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Old 08-25-15, 12:32 AM   #11
AC_Hacker
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SDMCF View Post
That sounds very like the rationale behind Iron which is the browser I have been using for a while now. Had you considered Iron?
SDMCF,

No, I have not heard of Iron, but I'd like to give it a try.

By the way, what operating system are you using??

Have you ever tried using a VPN service?

Thanks,

-AC

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Old 08-25-15, 02:04 AM   #12
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I have a number of PCs here with various OSs, for different purposes. Nothing later than Windows 7 though.

I have used a VPN service for working with one particular customer, but I am no expert.
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Old 08-25-15, 09:42 AM   #13
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I've got Win10 installed as well. I upgraded then I reinstalled it from scratch. I removed some of the spyware crap but I'm sure there's a ton more.

I heard something about the big brother stuff in the agreement, but wasn't aware of it was quite that bad. I don't understand how they can do that legally. Just because you write something down doesn't mean you're allowed to invade people's privacy.

I think I need to start using some of these other Open source OS's as well as browsers. I use Firefox now with adblock, cookie blockers and ghostery. I run peerblock as well but that doesn't do much.

SDMCF, what other OS's do you use. Would the best Open source OS be linux still? I haven't used that stuff for a long while. We're mostly a MS shop at work.
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Old 08-25-15, 09:53 AM   #14
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...I have used a VPN service for working with one particular customer, but I am no expert.
I have been investigating and using a VPN service for about half a year now, and it is very interesting...

There is a technique called 'geo-location' by which content providers can serve up content tailored to your geographic location. Google uses this technique to an amazing extent, so if you are searching for 'hardware store' it will return information that prioritizes hardware stores in your locale. In that case it is benign.

It can also give you the illusion that you are searching the whole planet for information, when in fact your search field is actually more limited than you may assume. So, VIP services can allow you to choose your location in the world, so that from a server's point of view, you are actually where you have chosen to be. This can open up very promising possibilities if you have an interest in other parts of the world, and what are the cultural offerings, and for me, even more importantly, what is the news content that is available. Of course, if you are convinced that the news we get in the US is the best in the world, this would not be an attractive feature.

I have discovered that there is wonderful cultural content that is available from BBC, that is not available if your geo-location is not in the UK. And if you don't know this, the BBC content that is available through PBS is pre-filtered by BBC (what do they want US audiences to see) and also by PBS (what do they want US audiences to see), so we never see the amazing, rich, and sophisticated content that is daily fair in the UK. This has given me a glimpse into the impact of "free TV", and what a terrific price we pay for it in terms not only of the intentionally deadening effect of continual bombardment of commercial messages, but even more insidious, the invisible censorship wielded by commercial sponsors. If we really had a democratic government that was sensitive to the will of the people, this would not be our fate.

Additionally, as you surely know, VPN uses 'tunnels', which are constantly monitoring for intrusion (and will re-route themselves if intrusion attempts are detected), through which encrypted data flows. One result of this is that your true IP address is impossible to determine.

There are different ways to do VPN, and after some research I have determined that OpenVPN is te best from an ease of deployment perspective and from the perspective of the robustness of the encryption.

Since I have come to realize the extent to which corporations are tracking and recording all data pertaining to Internet behavior and exploiting that data in any way that can result in making money, and also the extent of government intrusion (Snowden revealed that corporations share their information with the government, so it's all the same), even though I am doing nothing wrong, the Constitution did grant me privacy rights, which I am determined to keep.

I also have several computers, and 'Internet devices', some of which are not capable of running a VPN service. So I have found that there are commercial routers which will provide VPN security to your entire network. The commercial VPN routers that use OpenVPN are few in number. A good commercial VPN router should have encryption in hardware, to support good bandwidth.

I have also discovered that certain DD-WRT and Tomato builds are custom firmwares can be installed on select routers. The result is a cheap and effective VPN router. So, I have a hobby of seeking out used routers (usually less than $10) from the 'selection list' and re-configuring them to be OpenVPN routers. I have discovered that since these routers were never meant for VPN use, they don't have hardware encryption. Rather they rely on the CPU to do the heavy lifting. So I am seeking used wireless routers with the highest CPU speed.

VPN processing can consume a lot of the CPU capacity of home routers, and if your Internet bandwidth is high, the homemade VPN router may not be able to keep up, unless your router has a hardware encryption capability. My best DD-WRT conversion is able to support 17 Mbps down, with no crypto chip.

