JCC Offical Computer Help Thread V2.0

Okay, I'm in need of suggestions. Since yesterday I've been installing every update for Windows 8 and Windows 8.1. My PC now has a completely updated Windows 8.1, but I still don't see the "Get Windows 10" icon on my task bar. I've searched for new updates in case I missed anything and switched my settings to Automatically Install Updates...and nothing.

 

You can download from here if you haven't gotten the upgrade notification: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10

 

Thanks!

edit:

The page mentions that the linked Windows 10 Tool requires a product key. I don't believe I have my PC's original packaging anymore. Is there another way to locate my product key?

 

I don't think you actually need the product key if you're doing an upgrade from 8. When you run the program you'll just choose to upgrade to Windows 10. I'm not 100% sure though....try it out and see what happens.

 

Here goes! *fingers crossed*

 

So I ran the tool. Installed and so forth. It was running in the background while I was browsing through the JCC...and then the tool window vanished completely with no message. I restarted the PC and...nothing. I'm re-running the tool now.

 

I'm a big fan of WebKit-based browsers so I primarily use Chrome since it's the "easy" one, though Midori is pretty cool, and I like xombrero's ability to switch to keyboard only mode so you can feel like you're HACKING THE DATABASE.



Which, I think you'll agree, ought to be the primary goal of any computer application.

 

I either use Firefox or Waterfox which is their 64bit version. I.E. is just too unpredictable, among other things though there are some sites that will only operate correctly in that browser.

 

I've been using Firefox for years, mainly due to the ad-blockers available for it. And I can't stand IE. I'm on Win 7.

 

I use Pale Moon. It's nice, customizable, comes in 32 and 64 bit flavors, is updated regularly, and hasn't given me any grief since I started using it.

 

I'll be making my W10 update tomorrow evening.

 

The touch function on my touchscreen PC no longer works.

 

Stopping Windows 10 from spying on you

 

I just downloaded Windows 10, and with some personalizing and tweaking, everything is working fine for me.

 

Some good Windows tips. We're on Windows 8 here at work, so I cannot implement the suggestions.

I can, however, point folks in the right direction with Mac and iOS help though. (Looks like (cr)Apple's awful Yosemite OS is killing my aging iMac. I am still glad to have had a productive Mac for these past 5 years, but ever since I made the mistake of upgrading to Mavericks, I've had constant trouble. This week has been ridiculous.)

 

Okay, the Get Windows 10 button still hasn't shown up for me despite my Windows 8 machine being fully updated. I tried the media tool linked above but am at a loss. The tool downloads and installs, but then nothing happens. What gives?

 

It gives me the option of rescheduling which I do every day as I take a few minutes here and there to see what bugs and tweaks people are mentioning.

 

Just a note for those who have installed Win 10 (or bought new devices that have it), there have been some articles recently about privacy issues and the default settings (especially if you did an Express installation as opposed to Custom). Two that look useful are:

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2015/07/30/windows-10-privacy-settings/

http://www.howtogeek.com/221864/digging-into-and-understanding-windows-10s-privacy-settings/

 

Been working with Microsoft tech support for several hours today to solve my update problems and gave them remote access to my PC. After the second reboot, remote access failed to reconnect and the tech support rep hasn't bothered to call back. So now I have to wait for another 60+ minutes until I'm next in line for support again.

And all the original rep did was check to make sure that my copy of Windows was valid.

 

After three phone calls to tech support and giving them remote access to my PC during each of those three times, I finally now have Windows 10 on my PC!

First impressions:

• So the Windows 8 Live Tiles are now hidden in the returned Start menu? Okay, I can live with that...though I was finally getting used to the Live Tile/Metro interface
• Cortana seems to be 100% identical to her Windows Phone 8 counterpart, which is a great thing, imo. Cortana is the best virtual assistant I've ever had the pleasure to interact with. However, while I use her mobile version daily, I don't quite know if a PC Cortana will see general use or just entertainment use.
  • PC Cortana has syched with my Windows account and thereby now has access to almost all the personal information remembered by my Phone Cortana. I was hoping that the Cortana interaction would be seamless between Windows devices, so I'm quite happy with this. However, daily reminders and notes cannot be synched between PC Cortana and Windows Phone 8 Cortana. A small disappointment, but my phone qualifies for an eventual update anyway.
• Edge browser appears to be faster than Chrome and brings with it Windows Phone 8's Internet Explorer Read Me View
  • While I've never been a fan of the PC version of Internet Explorer, Windows Phone 8's version of IE is far superior to its PC counterpart, so it's a good thing that Microsoft essentially imported the mobile version of its Windows 8 browser into Windows 10. The Read Me View alone, imo, gives Edge (and IE mobile) an edge (lol) over its browser rivals.
  • Started up Chrome for comparison and the Windows 10 startup page for Chrome claims that Chrome is still the best browser available. We'll see. We'll see.

So far, I'm quite happy with the update. It was a rough road to get here, but I'm satisfied that I'm finally here now. Though my AMD video card seems to have suffered during the journey. Will have to look into that.

 

So I'm having problems playing videos on youtube, vimeo and other such sites. The videos sound like they are all being filtered through a fan and coming out garbled and choppy.

I use Firefox and today updated the adobe flash player. Shockwave Flash 18.0
I'm on Windows XP.


Any help here would be hot.