The problem obviously being that it is not the browser they want you too use, so they create “a problem”.
They don’t even need to go that far. Windows has so many problems all the time, they just have to pick one and attribute this response to it.
Why stop at just one? Someday soon I’m sure they’ll gleefully tell you that Windows couldn’t format your USB thumb drive, so they reset your browser.
“Oops, couldn’t find that file! Better reset your browser. Actually I’ll just go ahead and turn Windows Recall back on, too. Better get your OneDrive trial started also, I know you wanted that…”
make sure to encrypt your drive so only we can spy on you, not scary people who steal your computer!
I love how in their minds this is going to be a win. Like there are going to be all these people out there who just quietly accept that they’ll use Microsoft Edge from now on, and also in addition not form any kind of revision to their brand impression of Microsoft going forward.
I am sure there are some people who just kind of don’t give a fuck about computers who that will be accurate for, but I feel like it’s a much smaller minority than Microsoft seems to think that it is.
I am sure there are some people who just kind of don’t give a fuck about computers who that will be accurate for, but I feel like it’s a much smaller minority than Microsoft seems to think that it is.
You’re definitely overestimating the size of your own bubble. The vast, vast, vast majority of people won’t even notice, forget caring or actually doing anything about it.
https://radar.cloudflare.com/reports/browser-market-share-2025-q1
Check “Market Share by OS” and switch it to Windows. Every one of those 67.359% of people who is using Chrome had it downloaded to their computer on purpose instead of just clicking “Internet” and getting Edge. Obviously they feel strongly enough to do that, so I don’t see how they would be amenable to losing all their bookmarks and settings and just going with Edge when one day their OS tries to trick them into it.
many of those chrome ‘users’ got there after clicking on one of google’s many somewhat misleading ‘advertisements’ or ‘notices’ or ‘warnings’
Citation: It is known
How many of them? How do you know?
“Many. It is known.”
I also like how you put “users” in quotes for some reason. Anyway, good talk.
I can assure you that the vast majority of users in my footprint, about 600 of them, use Chrome because we set it as default. Many people have no idea the difference between Chrome and edge. I am currently sitting at a desk where the user has opened Chrome, but it is not default.
That’s why I used the specific phrasing “had it downloaded to their computer” instead of claiming that they were the ones to do it. You’ll notice that those users in your footprint also fall into a category of people which this won’t do a damn thing to influence.
Yes, they will.
I think you’re overestimating the degree to which the majority of users are willing to inconvenience themselves over a browser. If Microsoft announced tomorrow that Windows no longer supported any browser other than edge you wouldn’t see a mass migration to Linux. Instead you would see a healthy uptick in complaints about edge.
Maybe not mass migration, but that alone would probably add another percentage point or so to Linux’s market share, while others would just set about breaking the limitation/working around it within probably hours.
Unless enterprise is part of the equation. All those people are simply stuck using whatever thier company uses. Which is usually Edge and Chrome. With no option to change.
The people who wouldn’t notice wouldn’t have changed their browser.
You’re assuming they’re the ones who installed it in the first place.
Ding ding ding
Most users I know can’t distinguish Edge from Chrome any longer. I have to ask them to look for the Copilot symbol to differentiate the two.
Stupid is as stupid does.
I am willing to bet there will be A LOT of people. I am a very tech savvy person, and I use edge on my work computer for many things (single sign on). My default search engine changed to bing, and I ended up using bing by accident for a while. And then for a while longer cause I was too lazy to change the setting.
All of that but then also that they will buy out any competition so you can care and notice, but fuck you.
There is no end on Microsoft nagging:
- Trying to install Firefox.
- Windows: Why would you need another browser? You already have a browser. Use Microsoft Edge.
That’s why i completely nuked Edge when i was still on windows 11. Including WebView. I simply did not give a fuck if anything used edge.
When i installed (fedora) linux for the first time, i was like:
wait… this really does only what i tell it to! holy shit!
And i never looked back. (And i distrohopped over time. I am currently using arch, and testing NixOS in a VM via virt-manager. If i find it to be good enough, i’ll copy the config and install on my host, alongside arch. And slowly, i’ll nixify my pc.)
Nix made me love my computer. I have everything I want and if anything goes wrong I just rollback. After a taste it’s the only OS that feels right
nix>>>
although have you considered gentoo?
no, no, no, no, no, no, no, and NO.
My laptop already suffers enough when compiling stuff through the AUR, i won’t even try it.