There are certain lower-priced CPUs that do have crypto ability, like certain Atom, VIA, AMD, and ARM CPUs. A bit of sleuthing will tell you which.

There are some projects going on that I am following, wherein people are building their own VPN routers with crypto-enabled CPUs. There are some very small micro-ATX computer boards that perfectly fit the hardware bill. These projects are using pfSense rather than DD-WRT or Tomato.

A lot of people outside the US use VPNs to enable them to see NetFlix from the US, because NetFlix uses geo-location, too. Which means that there is NetFlix content that we don't have access to, either.

There may be some BT activity also, but I can't say for sure.

My favorite VPN service is PIA (Private Internet Access) which is only $40 a year, and they keep NO (zero) records.

Best,

-AC
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Old 08-25-15, 11:49 AM   #15
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Quote:
Of course, if you are convinced that the news we get in the US is the best in the world, this would not be an attractive feature.
ROKU with Euronews. It shows the world is going to hell while all the US news is showing is a skateboarding dog and Kim Kardashian

Quote:
I have discovered that there is wonderful cultural content that is available from BBC, that is not available if your geo-location is not in the UK. And if you don't know this, the BBC content that is available through PBS is pre-filtered by BBC (what do they want US audiences to see) and also by PBS (what do they want US audiences to see), so we never see the amazing, rich, and sophisticated content that is daily fair in the UK. This has given me a glimpse into the impact of "free TV", and what a terrific price we pay for it in terms not only of the intentionally deadening effect of continual bombardment of commercial messages, but even more insidious, the invisible censorship wielded by commercial sponsors. If we really had a democratic government that was sensitive to the will of the people, this would not be our fate.
A man after my own heart.
But have you noticed when watching a PBS program that it starts with a small segment showing what the program is about and then immediately goes to a series of ads for cars, trucks, insurance etc. Oh sorry, they can't be ads because this is commercial free public television. Yeah right
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Old 08-26-15, 04:46 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Higgy View Post
SDMCF, what other OS's do you use. Would the best Open source OS be linux still? I haven't used that stuff for a long while. We're mostly a MS shop at work.
I am the wrong person to ask about that. My choice of OS is dictated by what OS my customers want to use (I write custom software), so I don't pick them myself, I don't particularly keep up to date with the latest releases and I keep old stuff around so I can maintain/support the software I write. The OSs I rated most highly (when they were current) have been commercial failures and have not been available for years. So you would probably get better advice from a random person on the street.
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Old 08-26-15, 11:25 AM   #17
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LOL ok, no problem man. I work in IT, but like I said we're mostly an MS shop here. I talked to my coworker who likes to read about Linux and he said Linux Mint was good. He also said he read Chromium was good as well as Iceweasel (which can only be used on Linux).
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Old 08-31-15, 11:42 AM   #18
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Default Power Tools for De-Crapification

I have learned that Microsoft sells "Microsoft Signature" computers. This is a special series that have no bloatware or crapware installed. And you have to pay $200 or $300 more dollars for these 'special computers'. So these bums are making money going and coming. If you build your own computer, or if you completely wipe your computer and install a purchased copy of a Win OS, you will be starting with a faster computer.

You can also send your PC to a Microsoft Service Center to be de-crapified for $99, how kind of them.



M$ formerly published specs telling the world how how much faster their Microsoft Signature computers were than fully crapified computers, but it became so embarrassingly clear what scumbags they actually are that they pulled THIS_PAGE down from the Internet... How ungracious of them to deprive us of that knowledge. Good thing we have Internet Archive to capture those precious memories.

* * *

I also ran across a program from THIS_PLACE that has a PC De-Crapifier program that will de-crapify Win_7 & Win_8.1, I'm not so sure if it will work it's magic on Win_10.

* * *

HERE IS an interesting piece that discusses how, in Win_10 you can 'Reset' your computer so that it is like new, so you don't have to get an image from MS to do a re-install. I tried it, it worked pretty good, but some of the apps I hate kept coming back and were still there... (come to think of it, I had an X-girlfriend who was just like that...)

* * *

I have found some interesting tools and programs that can remove a lot of the bloatware from Win_10. These tools are very powerful and they could cause your computer to cease functioning, so I strongly suggest that you prepare a USB drive that contains a Fresh Install copy of Win_10, as a precautionary backup.

