Microsoft spent four years stuffing Windows 11 with ads, forced Copilot integrations, and bloatware, now they want applause for promising to remove it.
  • Lvxferre [he/him]@mander.xyzEnglish
    2·
    1 day ago

    Pavan Davuluri, the Windows president, admitted in January 2026 that “Windows 11 had gone off track” and said Microsoft was entering a mode called “swarming” where engineers would be pulled off new features to fix existing problems.

    If I had to take a guess, no such mode is happening. It’s just some higher up changing orders.

    I saw this headline and my first thought was: it’s like being in an abusive relationship. They beat you, then show up with flowers saying they’ve changed. And everyone around you says “see, they’re getting better.” But the bruises are still there and the apology only covers the hits people noticed.

    A better analogy would be if, instead of showing up with flowers, the husband made some loud promise about not beating the wife as much as before. “See? Now I beat her only once every two days! Praise me! And get back to the kitchen before I break my promise.”

    But the abuse pattern goes back way further than Windows 11. In 2015 and 2016,

    This pattern of abuse comes back from at least Windows XP times. Remember Internet Explorer and Windows Media Player? I do. It’s the same thing, really: user-hostile design that TL;DRs to “whatever those things [users] want, disregard it. Just smear the software on their faces until they swallow it, tiring those things down should teach them basic obedience.”

    Damage has been already done. And frankly? That’s good.