I’m running out of OSes

[L0n3gr3yw0lf]

I have never had such a bad time in my like like the past week (with the last 48 hours in particular) with using my computer, and I have been using PCs almost exclusively since my first one back in 1997.

 

(I will try to be brief how I ended up in this state. I haven’t refreshed/reinstalled my Windows 10 in about a year and the performance was getting pretty bad so I decided to reinstall it with a fresh format of my 256GB M.2 main SSD, it went fine, reinstalled all my software and games as well, spent a day and a half on this last weekend. Come to 2 days ago, took my PC to my friends house (on the outskirts of the town, pretty much countryside to be honest) because I’m babysitting 2 puppers while the owners are on holiday for 2 weeks. I try to connect to their WiFi (the only internet access they have, this will come about later in the story) but all of a sudden my Windows 10 WiFi/Network Button has disappeared and so did any way to connect to WiFi (i have tried everything I could find, yes I have gone deep into Share & Network settings, drivers reinstall, etc) and they only way to fix it was to reset Windows 10. So I lose all my software and games ... again. Spent an entire day trying to fix that issue and then reinstalling only the most important software and World of Tanks.

 

At that point it was evening and I really needed to blow off some steam, so I power up World of a Tanks, activate a few boosters and I try to blow some shit up ... after an hour ... no go. Windows Delivery Optimisation thought it was a brilliant idea to download at full speed “something”. Don’t know what it was, Windows 10 had all the updates installed and it was the latest version (according to Windows itself as well as current Windows version state after a quick Google Search). After one hour of downloading over 30GB and using the entire bandwidth I just gave up waiting and went on Google searching to a way to kill Delivery Optimisation. Spent the entire night (went to bed at 2 AM) trying literally everything I could to stop and deactivate the service, only to resurface after reboot. Did the same on the home WiFi as well as my cellular (unlimited) data tether. I went to bed pissed.

 

Woke up this morning and decided I had enough of Windows 10. I’m going to go back to Windows 7 (a first in about 8 years). So I make a Windows 7 USB stick and start the installation process ... till I found out directly that Windows 7 doesn’t speak M.2 format and doesn’t even see my ADATA SPG 8200 SSD (in BIOS it works just fine). Back to Google search for the next 4 hours ... so I try to install Windows 7 on my SATA SSD so I can clone that installation to the M.2 drive. Well good news stops to where the cloning software cant make a recovery USB stick of my only USB stick with me. So I can’t clone it within Windows 7 because Windows 7 doesn’t speak M.2 (with or without SATA and Intel Z97 drivers installed). So fuck Windows 7 then ... I’m switching to Linux (at this point my blood pressure was visible through he veins of my face and hands).

 

So I download Linux Mint Cinnamon version on the USB stick and manage to install it on the M.2 SSD with no issues. I start up Linux and low and behold ... WiFi doesn’t work. (Insert rage swearing for about 10 minutes). Apparently my TP Link AC600 WiFi USB doesn’t speak native Linux. So I calm down and go on the internet and try to download a driver ... try ... apparently I need to compile my own installer, bloody brilliant ... 5 minutes later I get only errors, can’t get past Step One: Sudo Make. So I go on the internet again and see alternatives: almost everywhere I go I see the same advice: connect with Ethernet to get the stuff you need to make the device work. Really? So I’m stuck with 2 access points that work only wirelessly and an OS that doesn’t do all hat much without internet connection ( needs to “sudo get” the shit out of everything) and a useless USB WiFi dongle that’s basically dead, in the country side with no neighbours to lend a wired connection on my holiday. (Insert 15 minutes of constant rage). This was half an hour ago.

 

Now my only option is, you will never guess anyone has every said this: Help me Windows 8.1 ... you are my only hope. (The top 3 most hated OS after Windows ME and Windows Vista). 

 

So why Windows 8.1? Well Windows 7 doesn’t work on M.2, Windows 10 eats the shit out of my limited speed WiFi tether connection (not just here but back at my place too, my only internet connection I can have is my 3 cellular data), Linux still doesn’t play well with compatibility and needs internet to be 100% working (at least in my case). The only OS missing is Hackintosh’s Mac OS but then again: you need a Apple computer to be able to install a Mac OS (if I had that then I wouldn’t need to do a Hackintosh). So now I’m waiting for the download of Windows 8.1 ISO to be able to use the bloody computer. I’m so lucky my friends left their laptop home so at least I can make another Windows installation USB or else I would be stuck.

 

My Lightroom backlog is stuck at over 4000 unfinished pictures and I already wasted 2 days of my 2 weeks holiday basically doing nothing but boil my nerves.

 

And this hole situation really puts a dent in my future decisions because my PC is getting old now:

Gigabyte GA-Z97X-SLI, 32GB Hyper X 1866MHz, Intel Core i7 4770K 4.5 OC on 240 AIO, R9 Nano, ADATA SPG 8200 256GB M.2 NVME, WD Blue 1TB SATA, 1 TB Hitachi and 1TB Toshiba 2.5” HDD, 500W Bronze Silverstone SFX, Thermaltake Core P3.