Aww, I found you. My green twat tag buddy! See, it works great. Hope you have an excellent day!
oh yeah i made that one comment - what was the original comment i was replying to again? i can’t remember and the post seems to have been deleted. (also do i actually have that tag or are you kidding? i can’t see it)
The post was about mod abuse, I think, and I mentioned my process for tagging annoying users and adding arbitrary downvotes to them in the Voyager app! You wanted the same tag, but I didn’t want it to get confused with the same tag for frustrating users, so I colored it green instead of red!
ahaha i remember now, thanks - i wish the tag were universal though :D
I did the same thing until I switched to Geruda Linux a few weeks ago. Neat arch based distro that is optimized for gaming. When I bought a laptop I explicitly chose the DIY Framework laptop so I didn’t have to purchase Windows and have been running Fedora on that for years without issues.
I’ve been using Firefox for over a decade, and Windows has never complained about it. What are you talking about?
I think this started with Windows 10, don’t know which version though. A couple examples from the net:
Microsoft Edge encountered an error: Microsoft Edge is not the default browser. We reset your default browser to Microsoft Edge to resolve the problem
Install MSEdgeRedirect to solve this problem.
I also recommend O&O Shut Up 10 and StartAllBack to disable ads/AI/bloat and restore removed Start menu functionality (like vertical taskbars). Also, always build the ISO in Rufus so you have the option to disable the Microsoft account requirement.
Alternatively you could* switch to Linux.
Install MSEdgeRedirect to solve this problem.
I also recommend O&O Shut Up 10 and StartAllBack…
Me: Why go through all that trouble, just install Linux
Alternatively you would switch to Linux.
Welp
Damn it, could*
I just finished migrating our last windows holdout in my house. Honestly very painless and while everyone is different we haven’t had any regrets. Eol for Windows 10 was a fantastic bogeyman.
What distribution did you migrate to? (Not trying to start a fight, I’d just like to switch myself)
oh jeez lol I’ve never had a Linux fight. I picked kde neon because I love the ui and neon is bleeding edge for plasma updates. being based on Ubuntu which I was already familiar with sealed the deal. it’s very comfortable for Windows users out of the box,and can be customised further into a visual clone of Windows 10/11. I’ve had a great time gaming on it, very little set up for amd.
Thanks mate, I appreciate all the info
Glad I could help, if you’re looking to try it out and have a spare usb lying around you can try a live version. That loads the OS into ram and allows you to try out the os. most(maybe all) linux distros have one. Fair warning it will be noticeably faster than everything due to running off ram. if you like it enough you can install it alongside Windows, then if you’re completely sold you can use the live disk again to expand the Linux partition over Windows.
Here is the neon download page. It has instructions for making a live usb.
ps. i may have also undersold kde, they also have a whole suite of neat applications they’ve made for their os
Finally managed to get my dad to switch his laptop
nice, my wife was super hesitant. I had to remind her she only uses libreoffice and firefox anyway hahaha
To be fair
I didn’t notice that either
Or, if you must stay on Windows, you could switch to Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC, which is Windows 11 without the shitware and with ten years of guaranteed updates. The Mass Grave has the details.
They say that Stockholm syndrome is fake because of bad data. Windows is the proof that it’s true.
There is a possible version of windows that is good and that people want. It’s a just a shame that Microsoft isn’t interested it making it.
As someone who grew up on windows, I’m willing to stay with it for as long as I can make it like that version. I don’t want Mac, and Linux doesn’t support enough (still, but maybe one day)
I laughed at Microsoft a lot when they basically made Windows 10 beg people to try edge.
You tried to change your default and it was like, this isn’t recommended! And you’re like, idgaf change the default, and Windows is like, are you sure? Yes! But edge can save battery power. Are you really sure?
Fuck off edge. Change the default.
Are you sure?
I work IT support. I’ve seen the dialog about 1000 times.
It’s crazy how many people prefer a browser that’s not edge.
They seem to have removed it in Windows 11, and even might have disabled it in later versions of 10. Idk, everything I’m dealing with now in terms of new setups are Windows 11.
But are you really sure?
You convinced me, it definitely didn’t happen. I was hallucinating again.
A post about Windows being shit? On Lemmy? I wonder what the comments are going to be about. Maybe someone will have found an alternative system to use.
Have you tried TempleOS by chance?
Or PonyOS
That’s… impressive.
deleted by creator
He died for our sins…
ReactOS /s
Seriously, you know the answer.
Have you tried the new update? It actually isn’t all that bad. It is terrible from a security perspective but if you just want to play some Win XP games it works fine offline.
if you just want to play some Win XP games it works fine offline.
That could be a slogan for WINE (and all game-oriented forks).
Wine doesn’t target old games
It might work or it might not
Do you mean DOSbox old or is there a support gap between the two?
DOS box is DOS
Interestingly enough you can run it under React OS
I hate that Windows is like this
It would be better if people didn’t need to worry about switching.
That app was your other browser. And the problem was that it made itself your default browser. But no worries. We fixed that right up for you.
Microsoft needs to hire a psychologist or something. Their senseless nagging on forcing shit down our throats doesn’t psychologically work the way they think it does.
