesty you should have the choice of search providers even at OS level. Microsoft did after all get fined by the EU for their browser monopoly 3 years ago, is this not the same principle?

All this raises is further questions about Windows 10 and if anything pushes people away from it more than ever, and at the same time fuels the fires of the anti W10 party, so really this can't be a smart move and I certainly hope they change their minds over this.

 

[IAMTHESTIG]

F**k you M$... Seriously this is ridiculous. I'm sticking with 7 as long as possible for my gaming machine. I'm glad I've switched to Linux for my internetting. Unfortunately still stuck with this crap at work. Apple, Oracle, Novell/SuSe... anyone needs to make an alternative to Active Directory. We need some competition for M$ and their "the Microsoft way" crap.

 

[MoeJoe]

Oh the b u t t h u r t

 

[Evernessince]

Oh the b u t t h u r t

There's always gotta be the one guy who takes the obvious and puts a negative spin on it to make is seem like less of an issue. Yeah, people are going to be angry over this. It's great that instead of not posting at all you took the time to post a negative comment with no substance. I suppose you could make a career as a politician going around and taking the obvious and making the most cliche spin on it.

 

[poohbear]

Yea bring it on!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE Cortona cause MS says I have to!!!! And yea I don't need google search in Edge, I'll just use BLING in MS Edge and Google in Chrome! Easy peasy! What ever MS says is best for me, is indeed best for me! Thank you so much MS!

 

[TomSEA]

Lots of clever people out there. Someone or some group will figure out a way to disable it. And as soon as they do, I'll be all over it.

I don't need to be force fed anything, Microsoft - thank you very much anyway.

 

[abysal]

Cool, another reason not to use Windows 10. Way to go Microsoft!

 

[3volv3d]

I installed win 10 when I built my new PC Jan 15 and it seems ok, but it's this crap that I can't stand.
I can believe that removing Cortana will result in M$ trying to install her. I had issues updating graphic drivers. Uninstall old. Reboot. Windows installs the old one again. Now I always have to use DDU.

 

[SiRWimP]

Msoft ur pushing me back to win7

 

[Joeldt]

This is kind of getting ridiculous. The mode literally forces people to have the computer "Learn about them/" Look SIRI isn't forced. Why not bring back the Windows 8 search where I am not constantly forced to use BING. BIng sucks! I hate all this forced crap because Microsoft thinks it is awesome, doesn't make it awesome. Just like the Kinect which had no games to speak of was forced. It makes you wonder why they would force something unless it was to collect more information from you.

I am tired of not being able to use a device and have privacy. This is not like I am on a social media platform where I have no privacy because I am willingly posting something on a public forum. This is someone using a computer in the privacy of their own home. Forced is never good! EVER!

This is what happens now. As windows 10 evolves. It will be more and more subscription based that will break peoples backs with everyone trying to get that monthly payment. Windows 10 will be subscription, Windows live will make a comeback and office will have forced subscriptions. They then will collect and sell your data to make a bigger profit. If there was on thing the government could do is to have opt outs with no denial of service. Just sell me a copy and leave me alone please. I have been using linux and TOR because of this crap.

 

[bmw95]

I think that Microsoft really needs to focus on their search algorithms. I wouldn't mind using Bing tbh, but at the moment it's a highlight of how truly awful they are. The search function in Windows mirrors that as well. If I search "app" in the Win search bar, I would expect the first search result to be settings for all my apps installed. Instead, it shows the first result as the windows app store. If I type "apps", then it's setting first and windows store second. I know that could depend on the user on which preference they have for first result, but maybe the company should take a hint from Google and actually do something useful with all the data they collect and personalize things a bit... That said I wonder if anyone else is sort of struggling with a decision like I am here: Stick with Windows and MS, both of which have a ton of potential but management keeps making awful decisions and the software is becoming quantity not quality. Or, buy into the Apple ecosystem, where despite making record sales every year, without Steve Jobs, innovation is slowly turning into a stale fart.

 

[lripplinger]

So I use Classic Start Menu....so is this even relevant for me?

 

[FloridaBen]

I was forced to upgrade to Windows 10 through Microsoft trickery which not only installed this unwanted update but cleaned several software packages from my system, like Media Center, which I could not recover. Decided to try it since there was no going back to my old configuration, turned off Cortona because it was annoying and now find out it is going to spy and annoy me again with no option to turn off. Apple sounds better and better for my next PC.

 

[FloridaBen]

I was forced to upgrade to Windows 10 through Microsoft trickery which not only installed this unwanted update but cleaned several software packages from my system, like Media Center, which I could not recover. Decided to try it since there was no going back to my old configuration, turned off Cortona because it was annoying and now find out it is going to spy and annoy me again with no option to turn off. Apple sounds better and better for my next PC.

Post script: I don't know why I write to these message boards because Microsoft doesn't read them or really care.

 

[Evernessince]

Post script: I don't know why I write to these message boards because Microsoft doesn't read them or really care.

There's a good chance microsoft goes through comments and forums on popular tech websites about their company. A company like microsoft can't afford not to. Doesn't mean the guy working for marketing and social networking can do anything to change the higher-up's minds though. It's kinda of hard to go somewhere and not find negative comments about microsoft these days, they would have to be bats in an anechoic chamber.

 

[namesrejected]

Cortana is the antichrist!!!!

 

[ElvisisKing]

If you read the Bible, you will see that ALL governments around the world will have every piece of info on you in no time. This is how they control the population - forcing things on you, taking things away. Eventually, they will have all the old people, the disabled people, the "rebels" for lack of a better word put in places where they will never escape from saying it is for their own good. You are now forced to carry an ID with you at all times; you are now forced to buy the foods that the gov't wants you to buy (SNAP); you are now forced to work 2 and 3 jobs because of low pay; you are now forced to pay more taxes than the rich --- get my drift? It's all in the Bible. If you don't want to read it, just listen to people who do and be warned. We are NOT nuts, we have our eyes and ears open and our mouths shut at the proper times. Yes, soon freedom of speech will be taken, freedom of the press is already gone. Ok you say I am a religious nut? Wait and see who is right!

 

[Ratdoghippy]

I am testing windows 10 now, did an update on a laptop hard drive I found in a trashed laptop, it had windows 7 ultimate! And well coming from windows 7 home edition I dont see what was so ultimate about it.

But now I got windows 10 pro, and whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat a disappointment!

Its blocky, firefox browser keep locking up, and it just looks old!

it looks like an operating system that would have been used back int he 1980's with the solid coloring and windows.

Windows 7 looks cool, shiny, simple, fast easy, and everything works!

I mean at least I an say I got it all free, but what did I get really? I mean I am reinstalling all my steam games to test them out, and reinstalling all my development tools, all to do everything I was doing on my windows 7 hard drive!

So when I am done, I will go back to 7 and wait another year before Microsoft puts a 128 bit opperating system (which would be the only reason to need a new OS if anyone knows what I mean!

 

[drjekelmrhyde]

FUD. Don't call your self a techblog if you're going to just rehash some other techblog's BS without checking for yourself.
To turn off Cortana:
Click Cortana
Choose Notebook
Choose About me
Select User Account
Select Sign Out

That's farking it. The world as you know is not ending

 

[Cycloid Torus]

FUD. Don't call your self a techblog if you're going to just rehash some other techblog's BS without checking for yourself.
To turn off Cortana:
Click Cortana
Choose Notebook
Choose About me
Select User Account
Select Sign Out

That's farking it. The world as you know is not ending

Please - can someone confirm this works - POST-update?

(Bing sux - Cortana data sponge is scary - Linux starts to look very good)