 

I am looking for a replacement but I’m really tired of Windows 10 shenanigans to make another PC, would like to go portable but Intel is pulling it’s 14nm so hard now that the laptops just can’t keep up with the heat and the TDP from cramming more cores at slower and slower frequencies (i7 9750H is slower then i7 8750H, I mean seriously they released a lower base clock and a lower boost clock CPU). While my main usage is photo editing I still love playing games (I can’t wait for Doom Eternal) but on laptops the RTX 2070 and 2080 are so expensive, I was thinking of eGPU but even with the bigger cost overhead ... you get one tier lower performance from what you paid on the GPU because if the 4x lanes.

 

I though Linux might be a solution to Windows 10 but again, the compatibility issues with Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop and DNG Converter AND big name games (like Doom Eternal or World of Tanks). I’m just tired of having to jump so many hoops just to get stuff done. I wouldn’t even mind switching to alternative photo editions WITH some time to do that but there’s so much to jump over and over.

 

Then there’s Mac OS and Apple devices. The only other platform that is supported for Adobe suite ... but a shitshow for gaming. Top it off with insane prices per performance/components/value, no upgradability (of significant usefulness), encrypted storage that is non user replaceable, and again prices: over 2000£ for a barely midrange GPU, RAM upgrades that only know square factor costs, same with internal storage. Besides Linux only Apple has a more reasonable approach to user data usage and privacy.

 

For the first time in 24 years I’m at a complete lost at what I should do and I always kept myself up to date informed on PC and laptop options over the years. The state of OSes just boggles my mind to be honest. Microsoft turning Windows into a service and doing some of the worst stuff I ever seen on the backstage. Apple becoming the Jesus of user privacy in an age where everyone wants everything from you (attention, data, money, hype, etc) but will cost you your soul (if you are poor), a valuable organ (if you are healthy enough) or at least 2000-2500£ for something more then just meh performance. Linux getting better and better ... but like going sideways in keeping up with the other 2 in terms of compatibility. SteamOS and Valve support is getting better and yet big developer/publishers are still going like: Linux? Meh

 

So after installing Windows 8.1 happily find out that AMD has not released in update Radeon driver since 2017 ... brilliant ... Windows 10 driver would not detect my R9 Nano, so I try Windows 7 driver, which funnily enough its up to date, and it worked. Good news right ? Finally got my PC working? 

 

No.

 

Adobe Creative Cloud with all of its apps do not work, install or even let you download on Windows 8.1 (but they do work on Windows 7 and Windows 10 ... wink wink).

 

So there goes another holiday day gone with nothing done. My options for tomorrow are as fallows:

 

1) Windows 10 and get my bandwidth strangled to death my stupid services that cannot be stop

 

2) Windows 8.1 which is unable to run anything, like literally anything (and I though Microsoft couldn’t make the worst OS ever made ... worse)

 

3) Windows 7 that doesn’t know what M.2 NVME is so there goes my pretty pennies SSD out the window (no pun intended?)

 

4) Windows XP? Really? Seriously?

 

5) Linux ... if I can find an Ethernet plug out in the middle of nowhere ... or manage to find a WiFi USB dongle that works out of the box with Linux Distroes

 

6) OS X ... there’s an apple tree in the garden ... maybe I can download a OS X installer from it

[Senzelian]

I actually read through half of that, which is way more than I intended to read.

 

Windows 8.1 should've worked just fine. There's barely any difference compared to Windows 10.

But the only solution I see is to install Windows 10 over and over again until it works or clone a working Windows 10 install from another PC.

[Radium_Angel]

Windows 9 is a thing.

All the advantages of 10, with none of the bullshit associated with it.

Looks like Win7, which is a great thing. Security only updates, no Metro, no Store, no Live Tiles. Supported until 2024.

 

I run it, been for a year now, everything works on it. Fantastic OS.

[Senzelian]

4 minutes ago, Radium_Angel said:

Windows 9 is a thing.

All the advantages of 10, with none of the bullshit associated with it.

Looks like Win7, which is a great thing. Security only updates, no Metro, no Store, no Live Tiles. Supported until 2024.

 

I run it, been for a year now, everything works on it. Fantastic OS.

Windows 8.1 Embedded Industry Pro is not Windows 9 and modding the living crap out of Windows 10 isn't Windows 9 either.

 

Unless you mean something entirely different, this isn't a solution.

[Fasauceome]

33 minutes ago, L0n3gr3yw0lf said:

I will try to be brief how I ended up in this state

So much for that

 

Can we get a TLDR?

[r2724r16]

My English essays are usually shorter.

[Radium_Angel]

2 hours ago, Senzelian said:

this isn't a solution

I'd wager it is.

It's got all the advantages of 10 (m.2 native support) modern drivers, UEFI etc.

None of the disads.