I have already needed to use this USB Fresh Install twice on mine.

The instructions for doing this can be found RIGHT_HERE.

* * *

I found a YouTube video on securing Win_10 that covers most of the security techniques I have learned so far.




* * *

I also found A PAGE that goes into considerable detail about how to use a Win_10 tool that is already in Win_10. The tool is called PowerShell, which if run as Administrator will allow the removal of quite a few apps that are time consuming or not possible to remove.

PowerShell, when run as Administrator will allow you to type (or paste) the following PowerShell command lines into PowerShell, and hit return, and it does it's magic. I have tried them all, most work, a few didn't and I got messages saying so.

I hope everyone understands that the lines in BOLD are descriptions and the following lines are the lines to be pasted into PowerShell.

(BTW: If anyone is more scripting savvy than I am knows how to chain all of these commands into one script, please post full details, you will be doing a service to the world.)

Code:
Uninstall 3D Builder:

Get-AppxPackage *3dbuilder* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Alarms and Clock:

Get-AppxPackage *windowsalarms* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Calculator:

Get-AppxPackage *windowscalculator* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Calendar and Mail:

Get-AppxPackage *windowscommunicationsapps* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Camera:

Get-AppxPackage *windowscamera* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Contact Support:

This app can’t be removed.

Uninstall Cortana:

This app can’t be removed.

Uninstall Get Office:

Get-AppxPackage *officehub* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Get Skype:

Get-AppxPackage *skypeapp* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Get Started:

Get-AppxPackage *getstarted* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Groove Music:

Get-AppxPackage *zunemusic* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Maps:

Get-AppxPackage *windowsmaps* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Microsoft Edge:

This app can’t be removed.

Uninstall Microsoft Solitaire Collection:

Get-AppxPackage *solitairecollection* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Money:

Get-AppxPackage *bingfinance* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Movies & TV:

Get-AppxPackage *zunevideo* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall News:

Get-AppxPackage *bingnews* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall OneNote:

Get-AppxPackage *onenote* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall People:

Get-AppxPackage *people* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Phone Companion:

Get-AppxPackage *windowsphone* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Photos:

Get-AppxPackage *photos* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Store:

Get-AppxPackage *windowsstore* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Sports:

Get-AppxPackage *bingsports* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Voice Recorder:

Get-AppxPackage *soundrecorder* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Weather:

Get-AppxPackage *bingweather* | Remove-AppxPackage

Uninstall Windows Feedback:

This app can’t be removed.

Uninstall Xbox:

Get-AppxPackage *xboxapp* | Remove-AppxPackage
* * *

I also have found a program that is reputed to stop spying and remove unwanted programs.

There's a description of the program (PLEASE READ FIRST) HERE.

And there is a download link for the program HERE.

I haven't tried this program, so I can't vouch for it at this time.


May all of your de-crapifying efforts be successful and bring you improved PC performance, and relief from the relentless advertising Harpies and National Security creeps that think they have a right to invade us, where we live.

Best,

-AC
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Old 08-31-15, 03:33 PM   #19
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You know you could just ditch Windows 10 and install Linux. I have Ubuntu on my Laptop and have had 0 issues...
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Old 08-31-15, 05:11 PM   #20
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Default Installing Ubuntu

I think installing Ubuntu is a great idea... or any other OS for that matter.

I actually think that the Win_10 is OK. It is over-sized and could be made to run faster, but it's kind of nice.

For me, the biggest problem is that the personal data collection has now reached an Orwellian scale, with data being collected in video form, in audio form, in the text you type, and in all of your Internet activity.

* * *

I just found out via a Forbes Magazine post (yes, that Forbes), that M$ has pushed out updates to older Windows 7 and Windows 8, that bestow those OSs with ALL the Orwellian data collection features as Win_10.


So if your Win_7 or Win_8 even has the Win_10 update thingie waiting, you have already been hit.

Luckily, THIS_PAGE tells you how to remove those nasty data-collecting updates.

So folks, it has never been clearer, Microsoft is NOT YOUR FRIEND.

* * *

Getting back to Ubuntu... I have been following attempts to convert the little ASUS X205T from Win_8/10 to Ubuntu. So far, as best as I can determine, it's not ready for prime time, the Wi-Fi is not working, and the sound is not working... there may be some other issues also.

So, I am keeping my eye on the situation...

Best,

-AC

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