Except it does work. Its easy to forget that most users dont really know or care that much about their browser or care what their laptop is doing.
They just click things until something with search bar comes up.
The tech savy people are not their biggest customer group so they can risk annoying some people as long as they know they are getting more people in to their enviroment than they are loosing their users.
Funnily enough, I got an email from MS plugging their Copilot shit.
I don’t give a fuck about what I’m subscribed to, I give a fuck about the link to unsubscribe from it.
Hmm is that illegal (missing unsub link) in this case?
I got this email from Microsoft a month ago
I have never had a Windows PC, I use Mac (I want to use Linux but I’m still waiting for Asahi Linux to have a driver for DisplayPort over USB-C), my photos are backed up and synced on iCloud already.
I don’t use any Xbox thing, I don’t have an Xbox; My Microsoft account only exists for one purpose and reason: Minecraft made me migrate my account.
Also isnt not having an unsubscribe button illegal?
Something I’ve noticed, and it’s consistent enough that I suspect that microsoft does it on purpose, there’s a 50/50 chance that your windows instal will either be fine forever without problems, or plagued with constant issues that get worse with every update. 2 identical machines with the same install media can produce very different experiences.
I use linux now, and I no longer do tech support, so I’m glad I don’t have to deal with that shit anymore.
You’re absolutely right, but there’s a bit more to it than that.
As someone who deployed Windows professionally for years and was a power user at home, let me supply some additional details,
Windows has become business software through and through. It can run fine enough if you go with a basic install and minimal tweaks through only the standard channels (like Group Policy) and this is probably what those people always loudly claiming “well I never have an issue!” are doing and then they’ll accuse you for bringing it on yourself from deviating from this.
But what everyone should understand, especially them, is that this is not how normal people use their computers and it’s utter bullshit that Microsoft continues to restrict people into this box. Most businesses don’t need hardly anything aside from Office and perhaps one or two industry specific applications, an overwhelming number of these being SaaS these days anyways. Normal people on the other hand use a wide variety of software for their businesses and hobbies in a wide array of configurations and what’s more, we enjoy personalizing our experiences on top of it, as we should! This unsurprisingly leads to more instability that Microsoft simply doesn’t want to take responsibility for.
People still complain about not being able to move the taskbar from the bottom of the screen and Microsoft apologists will say, “but it’s such a small thing!” And well, it is and that’s kind of my point; it’s a bellweather. I bet it’s a simple fix, they could do it, they could please people and provide further usability but they just don’t have to. How long has it gone unaddressed now? You want to play Call of Duty, you cretin? Lick our boots! And don’t even get me started on the whole SecureBoot/TPM 2.0 DRM lockdown issue.
I use Arch BTW and here’s my quick pitch for that. It really is a good distro for people of moderate or above skill level. I slowly built it out over time, bolted on each carefully selected piece of software from the repository, reading the wiki and making configurations as I went. In doing so, I gained a better understanding of Linux in general and my system in specific so on the rare occasions something does break, I don’t feel as clueless addressing it. The reason we all start to sound like cult-like zealots after awhile is because we’ve established a personal relationship with our computers; it is my friend again. It’s hard to understate the actual palpable relief that comes from cutting out a bloated, malicious corporation from that chain of trust with a machine we use in our daily lives.
It’s time to end Microsoft. Reach out, be helpful and welcoming in the Linux community. They’re losing balance, they’ve overplayed their hand on 11 and over-invested in AI and while I doubt we’d be lucky enough to be truly rid of them, we can see them suffer some real damage.
Windows: The top choice when you want someone else to control your computer.
I just love it when I click on a link in Teams and it opens in Edge
Obviously it’s not technically possible for a Microsoft program to open links in a different browser than their own. It’s really hard to code that sort of cross compatibility. At least when your company name is Microsoft.
Switched to Ubuntu completely this year and I think it’s finally ready. There are still issues, there are always going to be issues, but at least I get to choose which apps I want to use.
Windows 11 is just objectively terrible. It’s Microsoft turning your power bill into their profit.
New 3400$ laptop this year. I’ve had it for 5 months.
Sometimes the display driver wigs out and my cursor is permanently glitched until reboot.
Other times my browser is so sluggish until I close and restart it.
Sometimes my keyboard and mouse cut out, and I get repeated keystrokes for a few seconds or a brief period where it ignores my key presses.
I have so many more complaints about windows but I’d probably reach a character limit.
You know it’s bad when I boot my manjaro Linux desktop for the first time in months and the first thing I notice is how fast everything is to load.
Is it a Razer laptop?
It is not
Translation.
We found a problem and its that you made the Wrong choice.
Set Microsoft edge to default browser
It’s not your choice, it’s Spacer’s Choice!