Security updates only, no telemetry, no phoning home, no "oops we broke shit for fun and giggles" optional poorly checked updates, no sudden OS changes for the hell-of-it, no live tiles, no store. I have yet to see any downsides to it. 

DX12 is Win10 only, but there is more to life than gaming, unless that is the *only* thing you use your system for, in which case Win10 is the only option.

[lloose]

Your WiFi button disappears when your driver breaks. Chances are Windows 10 installed an update and overwrote the current driver with one that didn’t work. You could have avoided all of this by just installing the driver. 
 

With Mint, you wouldn’t have to recompile the installer. You could just use the built in kernel selector and picked a kernel version that included your WiFi adapter. I had to do the same thing when I upgraded the killer WiFi card in my laptop. Took like 5 clicks and a reboot. 

[L0n3gr3yw0lf]

If you really want the shortest version of story read the last 6 lines.

 

i have tried re-installing the TP Link AC600 driver more then once, using the manufacturer driver and the Microsoft default driver when plugging in, it did not bring back the WiFi connection in the Windows Task Bar or in Network Settings. In the Change Adapter Settings the WiFi adapter was on (it showed up with the green icon of WiFi) but Windows would not see any WiFi network even though my phone was tethering a WiFi network and the house WiFi was fine (I could connect the tablet to it with no issues on both). I tried command lines as well to clear the networks settings and it didn’t work.

 

I have been having problems with my internet bandwidth for more then a month now but I though it was just because of signal issues from my cellular provider, it was never more then one or two bars of 4G signal but once I got here I had the same problems with my cellular tether and the house WiFi network.

 

I tried killing the Delivery Optimiser Service, deactivate it in service.msc (to the point that it started locking my permissions to make changes in its status and I’m the only user with administrative access as well), tried to block its internet access with a firewall and after restart it would make a different process to work around that, tried virus scans from Malwarebyte, BitDefender and ESET thinking maybe I have gone crazy or stupid and can’t recognise bad behaviour. Tried registry modifications, a piece of softer that modifies Windows 10 permissions for data collecting that seem to break features in Windows the more I tried to block stupid Microsoft data collection (at a point I couldn’t log into Office 2019 and I couldn’t read my personal scheduling spreadsheet to manage work time across my devices).

 

Adobe Creative Cloud would not let me download their software on Windows 8.1. AMD Radeon driver for Windows 10 wasn’t detecting my graphics card when I tried to install it, Windows 7 version worked but I noticed (before giving up and going to sleep) that my monitor was on after restarting Windows 8.1 but was not displaying any information, just black screen with backlights on. I would have to have to turn off the power supply for a minute or two before I would finally get an image, even to see the BIOS boot up.

 

Call me crazy if you think I am but I did not give up every time I ended up with a problem, I poured at least 4 hours in every single one before either it was fixed or I couldn’t fix it.

 

I’m not a Linux user and I haven’t used command lines much since I was back in primary school with Windows 98 and XP. Command lines is not my forté, the only Linux driver I could find on TP Link AC600 was on their official website and the kernel they said it “should” work (they even mentioned they can’t guarantee it would work) was quite old. Tried Googling for a workaround but everywhere I looked I would need repository updated for default Linux to make it work ... which I can’t since I can’t connect to any other form of internet except WiFi? Or walk back to town for an hour and a half with my computer strapped in my back and beg one of my friends to let me use their fibre optic connection.

 

 

I’m sure, at this point someone will say either I talk to much or I can’t make really short and concise phrases to convey my needs and wants, right?

It’s 2 AM and I’m to tired to stay awake and to nervous to sleep.

[homeap5]

On 8/25/2019 at 11:37 PM, Senzelian said:

But the only solution I see is to install Windows 10 over and over again until it works or clone a working Windows 10 install from another PC.

Last time I've check, Windows 10 is not random operating system. No matter how many times you install it - result will be the same. If something is wrong with installation, it means something is wrong with hardware.

[Senzelian]

21 hours ago, homeap5 said:

Last time I've check, Windows 10 is not random operating system. No matter how many times you install it - result will be the same. If something is wrong with installation, it means something is wrong with hardware.

Tbh, this was not meant to be taken literally.

[Dat Guy]

People who think that there are only three operating systems.

 

Sigh.

[Donut417]

On 8/25/2019 at 5:24 PM, L0n3gr3yw0lf said:

Linux

Some distros have no issues with drivers. Try Ubuntu or Pop OS. I have a WiFi/Bluetooth adapter that came with my motherboard. While I use Ethernet for network connectivity, my Bluetooth headset works fine under Pos OS. No extra drivers, no fiddling with the command line. 

[Donut417]

On 8/27/2019 at 3:39 PM, homeap5 said:

Last time I've check, Windows 10 is not random operating system. No matter how many times you install it - result will be the same. If something is wrong with installation, it means something is wrong with hardware.

It’s not about how many times you install. But it is about the version being installed. My old Ivy Bridge machine didn’t like 1903. Network card refused to come back when the machine went to sleep. It worked just fine on the older versions of Windows 10.